Russia, China, Iran Solidifying, Threaten U.S.

I've long had my eye out on the Russia-China-Iran meetings and deals with each other and with their close buddies North Korea and Venezuela (More on China, Big 5 is 6 and Growing..., Jesus Built my Hotrod but Muhammad Pumps the Gas, and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's Leaf Blower, to name a few).

This came through today from the International Herald Tribune:

The leaders of Russia, China and Iran have warned the outside world to leave Central Asia alone to look after its own stability and security, in a veiled message to the United States issued on the eve of major war games between Russia and China.
...
Some 6,000 Russian and Chinese troops, dozens of aircraft and hundreds of armored vehicles and other heavy weapons will be participating the games — the first such joint drills on Russia's territory.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: WTF?

I'm useless without a terror warning. Should I be nervous? Eh, it's not part of the War on Terror, so who gives a shit?

...besides Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, Venezuela...

Cheney in 1994: WTF?

Watch this:


[Alternative YouTube Link]

Ready...Fight!

Yes, this has been posted to death in many different places. And honestly, I don't have anything new to say about it. I'm angry. I question even more deeply (if that's possible) the moral base of an administration who can clearly state Iraq is a "quagmire" and not worth American lives and then turn around a few years later and - because it serves the fix to suckle the crack-teat of war profiteering - do exactly the opposite, exploding the already-fragile stability of the Middle East, and killing thousands of Americans.

Way beyond the WTF Award to Cheney on this one.

My interview with Dick Cheney would go something like this: "What the fuck is wrong with you?!"

Cincinnati's Part of the Iraq War - MoveOn.org Event

Yay! I participated! I just got back from the MoveOn.org local Cincinnati (CincinnatiMoveOn.org) press release gathering concerning the local cost of the Iraq War. I even got some pictures.


We gathered near the Brent Spence Bridge - Covington, KY exit - for infrastructure relevancy and quality visibility.


The group wasn't huge: about a dozen or so in attendance. The media never showed.


A particularly clever sign had a quick-flip answer to the occasional middle finger.


This was the point...


...that our MoveOn.org organizer (Dick Manoukian) read about, sans cameras.

How about some of that Iraq War information? By the numbers, of course:

• $456 billion - monies appropriated for the war so far (that's $4,100 for every household in the U.S.)
• $15.99 billion - cost to Ohio taxpayers
• $806 million - cost to Ohio's 1st District (over $2.5 billion adding Ohio's 2nd district and Kentucky's 4th, encompassing the local metro area)

What could Ohio's 1st District citizens have gotten instead?

• Health care coverage for 270,399 people - or 458,768 kids, or
• Head Start for 124,560 additional kids, or
• 13,708 new elementary school teachers, or
• 99,814 scholarships to make college more affordable, or
• Renewable electricity for 903,450 homes, or
• 7,524 affordable housing units, or
• 19,351 public safety officers to keep the streets safe

In late 2002, Bush's Budget Director estimated the cost of the Iraq War at $50 to $60 billion. When Bush's Chief Economic Adviser, Lawrence Lindsey, publicly estimated that the war in Iraq might cost $100 billion to $200 billion, he was fired. Now we're at $450 billion and shuttling towards $1 trillion.

What is the tipping point for the American people? What will get 100 or 200 or a thousand local people so pissed off about how our country is being mismanaged that they, too, will appear in a park by a highway exit to gain more visibility and more visibility until we cannot be ignored? Is it $1 trillion spent? Is it 5,000 or 10,000 Americans dead?

Is it seeing Dick Cheney say that invading Baghdad and deposing Saddam would be a horrible idea...back in 1994?

One thing is for certain: we will change nothing by sitting on our asses and whining about it. Get active. Get involved.

Twat's Wrong with America? I'll Finger It Out.

I ran into some perplexing sex news yesterday: there's sex on Craigslist. And it's dirty, deviant gay sex.

Does the madness ever stop?

So idiot man (John J. Lake, 58, of Boston), maybe not too easy on the eyes, is looking to get some action - real action, not like the sweaty, quiet dry-humps over furry pr0n sites. He knows he's not a hottie, so he hints that there may be a monetary incentive. The cops bite and he's nailed for offering money for a blowjob.

For all things fair and comparative, I did some minor research on Craigslist locally as a source of entertainment and commentary on our society in light of the oldest of arguments against the illegality of sex for money.

In our American society, this is okay:

Lookin' to get my wang mouthified. - m4w

Ladies, I got a wang what needs mouthified. Holla.

This is okay:

NSA BJ for young dudes - m4m - 21

Lookin to suck a young 20s guy's dick. Be clean and disease free, VERY discreet, masc and in shape. Send pics :) You host, I come in, I strip you, I suck you, we part.

And even this is okay:

$1200 deal! - m4w

I am seeking a female to strip in front of me, give me a lapdance, motorboat her boobs and let me feel her whole body. I will give you 1200 dolllars for your time. Let me know and please send me a nude pic of yourself with your response i dont want to be disappointed. I might pay more.

This is America: ask, beg, and plead for sex and that is okay. Ask, beg, plead, and pay for anything short of what our antiquated legal system considers sex and that is okay. Ask, beg, and plead for sex with some monetary incentive: you get fucked. By the law.

I do realize that legalized prostitution has the potential to hurt and subjugate men and especially women, but illegal prostitution already does that, sometimes in the most vile ways. But, like the legalization of drugs would do to the dealers, legalization of prostitution could do to the same to the pimps: put them out of business. Publicity, centralized standards, and workers' rights would come into play.

I'm not saying I agree with John Lake's choice of sexual procurement, but we're putting people in jail for something that is actually legal in another state and - without the "cash-and-cum" - is legal everywhere else.

I do believe we need to get the government and the church out of our bedrooms. If you don't think they're still there, peeping in our windows and waiting to break down the door, check out the sodomy laws in the US, and understand that "sodomy," depending on the state, can refer to any sex that is not male/female vaginal intercourse.

What would Jesus do? To start with, he'd emerge from the wood paneling and forgive John Lake.

Holla.

35 Percenters: Peaceman vs. The Chenguin

I had no hand in this, but am proud to support it. Brilliant!

If anyone is confused by the "35 Percenters," there was a poll taken that showed only 35% of registered voters who plan to vote for a Democrat in 2008 have ever heard of Dennis Kucinich. I'm hoping we've helped to shift that number; I know his presence alone has pushed the awareness.

54% of American adults are in favor of impeaching Vice President Dick Cheney, according to a recent American Research Group poll. Amongst Democrats specifically, 76% favor impeachment, yet for some reason Dennis Kucinich is the only Democratic presidential candidate willing to represent this overwhelming majority. The great disparity between public support and political support is also evident with regards to universal not-for-profit healthcare, of which Dennis is again the only candidate to stand for the vast majority of Americans who favor such a system.

Visit ImpeachCheney.org to show your support for HR Res 333, Dennis Kucinich's resolution to impeach Vice President Cheney on three charges. Congressman Kucinich's clear case for impeachment can be found at The Kucinich Website - Spotlight Issues.

Director: Ev Boyle
Narration: Edan Bryant
Voice Direction: Monte Jernigan
Art Direction: John Harrison
Animation: Bill Wesley

The 35 Percenters is comprised of the following bloggers:

The Largest Minority
Blue Gal
Blue Man
Monkey Muck
Dandelion Salad
Peace Garden
Quaker Dave
Phydeaux Speaks
The Hermit with Davis Fleetwood
Dennis Kucinich for Prez in 08
Modern Musings
Freida Bee
Cause for Concern
Unofficial Kucinich Youtube Channel
Unofficial Kucinich MySpace Page

Please also visit:
Dennis Kucinich's Official Youtube Channel

Local Activism: Cost of Iraq War for Cincinnati

I've joined up with MoveOn.org's Thursday Cincinnati press conference to support the end of the war by constant reminders to the public about what this war is costing America - in dollars and lives. Nationally, we've just crossed the $450,000,000,000 dollar mark. Yes, that's billions of dollars, billions of dollars that the Bush administration is just sorta not counting when we get the official budget numbers. Billions of dollars that we, our children, and our grandchildren will be responsible for.

I don't know if I have any local Cincinnati readers, but if you're interested, shoot me an email before Thursday morning and I can provide directions.

Stop Iran before it starts; Stop Iraq now.

Half Hour News Hour: Fin

It is not with great frequency that we can see something ill-conceived and poorly executed fall on its face to receive the humiliation it deserves. It did take some time, but Fox's Half-Hour News Hour has stepped on the banana peel to the most triumphant biff.



The Memo from TVNewser:

August 14, 2007

TO: Senior Producers

FR: Bill Shine

RE: Half Hour News Hour/Weekend Programming

I'd like to share some news with you about weekend programming.

Joel Surnow and I have mutually decided that we will not continue the Half Hour News Hour beyond its current 15 episode run. The last show will be presented on September 16th.

While HHNH performed admirably in the ratings and Kurt Long and Jennifer Robertson did a wonderful job, we are considering ways to retool the show for future scheduling needs. There is still a chance you will see the program at some point in the future.

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank Joel and his team. He is a visionary in this business and he created a contrarian program that fulfilled an untapped niche in the comedy genre.

My first - and last - experience with the show was an accidental stumble through the cable box. The anchors were trying their hand at "politically correct" show titles, or something of the sort. They said the new "Hairspray" would be environmentally friendly with less CFCs. Queue canned laughter. Non-essential CFCs (like in hairspray) were banned in 1978. I changed the channel.

Why did this "answer to the Daily Show" fail? It wasn't funny. Conservative humor can be exemplified in the person of Ann Coulter; she blasts the left with comments meant to get a rise, meant to enrage and inflame, but when she's called on it, she calmly says "What, cantcha take a joke?" and is then backed by Hannity and Limbaugh simultaneously farting out "What, cantcha take a joke?"

That's not humor. That's ignorant and mean. I'm just glad to see a lack of taste for this kind of stupidity.

Downey Jr., Shalhoub, More on Sarkozy

After yesterday's blogging on the Bush-Sarkozy sucky-sucky, I wasn't quite done.

Is it me, or does French President Nikki Sarkozy look like a botched genetic collision between Robert Downey, Jr. and Tony Shalhoub?



And just a hint of Pauly Shore.

One Million Blogs for Peace

I was taking the Country Quiz (I'm apparently Egypt), and I caught this link to One Million Blogs for Peace.

The Concept
Between 20 March 2007 and 20 March 2008 (the fifth year of the war), we will attempt to sign up One Million Blogs for Peace. By signing up, a blogger is stating his or her agreement with The Pledge below. They will then be able to participate in various challenges launched by One Million Blogs for Peace. They will also be listed on this website with a link to their blog.

The Pledge
I believe in the immediate withdrawal of all foreign combat troops from the nation of Iraq. I believe in using my blog, in whole or in part, as a tool toward this end.

They're not quite up to 900 yet, but, hey, one more thing we can do.

Earthquakes are Scary Again!

We've got this story from KABC (via Drudge):

Top Seismologist: Southern California Due For Major Quake

August 10, 2007 - A top seismologist is warning that another major earthquake is in our future, a big one that could devastate Southern California, from the desert to the sea.

Lucy Jones, of the U.S. Geological Survey says it's not a question of where but when a big quake will strike the Coachella Valley, sandwiched between the San Andreas and San Jacinto faults.

Jones says that region is long overdue, and the seismic clock is ticking.

Jones says a magnitude 7.8 quake or more could collapse major freeways, knock down buildings in Downtown L.A., kill thousands of people and cause hundreds of billions of dollars in damage.

Officials in the Coachella Valley say they're taking her warning very seriously.

Yay! Wait. I mean: Scary!

The only difference between this article and one that was written 20 years ago is that the date slug would read 1987. The words "that region is long overdue, and the seismic clock is ticking" are as true today as they were then (and probably earlier - I'm putting this into a framework of a me at 9 or 10, when I became aware of California's earthquake issue). But how true is that? I'm not really sure; in twenty years, the words have remained the same, the predictions have remained vague, and damage has been adjusted for inflation.

Is this progress? Or just fear?

Bush, Sarkozy Get ...Kozy

On Saturday, Bush met with French President Nicolas "Nikki" Sarkozy in Kennebunkport where they shared a "heart-to-heart," a boat ride, chatted about invading Iran, and "totally slammed that wussy Chriac cause he loves terrorists and hates freedom." Bush then greeted reporters with the double-thumb-and-forefinger "W," violently sniggered, and skipped arm-in-arm with Sarkozy all the way to a shed, behind which they showed each other their privates and did a cross-tinkle.

How quickly we go from "Freedom Fries" to "Gay for France."

The internets agrees. Unaltered screenshot from Yahoo News's story Bush, Sarkozy hail strong US-France bond