Unless Round is Funny

The boy....

2008-07-01T14:53:00.004-05:00

Alan a few months ago:

Lucero at Ardent Studios

2008-07-01T14:48:00.004-05:00

Go check out this Lucero show from the Ardent Studios. It's a 10th anniversary show (they've been around ten years? Gosh I feel old). Anyway, lots of good old songs in the show, and the band is tight and, mercifully, sober.

Back from the blogging dead....

2008-03-11T15:05:00.007-05:00

Here's most of what I've been up to:

Alan on February 25th

2007-02-27T09:54:00.000-06:00

My lil' Gunner:

Alan's first bath!

2007-02-07T16:40:00.000-06:00

Pic taken right after.

Rodney Alan Garrison II

2007-01-31T13:09:00.001-06:00

Rodney Alan Garrison, II "Alan" was born January 30, 2007 at 4:58 pm at Baptist Hospital in Jackson. He weighed 8 pounds and 8 ounces and was 21.5" long. Mom Alan and Frank are doing well!!!

More pictures can be found here:

http://albums.photo.epson.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=4302448&a=31742375

Rodney Alan Garrison II

2007-01-31T13:09:00.000-06:00

Must be MP3 Monday

2006-08-28T10:02:00.000-05:00

Here is a cut from the new M. Ward album, a cover of Daniel Johnston's "To Go Home," a rollicking, thrusting (uh huh huh huh) rocker just full of energy. Download it here. You can download the full album on the excellent music site emusic.com.

Muzzle of Bees, one of my favorite MP3 blogs is hosting a new Wilco tune, "There's a Light". Download it here. It's a live cut, but the sound is pretty good.

Also, rbally is an excellent mp3 blog which is heavy on the Wilco.

Bob Dylan - The Levee's Gonna Break

2006-08-28T09:59:00.000-05:00

New track from his new album coming out soon. Classic story song, repetition style.

Dowload it here.

Ahem, Reality, please report to the White House

2006-08-18T09:03:00.000-05:00

Mr. President said Wednesday that if we left Iraq it would be cutting and running.

He also said, without a hint of irony whatsoever:

"Leaving before we complete our mission would create a terrorist state in the heart of the Middle East, a country with huge oil reserves that the terrorist network would be willing to use to extract economic pain from those of us who believe in freedom"

Ahem.

He's referring to Iraq I presume, not Afghanistan. So we're clear: Before our unilateral, unprovoked invasion, Iraq was NOT a terrorist state in the heart of the Middle East. Iraq was a lot of bad things (just like Sudan, et. al), but it was not harboring, assisting or fostering terrorists. I get it, it's part of the great neocon strategy. CREATING a terrorist state where there was none before helps us to fight the terrorists. After all, we can only fight them if we create them.

I get it now.....

Geez. Have we triggered an all-out DISASTER or what?

2006-08-18T08:46:00.000-05:00

This story in the Guardian is really disconcerting:

"Turkey and Iran have dispatched tanks, artillery and thousands of troops to their frontiers with Iraq during the past few weeks in what appears to be a coordinated effort to disrupt the activities of Kurdish rebel bases."

I think the Kurds are allies with Israel. We're allied with Israel, obviously. So, it's Iran and Turkey and the Shia in Iraq v. Kurds/Israel/U.S.

"Frustrated by the reluctance of the US and the government in Baghdad to crack down on the PKK bases inside Iraq, Turkish generals have hinted they are considering a large-scale military operation across the border. They are said to be sharing intelligence about Kurdish rebel movements with their Iranian counterparts.

"We would not hesitate to take every kind of measures when our security is at stake," Abdullah Gul, the Turkish foreign minister, said last week."

Thanks, Mr. President.

Iraq Disconnect

2006-08-16T17:03:00.000-05:00

By all means go read Josh's entire post on this point, it is excellent and gives voice to what I think a majority of Americans sort of know instinctively.

But when revieing the "War on Terror" or Islamofascism or whatever they're calling it these days, ponder this:

Is there anyone in the country who can say honestly, in their heart of hearts, that when that moment of fear hit them after the recent reports out of London, they said to themselves, "God, I'm glad we're in Iraq"?

Anyone?

33%?

2006-08-11T09:48:00.001-05:00

So approval for the job Bush is doing as President is at 33%. If you turn on the news or listen to the "experts," you're often led to believe that a) opposing the President is politically dangerous and/or b) that if you oppose the war in Iraq (both its existence and execution), then you're part of the "extremist" left, the "wacko" crowd who emboldens or supports the Islamic terrorists behind the most recent foiled (by the British) terror plot.

Well, leaving aside for a second the falsity of that statement (and how often people who have been wrong so many times on matters of foreign policy are allowed to espouse it uncritically in the press), wouldn't any rational person conclude that with the 33% number and the 60% number (from the CNN poll) who oppose the war are clearly the majority now?

So everyone understands, repeat after me:

The recent terror plot, a plan orchestrated by British subjects of Pakistani origin, foiled by British intelligence agencies working in conjunction with law enforcement and US intelligence gathering (all of which was legal and none of which was done in Iraq), has absolutely nothing at all to do with Iraq.

Next, since we have 130k+ troops, other personnel, other intelligence resources, unimaginable $ resources and other tools bogged down in Iraq, the United States is LESS equipped to address, detect, investigate and foil a terrorist plot like the one described above.

Ergo, if you SUPPORT the mission in Iraq, thereby depleting our ability to deal with real threats from terrorists, you necessarily OPPOSE or undermine the effort to foil terrorist plots that pose a real threat to American lives and treasure.

Sooooo....

If you support the Iraq war, you enable those terrorists to continue with their plans to attack America. If you oppose the Iraq war and want the US government to direct its attention to real threats like the one recently foiled, then you wish to stop those terrorists in their quests to attack America.

LATE EDIT:

Saw this:

Muslim tipoff 'led to arrests'

LONDON, England (CNN) -- A British intelligence official has told CNN that the original information about a plot to down commercial jetliners in mid-Atlantic with explosives came from a tip from the Muslim community in Britain. The official said the tip resulted from a person who had been concerned about the activities of an acquaintance after the July 7 terror attacks in London.

One other point re: the above. Bush's unilateral, unprovoked invasion of a majority Muslim nation has unquestionably given rise to Anti-American hatred around the world. To the extent the invasion makes it less likely that good people like the tipster above will act to help us thwart attacks, the Iraq debacle has made us less safe.

A reason for optimism?

2006-08-11T09:48:00.000-05:00

I saw this post on Kevin Drum's Washington Monthly blog. He argues that the foiling of the English terrorist plot is not, as the mainstream media would have you believe, a cause for alarm but, rather, a cause for hope. This was by all accounts a huge plan, but one that was disrupted (well in advance of execution) using traditional law-enforcement mechanisms and international cooperation. Now in the US we've done what we usually do, overreact, hype up the danger, with endless pieces on the cable news outlets with captions like "Are we as safe as we think we are?" or "Are your children about to be exploded?", and go overboard in our response (NO liquids on planes EVER!!! -- even though we've known this was a possible tactic since at least 1995, when Clinton foiled an attack to explode planes over the Pacific) without ever really digging into the specifics.

Under this backdrop, Kevin Drum makes the following observation:

British and American counterterrorism agencies have been tracking 50 al-Qaeda (or al-Qaeda-ish) terrorists for over a year. They were under intensive surveillance the entire time and never had any chance of pulling off their plans. What's more, the investigation has probably provided us with hundreds or thousands of additional leads to keep tabs on.

I wonder: what lesson will al-Qaeda draw from this? Osama bin Laden may be a religious fanatic, but he's not stupid, and my guess is that he'll conclude that in a post-9/11 security environment it's simply impossible to keep a plot this big a secret. There are too many entry points and too many ways for a single mistake to derail the whole thing.

Bin Laden may be fond of big statements, but I wonder if this failure will convince him and his compatriots to think smaller? Is our future now more likely to be full of lots of little attacks rather than the occasional big one?

These are excellent points. I wonder whether our alarmist media will think to ask them.

That crazy Gore....

2006-08-07T12:32:00.000-05:00

So INSANE...How could he have been so reckless, dangerous and just downright loony.....

Let's remember that's EXACTLY what the Bill Kristols of the world were saying when Gore gave this speech:

Relevany portions of Al Gore’s Sept. 23, 2002, speech to the Commonwealth Club of San Francisco:

GORE: “To begin with, to put first things first, I believe that we ought to be focusing our efforts first and foremost against those who attacked us on September 11th and who have thus far gotten away with it. The vast majority of those who sponsored, planned and implemented the cold-blooded murder of more than 3,000 Americans are still at large, still neither located nor apprehended, much less punished and neutralized. I do not believe that we should allow ourselves to be distracted from this urgent task simply because it is proving to be more difficult and lengthy than was predicted.

"And, I believe that we are perfectly capable of staying the course in our war against Osama bin Laden and his terrorist network, while simultaneously taking those steps necessary to build an international coalition to join us in taking on Saddam Hussein in a timely fashion. If you're going after Jesse James, you ought to organize the posse first, especially if you're in the middle of a gunfight with somebody who's out after you.

"I don't think we should allow anything to diminish our focus on the necessity for avenging the 3,000 Americans who were murdered and dismantling that network of terrorists that we know were responsible for it. The fact that we don't know where they are should not cause us to focus instead on some other enemy whose location may be easier to identify.

"Nevertheless, President Bush is telling us that America's most urgent requirement of the moment right now is not to redouble our efforts against Al Qaida, not to stabilize the nation of Afghanistan after driving his host government from power, even as Al Qaida members slip back across the border to set up in Afghanistan again.

"Rather, he is telling us that our most urgent task right now is to shift our focus and concentrate on immediately launching a new war against Saddam Hussein. And the president is proclaiming a new uniquely American right to preemptively attack whomsoever he may deem represents a potential future threat.

"Moreover, President Bush is demanding, in this high political season, that Congress speedily affirm that he has the necessary authority to proceed immediately against Iraq and, for that matter, under the language of his resolution, against any other nation in the region regardless of subsequent developments or emerging circumstances…..

"Now, here's another of the main points I want to make: If we quickly succeed in a war against the weakened and depleted fourth-rate military of Iraq, and then quickly abandon that nation, as President Bush has quickly abandoned almost all of Afghanistan after defeating a fifth-rate military power there, then the resulting chaos in the aftermath of a military victory in Iraq could easily pose a far greater danger to the United States than we presently face from Saddam. …

"I believe that we can effectively defend ourselves abroad and at home without dimming our core principles. Indeed, I believe that our success in defending ourselves depends precisely on not giving up what we stand for. We should have as our top priority preserving what America represents and stands for in the world and winning the war against terrorism first.”

Full text here.

Israel -- the Neighborhood Bully

2006-08-01T16:16:00.000-05:00

Neighborhood Bully - Bob Dylan

Well, the neighborhood bully, he's just one man
His enemies say he's on their land
They got him outnumbered about a million to one
He got no place to escape to, no place to run
He's the neighborhood bully.

The neighborhood bully he just lives to survive
He's criticized and condemned for being alive
He's not supposed to fight back, he's supposed to have thick skin
He's supposed to lay down and die when his door is kicked in
He's the neighborhood bully.

The neighborhood bully been driven out of every land
He's wandered the earth an exiled man
Seen his family scattered, his people hounded and torn
He's always on trial for just being born
He's the neighborhood bully.

Well, he knocked out a lynch mob, he was criticized
Old women condemned him, said he could apologize
Then he destroyed a bomb factory, nobody was glad
The bombs were meant for him. He was supposed to feel bad
He's the neighborhood bully.

Well, the chances are against it, and the odds are slim
That he'll live by the rules that the world makes for him
'Cause there's a noose at his neck and a gun at his back
And a licence to kill him is given out to every maniac
He's the neighborhood bully.

Well, he got no allies to really speak of
What he gets he must pay for, he don't get it out of love
He buys obsolete weapons and he won't be denied
But no one sends flesh and blood to fight by his side
He's the neighborhood bully.

Well, he's surrounded by pacifists who all want peace
They pray for it nightly that the bloodshed must cease
Now, they wouldn't hurt a fly. To hurt one they would weep
They lay and they wait for this bully to fall asleep
He's the neighborhood bully.

Every empire that's enslaved him is gone
Egypt and Rome, even the great Babylon
He's made a garden of paradise in the desert sand
In bed with nobody, under no one's command
He's the neighborhood bully.

Now his holiest books have been trampled upon
No contract that he signed was worth that what it was written on
He took the crumbs of the world and he turned it into wealth
Took sickness and disease and he turned it into health
He's the neighborhood bully.

What's anybody indebted to him for ?
Nothing, they say. He just likes to cause war
Pride and prejudice and superstition indeed
They wait for this bully like a dog waits to feed
He's the neighborhood bully.

What has he done to wear so many scars ?
Does he change the course of rivers ? Does he pollute the moon and stars ?
Neighborhood bully, standing on the hill
Running out the clock, time standing still
Neighborhood bully.

Frank's Champions League Final Prediction....

2006-05-17T11:40:00.000-05:00

I know the conventional wisdom is that this one will be a free-flowing affair, but I don't think that will be the case. I do think there will be goals, but I think it will end 1-1 after extra time and Arsenal will win the penalty shootout. Henry will put us up late in the first half, then Barca will come out guns blazin in the second half and equalize on about 70 minutes, probably due in part from a catastrophic gaffe by Sol.

We'll come close in the late stages thanks to a moment of inspiration from DB10.

Extra time will be, for the most part, uneventful.

We'll win the penalty shootout 5-3, with Ronaldhino missing and the mad German saving one.

----

Of course, what I WANT is a 3-0 thrashing with Bergkamp finishing Barca off with a miracle goal in the 89th minute and an immediate post-match joint announcement from Pires, Henry and Cole that they've all signed reasonably priced contract extensions. Not likely of course but a fella can dream.

Leaving work for the afternoon in a bit. My marginal Gooner friend Chris and his friend, a Canadian whose profession is that of a player in Italy's professional hockey league are coming to the Franklin's Tower Pub to watch the match.

I'll be rubbing my Villareal ticket stub for good luck.

C'mon Arsenal! C'mon Arsenal!

London Photos!

2006-05-03T09:13:00.000-05:00

Man feeding squirrel in St. James Park (I don't know whether this squirrel was the same squirrel who ended up on the Highbury pitch that night):

Saracens v. Wasps (throw in):

Hleb scores to put Arsenal up 1-0:

A lunging tackle at Roots Hall:

An owl on the Southend High Street:

The rest can be found here.

"He Almost Looks Like You"

2006-05-03T09:10:00.000-05:00

A funny, pretty song about prison rape from Otis Lee Crenshaw and the Black Liars.

Enjoy. Right click HERE.

London Update!

2006-04-16T04:09:00.000-05:00

So this is my 2nd full day in London for football. Friday saw Southend United lose a close one at home to Gillingham. I was 1 row off the pitch and had to stare directly in the sun for the entire match. Pre-match fish and chips from the inventively named "The Fish House" were tremendous. Thick, clean tasty fish and big bulky chips. Simply excellent. Got some nice pictures. Will post later. Southend is a nice little town.

Yesterday Arsenal beat WBA 3-1, goals from Hleb, Pires (set up by DB10) and DB10. AND it was Dennis Bergkamp day at Highbury. Storybook stuff. Following the match, enjoyed some time at the Tavern, talking to James and Tom from Richmond, Jeremy from LA and Adam from Indianapolis/Cleveland. We also went for a late dinner at the Finsbury Bite, a nice little Morrocan joint where I had the Merges Sausage Brochette with savoury rice.

Went to mass this morning and then to the Spring Cafe for some Eggs, chips and beans. Solid if unspectacular. Good tea, though.

LAter today it's off to Watford for Saracens v. Wasps in an exciting Rugby Union contest.

Tomorrow it's Southend v. Barnsley with Pete. Tuesday, mercifully, is a break.

Until next time----

Frank

Lies and hypocrisy and deceit, Oh My!

2006-04-07T08:48:00.000-05:00

First THIS, from yesterday

Vice President Dick Cheney's former top aide told prosecutors President Bush authorized the leak of sensitive intelligence information about Iraq, according to court papers filed by prosecutors in the CIA leak case.Before his indictment, I. Lewis Libby testified to the grand jury investigating the CIA leak that Cheney told him to pass on information and that it was Bush who authorized the disclosure, the court papers say. According to the documents, the authorization led to the July 8, 2003, conversation between Libby and New York Times reporter Judith Miller.There was no indication in the filing that either Bush or Cheney authorized Libby to disclose Valerie Plame's CIA identity. But the disclosure in documents filed Wednesday means that the president and the vice president put Libby in play as a secret provider of information to reporters about prewar intelligence on Iraq.

Now, let's take a trip back to September 30, 2003:

THE PRESIDENT: Yes. Let me just say something about leaks in Washington. There are too many leaks of classified information in Washington. There's leaks at the executive branch; there's leaks in the legislative branch. There's just too many leaks. And if there is a leak out of my administration, I want to know who it is. And if the person has violated law, the person will be taken care of.
...

I want to know the truth. If anybody has got any information inside our administration or outside our administration, it would be helpful if they came forward with the information so we can find out whether or not these allegations are true and get on about the business.
...

I know of nobody -- I don't know of anybody in my administration who leaked classified information. If somebody did leak classified information, I'd like to know it, and we'll take the appropriate action.
...

And we can clarify this thing very quickly if people who have got solid evidence would come forward and speak out. And I would hope they would.
...

And we've had leaks out of the administrative branch, had leaks out of the legislative branch, and out of the executive branch and the legislative branch, and I've spoken out consistently against them and I want to know who the leakers are.

Ok, CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, CNBC, etc. let's step up to the plate. Bush lied. Again. Blatantly and on a matter of importance. Let's go. Don't gimme the "Well, republicans dispute the characterization of the president's comments as misleading..." baloney. Bush KNEW who authorized the leak of classified information. HE did it. He knew he did it and he sat there and lied to you, media people. Lied to your face. So step up, call him the liar he is. We're waiting.

Update: We've got the party line. ATTENTION! ATTENTION! FULL SPIN MODE!

A senior administration official, speaking on background because White House policy prohibits comment on an active investigation, said Bush sees a distinction between leaks and what he is alleged to have done. The official said Bush authorized the release of the classified information to assure the public of his rationale for war as it was coming under increasing scrutiny.

Ya see, it wasn't a lie, there was a distinction, it's not the same. See, he didn't LEAK the classified information, he authorized its release. Not the same at all. Completely different words and everything. Leak and authorize even have a different number of sylables. Besides, he was doing it for a GOOD reason, to educate the public.

Unbelievable.

Later Update: Here's a man who means what he says!!! --->

“But it is a shameful act by somebody who has got secrets of the United States government and feels like they need to disclose them publicly. . . . We’re at war, and we must protect America’s secrets. “

– George W. Bush, December 19, 2005.

Clarion Ledger letter of the day - March 27, 2006

2006-03-27T09:47:00.000-06:00

A variation today. The C/L online poll asks whether the media are accurately portraying the Iraq Murder. Well, once again, the readers of the C/L have bought the silly, unfounded "the media are losing the war" propaganda from the Republican slime machine. A full 82% voted that the media were not accurately portraying the war. Gee whiz. Blaming the media for the war in Iraq is about like blaming your buddy for telling you your girl is fooling around on ya. It's not HIS fault, ya know. But I guess there's a segment of the population that will just lap up, without question, whatever the current GOP talking points are. The "media" is the scapegoat of the moment so follow away they will.

Lara Logan, CBS news correspondent, responding to a GOP talking point regurgitated by Howard "Time Warner/Washington Post" Kurst, summed it up well:

KURTZ: But critics would say, well, no wonder people back home think things are falling apart because we get this steady drumbeat of negativity from the correspondents there.

LOGAN: Well, who says things aren't falling apart in Iraq? I mean, what you didn't see on your screens this week was all the unidentified bodies that have been turning up, all the allegations here of militias that are really controlling the security forces.

What about all the American soldiers that died this week that you didn't see on our screens? I mean, we've reported on reconstruction stories over and over again…I mean, I really resent the fact that people say that we're not reflecting the true picture here. That's totally unfair and it's really unfounded.

...Our own editors back in New York are asking us the same things. They read the same comments. You know, are there positive stories? Can't you find them? You don't think that I haven't been to the U.S. military and the State Department and the embassy and asked them over and over again, let's see the good stories, show us some of the good things that are going on? Oh, sorry, we can't take to you that school project, because if you put that on TV, they're going to be attacked about, the teachers are going to be killed, the children might be victims of attack.

I mean, security dominates every single thing that happens in this country….So how it is that security issues should not then dominate the media coverage coming out of here?

On conservative radio host Laura Ingraham's recent statement that journalists need to do less "reporting from hotel balconies" in Iraq, LOGAN said: I think it's outrageous. I mean, Laura Ingraham should come to Iraq and not be talking about what journalists are doing from the comfort of her studio in the United States, the comfort and the safety. I mean, I don't know any journalist that wants to just sit in a hotel room in Iraq. Does anybody understand that for us we used to be able to drive to Ramadi, we used to drive to Falluja, we used to drive to Najaf. We could travel all over this country without having to fly in military helicopters. n\nThat's the only way we can move around here. So, it's when the military can accommodate us, if the military can accommodate us, then we can go out and see. I have been out with Iraqi security forces over and over again. And you know what? When Bob Woodruff was out with Iraqi security forces and he was injured, the first thing that people were asking was, oh, was he being responsible by placing himself in this position with Iraqi forces? And they started to question his responsibility and integrity as a journalist. I mean, we just can't win. I think it's an outrage to point the finger at journalists and say that this is our fault. I really do. And I think it shows an abject lack of respect for any journalist that's prepared to come to this country and risk their lives. "

Oh, sorry, we can't show this reconstruction project because then that's going to expose it to sabotage. And the last time we had journalists down here, the plant was attacked. I mean, security dominates every single thing that happens in this country….So how it is that security issues should not then dominate the media coverage coming out of here?

Worst. President. Ever.

2006-03-27T09:36:00.000-06:00

I've thought before about why I occasionally (others might use "consistently"or "regularly") get so gutteral about George Bush. Sometimes I wonder whether that loathing is justified, and whether I go overboard in my evaluations, whether it's just a matter of disagreement over policy. Maybe Bush is doing the best he can and we just disagree.

Well, when I see something like this I think I should just trust my first reaction. The murder in Iraq is NOT the result of a disagreement over policy or a civil dispute about whether the US's national security interests justified unilaterally, and without provocation, invading a sovereign nation, killing its people, endangering and throwing away the lives of thousands of US servicemen, wasting billions upon billions of dollars for no good reason other than to satisfy Bush's bloodlust.

The guy is a monster, a delusional, dangerous, and possibly sociopathic SOB. I don't know of ANY other way to interpret this from the NY Times:

During a private two-hour meeting in the Oval Office on Jan. 31, 2003, he made clear to Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain that he was determined to invade Iraq without the second resolution, or even if international arms inspectors failed to find unconventional weapons.

....The memo also shows that the president and the prime minister acknowledged that no unconventional weapons had been found inside Iraq. Faced with the possibility of not finding any before the planned invasion, Mr. Bush talked about several ways to provoke a confrontation
...."

The U.S. was thinking of flying U2 reconnaissance aircraft with fighter cover over Iraq, painted in U.N. colours," the memo says, attributing the idea to Mr. Bush. "If Saddam fired on them, he would be in breach."

It also described the president as saying, "The U.S. might be able to bring out a defector who could give a public presentation about Saddam's W.M.D," referring to weapons of mass destruction.

A brief clause in the memo refers to a third possibility, mentioned by Mr. Bush, a proposal to assassinate Saddam Hussein.

And let's not forget this article outlining Saddam's offer to basically unconditionally surrender that would have met the administration's faux demands and spared thousands of lives. And all of this happened BEFORE Bush was asked whether he made any mistakes. If he doesn't think THIS qualifies as a mistake, then he really must be a sociopath.

Bush is a liar and his deliberate lies have costs thousands of innocent lives. There is simply no other way to put it. He should be censured, impeached, and then charged with war crimes.

Worst. president. ever.

Clarion Ledger letter of the day - March 17, 2006

2006-03-17T08:55:00.000-06:00

I wonder if the writer of this letter (who lives in Brandon, Rankin County) is trying to be funny. Does he REALLY not know the answer to his question? Was he here a few years ago during the debate over whether to replace the state flag? Is he really that obvlivious? Does he really not know why Congressman Bennie Thompson doesn't display the Mississippi state flag? Hmmm.....

Thompson doesn't display state's flag

I recently traveled to Washington, D.C., to speak with legislators. While there, I spoke with staffers from the offices of Reps. Chip Pickering, Roger Wicker and Bennie Thompson; and Sens. Trent Lott and Thad Cochran.

Outside all of the offices were flags on display. All offices had the American flag on display and also the Mississippi state flag.

Only one congressman did not have the Mississippi state flag on display outside his office - 2nd District U.S. Rep. Thompson.

The only flag he had on display outside of his office was the American flag. Why does he refuse to display the Mississippi state flag? Rep. Thompson's office was the only one I saw without a state flag on display.

Is Congressman Thompson ashamed to be recognized as a Mississippian? That he refuses to display a state flag outside of his office should say something about how he feels about Mississippi.

I encourage all of his constituents to contact him and find out why he does not have a state flag on display at his office.

Christopher Cheney
Brandon

Clarion Ledger letter of the day - March 16, 2006

2006-03-16T10:37:00.000-06:00

More on the obsession with those festering boils draining society of all that is good, pure, moral and upright. Yes, more rap and Brokeback and gays OH MY!

Gays, pimps have big Oscar year

It is hard out here for me to keep from laughing at the world of entertainment that chose the Rap song It's Hard Out Here For a Pimp from the movie Hustle and Flow as the best original song of the year.

No doubt they realize the inner conceit, the need they have to prove their superior intellect, their elegant tastes, higher values, enviable character and quality of life to the world.
Do they feel It's Hard Out Here For a Pimp will go down in the annals of great songs to be sung
in future ages?

Surely they do. Their egos would not consent to less.

Stardust, Tenderly and all the songs that remain on all our lips, that we still dance to, will just have to take a back seat to the reality that those in the field of entertainment today know music better than the normal listener.

They found it impossible to make political statements at the Oscars celebration. Were they cowardly or were they afraid we might hurt their pocketbooks if we refrained from going to the picture shows to see Capote and Brokeback Mountain - a couple of other winners?

Gays and pimps had a big year at the Oscar ceremony recently. Is that really what they want - recognition? I want to join the entertainment industry in this endeavor by further highlighting them for what they are and for their achievements.

(Name withheld)

Accountability?

2006-03-16T10:29:00.000-06:00

It's time for those who were pro-war to stand up and take some responsibility for the debacle that is Iraq.

See here.

Some prime candidates for such a public apology:

"Maybe disgraced commentators and politicians alike, like Daschle, Jimmy Carter, Dennis Kucinich, and all those others, will step forward tonight and show the content of their character by simply admitting what we know already: that their wartime predictions were arrogant, they were misguided and they were dead wrong. Maybe, just maybe, these self-anointed critics will learn from their mistakes. But I doubt it. After all, we don't call them 'elitists' for nothing." (MSNBC's Joe Scarborough, 4/10/03)

"The war was the hard part. The hard part was putting together a coalition, getting 300,000 troops over there and all their equipment and winning. And it gets easier. I mean, setting up a democracy is hard, but it is not as hard as winning a war." (Fox News Channel's Fred Barnes, 4/10/03)

Clarion Ledger letter of the day - March 14, 2006

2006-03-14T08:24:00.000-06:00

The return of the letter of the day, and it couldn't be more appropriate. This is from the media-tv-rap music-porn-desperate housewives-commercials-Will and Grace-Brokeback Mountain-Snoop Dogg are bringing on the end of civilization and corrupting our children department. Typical nut. Look, if your kid is wayward or prone to swearing or misbehaving, maybe it's NOT because he listens to Three Six Mafia or Eminem, maybe he's just 12 years old and just learning those words and they're fun to say (face it, they ARE fun to say). Or, ya know, maybe you're not such a great parent. Really, if you can't win out over Ice Cube, maybe you need some parenting refresher courses. And so what if he DOES like it? Maybe he likes it because you DON'T like it. I can't imagine any 12 year old kid enjoying a 50's music retrospective on PBS. In fact, if any 12 year old kid preferred that to the Three Six Mafia, I'd be more concerned for that child!

On a related note re: the "controversy" over Brokeback Mountain, personally, I don't see society imploding because someone made a movie about a love story involving two men. It's not REQUIRED viewing, after all. Homosexuality is not being thrust (forgive the pun) upon us. Note to those who would obliterate all references/discussions/representations, etc. of homosexuality. Lean in, listen closely: Some people are gay. It's not going away. But relax, there's not a big gay recruitment drive going on out there and, chances are, any homosexual with any taste probably isn't interested in YOU, anyway.

So let's just live and let live, shall we? Anyway, enough of my ranting, here's your letter of the day:

Must we allow our civilization to 'go down the tubes' now?

Throughout history, every advanced civilization that has come along grew, flourished and declined due to an increase in complacency and decadence in all its forms. After seeing the Oscars, I say it's evident that we are headed in the same direction.

Recently, a couple of tribute shows on public TV were dedicated to the '50s and '60s, and a host of the musicians and groups popular at that time, many of whom are still performing. Seeing the precision of the dance moves and the tremendous harmonies sent chills down my back as I envisioned the contrast between then and now.

When a screaming mob of foul-mouthed goons can lurk about the stage spewing their message of hate, sex and violence and command any kind of audience or attention, we are in trouble.
When the same group can do this on national TV in front of millions, muster respect from their peers and claim awards for a best song, or a best anything for that matter, we are really in trouble.

It's amazing to me how we as a country have allowed this rap onslaught to happen. Many great and talented groups and individuals are still out there performing; but they can't get their music played on the air because of the recording industry.

The FCC is the main one to blame. It used to regulate the airwaves. Now, stations police themselves, affecting our children's minds and morals.

Isn't it time we start calling our representatives? Or is it not that important?

Name withheld

Note to writer: I'm not sure if your question is rhetorical, but in the event it's not, the answer is no, it's not that important. Hurry, Michael Bolton is on Mix 98.7, and I know you don't wanna miss it....

Barry Bonds took steroids

2006-03-08T12:57:00.000-06:00

Gory details here.

In other news, Liberace was gay and Iraq has and had no weapons of mass destruction.

Whoa, and then there's THIS-->

"In addition to detailing the drug usage, the excerpt portrays Bonds as a menacing boor, a tax cheat and an adulterer given to (probably because of the rampant steroid use) sexual dysfunction, hair loss and wild mood swings that included periods of rage."

Clarion Ledger Letter of the Day - March 5, 2006

2006-03-05T09:50:00.000-06:00

From the comfort of his (hurricane damage-spared) stone (stone, mind you, not glass) home in suburban Jackson, Mike Walker of Brandon, tells the good people of New Orleans, ALL of whom are basking in the comfort and luxury of extended stay lodging (except for a few) to be more like the good people of Waveland and live in tents, dagnabit! Oh, and WALK to school, too....none of this DRIVING.....

Hey, you! Yes, you, the one without a house or any clothes or a job or money, based solely on the fact that you were the victim of possibly the single worst disaster in U.S. history, and one which for some reason apparently spared Mike Walker, quit yer durn bellyachin, ya hear? Go build you a house, man! Just go to the Home Depot and get some lumber, get a few pipes and build you a nice house down there. Heck, that's what ole "Iron" Mike Walker would do (if he had to, of course, which he doesn't, but ya just know he would, what with his refusal to be treated like a 2 month old). What are ya waitin for, disaster victims? Get out there and prove Mike Walker wrong!

N.O. residents should stop 'whining'

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin appears to have terminal "foot-in-mouth" disease on national television, while Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour deals with Congress one-on-one, pointing out the fact that Mississippi Gulf Coast residents are doing their best with what they have.

Evacuees from New Orleans are on the airwaves complaining about the hotel rooms they have been staying in for lo these many months, while Waveland and other Coast survivors are still living in tents, basically exposed to the elements, without bellyaching.

The media constantly talk about New Orleans, probably because, erroneously, they say New Orleans is where Katrina hit, not the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

I know this is a generalization where New Orleans' evacuees are concerned, and to the few that this description does not fit, I apologize. The rest of them should get out of the hotel rooms, get a tent and go back to New Orleans and start rebuilding. They should hush about the accommodations and stop whining!

It's time all of us quit expecting the government to feed us and change our diaper like a 2-month old child and started taking responsibility for our own actions, or lack thereof!

Song of the Day - March 3, 2006

2006-03-03T08:26:00.000-06:00

I apologize if I've posted this for download before, but today's song is "Replacements" by RANA from a show at Dulcinea's 100th Monkey in Denver, CO.

Download:

Replacements - RANA

Clarion Ledger Letter of the Day - March 3, 2006

2006-03-03T08:18:00.000-06:00

Well, wouldn't ya know it, the day immediately after I attempted to highlight the lunacy sometimes found in the Clarion-Ledger's "Letter to the Editor" feature, there are no outrageous letters. I suppose it serves me right for sticking my neck out like that.

Anyway, I liked Mrs. Kelly Jacobs' letter today and she makes a point I hadn't thought of (which is not that hard to do, but still). It's a little more sinister than I would describe it, but it's a good point nonetheless. Mrs. Jacobs asks:

"I think a darker reason was behind the cuts in student loans: the war in Iraq and the low enlistment numbers. By cutting low-interest student loans, this president is trying to force America's youth to enlist with the military so their college will be "paid" for - if they survive."

Again, I don't know that I agree, but she makes a good point.

Here's the letter in its entirety:

Must students pay for war in Iraq?

I have two sons - a 15-year-old and a 17-year-old who's going to Ole Miss in the fall - so I am concerned about how we will pay for their college tuition. Congress keeps passing tax cuts, during a time of war and massive deficit spending, and now another $6 billion will be added to the $12 billion cut from the budget for student financial aid/loans and Pell Grants.

The president said, "If we ensure that America's children succeed in life, they will ensure that America succeeds in the world." Bush is exhorting the children of America to get a good education "so they have a better chance at good, high-wage jobs." How can they when they cannot afford college without financial assistance?

I think a darker reason was behind the cuts in student loans: the war in Iraq and the low enlistment numbers. By cutting low-interest student loans, this president is trying to force America's youth to enlist with the military so their college will be "paid" for - if they survive.

America's only salvation will be the 2006 elections when we must get out the vote and toss out the officials who have supported the unending war in Iraq, budget deficits, tax cuts for the rich and the lack of any oversight for all of this spending, spying and lying.

I'm not the only parent who wants her children to get a college education; I'm just fortunate that they will not have to risk their lives to get one.

OUCH!!!!

2006-03-02T12:45:00.000-06:00

Let's be careful out there...

Song of the Day March 2, 2006

2006-03-02T09:32:00.000-06:00

This one should work. The song is "Jump into the Fire" by Harry Nilsson. The song was covered recently to great effect by LCD Soundsystem. This version is by the Radiators with Bob Weir sitting in from a show on September 10, 2005 at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco. Enjoy

Jump into the Fire - Radiators (right click to download)

Liar

2006-03-02T08:48:00.000-06:00

Today, the AP has this story. I think it's significant for the obvious reasons. I wonder when the MSM will start saying Bush is a liar like they called Clinton a liar. Certainly Clinton's finger-wagging lie was a pretty clear cut lie, a totally false statement, but it was about a sexual encounter, not war or terrorism or natural disasters.

Pertinent bits:

WASHINGTON (AP) -- On the eve of Hurricane Katrina's fateful landfall, President Bush was confident. His homeland security chief appeared relaxed. And warnings of the coming destruction - breached or overrun levees, deaths at the New Orleans Superdome and overwhelming needs for post-storm rescues - were delivered in dramatic terms to all involved. All of it was captured on videotape.

The Associated Press obtained the confidential government video and made it public Wednesday, offering Americans their own inside glimpse into the government's fateful final Katrina preparations after months of fingerpointing and political recriminations.

"My gut tells me ... this is a bad one and a big one," then-federal disaster chief Michael Brown told the final government-wide briefing the day before Katrina struck the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29.

The president didn't ask a single question during the briefing but assured soon-to-be-battered state officials: "We are fully prepared."

....

Bush declared four days after the storm, "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees" that gushed deadly flood waters into New Orleans. He later clarified, saying officials believed, wrongly, after the storm passed that the levees had survived. But the transcripts and video show there was plenty of talk about that possibility even before the storm - and Bush was worried too.

Isn't that just a LIE? The WH has said we shouldn't take too much from this single briefing, but in the briefing the President was specifically informed that the levees could be breached. Doesn't the statement "I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees" directly contradict that? Perhaps I'm missing the subtle nuances of this scenario, but isn't this fundamentally dishonest? Didn't Bush vow to restore "honesty and integrity" to the White House?

More here.

Fair and Balanced.....

2006-03-02T08:44:00.000-06:00

Clarion-Ledger Letter of the Day!

2006-03-02T08:31:00.000-06:00

I usually try to check the letters to the editor in my local rag, the Clarion-Ledger. More often than not, there is at least one letter that defies logical analysis, a letter that is either so nonsensical or mean-spirited or just plain loony that its writer must struggle to hang on just barely to the world the rest of us occupy. Today's letter is pasted below:

Tax swap debate just smokescreen

I think all this talk of helping the poor with a tax swap - cigarettes for groceries - is just a smokescreen, pun intended, for pols. It's the poorest one quarter of the state who are the smokers and they aren't going to quit just because rich folks think they ought to. There may be worse unintended consequences from this than a black market, and I shudder to think what they could be.

Name withheld
Jackson

Gotta admit -- good pun

Song of the Day March 1, 2006

2006-03-01T09:53:00.000-06:00

Okay, so I apologize for the lack of posts lately. I have no excuse. In an effort to atone for this sin of omission, I humbly offer the following mp3 from Clap Your Hands Say Yeah.

I absolutely cannot get enough of this song. As Wendi can attest, I've listened to it obsessively for the last couple of weeks. She's good-natured about it thankfully.

Here it is:

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth (right click to download)

P.S. Ok, so it appears that link is outdated. Bear with me, I'll try to find another place hosting this file. If not, would it kill ya to go out and buy the song on itunes or even the whole CD?

The librul medier and "wacko" leftists and Bush-haters

2006-02-28T12:24:00.000-06:00

According to the most recent CBS News Poll....

"34 percent approved of how [Bush] is handling his job, down eight points from a New York Times/CBS News poll conducted in January.….In addition, 62 percent of those polled said the efforts to bring stability and order to Iraq were going badly, up from 54 percent last month….There has been a decline in Mr. Bush's support even among Republicans. In the January Times/CBS News poll, 83 percent of Republicans approved of the way he was handling his job; in the latest poll 72 percent approve. Approval among self-identified conservatives also dropped to 52 percent, from 62 percent.”

Hmmm......

Feels good to be part of the mainstream, the majority. I suppose those who still support this failed president (speaking of which, this is just UNBELIEVABLE) are now part of the fringe hard-core right wing. Why do the Joe Liebermans of the world keep behaving as if Bush is untouchable?

And for your dose of liberal media, according to Chris Matthews, the "left-leaning" host of "Hardball...." --> "Everybody sort of likes the President, except for the real whack-jobs."

P.S. For those who couldn't find what I was referring to parenthetically above, the 5-year old preznit is described by Paul Bremer thusly:

"The President's directions seem to have been limited to such slogans as "we're not going to fail" and "pace yourself, Jerry." In Bremer's account, the President was seriously interested in one issue: whether the leaders of the government that followed the CPA would publicly thank the United States. But there is no evidence that he cared about the specific questions that counted: Would the new prime minister have a broad base of support? Would he be able to bridge Iraq's ethnic divisions? What political values should he have? Instead, Bush had only one demand: "It's important to have someone who's willing to stand up and thank the American people for their sacrifice in liberating Iraq." According to Bremer, he came back to this single point three times in the same meeting. Similarly, Ghazi al-Yawar, an obscure Sunni Arab businessman, became Bush's candidate for president of Iraq's interim government because, as Bremer reports, Bush had "been favorably impressed with his open thanks to the Coalition."

Commence preparation of doomsday survival kit. We are screwed.

Just the facts, m'am......

2005-12-13T14:06:00.000-06:00

Iraq by the numbers (as compiled by the Independent):

$204.4 billion: The cost to the U.S of the war so far.

2,339: Allied troops killed

15,955: US troops wounded in action

98: U.K troops killed

30,000 : Estimated Iraqi civilian deaths

0: Number of WMDs found

66: Journalists killed in Iraq.

63: Journalists killed during Vietnam war

8: per cent of Iraqi children suffering acute malnutrition

53,470: Iraqi insurgents killed

67: per cent Iraqis who feel less secure because of occupation

$343: Average monthly salary for an Iraqi soldier.

Average monthly salary for an American soldier in Iraq: $4,160.75

5: foreign civilians kidnapped per month

47: per cent Iraqis who never have enough electricity

20: casualties per month from unexploded mines

25-40: per cent Estimated unemployment rate, Nov 2005

251: Foreigners kidnapped

70: per cent of Iraqi's whose sewage system rarely works

183,000: British and American troops are still in action in Iraq.

13,000: from other nations

90: Daily attacks by insurgents in Nov '05. In Jun '03: 8

60-80: per cent Iraqis who are "strongly opposed" to presence of coalition troops

ManUre's preferred tactics in a nutshell

2005-12-07T16:40:00.000-06:00

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

Bush: Uniter of Wingnuts and the super-rich

2005-10-12T10:02:00.000-05:00

Disgusting.

Bush Tax Panel Considers Limiting 2 Popular Deductions

WASHINGTON, Oct. 11 - President Bush's tax advisory commission indicated today that it would not propose replacing the income tax with a national sales tax or a value-added tax but would recommend modifications in the popular tax deductions for mortgage interest and employer-provided health insurance.

Arrrggghhh....gas problems, part XXXIII

2005-09-21T15:37:00.000-05:00

2:29 P.M. - GULFPORT, Miss. (AP) -- The Federal Emergency Management Agency scrambled to quash a fast-spreading rumor today that Hurricane Rita would trigger a gasoline shortage, but not fast enough to prevent long lines and fears.

At lunchtime, dozens of motorists were reportedly lined up at gasoline stations along U.S. Highway 49 from Hattiesburg to the Gulf Coast. Nina Smith, 33, of Biloxi got a call from a friend who told her -- wrongly -- the pumps would be shut off at noon.

---------------------------

and here:
Rumor fuels run on gas stations
By Nell Luter Floydnlfloyd@clarionledger.com

Rumors about a gasoline shortage in advance of Hurricane Rita are untrue, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. William L. Carwile, federal coordinating officer for FEMA, said there is plenty of gasoline in the state, and neither FEMA nor the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency has the authority to commandeer gasoline supplies.

"Those rumors are absolutely untrue," he said. "The retail distribution system for petroleum products is fine."Milinda Evans, an employee at the Shell station on High Street in Jackson, said traffic at the station picked up about noon. A line had formed by 1 p.m. and there was a steady stream of drivers."We have gas," she said. "Our company said there isn't a problem."

Most drivers filled up their tanks, she said, noting the station had done double its normal business between noon and 1 p.m.Drivers also formed lines at the Texaco-Interstate Station across the street from the Shell station. Across town there were lines at the Pilot Travel Center on South Gallatin Street.

Latrichia Thurman of Jackson, a loan processor, stopped to gas up her 2002 Ford Escort after she saw the line at the Shell station on High Street. "I heard everybody was getting gas and that (Jackson mayor) Frank Melton was raising the price $1 a gallon," she said.

Kennedy Thomas of Jackson, who handles billing for anesthesiologists, filled up his 2000 Nissan Xterra at the Shell station."I was planning on getting gas and I went ahead and filled up," he said.

Will Morton of Magee, a third year student at Mississippi College School of Law in Jackson, said he went to fill up his Toyota Tacoma pickup after his wife called and told him FEMA planned to take all the gasoline."I drive back and forth from Magee every day," he said. Morton said the wait at the Shell station was only 15 minutes, about 30 minutes less than after Hurricane Katrina.

Please, people, will everybody just please calm down? Geez.

All four stations I passed on the way back to the office after lunch had long lines of stupid selfish weak pathetic people waiting for gas, probably to top off their @#$@#$@ Escalades so they can get their stupid fatasses to the buffet at Corky's or the Wal-Mart whenever they feel like it or something stupid like that.

They should re-deploy the cops who sit in the median of the interstate doing fundraising to each of the stations in town. If you have more than 1/4 of a tank, you get a $500 ticket and have to get out of line. The police department gets half the money for having to waste time policing these sorry sacks of #$#@$, and the other half can be given to people who lost their vehicles in the hurricane.

I hope like heck this is just a really short term thing and people will start behaving responsibly, but after the way these pathetic animals and reprobates acted last time I'm not betting on it.

(Ole Miss Update) Lane to start....but wait....

2005-09-21T09:25:00.000-05:00

It's a good news/bad news situation. Robert Lane is set to start Saturday against Wyoming. The Clarion Ledger has a preview/Lane profile. The good news is Lane will probably start. The bad news is that Noel MazREDzone is our offensive coordinator.

I've wanted Lane to be the starter since he stepped on campus. Some of that is, for sure, this peculiar phenomenon among supporters and fans that when the team is playing poorly, the guy who's not playing is always better than the guy who is playing. Never mind that the coaches and the reporters and the people who make it their business to know these things think differently, I GO TO THE GAMES AND/OR WATCH THEM ON TV, so I know more and, more importantly, I can see the forest better (ie, the big picture) because I'm not deep in it all the time, blah blah blah. (Notice: digression over).

Anyway, Robert Lane is set to start, and I'm pretty excited about that. I think Robert Lane, while not the most accurate passer, is a winner. A winner like Tee Martin. A winner like Jason White. Not the most gifted passer or the most comfortable in the "system" but a winner. Someone who other players rally around. Someone who puts his head down and fights. That is what I've seen when he's been in there. You can sense the team playing just a bit harder. You can sense the crowd getting more into it.

The prospect of this season turning around with a gutsy winning performance from Lane is exciting. After his fumble on the last play of the last game (when he was rushed into service following the injury to Spurlock), he said "It was a tough situation to be put in, but I survived it, I learned from it and it'll make me a better quarterback. I plan to lead this team to victory." That's a winner talking.

Lane's NOT saying "I've learned the offense and am comfortable and I look forward to the challenge of implementing the system at full speed in game conditions." He's planning on LEADING the TEAM to VICTORY. That's what a quarterback should do. Whether he does that with his arm, his head or his legs doesn't matter. His familiarity with the "system" doesn't matter. Winning matters. Offensive coordinator Noel MazREDzone said of Lane ""He's got a bit of a bow in his neck ... he brings that to the team, a toughness at that position. He's got a little moxie. Now, we have to roll the ball out there and see what he knows for real."

BUT WAIT

That's not the whole picture. MazREDzone has to get him in the stupid "system." MazREDzone also said: "There are all kind of wrinkles in that offense, we're trying to iron them all out." (As if it's the execution, rather than the stupid "system" that's to blame for our poor offensive performance thus far. Why does there have to be a system? NASA needs systems, computer networks need systems. Offenses need plays. Anyway, I digress).

What really gives me pause, however, is this "Mazzone said Lane is "night and day different" from the player he saw on film last season and early in fall camp — a quarterback who struggled to throw the ball downfield and often took off to run too soon. " Oh no, MazREDzone is taking that square peg, moving it toward his round hole. He's gotta stay in the "system" even if his talents aren't suited for it. Look, Mazzone's been mediocre with that offense everywhere he's been and he's not gonna change the "system" just to adapt to the personnel he has right now, no siree.

MazREDzone goes on: "I don't know how much they asked him to step back and read coverages last year, but we've been working with him on staying on his progressions and getting to the third reads. At times, he's too anxious to take the football and show everybody he can run over people." Translated "I know he's a better runner than passer. But that doesn't matter to me. What matters is he runs MY offense (so I get the credit when we succeed). If we don't, it'll be a matter of EXECUTION. It won't be because i'm asking a running, scrambling quarterback to stand back in the pocket and make 3 and 4 reads even though I know it's not his strong suit."

The point is Lane CAN run over people (and Spurlock can run around people), so why not just let him do it? Is that such a difficult thing to understand? Will the world come to an end, will the offense and team just completely break down into chaos and anarchy if he only makes TWO reads and then takes off for a 6 yard gain running the ball? Isn't that the point, to go forward toward the end zone? Is it better for him to make his third read and throw it away than make 2 reads and run for 4 yards? If he takes off and runs a few times, won't there be more receivers open later when LBs and DBs cheat up to stop that (like they do when you have a traditionally effective running game)? I'm no expert, but will someone point out the flaw in this approach? I must be too much of a simpleton, because I can't fully comprehend the "system" It's almost as if the "system" is more important than first downs and points.

I wonder what would have happened had Ole Miss brought in an option-oriented OC when Eli was here. Would they have made Eli run the option? That makes about as much sense as asking Lane or Spurlock to sit back in the pocket and make 3 or 4 reads when their strengths are running, scrambling and improvising. Apparently, MazREDzone (and Cutcliffe last year, who started Flatt over Lane and also insisted on a slavish devotion to a stupid "system") is more concerned with Lane staying in the "system" than actually moving the ball and scoring points. Of the three touchdowns we've scored on offense (that's 1.5 per game against powerhouses Memphis and Vandy), 2 have been players improvising (Spurlock and Mico), not flawless execution of some stupid wrinkle in MazREDzone's super-crafty "system."

So I'm excited, but I sure hope Lane just goes out there and plays on gut and instinct. We'll see Saturday.

AP is crap

2005-09-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

I expect this sort of tripe from TimeWarnerCNNCorp, MicrosoftGENews, DisneyNews, etc. but the AP is supposed to be a legitimate news outlet.

Check out this "report" from AP, which is nothing more than a poorly disguised hatchet job on New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin. This is clearly just an opinion piece. And it's not credited, either. So called "liberal media" strikes again.

First, the headline: "Mayor's handling of crisis questioned"

Really? by whom? The classic use of the passive voice. Who, exactly, has questioned the mayor's handling of the crisis? Name someone. The reason no one is named is either a) the author hasn't bothered to run a google search to find and/or interview someone or b) the only people the writer found were republicans and divulging only their viewpoints would expose the bias of the writer.

---

Then, about 5 paragraphs in, "Some observers from outside New Orleans say, Nagin's handling of the crisis has created the perception of a leadership void in this city at precisely the time it requires a steady hand."

Again, really? Who exactly are these OBSERVERS (plural) The OBSERVERS is/are 1 person, Melissa Harris Lacewell, a political science professor with the University of Chicago's Center for the Study of Race, Politics and Culture. First, what exactly about his "handling" of the crisis would a political science professor know anything about? Is she trained in engineering? Is she trained in emergency management? She's speaking to a "political crisis," not the Katrina crisis. This suggests, to me, again, that the writer is coming from a political angle, not an emergency management or policy angle. (Lacewell is probably considered a liberal, from what I can tell based on the little research I did on her.)

---

"Others have said in Nagin's defense that he is dealing with an enormous and unprecedented crisis" Again, who exactly are these "others?" Care to name even ONE?

Lazy, shoddy reporting. Pathetic.

Bush on the Wing

2005-09-20T11:08:00.000-05:00

A must see. Here.

Bush + Air Force One + Katrina = Pigs on the Wing

We were right, part 776

2005-09-20T10:44:00.000-05:00

New CNN/Gallup Poll:

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush's vow to rebuild the Gulf Coast did little to help his standing with the public, only 40 percent of whom now approve of his performance in office, according to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Monday.

Just 41 percent of the 818 adults polled between Friday and Monday said they approved of Bush's handling of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, while 57 percent disapproved. And support for his management of the war in Iraq has dropped to 32 percent, with 67 percent telling pollsters they disapproved of how Bush is prosecuting the conflict.

The survey had a sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points. Fifty-nine percent said they considered the 2003 invasion of Iraq a mistake, 63 percent said they wanted to see some or all U.S. troops withdrawn from that country and 54 percent told pollsters they favor cutting spending on the war to pay for disaster relief.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Will someone please pass this on to the SCLM?

New Ryan Adams CD

2005-09-19T11:01:00.000-05:00

is just a straight ahead country record. That's good news.

More here.

Louisiana 1927

2005-09-19T10:55:00.000-05:00

by the Drive By Truckers.

Download here.

More Blame Game Lies

2005-09-16T11:26:00.000-05:00

Remember how the good folks at the WH were not going to play the blame game?

Well, we already know that means "except for local and state officials" and the people who didn't evacuate.

Now it means environmental groups, as well.

10:31 A.M. - JACKSON, Miss. (AP) -- The federal government is trying to find evidence of any past efforts by environmental groups to block work on New Orleans' levees, according to a published report.

The Clarion-Ledger said Friday it obtained an internal Justice Department e-mail sent out this week to U.S. attorneys that asks: "Has your district defended any cases on behalf of the (U.S.) Army Corps of Engineers against claims brought by environmental groups seeking to block or otherwise impede the Corps work on the levees protecting New Orleans? If so, please describe the case and the outcome of the litigation."

Full account here.

Pathetic.

This is why I like lawyers

2005-09-16T09:32:00.000-05:00

5:55 P.M. - BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -- A group of Louisiana homeowners sued 16 insurance companies Thursday, asking a state district court to rule that neglect and wind damage caused the flood that inundated thousands of homes in Orleans and Jefferson parishes.
Breaches in the levees which ring the city allowed the water in, so the floods were not caused by an "act of God," contends the lawsuit filed Thursday in 19th Judicial District Court.

from WWL's excellent Katrina blog.

Why do a majority of Americans hate America?

2005-09-09T14:22:00.000-05:00

The "stay the course" folks are now squarely in the minority. The rest of us in reality want withdrawal from the Iraq quagmire:

As Kos notes:

42 percent of Republicans want us to start pulling troops out. Message to the idiots at the DLC and the rest of the timid DC Democratic establishment -- there's nothing radical or extreme about the growing anti-war sentiment in this nation. The position in favor of withdrawal is now supported by a 3-2 margin. Those advocating staying the course are now the extreme on the issue, marginalized to the fringes.

In the laa-aand of the

2005-09-08T09:28:00.000-05:00

Free.......Not.....

Is this the freedom we're trying to spread in the Middle East? Is this the freedom people are so hungry for? Is this the freedom people are dying for?

Worst. President. Ever.

2005-09-08T09:23:00.000-05:00

Wow.

"At a news conference, Pelosi, D-Calif., said Bush's choice for head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency had ''absolutely no credentials.''She related that she had urged Bush at the White House on Tuesday to fire Michael Brown...

He said 'Why would I do that?''' Pelosi said.'

''I said because of all that went wrong, of all that didn't go right last week.'

And he said 'What didn't go right?''

'''Oblivious, in denial, dangerous,'' she added."

Does BushCo EVER Stop Lying? Ever?

2005-09-06T12:30:00.000-05:00

These guys are downright pathological. They are LIARS. Scumbags.

Today, September 6, 9:22 A.M. - WHITE HOUSE (AP) -- The White House is rebuffing calls to fire the federal disaster chief in the aftermath of Hurrican Katrina. Press Secretary Scott McClellan says, "We're not going to engage in the blame game."

WASHINGTON, Sept. 4th (NYT) - Under the command of President Bush's two senior political advisers, the White House rolled out a plan this weekend to contain the political damage from the administration's response to Hurricane Katrina.

It orchestrated visits by cabinet members to the region, leading up to an extraordinary return visit by Mr. Bush planned for Monday, directed administration officials not to respond to attacks from Democrats on the relief efforts, and sought to move the blame for the slow response to Louisiana state officials, according to Republicans familiar with the White House plan. The effort is being directed by Mr. Bush's chief political adviser, Karl Rove, and his communications director, Dan Bartlett.

And, oh yes, in case anyone forgot. From Shrub's inaugural address:

"Encouraging responsibility is not a search for scapegoats, it is a call to conscience. . . .I will live and lead by these principles: . . . to call for responsibility and try to live it as well."

See also this.

Scumbag Assholes

2005-09-05T10:48:00.000-05:00

Thousands dying in New Orleans....

Here's your president. First it was blame the victimes (see "Chuck and Duck")

Now it's blame state officials. This is what the WH is concerned about. This is the only thing it's ever concerned about.

Scumbag sociopathic lying liars.

It took them days to come up with a rescue and relief plan but it only took them a few hours to come up with a political salvage plan for their Dear Leader.

Scumbag sociopathic lying liars.

From the NYTimes:

Under the command of President Bush's two senior political advisers, the White House rolled out a plan this weekend to contain the political damage from the administration's response to Hurricane Katrina.

It orchestrated visits by cabinet members to the region, leading up to an extraordinary return visit by Mr. Bush planned for Monday, directed administration officials not to respond to attacks from Democrats on the relief efforts, and sought to move the blame for the slow response to Louisiana state officials, according to Republicans familiar with the White House plan.

The effort is being directed by Mr. Bush's chief political adviser, Karl Rove, and his communications director, Dan Bartlett. It began late last week after Congressional Republicans called White House officials to register alarm about what they saw as a feeble response by Mr. Bush to the hurricane, according to Republican Congressional aides.

As a result, Americans watching television coverage of the disaster this weekend began to see, amid the destruction and suffering, some of the most prominent members of the administration - Richard B. Myers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Donald H. Rumsfeld, the secretary of defense; and Condoleezza Rice, the secretary of state - touring storm-damaged communities.

Yep. Scumbags. More here.

As bad as it appears to be in New Orleans...

2005-09-05T09:43:00.000-05:00

I think that great town will recover.....

Why? Well there's this:

from here:

Scenes from New Orleans
Sunday Sept. 5, 2005 10:45 p.m.
By Jim Varney

In the midst of this, Joann Guidos, 55, perched on a bar stool in the front door of Kajun’s Pub on the 2200 block of St. Claude Avenue. She brandished her pump action shotgun at any unknown vehicle or pedestrian, but said she did so with good reason.“If you noticed, every place around here has been looted, except this one,’’ she said, noting proudly that she never closed during or since Katrina.

and this:

3:15 A.M. - (AP) -- Not even Hurricane Katrina could prevent the Decadence Parade from being staged in the French Quarter. The annual Labor Day gay celebration drew about two dozen people. Street musician Matt Menold summed it up best: "It's New Orleans, man. We're going to celebrate."

On a related note:

6:24 P.M. – Saints GM Mickey Loomis – we would like to play our games in Baton Rouge but we have to see what is possible. The NFL will have a lot of say. No decision has been made.

I had seen on television news that the Saints would play the season in San Antonio. I hope they stay in the state.

Ole Miss Quarterback Race a "Tie"

2005-09-03T09:46:00.000-05:00

OXFORD — The Ole Miss starting quarterback job remains a toss-up with three days left until Monday's season opener.Senior Micheal Spurlock and sophomore Robert Lane are in a dead heat, coach Ed Orgeron said after Thursday's practice.

The Rebels are preparing to face Memphis on Labor Day at the Liberty Bowl in a game that will televised by ESPN."I think they're both playing well; it looks like a tie " said Orgeron, who had hoped to name a starter last Monday but said the competition has been too close to call. "We're going to have to make a decision, but it's really close in our minds. The (decision) will come down to the intangibles and looking at the whole picture."

Read more here.

C'mon Robert C'mon Robert:

Oh, yes, before Katrina, I went to Wrigley Field!

2005-09-03T09:06:00.000-05:00

Before Katrina, I spent a couple of days in Chicago to see the Cubs (lose, of course. It wouldn't make any sense to travel all that way to see the Cubs win).

Here's a self-explanatory picture

This is a picture from the upper deck before the game

We were on the 5th row behind home plate. This is the Cubs scoring their first run in the first game

As mentioned, we had really excellent seats for this game. Here's Glendon Rusch, the starter, about to hurl his pitch.

Here's the Harry Caray statute:

I think that's Derrick May about to strike out

There's the Bulldog, Greg Maddux, warming up to pitch game 2 (Cubs lost 2-1, but he went the full 9 innings)

The jewel of my chicago pic collection. This is a classic ButtCuttMullet. Fella thought I was taking a picture of the game, but I was always intending to get the shot of his mug, his butt cutt, and, of course, the beautiful plumage. In a million years I couldn't have gotten him to pose any better. Scary though, he looks a bit like Coach O:

This is Maddux walking off in the 8th, I think after getting out of a jam. He pitched well. I was really glad to have been able to see him

Mia Hamm was in the audience, as well. We waited to get our picture made with her, but she was preoccupied, so we violated her privacy this way:

Here are some kids playing the drums after the game. It was hot that day.

That's all for now. Thank you for tuning in.

Pictures from Katrina

2005-09-03T08:49:00.000-05:00

Here are some pictures of our yard after Katrina. Fortunately, Entergy got the lights back on yesterday. The neighbors had moved the tree that fell across the street (into my ditch, but it got moved). Obviously, we did not get it as bad as most, but this gives you an idea of Katrina's power 1/2 way into the state of MS.

Chuck and Duck

2005-09-02T17:29:00.000-05:00

Always the same with these guys. Not my fault, couldn't be anticipated, blame Clinton.

This time it's blame the victims. From an interview with the Sheep in Wolf (Blitzer's) clothing, the head of FEMA, the liar Michael Brown:

BROWN: Well, I think the death toll may go into the thousands. And unfortunately, that's going to be attributable a lot to people who did not heed the evacuation warnings. And I don't make judgments about why people choose not to evacuate.

But, you know, there was a mandatory evacuation of New Orleans. And to find people still there is just heart wrenching to me because the mayor did everything he could to get them out of there. And so we've got to figure out some way to convince people that when evacuation warnings go out, it's for their own good. Now, I don't want to second guess why they did that. My job now is to get relief to them.

It was the fault of the victims. These guys will stop at nothing. They take no responsibility for the Iraq debacle (it's the media's fault!), for the economy (blame Clinton!) or take any responsibility for this (they should have heeded the evacuation warnings!).

See Josh's post here for a good breakdown of the insanity and cowardice of this position, but before you do, remember, on the day after Katrina hit, as New Orleans was flooding and hundreds of thousands of people were stranded, and as the Mayor of NO and others begged for assistance, the accountability president, the CEO president, was doing this:

More Gas insanity

2005-09-02T15:56:00.000-05:00

This is why I do not own a gun.

Tempers exploded in a south Jackson gas station line this morning as an angry driver shot into the air.

Jackson police charged Lloyd Coleman with a misdemeanor count of discharging a weapon in city limits. The shots were fired at at 10:45 a.m. at the Pilot Travel Center on Gallatin Street, just south of I-20.

"He had waited in line two-to-three hours. Somebody from the back cut in front of him. (Coleman) tried to talk to the driver, but he wouldn't listen," Jackson Police officer B. Sanders said.Coleman grabbed his black .357 revolver and fired one round straight into the air to get the driver's attention, Sanders said. No one was injured. Police did not have the other driver's name or more information on Coleman.

They really should go after the line-cutter, too. C'mon people, let's stop acting like animals.

See also: "Woman charged in gas line assault"

96 hours after Katrina

2005-09-02T15:44:00.000-05:00

Katrina hit 4 days ago:

George W. Bush, today: "We're going to stabilize the situation, and then get food and medicine and water."

Ya know, I wonder if the situation is NOT stable because no one had a plan to get food and medicine and water in there sooner?

Bush also said "right now we need to get food and clothes and medicine to the people"

No, George, food and clothes and medicine needed to get there 4 DAYS ago."

Bush also thanked and applauded Sen. Trent Lott (R), Thad Cochran (R) and Governor Haley Barbour (R). He did NOT mention Rep. Gene Taylor (D), who represents the Mississippi Coast in the House of Representatives.

Criminal Negligence

2005-09-02T15:17:00.000-05:00

Someone should pay. Someone should be held accountable. Someone should stand up and say "I'm sorry, we should have done better. You folks deserve better."

2:50 P.M. - WWL-TV

LIVE pictures show thousands still wait to be picked up from I-10 and Causeway. Buses arrived a few hours ago, but the refugees say that it's the first sighting of buses in 12 hours. Some of the refugees have been waiting four days. State Police say five people died Thursday while waiting.

2:54 P.M. - WWL Reporter Jonathan Betz says the refugees at I-10 and Causeway are standing in squalid conditions. He said there are only 10 portable toilets for thousands of people and the Interstate median is full of human waste.

3:14 P.M. - St. Bernard Parish officials say that FEMA has not called them yet...five days after the storm.

A Little Rant

2005-09-02T14:05:00.000-05:00

There have been 2 tragedies. The hurricane and flooding itself and the criminally negligent response thereto. None of it has been intentional, I know, but I'm ashamed and embarassed and frightened that we didn't or couldn't do more for those people. It IS a nightmare, and the people in charge should be ashamed. People are dying needlessly.

I don't mean to go off on a rant here, but if we don't have a unified, central federal government for events like this, why do we have it? MS and LA might as well secede again if we're gonna have to rely on ourselves anyway. And I will make it my personal mission to destroy, discredit, humiliate, unseat anyone who says/hints/intimates that anyone in New Orleans/MS Gulf Coast deserves any of this because they didn't evacuate or they looted a store. Let some of these falsely self-righteous sanctimonius bastards live like these people have had to live for a couple of days and see how they do, see how they react. These are human beings, Americans, most of them poor who simply did not have the resources to get out (government checks are issued the first of the month, this happened on the 29th). Many had no way to get out. And even those who were just stubborn and chose not to leave, do they deserve to be abandoned and betrayed like this because of one stupid decision?

I still can't fully comprehend that New Orleans is gone.

Randy Newman "Louisiana 1927"

What has happened down here is the wind have changed
Clouds roll in from the north and it started to rain
Rained real hard and rained for a real long time
Six feet of water in the streets of Evangeline

The river rose all day
The river rose all night
Some people got lost in the flood
Some people got away alright
The river have busted through clear down to Plaquemines
Six feet of water in the streets of Evangeline

_________________________________________________________________

And before you start screaming that this is a Rep./Dem. issue or some sort of partisan opportunism, see the comments of Sen. David Vitter (R-LA):

3:07 P.M. - BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -- U.S. Sen. David Vitter said FEMA's efforts to deal with the hurricane have been completely ineffective, and he called the federal government's response a failure.

"I think FEMA has been completely dysfunctional and is completely overwhelmed, and I don't know why. This situation was utterly predictable," said Vitter, R-Metairie. "It seems like there was no coherent plan, which I don't understand because this precise scenario has been predicted for 20 years," he said.

A personal note about Waveland, Mississippi

2005-09-02T12:59:00.000-05:00

A personal note about Waveland

Reports indicate that the town of Waveland, a coastal city of about 7,000 in Hancock County west of Gulfportand Biloxi, is about 90% gone. In addition to the people I know who've lost so much, homes and all, and inaddition to the destruction of a city which is home to a million people, and of which I am quite fond, the destruction of Waveland is a notable loss for me. Not as notable and certainly not as catastrophic as those who live there or who have family who live there, but a personal loss nonetheless.

Our family had a second home there, a small three bedroom "shack" about a block and a half from the beach in Waveland and we spent significant chunks of summertime and other time there. We goofed on the beach (it was an easy walk through a neighbor's yard and down a small street), spent days at the Buccaneer Park Wave Pool (it had a ping pong table), traipsed through the nearby woods, played croquet on the (tiny) front lawn, played wiffle ball in the bigger yard of the neighbor, we walked or rode bikes to town, played monopoly, checkers, cards, or napped in the afternoon to the cool whurrr of the scattered a/c window units. We went out to the movie theatre trying to meet girls, we cruised the streets (after we were old enough to drive).

Sometime after my sister and I left home, we abandoned that house but it holds a special place for all of us. We hadfriends there, friends stayed there with us, and it was always a warm, welcoming, relaxing place. Dad liked to go to get away for a weekend and just read. I spent a few weekends there during college, crashing there after a Paul McArtney show in the Superdome, or after winning big at the Casino Magic in Bay St. Louis.

I smoked my first cigarette in Waveland. I saw my first and only sandstorm (if that's what it's called)in Waveland. I skinny-dipped in the Gulf in Waveland. I evacuated from my first hurricane in Waveland and returned,joyfully, to find that it was still intact.

It was always a common place for me and my family, a place of happiness and joy and peace. Now it's gone. I haven't been there in many years, but my soul is a little shaken by its absence nevertheless.

I can't figure it out, I just can't

2005-09-02T12:46:00.000-05:00

12:09 P.M. - (AP): The stench from backed-up toilets inside the Superdome is unbearable and people are afraid to go into the unlighted bathrooms.

Sandra Jones says she and her family use a box to relieve themselves instead of using restrooms because "The stink is so bad you can't go in there anyway."

Even though she's hungry, one hurricane refugee in the dome says she's not eating. Michele Boyle says eating would mean she'd have to use the dark, dangerous and filthy restrooms in the dome. So she's going without.

Boyle has been spending some of her time trying to keep a small area of the dome as clean as she can until help arrives. Boyle and other refugees found some brooms and swept up the mess.
She says they're simply "trying not to let it get any worse."

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Kos pointed out, why aren't those helicopters in New Orleans or on the MS Coast? Why aren't those soldiers in New Orleans? Oh, that's right, it's because they have to be there for George's photo-op.

UPDATE:

2:50 P.M. - WWL-TV LIVE pictures show thousands still wait to be picked up from I-10 and Causeway. Buses arrived a few hours ago, but the refugees say that it's the first sighting of buses in 12 hours. Some of the refugees have been waiting four days. State Police say five people died Thursday while waiting.

Why? Why?

2005-09-02T09:58:00.000-05:00

This is just so heartbreaking. How come someone doesn't do something about it? We are not Nigeria or some 3rd world military dictatorship. Will someone, somewhere do something?

http://talkleft.com/new_archives/012075.html

From the Los Angeles Times:

A 2-year-old girl slept in a pool of urine. Crack vials littered a restroom. Blood stained the walls next to vending machines smashed by teenagers.

"We pee on the floor. We are like animals," said Taffany Smith, 25, as she cradled her 3-week-old son, Terry. In her right hand she carried a half-full bottle of formula provided by rescuers. Baby supplies are running low; one mother said she was given two diapers and told to scrape them off when they got dirty and use them again.

At least two people, including a child, have been raped. At least three people have died, including one man who jumped 50 feet to his death, saying he had nothing left to live for.

There is no sanitation. The stench is overwhelming. The city's water supply, which had held up since Sunday, gave out early Wednesday, and toilets in the Superdome became inoperable and began to overflow.

"There is feces on the walls," said Bryan Hebert, 43, who arrived at the Superdome on Monday. "There is feces all over the place."

This is just so awful

2005-09-01T17:03:00.000-05:00

4:15 P.M. - (AP): Police say storm victims are being raped and beaten inside the New Orleans Convention Center.

About 15,200 people who had taken shelter at the convention center to await buses grew increasingly hostile.

Police Chief Eddie Compass says he sent in 88 officers to quell the situation at the building, but they were quickly beaten back by an angry mob.
Compass says, "We have individuals who are getting raped, we have individuals who are getting beaten."

He says tourists are walking in that direction and they are getting preyed upon.
In hopes of defusing the unrest at the convention center, Mayor Ray Nagin gave the refugees permission to march across a bridge to the city's unflooded west bank for whatever relief they can find. But the bedlam appeared to make leaving difficult.

What Hunter Said

2005-09-01T15:55:00.000-05:00

Daily Kos is tough to read today. Tough because it's truthful commentary in a particularly difficult time for those of us down south.

Go here first.

Then here.

Possibly the best Kos post ever:

George W. Bush was once known as the C.E.O. President, a term his handlers eagerly coined in order to convey that the country would from now on be run like a business. That quickly evolved into the less flattering Enron President... then the War President... now it's looking like we can all finally settle on one. George W. Bush: the Disaster President.

"I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees."

He honestly said that. If that brings up more than a passing twinge of familiarity, being a more than remarkable restatement of Condi Rice's now-famous assertion to the Senate panel -- then I suppose we shouldn't be surprised.

But it does bring up something that we joke about often, but apparently have never taken quite seriously enough: our President is an idiot. I don't mean an average, run-of-the-mill idiot. I mean an idiot who apparently, for the entire duration of his presidency, literally was paying absolutely no attention to even the most life-threateningly critical tasks of government.
The administration specifically cut the funds to fix these specific levees, in order to specifically divert that Corps money to Iraq, despite urgent warnings and predictions of catastrophic disaster if the levees were breeched. The administration specifically cancelled the Clinton-backed flood control program to preserve and restore the wetlands between New Orleans and the gulf, instead specifically opening parts of that buffer zone for development.

Nobody anticipated this disaster? It was identified by FEMA as one of the top three likeliest major disasters to strike America. (That link, one of countless stories, was from 2001, by the way.) It has been a major disaster scenario for years. Everybody anticipated it, which makes this single statement by George W. Bush possibly the most dishonest, lying, craptacularly false thing he has ever said in his presidency -- even surpassing his now-infamous State of the Union Address. Truly, this is President Bush's blue-dress moment.

And yet, funneling the money into Iraq was more important. You better bet your crapulent, lying, one-track, drink-addled ass that's a political issue.
He also said today:

"I hope people don't play politics at this time of a natural disaster the likes of which this country has never seen."

Oh, I'm touched. Utterly touched. After 9/11, the entire Republican Party went en masse to get Twin Towers ass tattoos. The Republican convention was a wholesale tribute to crass exploitation, the sets themselves designed to evoke the aftermath of the attack. Every domestic and international policy this administration -- no, this entire Republican government -- has produced has been heaved up before the public while waving the spectre of 9/11 as the catch-all vindication of every administration whim. Every tax cut, every civil rights issue, every budget cut, every budget expansion, no matter how tortured the logic must be, has some Republican senator standing on the Senate floor and proudly raping the corpses of that day as justification for their particular agenda item.

Oh, we've seen politicization of disaster. Every Republican campaign for the last four years has revolved around the politicization of disaster.

But Lord help us, George W. Bush is going to get the vapors if anyone asks him to explain his administration's active cuts of the very programs designed to keep New Orleans safe.

Gas part 3

2005-09-01T14:31:00.000-05:00

In researching information about gas shortages, which are happening all over the country, i came across this:

"Matt McKenzie, spokesman for from AAA-Northern New England, predicted gas prices would hit $3.70 to $3.80 by month's end in that region of the country, causing frugal motorists to begin carpooling, curbing errands and maybe even scaling back fall leaf-viewing trips. "

Yes, that would be tragic. Here in Jackson we have an entire population sitting and sweltering in 95 degree heat, with no power, no gas to run generators, many without jobs, many worrying about loved ones on the coast or in New Orleans. And of course there's the comprehensive tragedy south of here.

But to have to scale back the fall leaf-viewing trips? Time to call out the National Guard. SOMETHING MUST BE DONE!

And then this:

At one of the few stations open, Steve Clifford, 48, pumped fuel into his Isuzu sport utility vehicle. "I heard it was going to go up to $4 a gallon tomorrow and there were going to be shortages, so when I got home from work I kissed my wife goodbye and said I was going out to find gas," he said.

That's so sweet. Excuse me while I go get a tissue.

Gas part 2

2005-09-01T14:05:00.000-05:00

The situation must be critical. It's still difficult to get accurate information concerning the gas shortages here in JAckson, but secondhand and anecdotal information is bleak. I was just near the fairgrounds, near a station on High street, and the line was 100+ cars long. It was 50 cars long before the gas tanker even arrived at the station.

Two motorists in line nearly came to blows.

I fear that if something is not done, if troops are not brought in to restore order, the city of Jackson could descend into chaos over this weekend.

I sure hope that doesn't happen.

Gas

2005-09-01T10:14:00.000-05:00

Gas is a real problem now here in Jackson. I'm not a reporter or an analyst, just a regular Joe watching and observing. I see long long lines and fraying tempers and I can't see any good reason the gas shortage problem can't be solved relatively quickly.

I'm frustrated, for sure. Why in the heck can't someone, FEMA, the executive branch, someone, direct some gas down this way? There's no plan for this? There's no mechanism by which this can be done? People are getting panicked here, people are testy and if something is not done about the gas soon, there will be violence. On top of that, the power company trucks and other emergency and public service vehicles can't get gas, either. Something needs to be done very soon or it could get very ugly in a lot of places. I mean why are we part of a union anyway? Why in the hell DO we have a federal government anyway, if not to address this kind of situation? Get some damn gas trucks down this way, geez.

This is nothing compared to the problems and pains of those south and west of here. Nevertheless, the gas shortage seems to be a problem with an easy solution that's easily implemented.

Many are still in a sort of suspended state of shock. Many people do not have access to the images people elsewhere have been seeing for a few days. When I first saw some of the images from the coast and the Big Easy, I got very emotional. I know those places, I know those people. I grew up in and around there. I spent many a summer day in Waveland which is, I understand, now gone entirely. I am tremendously grateful for my and Wendi's safety and the safety of our friends and family. Others I've talked to are experiencing the same sort of thing. A sort of zombie-like state where we can only focus, if at all, on the next immediate task.

It still hasn't completely sunk in.

George Bush on August 30, 2005

2005-08-31T12:23:00.000-05:00

the day after Hurricane Katrina ravaged and demolished the Mississippi Gulf Coast and New Orleans:

Caption: President Bush plays a guitar presented to him by Country Singer Mark Wills, right, backstage following his visit to Naval Base Coronado, Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2005. Bush visited the base to deliver remarks on V-J Commemoration Day.

Katrina Update

2005-08-31T09:55:00.000-05:00

We are doing fine. The power's out, and we're under a boil water notice, but we have a generator and enough gas for another night or 2. We can't drive anywhere because a big tree is blocking our way out, but we've got another car.

This is just a terrible tragedy. I can't bear to watch the footage from New Orleans and the coast.

Rebel Roundup - August 25, 2005

2005-08-25T11:03:00.000-05:00

News and Notes About Ole Miss Rebel Football

Kelvin Robinson regaining form (subscription)

Daily Journal OM beat writer Parrish Alford Q&A

Frosh DL Jada Brown will not rejoin Rebels

Defense performs well in scrimmage

Profile of DB Travis Johnson

DBs comfortable with 4-3 defense

Special Teams Analysis

No Roundup tomorrow. Next Roundup Monday, maybe Sunday. If I've omitted a big story from today, please feel free to link or paste it in the comments.

Rebel Roundup - August 24, 2005

2005-08-24T08:31:00.000-05:00

News and Notes about Ole Miss Rebel Football

DT Mckinley Boykin urged to practice as hard as he plays (Scrimmage summary). (subscription)

QB Michael Spurlock engaged. (subscription)

Rebels Work on Pass Rush.

Secondary Analysis (Clarion Ledger)

Ole Miss D-Line Shines in Scrimmage

Report on Terry Levy (OM commitment and Dandy Dozen star)

Upgrading Talent Orgeron's First Task (Macon Telegraph)

DeUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUcccccccce!

LATE UPDATES:

QB Ethan Flatt Attempts to Reclaim Starting Role.

QB Race heating up.

Op-ed re QB race.

If you see anything I might have missed, feel free to add the link in the comments.

The chickenhawk right wing smear machine

2005-08-23T09:14:00.000-05:00

Limbaugh is just filth. He just is. If you listen to him, you're probably a piece of trash, too. Despicable.

Limbaugh's comments about Cindy Sheehan (which he's since denied making because he's a spineless puke):

"I mean, Cindy Sheehan is just Bill Burkett. Her story is nothing more than forged documents, there's nothing about it that's real, including the mainstream media's glomming onto it, it's not real."

"They [mainstream media] are going to try to claim that Cindy Sheehan is responsible for the Bush poll numbers on Iraq being down, but those numbers were falling before Cindy Sheehan did this."

"What's she got? A hundred stragglers have showed up down there, a hundred peaceniks, a hundred long-haired, maggot-infested, dope-smoking FM types, essentially, are down there joining her."

"Now, I don't have a whole lot of sympathy for the woman. I think she's taken the grieving process here to lengths that most people don't, and she's being fueled by all of this attention."

"But the longer the Sheehan thing goes on and the longer she's treated as some sort of super-celebrity by the press and the more outrageous things she says, trust me on this, the more people are going to get fed up with it. She's going to become the next Natalee Holloway before it's all said and done."

Cindy Sheehan is a Gold Star mother. Her son died in a war that Limbaugh supported. A war for "freedom" apparently. Fatass has the right to say whatever he wants. So do I. And he's a chickenshit coward (did not go to Vietnam because of a boil on his large ass).

And then there's another right wing blowhard (who I had not heard about until now), Mark Williams. He's on the "You Don't Speak for Me, Cindy" tour. Whatever. He's on a whole tour dedicated to refuting a greiving mother who lost a son in the war HE supports (and I'm assuming he's not lost any loved ones in the war, not that that would give him the right to badmouth someone who did). This isn't a "pro-America" rally, it's an "anti-american" rally. It's anti-Cindy Sheehan. Same thing happened with Dixie Chicks, etc. These wingnuts just cannot accept ANY criticism or debate. They have to make it personal. Sickening.

Anyway, here's what this pukefaced hatemonger had to say on "Hardball" with Chris Matthews (the softballer, Norah O'Donnel, was substituting, not that Matthews is any better, really, but I digress):

Williams: "I just got back from Iraq, talking with the troops, talking with the Iraqis and I see the damage that's done by pathetic creatures like the woman I'm talking to and Cindy Sheehan. When they get up there and they present this country as divided and still arguing issues that were decided, debated and voted on three years ago, that both demoralizes our troops and invigorates the insurgency. "And it's no mistake that the lion's share of violence is in and around Baghdad. That's where there are more Western news cameras per capita than probably any other city on the planet earth. When they see this kind of division they use it as a fundraiser and a recruiting tool."

O'Donnell: "Mark, if you don't mind, you're making the case that Cindy Sheehan is hurting the morale of our troops?"

Williams: "She is aiding and abetting the enemies of this country and the people who killed her son. And right now Casey Sheehan is spinning in his grave!"

This guy and those like him (Michelle Malkin, etc.) and those on the right who do not unequivocally condemn this kind of personal attack are just slime. They should go straight to hell.

Let's remember, this anti-war, anti-Bush sentiment is now the MAJORITY sentiment. So if Sheehan is harming the troops, so am I, so are you, so is anyone who disagrees with King, um, I mean, President Bush. According to this loser, the majority of the American people are aiding and abetting the enemies of this country. Really. Work on that one in your individual lesson plans.

Why can't these folks just say they disagree with Sheehan and move on? Why does she have to be personally attacked? She's not personally attacking the president, after all. She's protesting his war policy that resulted in the death of her son. If anyone has a right to attack someone personally, it's Cindy Sheehan.

I could quote more from the Michelle Malkins and her ilk, but it's tiring.

We were right about Bush. We were right about this unnecessary pointless murderous war. We were right.

Lane Closing the Gap

2005-08-18T08:39:00.000-05:00

This is the best news I've heard in a long time re: Ole Miss Football. Possibly the best news since Cutcliffe was terminated. From the Clarion Ledger:

Lane closing the gap

A slow start to preseason practice and struggles coping with the heat had placed sophomore quarterback Robert Lane a few steps behind senior Micheal Spurlock in the race for the starting job.

But Lane is quietly closing the gap.Lane has put together his best stretch of practice over the past few days, consistently completing passes and driving the offense to scores in scrimmage situations. Lane completed 6 of 8 passes during Wednesday morning's practice and had another solid effort in the afternoon scrimmage by completing all three of his attempts and rushing for a 13-yard touchdown.

"I'm going out as a quarterback trying to get better each and every day," said Lane, who is trying to beat out Spurlock and also hold off junior Ethan Flatt. "We're also trying to get better as a team. We want to win games and we want the best guy out there."Lane had succumbed to dehydration and cramping during the first week of practice and once had to be treated at a hospital.Orgeron said he's noticed Lane's progress. But Spurlock and Flatt aren't exactly letting up, either. Spurlock was 10-of-11 for 102 yards with two touchdowns Wednesday afternoon and Flatt went 6-of-10 for 114 yards, including a 54-yard TD pass.

"It's really on now," Orgeron said. "The competition is heating up as we get closer and closer to having to make a decision. It's a really tight race."

The right will stop at nothing

2005-08-11T13:06:00.000-05:00

Nothing is too low, not even badmouthing the grieving mother of a war hero. Geez. They will really stop at nothing. Shameful.

"Cindy Sheehan evidently thinks little of her deceased son." — Jimmy Hall, Guest Columnist, Atlanta Journal Constitution

Here is what this @#@hole thinks: "My suggestion to her, however, is that she think about the lives of those still in Iraq. Undermining public support for our efforts in Iraq helps the enemy, her son's murderers. They love people like her, but hate those like her heroic son.
We all can feel bad for the loss Sheehan has experienced. But it is unthinkable that anyone with a child or relative in Iraq should make statements such as she has. Sheehan has said, "I want to ask the president, 'Why did you kill my son? What did my son die for?'"

So her son died for the freedom for her to say anything she likes, just not that, not a political statement to the President? riiiiight

What an asshole. The AJC should be ashamed. I bet the Clarion Ledger wouldn't put smear tactics like this in their letters to the editor, much less give this kind of weakling a guest column. Pitiful.

A good column by Mark Shields

2005-08-11T09:19:00.000-05:00

can be found here. It's called the Moral Logic of Common Sacrifice.

"The current war in Iraq is the first since the war with Mexico in 1846 that the United States has waged without a draft or tax increases."

...

"[Former Secretary of Navy and Vietnam Veteran Jim] Webb once [commented]: "You don't use 'force,' you send people. You send young people who have dreams, who want a future." The people who make the fateful decision for the nation to go to war are, themselves, subject to no personal consequences. Their children and the children of their friends are not at risk. Without apparent embarrassment, they champion a policy of military escalation with no personal participation. As of this writing, 1,827 Americans have been killed in Iraq -- 1,686 of those deaths have occurred since President George W. Bush landed on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln under a banner proclaiming, "Mission Accomplished.""

...

""Only when the privileged classes perform military service, only when elite youth are on the firing line, does the country define the cause as worth young peoples' blood and do war losses become acceptable," observes Moskos, adding that "the answer to what constitutes vital national interests is found not so much on the cause, itself, but in who is willing to die for that cause.""

Ask yourself what sacrifices you've made in the "War" on terror (or the Global Struggle against Islamic Extremists or whatever the PR gurus in the highest levels of our government are calling it) then ask yourself whether you'd be as gung-ho about this war if it was your son, your spouse, your father, your best friend, who was one of the 1,827. It's worth it to those who made the decision, because they've borne no sacrifice for it.

And I guess "freedom" is what we're fighting for, or at least what we've been told we're fighting for. But what kind of "freedom" is this? The kind of freedom championed and celebrated by a "Freedom Walk" sponsored by your Department of Defense that commemorates the barbaric attacks of 9/11?

In this "Freedom Walk" you actually have to REGISTER to walk for freedom in our country's capital, on public streets in between public momuments. You MUST register, with the government, before enjoying your "freedom" to walk along public streets. That doesn't sound like freedom to me......

Amendment I - Freedom of Religion, Press, Expression.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Shame about Palmeiro

2005-08-02T12:53:00.000-05:00

you know, to go in front of Congress and LIE like that. He should be charged with perjury. And on such an important issue, too.....it's not like.......well.......

"Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction." Dick Cheney Speech to VFW National Convention, Aug. 26, 2002.[i]

"Right now, Iraq is expanding and improving facilities that were used for the production of biological weapons." George W. Bush Speech to U.N. General Assembly, Sept. 12, 2002.[ii]

"We know they have weapons of mass destruction … There isn't any debate about it." [It is] beyond anyone's imagination" that U.N. inspectors would fail to find such weapons if they were given the opportunity. Donald Rumsfeld, September 2002.[iii]

"If he declares he has none, then we will know that Saddam Hussein is once again misleading the world." Ari Fleischer Press Briefing, Dec. 2, 2002.[iv]

"We know for a fact that there are weapons there." Ari Fleischer Press Briefing, Jan. 9, 2003.[v]

"We know that Saddam Hussein is determined to keep his weapons of mass destruction, is determined to make more." Colin Powell Remarks to U.N. Security Council, Feb. 5, 2003.[vi]

"We have sources that tell us that Saddam Hussein recently authorized Iraqi field commanders to use chemical weapons -- the very weapons the dictator tells us he does not have." George W. Bush Radio Address, Feb. 8, 2003.[vii]

"So has the strategic decision been made to disarm Iraq of its weapons of mass destruction by the leadership in Baghdad?... I think our judgment has to be clearly not." Colin Powell Remarks to U.N. Security Council, March 7, 2003.[viii]

“Does Saddam now have weapons of mass destruction? Sure he does. We know he has chemical weapons. We know he has biological weapons. . . Defense Policy Board Chair, Richard Perle, speaking to a Senate Foreign Relations subcommittee hearing, March, 2003. [ix]

"Intelligence gathered by this and other governments leaves no doubt that the Iraq regime continues to possess and conceal some of the most lethal weapons ever devised." George W. Bush Address to the Nation, March 17, 2003. [x]

"Well, there is no question that we have evidence and information that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction, biological and chemical particularly... all this will be made clear in the course of the operation, for whatever duration it takes." Ari Fleisher Press Briefing, March 21, 2003[xi]

"There is no doubt that the regime of Saddam Hussein possesses weapons of mass destruction." Gen. Tommy Franks Press Conference, March 22, 2003. [xii]

"We know where they are. They're in the area around Tikrit and Baghdad and east, west, south and north somewhat." Donald Rumsfeld ABC Interview, March 30, 2003. [xiii]

"I'm absolutely sure that there are weapons of mass destruction there " Colin Powell Remarks to Reporters, May 4, 2003. [xiv]

"O" Zone T-Shirt Experience Extravanganza!

2005-07-29T10:17:00.000-05:00

This is just soooooo stupid. So incredibly stupid. This coming season, the Ole Miss Sports Marketing Department (in association with WasteOFmoney, inc. and in conjunction with StupidIdeas Intl.) wants all Ole Miss fans to wear a silly read t-shirt, developed by Nike. The full atrocity is memorialized here:

http://www.olemiss.edu/cgi-bin/news2000/display.pl?id=4585&mode=full

"By being called the O-Zone Experience, the desired atmosphere is expected to offer the 2005 Rebel football team a competitive home field advantage, one that is full of electricity and enthusiasm. "

What? There's not enough of a home field advantage, you know, playing on our, well, HOME FIELD? Are these the same nitwits who came up with "Red Alert" and similar nonsense?

"Having a unified athletic T-shirt is a concept that many other universities have utilized," said ASB president Rebecca Bertrand. "I plan to wear my 'Are you Ready?' shirt to pep rallies and athletic events to show my support, and I think this type of collaboration between athletics and the fans will help build momentum for the O-Zone Experience."

I don't wanna be a downer but this is just silly. No atmosphere has ever been created, anywhere, as a result of some stupid marketing program or silly slogan. You do it by winning important games. If smart marketing and clever programs were all it took to create "atmosphere" then Duke and Vandy would be incredibly intimidating places to play.

Besides, how many fans wear t-shirts to Ole Miss games? Not many. Something tells me that the majority of those who already wear t-shirts to games will think this is a GREAT idea, REALLY COOL MAN but those who don't will pass.

It's just silly. Besides, is O-ZONE threatening or intimidating? Of course not. It's just silly. O-Zone. Stupid.

I'll keep my ears open for the "Red Alert" so I can catch that "Rebel Express" to the "O-zone". And hell yes, I am ready........

When I Paint My Masterpiece

2005-07-15T12:57:00.000-05:00

My favorite Dylan cover by The Dead. Sometimes I forget how well they did it. Plenty of their Dylan covers I didn't care for (Desolation Row, Memphis Blues), but this one always satisfied.

Here's a splendid version from Red Rocks on August 11, 1987.

"Someday, everything is gonna be diff'rentWhen I paint my masterpiece."

Jamaica Bloggin, Mon - part II

2005-07-08T14:45:00.000-05:00

Well, we endured Hurricane Dennis. Some people have taken to calling it Dennis "The Menace". Quite clever. We enjoyed a nice dinner and when we got back to our room, we found out that some of the cable channels had been restored!

There were a lot of evacuees from other resorts staying at our resort last night and some of them were quite obnoxious, complaining about the rooms, or the food, or whatever. Seriously, if you find something to complain about here, you're not gonna be happy anywhere. There's just no pleasin some people I guess. At breakfast, some princess from another resort complained that the resort did not have an indoor pool. In Jamaica, you know right next to the OCEAN? Princess was also disappointed that her room did not come with her own personal butler and that she had to walk to get to places. Her new husband (they were on their honeymoon) is in for a long life....

That picture above is of me enjoying a pre-hurricane cigar on our porch. Maybe I'll make it the main photo for the blog?

We went shopping this morning. We got some coffee, some McVittie's Tea Biscuits, some cigars, and some other trinkets. Then we picked out wedding photos, and ate another fantastic lunch. The food here is really, fantastic at every meal. We will eat at Feather's tonight for our last night. Feather's is the highfalutin fancy place where they serve stuff with a demiglaze and reduction sauces (I want more mon, not less, don't reduce the sauce!). I'm enjoying a fine Monte Cristo #4 as I blog. We'll get one more good breakfast before heading to MBJ airport for the flight home. We're a little burned, fat, happy, almost broke and pretty close to being ready to go home.

We sure will miss this though:

Hurricane Bloggin Mon, part III

2005-07-07T18:56:00.000-05:00

7 pm here in Jamaica, and it's dark. There's a stiff breeze and a few scattered sprinkles. The restaurant is way crowded because they've shut down the other 2 restaurants for the night. Everyone is in good spirits and every staff person we see asks whether we're having a good time, feeling safe, etc. Just a top notch facility. They came by earlier to put the masking tape on our windows and we stayed out on the porch for a while and enjoyed a cigar before heading in to pack up a few things, get them elevated since we're in a beach front toom (see post below).

At the top of the post is the view from our seat at the restaurant as I type this. They say we'll get a lot of wind and rain tonight, but that it should be mostly cleared out by noon tomorrow. Not much else to report. See ya next time on Hurricane Bloggin Mon......

Hurricane Bloggin Mon - part II

2005-07-07T12:56:00.000-05:00

So now it's close to 1 and the eye of Hurricane Dennis is just northeast of Jamaica, mon. We have some cloud cover and some light drizzles (which just started), but lunch is being served and preparations continue. We prepared for Dennis by floating on rafts in the sea and watching 5 beach weddings in succession. The staff removed the couch cushions from our veranda couch and also put the chair in the room. We have coffee, snack mix, water, smokes, meds and most everything we will need to ride it out.

All excursions and activities were cancelled today though, aside from probable traffic issues, we could have gone shopping. We got our DVD from Rob (the guy who did the wedcast) and were able to sift through the wedding photos (just the 35mm, the digital ones will have to wait until tomorrow at the earliest).

Wendi's getting her a Caesar's salad and I'm prepping for lunch with coffee and cigarettes. This Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is exquisite. All the food has been spectacular and the service is impeccable (by our standards anyway).

People were floating in the sea, playing beach volleyball, eating, drinking and walking on the beach all morning. We enjoyed some Bizarre Banana drinks (bananas, coconut milk, nutmeg, etc, quite tasty and refreshing).

We'll try to post some pics soon. If we do, they will be located here.

Hurricane Bloggin, Mon!

2005-07-07T07:36:00.000-05:00

So Hurricane Dennis is on the way, predicted originally to hit Jamaica at 8 a.m. Well it's 7:30 and while the sky is overcast and it's humid, no rain and no wind to speak of. Even hurricanes are late in Jamaica, mon.

Yesterday was the outside tour to Mayfield Falls,

Jamaica's #1 eco-tourist attraction! High in the mountains, the falls were beautiful and the trip (aside from the stop-n-go, bumpy bus ride) was wonderful. We got a lot of pictures and one of the guides made a DVD which we can purhase later. Who knows, maybe if you're lucky, we'll invite you over to watch ALL our vacation videos (pausing frequently to point out small details that the casual viewer might overlook). Don't worry, we'll have chips and dips there for ya. We would add more pictures to the epson photo album (including some additional wedding pictures) but the connection here is too slow to upload the photos to the site. You can view the wedcast and the reception here. Click here and here to get the videos to play without going to the outside site (available only for a limited time). Here is a candid photo of our nuptials:

Everyone here at the resort seems, for the most part, unconcerned about the coming storm. Some activities (parasailing, skiing, etc.) will be cancelled today for sure. We are going to try to go shopping at 10:30 (the storm is now expected to hit the island around 2 p.m.) today rather than tomorrow as we initially planned. We're at breakfast now and people seem to be going about their business as usual. We will go pick out our wedding pictures in a few, as well as try to schedule the shopping expedition (this is a rare occasion where shopping will not be as boring, because there's an element of danger involved. It's not just shopping, we could DIE, we could get in the middle of the hurricane. That's what I'm talkin about, DANGER shopping.....)

We have an emergency bag packed in case we're evacuated to the shelter across the street. This is reasonably possible since our room is directly on the beach. The staff here has moved all the beach chairs and tied them up and has even knocked out the coconuts from the trees (and promptly split them open and ate them).

We will just ride it out and do the best we can. No problem mon!

Jamaica Bloggin, Mon -- part I

2005-07-04T22:02:00.000-05:00

So we're on day 3 of our weddingmoon (note: this refers to a combination "wedding" and "honeyMOON" -- I've combined the 2 words to create a NEW word. Pretty smart, huh?) in sunny (well, mostly sunny) Jamaica at the Couples Swept Away Resort and Spa in Negril. We left at an insanely early hour of the morning from the Jackson "International" Airport. Here

is a picture of us leaving (well, not actually leaving, but being dropped off at the airport (well, outside the airport to be completely accurate. Did I mention it was INSANELY early?)).

The weddingmoon (see explanation above) started somewhat dubiously as NorthWorst Airlines left our luggage at home where, suffice it to say, it was not needed. The crack staff at Montego Bay Airport knew where our luggage was upon our arrival so, bruised but not beaten (more cliches to follow, I'm sure), we ventured to Negril through the charming, quaint (ie, SMALL) roads of coastal Jamaica. We stopped at a stop-n-rob outside of some place with "Town" in the title (but not, regrettably, "trenchtown" of No Woman No Cry fame) for some overpriced sugar water and, for me, cigarettes (since I packed my smokes in the bag which was still in Jackson). Here's a picture of Wendi at said stop-n-rob:

For you nerds out there who are wondering "Why didn't yall take a picture TOGETHER? Well, we were tired and I didn't trust that driver dude with our camera -- he almost got us killed! And there weren't even seat belts on that bus, and I'm pretty sure it wasn't up to "code" -- whatever that means down here. Did I mention the roads were TINY?

Upon our arrival at the resort, we were greeted with a cold towel (woo HOO!) and lots of smiling faces. After rejecting the offer of free champagne, twice I think (we must have been the first two people to refuse FREE champagne! Hey, mon it's free, you sure you no want. Yes, mon, we're pretty sure. I don't remember champagne being all that good to start with (too many bubbles, man)). After waiting around a bit (but not, alas, for our luggage because it was not gonna get there that day), we were escorted to our......

BEACH FRONT ROOM!!!!!! BEACH FRONT ROOM!!!!!

They called it a complimentary upgrade, I call it awesometotallyawesomewickedgoodlike! Wanna see the view? C'mon, ya know ya do (BOTH OF YOU!), so go ahead and take a look.

and another.

Well, you get the idea.

Right now, imagine me in front of you pointing my finger and saying "You, you, in your face,
YOU, we got us a mailto:$#@$%#$ beach front BABAY" (Wendi, on the other hand, would obviously not be doing any such thing).

Needless to say, we were pretty stoked.

This place is fantastic. The food is amazing, and there's just loads of stuff to do (if you're into "doing stuff"... Mostly we've just vegged out (well, we've done some swimming and played ping-pong, got massages, walked on the beach and right now we're listening to possibly the WORST cover band I've ever heard (they've played just about every song in the American pop music catalog with the word "Twist" in the title) but it's still fun, and we've smoked a couple of cigars).

We had dinner on the beach last night and it was quite nice. Here's a picture of us at that dinner.

Our luggage arrived on Sunday morning (don't worry, the smokes were in there).

The Big day is tomorrow. We met with the wedding coordinator, Tameika, today (how many of you gals can say your wedding was planned by a gal named Tameika?) and everything but the weather is set. The forecast calls for rain, as it did today, but today it was just intermittent showers. The nuptials are scheduled for 2 p.m. but it might be delayed on account of rain (that is SO cool, the wedding, just like a baseball game, might have a rain delay. Not to worry, we'll get in the full nine innings somehow). Check it out HERE. The wedcast should be up for about a week after it's done and watch this space for updates (if we feel like it).

That'll have to do it for now. We just finished dinner and we're on the 2nd story overlooking the dance floor listening to the aforementioned cruddy cover band.

We gotta go....They're playing "Mustang Sally" and we just GOTTA DANCE........

Bush's half-assed Mississippi support

2005-07-01T12:33:00.000-05:00

Check out this bit from dailykos. Seems as though 1/2 of my fellow Mississippians now agree with me that Bush is doing a poor job as president. These numbers have to be disenheartening to the wingnutosphere. Seems all but the most wingnuttiest are finally coming around to what we freedom-haters and terrorist-coddlers have known all along....

Bush is at 50 percent or above in only 11 states --
Utah (63), Nebraska (60), Wyoming (58), Idaho (56), Montana (56), Alabama (54), Alaska (53), North Dakota (52), Kansas (51), Kentucky (50), Mississippi (50), and Texas (50).

Bush is at 40 percent or lower in 14 states --
Ohio (40), Wisconsin (40), Maine (39), Massachusetts (39), Delaware (38), Nevada (38), New Jersey (38), Michigan (38), California (37), Connecticut (37), Illinois (37), New York (33), Rhode Island (33), and Vermont (32).

The weighted average (based on each state's percentage of the US population) is 43 approve, 53 disapprove.

Yikes:

Poll here.

How Low Can He Go?

2005-06-24T09:04:00.000-05:00

We were right, part II. We were right about Shrub, his needless war, and most everything else:

Zogby. 6/20-22. MoE 3.2% (5/23-25 results)
Bush job ratings

Approve 44 (46)
Disapprove 56 (53)

American Research Group. 6/19-22. MoE 3% (May results)
Bush job ratings

Approve 42 (43)
Disapprove 53 (51)

Bush handling the economy
Approve 37 (37)
Disapprove 59 (57)

Harris Poll. 6/7-12. MoE 3% (4/5-10 results)
Do you favor keeping a large number of U.S. troops in Iraq until there is a stable government there OR bringing most of our troops home in the next year?
Wait for stable govt 33 (40)
Bring home in next year 63 (60)

Do you think the invasion of Iraq strengthened or weakened the war on terrorism?
Strengthened 43 (49)
Weakened 44 (47)

Gallup. 6/16-19. MoE 3% (3/18-20 results)
Do you favor or oppose the U.S. war with Iraq?
Favor 39 (47)
Oppose 59 (47)

AND IN A COMPLETELY UNRELATED STORY:

Conservatives saw the savagery of 9/11 in the attacks and prepared for war; liberals saw the savagery of the 9/11 attacks and wanted to prepare indictments and offer therapy and understanding for our attackers. [...]

Let me just put this in fairly simple terms: Al Jazeera now broadcasts the words of Senator Durbin to the Mideast, certainly putting our troops in greater danger. No more needs to be said about the motives of liberals.

--Karl Rove

WARNING: Readers are advised to beware that any statement issued by Karl Rove, George Bush, Bill Frist, Sean Hannity, Rush Limbaugh, Dick Cheney, Condoleeze Rice, and similarly situated chickenhawks quoted herein could very well be a lie, misrepresentation or "misstatement" Unless Round is Funny and all affiliated persons and entities makes no representations about the accuracy, veracity or truthfulness of statements from the above named individuals quoted herein.

Bonnaroo Roundup - Part III

2005-06-21T10:57:00.000-05:00

We stayed in the hotel Saturday night and, mercifully, got a good night of sleep and a long hot shower on Sunday morning. Very nice.

After returning to the campground, and parking the car near the RV (we were leaving early on Sunday, and having the car nearby helped that process), we ventured back to Centeroo for the final day. Wendi and I caught Amos Lee first. Amos had some good songs (he's opened for Dylan and some other big acts), but he didn't really fire me up, so I left early to catch the set by Dr. Dog. Dr. Dog played at the Other Tent, the smallest tent, and the crowd was sparse. I did get to meet Jim James of My Morning Jacket at the show, he was milling about in the regular crowd. I told him how much I enjoyed the Birmingham show on June 3rd, and he complimented me on my "Achiever" Lebowskifest t-shirt (My Morning Jacket played Lebowskifest '04). Dr. Dog's set was fun. Pictures here here and here. Another one here.

Following a few moments of panic (the details of which I won't go into here), we chilled out in the sprinkles and then headed over to the Which Stage for the finale of My Morning Jacket and Modest Mouse.

My Morning Jacket put on a great show. Pictures here.

Setlist:

Off The Record, The Way That He Sings, 0 Is The One, One Big Holiday, Golden, Just One Thing, Tonight I'll Be Staying Here With You+, Lay Low, Heartbreakin' Man, Don Dante, Run Thru, Bermuda Highway, I Will Sing You Songs, I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man^,Mahgeeta

Highlights for me were the new tune "Off the Record," "I Will Sing You Songs" and the Prince cover.

Modest Mouse was excellent, as well, but we didn't get any pictures (was just tired of taking pictures).

We then walked around Centeroo some more, caught a few songs of Earl Scruggs and Friends (including "The Ballad of Jed Clampett") and then back to the campground and then hit the road.

A fantastic Roo, the best ever!

A fairly complete list of all available recordings of Roo shows can be found here.

Ryan Adams - "Wharf Rat"

2005-06-21T10:35:00.000-05:00

"Wharf Rat" is my all time favorite Grateful Dead song. Give me 3 hours and I'll tell you in excruciating detail exactly WHY it's my favorite Grateful Dead song. Heavy, pretty, always thrusting forward with power and drive, with that beautiful hopeful bridge and the final two verses with both resignation and hope.

No one has ever done it as well as Jerry, until now. Ryan Adams and his band performs the song brilliantly, sings it brilliantly and treats it with the sort of respect I think it deserves. Phil Lesh sits in on this version here, recorded just five days ago. It's an audience recording, but the sound is nice. Pay attention to how the song STARTS, the slow driving buildup, just sensational. That's probably in large part due to Phil's driving bass.

Ryan gets the song, a remarkable version of the song. Go and listen.

Wharf Rat (Garcia/Hunter)

Old man down, way down down, down by the docks of the city.
Blind and dirty, asked me for a dime, a dime for a cup of coffee.
I got no dime but I got some time to hear his story.

My name is August West, and I love my Pearly Baker best more than my wine.
More than my wine - more than my maker, though he's no friend of mine.
Everyone said, I'd come to no good, I knew I would Pearly, believe them.

Half of my life, I spent doin' time for some other fucker's crime,
The other half found me stumbling 'round drunk on Burgundy wine.
But I'll get back on my feet again someday,
The good Lord willin', if He says I may.
I know that the life i'm livin's no good,
I'll get a new start, live the life I should.
I'll get up and fly away, I'll get up and fly away, fly away.

Pearly's been true, true to me, true to my dyin' day he said,
I said to him, I said to him, "I'm sure she's been."
I said to him, "I'm sure she's been true to you."

Got up and wandered, wandered downtown, nowhere to go but just hang around.
I've got a girl, named Bonnie Lee, I know that girl's been true to me.
I know she's been, I'm sure she's been true to me.

Hats off to former Sen. John Danforth (R)

2005-06-17T09:43:00.000-05:00

His piece in today's NYT is just terrific. I wish there were more like him left in Congress.

Highlights:

Many conservative Christians approach politics with a certainty that they know God's truth, and that they can advance the kingdom of God through governmental action. So they have developed a political agenda that they believe advances God's kingdom, one that includes efforts to "put God back" into the public square and to pass a constitutional amendment intended to protect marriage from the perceived threat of homosexuality.

Moderate Christians are less certain about when and how our beliefs can be translated into statutory form, not because of a lack of faith in God but because of a healthy acknowledgement of the limitations of human beings. Like conservative Christians, we attend church, read the Bible and say our prayers.

But for us, the only absolute standard of behavior is the commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves. Repeatedly in the Gospels, we find that the Love Commandment takes precedence when it conflicts with laws. We struggle to follow that commandment as we face the realities of everyday living, and we do not agree that our responsibility to live as Christians can be codified by legislators.

When, on television, we see a person in a persistent vegetative state, one who will never recover, we believe that allowing the natural and merciful end to her ordeal is more loving than imposing government power to keep her hooked up to a feeding tube.

When we see an opportunity to save our neighbors' lives through stem cell research, we believe that it is our duty to pursue that research, and to oppose legislation that would impede us from doing so.

We think that efforts to haul references of God into the public square, into schools and courthouses, are far more apt to divide Americans than to advance faith.

We were right

2005-06-17T09:13:00.000-05:00

We said that there wasn't justification to invade Iraq and murder its citizens, and we were right.

We said we wouldn't be greeted as liberators and would be involved in an interminable civil war, and we were right.

So, where's the credit, where's the due? Finally most people are coming around to what we knew all along, that President Bush misled a country into a needless invasion of a bad country (but one that posed no threat to the United States) and botched it all along the way.

CBS News/NYT. 6/10-15. MoE 3%. (May results)

Bush approval
Approve 42 (46)
Disapprove 51 (48)

Action in Iraq
Right Thing 45 (47)
Should have Stayed out 51 (49)

Terrorism
Approve 52 (58)
Disapprove 40

Economy
Approve 39 (38)
Disapprove 56

Foreign Policy
Approve 39 (40)
Disapprove 51

Iraq
Approve 37 (38)
Disapprove 59

Social Security
Approve 26 (26)
Disapprove 62 (62)

Bush shares your priorities for the country?
Yes 35 (34)
No 61 (61)

Question: So why do Democrats and the press treat the president if he's unassailable and wildly popular. He's not. He's not even close. Now is the time for Democrats to start attacking on all these points, and hard, so maybe, just maybe, we can start to win back Congress.

Bush won reelection, but just barely, but he governs (and is treated by press and opposition) as if he won in a landslide. He might be likable, but the public is clearly rejecting most, if not all, of his policies.

Bonnaroo clip of Gourds doing "Gin and Juice"

2005-06-17T09:00:00.000-05:00

can be found here. Caution: it's sort of long (1:38) but it's pretty cool and gives you an idea of a little of what it's like at the Roo.

Some good news

2005-06-16T11:35:00.000-05:00

Score one for good ole common sense and privacy rights:

From The Guardian:

WASHINGTON (AP) - Advocates of rewriting the USA Patriot Act are claiming momentum after the House, despite a White House veto threat, voted to restrict investigators from using the anti-terrorism law to peek at library records and bookstore sales slips.

Wednesday's 238-187 vote came as lawmakers ramped up efforts to extend the Patriot Act, which was passed quickly in the emotional aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. When Congress passed the law, it included a sunset provision under which 15 of the its provisions are to expire at the end of this year.

Bill Frist: Doctor, Senator, Fibber?

2005-06-16T11:28:00.000-05:00

See here.

Majority Leader Bill Frist this morning on the Today Show:
LAUER: But when you stood on the floor and you said, She does respond, are you at all worried that you led some senators…
FRIST: I never said, She responded. I said I reviewed the court videotapes – the same ones the other doctors reviewed – and I questioned, Is her diagnosis correct?

Frist on Senate Floor, 3/17/05:
I have looked at the video footage. Based on the footage provided to me, which was part of the facts of the case, she does respond.

More from Frist, 3/17/05:
She certainly seems to respond to visual stimuli…

I guess it depends on what your definition of "is" is.

Well....?

2005-06-16T11:22:00.000-05:00

Children, gather 'round:

From an FBI report:

"On a couple of occasions, I entered interview rooms to find a detainee chained hand and foot in a fetal position to the floor, with no chair, food or water. Most times they urinated or defecated on themselves, and had been left there for 18-24 hours or more. On one occasion, the air conditioning had been turned down so far and the temperature was so cold in the room, that the barefooted detainee was shaking with cold. . . . On another occasion, the [air conditioner] had been turned off, making the temperature in the unventilated room well over 100 degrees. The detainee was almost unconscious on the floor, with a pile of hair next to him. He had apparently been literally pulling his hair out throughout the night. On another occasion, not only was the temperature unbearably hot, but extremely loud rap music was being played in the room, and had been since the day before, with the detainee chained hand and foot in the fetal position on the tile floor."

President Bush, October 8, 2003:

"Iraq is free of rape rooms and torture chambers."

President Bush, January 12, 2004:

"One thing is for certain: There won't be any more mass graves and torture rooms and rape rooms."

Scott McClellan, December 10, 2003:

"There was an announcement by the Iraqi Governing Council earlier this week about the tribunal that they have set up to hold accountable members of the former regime who were responsible for three decades of brutality and atrocities. ... We know about the mass graves and the rape rooms and the torture chambers of Saddam Hussein's regime. ... We welcome their decision to move forward on a tribunal to hold people accountable for those atrocities."

Steve Soto has it just about spot on-->

If you consider torture legal and acceptable (even if innocent people are tortured), then Dear Leader's main post-hoc justification of the Iraq invasion it itself illegal, because Saddam Hussein would have been doing something that was legal (in your eyes - for he was only torturing "his enemies"). So, if you have a problem with torture being highlighted and publicized, then maybe it's time for you to become Saddam Hussein's lawyer. That is a more appropriate role for those who seek to condone, ignore, minimize or support torture.

Well....?

Bonnaroo Roundup - part II

2005-06-16T10:44:00.000-05:00

Saturday saw us take it a bit more easily. Widespread Panic was playing Saturday night, and since we had no interest in hearing them (aside from "Doreatha", which we heard while walking around Centeroo), so that meant a few hours off to relax, unwind and regroup.

The first act we saw was M. Ward. We enjoyed his set very much. His albums are sleepy, JJ Cale/Nick Drake-ish, but his live set was a little more, well, lively. I got some great pictures here, here, and here. The highlight of the set was when Jim James of My Morning Jacket came out and did a song with M. Ward. Pictures of that here, here, here, here, and here. Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley also played a couple of songs with M. Ward. Pictures of that here and here.

Some pictures of the grounds on Saturday here and here.

After M. Ward, we chilled out, relaxed and listened to the bluegrass/jamgrass sounds of the Yonder Mountain String Band. As usual, they delivered a fun set, including a cover of the Beatles "Dear Prudence." As we were chillin', no pictures were taken.

Following that, we played some in the arcade, ate a bit, then staked out a spot for Iron & Wine. We were in front of the soundboard (my favorite spot, as you can tell), so the picture did not turn out very well, but the show was spectacular, the surprise (for me) of Bonnaroo. They mixed it up and really kept the set moving, mixing in ballads, groovy numbers, and rockers. We were quite impressed. The encore, the quiet, 9 minute long "The Trapeze Swinger" was sensational. Chill bump city. The crowd was appropriately quiet during the softer numbers and the experience was just fantastic. I cannot recommend Iron & Wine enough.

Following a little rest at the RV and some food, we headed out for the late night. We tried to find Jim Lauderdale, but, due to a misprint in the Bonnaroo Beacon (and my failure to 2x check the venue with my program -- a rookie mistake), we missed his set. I'm sure he put on a great show, but, alas, we missed it.

So, we then caught most of the late-night set by the trippy, Pink Floyd-like Secret Machines. They were good, but (aside from Amos Lee) my least favorite act of the festival. Picture here. They did a fair rendition of Dylan's "Girl From the North Country" (a surprising cover selection given how tripped out and synthesized they sounded).

After that, we called it a night and, mercifully, got to stay in the hotel room where we enjoyed Krystals, clean sheets and a shower the next morning to prepare for the final day.

More to come.....

Bonnaroo Roundup - Friday!

2005-06-15T09:57:00.000-05:00

Bonnaroo 2005 was the best ever. Like the last two years, Bonnaroo had a diverse lineup, with everything from bluegrass (Earl Scruggs) to psychedelic rock (The Mars Volta, Secret Machines) to reggae (Peter Rowan and Crucial Reggae). A schedule of acts is here.

We drove all night Wednesday night and arrived on Thursday, around 9 in the morning and were at our campsite in less than two hours. Two years ago the wait to get in was six hours so it's nice to see that the organizers continue to improve the logistics of handling 80k+ plus people arriving in a town of 10,000.

On Thursday, we played in the arcade (Defender! Phoenix! Asteroids! Tempest!) and basically just chilled out. Caught a little of Trent Dabbs' set in a cafe stage but stayed away from the bigger tents because a) I drove all night and was just exhausted b) no one was compelling enough to see to endure the over-enthusiastic first night crowd and c) Dave Matthews Band was Friday night and we knew we needed all our energy to survive the full day.

On Friday we eased into the day with Ollabelle. They were a good choice. They do covers of traditional and gospel numbers. Some pictures here and here. Next were The Gourds. They put on a great show. Throughout their set we heard people screaming "Gin and Juice," their signature cover of the Snoop Dogg song. After about 40 minutes, one of the band members said "Don't worry, you'll get it." They closed the set out with a rollicking, crowd-pleasing "Gin and Juice" (you can see Snoop himself diggin on their version here) with refrains from AC/DC's "If You Want Blood" and Waylon Jennings' "Just Good Ole Boys" thrown in the bridge for good measure. A picture I took at the show here.

After resting a bit, it was on to see John Prine in This Tent. His set was excellent. He was clearly excited by the enthusiastic, loud crowd. He closed his set with a superb and rollicking "Lake Marie". Some pictures here and here (My spot wasn't that great view-wise, but the sound was impeccable.)

Then we headed over to the Main Stage (The What Stage) to get a spot for the Dave Matthews Band. We sat through a fairly typical, uninspired, yet still entertaining set by the Allman Brothers Band. They miss Dickey Betts something fierce.

It rained a bit, and it was intensely crowded in front of the soundboard, but Dave's set made it worthwhile. The band was absolutely on fire. Some pictures here. I also took some pictures when Robert Randolph came out to play slide guitar on "Louisiana Bayou" and "All Along the Watchtower". Here is one and here is another. I like this one, which is a picture of the big screen during the same time frame. You can see the setlist here. The highlights for me were "Bartender," "You Might Die Trying," and "Two Step." Just a fantastic set.

After his set we were so exhausted we just mosied back to the campsite to rest up. Sat/Sun roundup to come......