Fuck nuts of Insanity

The sports writers are really showing up their supposedly serious news journalist. A few months ago, it was Peter King. Now, regarding the death of Pat Tillman, ESPN has the first of a three-part series on the death of Pat Tillman.

And listen to the glittering example of "Christian Soldier" react to the request of the Tillman family to learn the truth about their son's death:

"But there [have] been numerous unfortunate cases of fratricide, and the parents have basically said, 'OK, it was an unfortunate accident.' And they let it go. So this is — I don't know, these people have a hard time letting it go. It may be because of their religious beliefs."

In a transcript of his interview with Brig. Gen. Gary Jones during a November 2004 investigation, Kauzlarich said he'd learned Kevin Tillman, Pat's brother and fellow Army Ranger who was a part of the battle the night Pat Tillman died, objected to the presence of a chaplain and the saying of prayers during a repatriation ceremony in Germany before his brother's body was returned to the United States.

Kauzlarich, now a battalion commanding officer at Fort Riley in Kansas, further suggested the Tillman family's unhappiness with the findings of past investigations might be because of the absence of a Christian faith in their lives.

In an interview with ESPN.com, Kauzlarich said: "When you die, I mean, there is supposedly a better life, right? Well, if you are an atheist and you don't believe in anything, if you die, what is there to go to? Nothing. You are worm dirt. So for their son to die for nothing, and now he is no more — that is pretty hard to get your head around that. So I don't know how an atheist thinks. I can only imagine that that would be pretty tough."

Asked by ESPN.com whether the Tillmans' religious beliefs are a factor in the ongoing investigation, Kauzlarich said, "I think so. There is not a whole lot of trust in the system or faith in the system [by the Tillmans]. So that is my personal opinion, knowing what I know."

Asked what might finally placate the family, Kauzlarich said, "You know what? I don't think anything will make them happy, quite honestly. I don't know. Maybe they want to see somebody's head on a platter. But will that really make them happy? No, because they can't bring their son back."

Kauzlarich, now 40, was the Ranger regiment executive officer in Afghanistan, making him ultimately responsible for the conduct of the fateful operation in which Pat Tillman died. Kauzlarich later played a role in writing the recommendation for the posthumous Silver Star. And finally, with his fingerprints already all over many of the hot-button issues, including the question of who ordered the platoon to be split as it dragged a disabled Humvee through the mountains, Kauzlarich conducted the first official Army investigation into Tillman's death.

That investigation is among the inquiries that didn't satisfy the Tillman family.

"Well, this guy makes disparaging remarks about the fact that we're not Christians, and the reason that we can't put Pat to rest is because we're not Christians," Mary Tillman, Pat's mother, said in an interview with ESPN.com. Mary Tillman casts the family as spiritual, though she said it does not believe in many of the fundamental aspects of organized religion.

"Oh, it has nothing to do with the fact that this whole thing is shady," she said sarcastically, "But it is because we are not Christians."

After a pause, her voice full with emotion, she added, "Pat may not have been what you call a Christian. He was about the best person I ever knew. I mean, he was just a good guy. He didn't lie. He was very honest. He was very generous. He was very humble. I mean, he had an ego, but it was a healthy ego. It is like, everything those [people] are, he wasn't."

It is a very well researched and well-written article about the deification, against his will, of a celebrity soldier used to ends that he did not agree with. It is disgusting what his corpse was used for, through and through.

Who is who's client state?

I find this absolutely stunning, by this time I shouldn't, but nonetheless:

Why did it take the United States so long to evacuate it's citizens?

Individuals within the State Department, I am told, have been reluctant to create an impression that the Israeli assault on Lebanon is as bad as it is or that civilian U.S. citizens are being threatened by U.S. ally Israel.

American citizens are put at greater risk so the Israeli's wouldn't look so bad.

Cue Lee "Fuckin'" Greenwood.

The Definition of Censorship

Yesterday on Talk of the Nation could be heard Christin (sp?) King a young female journalism student from LSU on duty in Iraq---a communications specialist of some sort. Because she is studying journalism (one would guess of the broadcast variety) she plucked a plum job on armed forces radio as the host of the mid-day show Country Convoy. A caller asks: do you play the Dixie Chicks? No, mostly as a matter of personal preference, but people don't want to hear them anyway. though she didn't say it, the implication was clear the preference of the disc jockey and her listeners was based on the band's criticsm of our monarch.

Though not to worry, she says in the sweetest way, she is not censored in any way. Tee-hee. Tee-hee. Gee, I wonder if she would object if they told her what she had to say and play?

I guess censorship isn't necessary when you toe the party line. For dyed-in-the-wool Republicans, it's only censorship if you disagree with the man.

Who Needs Stem Cells?

Or as I like to put it: How does it feel to be held hostage by the nutjobs of the Christian right? President Bush thinks it's murder. I'd love to hear him explain that one. Asshole.

White House Memoranda

#1

From: Karl Rove

To: File

Re: Foreign Conferences

Date: 7/17/2006


In the future do not have President Bush prepped for foreign trips by Josh Bolton and Governor Schwarzenegger.

#2

From: Josh Bolton

To: File

Re: Schedule 7/19/2006

6:30 a.m. Deliver One page world summary to the President, and Jergens Hand Lotion.

7:00 a.m. Breakfast

7:30 a.m. Review news items from G-8 trip

7:45 a.m. Photoshop

8:00 a.m. Masturbate

#3

From: George Bush (as dictated)

To: File

Re: Morning tasks

Find out why the right-side of my nose hurts.

Bush tries diplomacy to avert the spread of war...

"Look, Condi, Ah barely know her, it was just a quick massage, it was nothing."

(Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

Freeance's March is picking up the pace

Last December, Clusterfuck McBunnypants:

In a rare, unscripted moment, President Bush on Monday estimated 30,000 Iraqis have died in the war, the first time he has publicly acknowledged the high price Iraqis have paid in the push for democracy.

There are many, many, estimates that say that is far too low. But taking Bush's statement as generally accurate, it is getting much much worse:

More than 14,000 civilians have been killed in Iraq in the first half of this year, an ominous figure reflecting the fact that "killings, kidnappings and torture remain widespread" in the war-torn country, a United Nations report says.

Killings of civilians are on "an upward trend," with more than 5,800 deaths and more than 5,700 injuries reported in May and June alone, it says.

The report, a bimonthly document produced by the U.N. Assistance Mission for Iraq, covers May and June, and includes chilling casualty figures and ugly anecdotes from the insurgent and sectarian warfare that continues to rage despite the establishment of a national unity government and a security crackdown in Baghdad.

On Sunday, I believe it was Newt Gingrich made the analogy of how 8 deaths in Haifa represented a greater impact because Israel is so proportionately smaller than the United States, he then claimed it was the equivalent of the United States losing several times that number. Newt, of course, did not make a similar analogy to Lebanon, which has about 3/5ths of Israel's population.

Well, Iraq has about an 11th of America's population and using Newt's magic method of extrapolation, that's the equivalent of losing more than 150,000 Americans to violence in just the first six months of this year.

I'm sure we'd call it "sectarian violence" as opposed to civil war.

Somebody from Reuters

Waited at Gay Games VII all day just praying to get a shot like this:


I salute John Gress for his perseverence, though not his tact.

I had a G-8

"Ah wrote a po-em about mah big 'venture, overseas, away from the Unitah States"

Mah Trip




Russia's Big and China's too,

Tony's snazzy, Pooty Poo

Harper's boring but Merkel's hot

Chirac bugs me talks French a lot

Koizumi's a jap, so fuck Jacque's yap

Hez'boo-terra shit has me fuckin' mad

Forgot 'bout the Wop, well too effin' bad

Who's this weird blog freak?

Did he come through some freaking tube?

For too long he has defined his image by distancing himself from other Democrats, cozying up to right-wing media figures and, at key moments, directing his criticisms at members of his own party instead of at the Republicans in power.

Late last year, after President Bush's job approval ratings hit record lows, Lieberman decided to lash out at the administration's critics, writing in the ultraconservative Wall Street Journal editorial pages that "we undermine presidential credibility at our nation's peril." In this he echoed the most toxic of Republican talking points — that criticizing the conduct of the war is actually damaging to national security.

Lieberman has a long history of providing cover for the worst of Republican actions while enthusiastically serving as his own party's scold. After the Senate acquitted President Clinton on all impeachment charges, Lieberman called for his censure. More recently, he rejected a call by Sen. Russell D. Feingold (D-Wis.) to censure Bush over the National Security Agency's warrantless wiretapping program, calling the attempt "divisive."

That's all very well-written, cogent, and I agree with most all of it.

But I really was hoping for an editorial like this...



It is really hard to blogwhore newspaper editorials.

Things, that just don't seem right to say

Perhaps a first in modern history*

The Leader of Germany is being abused and their space invaded by another country's head of state.



This came from Mash via Watertiger -- the former has the whole disturbing series.

Next on the horizon, Bush stands outside Kim Il Jong's window and disturbs his sleep.

"He's playin' Toby Keith over and over and over"

*Napoleon not included

How American!

The media treats people who stay in Lebanon as if they are fools or tools of Hezbollah -- in reality, they may be just short of cash:

The Department of State reminds American citizens that the U.S. government does not provide no-cost transportation but does have the authority to provide repatriation loans to those in financial need [emphasis mine]. For the portion of your trip directly handled by the U.S. Government we will ask you to sign a promissory note and we will bill you at a later date. In a subsequent message, when we have specific details about the transporation arrangments, we will inform you about the costs you will incur. We will also work with commercial aircraft to ensure that they have adequate flights to help you depart Cyprus and connect to your final destination.

How much does this costs, relative to what Iraq costs EVERY FUCKING DAY!?

Progressively Progressing the Progress into being Progressively Worse

Why doesn't Syria get on the phone and stop this shit?

Oh, that's right, we bought it, we own it.

KUFA, Iraq, July 18 (Reuters) - A car bomb hit a group of labourers after they boarded a minibus in a market in a Shi'ite city in Iraq on Tuesday, killing 59 people and sparking clashes between protesters and police, witnesses and officials said.

The blast, some 50-100 metres from a Shi'ite shrine in the southern city of Kufa, tore through the minibus after it had pulled out of the crowded market.

Hospital and security sources said 132 people were wounded in the blast, which dealt a fresh blow to Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's efforts to promote national reconciliation.

Riyadh al-Shibni, a doctor in a Najaf health centre, said hospitals in Najaf and Kuf had received 59 bodies.

Police in the scene were pelted with rocks by angry crowds. Many appeared to be followers of radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, who has many supporters in the town. Kufa is near the holy city of Najaf, 160 km (100 miles) south of Baghdad.

The protesters chanted to the police: "You are traitors!" "You are not doing your job!" "American agents!".

Well, at least the slurs have stayed about the same.

Michael Ledeen, soon to be delivering Kittens*

Tragically for him and his insane little ilk, and happily for the rest of us, Israel is now putting forth a proposal for a ceasefire that is doable for all parties concerned (return of kidnapped troops, stop firing missiles at us, and Lebanese troops on the border).

This will avert World Wars III through V.

Meanwhile, John Bolton, is doing what he can to prompt Israel to do what it doesn't want to do (hence WWBBND? below).


(* Not fluffy and adorable ones)

America's New Foreign Policy

WWBBND?

At least until Bush swallows (feel free to fill in your own joke)

I hereby resign

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

From the KISS army.

Fuckin' poseurs.


(Just needed to push down my Bush food & mouth post, since every person in the universe is posting it up and I'm bitter)

In fact, looking through my posts, it's apparent that today is whiny & petulant day at Rishing Hegemon.

Please take this opportunity to air your greivances, no matter how petty.

And if I don't get many comments, that will give me another thing to complain about. Fine, you go visit TBogg, or Watertiger, or The fuckin' Editors, or Sadsackly Yes, see if I care. I'll just be here with my work and my ballbearings! And that's just fine with me. Strawberries, Strawberries, Strawberries!

Never talk with your mouth full

Is that not lesson one in human communication?


I might be wrong, perhaps it's when mom says to the nursing child, "ouch, I guess your teeth are coming in"? I dunno.

Anyhoo, another diplomatic lesson in sophistication.

Good thing he was talking to Blair instead of Prodi, or his predecessor Silvio Berlusconi or there would have been a shower.


(AP Photo/AP Television News/ pool)

A Leader Leads

You go to the G8 summit where you lead, see. That's what they do: lead. See you go to a fancy shmancy faraway place and lead with other leaders. Just like in the playground and sandbox days. Or at least that's what they told old President Dimbulb. Some great examples of shining boot-licking, I mean leadership:

With Putin.

PRESIDENT BUSH: I think you'll find all parties here want the violence to stop. In my judgment, the best way to stop the violence is to understand why the violence occurred in the first place. And that's because Hezbollah has been launching rocket attacks out of Lebanon into Israel, and because Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers. That's why we have violence.
***
So, Bill, to answer your question, this isn't the first time that we have strategized on how to solve this problem. And, yes, we talked about the U.N. Security Council resolution. And, no, I'm not going to tell you the particulars about the conversation. I will tell you, however, that there is common agreement that we need to get something done at the U.N. And I'm confident we will be able to do that. And there's agreement that we need to get something done on North Korea at the United Nations.

Here's the thing, though, just so that everybody understands: Diplomacy is not two countries just saying, this is the way it is. Diplomacy is two countries agreeing to work together with other countries, in this case, to come up with common language that we can live with that sends the same message, and that is, no nuclear weapons programs.

With Blair.

PRESIDENT BUSH: My message to Israel is that as a sovereign nation, you have every right to defend yourself against terrorist activities. And, again, I repeat, this started because Hezbollah decided to capture two Israeli soldiers and fire hundreds of rockets into Israel from Southern Lebanon. That's the cause of the crisis.

And so our message to Israel is, look, defend yourself, but as you do so, be mindful of the consequences. And so we've urged restraint.

With Chirac.

PRESIDENT BUSH: I want to thank Jacques Chirac for coming over. It's always a pleasure to visit with Jacques. He is a man who is able to crystalize his thoughts, who is able to discuss issues in a very clear way.

I have one word:

syc·o·phant (sk-fnt, sk-) n.

A servile self-seeker who attempts to win favor by flattering influential people.

When Incontinence meets Alternating Current

REUTERS/Jason Reed


...or as Josh Bolton, there on the right, will remember it...


Josh could tell you that, as soon as he is done masturbating.

le singe embarassing

Je l'accuse de bourrer son pantalon

REUTERS/Pawel Kopczynski