News from Around the World

The worst part of this film — computer-generated wolves that escape and intend to feast on Jake Gyllenhaal and friends as they board a ship (sitting in the middle of a New York street) to find penacilin to save Emmy Rossum. In this film, we watch the Statue of Liberty swallowed by water, the Capitol Records building annhilated by tornadoes, helicopters frozen in mid-air and golf ball-sized hail dropping on China. All of that looked credible and awesome on screen. These wolves were a joke and basically ruined the credibility of the rest of the film for me. That being said, the film makes you think and it makes you gape in awe at points. I think in a disaster movie, that’s pretty much what you’re looking for.

A.Well I was originally the first one called, When Neverland was raided in nov 03, i was asked to fly to meet MJ, I had a number of discussions that day but i was preparing for the Robert Blake murder trial, another American celebrity, and I decided i couldn't accept the mj case because i couldn't ethically and professionally accommodate both cases at one time. A couple of months later Mr. Blake and I had a falling out, and 3 months after that Randy called me, who i had known for many years, asking me if i would fly to FL to meet mj,I agreed

You’d have thought this was unexceptional, and would be echoed by all people of good will. Not so. Exception was taken by the Government of Israel, who claimed that the Pope should have condemned recent attacks by Palestinians, and later asserted that the Vatican had a long standing policy of not condemning attacks on Israeli citizens, allegedly demonstrated by “the silences of Pope John Paul II”. Use of this particular wording can only be intended to recall the controversy over whether Pope Pius XII failed to speak up against the Holocaust.

Personally, I’ve always loved to spend part of my summer reading — history, biography, science fiction, politics (surprise, surprise), and more. Unfortunately, I haven’t had a lot of time to do it recently, given the combo of a) a day job, b) RaisingKaine, and c) having a life (i.e, wife, friends, family). This weekend, though, I read a great book, one of the all time classics of science fiction, called “Star Maker” by Olaf Stapledon. Here’s the book description from Amazon.com:

Moving into the realm of politics, take the case of Karl Rove, the man who - all the current evidence suggests - outed CIA agent Valerie Plame Wilson in retaliation for her husband’s refusal to go along with the myth of an Iraqi nuclear threat. If a Democrat were to reveal the identity of a CIA agent or otherwise leak classified material to the press, you may be sure he or she would be tarred, feathered and suspended from a lamppost within hours of the crime. But Rove carries on with his vicarious presidency - continuing to promote Bush’s voter-repelling social security plan and playing a visible role in the selection of the new supreme court justice.

Kevin Drum at Political Animal reports that conservative bloggers are obsessing over the fear that the upcoming ABC show, Commander-in-Chief, featuring Geena Davis as president, is a liberal plot to prepare the public for the reign of Hillary Clinton.

Because today, I posted another article there, about the arrest of the leaders of the Opposition Party (Kefaya, meaning “enough”), albeit briefly. The US has been pressuring Egypt for more political reform and democratization (and indeed, Condoleeza Rice just cancelled a trip to Egypt), and within the civil society there, there has been growing calls for multi-candidate elections. During this protest over Mubarak running for his 6th term, an AP reporter saw the police beat and kick protesters, and manhandle journalists. “Greater democracy” as Mubarak’s party professes to want, might start with freedom of speech and a free press…

Today, I tip my hat to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) for breaking with President Bush and supporting stem cell research legislation (Read the article: Frist Backs More Ebryonic Stem Cell Research).

Michael Pence, republican from Indiana, had this to say on PBS regarding federal funding for stem cell research.

I’m just about to head upstairs to watch this film. It’s one of my favorites. Of course, I like weird shit like this…and it is weird. Let me give you a hint as to why that might be. It is written and directed by Jennifer Chambers Lynch. Does that name sound familiar? She’s the daugher of David Lynch, one of my all time favorite directors. In fact, he might have been the last person to hire Robert Blake (who acted remarkably close to his own persona in the film Lost Highway, I might add). LOL

Those who follow Presidential politics closely, especially second term presidential politics, are on a constant lookout for the exact time and place when the President officially becomes a lame duck, and it seems, by all reasonable accounts, that for George�W. Bush that time has come.

PBS’s Frontline has a fascinating 2003 interview with Eamon Duffy, author of The Stripping of the Altars (see right sidebar) , which I’m in the middle of right now. The discussion was about Pope John Paul II, and contains some amazing insights about JP the Great, and the impact he has had on the Church and the world. The entire interview is “excerptable”, but here’s a wee comment that set the hairs up on the back of my neck:

The following questionnaire plays a very special part in the history of the Salon Des Grands Geeks, and our site would hardly be complete without it. During a visit to Washington at which Kiri, Trey, Iain and myself were in attendance, we found this quiz on a greeting card in Politics and Prose. Although the card was entirely in French and spelled poor Marcel’s surname “Poust” in places, we overlooked these small flaws and spent the entire afternoon and much of the next day answering it, and it has figured in one form or another in several salons since then. I have some of our answers written down from salons past, but rather than post these quite personal responses, I leave it to you to decide how much you would like to discuss online, and perhaps we can get a livelier discussion going about it once the site is read-protected. More information about the origins of the questionnaire and its famous madeleine-nibbling responder can be found here.

My co-worker Matt showed me this comic from PVP. It asks the question about Hillary Clinton starting making a deal about of Grand Theft Auto’s Hot Coffee sex mod coming out.

It is a good thriller with a controversial look at Global Warming and Eco Terrorism. It is a work of fiction but Michael spent three years researching, and provides foot notes for, a vast body of research on the topics the characters in the story deal with. No matter what your position on these issues I hope you check out the book, keep an open mind while reading it, and then begin asking some real questions about how “scientific” information is presented. Both sides of the argument distort the true data to suit their view and if you are any kind of conspiracy theorist, the State of Fear is surly no joke.

President George W. Bush and Condoleezza Rice had been pushing for a full restoration of all military ties to Indonesia

Stygius usefully provides both Joe Biden's letter to Condoleeza Rice noting this unfortunate lapse or memory, and also provides the precise text of the question in response to which Bolton displayed this regrettable yet seemingly spreading symptom of growing neurological deterioration:

Senator Joe Biden addressed the failure by Bolton in a letter to Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rice and, mirabili dictu, the State Department has thus confirmed that Bolton falsified information provided to the Senate for purposes of reviewing his nomination as U.N. ambassador.

And in which heroes Sean Hannity, Oliver North, and G. Gordon Liddy are cyborgs who broadcast from a pirate radio station.

It has been 9 years since Bill Clinton sold out poor women and children in return for a little political capital with the Republicans. I haven't forgotten. I haven't forgiven. I still have stories from the aftermath of welfare reform, stories that I collected for years after he signed the welfare reform bill.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In a rare break with President Bush, U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist on Friday endorsed legislation that would expand federally funded embryonic stem cell research.

Senate Majority Learder Bill Frist (R-TN) announced today that he will back legislation to fund embryonic stem cell research. I am very disappointed in Senator Frist. Here's what Frist said (hat tip: ProLifeBlogs.com):

Belfort is a place of great military importance and a leading industrial center. As a fortress it distinguished itself in the Franco-Prussian war in which it successfully withstood the German bombardment in 1870-71. The siege is commemmorated by an imposing citadel on the summit of a rock 220 feet high, in front of which is the colossal Lion of Belfort, 36 feet high and 72 feet long, carved in red sandstone by Bartholdi, the celebrated French sculptor who designed the Statue of Liberty, in New York Harbor, France’s gift to America.

I have to admire this site and the reasoning behind it. Matt set out from the Statue of Liberty to the Golden Gate Bridge, and took a photo for each mile along the way.

The New York logo was very lively and vibrant. The use of merging the Statue of Liberty with an athlete was also clever. However, it seems like a very American logo. It gives off the impression that Americans are winners, which may be a good idea to promote given the Word Trade Centre attacks. Nevertheless, it doesn’t seem to encapsulate the international nature of the Olympics. To me, as well, the use of the olympic colours in the words is a bit overused. That being said, where’s the black in the word “NYC2012″ and where’d the light blue come from?

What is happening to the black family in America is the sociological equivalent of global warming: easier to document than to reverse, inconsistent in its near-term effect—and disastrous in the long run.

According to the Drudge Report Sen. Hillary Clinton is going to support President Bush’s nominee John Roberts. No surprise there. She is just gearing up for the 2008 presidential election. God help us all if she wins. CONDI in 2008!

In the Unites States, the Human Rights Campaign has called for U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice to condemn the executions.

There is also a tendency among those in the left to stereotype women as 'emotionally driven', peace loving & anti-war. The major feminist organization, such as NOW & Feminist Majority, always lobby against any defensive military actions taken by the United States government. One can imagine the shock of the DNC upon the discovery that, the Soccer Moms, who paved the way for both of Bill Clinton's victories, have become Security Moms, in the post 9/11 era. These women ensured the victory of George Bush over John Kerry. The astonished reaction to this shift is indicative of the poor understanding of the true nature of women.

46. All New Jersey natives: Sal Martorano, Jack Nicholson, Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, Jason Alexander, Queen Latifah, Susan Sarandon, Connie Francis, Shaq, Judy Blume, Aaron Burr, Joan Robertson, Ken Kross, Dionne Warwick, Sarah Vaughn, Budd Abbott, Lou Costello, Alan Ginsberg, Norman Mailer, Marilynn McCoo, Flip Wilson, Alexander Hamilton, Whitney Houston, Eddie Money, Linda McElroy, Eileen Donnelly, Grover Cleveland, Woodrow Wilson, Walt Whitman, Jerry Lewis, Tom Cruise, Joyce Kilmer, Bruce Willis, Caesar Romero, Lauryn Hill, Ice-T, Nick Adams, Nathan Lane, Sandra Dee, Danny DeVito, Richard Conti, Joe Pesci, Joe Piscopo, Robert Blake, John Forsythe, Mer yl Streep, Loretta Swit, Norman Lloyd, Paul Simon, Jerry Herman, Gorden McCrae, Kevin Spacey, John Travolta, Phyllis Newman, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, Eva Marie Saint, Elisabeth Shue, Zebulon Pike, James Fennimore Cooper, Admiral Wm.Halsey,Jr., Dave Thomas (Wendy's), William Carlos Williams, Ray Liotta, Robert Wuhl, Bob Reyers, Paul Robeson, Ernie Kovacs, Joseph Macchia and, of course, Francis Albert Sinatra and "Uncle Floyd" Vivino, Kelly Ripa.

I believe it would be a wash, nationally. What it would do is remove abortion as an issue, which would generally relieve some of the tendentiousness and avarice in the partisan politics in Washington.

"Democratic Mayor Michael Coleman will get help for his campaign for Ohio governor next year when Sen. Hillary Clinton and other party heavyweights share the stage Monday at a meeting of Democrat centrists in his city."

But his story became rather important to our little group. We all wanted to come up with our own story that had the word "World" in the title. One of my friends had to the foresight to think up a story called "Water World" where the whole world was submerged under water because of global warming. My blatant rip off of this was called "Land World" where, for some reason I couldn't think of at the time, all the earth's water evaporated.

In Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice's visit to Israel and in meetings with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and PA leader Abbas, she called on the PA to act on ending terrorists attacks against Israel. This is the response.

Read what our late, beloved Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, wrote in his 1998 encyclical, "Dies Domini: On Keeping the Lord’s Day Holy": "The custom of the ‘weekend’ has become more widespread, a weekly period of respite, spent perhaps far from home and often involving participation in cultural, political or sporting activities which are usually held on free days. This social and cultural phenomenon is by no means without its positive aspects…. Unfortunately, when Sunday loses its fundamental meaning and becomes merely part of a ‘weekend’, it can happen that people stay locked within a horizon so limited that they can no longer see the heavens…. The disciples of Christ, however, are asked to avoid any confusion between the celebration of Sunday, which should truly be a way of keeping the Lord’s Day holy, and the ‘weekend’, understood as a time of simple rest and relaxation."

Those words were like Viagra to a White House press corps that has been flaccid since Bill and Hillary Clinton moved out of the White House. McClellan had told them it was “ridiculous” to think that Rove had anything to do with the leak, that if anyone in the administration did have anything to do with the leak they would “no longer be in this administration,” and that Rove, Elliott Abrams and Lewis Libby had personally assured him they had nothing to do with the leak (as indeed they may have done).

Looking down, I admired my new adornment. Embossed on the soft caramel leather band were the words "Stop Global Warming." Almost immediately, I was aware of wearing a bracelet. I was also aware of an unfamiliar warmth. Not the global sort, but that which radiates from one's Inner Virtue.

Oh, and for those of you who are hoping the end is in sight, check out the graphic below from NOAA's Climate Prediction Center. Yes, all the red means its going to be hot for a while. God bless SUV's and global warming.

So I get up Saturday, veg about and catch up with my Mum and Dad, and then pop off to Gloria’s sister’s wedding in Kinsealy, where I finally get to meet the infamous J and realise that the man she’s been raving about for the past 7 months does ACTUALLY exist and is very cool indeed. The ceremony was lovely, Audrey looked fab - although myself, Deirdre and Glo kept messing and making Matthew (their son) pull faces. Was hilarious, the priest completely messed up at one point and said Pope John Paul, then attempted to cover it by faking a coughing fit before continuing on with Pope Benedict! LOL I graciously declined heading on to the dinner and afters as I knew I would never escape (although I did miss the dancing with lots of bows on my head, boo). So I come home, have a few hours to kill, change into my slouchy gear and started teaching Mum how to rip and burn cds - she discovered that she likes 2 Many DJs - and then Dad says we’re going to the Pavillions and I have to come. So we head down and he buys me the cutest ever 6MB Turquoise mini iPod!!! I was giggling like an escaped monkey, it was sooo class! And of course my darling sister gave us discount, heehee. Unfortunately, I couldn’t play with it til Monday as all my music is on my iMac in work, so I just had to content myself with stroking it lots and messing with the games etc…

I was actually scared when I took the picture. All I could think was, “If this freak sees me snapping pics of his ghetto shit, I’m going to have to confront him, and I’d be better off meeting Michael Jackson…”.

George W. Bush seems to be placing personal loyalties and political loyalties over his Presidential obligations and image. Bush promised the American people publicly repeatedly that he would fire anyone responsible at the White House who was involved in revealing the identity of the CIA operative married to former Ambassador Wilson.

According to reports, Condoleeza Rice’s entourage of aides and press personel were roughed up by Sudanese security forces at the gate of and inside the presidential compound in Khartoum. Part of her motorcade was held up at the gate and then finally let in. Once they were inside the compound guards wouldn’t let them in the building. Finally they got in and during the press conference reporters were manhandled yet again and prevented from asking questions.

Condoleeza Rice put on an award-winning performance of indignance after being manhandled by Sudanese officials during her recent visit. So a government involved in mass genocide shoved her around a little bit when she visited with video cameras in tow? Big fucking deal. If she were Muslim, the Janjaweed would’ve raped & killed her. Hey Condi, let’s try putting things in perspective.

I haven't been this upset about a news story for a very long time. I've actually surprised myself with how angry I am right now. But that's beside the point. The way Andrea Mitchell and Condoleeza Rice were treated in Sudan is completely unacceptable. It is unacceptable that the U.N. and the U.S. are not doing more.

Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice had high praise for Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's disengagement from Gaza. She said his decision will lead to better security for Israel and a better chance for lasting peace. She said she would encourage the PA to take action against terrorists. She also said she was encouraged by the PA's statement against "gunmen" and that she would encourage Mahmoud Abbas in that work.

I always wondered whether or not the left really believes that the terror will suddenly end if we would only cut and run? Did that tactic reduce terrorism when Bill Clinton cut and ran out of Somalia? How would cutting out of Iraq be any different?

Looks like it’s on the people of America to show leadership on preserving our future in the face of global warming….

>The Rolling Stones will deliver a musical attack on George W. Bush

I guess Secretary of Condoleeza Rice's upcoming visit coupled with the threat of IDF forces rolling into Gaza has had some effect on the unholy "warriors" of Hamas. BBCNews is reporting that Hamas and the PA have reached an agreement. Hamas has agreed to withdraw from the northern streets of Gaza. Palestinian cabinet minister Sufian Abu Zaida said that both sides have agreed to stop all clashes and violence between the two groups.

I’m proud that the members of my cabinet are the richest of any administration in U.S. history. My “poorest millionaire,” Condoleeza Rice, has a Chevron oil tanker named after her.

The issue of stem cell research apparently will suffer from a symptom of the disease it might ease - the dementia of Alzheimers. Oddly, while some Republicans are quietly opposing the bill, they are still willing to profit from what they call a crime. Of course, some Republicans are wind-up dolls for business activism. I prefer the term "mouthpiece".

Now that President Bush has nominated Judge John Roberts to the Supreme Court, the MSM has fresh meat to go after. Interestingly, on the San Francisco Chronicle's website, the lead article admits that Judge Roberts has a brilliant legal mind. And the fact that he has "sterling legal credentials," according to the article. That won't stop the MSM and the rest from trying, I suppose. Judge Roberts is also a Catholic (wonder if he was an altar boy, too?), so expect attacks on his position on abortion, end-of-life issues, and embryonic and therapeutic cloning stem cell research. Oh, and, of course, gay marriage.

Elwes will star in the CBS miniseries “Pope John Paul II,” playing the younger Karol Wojtyla in the four-hour film about the late pontiff’s life, CBS Entertainment president Nina Tassler said Tuesday (July 19) at the Television Critics Association summer press tour. He joins Ian Holm, who will play the pope as an older man.

When it comes to abortion, I tend to take the Bill and Hillary Clinton view: it should be safe, legal, and rare. Partial-birth abortion bothers me unless it’s necessary to preserve the health or life of the mother; should it be illegal? I don’t know.

When the choices are Clinton and Rice, thankfully Hillary Clinton comes out ahead.

Go back all the way to the year 2000, when Republicans scathed Clinton’s “nation-building” activities and Condoleeza Rice mocked a president who was willing to use American troops to escort children to school. They were talking about Bosnia, and adopting campaign platforms (as Dole did in ‘96) that opposed any U.S. support for UN peacekeeping activities.

Clinton routinely dismisses questions about 2008 and says she is focusing on her 2006 Senate re-election bid. "She doesn't know yet" whether she will run, her husband, former president Bill Clinton, said on CNN's Larry King Live last month.

Governor Rod Blagojevich (bluh-GOY-uh-vich)(D) of Illinois has issued an executive order that initiates state funded stem cell research, including embryonic stem cell research, as announced on WGN news at noon today. He and senator Arlen Spector (R) also used the opportunity to politicize the issue by denouncing the president for not allowing federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. They conveniently leave out the fact that it’s specifically embryonic stem cell research he won’t fund, not all stem cell research, and that’s a major point to remember. The president hasn’t outlawed embryonic stem cell research, and hasn’t forbidden state funding of the same. He just won’t take federal funds, your tax money, to accelerate studies of a morally difficult, scientifically unproven, “slippery slope” issue.

This being DC, at some point in the evening politics came up. For the most part, our dinner companions had their polite guard up--not trying to offend, or be overtly partisan--but casually discussing things like the vacancy on the court and the Rove/Plame affair. This, after all, was a group of strangers, stuck together for the next couple of hours...no need to get in anyone's face...right?

1. George W. Bush changed his story again, as he’s altered wording ever so slightly to be able to get Rove off the hook. If Rove’s story of being informed by the media holds out at all, Bush can use that to not fire Rove. It’s getting to be relatively he-said, she-said at this point, and this seems the most logical way for the Administration to get out unscathed.

Q: You have been talking about India being a hub for Stem Cell research. What should be done to achieve this?

After getting all of Pope John Paul's luggage loaded into the limo (and he doesn't travel light), the driver notices that the Pope is still standing on the curb."Excuse me, Your Holiness," says the driver, "Would you please take your seat so we can leave?" "Well, to tell you the truth," says the Pope, "they never let me drive at the Vatican, and I'd really like to drive today." "I'm sorry but I cannot let you do that. I'd lose my job! And what if something should happen?" protests the driver, wishing he'd never gone to work that morning."There might be something extra in it for you," says the Pope.Reluctantly, the driver gets in the back as the Pope climbs in behind the wheel. The driver quickly regrets his decision when, after exiting the airport, the Pontiff floors it, accelerating the limo to 105 mph."Please slow down, Your Holiness!!!" pleads the worried driver, but the Pope keeps the pedal to the metal until they hear sirens."Oh, dear God, I'm gonna lose my licence," moans the driver.The Pope pulls over and rolls down the window as the cop approaches, but the cop takes one look at him, goes back to his motorcycle, and gets on the radio.

I myself am happy we can get back to a normal life. Now what we have to look foward to is Hillary Clinton running in 2008…Yeah!…sigh. Hopefully we can pull somebody up to run for office that all of us Democrats actually liked. I’m an incredibly boring and nerdy person who normally finds intellectuals interesting and I was always bored listening to Kerry. I’ll take a spunky Edwards or dangerous Dean any day. What happened to the America I remember? It used to be cool. The one with sex scandals? I’ll take sex scandals over Iraq hands down. It was like watching the OC on the news every night.

“We get the Statue of Liberty. You get OpryLand. We get Intel and Microsoft. You get WorldCom. We get Harvard. You get Ole Miss. We get 85 percent of America’s venture capital and entrepreneurs. You get Alabama.”

Michael Jackson was acquitted and is now a free man. Had he been convicted then the terrorists would have won. But I guess it only makes sense to acquit Jackson when there are other people out there who are serving alcohol to minors. It only makes sense to let Jackson free and convict a couple for serving alcohol at their son's 16 year-old birthday party. And obviously this lapse in judgment deserves a sentence of 27 months? Michael Jackson can fucking molest a bunch of kids and get off? What kind of world do we live in?

Rumour has it that Eminem is considering purchasing the 'Neverland' home of troubled pop legend Michael Jackson. Although Jackson still owns the estate, he has said on record that he would never return after police raided his home whilst investigating child molestation charges against him. Jackson said of his estate after the raid: "It's a house now. It's not a home anymore. I'll only visit" and currently the estate remains unoccupied. The Neverland Vally Ranch is worth an estimated $50 million and spans 2,700 acres. Eminem has expressed an interest in the estate and thinks California would be a good place to raise his daughter, Hailie Jade. To date, there have been no reports as to whether or not Jackson has considered selling his home.

The Carolina Journal relays the comments of Fred Singer during his recent speech in Raleigh. Singer takes the dispassionate logical view of global warming and Kyoto that so differs from those on the Left who choose to use the issue for their personal political gain.

Actually, he’s right. Why, just last week Harry Reid opened his own brothel in the Phillipines. & don’t let Monica Lewinsky & Paula Jones fool you — Bill Clinton is actually a bigger fan of eight-year old boys.

She has played marquee roles in several national legal groups, including the American Bar Association, the U.S. Judicial Conference and the U.S. Sentencing Commission, to which she was appointed by then-President Bill Clinton.

This is the way forward. It’s slower than just developing science, but it’s doing something that years of citizens’ juries and town hall meetings have failed to do with biotech in the past decade. The strength of both sides has made it impossible for either the proponents of stem cell research or its opponents to deal a killing blow to the other side. It’s forcing people to take each other seriously rather than pushing for a complete victory. This is good news for everyone. The science moves forward without a complete disregard for the concerns of the public.

There is even a swipe at the "Kill Terri" crowd when the bad guy (Sean Bean) says that it's ok to kill the clones because "they are in a persistent vegatative state." But Govindini and Jason are bumflummoxed as to how a pro-life, anti-cloning film got made by the notoriously Leftist Dreamworks studio, in The People's Republic of California, where voter's recently approved $6 billion dollars for embryonic stem cell research.

Finding Design in Nature By CHRISTOPH SCHÖNBORN Published: July 7, 2005 The Catholic Church's official stance on evolution. Excerpts: Ever since 1996, when Pope John Paul II said that evolution (a term he did not define) was "more than just a hypothesis," defenders of neo-Darwinian dogma have often invoked the supposed acceptance - or at least acquiescence - of the Roman Catholic Church when they defend their theory as somehow compatible with Christian faith.

In a letter dated Thursday to FTC chairwoman Deborah Platt Majoras, (Hillary Clinton) urged the agency to examine whether the game’s rating of “M'’ for mature should be changed to an “Adults Only'’ rating.

“It’s the krill that drive the food web dynamics off this coast,” said Ellie Cohen, the executive director of the Point Reyes Bird Observatory. “Their absence has tremendous implications for everything out there, right up to the humpback and blue whales. We don’t know if this is a result of global warming or some natural cycling, but without the krill, you could be looking at a food web collapse.”

Isn’t that something? And don’t we wish Baby George had paid closer attention to the morals of Daddy George when it comes to having people around who play fast and loose with the truth, and even worse, confidential information. Daddy Bush fired the man. He didn’t need tons of proof, the taint of corruption was enough to make the man move to cut the cancer out of his campaign. Now, I don’t think he liked doing it, but he recognized he would have no moral leg to stand on in all his mudslinging against Bill Clinton if he allowed a sleeze like Rove to remain after something like that.

This is not to say that what our priests are teaching us each Sunday in Mass is boring or not very stimulating. Far from it, learning about the Gospel is fundamental. But on issues that have divided and caused so much debate in society, it is as important to learn about the Church's reasoning behind its positions on stem cell research, abortion and marriage.

It is my own Orthodox brethren who appear to be the cranky partners. Catholics have been making friendly overtures for more than a decade now. Pope John Paul II even said that the extent of papal power – over which the two churches split in the 11th century – could be “open to a new situation.” Both churches hold as ideal a united body with Rome as “first among equals.” Yet the Orthodox drag their feet, sometimes seeming downright rude. A Catholic friend tells me that the attitude seems to be: “Take this olive branch and shove it.”

…even though John Kerry and Richard Lugar did the same thing…

Sen. John Kerry, who called for Karl Rove to be fired over allegations that he revealed the identity of CIA employee Valerie Plame, outed a genuine undercover CIA agent just this past April - even after the Agency asked that his identity be kept secret.

Given that the G8 meetings start today, and given that terrorism is NOT on the agenda this year, given that George Bush probably doesnt give 2 fucks about global warming or poverty in Africa which ARE on the agenda, isnt it just too much of a strange coincidence? Yes, you could probably argue the fact that terrorists targeted this G8 day on purpose BUT if that really were the case and leaders were to be the targets, why target london and not Scotland????? Which is where the meetings being held. Also why target London transport systems and with minimilistic bombs that havent really killed anyone??? How Im seeing this is perhaps yes perhaps the Bush administration have got their fingers in the pie of this somehow in an effort to push terrorism back onto the table at the summit...forcing poverty and environmental issues to be swept under the carpet once again. Its a sad sad bloody state of affairs, especially that Tony Blair, the main pusher in the 8 leaders wanting to eradicate poverty, has to be pulled away from the summit in order to clean up someone elses mess in london. Perhaps im wrong but i think this is a HIGH HIGH possibility of whats actually going on. Dont think I been watching too much Michael Moore either, i havent, ive always thought...............theres more to the story than meets the eye!

Very interesting shot by Maestra Leibovitz: Ann Richards was Governour of Texas before George W. Bush. She lost. But she didn’t shot him.

Needless to say this eminently sensible question has been met with deafening silence by the other Korner Kids. K-Lo has followed up with trenchant postings on her weirdest email, A-Rod, and stem cell research without a word of response to Derb’s question.

The clock is ticking on President Bush, who less than one year into his second term is headed full speed into a wall. If this keeps up, then I think in 2008 we will be having the debate about whether or not President Bush‛s second term was the worst second term for a President in history. Of all the things on the President‛s agenda, it appears the Bolton nomination is the best chance for Bush to get his way, only because the President can use a recess appointment. Everything else, from Social Security right on down to stem cell research, has simply gotten away from the President as he finds him self on the opposite side of most Americans. This mess with Karl Rove is not helping any, and if Bush screws up the Supreme Court nominee than I would bet that after the 2006 elections, in which the GOP will lose seats to the Democrats, Republican leaders will really have to distance themselves from the White House in the hopes of keeping their jobs.

President Bush and his team of “culture of life” conservatives dealt stem cell research a major blow a few years ago when Bush set up restrictions on federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. The Senate now appears poised to vote for a bill that would allow researchers to use some 400,000 embryos that were created for in vitro fertilization and would likely otherwise be discarded. Now President Bush, and others like Bill Frist are coming out against the proposal, instead offering up some “alternative solutions” that are based on science that has not even really been tested yet. Bush is threatening a veto, but I think he’s in for a rude awakening because of the poweful voice of Senator Arlen Specter who has come out strong and hard in favor of stem cells since his being diagnosed with Hodgkins lymphoma cancer. Specter has rallied Senators behind him, and submitted a letter to President Bush last week signed by 58 Senators asking the President to drop his threat to veto. Specter’s life is now on the line and he isn’t afraid to talk about it. When asked by Senator Brownback of Kansas at what point life begins, Specter replied, that he was “a lot more concerned, at this point, about when my life is going to end.” Specter has also made other personal statements such as:

Oh, and here is why Canadian politics is so entertaining and while I'll probably miss this (and now HOCKEY!) most of all...

Objectivism, like any other philosophy entails the eight aspects of it, which are: epistemology, politics, economics, ethics, esthetics, metaphysics, morality and psychology. The extent of my knowledge covers the first seven aspects of the philosophy alone.

"All of a sudden," he continued, "the media began asking, 'Is she selling out? Is she abandoning her principles?' But if John McCain, who's pro-life, works with Hillary on global warming, he's a man of principle moving to the middle."

Me: (reaching the truck with the next box, I put it in the truck and looked at him, breathing hard) You're a Democrat, right? "Progressive," liberal, support Bill Clinton, hated Reagan, right?

I started this site to get my voice down on "paper". I don't really care if I get five or 500 hits in a day. I'm doing this because I care about my country. I yearn for the days when we can again proudly live up to this inscription that can be found on the Statue of Liberty:

Yesterday (Tuesday) was Claires 21st Birthday. We went to see the statue of liberty, was cool to see it in real life...also went to Ground Zero, was weird it had an erie quietness about it, also saw the wee chapel were everyone went, it was full of missing persons posters and wee poems to ppl that died, it was very sad, but gud to see.

Illinois becomes the fourth state in the country to “get it” - to get that stem cell research is in fact the future of medicine - and will be supporting stem cell research after Govenor Blagojevich stepped around the Legislature and ordered $10m in tax dollars to be spent on the research. The executive order grants research facilities money for looking into adult, cord blood, and embryonic stem cells - the last being the target of the “every sperm is sacred” crowd - but none is to be used for reproductive cloning. Speaking of his order, the govenor said: “My sense of morality argues strongly to not simply sit back and do nothing when children are suffering from juvenile diabetes. To simply be afraid to take a position or to act, I think would be immoral.” Illinois joins California, Connecticut, and New Jersey as states that are actually supporting science - going directly against the current federal administration. (thanks to Synthesis21 for the story)

‘I thought we would be debating economic development, property tax relief, protecting seniors’ pensions and stem cell research to save lives of Texans who are waiting for a more abundant life. Instead we are wasting this body’s time with this political stunt that is nothing more than constitutionalizing discrimination. The prejudices exhibited by members of this body disgust me.

Hillary Clinton, speaking at the inaugural Aspen Ideas Festival (organized by the Aspen Institute nonpartisan think tank) referenced Bush's attitude toward tough issues, as in comparison to Alfred E Newman.

I’m not much of a swimmer and the current is perky, so I stay aboard to, you know, man the guns and flog the loblolly boys and that. When I go swimming in deep water it’s more a matter of concerted not-drowning than easy enjoyment. But I’ll take my plunge on the next trip anyway, as I do every year. Taking those few panicked strokes in the Hudson River, anchored off Liberty State Park between Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty, gives a guy some decent bragging rights.

Gov. Rod Blagojevich issued an executive order Tuesday that directs $10 million in state money to be used for stem cell research, including embryonic stem cells.

Ever since 1996, when Pope John Paul II said that evolution (a term he did not define) was "more than just a hypothesis," defenders of neo-Darwinian dogma have often invoked the supposed acceptance - or at least acquiescence - of the Roman Catholic Church when they defend their theory as somehow compatible with Christian faith.

Ever since 1996, when Pope John Paul II said that evolution (a term he did not define) was "more than just a hypothesis," defenders of neo-Darwinian dogma have often invoked the supposed acceptance - or at least acquiescence - of the Roman Catholic Church when they defend their theory as somehow compatible with Christian faith.

That's it, I'm out of here and off to do some bike riding. I encourage all bloggers out their to step away from the computer and go outside and enjoy the weekend. Politics will be here when we get back.

* Michael Jackson, as interpreted by Celine Dion. I get the feeling this one is not recent.

Has it ever occurred to Mr. Bond that maybe, just maybe, the African-Americans who supported Bush actually agree with his ideas? No, according to Mr. Bond, if you are an African-American and support President Bush or work for President Bush, you are nothing more than a “ventriloquist dummy” who can’t think for yourself. I guess people like Colin Powell and Condoleeza Rice are just misguided dolts….

Before setting off decided that I should grab a book to take to work. I’m a book fanatic. I’m not that profligate normally but when it comes to books I can’t help but pick up those 3 for 2 offers. And there’s so many good non fiction books around; anthropology, politics, current affairs, history, biography, science, nature; you name it, I bet there’s an interesting looking book about it. So I buy endlessly and they just pile up as it’s impossible to actually read them all, as even when I do sit down to tackle a book it’s always 2 steps forward and 3 steps back as I’m guaranteed to buy another bunch of books before finishing the current ones. I have them piled up in my study - each one beckoning me to read it. Many have bookmarks in the first few pages as initial enthuasasim was swayed by the next set of new arrivals. I’m sure this isn’t healthy and is boarding on an addiction.

I generally hate shows such as the one that was on last night, Motown 45, and avoid them like crazy, but I remember that twenty years ago (oh my gosh! how could that have been twenty years ago?), when I was eighth grade, and Motown celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary, Michael Jackson whipped out the greatest moonwalk ever moonwalked, and the next day in school, everyone was talking about it. On the weird off-chance that something like that might happen again, and because I was too lazy to get up and turn the TV off (I don’t have a remote-controlled television), I watched it. It mostly sucked, but here are a few random thoughts that have been floating around since last night:

The Democrat strategy concerning terrorism is clear, embarrassingly obvious, and disgusting. Hillary Clinton, the woman whose eyes are as warm and inviting as a Blue Ice enema, is one of the leaders of shamelessness.

President George W. Bush, is: "Since when was God pro-war, and pro-rich?

My family and I talk about US crap all the time. The conversations tend to be quite negative, but I�d say that�s my fault not theirs.� Their other aunt Vero is Bill Clinton�s #1 fan and I promised her that if I ever meet him I�ll tell him that he has a big fan in Oruro, Bolivia.

I will bother to grind only one more ax. Robbins inevitably makes the point that our soldiers – apparently all of them – are the victims of economic coercion; in one instance he offers the example of a single-mother who had no choice but to join the military after her welfare benefits were revoked (courtesy of Bill Clinton, one presumes, but that’s another story). Jason, Govindini and myself are graduates of Yale University. It takes at least two hands to count our college friends who have served or currently serve in the military. These people are exceedingly smart, exceedingly talented, and exceedingly dedicated, and they chose their path freely and proudly. Tim Robbins insults them – spits on their uniforms – by suggesting otherwise. Let the soldiers speak for themselves; they don’t need Hollywood activists putting words in their mouths.

The debate over embryonic stem cell research typically revolves around the moral status of this small collection of cells. Most supporters of government funding for research argue, often cogently, that an embryo is not a human life in the conventional sense. This implies, of course, that they believe that if an embryo were a full-fledged human life, there would be something wrong about destroying it in the name of science.

The Live 8 Concerts are all over the media and the blogosphere. Josh Trevino over at local outlet Politics from Left to Right gets it just about spot on:

OK, the “partisans on both sides” of this argument need to check themselves and their politics at the door. This is neither the time nor the place for a political argument over federal judges. Besides, what would those arguing against naming the school after Marshall really be arguing against? I fail to see how racial bigotry (either subtle or overt) wouldn’t enter into the discussion, and it has no business there. I see no valid reason not to let the students name their new school after this brilliant legal scholar and champion of equality under the law.

The Roman Catholic Church in sub-Saharan Africa has grown in such a spectacular manner in recent years that some Vatican observers said the election of a black pope following the death of Pope John Paul was more likely than at any time in history.

A: The UNF stand is patently clear. The President was elected for six years. It is not a question of the President’s rights but the electorate’s. Nobody who elected her in 1999 expected her to go beyond her second six- year term. So, the Presidential polls have to be held this year.

The process to canonise Pope John Paul II opened on Tuesday with Cardinal Camillo Ruini suggesting the late Pope could be declared a martyr of the faith, which would further accelerate the already record pace that has marked his beatification cause.

James mentions beer snobbery. There are some more good articles about beer snobbery. Here is one from Modern Drunkard Magazine. Not convinced. Check out this article from ratebeer.com. Finally see what the King of Pop Michael Jackson has to say about beer snobbery.

The jury in the Michael Jackson child molestation case has found him not guilty on all 10 counts.

Sure, prior to 9/11, it was wrong for Michael Jackson to rape the shit out of little kids, and I am on the record saying so. But that innocent world is gone forever.

"It's what I call tropical nights," said Phillips, adding humidity and smog are playing a role as well as a lack of rain. "That's what global warming is all about. It is not the daytime highs but the nighttime lows that are higher than what our parents and grandparents experienced."

“But we don’t want the smoking gun to be a mushroom cloud.” Then National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice, Sept. 7, 2003, on CNN’s Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer.

President Bill Clinton and his family, Hillary Clinton and their daughter Chelsea, arrived in Hanoi for a historic visit. Clinton was the first President to visit Vietnam since President Nixon's visit in 1969. The purpose of Clinton's trip was to discuss relations between the two countries. Clinton said, "I think it is time to write a new chapter here." See President Clinton's Visit to Vietnam.

Nothing will really be settled until Fitzgerald reveals the results of his investigation and the grand jury hands down indictments. Over at the Smirking Chimp, one of the members posted a list of BushCo scandals that have gone nowhere. It’s quite possible that this will end up being added to the list because the mainstream media seem to have no interest in pursuing stories that do not involve Bill Clinton’s penis. Still, they seem finally to have internalized the notion that Bush is not a popular President - perhaps that will give them a little spine.

As one who professes to be Catholic, you must have heard the phrase "consistent life ethic." I would suggest a thorough read of Evangelium Vitae, the encyclical letter of His Holiness Pope John Paul II.

This site is not intended to be political, except in so far as every choice a writer makes is political, but in this time it’s difficult to separate culture from politics from entertainment. And, of course, I do have a strong interest in history and history deals with politics. So I have a blog category here called “Politics and Activism.”

Reducing pollution levels in the air could lead to much higher levels of global warming, researchers have warned.

US President George W. Bush has had a shaky start with his second term and his nation’s restlessness with the Iraq War is increasing day by day; the atrocious war in Chechnya and the imprisonment of Yukos boss have cast dark clouds over Russian President Vladimir Putin’s tailored suit of democracy; French President Jacques Chirac’s domestic standing is falling since the resounding ‘no’ to the EU constitution by his nation; political problems are being faced by the German Chancellor too; Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is seeing his claim of being the representative of Asia, thwarted by China whose rising power has bore a fruit in the shape of an invitation to President Hu Jintao for attending the Gleneagles summit. Moreover, the G8 summit is expected to remain bogged down in talks relating to the Iraq War and Iran’s nuclear ambitions thus, putting issues like reassessing the CAP to the backstage.

When most people think of Bill Clinton's legacy, Monica Lewinsky, “I did not have sexual relations with that woman”, “I did not inhale”, impeachment, and other points of ridicule come to mind. However, despite the bad things Clinton did in his personal life, America was arguably safer and more prosperous under his watch. When you hear Clinton talk about terrorism now, most people are shocked and don't believe that he actually did anything about it. This is, in fact, not true at all.

Radio host and columnist Mark Davis supports embryonic stem cell research, but he insists that he’s pro-life. However, it’s clear from his article that he does not grasp the moral logic of the pro-life view. My running commentary on his thoughts is below. His remarks are in regular type. My comments are in italics.

I bought Ghostbusters the other day, it's been a while, it brought back many confused memories of which film was which. And that the statue of liberty thingy was in the second film and it wasn't the statue of liberty vs the stay puft marshmellow guy if thats his name.

America is truly the Land of Opportunity. "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free" are at the foot of the Statue of Liberty. The waves of immigrants who have come to our land in the past and are still coming know that these words are true.

by Jason S. Evans @ 11:48 am. Filed under Culture, Politics

Of course, the London bombing is Bush's fault, along with the death of Pope John Paul (I kid you not), hurricanes, high oil prices, hate, racism, the 2004 tsunami, good hygiene, etc, etc, etc...

And what is up with that stupid looking logo on the tablecloth? Looks like my politics time bomb icon upside down after IT went to Jared!

But then again, there wasa memorandum that came down that suggested the Geneva Conventions were void in Iraq. It didn’t come from the Brigade level, though;it came from fucking George W. Bush’s office. And it’s a lie. That’s why they sat there in front of Congress before they made the author of that memo into the Attorney General of the United States get your head around that and denied that they meant it.

Why a wingnut neocon is unfit to represent this great nation. Despite what conservatives haves have written, the charges against John Bolton are severe. For starters, he’s been accused of hiding information from Colin Powell and Condoleeza Rice. And then of course, there’s the NSA intercepts. Read On!

I see from the Channel 4 news that Condoleeza Rice wrote ‘They will not have died in vain’ in a memorial book. My flatmate and I just looked at each other and said ‘What?’

Hey-- . . . How would this apply if Hillary Clinton became president of the United States? Or Condoleeza Rice? Would her policy decisions rest more heavily on the advice of people in her administration with whom she feels the most friendly? Would Mrs. President avoid foreign leaders she didn't like? Would national priorities be funnelled to the top by "the friend of a friend?" Seems like something worth considering.

Initially I did not put any postings about this story on our site. While it was a tragic case, every parents nightmare, there are horrible cases of missing children and innocent victims of murder and mayhem everywhere you turn. Somehow this became the mega-story of the moment to the extent that you could switch across the night menu of news shows from CNN, to MSNBC to Fox and it was on every channel, every night, almost all night. I could understand the coverage by Greta van Susteren since that is her specialty, but I always thought Scarborough was about politics. So while I’m sympathetic to the parents, and glad they were able to generate attention and concern for their plight, it struck me as sensationalism, not coverage and too much hype. Consider the many other victims, even at least three murders on other islands, over the past few weeks with barely a mention. I did make a posting when the elder van der Sloot was arrested since I found that very intriguing, and still hold a personal gut feeling that he is involved. If not directly, at least in telling the three young suspects what to do and what to say if the investigation came their way. All of that said, my entry this morning is more about some of the comments recently from Natalie’s family, and from some of our media, about the investigation and the Aruban, or Dutch justice system. Step back, and step down. Take a look at the headlines right here. Every month there is a major story about some hideous, chronic child abuser, and murderer freely roaming the streets. Our own system of justice, and record for how that system works and fails, is a long, long way from infallible. What makes anyone think that a similar crime on U.S. soil would be solved quickly? Particularly when we so often see people with money or position, like the van der Sloot’s, accorded special considerations, allowing then to skip around the outskirts of justice. Tap on that wall, and you’ll likely find it’s closer to glass than brick.

Though somewhat dated, John Noonan’s “A Private Choice” provides a very helpful overview of what’s at stake in battles over court nominees. For Noonan, the question is not one of politics, but worldview, in this case, the clash between traditional American jurisprudence and that of Hans Kelsen.

As Bruce Miniter in the WSJ noted yesterday that all the "Vietnam" stuff is wishful thinking by the Left and reminds Sen. Dustbin and the MSM that more than politics is at stake:

The United National Party yesterday exhorted all voters to impel President Chandrika Kumaratunga and Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake to hold the Presidential polls this year.

Participating in a collegiate sport reflected many of the negative politics and of the work world that human resources like to sugar coat over. Think getting downsized is tough at work? Imagine being an 18 year old kid trying to get an education when the coach of your team gets forced to resign, and the new coach that’s brought in subsequently tries to get every athlete that arrived before his tenure to quit.

The race was long and a little warm but at least it was flat. Here's Bob after finishing his first marathon and yours truly after beating George W. Bush's best marathon time, finally!

Just now, George W. Bush has arrived in Denmark for a 2-day official visit. In antipication of his visit, the Copenhagen-based Politiken newspaper interviewed a broad spectrum of political commentators, journalists, writers, business people, etc. about what they would tell Bush if they were his hosts (2 July, frontpage and p. 2 of the Culture section). Unsurprisingly, the answers ranged from hostile to fairly enthusiastic, but everyone had a piece of advice for him. I noted some of the advice of Imam Abu Laban from Islamisk Trossamfund (’Islamic Faith Community’) – in my translation:

How reassuring to know that my state is hopping on the issue of the day and spending our money on a state commission examining global warming. If the article by N&O writer Wade Rawlins today is any indication, we are in for an expensive and misleading journey.

The victim was tailed on a street in Milan, immobilized with a chemical spray, kidnapped, sent in secret to the US air base at Aviano, and from there to the fastnesses of the Mubarak regime, with no legal guarantees whatsoever. Now the Abu Omar case threatens to widen the split between the United States and Italy, following the regrettable aftermath of the Sgrena case and the death of Nicola Calipari. Abu Omar’s abduction took place on the territory of a friendly sovereign state, and ally of Washington, which has courageously supported the postwar peace process in Iraq by sending troops to Nassiriya, thus exposing itself to Madrid-style terrorist reprisals. The fact that, in between dallyings in luxury hotels and expenses James Bond would have baulked at, the CIA chose to act without informing the Italian authorities confirms that the US administration has yet to grasp the scale of the damage wreaked on America’s image by the chains at Guantanamo, the photos of Abu Ghraib, and the covert actions of the CIA, whose strategic aims were explained yesterday to the Corriere della Sera by Robert Baer, a former member of the Directorate of Operations. What is the point of the forthright speech by Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice urging America’s Egyptian and Saudi allies to at last open their societies to democracy if the CIA then sends Abu Omar, illegally abducted in Italy, to Cairo, to be unceremoniously interrogated without lawyers, transparency, or legal process, all considered superfluous luxuries in time of war by Washington hardliners?

The New York Times had a nice piece today. Though somewhat equivocal, it reluctantly gave President Bush credit where credit is due for doing far more in the fight against AIDs than President Bill Clinton. Bush has so far (with time to spare) committed 2/3 more than Clinton. That’s 2.1 billion more last year alone!

This tax was eliminated once before in 2000. The House passed legislation repealing the tax by 420-2 and both houses of Congress passed the legislation which repealed the tax. The bill was vetoed by then President Bill Clinton.

That puts Niagara Falls in the same category as such landmarks as the White House, Statue of Liberty, Grand Canyon and the Rocky Mountains.

Robert Blake told director Lynch he was not going to give him a hard time about the script because Blake did not understand it. Blake also said he felt his character was the Devil.

I’m not going to get into the politics of it all, the organizers do that much better than I can. However, I did want to give kudos to AOL. Their website features many of the performances that took place around the world from Live 8. I’m not a huge fan of any of the performers, but I do respect many of the artists performing and liked the performances by REM, U2, Sam Roberts, Tragically Hip. Neil Young, The Who, and Snoop Dogg. I always will have a soft spot for U2’s “One.” It’s so simple, yet so powerful and it really works as a teary anthem ballad.

Cardin and other free-trade Democrats concede that many of the Democratic opponents are motivated by partisan politics: They want to see Bush lose a major legislative initiative or, at the very least, make Republicans from districts hit hard by international trade take a dangerous vote in favor of a deal their constituents oppose.

# posted by Neighborhood Retail Alliance @ 9:29 AM

“Miguel Estrada, the Hispanic gentleman who, at one point, seemed headed for the D.C. appeals court for which Brown is now confirmed – until his nomination was unfairly derailed by rank racial politics. Estrada is a top-shelf Washington lawyer who had, after coming to the United States from Honduras and graduating with honors from Columbia University and Harvard Law School, worked as an assistant U.S. attorney and an assistant solicitor general. Yet none of that prepared Estrada for the meat-grinder of the judicial confirmation process. Before long, Estrada was – in an experience that must have seemed surreal to him at the time – fending off accusations from white Democrats that he “wasn’t Hispanic enough.” That was Estrada’s defect. It was also complete nonsense. I don’t see why liberals won’t say what they really mean. It’s obvious that what concerns them is not that these nominees aren’t real minorities, but rather that they aren’t their kind of minority. You know, the kind that asks for permission before they speak and makes sure that what they say falls in line with the views of their liberal benefactors”. –Ruben Navarrette Jr.

Given President Bush’s penchant to appoint those with whom he is personally close to roles within his administration (think Condoleeza Rice, Paul Wolfowitz, John Bolton and, indeed, Alberto Gonzales) I think this is my prediction as well. Though recent preemptive opposition from the religious right may scare Bush off.

Another travesty of justice occurred today when U.S. secretary of State Condoleeza Rice was NOT selected to the American League squad for next Tuesday’s All-Star game in Detroit!!

Not only does Burns want to keep testing pesticides on humans, he also co-sponsored a bill to ban federal funding for stem cell research. In March 2002, Burns signed on to the Brownback-Landrieu Human Cloning Prohibition Act went so far to ban human cloning that it banned cloning embryonic stem cells, thereby banning federal funding of stem cell research. Stem cell research is viewed by many as having the potential to lead to major medical breakthroughs in the quest to cure diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and diabetes. Even Utah’s Orrin Hatch supports stem cell research.

Kerry’s religious beliefs were exposed by two main issues; abortion and stem cell research. Kerry stated that as a Catholic he believed life began at conception but as a politician (a public servant) he did not have the right to force his religious values on the public. The public/private split is obvious. In John Kerry’s thinking there are at least two different realms in the universe operating independently of one another; his own private values and public policy. As a result, private religious values are excluded from all discussion of public policy. Kerry “checks his values at the door,” so to speak. Little does Kerry know that this is a value in itself. Those who know better know Kerry did not simply leave his private values behind. He merely picked and chose which values to carry with him into the realm of public policy discourse. This became painfully obvious when, in the same set of debates, he quoted Jesus to justify his welfare programs. Religion when it suited him (welfare); public/private split when it did not (abortion).

These are the sorts of issues that Markell’s books can speak to. While the majority of the book is concerned with technical issues in the political ontology of agency and identity which, despite how luminously well written it is, will be slow going for people who can’t immediately jump into discussions of Arendt, Hegel, Herder, and Taylor, the chapter on multiculturalism is perhaps the easiest way in to the argument for nonspecialists. Here his focus is on the politics of recognition (think Charles Taylor, Nancy Fraser, Axel Honneth, Will Kymlicka, etc.). The politics of recognition has emphasized the way in which recognition and affirmation of one’s identity and culture is itself a social good which ought to be recognized in multicultural liberal states, and particularly Canada (home to Taylor and Kymlicka). However, Markell argues that this aspiration to mutual recognition is appealing but ultimately unsatisfying and even incoherent.

is the Word not clear on how we are to care for those in need? lately i’ve felt so cynical, failing to see where Christ dwells in Christianity. failing to see God in the church, in the actions of believers. all i’ve seen is politics and prejudices, hypocrisy, and social bubbles. but lately God seems to be pounding one message into me, love is an action. the past few weeks we’ve had speakers at gs that are out there in the world really working to further God’s kingdom by loving people where they are. teaching and caring for low-oppurtunity students in a poor community, working with high-risk youth, showing them love when every one else has forsaken them. feed the poor. care for the widow. bring justice to the oppressed. even in the midst of my cynicism about the church, God is continually reminding me that His love is in people. the community i am in, the brothers and sisters that love and support me, this is where i encounter God. it is in their eyes, in their embraces that i feel the love of the Father. there are believers living this life of sacrifice. for some reason i had forgotten that. there are those who truly embrace love and justice, and live it out everyday. is this the God i’ve been seeking my whole life? is this the Truth that will finally bring meaning to to my unstable faith?

What i think of the politics of New Britain, Ct, It stinks and sucks. It's like the politicians of New Britain don't care for anyone but the polish people of New Britain. They don't give a damn for the spanish or the asians that live in Ne Britain. The problem here is that New Britain is a polish town and that the minorities are the spanish and asians. I believe that in order to get into politices in New britain, one must be polish and live in the broad street Area. The current politics of New britain right now is that they are closed minded and that they do not open up to the voters of New Britain. They do not care about the people in the city and they do not bother to listen to the concerns of the people in New Britain.

OK, it wasn’t Chekhov, but it was a start. And now that I’d done the hard part, I could leave the matchmaking to a complicated, anonymous system of computerized tabulations, rather than my well-intentioned pals who have tried, bless them, many times to set me up with their Other Gay Friend (OGF). My past dates with OGFs have included a hookup with a staunch Republican who told me I subscribe to “pansy politics,” a guy who appeared physically incapable of talking about anything but his Lhasa apso, and a gentleman who was so addicted to cocaine that he named it Mary.

A book review on Beyond Good Intentions: A Biblical View of Politics by Doug Bandow

Sources say that Hillary Clinton has finally filed for divorce from President Bill Clinton. Hillary said, "everyone knows our marriage has been a sham for the last 20 years. I have finally made the decision to distance myself from Bill just like Al Gore did. But, in my case, I am expecting the sympathy vote I will get from woman will more than offset any benefit of having Bill whoring around on the campaign trail and humiliating me for the next 3 years."

Still, I worry about where all this is leading my party and my country. Bill Clinton, for all his faults, was a moderate “Third Way” Democrat who managed to do a great deal of good for America. He was also the first Democrat to serve two full terms as President since Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Perhaps Clinton was sui generis, or perhaps times have changed since 9/11. But, before Democrats and Republicans retreat behind their heavily-fortified battle lines into all-out warfare, I would urge that moderation and compromise - dirty words among many partisans and bloggers these days, but a large part of what’s made America great over the years - would be given at least one more try.

The effects of the new anti-choice agenda are also affecting women abroad. On his very first day on the job, the president reimposed the odious global "gag" rule first instituted by President Ronald Reagan, then lifted by President Bill Clinton in January 1993. It bars health providers receiving American family planning assistance from counseling women about abortion, engaging in political speech on abortion or providing abortion services, even with their own money. In resurrecting the gag rule, the new president broadcast a disdain for freedom of speech to emerging democracies, while crippling the international family planning programs that work to prevent hundreds of thousands of infant and maternal deaths worldwide each year.

Along for the concert were my wife's friends. They enjoyed tremendously seeing my wife play the principle flute, and the piccolo during the Stars and Stripes forever; which was its usual rousing nature. This year the conductor, Mark Johnson, who usually dresses as Uncle Sam for this piece, came dressed as the Statue of Liberty. At the end, the huge American Flag dropped, and the conductor, his wife, and fellow soloist Scott Rogers let loose firework streamers and confetti.

A Mankato, MN high school teacher Tim Walz is running for US Congress in the MN First District. Here are a few more details. I am very interested in his approach to issues and policies. He has some very good ideas regarding Healthcare for ALL Minnesotans. Here’s an “Inside Minnesota Politics” podcast with an interview with Tim Walz.

Even a joint commitment to ‘’the culture of life'’ turns out to be very thin. Catholics and conservative Protestants may agree broadly on abortion and euthanasia; but what about capital punishment, which Pope John Paul II condemned as an immoral usurpation of God’s authority to determine life and death but which many evangelical Christians support as biblically mandated? To reach consensus, the values evangelicals have to water down the ‘’values'’ they say they accept to the point where they would mean nothing at all. They are left either acknowledging disagreement about values or else falling into a kind of relativism (I’m O.K., you’re O.K.) that is inconsistent with the very goal of standing for something rather than nothing.

President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s admission she talked to a Comelec official after the May 2004 presidential polls raises a key issue that Filipinos, individually and collectively, must grapple with. It is not one of mere impropriety, as her spokesmen would have us believe. Neither is it of stability or the need for sobriety. The issue is, plainly, one of right and wrong, and what is to be done in the face of wrongdoing.

We continue to hear rationalisation’s on how many views are too simplistic to work in eradicating poverty, hunger, and diseases. The answers are always SIMPLE - politics complicate them. Bull-Shit complicates them.

"May the Year of the Eucharist be for everyone a precious opportunity to grow in awareness of the incomparable treasure which Christ has entrusted to his Church. May it encourage a more lively and fervent celebration of the Eucharist, leading to a Christian life transformed by love." (Pope John Paul II, Mane Nobiscum Domine)

As reported, Barton wrote a letter to President George W. Bush, saying Cnooc's bid represented a "clear threat" to U.S. national security and should be blocked.

I seem to remember seeing a news story about a year back about some iniative, in which Bill Clinton was a participant, that would allow the Chinese government to more efficiently block websites. It wasn't being sold to the public that way, but that was the net result. I can't find the story at the moment though.

Move over Michael Jackson, Robert Blake, OJ Simpson, Martha Stewart and Robert Downey Jr. We have our own celebrities to cover involved in e-mail defamation, drugs, divorce and wife battery etc.

So much has been written about african poverty but money is not the problem, not even the food. It’s about corrupt politics and it’s hold on distribution, education and overall infrastructur.

I don’t remember hearing this poll on yesterday’s Inside Politics:

So keep bashing, keep bashing and we will have terrorist attacks on our own soil. Then Hillary Clinton, Madamme Smarmy will have to deal with an angry American populace and even her brand of bull won't sell and she will be a one-term Emperor.

If minoxidil sells well in California, it's because Republicans are always tearing their hair out, wailing that its candidates "can't even beat Boxer." Barbara Boxer, who California Republicans have made into their Hillary Clinton, has bested every candidate the GOP has thrown at her, partly because most of them are further right than she is left.

The reason is unknown but is probably to do with the fact Mr Armadillo, is guarenteed to take the next election in storm. As much as “certain” people (to remain unnamed) wish for George W. Bush to continue as president, this is his last term in Office and it is likely Mr Armadillo will take over.

Michael Savage doesn’t hold back in his latest book. This book is his third installment in which he ties it all together and backs his statements up with facts which are easy to check using the bibliography. The book has chapters focused on Homeland Security, Islamofacism, the alien invasion, lawsuit abuse, Clinton, Arafat, Kinsey, the ACLU, and the Red & Blue of politics. He shows no loyalty toward any party, just a loyalty to a strong libertarian ideology.

From what I've noticed, Blacks are programmed to either serve, or kill. For Black women, our programming leaves us with three choices: Mammy (The Oprah type, or the grandiose, matriarchal helper-monkey), the chirpy, preppy Helper-Monkey (the Condoleeza Rice type, happy and grateful to be an underling, despite her intelligence), or Whore (the "booty-licious" , socially desperate dum-dum). None of those work for me. I guess that would put me in the "killer" bag, but I'm not a criminal.

But don’t think for a moment that advocates of destructive embryo research are going to just go away. True, they want cures, but given their rhetoric on adult stem cell research, it seems they also want dead embryos. In short, this new (and indeed, exciting!) breakthrough will not resolve the bitter worldview conflict over the question, What makes humans valuable? Are we valuable for what we are intrinisically or only valuable for what we can do instrumentally? We will still have to fight that battle, no matter what science gives us.

Unless we're planning to send the Statue of Liberty back to the French and abrogate our offer: "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free," we should reconsider our attitude toward those who come to us in need.

I’m presently reading a library book titled: ‘Asia: Cultural Politics in the Global Age’ by Birch et al. I’ve only skimmed through the first chapter so far, but the authors have made an interesting statement probably worth further examination.

It’s because of women like her that I am given the opportunities I have today. Strange to think that I was a year old when the Supreme Court received it’s first woman… politics have come a long way.

I took this piece off Real Clear Politics. It argues that the Bush White House is committed to nominating a genuine conservative to the Supreme Court. Remember that President Bush is determined to NOT repeat the mistakes of his father. His father balked at the chance to remove Saddam Hussein - George W. did not. His father raised taxes - George W. held his ground and initiated the largest tax cuts in American history. And we all know that George H.W. Bush’s nomination of David Souter is at the top of this list of terrible political mistakes that George W. is determined to avoid. As the following piece shows, the White House is already on the right track, and is well-prepared for the nasty political fight ahead:

Been trying to decide what topics would be interesting to me and those who view the blog. My catagories reflect those interests. I would like this blog to not be a drag to the many who dont really care to get involved in certain discussions. With that in mind all of the catagories will stay on this site except politics.

The 21st century does not reflect so kindly upon this heritage. It has been spoiled by people who wrap themselves in the flag but only represent greed. That tragic fact that blood has to be spilled to feed this greed is not relevant to them. They claim the mantle of Christianity, but do not represent the teachings of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. They come under a banner that reads, “Culture of Life” while embracing the politics of death. We walk around every day trying to be politically correct. You don’t say the president lied; you say his statements were not borne out to be factually accurate. You don’t say that the president lied to go to war; you say the intelligence was poor. Everyone dances around the truth, afraid to confront the fact that the enemy is thyself. The Word of God says:

US pop star Michael Jackson is in the tiny Gulf kingdom of Bahrain as a guest of honour of the king’s son, an official close to the royal circle said on Thursday.

Senator John Kerry got in trouble during his pitifully failed Presidential campaign in 2004 for lying and waffling. So today, ahead of President Bush�s prime time speech he warned that for the President it was time "tell the truth to the American people.�

Next, caught in his own illogic and abdication of leadership, Kilgore tries to wriggle out by (lamely) claiming that he “supported the [2002] transportation referendum” that would have raised $5 billion through higher sales taxes to pay for new roads and Metro. Say what? Is Jerry Kilgore saying (to paraphrase Republican criticism of John Kerry on Iraq) “he supported the tax increase before he opposed it?” Is Kilgore flip-flopping yet again? Does he simply have no clue what he’s talking about? Or does this so-called “Conservative” now support raising taxes to pay for transportation after all? I’m sure that all of these possibilities will be music to Virginians’ ears!

A few months back I had some fun with the Democrats’ attempt to reach out to evangelicals, enlisting the help of a linguist to try to learn how to speak to these strangers. Now it appears that Hillary Clinton has figured out a better way:

Western civilizations' out-of-control humongous footprint has brought humanity to the brink of twin disasters, the first being global warming, which is very real and is something humans must and will deal with in one way or another: either by making the decision to adapt to our planet's limitations, or in pain and suffering as we destroy the Earth and ourselves along with her.

"Given the above caveats, if the postulated timeline and climate impact of industrial-society-induced global warming prove to be accurate, for countries without substantial untapped hydroelectric resources nuclear power is the only viable near term large-scale energy option consistent with economic growth and a commitment to reduced CO2 emissions."