Sunni or Later

Figuring out Iraq -- Picture courtesy Wikipedia

by blogSpotter
"Flexibility" -- that is the new word coming from Senators Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Warner, regarding Iraq. Several prominent Republicans have now started bandying about these words. Who would imagine that the White House staff, of all people, now think that "stay the course" is too rigid a phrase. Those as high up as Tony Snow, and dare we say Bush have now suggested that "stay the course" might be scrapped. James Baker, an old family friend has recently done a study of the Iraq situation, and concluded that there are politically viable ways of "not staying the course".

It seems in Iraq that we've mired ourselves in a religious civil war. It is a war between a fundamentalist Shiite majority and a determined Sunni minority. The Shiites have "prevailed" in the current government by sheer numbers but numbers like that don’t always add up. Shiites, like their Wahabist brethren are rather fundamentalist and backward in their behavior. The Sunnis, on the other hand are a group of people who are better educated, more technological and much more Western-oriented in their way of thinking. I can only surmise that 6 Sunnis with technology, common sense and a plan are superior to 6,000 Shiites with "none of the above". Furthermore, the Sunnis are more aligned with Egypt and Saudi Arabia -- allies that the US holds near and dear. In previous decades, the United States has tacitly allied itself with Sunni governments, because of the very chaos we're seeing in Baghdad, when fundamentalist Shiites take the wheel.

Rumsfeld, the devil himself, has spoken recently of giving "amnesty" to Sunni insurgents. The "A" word finally surfaced, three years after the fact. Now, what would a Sunni Iraq look like? This Iraq would probably have an iron-fisted dictator to keep everyone in line. He would be the kind of guy that doesn't take crap from anyone -- not the kind of guy we'd want in America. But Iraq is not America; it requires a zoo keeper not a Speaker of the House. The Iraq you see now, is an Iraq without adult supervision --enough said. But the Sunni Iraq would probably allow women to attend college and drive cars. It would allow open Christian worship, and it would allow Sunnis to marry Shiites. Oh, and by the way, all of that was the case before we invaded Iraq. Is it the picture we would want for America? No, not at all. America embraces secular Democratic traditions, as well as Church/State separation. But "iron-fist" Iraq is probably the best they'll do under the circumstances, and far better than the pandemonium they have right now.

© 2006 blogSpotter.

Rolling Stone Takes Congress to Task

Throw the bums out -- Picture courtesy Rolling Stone

by blogSpotter
Matt Taibbi, writer for Rolling Stone, gives our 109th Congress a lambasting in this week's issue. His article is lengthy, but I can give a short review of it here. Matt lays out the Congress's method for hijacking our nation, in 5 simple steps: (1) Rule by cabal (2) Work as little as possible (3) Let the President do as he pleases (4) Spend a lot and (5) Line your own pockets. He devotes a lot of time to each step, but I'll just highlight what he says under "Rule by Cabal". Long dead are the days when members of opposing parties would play golf together, share rides, or even staffers and mistresses. Congress has become like a Russian Duma, where the minority party is consigned to basement offices and excluded from most hearings.

James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis) was so incensed that the Dems wanted to hold a hearing on the Patriot Act (over which he had to preside as Judiciary chairman), that he cut short their time and even turned off the lights and microphones as he huffily left the room. Dems are routinely left out of meetings where House and Senate versions of bills are ironed out. Bills that have been modified through bipartisan discussion are reverted back to original form in a GOP-dominated Rules Committee. A requirement for a public, open meeting for Senate Bills is circumvented in a nearly childish way; a televised press conference is held to announce the proceedings. Then, everyone disbands and the GOP members meet later, in secret to hash out the essential details. The 109th Congress is known as the "Dracula Congress" because it has passed more than 20 bills after midnight. One might say all this is payback for how Democrats dominated proceedings prior to 1994. Mr. Taibbi allows for that, but indicates the GOP has had its vengeance and then much more. You have to wonder if Democracy is victim when either party devolves to this kind of behavior.

Mr. Taibbi gives us the 10 worst Congressmen as a bonus. Here they are, in brief, along with their monikers:

• Dennis Hastert (R-Ill) - Highway Robber
• James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis) - Dictator
• Don Young (R- Alaska) - Mr. Pork
• William Jefferson (D-La) - Bribe taker
• Jerry Lewis (R-Calif) - King of Payoffs
• Tom Tancredo (R-Colo) - Mr. Bigotry
• Dick Pombo (R-Calif) - Enemy of Earth
• Curt Weldon (R-Pa) - Conspiracy nut
• Hal Rogers (R-Ky) - Homeland Security hog
• Marilyn Musgrave (R-Colo) - Queen of gay bashing

Taibbi gives an explanatory blurb for each Congressman, and you can only shudder when you read about Tancredo's "Pro-white" group. If you want the rest of the dirt, you'll have to spring for the latest copy of my favorite political rag, The Rolling Stone.

© 2006 blogSpotter.

Carlin Brings the Pork Chops

Carlin dishing out sacrilege -- Picture courtesy Wikipedia

by blogSpotter
George Carlin is a favorite comedian of mine. In the '60's, he was very cutting edge, seen by some as the successor to Lenny Bruce. In 2006, as he approaches the 70 mark, he's about as cutting edge as a Bill Cosby Jello commercial to most young people. Nevertheless, I like his rascally nature and his unusual take on things. Carlin began his career as a DJ in Bosier City, Louisiana at age 20. From there, he developed a comedy act which eventually led him to Rowan and Martin's Laugh In where he did his zoned-out hippie dippie weatherman character.

I'm now listening to his latest book, "When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?". I love the thought-provoking sacrilege in the title. As the first Christian, did Jesus have to remain Kosher? Or was he technically even a Christian? I feel certain he never had a cheeseburger; there were no Sonics or Wendy's at the time. Mr. Carlin -- shame on you for making me ponder such things. Carlin spends a lot of time discussing word play. He's bothered by job-inflation euphemisms -- why is a clerk now a "sales associate"? Likewise, he's bothered by politically correct speech; "differently-abled" has no real meaning since all of us are "differently-abled". He considers it to be the feminization of speech. Speaking of femininity, Carlin deems the names of feminine deodorants as boring (e.g., Summer's Eve). He proposes Vaginilla and Lime Labia. In the chapter I just finished, Carlin feels that the ultimate wimp sign is "Thank You for Not Smoking". Carlin would put up a sign that reads:

"If you light a cigarette, we will extinguish it somewhere on the surface of your body".

I'm shocked, I'm appalled and furthermore I'm entertained. Carlin's rants couldn't be taken too seriously, some of them don't even make that much sense. The hippie dippie comic has probably availed himself of some mood enhancers – it expands his imagination to be sure. In closing, I can only imagine Jesus enjoying a baked ham and a milk shake. Be gone these blasphemous thoughts, lest I start laughing again.



© 2006 blogSpotter.

Truck Stop Governor

McGreevey as Governor of New Jersey -- Picture courtesy Wikipedia

by blogSpotter
I don't love politicians, but after listening to "The Confession" by New Jersey's ex-governor Jim McGreevey, I particularly detest this one. Don't detest him for being gay or even sleazy, not at all. I detest his extreme worship of power, glitz, and material position. I detest him for his crass superficiality and his complete using of other people for his own naked ambition.

As a boy at St. Joseph's High School in Muchen, he was already mesmerized by the power of parish priests. He was all the more thrilled to be selected as an altar boy; from there on his life seemed to be all about kissing up, getting promoted and getting elected. His career prior to the governorship included jaunts as prosecutor's assistant, New Jersey assemblyman, governor of Woodbridge and state senator. All his talk of environment and stem cell research seems hollow in retrospect -- his biggest concern was always about assuaging the right union bosses and power brokers for his next election foray.

McGreevey knew from childhood that he was gay, but suppressed and hid what he knew would be a political roadblock. Thru his stint as a Columbia student and working at a prosecutor’s office, he frequented truck stops and adult book stores to quench his desires. Rumors about his sexuality dogged him his entire career, and there was always a threat of blackmail or public disclosure. In fact, when he ran against Christine Todd Whitman in 1997, they already had "the dirt" on him but chose not to use it. Whitman won that election, but barely. McGreevey ran again in 2002 against another candidate -- won the governorship that time. His term was cut to two years by the scandal however.

His first wife, Kari, left him in 1995 after three years of a sham marriage. She never questioned his sex preference, but did pick up on McGreevey's extreme superficial photo-op treatment of marriage and children. His second wife, Dina, did suspect he was gay well before the publicity hit. Perhaps that was because McGreevey was secretly taking phone calls and meeting with his Israeli lover, Golan Cipel, every day. Golan himself appeared to be a man of ambition, hoping to reach new levels of influence thru McGreevey. McGreevey did appoint Golan to a new NJ security office for which Golan wasn't qualified and could not even get security clearance. This move is partly what blew open the whole story; the things we do for "Love".

The main love that McGreevey has is self-love. Nobody can break up that partnership. McGreevey is now living with a new Australian boyfriend and attends an Episcopal church. One has to wonder where he'll channel his enormous energies for lying, using and manipulating -- he's still in the legal profession so there must be a way.

© 2006 blogSpotter.

Kerry, Don't Run

John, perish the thought! -- Picture courtesy Wikipedia

by blogSpotter
Word has it that John Kerry wants to run again for President in 2008. While I was an avid Kerry/Edwards supporter in 2004, I think it would be ill advised for him to run again. The reasons are really pretty simple, we'll lay them out here:

Campaign staff - Kerry's campaign staff was in disarray much of the time. He fired campaign manager Jim Jordan in November 2003; replaced him with a relatively inexperienced Mary Beth Cahill. He also had Bob Shrum as a campaign consultant. Shrum was known primarily for losing campaigns prior to 2004. He and the inexperienced Cahill butted heads much of the time. For all their head butting, they made some lame decisions. If Kerry couldn't handle the management of his own campaign staff, how on earth would he handle the Presidency?

Lack of a war room - When Clinton ran for president in 1992, he made a couple of things very clear:
o He would fight fire with fire if necessary and
o He would respond rapidly.
Kerry lacked an effective war room.

The above two problems proved fatal for Kerry when the "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth", led by veteran John O'Neill, suggested that Kerry was "Unfit for Command". The main argument they gave was that Kerry's anti Vietnam war activism had undermined the confidence of soldiers. A couple of soldiers quibbled with Kerry's medals, although no credible evidence was presented that Kerry was undeserving of his medals. For 3 weeks in August of 2004, these accusations went unchallenged. When someone slaps you in the face and calls you a "varmint" -- that's a challenge. You don't try to ignore it and hope the electorate "sees through the ploy". The electorate responds positively to ads for thigh master and spray-on hair. The electorate isn't that discerning. Yet Kerry tried to ignore the negative ads. Also, three weeks in a presidential campaign is an eternity -- it was enough time for SBVT to come out with a quickie, best-selling book. Kerry was all but done by the time he wimpily replied to SBVT's accusations.

In 1992, Clinton established a sharp-shooter war room staffed with the likes of James Carville and George Stephanopoulos. When "the enemy" got down and dirty, the Clinton team did likewise -- it was an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. If someone insulted Clinton and the horse he rode up on, Clinton's staff served back the insult with panache. No accusation, insinuation or negative ad campaign would go unanswered. Kerry, take note: A tough campaign team is a very good sign of a tough, together candidate. Mr. Kerry, if this were tiddly winks or checkers, we'd all say, "Fine -- give it another go". But the presidency is far too important to risk it on a bumbling, stumbling, mumbling campaign staff. Please give your support to the next Democrat "comer" and help with his or her war room effort. It would be a much better way to redeem yourself for what happened in 2004.

© 2006 blogSpotter.

In Denial About Rumsfeld?

The silverback speaks -- Picture courtesy Wikipedia

by blogSpotter
Having just read an excerpt from Bob Woodward's State of Denial, I have to ask this question. "Why the Hell is Rumsfeld still Secretary of Defense?!" It is a question which ex-Chief of Staff Andrew Card and First Lady Laura Bush apparently bandied about during the 2004 election.

When Rumsfeld took the Office in 2001, he already felt that the Pentagon was way too big and bureaucratic. He immediately looked at ways to "streamline" it, and this initial view may shed light on why he thought he could win in Iraq using War Lite. He was the picture of hubris and bravado at the start -- he said that he, not the generals or the Joint Chiefs of Staff, would preside over all military decisions. A silverback gorilla in full chest-thump could make no more a macho assertion of self. His later decisions would make you wonder if anyone was presiding.

Rummy picked Jay Garner to head the Iraq post-war office. When Garner questioned the small number of troops and lack of past-war planning, Rumsfeld replaced him with presidential envoy Paul Bremer. When Bremer himself ran into problems and repeated some of Garner's earlier concerns, Rumsfeld distanced himself from Bremer with weasel words: "He reports to me only technically". When Pentagon advisor Ken Adelman asked Rumsfeld if he had 3 or 4 criteria for success in Iraq, Rumsfeld weaseled some more: "Goodness it's far too complicated, there are hundreds of factors". Adelman pointed out that Rumsfeld himself had earlier advised that any mission should have a small set of well-defined major success metrics. This self-contradiction didn't seem to bother Mr. Rumsfeld.

When a May 2006 Intelligence Report said that violence in Iraq had escalated to 700-800 attacks each week, Rumsfeld told Woodward that it was all an exaggeration -- "They're counting random rounds and stuff like that". When Woodward asked about various experts' assessments of too few troops, Rumsfeld gave a pinpoint answer "Maybe too many, maybe too few it's hard to tell". Woodward asked Rumsfeld simply, "Do you feel optimistic about the outcome of the war?" Rumsfeld ignored his question and rambled about a how this war is a hard slog. When asked if he viewed himself as a military commander, Rumsfeld wormed away from that: "I'm just a Cabinet Secretary; I'm not a military commander". This from Kong the silverback who earlier claimed to preside over all.

Rumsfeld presides over weasel, mealy-mouth cowardly words and deeds. In denying the obvious and washing his hands of responsibility in all his bad decisions and fumbles, Mr. Rumsfeld represents the very worst qualities you could have in a Defense Secretary. His negative, rambling and oft-bizarre takes on what should be his paramount Iraq mission are disturbing. The man is an embarrassment to the office and yet I must say -- he is a fairly accurate reflection of this administration.

© 2006 blogSpotter.

Excitement Junkie

Looking for the next tsunami -- Picture courtesy Harper Audio

by blogSpotter
Anderson Cooper is the photogenic, slender, late-30's news commentator on CNN's "360" program. He's known, now and primarily, for his hard-hitting coverage of the 2005 Katrina disaster, his locking horns with Governors, mayors, the head of FEMA and other political entities who may have dropped the ball. I was interested in his story and am currently listening to his autobiography on audio, "Dispatches from the Edge".

Cooper says that he initially sought out places of mayhem so that he could feel something again, and know that he's alive. His father died of heart failure when Cooper was only 10; his beloved older brother died from suicide at 23, when Cooper was 21. The brother had been through a recent break-up with a girlfriend; he had seemed confused and possibly high on something when he jumped from a 14-story balcony. Anderson says that to this day, he is haunted by details of the suicide, and wonders what kind of relationship they'd have if the brother were still alive.

I was shocked last week, to see Anderson on TV, walking across a bomb-blasted hillside in Afghanistan. It was an area known for Jihadist activities and I could only think that Anderson was tempting the fates to be there. After listening to his book, Afghanistan is the least of it. Mr. Cooper has placed himself near the epicenter of every storm of the last two decades, be it weather-driven or human-created. He's been in Sarajevo, Sri Lanka after the tsunami, New Orleans after Katrina, Somalia, Rwanda and many other places of devastation. He cursed his "bad" luck in Louisiana when they missed being in the center of Katrina. Seems Katrina took a right turn, and his news crew drove 100 mph to chase it toward Gulf Port -- never caught up to it.

Cooper is the son of Gloria Vanderbilt and heir to her fortune; he could live the high life without ever lifting a finger. Imagine that he puts himself in harm's way so freely. I don't even like getting caught in a light rain or driving through bad neighborhoods in Dallas. I don't need bullets whizzing by to "know that I feel". In one passage, Cooper felt like a vulture filming a Somali child near death. At another point he wondered if he should intervene when it looked like a prostitute was about to be stoned by a crowd. A fellow journalist pulled him away, saying that he'd be next if he acted on his compassion. The woman was led away and he doesn’t actually know her fate. Cooper is reported to have a Hispanic, male long-time companion. This aspect of his life wasn't mentioned and maybe would add more perspective. Nevertheless, I'm impressed -- may the Gods of news fortune keep smiling on Cooper. He could easily be a casualty like Bob Woodruff. Whatever his motivations, he helps to keep us focused on the world at large, a world in pain and in need of our help.

© 2006 blogSpotter.

Foolish Foley

Looking for a boy toy -- Picture courtesy Wikipedia

by blogSpotter
What to say about the Mark Foley email scandal that is unfolding before our eyes. The 52 year old Republican Florida representative recently had to resign his post because of "inappropriate" emails he sent to underage, male pages. There are several ironies here; Foley was the chair of a committee to prevent child exploitation. He may ultimately be prosecuted by laws which he helped put on the books. It's not "Hypocrisy" with a capital "H" -- it's all upper case "HYPOCRISY". Foley now claims that untreated alcoholism gave him pedophile impulses. To quote Wanda Sykes from last night's Jay Leno, "Alcohol don't do that. It might make you sleep with somebody fat. It don't make me say hey little girl, I feel like a thin mint".

More ironies to behold: Republicans have used GLBT rights as a club with which to bludgeon Democrats and anyone on the political left. In 2004, the Massachusetts ruling on gay marriage was used as the super wedge issue of all time. Some pundits figure that this issue alone kicked the needed votes over to Bush in Ohio and Pennsylvania. American voters are more likely to vote on "gays and guns" than just about any other issue. Christian conservatives in particular respond to this issue.

How must they feel about a House Republican leadership that knew about Foley's problem as far back as 2003, and certainly as far back as spring 2006? Remember the outrage that even observant Catholics felt about their church when it looked like the Church was covering for pedophile priests? The GOP has “owned” the moral issues and used them as a last (and pretty effective) line of defense against liberals. What must they feel about this – Karl Rove must be deeply troubled. The GOP will have to lean extra heavy on security issues this election; they no longer seem to own the “gays and guns” issue.

Democrats have shown a remarkable aptitude at fumbling their plays. Is there any such thing as a fumble-proof play? Some pages are suggesting that other Congressmen have sent them lascivious emails, maybe Democrats too. It may not make much difference on November 7th. If Christian conservatives become seriously disaffected, it would have a greater impact to the GOP than to Democrats. The long term affect of Foley’s Folly is yet to be seen.

© 2006 blogSpotter.

Fight for the Soul of the G.O.P.

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Any surprises in store for 2008? -- Logo courtesy Wikipedia

by blogSpotter
The American system of political parties has undergone a sea change since the mid 70's. Basically, we've taken a large step rightward. Since 1972, we've had 6 Republican terms (tallying 22 years by end of 2006). We've had only 3 Democratic terms (12 years) and those were with the centrist Southerners Carter and Clinton. The Democratic Party is winding its way toward total irrelevance I hate to say. It's become so leftwing doctrinaire and ivory tower, it pushes platforms and candidates that could never be elected by the country at large. Political parties need to consider "big tent" diversity in an even larger sense than the party itself. A party should ask itself, "Could our way of thinking appeal to 51% of likely voters". The Democrats, in their most recent Hillary-Howard moments, have clearly ceased asking anything of that nature.

The nation's impetus is with the GOP. Republicans have such a momentum now, that really much of what will be decided about our nation's future is there within the animus of the Republican Party. With such important cargo in tow, the outcome of the 2008 GOP nominating process is critically important to the future of this nation. As John Dean pointed out in "Conservatives without Conscience", there are no less than 15 strains of American conservatism: Christian, cato-, paleo-, neo- and more. Some of these overlap, but some are so many degrees apart that they could be opposing parties. To help crystallize the dilemma, let’s consider the extremes:

Rockefeller Republicans – These guys are socially liberal and fiscally conservative. They care more about the boardroom than the bedroom. They’re more likely to keep their spiritual lives private and promote a policy of “live and let live”. They are less likely to promote “preventive wars” in foreign policy.

Christian Conservatives – These people are more likely to be fiscally and socially conservative. They are more likely to want to dictate sexual mores, restrict women’s right to choose, teach Special Creation in schools and dispense with Church-state separation. If anything gets thrown out with the bath water, it’s more likely to be fiscal, not social discipline. This group also encompasses “End Times” Christians who see our role in the Middle East as some type of Biblical manifest destiny.

With Nixon, Reagan and Herbert Walker Bush, we were blessed w/ more Rockefeller style presidents. With W. Bush, we have experienced a decided lurch toward Neo/Christian and who among us can’t say that he’s scared by the budgetary mess and the Iraq war. The names thrown out for 2008 are somewhat encouraging: McCain, Giuliani, Pataki, Hagel and Romney all lean more toward the Rockefeller wing. Jeb Bush, Sam Brownback and George Allen all wax toward the social conservative. Gingrich is somewhere dead center, although his heavy baggage (affairs and personal matters of the past) will probably pull him down anyway.

W. Bush represents a step of political devolution. With his Good Ol’ Boy demeanor, awkward pronunciation of English, and “Cowboy” diplomacy, he has been the wrong face for America’s international persona. Bush alone probably accounts for 50% of the vitriol America gets from 3rd world nations. Dear GOP, please redeem yourself by putting forth a more thoughtful choice. And America: those of you in red-blue states of Pennsylvania and Ohio especially – please consider the effect of how you vote. If we devolve much more, we’ll be like the Middle Easterners who vote in a Taliban government and wonder why their lives are so miserable.

© 2006 blogSpotter.