Back From the Brink?

Poll: Edwards leads in South Carolina
Edwards has a pretty clear lead, which is good. However, South Carolina is the state that he's suppose to win.

A Look at the Newsmax.com Readership

You can learna thing or two about the desires and secret fears of a publication's readers by looking at the ads it runs. Among the many advertisements on newmax.com, the following really stood out:

Adv: Read This or Die Impotent Don’t listen to your doctor or the medical mainstream when they tell you that dwindling manhood is “a part of the aging process.” Now, you can please your wife and pummel old age: Click here to see how:

Bush Vs. Bush

"I have nothing but contempt and anger for those who betray the trust by exposing the names of our sources. They are, in my view, the most insidious of traitors."

-- President George H.W. Bush in a 4/29/99 speech.

President George W. Bush "has no plans to ask his staff members whether they played a role in revealing the name of an undercover CIA officer."

-- Washington Post article, 9/29/03. In his own speech to CIA employees, Bush recognized how vitally important the covert nature of their jobs were.

From Political Wire.

Ben Stein: Always First In Line for A Wesleyan Car Wash

Ben Stein, Dick.


A lot of people don't hold really strong opinions about small time media personalities, because they have "better things to do". I am not one of those people and for that reason, I'm going to take advantage of this opportunity to trash Ben Stein. In addition to playing a teacher in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", hosting his own lameshow on comedy central and starred in nearly four WHOLE commercials for clear eyes (which revolutionized televised eye medication marketing). Stein is also a profilific writer, he's authored several books you've never heard of or would care to read and pens a syndicated column (his articles delve into such important topics as Rap Amuses Me and Makes Me Think--but What Do White Suburban Kids Like My Son See in It?). Ben Stein is also an arrogant tool that thinks just because he went to an ivy league school and seems like a nerd that he actually know a goddamn thing. Just a few months ago he argued economics with Paul Krugman, actually challening Krugman's credentials (Krugman is an economics professor at Princeton, Stein is a day time television gameshow host). I didn't follow the ins and outs of that debate, but Stein was needless to say, prove very very wrong. I'm not just saying this because I like Krugman either, Stein just doesn't have a clue. I saw him the other day on Fox News trying to explain how the failure of the Smoot-Hawley tariff somehow validated supply side economics, which is just absurd. Not only is supply side economics complete nonsense, but there wasn't even a connection between the topics; supply side economics deals with fiscal policy, Smoot-Hawley was all about trade policy, Stein was just talking on and on like some supremely pompous jackass...pompous jackass....pom-time to wrap things up.

It’s Coming Down

Justice Probes Leak of CIA Agent's Name
I'm pretty far behind the blogpack on this one, but allegedly White House Officials revealed that Ambassador Joseph Wilson's wife was a CIA agent. Wilson's wife was also, apparently, invovled in covert activity and exposing her relationship with the agency might be a crime. For those of you that don't obsessively scan the newswires, Ambassador Wilson investigated claims that Iraq had attempted to buy uranium from Niger, found the claims to be "suspect" and later publicly criticized the President for using these inaccurate claims in his state of the Union address as evidence of Saddam Hussein's WMD program. It is likely that the release of his wife's name was meant to indimidate other whistle blowers. This could prove to be a big story, but we'll have to see what develops. Frequently it takes a while for a story to brew in the blogospher pressure cooker before it becomes THE STORY or you know, turns into a fleeting could of steam.

My God

What evil lurks in the hearts of men! I mean, he is about to devour an innocent dog, even worse,the dog remains loyal to end. Oh, the horror.

HATE HATE HATE

Poll reveals most hated sports include dogfighting, golf
I like how the headline essentially lumps together golf and a criminal "sport" that involves the horrible mutilation and mistreatment of man's best friend.

U.S. poverty rate rises for second year in row
More nonwhites, Midwesterners fall behind as median incomes decline
But I'm sure the situation would have been a lot worse if we hadn't passed three tax cuts heavily slated toward the wealthy.

Tom the Traitor

And that's just the shot across the bow.

BRIAN'S BLOG, NOW AND FOREVER

In case there is any confusion (and evidently, there is), this remains my weblog, not Tom's, not North's, not anyone else's. As the founder and only member of the blogging team that has the "administrator" designation, I run the show. This blog was made to serve as a means to my own personal goals and will continue to do so. Any more challenges to my authority will result in the harshest and most damaging responses possible. There will be order on the blog and North OutLandishman and Tom the Usurper will be reined in. Contrary to popular opinion, dissent is not patriotic and these treasonous tomfoolery of these demagogues is only helping our many elusive and nameless enemies.

The Corrections

So, North, you don't want a WASP to be president, eh? Well, it isn't like your boy toy Howard Queen...er..Dean was born to the purple, not at all. It isn't like he comes from money, went to an elite prep school, the ivy league and then dodge the vietnam draft. No, our authentic straightalker from Vermont could never be a toft.

As far as Tom's growing dominance is concerned, that's fine by me. I have a fair amount of schoolwork and am lazy to boot, so I don't blog that much anymore. Tom keeps the flow of the B of P Blog going with his delightful rants and keeps our readers coming back for more, so don't really see the down side. I remember that you in particular, North, grew irritated by my infrequent blogging during the school year.

Oh yes, I'm not sure who Richard Kipling is (unless you meant Rudyard Kipling got his name wrong, just as you get so many other things wrong), but I'm sure he sucks. Hard.

The American Prospect Analyzes the Stomach Contents of the Beast

The American Prospect Weblog (TAPPED) has a theory about the world of conservative publishing:

It goes something like this: People like Sean Hannity, Ann Coulter and Bill O'Reilly don't actually write their books. Instead, deep in the bowels of Regnery Publishing, some young hotshot built a machine that writes the books for them. There's one set of buttons that allows you to pick one or more of the various topics your book will cover -- the media, lawyers, Hollywood, China, academia, Vince Foster, the homosexual agenda, etc. There's a two-position lever that dictates overall thrust: Does this book primarily attack liberals in general or does it primarily attack Bill Clinton? There's a built-in program that automatically scans Nexis for quotes and examples, rips them out of context and paraphrases them beyond recognition. There's a dial for level of outrage. (Presumably, Coulter's goes to 11.) Then you flip a switch, and thousands of miniaturized, coked-up monkeys begin typing. Six months later, out comes a draft. All you have to do is come up with a title and put your name on the cover -- and presto! Another bestseller for outraged conservatives is born.

Well, I can't spot any holes in that theory.

The National Review Online Goes Communist!

"France's healthcare system is better than anything across the English Channel."
-Andrew Stuttaford for the Corner.

Old Europe is to Blame!

U.S., Canada Push for European Stimulus
Actually, it would probably be best if other countries adopted more expanionist economic policies, but somehow I think that Europe might become a scapegoat for the Bush administration and economic policy will simply become another battle in the trans-atlantic political feud.

The Front Runner

A recent Newsweek poll has Clark at 14%, making him the Democratic frontrunner. I'm not quite sure what to think of Clark, but a retired General and Vietnam Veteran is definetly better than a draft-dodging ski bum, the moralizing grandfather you may or may not have had, a boring burn victim look-a-like or an aloof consumptive .

Unravelling a Caper with the I-Guy

Look for us at Homestar's House.

The One That Got Away

Phish Bassist Cleared Of Child-Endangerment Charges

But come on, look at this guy. He must be guilty of something.

Righteous Anger

The New Republic's Johnathan Chait really hates Bush:

I think his policies rank him among the worst presidents in U.S. history. And, while I'm tempted to leave it at that, the truth is that I hate him for less substantive reasons, too. I hate the inequitable way he has come to his economic and political achievements and his utter lack of humility (disguised behind transparently false modesty) at having done so. His favorite answer to the question of nepotism--"I inherited half my father's friends and all his enemies"--conveys the laughable implication that his birth bestowed more disadvantage than advantage. He reminds me of a certain type I knew in high school--the kid who was given a fancy sports car for his sixteenth birthday and believed that he had somehow earned it. I hate the way he walks--shoulders flexed, elbows splayed out from his sides like a teenage boy feigning machismo. I hate the way he talks--blustery self-assurance masked by a pseudo-populist twang. I even hate the things that everybody seems to like about him. I hate his lame nickname-bestowing-- a way to establish one's social superiority beneath a veneer of chumminess (does anybody give their boss a nickname without his consent?). And, while most people who meet Bush claim to like him, I suspect that, if I got to know him personally, I would hate him even more.

I like this guy's style.

YAY!

Johnny is back on track. Hopefully. He's got style too.

All that Arnold Bashing for nothing.

Federal Court Postpones California Recall
The 9th Circuit Court, infamous for its ruling against the use of the phrase "under God" in the pledge of allegiance, has ruled that recall ought to be delayed untill the March California 2nd presidential primary, a date better for Davis due to an expected increase in turnout among Democrats. The Court bases this ruling on the troublesome nature of punchcard voting machines (hanging chads!) and the Supreme Court's Bush Vs. Gore ruling. I'm not sure what to say other than that I'm glad the Bush V. Gore came back to bite conservatives on the ass and inject its foul and evil venom in to their blood. Or something like that.

SAVAGING SCHWARZENEGGER, PART 212

Arnold frequently uses his own life as example for other immigrants to follow when he talks about the importance of controlling illegal immigration and his support of Proposistion 187 (which limited public services to illegal immigrants), but it seems that Schwarzenegger might have violated the terms of his visa in the 1960's. I'm fairly sure this news won't help him win the support of the right, though I'm sure Sen. McClintock, Arnold's more conservative rival will be quite pleased.

David Brooks, Honorary member of the B of P

The Protestant Establishment is dead, and nobody wants it back. But that culture, which George Bush and Howard Dean were born into, did have a formula for producing leaders. Our culture, which is freer and fairer, does not.

From his saturday column, Bred For Power.

An Absurd Notion

Bush rejects tax-cut rollback to pay for war

"I heard somebody say, well, what we need to do is have a tax increase to pay for this. That's an absurd notion," Bush told reporters.

Yes, what an absurd notion. Don't these niggling nabobs of negativism understand that we can have everything and that there a NO downsides to the President's policies? They clearly are not properly versed in supply side economics or whatever half-baked theory we're currently using to explain what we're doing.

In the Land Beyond Satire

Bush Cites 9/11 On All Manner Of Questions
It seems that the main stream press is finally catching on to the President's increasingly obvious and tasteless exploitation of a national tragedy for political gain. The article is pretty thorough and comes down on Bush pretty hard. Hopefully, more media outlets will pick up on this story (not that it hasn't been pretty clear for many months now). It could easily prove to a far mored damaging dynamic that the "idiot stereotype" that plagued George W. Bush and Al Gore's "liar" image.

Classic Tom

Ed Note: This appeared in Tower in Spring 2003.

Tom Taxter
“Please, Make Me a Martyr”

For those of you who were lucky enough to attend morning meeting on Monday, March 4, you bore witness to a wonderful thing. Not only did we spend 20 minutes asking inane questions regarding the “Masters School Constitution,” but also we saw the beginnings of a cult that, due to lack of excitement in their lives, wants to make themselves martyrs, although they pretend (I just hope they aren’t serious) that there are serious issues at hand.
This tempest in a teapot is centered around the clause in the “by-laws” of the constitution that allows for “indirect jurisdiction,” or the ability of the school to punish you for things you do outside school that cause public discredit. Students want the constitution to spell out what actions constitute public discredit, while the school’s administration wanted it to be kept vague so that they could define it on a case-by-case basis. Now, I realize that the school could use that vagueness against a student that the administration “Doesn’t like.” Then again, the administration can do anything that they want; a piece of paper will not stop them, do not kid yourself.
Last years “big issue (the previous tempest in a teapot)” in the Masters School community was the dress code and whether or not it should be changed. Most of you will remember the wailing and the gnashing of teeth that ensued. Babes cried in the streets and the men resorted to consolation from “the drink.” Now, why would a topic as banal as the dress code cause such a huge uproar? Because its tyranny, screeched the Masters anarchists, those brave enough to question the all-powerful authority. If it were not for those brave souls, we would not… be wearing the same things today and having more scrutiny placed on whether or not we actually are in dress code. Bravo.
The issue of today is public discredit clause. As we all know, horrible ogres and warlocks occupy the “Administration,” that evil entity that rules the school with an iron fist. Their only purpose is to try to get kids in trouble, I am not kidding, it is a requirement of the job. That was sarcasm. As such, the question that if the school was opposed to a cause or protest, and a student was seen at it, could they be brought to the Disciplinary Committee, is completely valid. Since the Masters School comes out so often and says, “We are categorically opposed to such and such a cause,” we all need to be worried. Quick, Chicken Little, call the ACLU, ADL, JDL, FBI, CIA, NAACP, NFL, NBA, NRA and/or SEC, the Masters School is trying to limit your freedom of speech! I actually heard people claiming that they were worried that the administration was trying to limit our Constitutional right to freedom of speech and freedom of association. I may be cynical, but my God, saying that the Masters School is trying to limit your freedom of speech? That is borderline irresponsible. The administration has much better things to do than strip our Constitutional rights. B-b-b-b-but they are not letting me raise awareness, you know, be socially active. Don’t worry son, we will fight those Communists back to the Kremlin.
And remember, they may take our lives, but they’ll never take our freedom! Oh yes, SIC SEMPER TYRANNIS!

The Two Emotions of Tom At College

Oh yeah, that's a phone he's smashing on the desk.

The Only Way to Fly

Man shipped from New York to Texas in crate

A spokesman for Kitty Hawk Cargo added, "This is a very unusual incident."

The Best of Tom

mysteriously absent

The Corner Promotes Paranoia

From the Corner.

AMERICANS GET THE WAR ON TERROR [Kathryn Jean Lopez]
even if the Washington Post thinks they're just MidEast-phobic: 70 percent believe Saddam Hussein was tied to 9/11.
Posted at 07:45 PM

Let me be perfectly clear, Saddam had nothing to do with 9-11. I'm not sure why the National Review thinks it is a good thing that the majority of Americans believe something so false about something so important. The post is a bit glib, so it is hard to figure out their exact meaning. It seems that either they are delighted with the Public believing in anti-arab conspiracy theories or by the administration's ability to get people to believe in lies by putting Saddam Hussien and 9-11 in the same sentence as much as possible (though never explicity making such a connection).

...Speaking of People Without Shame

Republican Fundraiser Highlights 9/11 Attacks
Seems that Bush and Republicans are going to exploit and vulgarize September 11th for all it is worth. Then again, I'd be worried too if my poll numbers were going south like this.

The Record Indusrty Has No Shame

Aiming at Pornography to Hit Music Piracy
The major record labels are attacking Kazaa and other file sharing networks, because pornography can be downloaded from theses services. Having failed to control file sharing by shutting down Napster and suing individuals, the industry is now trying to smear file sharing services as smut dealers and child pornographers. To argue that Kazaa and Morepheus are "threatening America's children" (because it is always about the children, isn't it?) is to ignore the fact that Kazaa doesn't actually provide the material that is shared over the network, its users do and so the same charge could be made against any search engine or internet service provider, because YOUR CHILDREN could be turned into perverts and sold into white slavery if they come into contact with pornography because of these EVIL PURVEYORS OF FILTH. Despite the obvious absuridity of the RIAA's claims, the usual suspects have taken up the great and noble cause of protecting the youth of America (and the Record Industry's profits). Already a bill has been introduced to the House to require parental consent forms for children to use file sharing services and Captain Morality...er...Senator Orrin Hatch has scheduled for hearings on the file sharing and pornography. Soon we can expect jowly uber-square Joseph Lieberman to gravely warn us about Kazaa, the internet's Sodom and Gmorrah.

For more on the subject, see the RIAA's new anti-porn/filesharing wesbite here.

Techno Kills Again

Baby Turtles Lured to Disco Death
Turtles instictively head for the brightrest horizon, normally the foam of breaking waves. However, because of the bright neon lights of the sea side Discotechs, the turtles are being lured too far inland, dying of dehydration or getting devoured by dogs. So, the next time you go clubbing, remember the defenseless baby turtles you'll help kill by supporting the evil Techno-Industrial complex.

Nuts

See a pot roast get shot to hell.

Taiwan Flexes on the Red Menace

Taiwan stages massive show of might

I Hope Jon Chin's Ninja Stealth Missile Boat Sinks Wee Yang's Fruity Amphibious Landing Craft
..er...I mean, I hope Taiwan is able to maintain its strategic superioity in cross-strait relations.

The Poor Man, Again.

Once again, I urge you to visit the Poor Man's Blog. He's a 1000x better than us hacks and you won't regret the many hours of your life you'll doubtlessly spend reading and reflecting on his golden prose and blinding, lightning-like insights. In fact, I'll link to him at the very top of the page, because you should definetly read whatever he writes before you read whatever refuse we thrown into this sorry compost heap of a weblog.

Edwards Joins the Blogosphere (YAY!)

Here is the site. Go now, because you know, he's the BEST CANDIDATE EVER!!!

And I'm not being sarcastic (at least as not as much as normal).

Arnold: Up is Down.

"I want to be a governor who is for the people, for everyone...Therefore I don't want to take any contributions, any campaign contributions, from the special interests. Because as soon as you do that, as soon as you say OK, give me this money and I will do this, this, and that for you, you are selling out---Arnold Schwarzenegger, August 25th, on Hugh Hewitt's radio show.

I'm so glad that isn't whoring himself out to special interests. Oh wait, yes he is. However, there is some good news, Arnold refuses to sell out to Unions and Indian tribes that have gaming interests, but big business and wealth individuals are still okay. The funny thing about this rule is that it actually makes it more likely that Schwarzenegger be will beholden to special interests, because his donor base will be narrower and he'll be less able to play favor seeking contributors off each other.

K.O.

Estrada withdraws as judicial nominee
That ought to learn Dubya to try to stuff the federal judiciary full of right wing hacks with lifetime appointments. Will this get him to change his behavior? Of course not, but it is better than having boatloads of conservative ruling handed down for a generation.

Now He's Got A Reason to Cringe.

The Neo Con Quiz

It is not all that good, but give the Christian Science Monitor a chance to gauge your foreign policy instincts anyway. And yes, satisfy your burning curiosioty, it labled me a 'realist'.

Chickening Out

A fool only grows more foolish with the passage of time. The best proof is the anti-war activists' rant of bringing the troops home. An event they recently capitalized upon was the tumult in Liberia. The other is the casualty of the post-war period.

One TV commentator in CNN's Crossfire says, and I paraphrase: Keeping peace in Liberia is much easier than Iraq, so why is our government still refuses to pull out from Iraq and go to Africa?

That commentator, like others who agreed with her, are not giving any thought to the conquences. Saboteurs are destroying pipelines and energy supply. Al-Qaida, by many accounts, are combining forces with the remanants of Saddam's thugs. If United States leave Iraq, they won't. Leaving Iraq is leaving Iraqis to the mercy of Saddam Hussein plus Osama bin Laden. There is no wrose timing than this.

Everyone agrees that the reconstruction of Iraq is both moral and necenssary. But the critics say the they want to bail out because American public will not tolerate futher casualties. Two hundred combat causalties can hardly be described as "serious" in military terms. And the critics know it, too. That's why they are saying it. The absurdity does not stop there, though.

If you pluck the sentence clean of euphemism, it became an entirely new statement: "we do not support peace-keeping in Iraq because Americans are too weak." Not only there is no evidence to prove the inherent cowardice of the American people, but this also fails to provide any justification for their recommanded course of action, which is runing away. Essentially, they're saying, we are not shouldering the responsiblity because we are not responsible beings. This way, a closed-circuit logical statement is constructed.

But this will only remain a closed logical circuit if it is a game of words, a pure excerecize of logic. Unfortunately, real world has one last logical consquence to add for the sloppiness of such thinkers. That is a ruined Iraq and a completely discredited United States.

-Jon Chin

Nicholas Kristoff Did It Again

Nicholas Kristoff, Op-Ed writer of The New York Times, is the most shameless supporter of autocracy anywhere in the United States. In fact, he has just written another servile praise of China on September 2nd, 2003. Comparing Ukraine to China, Kristoff haled China for the communists' "autocratic effciency" and contribute Ukraine's woe to her democracy, all in his old, shameless style.

Except that none of his two points are true. There is no evidence whatever that proves democracy ruined Ukraine's, just like Chinese econmy is no where near successful.

The opposite argument is a lot more convicing: Ukraine is not plauged by democracy. It is a democracy plauged. Ukraine owes much of her trouble, such as the lack of the rule of law and corruption, to Soviet Union's autocratic occupation.

Is China's autocratic style of governing beneficial for its economy? Sure. Without strict control over media and never-ending propaganda , Westeren investors would have been scared away by its completely bankrupt national banks and terrorism at Xin Jian. Squeezing it's workers dry also helps to keep the cost of production down. More significantly, its complete lack of fiscal responsiblity wouldn't be concealed without its autocratic orderliness.

It is too early to praise the Chinese success, because that success is in no way secure. Yesterday, September 4th, UN announced that AIDS in China will escalate to an epedemic no less devastating than Africa's own. Chinese military is growing fenetically, well in proportion to her imperialist ambition. The Communist party grabbs onto power, unwilling to give an inch to more progressive forces. Success? I don't think so.

-Jonathan Chin

Tom Taxter, Hard At Work

Tom does anything to keep him motivated, so he can continue to churn out top notch posts.

Michael Moore, Ann Coulter's Doppelganger

On MSNBC's "Buchanan and Press", Michael Moore threatened his critics, saying that "Every fact in the film ["Bowling For Columbine"] is true. Absolutely every fact in the film is true. And anybody who says otherwise is committing an act of libel." I fully expect Moore to start accusing his critics of Disloyalty or perhaps Sedition, next.

The Poor Man

Stop reading this tired, mind destroying nonsense and start reading the Poor Man. Now. I'm not kidding, he blows us out of the water.

Schwarzenegger Proves Sanctimonious Supporters Wrong

From the Weekly Standard

WHICH DESERVES MORE ATTENTION: Arnold Schwarzenegger talking issues, or a 26-year-old issue of a "gentleman's" magazine in which the former Mr. Universe boasts how he-men and hedonism go hand in hand? Watch for the public and press to struggle with this--and other controversies from Arnold's past--as recall rounds Labor Day and sprints to the October 7 finish line.


I guess Schwarzenegger answered that question:

Skipping first debate on Wednesday

In fairness to the Teutonic Plague, he has agreed to one debate.

Wish Granted

"Death Wish" star Charles Bronson dies
At last, a headline writer with a dark, but childish sense of humor.

Strange Stuff, Indeed.

(thanks to Atrios and Hoffmania)

These two books written by the same author and have the same number of pages, but released by different publishers. Is it possible that they are the same, except that the second one is a new release re-marketed towards conservative readers? I sure don't know. Unfortunately, Amazon doesn't have any more copies of The Duel left, so it would be difficult to check out and there are no excerpts from the book. The author, Richard Miniter, hasn't written anything else political (besides these two books), so it is hard to judge if he is a right winger, more interested in selling books than intellectual honesty or if he had a sudden anti-Clinton revelation since he wrote the first book.