Monday, February 27, 2006

From Cash to Yachts, Convicted Congressman Set Bribery Rates

A list of Republican values:
1) Cha Ching

2) Add another zero
...

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By BRIAN ROSS

Feb. 27, 2006 — Prosecutors call it a corruption case with no parallel in the long history of the U.S. Congress. And it keeps getting worse. Convicted Rep. Randall "Duke" Cunningham actually priced the illegal services he provided.

Prices came in the form of a "bribe menu" that detailed how much it would cost contractors to essentially order multimillion-dollar government contracts, according to documents submitted by federal prosecutors for Cunningham's sentencing hearing this Friday.

Tuesday, February 21, 2006

The Republican Agenda

If you study his movements, you will see what his true intentions are."
The Samurai,(whose name I don't recall)
Fist of Legend

Now, with that mentality in mind, that is, studying the movements, let's look at the Republican party that is "serving" it's people. At almost every instance this administration has failed in all of it's government roles. Disaster response, militarily, economically, politically, etc., etc.. Now, I will be the first person to admit that I believe that the President is incompetent. But we all know that his strings are pulled by others, usually to the highest bidder and always by people more intelligent (which isn't saying much.) But he, The President, has even started to alienate himself from other Republicans, which is usually an adoring trait in my book (don't try winning your way into my good graces now, you saucy one, unlike many of my fellow countrymen, I don't forget that easily). So I look for a unifying trait if you will. A common denominator that would make sense for all his actions. In other words; let us study the movements to see if there is a common goal to his apparent haphazard mismanagement of our country. Let's look back and see what it gets us; From 9/11, to the war, gulf coast, doubling the economic, deficit, etc., etc. All of it leeds to somewhere and maybe not incompetence. Perhaps there is place he is truly trying to take the country. I mean, law of averages state that he would be bound to get something right.

Well, maybe he has,O.K. we know he has, alternative motives, but maybe we are not thinking about this the right way.
Now, we all know that the Republicans don't like big government, at least that's what they say. (Never mind the fact that the Republicans have done all of the government growing of the last thirty years.) And, that it was a Democrat that delivered a campaign promise and reduced the number of Federal employees by the end of his term who reduced the size of the Federal government.
But what if there was a common thread to all this "mis-management." What do the movements tell us? Well, we know BushCo. likes giving government jobs to corporate buddies. So where does this get us?...
If you really want to make a big statement at the short comings of government, show how it fails and then move to privatize it under a guise of incompetence,cheaper, and efficiency. Like he is trying to do with social security.
Frankly, this has Bush written all over it.
While it is almost common knowledge to anyone who reads independent media how the World Bank is used to loan money to struggling countries who inevitably can't pay the interest rates(interest rates that would make the Mafia proud), only to forclose on that nation and sell the nations assets to multinational (but American) corporations when said countries default on their payments (check GNN), could this administration,or as I have not-so-affectionately titled it, the reign of King Georges' madness, just be a scheme to privatize the nations various governmental jobs and therefore decrease the size of Government?

Just look at the companies that have profited from taking over former government operations. And we all know Bush IS ALL ABOUT giving contracts to his corporate buddies. Look what he is trying to do "for social security." And look at the Haliburton no bid contracts that the US taxpayer was still over billed for services on.
King George, serving his country or servicing his country? As has been his history, servicing. The only thing resulting from this administrations servicing of the country is the US of A bleeding from the you know of what.

Now, generally I am a fan of small federal government and few/small taxes. But let us remember, my tunnel visioned countrymen, why a lot of these government agencies were founded in the first place. To protect the populace, ie. the citizens of the country from the powerful who were walking over the rights of the unempowered. Organizations like the SEC, EPA, FDA,DoA, NIH,HHS, etc.. were all founded to protect the people from things outside of the average citizens control. And often it was a result of large companies/Robber barons whose greed and political connections were such that it created an unfair displacement of wealth/market share/power and the masses eventually cried out. Nowadays, we have these various government agencies to protect the American citizen. And they work with varying degrees of efficiency, some better than others and for better or worse, when allowed to do their respected jobs. Which this administration usually prevents when it suits there purpose.
So, studying the movements of this administration tells me that they are looking to privatize it to the highest corporate bidder (or the best buddy) much like the world bank does to the countries it (we, the US) lends monies too.

Now, I'm not saying that these agencies don't have room for improvement, OF COURSE THEY DO, they are government agencies. In a lot of cases it would be to kick the politicians out and let the agencies do their jobs without political motives. A perfect example of this is when the Government tells the FDA to fund a study into why Americans are so fat and how do we correct it. And the report can't tell Americans too eat less and what not to eat. HELLO!! But this one example has been going on for years and there are dozens of other examples spanning the agency arena.
But to privatize!!! Then, who is to keep the for profit company in check and ensure that they have the nations, ie. The people, all the peoples) best interests at heart? (Not to say they do a fine job of this now).
AND WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T BUY THE "GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE" OR SOME OTHER B.S. LINE like occasional or periodic reviews. This is bullshit. The people doing the reviewing take campaign contributions like all the other swindlers. They will be bought and paid for before the committee ever meets.
Don't believe me. Look at Bushs' nominations. They all have corporate ties to companies that don't have the countries best at heart.

If you want to fix these agencies and lesson the size of government than make the heads of these posts non-appointed spots with term limit, with terms not linked to Presidential terms. If the person, at the end of his/her term, can prove that they have done a fine job and a better qualified person can't be found to replace, than they me do another term.

Now, to lesson the size of government...This is something I've been milling about for quite some time, how about this:
Pass a bill that mandates the decrease in government department spending buy let's say %1 every year for ten years. Now, I now that %1 isn't much, and this is sort of an intentionally small number. But let's think about it. %1 on 1 billion dollars is 10 million dollars. That is 10 million dollars on every billion the government spends. And this compounds every year on itself. Most of the downsizing could be done relatively painlessly through attrition and efficiency upgrades, which let's face it, Every government agency I've dealt with could seriously use efficiency upgrades. After all, the best and most long lasting changes are made slow and easy. And, if you want to make it 15 or 20 years so be it.



BB


PS: How is it that we don't hear ANYTHING about investigations into any of this administrations blatant fascist dealings on the mainstream media? Boy I remember I couldn't stop hearing about a blowjob and the millions spent on it. Maybe the bone of contention with the Republicans is that while politicians do a lot of screwing of people, your not supposed to enjoy any of it. Of course that was consensual, but I digress. ...So much for the left wing media!!!

Monday, February 20, 2006

Spin of the Week

U.S. and Britain neck and neck in fake news Olympics

Similar Fake News, Iraq Occupations
In 2002, the British government “launched a little-known television propaganda service that seems to mimic the U.S. government’s deceptive approach to fake news,” writes David Miller. British Satellite News (BSN) is produced by the company World Television, which “also makes corporate videos and fake news clips for corporations such as GlaxoSmithKline, BP and Nestle.” BSN reports are sent to more than 400 stations worldwide and used regularly by 185 stations, including those in Russia, Malaysia, Indonesia and “14 of the 17 Middle East countries.” Miller notes a “suggested intro” to one BNS piece that reads, “This year is not the first time an outside power has sought to construct a modern, democratic, liberal state in Iraq. Britain tried to do the same in the 1920s.” Miller writes, “In reality the 1920 occupation led immediately to a popular revolt that was ruthlessly suppressed. A puppet monarchy was imposed, which was neither ‘modern’ nor ‘democratic.’”

NSC, Cheney Aides Conspired to Out CIA Operative

They say this investigation is heating up. Let's hope it get's hot enough to BURN THE WITCHES
Summary:
It was during the course of their attempts to attack Wilson’s credibility and rebut his charges that officials in the State Department, the CIA, Cheney’s office, and the National Security Council – many of whom were responsible for pushing the administration to cite the Niger claims – learned that Wilson’s wife was a covert CIA agent and, upon learning that she may have been responsible for sending Wilson to Niger, leaked her name to a handful of reporters.

Saturday, February 18, 2006

Climate Change: On the Edge

Greenland Ice Cap Breaking Up at Twice the Rate It Was Five Years Ago, Says Scientist Bush Tried to Gag
by Jim Hansen

A satellite study of the Greenland ice cap shows that it is melting far faster than scientists had feared - twice as much ice is going into the sea as it was five years ago. The implications for rising sea levels - and climate change - could be dramatic.

Yet, a few weeks ago, when I - a NASA climate scientist - tried to talk to the media about these issues following a lecture I had given calling for prompt reductions in the emission of greenhouse gases, the NASA public affairs team - staffed by political appointees from the Bush administration - tried to stop me doing so. I was not happy with that, and I ignored the restrictions. The first line of NASA 's mission is to understand and protect the planet.

Thursday, February 16, 2006

Police clear Cheney in mishap

File this one under the NO SHIT category. Like a local hick cop is going to arrest the Vice President aka (Prince of Darkness).

By Jeff Franks
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (Reuters) - Local police cleared Vice President Dick Cheney of any wrongdoing in his weekend hunting mishap and closed the case on Thursday, saying no charges would be filed.

Kenedy County Sheriff Ramon Salinas said an investigation had determined Cheney shot Texas lawyer Harry Whittington by accident, therefore no legal action was needed.

Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Cheney Shoots A Texas Liberal

If I am ever fortunate enough to meet this woman, I'll give her a nice big kiss.
BB

by Molly Ivins

Of course the jokes are flying all over Texas—what’s the fine for shooting a lawyer?—and so forth. Dick-Cheney-shooting-Harry-Whittington is fraught, as they say, with irony. It’s not as though the ground in Texas is littered with liberal Republicans. I think the vice president winged the only one we’ve got.

Not that I accuse Harry Whittington of being an actual liberal—only by Texas Republican standards, and that sets the bar about the height of a matchbook. Nevertheless, Whittington is seriously civilized, particularly on the issues of crime, punishment and prisons. He served on both the Texas Board of Corrections and on the bonding authority that builds prisons. As he has often said, prisons do not curb crime, they are hothouses for crime: “Prisons are to crime what greenhouses are to plants.”

the article is wonderful and you should click on the title to read the whole thing but hear are some excerpts

Which brings us to one of the many paradoxes of the Bush administration, which claims to be creating “the responsibility society.” It’s hard to think of a crowd less likely to take responsibility for anything they have done or not done than this bunch. They’re certainly good at preaching responsibility to others—and blaming other people for everything that goes wrong on their watch.

Of course the Cheney shooting was an accident.

But is it an accident if your home and your life are destroyed by the flood following a hurricane? Especially if the flood was caused by failed levees, a government responsibility?

Is it an accident if you are born with a clubfoot and your parents are too poor to pay for the operation to fix it? Is there any societal responsibility in such a case?

Is it an accident when your manufacturing job gets shipped overseas and all you can find to replace it is a low-wage job at the big-box store with no health insurance, and your kid breaks his leg, and you can’t pay the bill, so you have to declare bankruptcy under a new law that leaves you broke for good, with no chance of ever getting out of debt? Or was all of that caused by deliberate government policy?

Cheney is much given to lecturing us about taking responsibility. When and where does societal responsibility come in?

Cheney Shooting victim suffers heart attack

Boy, this one can't make him feel any better.
BB

The hunting accident in which Vice President Dick Cheney shot a fellow hunter in the face, neck and chest had become the butt of endless late-night-television jokes since the story broke on Sunday. But when the 78-year-old victim, Texas lawyer Harry
Whittington, suffered a minor heart attack early Tuesday caused by birdshot lodged in his heart, the situation took on a renewed urgency, and once again pointed out the glaring disconnect between the White House and the secretive vice president.

Australian TV shows what it says are new photos of Abu Ghraib abuse

Another wart for the administration. I can only hope that all these boil up and bite them in the extremes.
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By Meraiah Foley
ASSOCIATED PRESS
6:58 a.m. February 15, 2006

Reuters

SYDNEY, Australia – An Australian television network broadcast photographs and video clips Wednesday that it said were previously unpublished images of the abuse of Iraqis held in U.S. military custody at Abu Ghraib prison in 2003.
The images were taken at Abu Ghraib at about the same time as previously published photographs of Iraqi prisoner abuse, the Special Broadcasting Service's “Dateline” program reported.

Monday, February 13, 2006

WHAT STATE? WHAT UNION?

[Col. Writ. 2/1/06] Copyright 2006 Mumia Abu-Jamal

Every four years, U.S. presidents stroll into the halls of Congress, and announce, almost as if by rote, "The State of our Union is strong."
This is statecraft (or should I say, stagecraft?); the use of illusions to keep the rabble in line.
In biblical lore, the Pharaoh did the same thing when he ordered his priests to hurl down their staffs, to transform them into vipers.
Princes, since antiquity, used stagecraft to calm the People, to reassure them of the power of the State.
But, as ever, the view from the bottom is woefully different from that of those in the towers.

Report: U.S. Is Abusing Captives

A U.N. inquiry says the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay at times amounts to torture and violates international law.

By Maggie Farley, Times Staff Writer

NEW YORK — A draft United Nations report on the detainees at Guantanamo Bay concludes that the U.S. treatment of them violates their rights to physical and mental health and, in some cases, constitutes torture.

It also urges the United States to close the military prison in Cuba and bring the captives to trial on U.S. territory, charging that Washington's justification for the continued detention is a distortion of international law.

Report: U.S. Is Abusing Captives

A U.N. inquiry says the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay at times amounts to torture and violates international law.

By Maggie Farley, Times Staff Writer

NEW YORK — A draft United Nations report on the detainees at Guantanamo Bay concludes that the U.S. treatment of them violates their rights to physical and mental health and, in some cases, constitutes torture.

It also urges the United States to close the military prison in Cuba and bring the captives to trial on U.S. territory, charging that Washington's justification for the continued detention is a distortion of international law.

esse Jackson calls for 'Right of Return' for Katrina Survivors

Tuesday, January 10, 2006

by Matt Pascarella
[New York] On Sunday, January 8th, Reverend Jesse Jackson attacked Republican plans to buy up and eliminate African-American neighborhoods in New Orleans.

In a press conference at the Sheraton Hotel in New York, Jackson decried what he considers a systematic program by the Washington Administration to turn "survivors" into a permanent Diaspora of refugees denied both their homes and the political power of their concentrated votes in the city.

American Blackout

By Sura Wood
PARK CITY "American Blackout," an engrossing, low-budget documentary, is a powerful examination of voting rights in America. The filmmakers intend to use the film as a political tool to galvanize voters. Director Ian Inaba, who is part of Guerilla News Network, an organization that covers stories the mainstream media overlooks, focuses on the disturbing incidents of voter disenfranchisement among African-Americans, who traditionally vote democratic.

The jumping off point is the 2000 presidential election results in Florida, where many blacks were turned away at the polls. Given the saturation coverage of that election and the fight over the Florida vote count, making this material compelling once again would appear to an impossible feat but Inaba does it.

Sunday, February 12, 2006

Ex-Cheney Aide Testified Leak Was Ordered, Prosecutor Says

And again:
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By NEIL A. LEWIS
Published: February 10, 2006
WASHINGTON, Feb. 9 — I. Lewis Libby Jr., the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, told a grand jury that he was authorized by his "superiors" to disclose classified information to reporters about Iraq's weapons capability in June and July 2003, according to a document filed by a federal prosecutor.

The document shows that Mr. Libby, known as Scooter, was actively engaged in the Bush administration's public relations effort to rebut complaints that there was little evidence to support the claim that Saddam Hussein possessed or sought weapons of mass destruction, which was used to justify the invasion of Iraq.

Libby Says Leaks Authorized, Papers Show

Burn the witch!!!!
BB

By TONI LOCY, Associated Press Writer
Friday, February 10, 2006


Printable Version
Email This Article
(02-10) 15:26 PST WASHINGTON, (AP) --

A former top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney told a federal grand jury that his superiors authorized him to give secret information to reporters as part of the Bush administration's defense of intelligence used to justify invading Iraq, according to court papers.

Thursday, February 02, 2006

Over 1000 hits

WOOOO HOOOOO.
THANKS TO ALL FOR WHATEVER IT IS THAT YOU DO. AND ESPECIALLY IF YOU PASS ON MY SITE TO OTHERS.
THANK YOU
BIG BEN

HIS JUST IN! ARNOLD RESPONDS TO PALAST CHARGES

didn't here about this one.
thought I would pass it on.
BB
While the California press is reluctant to challenge the Austrian dumbbell lifter on anything more significant than his palm print on some females' behinds, one reader of our report below confronted Schwarzenegger. Friday, at a staged event in front of the Von's supermarket in Bakersfield, Referring to the disclosure in my column (which would have been well known to the candidate by that time), she shouted, "He's in bed with Kenny Lay, you idiots! It's your money!" There was dead silence for a beat, then came the voice through the loudspeakers, "I suhtunly wasn't in bet wit YOU!"

CALIFORNIA LAY'D BY ARNOLD

According to a series of memoranda our office obtained today, Arnold Schwarzenegger's dalliance with boys in a hotel room just two years ago is every bit as scandalous as his manhandling of women during his career as celebrity he-man.


The wannabe governor has yet to deny that on May 17, 2001, at the Peninsula Hotel in Los Angeles, he had consensual political intercourse with Enron chieftain Kenneth Lay. Also frolicking with Arnold and Ken was convicted stock swindler Mike Milken.


Now, thirty-four pages of internal Enron memoranda have just come through this reporter's fax machine tell all about the tryst between Maria's husband and the corporate con men. It turns out that
Schwarzenegger knowingly joined the hush-hush encounter as part of a campaign to sabotage a Davis-Bustamante plan to make Enron and other power pirates then ravaging California pay back the $9 billion in illicit profits they carried off.