Crosblog

I just wanted to go ahead and write up my post-debate post, since it's apparently OK to write a debate review before the debate is actually over.

Reading Pro-Bush blog Captain Ed, who's liveblogging with a bit more effort than I am. He says Bush is doing well.

Anti-Bush Spouse comes home. Says she's been listening to the radio, and Kerry is kicking Bush's ass. (She's not Pro-Kerry, she only tolerates him cause his veep's a hottie.)

I win.

This format couldn't be any lamer if "lameness" was actually the goal. (And I'm not saying it wasn't.)

Thus endeth the debate live blogging...

...and now, back to Smackdown...

Evil Genius and Future WNBA All-Star Dawn Summers has an interesting alternative to the Presidential debates.

So...tonight's debate night. The one night (well, one of three) that political partisans find something good in their opponent.

No less a source than Kevin Drum has proclaimed Captain Unilateral "the intergalactic champion of presidential debates." The battle of lowering expectations is the highlight of any political season.

Bush Flack: John Kerry is a highly skilled orator with a wide knowledge base. This debate will be a win for Bush if we can keep him from soiling himself for 90 minutes.

Kerry Flack: That's nothing! George Bush is a master of folksy charm and understated wit. Plus hypnotism. Kerry will win this debate if he can just keep from uttering an obscenity laden rant about his most recent Paris Hilton fantasy.

As far as what I think will happen, I stand by my previous answer:

I'll put $100 on "Republicans claim Bush won, Democrats claim Kerry won, and everyone complains about how the media covered their guy."

Unless Bush uses hypnotism. Then, all bets are off.

44 North Korean asylum seekers make it to Canda's embassy in Beijing. Making it the out of China isn't easy - but publicity generally keeps them from getting shipped back to NK.

And in other news from the People's Republic - they have condemned Taiwan for being provocative because Taiwan announced they could respond to a Chinese military strike. Because we are committed to spreading communism - you fighting back = aggression - I'd thought they'd outgrown stupid stuff like that.

Via Kevin Drum - Mark Green is holding a "Name the October Surprise" contest. A few caveats - you can only think up something Bush would do, it has to be plausible, and it's gotta be 100 words or less. (I think I missed that last one.) The winner gets to be on Air America. I was halfway through an elaborate scam that involved Karl Rove discrediting the left by conning Daily Kos into linking to topless photos of Jenna Bush that were cooked up by the guys at Powerline when I came across that "plausible" nonsense. Ah, hell, I can operate a Random Conspiracy Generator as well as the next hack - here's my entry:

There is already a deal in place in Iraq between the administration and key leaders of insurgent groups to reduce attacks and make Iraq look safer, starting in mid-late October. In exchange, these folks are promised key positions of influence in a new Iraq government. (That's why the CIA is trying to rig the January Election).

At the debates, Kerry will make a big deal about how Iraq is a debacle - things will start looking up almost immediately thereafter. The White House will make a huge deal out of Kerry's perceived lack of faith in the competence of our men and women in uniform, and ride the good news to a re-election victory, feeling good about the fact that this time, he only had to rig Iraq's election.

Now, the above is complete horseplop - but when you believe that Karl Rove has Dr. Doom like powers to make Dan Rather broadcast fake documents to obscure the fact that Bush was AWOL, very little sounds implausible. (Come to think of it, maybe I should have stuck with my first choice.)

I encourage everyone to enter.

...is up there with "Kerry's Debate Theme: If you can't see what a moron you have as President, you dipshits deserve him!" as a headline you're unlikely to see. But hey, No-Confidence Vote Planned Against Palestinian PM works too.

The Prime Minister is a powerless piece of window dressing designed to create the illusion of accountability. When Palestinians have the power to remove Arafat himself, reform will be possible. Until then, it's to international politics what According to Jim is to TV - a show devoid of value, put on solely to please the rubes.

My wife sent me a birthday card in which she claims one of our dogs is a Democrat. (Yes, that sort of thing qualifies as a affectionate birthday wish.) Without getting into why one would their cause associated with someone nicknamed "Big Stupid", I will simply note that she is wrong, and all good dogs prefer Bush to Kerry. (She concedes that the Wolverine is a Bush dog, and the Nugget, who loves everyone, couldn't dream of having to choose between the two.)

Reason being, Teresa Heinz Kerry. Via Asparagirl comes this quote from Lady Kerry her damn self:

The daughter of a doctor, Heinz loves to dispense medical advice. Friends think she is "delightful, loving, funny and kindhearted'' but her step-daughters, Vanessa and Alexandra Kerry, did not hit it off with her at first. "I thought, 'I love kids, kids love me, I'll be fine.' Baloney,'' Teresa said. "You have to treat stepchildren like pets. You're nice to them but you don't get too close or they chew you up. Well, I did it the other way.'

Speaking on behalf of dogs who are treated better than most children (hell, my wife treats them better than she treats me), I can safely say that Kerry has lost any support he may have had in my house's four-legged caucus until he disavows such heartless comments. Heck, I could probably even get them registered to vote if I wanted.

A major reason to vote for John Kerry is the claim that he will be able to rebuild the bonds and alliances that Bush has so callously dismissed. (But, lest you think Kerry's a wusspuppy, please be assured that he too is capable of being callous and dismissive of foreign heads of state when the situation warrants.) He has also reassured us his plan to do this does not involve hightailing it out of Iraq like Ricky Williams fleeing a random drug test. Sounds very Presidential, if you don't imagine John Kerry's voice reciting it. (Paul Hamm sounds more Presidential. President of Munchkin Land, to be sure, but still Presidential.)

Down here in NASCAR-land (hey, I hear Kerry's a fan), that sounds like Botoxus Magnificus is making a pretty strongly implied promise. Put me in charge, and European soldiers will join us for heavy lifting in Iraq. I will be able to talk them into sharing the burden.

In your dreams, monkey-boy, comes the response from our betters across the pond. The French are willing to participate in an international conference on Iraq, but only if we're talking about when we withdraw and we invite Al-Zarqawi. And France and Germany are both at a loss to come up with anything JFK v 2.0 could say that would get them off their butts and pitch in. (Has anyone suggested "We'll install a brutal dictator who's willing to give you valuable oil concessions in exchange for you helping them retain power?" It's gotten them involved in Iraq before.)

"I cannot imagine that there will be any change in our decision not to send troops, whoever becomes president," Gert Weisskirchen, member of parliament and foreign policy expert for Germany's ruling Social Democratic Party, said in an interview.

"That said, Mr Kerry seems genuinely committed to multilateralism and as president he would find it easier than Mr Bush to secure the German government's backing in other matters."

Note to Herr Weisskirchen: There are no other matters! There are, but this is the big one. If Kerry gets elected, it will be because people think Bush can't fix this, but he can. And part of how Kerry's pledged to fix this is by "involving our allies." That's you.

Also unsure is whether the anti-war faction of Britain's Labour Party would rethink it's attempt to demand Tony Blair abandon Iraq should Kerry get into office.

Look, it's true. Y'all can't vote in our elections, but there are plenty of ways you can help put the Big Giant Head in the Oval Office. In addition to these wise and helpful suggestions, you can help create the impression that there are Europeans chomping at the bit, rarin' to go and get terrorists and settle things down, just as soon as we don't have Captain Unilateral in there screwing things up.

About 800 students at a Johannesburg, South Africa university staged a pillow fight that fell well short of the world record.

Obviously, that's because they're doing it wrong. If late night movies on the USA network have taught us nothing, it's that the pillow fight is only an acceptable means of conflict resolution between hot young coeds. What's going on here just looks like a riot staged by morons.

Overheard at my house during Monday Night Football...

Spouse: How far down am I in my fantasy game?

Me: Something like 70 points. Basically, your share of Dallas' running back by committee would need to have the greatest game in NFL history for you to win.

Spouse: Well, it's still the first quarter.

By the way, I'm watching the DVDs of Playmakers. This show was awesome, and the NFL needs to be slapped for forcing ESPN to cancel it.

108 year old man resumes smoking after people send him cigars.

Another life, soon to be cut tragically short by tobacco.

In Oakland, DUI checkpoints, which everyone agrees are constitutional and save lives, are being shut down because of the hardship they propose to illegal immigrants.

The checkpoints, which allow officers to demand licenses and proof of insurance, are an effective way to get drunken drivers off Oakland's streets, city leaders agree. But the checks also have ensnared dozens of illegal immigrants who are not licensed to drive yet otherwise obey the law.

OK, their presence in this country violates federal law. Their lack of a drivers' license (and possibly insurance and registration) violates one or more state laws. Could somebody please draw me the line at which point illegal immigrants are not excused from breaking laws the rest of us have to follow?

"These checkpoints make people's lives miserable, not make them safer," said Jesus Rodriguez of Oakland Community Organizations, which filed most of the complaints about the checkpoints. "I've watched while the police have towed away cars (full) of groceries, leaving children crying on the sidewalk."

I'm sure Mr. Rodriguez' conclusion that checkpoints don't make people safer is based on much more research than the study conducted by traffic safety experts that concluded the exact opposite. In the alternative, when adding up the cost/benefit analysis of illegal immigration, could someone please remember to add in the innocent people who have to die so that people who snuck into the country illegally don't have to pay impound fees?

Saw "The Forgotten" starring Julianne Moore over the weekend. Pretty good movie, although the trailers covered an unfortunate amount of ground. Good actors (Moore and The Wire's Dominic West are the leads) starring in a popcorn thriller is always good fun.

I don't know why I hadn't heard this on my local news, but via Steve Silver, I learn that Ray Traylor, aka The Big Boss Man aka Big Bubba Rogers, passed away in his Georgia home last week. He was 42.

The Bossman, or Bubba, depending on where you watched your wrestling, was one hell of a pro wrestler. In his prime, he was one of the few men who could consistently have a good match with Hulk Hogan. (If you don't follow wrestling, trust me, this is a huge athletic achievement.) He was also a genuinely good citizen, active in local charities, who was very well liked around here. I saw him not too long ago at the 2002 Royal Rumble here in Atlanta. At the time, the Bossman was on the tail end of his career, far removed from his greatest matches, and not involved with any of the major storylines that had the fans attention. Nevertheless, the ovation that greeted the Bossman when he came to the ring was second only to the Rock and Stonecold Steve Austin. You could see the grin on his face from my seat in the second balcony.

We remembered you then, Ray...and we miss you now.

Take the quiz or the terrorists win.

Hat tip - Wonkette.

...thanks to everyone who had a good thought for her.

Until just recently, apparently you could get The Protocols of the Elders of Zion through Walmart.com, with a note that said the validity of the book was undetermined. They have now ceased selling the book at all.

Amazing. Walmart won't sell Maxim and like magazines - too salacious. Only edited rap CD's can be purchased in the music section - too much foul language. But, apparently, not all offensive materials move Wallyworld to decline to sell them.

Oh well, at least they've stopped now.

I've said before that Chechens need to be the ones to step up and do something about Shamil Basayev, architect of the Beslan massacre, if they don't want their cause to be forever associated with the murder of fleeing children.

Aslan Maskhadov is now promising that Basayev will stand trial. My inner skeptic is saying things like "you know, what he means is, I'll have a show trial and execute my greatest rival if y'all will just give me Chechnya," but it's a start.

Via IMAO comes a delightful op-ed in the Guardian suggesting that "the human race" should have a say in who runs the U.S. Now, I notice a distinct lack of details here - for one, there is no discussion of these new voters being assessed any taxes to pay for the government the author wishes to help run. For another, in, shall we say, less democratic areas, one wonders what procedure would be used to collect the votes. Perhaps we could just trust the local governments. Hey, Cuba's votes are in - 100% support for the guy with more facial hair!

I know, I know, he wasn't serious. He was simply voicing his dismay at how little the world's contempt for Bush seems to matter to those of us here at home. Which would seem to be another one of those times the "root cause" people should get involved. When Palestinians blow up Israelis, or Saudis crash airliners into our buildings, what we need to do is understand what we did that made them think they had to take such drastic steps. Surely our need to vote for Dubya merits no less introspection.

College students disciplined for installing a stripper pole at their campus apartment. Money quote:

"Honestly, we just wanted to say we had a stripper pole," Foster said. "We never actually expected girls to dance on it."

And yet, they did.

I miss college.

My sister is adopted. It's not some big secret, she's from the Philippines, and looks nothing like me or our parents. We fought like cats and dogs growing up, which I think is fairly normal for kids. I don't recall that we were ever terribly close, but there was no doubt, she was as much a part of the family as I was. And growing up, everyone (with the exception of a few chowderheads at school) accepted her as such. There was nothing unusual about it, and it never occurred to me to think of her as "my adopted sister" instead of "my sister." It was just how we were raised. But we fought a lot, and I don't recall us being close. "I love you", et al, weren't the sort of comments we exchanged.

A few years ago, I read about a few stories where adoptive parents, who had raised and loved a child as their own, often for several years, were stunned when a biological parent came back and demanded custody. Perfectly legal adoptions were undone. I was furious. To me, these attacks on the adoptive parents claim to the title of family, were shots at my family as well. Somehow, somewhere, there were people out there who were more my sister's family than we were. I took it personally, and for a long time, I never made the connection. For much of my youth, I would have denied loving my sister, with force if necessary, but let something come for her and there I am, being her brother, in the loud, obnoxious, nobody messes with her but me kinda way.

Of course, there are some things a brother can't help with, at least not directly. Tomorrow she goes in for a biopsy. I'm assured it's almost certainly harmless, but still. Her name is Karen, and if you're the praying kind, I'd appreciate it if you'd give her a thought.

The Episcopalian church is developing a plan to divest from Israel.

Sigh. China brutally suppresses the native culture in Tibet. Arabs in the Sudan rape, enslave, and kill Christians. North Korea allows no religion at all, save for the worship of Kim Jong Il. Saudi Arabia executes Muslims who leave the faith. All the injustice in the world and only the Jews can move the Episcopalian Church to take their money and go home.

And look at how they came to this conclusion that in all the world, only Israel merited this treatment:

Twenty-nine representatives of the church toured Israel and the West Bank this week before drawing conclusions about the 4-year-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Sounds good, doesn't it? They did their research, right? But check what's considered "toured Israel and the West Bank":

The group toured the West Bank, meeting with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Palestinian church representatives. The group also met with an Israeli social activist and several Israeli Arabs, but no government officials.

Victims of suicide bombers? Sorry, pressed for time. Soldiers or settlers? Don't make me laugh.

Unless you want to tell me that this is about social justice or something. Cause that'd be really funny.

Sudan not going to disarm rebels. Somebody tell the Sudan that if they'd play along, they could make UN negotiations and resolutions look great, which would make Bush look like an idiot. The way things are currently going, the best solution might be for someone to go Captain Unilateral on their asses.

Unlike some people I know, I'm far too humble to spend more than a day or two obsessing over my birthday. I missed season premiers of Lost and Law & Order because when you're me, birthdays are spent at Dave & Buster's. The guy at the door had a badge that said "We card everyone under 25." He carded me. I whomped much ass at the "Nothing But Net" basketball game, which would later prove disturbing. Once upon a time, I could play full-court basketball for hours. Now, standing still and shooting for two minutes leaves me disturbingly sore. I did get outplayed at Skee-Ball, however.

Also watched the Cubs beat the Pirates - if they can pull out the wild-card thing, the spouse should get to watch her team play the division series here in Atlanta. Since ATL is a crummy sports town, tickets won't be hard to come by. (We went last year, seeing the Cubs clinch their first postseason series in 95 years. Whether she was happier then or at our wedding is a subject, for the sake of domestic bliss, I choose not to broach.)

And the birthday haul starts coming in. So far, I got...

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis which were my favorite series of books as a kid.

Batman: Haunted Knight - a graphic novel that looks wicked cool.

And to top it all off, a book I didn't even know was out yet - The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Presents America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction.

Life is good.

Ah, I went to bed last night a spry, youthful, innocent boy of 31, and woke up today, 32, but still, youthful, spry...those grey hairs on the bed better be from the fricking dog! He's certainly got enough of 'em to spare. And, from a timeline of life standpoint, both Big Stupid and the Wolverine are older than me, so that puts me squarely in the middle of my household on the geezer scale.

Koshka: Yeah, but we complain about it less than you do!

Me: For a dog to get to sleep in the house is a privilege. Lots of dogs sleep in the garage. And since when do you not complain, Miss I Need To Take A Whizz at 5:30 in the Damn Morning?

Many people, when they get older, wonder what their younger selves would have thought if they could see the person they became.

16-year old me: So...the nerd thing's permanent, huh?

32-year old me: Fraid so.

16-year old me: Who's the babe?

32-year old me: That's our wife. Women become more open to the dating nerds as they get older. We tend to be more stable...employable.

16-year old me: Stable...employable...that doesn't sound like my band made it.

32-year old me: The band was a horrific cacaphony that could barely start and finish a song at the same time.

16-year old me: Who are they?

32-year old me: Limp Bizkit. If we'd known how big they'd be, we'd have stuck with the band thing.

Older me would have then mocked younger me for hating how skinny I was. A 120-pound teenager can eat anything he wants and not gain an ounce. And he hates it. He'd do anything to put on weight. The great cosmic joke occurs when he realizes what a gift his warp-speed metabolism is only when it disappears - and he learns that his father, whose periodic attempts to lose weight were a source of much mirth to the skinny wiseass, was absolutely right when he said "Your day is coming." He learns his father is not above gloating.

However, I note that Mishka, despite being the human equivalent of either 56 or 70, depending on which scale you use, is still more than willing to battle the Nugget over a stuffed squirrel, and I realize that you're only as old as you feel.

And I feel like a nap.

Hamas plots to kill Israelis as part of its quest to destroy Israel.

Israel gets the bad guys before the bad guys get them.

Hamas threatens revenge.

World wonders how the world with a Hamas revenge threat differs from a world without one.

...but this just seems like a really bad idea. (Cliff note version for non-clickers - a Russian governor has recommended a pardon for a Russian army officer convicted of kidnapping and murdering an 18 year old Chechen woman.)

The original sentence was 10 years - which seems fairly lenient for murder - should probably stand. It's possible that there are legal grounds for the action (I'm not sure whether the Russians mean the same thing we do when they say "pardon"), if so, they should be fully explained, and so be it. But given the timing and the context, the suspicion that Russia is deciding to be more lenient with murderers of Chechens is simply a bad idea.

Update Well, that was quick. The officer in question has withdrawn his request.

D.C. politicians and residents rally against repeal of D.C. gun laws.

Funny quote: "Irresponsible extremists in Congress are trying to make the nation's capital a free fire zone," said Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.)

Amusing fact: If I read this chart correctly, only Detroit, New Orleans, and my beloved St. Louis outrank D.C. as places to go to get murdered. (That's with laws stricter than pretty much everywhere else on planet earth.)

Funny quote: "The last thing we need is reinforcing those old perceptions that this is a crime area," said Robert A. Peck, president of the Greater Washington Board of Trade, warning the legislation could hurt the region's economy.

Snide comment: Because the main reason people think of D.C. as a safe place is its stringent restriction on the private ownership of firearms.

Snide comment redux: Actually, the main reason someone would think of D.C. as a safe place is large quantities of mind altering substances, or being a person who can afford bodyguards. Or, at the risk of sounding redundant, being Marion Barry.

Jeff Jacoby posts an interesting article today on how easy vote fraud is. A few comments:

"It is illegal to register to vote simultaneously in different jurisdictions, but scofflaws have little to worry about"
What code section? (I'm assuming we're talking federal law) I've read on several liberal sites where folks who live 9 months a year in one (non-swing) state (say, New York), and winter in Florida are being encouraged to register in Florida for obvious reasons.
One simple fix -- requiring every voter to show ID when registering and voting -- would seem to be a no-brainer. Opinion polls show the vast majority of Americans in favor of such a reform. After all, ID is required when boarding an airplane or buying liquor. Why not when voting?
This isn't already the law? I've had to show an ID every time I've ever voted, if only so they know whose name to check off.

I tend to agree with those who don't think reducing obstacles to voting is in the nation's best interest, such as Jonah Goldberg. As Scott "Dilbert" Adams once said - in the future, you'll never be too drunk or too lazy to vote.

Not necessarily a good thing.

Jeff Jarvis on Iraq.

...complaining about Bush not doing enough to support democracy in Hong Kong. I'm not sure exactly what needs to be done - since China is clearly off the invasion short list, we're pretty much limited to symbolic gestures. (Not that symbolic gestures are devoid of value - ask Natan Sharansky about Reagan's "Evil Empire" speech - a symbolic gesture if there ever was one.)

Other than a big photo op with Bush meeting the pro-democracy caucus of the LegCo, I'm not sure what else there is to do. Sanctions bills on China never get anywhere, and other than boycotting the 2008 Olympics, (which, for practical reasons, we really can't do until...2008), I'm not sure what else there is to do. It seems TNR would be satisfied if the administration would just acknowledge what anyone with rudimentary math skills (insert Bush joke here) can recognize - appoint half your legislature plus the chief exec = fake democracy.

Dan Rather has acknowledged error. Try and guess which of the following quotes was not part of his statement:

"That, combined with some of the questions that have been raised in public and in the press, leads me to a point where-if I knew then what I know now-I would not have gone ahead with the story as it was aired, and I certainly would not have used the documents in question."

"nothing is more important to us than people's trust in our ability and our commitment to report fairly and truthfully."

"I would also like to apologize to all the bloggers and independant journalists, who, in my haste to defend my story, I categorized as partisan and tools of the Bush administration. Not only was it unfair for me to assign a duplicitous motivation to people simply for taking a different point of view, they were, as it turns out, correct on the facts."

Made your guess? OK, now read the statement and see if you're right!

P.J. O'Rourke is always cool. Select quotes:

Evil is an outreach programme. A solitary bad person sitting alone, harbouring genocidal thoughts, and wishing he ruled the world is not a problem unless he lives next to us in the trailer park.

Massachusetts's thinner, more sober senator, John Kerry, said that he voted for threatening to use force on Saddam Hussein, but that actually using force was wrong. This is what's known, in the language of diplomacy, as bullshit.

He's one of those people I think like, but can never quite figure out how to write like.

Came across this picture of Otchki when he was just a puppy...



You look at a picture like that, and wonder why they can't just stay that way?

Then you remember. If they get older, they'll hopefully learn a few things and not destroy so much of your stuff.

...but there is no way in hell Dan Rather is going anywhere. The charitable explanation is Rather and company were duped by someone passing off fake memos. Even if true, it's also the most reasonable conclusion that Rather's desire to see Bush defeated prevented him from doing the ten minutes of research that would have kept the memos off the air, and it's probably true that a journalist who allows his own politics to keep from doing research that results in his employer looking like a giant ass shouldn't keep his job, but if complaints from conservatives ever had any effect on mainstream media outlets, we wouldn't even have a Fox News. The claim that attacks on the memos authenticity is just "partisan politics" is all you need to know - if it comes from a conservative - it's politics and doesn't count as real criticism.

My advice is just accept it - Rather isn't going anywhere. Simply decline to believe anything that comes out of CBS and move on. The only way he's going somewhere is if liberals who are upset that we're spending all this time talking about it instead of other things notice that we won't have anything to talk about if Rather steps down. So if you must send CBS a letter, tell him you're a Democrat and Rather's continued tenure at CBS is keeping Kerry from convincing the masses what a boob Captain Unilateral is.

And if that don't work, I got nothin'

Morons on the Texas Rangers have been suspended for various portions, of the regular season, depending on their proximity to Frank Francisco, who apparently takes his advice for how to close out a season from the same people who are telling John Kerry how to win the White House.

Despite still being in the hunt for a divison title, albeit by the skin of their teeth, three relievers chose to respond to a heckling fan by starting a fight. But hey, they didn't mean it.

"I regret that there was a chair thrown and I regret that there was a lady that was hurt," Brocail said. "But there was no intention of any of that happening."

The chair slipped, honest.

UN has passed a resolution on Darfur. It even looks good and everything, with troops going to keep an eye on things and everything. Kofi Annan is called upon to create an international commission to study whether what's happening there qualifies as genocide. And given Mr. Annan's heartfelt belief that the organization he runs is the only legitimate source of international meddling, I'm sure he will move heaven and earth to show us how effective his way can be.

Of course, he has an uphill struggle. Al-Bashir and the band of assholes currently wrecking the Sudan haven't shown much interest in what the rest of the world thinks. And why should he? The resolution says only that the U.N. shall "consider sanctions" if the Sudan is in fact complicit in the rape, murder, and displacement of people who have committed the grave sin of being insufficiently Arab and Islamic. And, if the U.N. does "consider sanctions", after such consideration, they will probably be rejected:

Beijing's U.N. ambassador, Wang Guangya, served notice he would veto any future resolution that would impose sanctions. "That is the message," he told reporters.

China, of course, has very lucrative oil interests in the Sudan, which may explain the ambassador's position. However, what he's probably not taking into account is that if he stands in the way of preventing the brutal oppression of innocents solely because of oil interests, China will be instantly hounded by all those "no blood for oil" protestors.

Right?

There will be no House of Reps hearings on Rathergate.

Shamil Basayev has admitted responsibility for the horror in Beslan.

Russia doesn't have clean hands when it comes to the Chechens. Putin is nobody's idea of a democrat. It used to be very easy for me to sympathize with the Chechen cause. Now, it borders on impossible. Putin, unencumbered by a free press, a viable opposition, or any of the normal checks and balances that usually keep democratic governments in check, is probably going to cross a lot of lines in dealing with this. And, God help me, I just can't muster the energy to object.

I'll say it again - if the Chechens are the good guys, then they need to be the ones to take out Basayev. Hand him over to the Russians, negotiate handing him over to the UN, hold a quick "revolutionary tribunal" or whatever and put a bullet in his head, whatever, just make it clear that he doesn't represent you. Whatever loyalty the Chechens may think they owe one of their own, they should remember two things:

1. It's human nature - people have a hard time getting worked up over what happens to the bad guys.
2. Good guys don't do this.

Removed Day by Day (creator on hiatus), Steven Den Beste (ditto), and Idle Gossip (link's been getting 404'ed for the past week - Michael, if you're still out there, let us know where we can find you.)

Also added Justus For All, a site that proves great minds think alike. Check it out.

...we should note we previously mentioned the fact that Saudi Arabia's concepts of 'religious freedom' are up there with the Arizona Cardinals concept of 'high quality professional football.' And because we are fair and balance, we will acknowledge the Saudi response to the charges.

Of course, because we are a blog, our definition of 'fair and balanced' includes adding gratuitous comments pointing out which side we consider to be full of shit. It also includes referring to ourselves in the third person plural, like royalty does. Or the Rock. God, we miss the Rock, with the eyebrow raising, and the laying down of smack upon the candy asses of jabronis...where were we?

Oh, yeah, the Saudis being full of shit. Note this quote, for instance:

"I can't say Saudi Arabia is the freest country. But it is the cradle of Islam. Are they proposing to have churches or synagogues or Buddhist temples here?" said Abdulaziz al-Fayez, a member of Saudi Arabia's consultative Shura Council.

"All Saudis are Muslims and this is a Muslim state."

All Saudis being Muslim (so far as Mr. al-Fayez knows), because not being Muslim, in fact, not being a very specific kind of Muslim tends to get one killed in Saudi-land. And it just wouldn't be a day ending in Y without someone blaming the Jews:

Dakhil said U.S. criticism of Saudi Arabia and its strong support of Israel showed double standards at work.

"Is it all right for Israel to say their state must be a Jewish state -- and then criticize a Muslim state for being Muslim? That's hypocrisy."

According to this source, there are 170 mosques in Israel. The number of synagogues, churches of any denomination, Hindu or Buddhist temples combined in Saudi Arabia is, I believe, zero, which makes the comparison ridiculous, which makes Mr. Dakhil an idiot, an anti-Semite, or (most likely), both.

This concludes our fair and balanced segment for the day.

IF YOU SMELLLLLLLLLL.............

...it just ain't the same.

...I'm glad to see progress being made on amending the Constitution to allow foreign born citizens to run for office. The 20 year requirement is fine (I'd thought 15, but whatever), I'd add a requirement that any candidate must be solely a U.S. citizen for at least 5 years, then let's go.

This is the perfect time to pass an amendment. With everyone less than impressed with the current crop of jugheads wanting to run the country, imagine how happy Republicans could be if they'd add the Governator to the pool, or the Democrats to add MI Governor Jennifer Granholm? With both parties having popular, credible candidates, we need to pass this quick, before one of them gets caught running a meth lab out of the governor's mansion or something.

Via Jeff Jarvis comes word that Iran has arrested the father of prominent blogger Sina Motallebi. (The site is in what I presume to be Persian, but click anyway.) Iranian hardliners, who may include people involved with beating a Canadian photojournalist to death, are using every means necessary to silence dissenters, which covers a lot of ground when you have no sense of decency.

Hossein Derakhshan has the details. Spread the word.

Blood-sniffing Republicans are calling for hearings regarding CBS' using forged documents in their 60 minutes story.

This is a bad idea wrapped in a mistake, surrounded by error. CBS is self-destructing nicely on its own. They have crapped away all credibility as honest reporters, especially where President Bush is concerned, and a surprising number of left-wing pundits have shown a willingness to go down with them. There is absolutely no downside to letting things continue as they are. And if being a Republican means anything, it should mean this: Never involve the government when things are going fine.

The utterly predictable response is already out there: Nancy Pelosi blasts Republicans for trying to intimidate the news media. Predictable, and not without justification, despite Rep. Pelosi's spotty record regarding her concern about lawmakers intimidating the media. You see, back in August, 38 members of Ms. Pelosi's side of the aisle went after Fox News. Rep. Bernie Sanders (who isn't officially a Democrat, but gets his committee assignments and seniority from the Democratic caucus), threatened unspecified legislative remedies if Fox failed to address their concerns. Minority Leader Pelosi's thoughts on this are unknown.

...nope, still haven't seen. Still not going to. Just a quick observation on the Iranian premiere of Michael Moore's movie. And it's not even a cheap shot about how the brutal, anti-democratic, nuke-building theocrats running Iran into the ground made an exception to their usual rejection of all American culture for that guy who's been widely embraced by the Democratic mainstream...

(Voice in my head: You mean, like you just did right then?)

(Me: Shut up!)

No, no, nothing so trite. I just got a kick out of a couple quotes at the end of the article:

"It sure is a great country, where someone like Moore trashes the president and gets away with it -- and makes so much money!" he laughed.

"How many top officials here sent their offspring to fight in the Iran-Iraq war?" asked the woman, one of several who directed their frustrations at Iranian authorities -- and not President Bush

Maybe someone should remind that first guy that this is John Ashcroft's America, where dissent is brutally suppressed. I bet you could sell him on that.

Let's not kid ourselves, however much one may like Bush, one area in which Captain Unilateral is never going to distinguish himself is playing hardball with the asswads who run Saudi Arabia.

Still, every little bit helps, and it's a valuable first step to recognize that religious freedom in Saudi Arabia is more fictional than Dan Rather's journalistic integrity.

We can never hear it enough times - Saudi Arabia is run by venal, corrupt frauds whose sins range from financing global terrorism to stealing American children. They suck in ways great and small, and the fact that pointing this out now and again is newsworthy is kind of depressing.

Per Hu Jintao:

He also reiterated the ruling Communist Party's (CCP) belief that China was a democratic country where the people were the "master of the nation"...
...Hu said no Western democratic practices -- such as separating the powers of the executive, legislature and judiciary and multi-party and multi-candidate direct elections at the top levels of government -- would be implemented.

The people rule...they can't replace me, or have any say in what I do, but dude, they rule!

...Marion Barry has won the Democratic nomination for a City Council seat in Washington, D.C.

I have followed politics for years, and if there's one thing I've never gotten, it's the appeal of Marion Barry. Anyone who knows, I'd love to hear it - has Barry ever produced anything for D.C., other than tighter scrutiny from the feds who control the purse strings?

The only way I can see it is that Marion Barry's appeal is the same as the appeal of the Confederate battle flag down here. (I think a fair amount of flag support comes as a result of people who detest being told what to do by outsiders.) And Barry is certainly a walking middle finger to everyone outside D.C., but has the man ever actually done anything tangible on behalf of D.C. residents? (Sure, he got drugs off the street, but that was just a couple of rocks.)

Of course, he does do a great job as the Best Argument Against D.C. Statehood out there today. (Make D.C. a state, and Marion Barry will be in the United States Senate. Any questions?)

If you don't subscribe to TIME, it's worth checking out their articles this week about illegal immigration and the U.S.' unwillingness to control their own borders. (The link only goes to the first few paragraphs of the article, but the whole thing is worth a read.) It was one of the most infuriating things I've read in a long time. Not because there was anything new in the article - it's old news that the Border Patrol is ludicrously undermanned for the job their supposedly being asked to do, it's old news that law enforcement and emergency services for people with the bad luck to live near the border have been abandoned by the federal government and left to deal with the risks and costs of illegal immigration on their own, and it's old news that the practice will continue ad infinitum, the way things are currently going.

But the fresh reminder that nobody in a position of authority has any interest in doing anything about it is reprehensible. If I may stereotype our two largest political parties for a moment, Republicans turn a blind eye because a large influx of illegal workers help keep labor costs down and enhance American business profits, while lowering prices of consumer goods. Democrats perpetuate this system because they believe in open borders, or just that a larger immigrant population will support social policies Democrats favor. When this happens, Republicans who cast themselves as defenders of America's national security aggravate a system that terrorists could (and probably already have) use to slip into our country undetected. (Hell, how many of the 9/11 hijackers were here illegally?) Democrats who claim to care about the interests of America's working poor ignore the fact that illegal labor undercuts American wages and overloads social services needed by the working poor.

This isn't about what immigration policy should be. Some people favor more open, if not totally open, borders, and there's an argument for that. Some people favor tighter restrictions on immigration. We don't ever get to reach the point where we have that discussion, because everybody is complicit in our current system where we pretend that we're enforcing the law to satisfy one group, but we reassure the other group that we're only pretending to enforce the law.

If you believe in tighter immigration controls - and immigration controls would get significantly tighter if there was any real committment to enforcing the laws currently on the books, then you need to give the Border Patrol and the INS (or whatever you plan to have replace the INS) the tools needed to do their jobs effectively. Deliberately undermanning them to keep up a facade is dangerous for them, a waste of money for us, and an insult to everyone.

If you want the borders open (or more open then they currently are), then you need to be upfront about changing laws to let people cross legally and openly, so people aren't taking dangerous cross-desert treks to enter, and once here, can feel safe about joining unions and generally not putting up with getting abused by unscrupulous employers.

Perhaps Bush was trying to do the latter with his "guest worker" program (which, according to the TIME article, just about everyone caught crossing illegally believes to be an amnesty program that will reward them with residency if they could just get here in time.) And maybe Kerry hasn't been asked about it. (He's certainly not volunteering - his website has no immigration positions listed, although you can click on "Homeland Security" for a vague paragraph about how he'll make our borders "more secure".)

But the fact is, other than the odd randomly located Congressman, nobody is seriously proposing anything that would actually reduce illegal immigration, either by seriously going after businesses that hire illegal workers, providing more support to immigration enforcement, or just changing the damn rules to let more people come over legally. Which means the debate never occurs.

Which sucks.

North Korea pitches fit about U.S. sneaking "midget radios" and "impure publications" into the country.

I've always wondered - if we're stuck actually negotiating with the Norks, would it be worth it to offer some concessions or aid in exchange for them allowing TV and radio from other countries. South Korea, Japan, hell, let 'em watch Chinese state-run TV - if we have to take the slow route, that's something I'd be willing to pay for.

Sell it as a trade negotiation - "Look, we've got a lot of TV and movie people that would love an opportunity to sell their products in your market." - Just make sure you do your own translating, otherwise you end up with CSI: Pyongyang...

Scene: A dead body lays on the street. Gil Grissom is picking up a small collection of fibers using tweezers.

Grissom: Interesting...

Sara Sidle approaches Grissom.

Sidle: What did you find?

Grissom: Clearly, the deceased was killed by CIA imperialists who feared that his passion and dedication to the ideals of Great Leader Kim Il-Sung and Dear Leader Kim Jong-Il.

Sidle: Can you identify the killer?

Grissom: Of course! Imperialistic criminals are no match for my forensic science skills, personally taught to me by Kim Jong-Il.

Sidle: Those fools! When will they ever learn?

...OK, it might still be better than The Swan.

His defense of his switch to Bush is here.

One thing I'm still curious about is what Zell thinks about our Senate race. He apparently hasn't endorsed anyone, but key members of his old team are showing up on Democrat Denise Majette's squad. Miller, who appointed Majette to the bench when he was governor, was a key supporter of Majette's primary challenge to Democratic Congresswoman/Demented Lunatic Cynthia McKinney. (McKinney would often, in campaign appearances, refer to Majette as a tool of Zell Miller, which may or may not be a good thing, but is probably a step up from someone who takes instructions from voices transmitted through the fillings in her teeth. I'm just saying.)

Miller promoted Majette for a 2002 race, which means he endorsed her with his post 9/11 thought process. Of course, two things are different:

1. The alternative to Majette is significantly different this time around. Johnny Isakson may not be the most inspiring Republican around, but McKinney he ain't.
2. One wonders, given the eye-twitching many Democrats experience at the mention of Hurricane Zell, whether Majette would even want a prominent endorsement from him.

It'd be an interesting question to hear answered, and would probably say a lot about Miller and Majette.

So, one thing I heard throughout the GOP convention was that Republicans were unwelcome in New York. Several protestors, in fact, made it quite clear that GOP'ers needed to get the heck out and back to flyover country where they belonged.

Which, if true, makes me wonder how our brethren in the Big Apple would react to learning that both George Steinbrenner and Alex Rodriguez have contributed to George Bush's re-election campaign. Sounds to me like New Yorkers should rise up as one and demand that A-Rod be traded to the White Sox.

But that's just me.

Multiple drunk-driving offender says court-ordered ignition interlock device is unsafe.

Now, I don't want to prejudge the issue - there may or may not be a technical defect in the interlock device that interferes with the ability to safely operate a motor vehicle. But - if that turns out to be the case - crafting a remedy should take into account the fact that alcohol-related crashes kill over 17,000 people annually, which I'm going to wager is 17,000 or so more fatalities than happen in "ignition interlock related crashes."

Ignition interlock requirements are usually a "way station" between not being allowed to drive at all and being fully reinstated. If there's a better way to keep track of these offenders, it'd be a good idea to voice it soon, because I don't think state legislatures are going to decide that the interlock period should be spent with unrestricted driving privileges. (And it's long settled law that driving is a privilege, not a right.)

As part of China's pretending to honor their agreement with the British government about preserving the freedoms of Hong Kong residents, an election was held for the 60 member Legislative Council in Hong Kong, the deliberative body that ratifies laws and such for Hong Kong. Because this is China we're talking about, this is not really a chance for the people to have their say, since only 30 of the 60 seats are directly elected. The other 30 are chosen by "industries and professions", or, to put it another way, "people whose livelihoods depend on not pissing Beijing off." This latter group tends to have a different set of priorities from the first group.

The election was held, and 18 of 30 directly elected seats were won by pro-democracy activists. Oddly enough, this is being spun worldwide as a win for China. Pro-government candidates also took 23 of the 30 seats where Beijing had more, shall we say, direct influence. Nevertheless, the pro-democracy camp has gained - they lack enough clout on the LegCo as a bloc - but anyone paying attention should have no trouble noting that if the people of Hong Kong had their way, the folks in charge wouldn't be.

Which is, of course, why China has made it clear that you can have too much of a good thing. You may recall that thousands of Hong Kong citizens took to the streets to demand direct elections. Even if you can't recall it, you can probably guess China's reaction: Get bent.

It's a dangerous thing to pretend you're really a democracy. Burma/Myanmar learned this over a decade ago with Aung Sun Suu Kyi, and Iran has joined China as nations in the process of learning it now. A populace that would dearly love you out is not something a tyrant wants to let speak - but as long as the world demands it, it's something that they don't dare fully silence. The fear is that these nations will look to the example of, say, North Korea - which is so repressive that entire generations have suffered if one member is insufficiently adoring of the Dear Leader. On one hand, nobody labors under any illusion that Kim Jong Il really governs with the consent of his people, but on the other, there's no risk of losing power there, either. Hong Kong and Taiwan are rapidly pushing forward the day when China's autocrats may have to choose between power and legitimacy.

And when they make that choice, they'll probably remember the last time the decision came up. They chose power, and eventually, we let them get away with it. They very well might think they could get away with it again.

The whole "forged documents/CBS 60 Minutes" thing just blew the heck up, didn't it? Details at Powerline, and INDC, which apparently did a hell of a lot more research on the subject than CBS will admit to. Also, the people doubting the veracity of the documents, which include the son and widow of Col. Killian, have been willing to use their names. CBS, which like any media entity tries to protect its sources, is stuck with Dan Rather's hearsay, unless someone who's authenticated the docs is willing to come forward.

Heck, even Kevin Drum concedes the possibility that someone put one over on CBS. Daily Kos does as complete a job as I've seen trying to rebut the forgery allegation, but it appears to be the best they can do is establish that producing a memo like the one CBS relies on may have been theoretically possible, and doesn't get to a fair amount of what Powerline relies on in reaching their conclusion.

Of course, the response is, none of this establishes that Bush didn't flake out on his Guard service. Which may be. (Personally, I was always under the impression (even in 2000) that 1970's George Bush was an irresponsbile twit who eventually grew up, quit drinking, and married a librarian, which would make trying to prove Bush was an irresponsbile twit in the 1970's a waste of effort.) But, if people want to expend the effort - fine - but put it in perspective. If the following two facts are true:

A. Bush failed to live up to some significant portion of his National Guard responsbilities in the 1970's.
B. Political opponents of George Bush are willing to forge documents in the name of a dead officer to slander Bush right now in 2004.

I'm not sure why A should make me more willing to entrust the government to the people responsible for B. I'd think the converse were true - that the nature of the fraud in B would cause one to have less of a problem with A.

Of course, the Democrats had nothing to do with this. It's just another example of Karl Rove's evil geniusness. That this man could get fake documents into the hands of the DNC without them suspecting a thing, then give it up now, it's over.

335 yards, 3 TD passes. Now that's how you kick off a fantasy football season.

I do not support Ralph Nader for President. Neither should you. (If you must oppose George Bush, John Kerry at least has a passing familiarity with this plane of existence.) That being said, the man is apparently over 35 and a native-born U.S. citizen, and apparently eligible to run for President if he wants. He also apparently has a modest number of supporters, possessing in zeal what they lack in common sense. Those members of that group legally registered to vote will be denied the right to vote for the candidate of their choice. Once upon a time, Democrats urged courts to place the right of voters to vote for the candidate of their choice ahead of technical rules that might, if firmly applied, prevent this from happening.

Once upon a time ain't today. Today, there's no such thing as a rule too technical or arbitrary that it can't be a good reason to keep Ralph Nader the hell off the ballot, Constitutional eligibility and rights of voters to their candidate be damned.

The hysteria surrounding Nader's actually kind of funny, especially since there's no complementary right-wing nutball running. Apparently, not enough of the Anybody But Bush camp have made peace with Kerry as the alternative, and dammit, it's simply not fair that Bush doesn't have to deal with any equivalent wacko candidate this time around. (If Buchanan were running again, and drawing support comprable to Nader, maybe having the candidate of your choice on the ballot would be more OK.)

I never begrudged the Dems the lawsuits in 2000. The race was well within the margin of error, a challenge could be made in good faith, and that's what courts are for. And, if a challenge to Nader's ballot access can be supported by the facts and the law, then so be it. Demanding the courts relax the rules for you, and tighten them for the other guys is a legal tradition going back for generations. It does, however, make the idea that you are the defenders of democracy fairly laughable.

Nobody who believes in democracy should be comfortable with the idea of standing in Nader's (or anyone else's) way of getting on a ballot. If you want to use the legal process to screw with democracy a little bit in service of your guy winning, you have that right.

But that means that any argument that the future of democracy hinges on your guy winning is nonsense.

...at least, I hope this was an error of translation. In the English-language version of China's official media, , a recent terrorist attack in Indonesia is referred to as an "accident" - twice.

The "accident" in question was in fact a car bomb detonated outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta. At least eight people are dead and over 160 are injured.

Like I said, I suspect (and hope) that whoever's job it was to translate this stuff just screwed up. I've made my share of entertaining mistakes in a foreign language I thought I knew cold (German), and the words for something like "attack" and "accident" may be similar enough to explain things. Which I hope, because that seems like an odd mistake to make.

Update - Apparently the wording has been fixed. This story refers to the attack as a "bomb blast," which is certainly accurate enough.

Following up on yesterday's post about the conflict in Chechnya, today I came across this outstanding post at Winds of Change that details some of the backstory, and provides good detail about what a megalomaniacal asswad Basayev is.

In other news, Russia is getting cranky with the West for our indulgence of Maskhadov and general lack of enthusiasm for Russian plans to take their war with the separatists global. They have something of a point, I wouldn't want Basayev, particularly, to think he was safe anywhere in the world. But the Russians should know that the "international community" likes to have veto power over military actions of nations - they spent plenty of time in the U.N. demanding precisely that prior to actions against former Yugoslavia and Iraq.

Puppy shoots man who was trying to kill him. And people worry about my dogs when they just bark.

And curse Dawn Summers for catching this story before I did.

Campaigning has begun in the march towards Afghanistan's historic October 9 election. No word on when we can expect the first ever special interest financed smear campaign. (Taliban assassination attempts don't count.)

...is another man's freedom fighter, or so goes the saying. And this is true. Plenty of people consider Osama Bin Laden an Arabic hero, standing up for Islam. That this point of view is moronic and vile is beside the point. It exists. But when you know who considers Osama a freedom fighter, you know whose definition of "freedom" isn't worth taking seriously.

People who claim to want "freedom" for Chechnya are now in this position. In their name, 300+ Russians, mainly children, were blown up or shot in the back as they tried to flee for their lives. From here on out, this slaughter will be synonymous with the
Chechen cause. Vladimir Putin's poor record as a democrat has been shunted aside, thanks to these people. What to do about it?

The general belief is that the guilty party is Shamil Basayev, who has a history of terrorism on behalf of Chechen separatism. Apparently, the only terrorist currently in custody has also implicated former Chechen President Aslan Maskhadov, who is generally considered the more responsible face of the Chechen independence movement, and has allegedly broken, to some degree, with Basayev. Certainly, given the PR nightmare this has become, nobody's rushing forward to take credit for it. Maskhadov's European spokesman has called the claim that Maskhadov and Basayev were responsible "a 100 percent absolute lie," but really, how could either man jeopardize their folk-hero status after the carnage we saw? There's no way this could have happened without approval at the highest levels.

If the Chechen independence movement really stands for any kind of freedom worth having, then they've been placed into the very difficult position of having to reject some of their most effective, and probably most popular fighters. A Chechen independence movement worthy of the world's sympathy would find a way to let the world know that Basayev was no longer calling the shots, that the people who thought this was a good idea have been dealt with, just as any rebel movement addresses traitors or enemy sympathizers. It's not like they don't have their own internal discipline mechanisms. (I'd rather see them turned over to face a court of law of some kind, Russian if possible, the Hague if that's what negotiations require, but being realistic, "revolutionary justice" may be all we can expect.) Accountability has already begun among the people responsible for protecting Besland. If Chechen independence means anything, then accountability for the things done in its name should be forthcoming as well.

Don't hold your breath, of course. The official view from Chechnya is that the real problem is the Russian reaction, and not the horror they'd be reacting to. Which is unfortunate, since Russia has a lot to answer for in Chechnya, and anyone fighting for freedom, democracy, and human rights should have the world fighting on their side.

But if they're OK with wiring explosives around children, they will, and should, fight alone.

...You might hit Tony Soprano.

And when you've had a few, you might forget he only plays a murderous mobster.

OK, there are a lot of reasons not to be crazy about Vladimir Putin, but if he actually used the word "bastards" in reference to the Baslan murderers, than props to him.

Also couldn't help but notice this article referring to members of Hamas killed in an Israeli airstrike as "activists." How, exactly, is one "active" in Hamas? Do you write letters to the editor? Lead peaceful protest marches with cleverly worded signs?

The folks on the streets of New York last week were activists. For Hamas, I'm thinking of a different word.

Vlad? A little help here?

My man Cob is outraged at the possibility of "Fahrenheit 9/11" snagging the Best Picture Oscar ahead of "The Passion of the Christ."

Haven't seen either movie, but I'm sure both are high-quality from a technical aspect. Michael Moore and Mel Gibson have more than demonstrated their competance at their respective branches of filmmaking. That said, dude, it's Hollywood. Moore is guaranteed a nomination, and if Kerry wins, I'll put money on him winning Best Picture and Best Director. As for Passion, once the Oscar bait comes out this winter, I don't think it's even going to get nominated for either of those two awards. (I'll say Jim Caviezel has a good shot at a nod.) In the interest of balance - I will note my wife believes the reverse.

You don't have to agree with anything Moore says to note that a documentary that tops $100 million has done something special. Hell, Tom Cruise couldn't do that this summer, and Collateral was a helluva good movie. Go see it. Even were that not true, dude, it's Hollywood. They'll want to make a point.

...until this morning, when we woke up to see the damage just being on the periphery caused. Got a call from a co-worker, whose turn it was to drive in today, his subdivision is completely blocked off by a fallen tree. 308 houses - one entrance. So I drive, we get to work, boss greets us - "Y'all don't need to be here. Whole county's shut down today."

...and the obligatory blaming of Israel for the Beslan massacre has commenced:

Ali Abdullah, an ultraconservative Bahraini religious scholar, condemned the school attack as "un-Islamic" but insisted Israelis - not Muslims - were behind it and wanted to "tarnish the image of Muslims."

Actually, Ali Abdullah's demented idiocy notwithstanding, the article actually has quote after quote from prominent clerics and writers aghast at what has been done in the name of their faith:

Ahmed Bahgat, an Egyptian Islamist and columnist for Egypt's leading pro-government newspaper, Al-Ahram, wrote that the images "showed Muslims as monsters who are fed by the blood of children and the pain of their families."

"If all the enemies of Islam united together and decided to harm it ... they wouldn't have ruined and harmed its image as much as the sons of Islam have done by their stupidity, miscalculations and misunderstanding of the nature of this age," he wrote.

And then, of course, there's this article - which actually demands that something be done about this.

If anyone's looking to schedule an Islamic protest march in sympathy with the Baslan victims, maybe they could go to this guy's house.

Thursday begins the NFL season - finally! And with that comes fantasy football. I'm not terribly sure about my squad yet. Here's who I wound up with...

QB's Tom Brady, NE; Vinny Testaverde, DAL
RB's Corey Dillon, NE; Warrick Dunn, ATL; Eddie George, DAL
WR's Brandon Lloyd, SF; Keyshawn Johnson, DAL; Rod Smith, DEN; Marty Booker, MIA
TE Tony Gonzales, KC
K David Akers, PHI; Paul Edinger, CHI
D Carolina Panthers, New York Giants

Not the best crop of wide recievers, but if I'm right about Brandon Lloyd being a sleeper - there's hope.

And, for comparison's sake - the team I have to beat this year...

QB's Tommy Maddox, PIT; David Carr, HOU
RB's Willie Green, CLE; Duce Staley, PIT; Stephen Davis, CAR
WR's Hines Ward, PIT; Kevin Johnson, BAL; Tim Brown, TB
TE's Alge Crumpler, ATL
K's Jay Feely, ATL; Steve Christie, JAX
D's New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers

I remember hearing that everyone in the Middle East was outraged when two French journalists were kidnapped, as a result of France's moronic head-scarf ban. "The French are on our side!" came the exhortation. "You can't put a gun to their heads!" Apparently, pressure had worked, and the group threatening to kill them if France didn't alter their laws to suit their sensibilities handed the journalists over...

...to a group demanding $5 million dollars for their release. Oh, and a "truce" with Osama Bin Laden.

...but I'd like to think I'd have the Southern Republican response to this situation.

...although, honestly, I'm not that good a shot.

So the Russians went ahead and stormed the building where terrorists were holding schoolchildren hostage. Nobody's sure yet how many people died, but it's certainly some, and certainly includes too many children and not enough terrorists.

Giving the order to go in guaranteed that a number of the children would die. Since the terrorists demands were nonstarters (complete withdrawl from Chechnya, among others), would staying out have guaranteed the deaths of all of them. Someone willing to hold children hostage is not someone whose word you should take - what could the terrorists have said that would have convinced you of their good intentions.

This has, presumably, burned an enormous amout of sympathy for the Chechen cause. Chechen President Aslan Maskhadov's spokesman has declared the Prez "horrified" at what was done in his land's name. One assumes it will be awhile before ordinary Russians are moved to sympathize with Chechen ambitions, and move their government to step back.

Sometimes it's hard to tell who the good guys are. It's pretty safe, however, to conclude the good guys aren't the ones planting explosives around children.

...you have a pretty good idea where you stand, as far as the opposite sex is concerned. Some girls you meet, it doesn't even occur to you that they'd be interested in you. Particularly when they're tall (taller than you in heels), gorgeous, confident, and attract attention from men everywhere they go. But sometimes you're lucky enough that a girl like that will find you smart and funny enough to hang around with, and you become friends. Other friendships (and loves) come and go, but she's always there, trading jokes, arguing about the sorts of things college students are convinced they're experts on, and always willing to serve as a partner when somebody needs to be crushed at a card game.

Then one day you hear something you're not ready to hear: She's crazy about you. Has been for a long time. Partly because of your own less than stellar history, and partly because you're a muleheaded dumbass where women are concerned, it takes a while for you to reach the conclusion everyone else who knows the two of you came to eons ago: she's the one. The one who has somehow managed to find more redeeming qualities in you than you could yourself. The one with whom you have more in common than anyone you'd ever met.

It's hard for two young people, each with their own set of goals, to try and build a future together. Grad schools and jobs in different cities and different states beckon. Partly because of this, and partly because you're a muleheaded dumbass where women are concerned, it takes you longer than it should to make the promise you know needs to be made. To ask the question you know needs to be asked. And to get the answer you know she's been dying to give.

Then, finally, the day everyone knew was coming. She's never looked more beautiful than this day. Surprisingly enough, you don't look so bad yourself. Must be the tux. But finally, you're both there. Before God and a theater full of your friends and family, you promise that you'll love her and take care of her the rest of your life. She promises to do the same for you. Your promise to be less of a muleheaded dumbass doesn't survive the editing process, but it's kind of understood. Afterwards, your friends and family toast you, and everyone agrees - this is right. This is where the two of you belong.

That day was three years ago today. And it was more perfect that you could imagine.

Happy Anniversary, baby.

P.S. - This, she read.

Haven't seen what he said, but hey, it's a blog, why should the fact that I don't know what I'm talking about stop me? And anyway, I did see about thirty seconds of it before the wife and I resumed perusing our Batman: The Animated Series DVD's. It was noted that Zell seems to be a good speaker, and could probably get elected to whatever he wanted in Georgia until the end of time.

I just think the difference in reaction is hi-larious. Bush supporters found it brilliant and inspiring, and the Kerry-huggers found it to be proof that Republicans have horns and tails.

Regarding the whole "Zell's a Democrat/Zell's not a Democrat", I just can't help but think back to the 2002 election, when supposed traitor to his party Miller busted his ass on behalf of none other than Max Cleland. It seemed I saw Zell's face more in Cleland's ads than Cleland himself. Now, it has been claimed that during the 2002 campaign, Cleland's patriotism was called into question. I still say it didn't happen. But, if Cleland allowed himself to be championed by the Hillbilly Hitler himself, maybe it should have been.

Someone should ask Cleland (or Kerry, who's usually standing right next to Cleland) if Miller was a hate-filled traitor when he criscrossed Georgia trying to keep him in office.

...is right up there with "Yankees lose baseball game by more than three touchdowns," as a headline you're unlikely to see.

Wait? They what?

Well, the protestors will certainly be displaying their peaceful, law-abiding side by turning up in droves to identify themselves as witnesses in the brutal beating of an NYPD officer. Because, after all, cops are union members, underpaid government employees who have surely suffered at the hands of Captain Unilateral, and the protestors are their brothers and sisters in solidarity. No sympathy for the perpetrator of this violent act has any place among the peaceful denizens protesting the convention.

These guys probably just didn't get the memo.

I don't watch political conventions. As a rule, any speech designed to be interrupted by applause more often than every third sentence isn't going to be saying anything useful:

Candidate: "I favor a strong America! I favor well-educated children! I favor jobs and economic prosperity!"
Me: "I favor playing on my Playstation! I favor watching Batman DVD's! Hell, at this point, I'm willing to favor having my tonsils taken out with a chainsaw, just shut the hell up, already!"

Not even my man Zell Miller is going to move me to turn on the TV, and I love me some Zell Miller (in a manly, heterosexual way, of course.)

But I did think it was a rule of campaign etiquette that the opposing candidate refrain from campaigning during the other party's convention. But, since George Bush is the devil, it'll be OK just this one time. After all, it's not like the Bush campaign has stuffed John O'Neill in the trunk of a car and driven it off a pier, like any civilized campaign would.

D.C.'s trial school voucher system begins this fall. Over less than three weeks, 8,500 students applied for 1,000 slots. Critics say the architects of this program, including Democratic Mayor Anthony Williams, are abandoning public education.

Which, if true, indicts these kids' parents as well. Being an American has duties as well as rights, and if school choice is bad for America, then don't eligible families have an obligation to reject it when offered? After all, realistically, the only way you're going to truly end efforts to bring about school choice is to convince people it's not wanted. If they gave a voucher system and nobody came, that should end it.

So somebody, and by somebody, I mean John Kerry, needs to step up and tell these people what a horrible, horrible mistake they've done by contributing to this betrayal of public education, and tell them to trust the public school system with their children's education, the way I'm sure Kerry did with his children.

If a man on the street offers you drugs, sure it's wrong for him to offer them. But it's still wrong for you to take them, too.