Howard Dean on Talk of the Nation on NPR

2-3 EDT.

That apple juice will get you every time.

World's Oldest Man Dies in Japan at 114 (washingtonpost.com): "Yukichi Chuganji, a retired silkworm breeder documented as the world's oldest man, died at his home in Japan at age 114, his family said Monday.

Chuganji was pronounced dead from natural causes Sunday evening, said his 65-year old nephew, Tadao Haji.

Bedridden in recent years, Chuganji had been living with his 72-year-old daughter Kyoko in the city of Ogori, about 550 miles southwest of Tokyo.



He had just finished drinking some apple juice when his family noticed he wasn't looking well, Haji said. "

At least some good has come out of the California recall.

Yahoo! News - Calif. Recall Big Boost for Porn Star's Career: "Porn actress Mary Carey's message may not be resonating with many voters but her bid to become California governor has her videos flying off shelves.

The blond, buxom adult film actress is one of 132 candidates running to replace Democratic Gov. Gray Davis (news - web sites) in a recall election that has become a circus-like affair and made California the butt of jokes around the world.



The 23-year-old has certainly grabbed plenty of headlines and photo opportunities as she promotes legalizing gay marriage, a plan to tax breast implants and, of course, her own career, in a gubernatorial run that has created a growing number of fans at her appearances.



Yet at a San Francisco trade show she proved herself a candidate who stays on message. Carey downplayed the business benefits of her gubernatorial run and instead told Reuters how her campaign allows her to share her ideas with California.



'I want to show people just because I have blond hair, big boobs and do porn that I am not dumb,' Carey said as fans waited in line to get her autograph and take her picture.



'Running for governor is pretty much for me to get my ideas out there.'



Carey, whose current videos such as 'New Wave Hookers 7' and 'Grand Opening' are described as a series of comedic sketches with sex, added she believes Californians will support her because she works hard for her $200,000 income. "

Yahoo! News - Al-Jazeera Airs Alleged al-Qaida Tape

Yahoo! News - Al-Jazeera Airs Alleged al-Qaida Tape
: "An audiotape attributed to al-Qaida deputy Ayman al-Zawahri and broadcast on Al-Jazeera satellite television Sunday accused the United States of trying to abolish Islam.

The tape appeared to be recent, as the speaker referred to a visit by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon (news - web sites) to India earlier this month and the Sept. 6 resignation of Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas.

The tape was poor quality, but the voice sounded like al-Zawahri's. There was no immediate way to confirm its authenticity.



'The crusade camp that is led by America ... is targeting Islam and Muslims, even if it claims that it is fighting terrorism. ... This campaign is seeking to abolish Islam as a doctrine and a law,' the speaker said.



He urged Muslims to 'resist this Jewish crusade.' "

I am so proud of my school.

In the Spirit of Title IX (washingtonpost.com): "Along with women's water polo, Maryland promoted part of its cheerleading squad to varsity status this year to create more scholarships and playing opportunities for female athletes on campus. The move was designed to keep Maryland in compliance with Title IX while returning some scholarships to the school's eight underfunded men's programs.



But Maryland is charting new territory with an activity that many -- including the NCAA -- aren't even sure is a sport. And whether it succeeds in silencing its critics may determine if Maryland has found a new model for approaching the contentious gender-equity legislation. "

Courageous Israeli Pilots refuse to endanger Palestinian civilians.

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Israeli pilots refuse to fly assassination missions: "A group of Israeli airforce pilots declared yesterday that they would refuse to fly missions which could endanger civilians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The declaration was aimed at Israel's policy of assassinating activists of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade.

The 27 pilots sent a letter to the commander of Israel's airforce refusing to carry out duties, which include track and kill operations, in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. One of the pilots told Israeli television that the letter said: 'We, veteran pilots and active pilots alike...are opposed to carrying out illegal and immoral attacks, of the type carried out by Israel in the territories.

'We, who have been educated to love the state of Israel refuse to take part in airforce attacks in civilian population centres. We refuse to continue harming innocent civilians.' "

The Onion | America's Finest News Source%u2122: "Church, State Joyfully Reunite After 230-Year
Trial Separation
WASHINGTON, DC%u2014Following a two-and-a-quarter-century-long trial separation, Church and State reunited in the U.S. Department of Justice press room Monday. 'Even through all the bad times, I knew there had to be a way to get these two old friends back together,' Attorney General John Ashcroft said. 'With a little counseling and faith-based intervention, I knew Church and State would work it out. It was meant to be.' Effective Oct. 15, prayer will be mandatory in public schools and congressional sessions will open with Holy Communion."

BREAKING NEWS-- Recall vote is on.

Ruling That Delayed California Recall Vote Is Overturned: "A federal appeals court Tuesday reinstated California's Oct. 7 gubernatorial recall election, rejecting a three-judge panel's decision to put it off for months.




Unless the U.S. Supreme Court steps in quickly, the decision means Election Day is two weeks away.



The 11-member panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously overturned the Sept. 15 decision of a three-judge panel from the same circuit. The original panel postponed the election on whether to recall Gov. Gray Davis because six counties would use outdated punch-card ballots that were the subject of the 'hanging chads' battle in the 2000 presidential election in Florida. "

Review of Metro Stage's Rough Crossing.

BOB ANTHONY Free-Lance Arts Critic on the Web and Foggy Bottom News : "The peaceful town of Alexandria will be rocking with laughter during the run of Stoppard's 'Rough Crossing' at the MetroStage. The play is an adaptation of a Molnar comedy turned into farce as Stoppard mixes up a group of theater folk and a cabin stewart on a hectically humorous ride across the ocean to New York. Nancy Robillard most competently manages to direct this piece to get belly laughs for the whole two acts and establishes this to be the funniest Stoppard show yet. Michael Russotto easily captivates with his zany interpretation of the leader of this thespian pack with a perfect articulation of the multisyllabic comic verbiage of this fine British playwright. Nicky McDonnell and Carl Randolph expertly give definition to the quarrelsome lead actors of the play within a play with some fine singing and dancing...and acerb...thrown in. Steven Tipton manages singing, acting and piano playing to prove a surprising young stage talent. Jack Vernon is probably the most underrated local stage actor as he again wows with a stage enthusiasm that is infectious. And, in typical script insult to theatrics, Stoppard manages to provide a know-it-all secondary character to define the script and the action. And, fine comedian Ian Gould comes close to stealing the show with his delightful interpretation of a bumbling servant on his maiden ocean voyage. His comedic charm has no bounds as he sways while the ship is in port and walks steadily when the ship is being tossed in transit plus other running gags. Jos.B. Musumeci,Jr. outshines his previous wonderful sets with this glorious outer and inner shell of a cruiser. Adam Magazine on lights and Matt Rowe on sound blend continually to double the pleasure and fun.

There is superb interplay of these characters throughout and Stoppard presents the cleanest script around that should make this show total family fun. So families and Stoppardites...put this one on your calendar immediately as it should be a big seller."

I find this amusing.

Check out Hampy the Hamster Expert. Articicial Intelligence for your hamster needs!

Ahoy! and Avast!

Today, mateys, is Talk Like a Pirate Day.

I'm waiting for Act Like a Pirate Day. I could use a bit of plunder. And a parrot.

Gee, thanks Washington Post for the crucial hurricane info.

Aftermath FAQ (washingtonpost.com)

Q: How do I know if my house or yard is contaminated with sewage?

A: Smell is the best test.

More dead.

Three U.S. Soldiers Killed in Tikrit (washingtonpost.com): "Iraqi guerrillas killed three U.S. soldiers and wounded two others in an ambush near Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit late on Thursday, a U.S. military spokesman said.
































































































Lt. Colonel William MacDonald said the three soldiers from the 4th Infantry Division were killed in small arms fire 5 miles south of Tikrit when they were inspecting a suspected weapons site. "

And he would have made an excellent spokesman for the Bush White House.

New Scientist: "The full magnitude of the world's largest ever rodent has been revealed- the now-extinct monster was the size of a cow.
The creature weighed in at 700 kilograms and lived eight million years ago, roaming the lush banks of the ancient Orinoco delta in northwestern Venezuela. But the three-metre-long, 1.3-metre-tall behemoth was an evolutionary cousin of today's humble guinea pig. ...
'Imagine a weird guinea pig, but huge, with a long tail for balancing on its hind legs and continuously growing teeth,' he says. It was 10 times heavier than its closest living relative - the South American capybara. "

Unbelievable BS.

Lawmaker Wants 'French' Back in Fries: "But House Administration Committee Chairman Bob Ney, R-Ohio, who initiated the menu change with Rep. Walter Jones, R-N.C., said they'll continue to fight for their freedom fries.

Ney said that the day after Jackson Lee wrote her letter the French came out with an untenable timetable for elections in Iraq, confounding U.S. efforts to win United Nations backing for the reconstruction effort. ``They were noncooperative and arrogant then,'' before the war, ``and they are again noncooperative and arrogant,'' Ney said. ``I haven't seen a huge change.''

Ney said that was originally a gesture toward the French ``has become an international food fight. It means something to a lot of people.''

``The whole premise behind the gesture was to support our troops in Iraq,'' said Lanier Swann, spokeswoman for Jones. ``The congressional passion in support of them has not waned and the French position has not changed.''"

Boy, is our mission accomplished.

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | US troops killed in Iraq ambush: "Up to eight US troops were reported to have been killed today in an ambush in the Iraqi town of Khaldiyah, west of the capital Baghdad.

Dubai-based Al-Arabiya television said eight soldiers were killed and one wounded in the incident, although there has been no confirmation from the military.

An Associated Press reporter at the scene said two US tanks and helicopters were guarding a smouldering transport truck, which had apparently been destroyed by rebels.

The reporter was unable to get close enough to verify the casualty reports and was fired on by one of the tanks with three rounds from its 50-calibre machine gun. It appeared the troops, who were taking fire from unknown positions, were trying to protect themselves until reinforcements arrived.

Earlier, a 14-year-old Iraqi boy was reportedly killed when a US patrol opened fire on wedding guests who were firing celebratory shots into the air.

Residents in the town of Falluja, 32 miles northwest of Baghdad, said the boy was killed and six other people were injured when passing US troops mistook the wedding gunfire for a guerrilla attack."

Let's impeach him now.

Salon.com News | Bush: No proof of Saddam role in 9/11: "President Bush said Wednesday there was no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 -- disputing an impression that critics say the administration tried to foster to justify the war against Iraq.


'There's no question that Saddam Hussein had al-Qaida ties,' the president said. But he also said, 'We've had no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved with September the 11th.'






The president's comment was the administration's firmest assertion that there is no proven link between Saddam and Sept. 11. It came after Vice President Dick Cheney on Sunday clouded the issue by saying, 'It's not surprising people make that connection' between Saddam and the attacks.



Cheney, on NBC's 'Meet the Press,' also repeated an allegation -- doubted by many in the intelligence community -- that Mohamed Atta, the lead Sept. 11 attacker, met with a senior Iraqi intelligence official in Prague five months before Sept. 11. "

Lunch with the Hawks, Revisited

Five months after my lunchtime talk with three people who supported invading Iraq, let's see how things turned out: Iraq had those WMD? Well, no. But we got Saddam, right? Ah, no, doesn't look that way. If nothing else, the people are grateful because we toppled the old regime? Sure, except all the ones who keep shooting at our soldiers and blowing things up. Hm, well, at least it was easy-in, easy-out, not some sort of drawn-out mess... right?... Uh-oh.

-- Mister Joel

Trickle down, my Lord, trickle down...

Supply Side Jesus, from Al Franken.

What the neocons hath wrought.

CounterPunch: edited by Alexander Cockburn and Jeffrey St. Clair: "

Now here we are on the downslope of 2003 and George Bush is learning, way too late for his own good, that the neo-cons have been matchlessly wrong about everything. One can burrow through the archives of historical folly in search of comparisons and still come up empty-handed. The neo-cons told Bush that eviction of Saddam would rearrange the chairs in the Middle East, to America's advantage. Wrong. They told him it would unlock the door to a peaceful settlement in Israel.Wrong. They told him (I'm talking about Wolfowitz's team of mad Straussians at DoD) that there was irrefutable proof of the existence of weapons of mass destruction inside Iraq. Wrong. They told him the prime Iraqi exile group, headed by Ahmad Chalabi, had street cred in Iraq. Wrong. They told him it would be easy to install a US regime in Baghdad and make the place hum quietly along, like Lebanon in the 1950s. Wrong.




And of course the neo-cons, who have never forgiven the UN for Resolutions 242 and 338,(bad for Israel) told Bush that he should tell the UN to take its charter and shove it. Bush, who appreciates simple words and simple thoughts, took their advice, and last Sunday night had it served up to him by his speechwriters as crow, which he methodically ate in his 18-minute speech, saying the UN has an important role in Iraq."

The 90's would seem to be over.

No More 'AOL' for Time Warner (TechNews.com): "AOL Time Warner plans to drop 'AOL' from its name, symbolizing the giant media company's effort to put the failings of the biggest merger in history behind it and begin a new phase of its corporate identity, company executives said yesterday. "

Hunter Thompson -- Insane, but right on this time.

ESPN.com - Page2 - Soured on the sweet science: "Our dangerously goofy child President from Texas is a squalid example of trouble coming home to roost. He is like a half-bright football coach who goes into a big game without a Game Plan. BOOM! Shame and failure will follow you for all the days of your life. Selah.


The Bush family reeks of fraud and bad karma. But even worse than our wretched, gibbling president are the cowardly whores in Hollywood who are currently smearing film stars and music people like Johnny Depp by calling them unpatriotic Americans who righteously question the wisdom of invading a whole nation of Islam -- 1.8 billion worshipers -- which is a dangerously stupid idea. Disagreeing with Donald Rumsfeld about bombing anybody who gets in our way is not a crime in this country. It is a wise and honorable idea that George Washington and Benjamin Franklin risked their lives for. These thieves in the White House are so crazy with greed and power, and they are causing so much drastic damage to the world we live in, that they are the ones who should be put on trial for treason."

I guess he is qualified to be governor.

GOP unable to narrow field / Despite pressure, McClintock won't budge: "Schwarzenegger arrived in Costa Mesa on Sunday morning for a quick photo opportunity with the California State Firefighters Association, which has endorsed him. Schwarzenegger told about 300 firefighters that he gained new respect for their work after after playing a firefighter in the movie 'Collateral Damage.' "

Ein volk...

So you're saying there's a chance.

E! Online News - Ben & Jen Break Up?: "According to this week's issue of People magazine, Hollywood's canoodling couple of the moment, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez are going their separate ways, at least for now.

While it may seem like a ploy to throw the media off their trail ever since the duo felt pressured to postpone last week's highly anticipated nuptials, word of the twosome's split has been confirmed by an insider in Affleck's camp, who said the actor told close friends last week that he was the one to initiate the breakup. "

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | America's hidden battlefield toll

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | America's hidden battlefield toll: "The true scale of American casualties in Iraq is revealed today by new figures obtained by The Observer, which show that more than 6,000 American servicemen have been evacuated for medical reasons since the beginning of the war, including more than 1,500 American soldiers who have been wounded, many seriously.

The figures will shock many Americans, who believe that casualties in the war in Iraq have been relatively light. Recent polls show that support for President George Bush and his administration's policy in Iraq has been slipping.

The number of casualties will also increase pressure on Bush to share the burden of occupying Iraq with more nations. Attempts to broker an international alliance to pour more men and money into Iraq foundered yesterday when Colin Powell, the US Secretary of State, brusquely rejected a French proposal as 'totally unrealistic'.

Three US soldiers were killed last week, bringing the number of combat dead since hostilities in Iraq were declared officially over on 1 May to 68. A similar number have died in accidents. It is military police policy to announce that a soldier has been wounded only if they were involved in an incident that involved a death.

Critics of the policy say it hides the true extent of the casualties. The new figures reveal that 1,178 American soldiers have been wounded in combat operations since the war began on 20 March. "

When Maureen Dowd is mean, she's really mean.

Gunsmoke and Mirrors: " Mocking all our high-priced, know-nothing intelligence, Osama is back in the studio making his rock videos.

The cadaverous caveman has gone more primitive to avoid electronic detection, operating via notes passed by couriers.

We haven't forgotten all Mr. Bush's bullhorn, dead-or-alive pledges.

But he's like a kid singing with fingers in his ears, avoiding mentioning Saddam or bin Laden, or pressing the Pakistanis who must be protecting Osama up in no man's land and letting the Taliban reconstitute (even though we bribed Pakistan with a billion in aid). He doesn't dwell on nailing Saddam either.

His gunsmoke has gone up in smoke.   "

Repeal All Bush's Tax Cuts - We'd still have at least four more years of deficits. But it's a start. By Timothy Noah

Repeal All Bush's Tax Cuts - We'd still have at least four more years of deficits. But it's a start. By Timothy Noah: "Dean had the best line on this at the Sept. 8 Democratic presidential debate:

I'm not going to raise taxes. We're just going to go back to the same taxes that Bill Clinton had, because I think most people in America would be glad to pay the taxes they paid when Bill Clinton was the president of the United States, if they could only have the economy they had when Bill Clinton was president of the United States.

Amen.
"

Enron ex-treasurer jailed

Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | Enron ex-treasurer jailed: "A former treasurer at Enron yesterday became the first executive to be jailed for his part in the scandal that tilted the energy firm into bankruptcy more than 18 months ago.

Ben Glisan was sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to criminal conspiracy. He was taken into custody immediately.

Mr Glisan, 37, had earlier maintained his innocence in the face of charges including money laundering and wire fraud as part of a 109-count indictment against him and his one-time boss, former Enron chief financial officer Andrew Fastow. "

Maureen Dowd on our evil, lying administration.

We're Not Happy Campers: " Far from being the swift and gratifying lesson in U.S. dominance that Cheney & Co. predicted, our incursion into Iraq is turning into a spun-out, scary lesson in the dangers of hubris. Democrats are combing through the $20 billion part of the White House request involving rebuilding Iraq, trying to make sure there isn't any Halliburton hanky-panky.

I've actually gotten to the point where I hope Dick Cheney is embroiled in a Clancyesque conspiracy to benefit Halliburton. Because if it's not a conspiracy, it's naïveté and ideology. And that means our leaders have used goofball logic and lousy assumptions to trap the country in a cockeyed replay of the Crusades that could drain our treasury and strain our military for generations, without making us any safer from terrorists and maybe putting us more at risk.

On 9/11's second anniversary, seven in 10 Americans still believe Saddam had a role in the attacks, even though there is no evidence of it, according to a Washington Post poll. That is because the president has done his level best to conflate 9/11 and Saddam and did so again in his speech on Sunday night.

Iraq never threatened U.S. security. Bush officials cynically attacked a villainous country because they knew it was easier than finding the real 9/11 villain, who had no country. And now they're hoist on their own canard.

By pretending Iraq was crawling with Al Qaeda, they've created an Iraq crawling with Al Qaeda. "

Just what the world needs...

more George Will on Sunday Mornings.
ABC's 'This Week' is ready to greet a brand-new day: "The new format will feature more field reports by Stephanopoulos, who will share interviews of guests with George F. Will. Former roundtablers Michel Martin and Fareed Zakaria will analyze stories in the news."

A father's cry.

Eric Alterman: Altercation : " I know the painful truth. The body count will continue, because our political leaders are petty little people. So full of themselves, they are clueless about conflict resolution; they slay Palestinians and expect them to exercise restraint. These wise men believe that the occupation can continue; these glorious generals have for there years now been %u201Cletting the IDF win,%u201D as the slogan goes; they may be seasoned soldiers, but they are absolutely ignorant in conflict resolution. They believe that by using terror to counter terror they can give us security. They believe that they can devastate the infrastructure of Palestinian leadership and government and at the same time stop militias from wreaking chaos. They have for two years now been pronouncing Arafat %u201Cirrelevant%u201D, but what does that make of former defense minister Binyamin (Fuad) Ben-Eliezer, of former prime minister Ehud Barak and of the incumbent, Ariel Sharon? Are they any more relevant than he? How long will it take us to wake up from this ongoing folly? How many more body bags will it take? Adonai ehad %u2014 God is the only unshakeable truth, not any political creed"

It's the little things.

Ray Steven's albums are now available at the Apple Music Store, in case you need to download "The Streak" or "Ahab the Arab."

He told you so.

Other People's Sacrifice: "It's now clear that the Iraq war was the mother of all bait-and-switch operations. Mr. Bush and his officials portrayed the invasion of Iraq as an urgent response to an imminent threat, and used war fever to win the midterm election. Then they insisted that the costs of occupation and reconstruction would be minimal, and used the initial glow of battlefield victory to push through yet another round of irresponsible tax cuts.

Now almost half the Army's combat strength is bogged down in a country that wasn't linked to Al Qaeda and apparently didn't have weapons of mass destruction, and Mr. Bush tells us that he needs another $87 billion, right away. It gives me no pleasure to say this, but I (like many others) told you so. Back in February I asked, 'Is this administration ready for the long, difficult, quite possibly bloody business of rebuilding Iraq?' The example of Afghanistan (where warlords rule most of the country, and the Taliban %u2014 remember those guys? %u2014 is resurgent) led me to doubt it. And I was, alas, right."

I don't get it.

Let me get this straight -- we don't need any more troops in Iraq, but we want to get more troops for Iraq from our allies. So we don't need more troops, except that we do.

from The Forward

FORWARD: "Now that the American invasion has turned out to be a clueless blunder into a bottomless quagmire, there's a natural temptation for critics to gloat. Bush sold himself to Americans after September 11 as the tough cop who would chase down the terrorists wherever they were hiding and restore the nation's security and honor. It turns out his threats were not just empty but dangerous. Taking on Saddam didn't intimidate terrorists everywhere but rather inflamed them, emboldened them and brought them pouring into Iraq. Now the terrorists are stronger than ever, and we're stretched across the Middle East like sitting ducks. For those who still can't think of Bush without picturing hanging chads and butterfly ballots, there's a grim satisfaction in the president's quandary.



But the quandary is not the president's. It's ours. We, the American nation, sent our troops into Iraq, like it or not. Those soldiers dying every day as the fighting continues are not Republicans or Democrats, neoconservatives or new-age liberals, but American soldiers. If Iraq is broken, we're the ones who broke it. Now it's up to us to fix it."

Mel Gibson, anti-semite.

NY Daily News - front - Rush & Molloy: Mel's 'Passion'-ate defense gives offense: " Gibson also lays his lash on New York Times columnist Frank Rich. Responding to remarks about the Holocaust made in The Times by Gibson's father, Hutton Gibson, Rich accused the actor's camp of using 'PR spin to defend a Holocaust denier.'

Mel Gibson says of Rich, 'I want to kill him. I want his intestines on a stick. ... I want to kill his dog.' (Rich told us, through a Times spokeswoman, 'I don't have a dog.')

The article says Gibson reluctantly took out a scene in which Caiaphas, a Jewish high priest, says of Christ, 'His blood be on us, and on our children.' The passage, from the Gospel of Matthew, has been interpreted by some as implicating the Jewish people in Jesus' Crucifixion.

'I wanted it in,' Gibson tells Boyer. 'But, man, if I included that in there, they'd be coming after me at my house, they'd come kill me.'"

Why we we went to war with Iraq (Hint -- it has nothing to do with terrorism)

Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | Michael Meacher: This war on terrorism is bogus: "We now know that a blueprint for the creation of a global Pax Americana was drawn up for Dick Cheney (now vice-president), Donald Rumsfeld (defence secretary), Paul Wolfowitz (Rumsfeld's deputy), Jeb Bush (George Bush's younger brother) and Lewis Libby (Cheney's chief of staff). The document, entitled Rebuilding America's Defences, was written in September 2000 by the neoconservative think tank, Project for the New American Century (PNAC).

The plan shows Bush's cabinet intended to take military control of the Gulf region whether or not Saddam Hussein was in power. It says 'while the unresolved conflict with Iraq provides the immediate justification, the need for a substantial American force presence in the Gulf transcends the issue of the regime of Saddam Hussein.' "

An important reminder from Dave Barry.

Call Hating (washingtonpost.com): "IMPORTANT REMINDER -- Mark your calendar with a big 'X' on September 19, which is the second annual National Talk Like a Pirate Day. This is the day when everybody is supposed to talk like a pirate for very solid reasons (see www.talklikeapirate.com).



Last year, the first National Talk Like a Pirate Day was a huge success, as measured by the number of messages on my answering machine consisting entirely of people going 'Arrrrr.' So if you're feeling depressed -- if you think the world is in terrible shape, and one person like yourself can't make a difference -- remember this:



You're right. So you might as well talk like a pirate. It's easy! For example, when you answer the phone, instead of 'Hello,' you say, 'Ahoy!' "

The garbage and the lies.

Ex-Envoy Criticizes Bush's Postwar Policy (washingtonpost.com): "A former U.S. commander for the Middle East who still consults for the State Department yesterday blasted the Bush administration's handling of postwar Iraq, saying it lacked a coherent strategy, a serious plan and sufficient resources.



'There is no strategy or mechanism for putting the pieces together,' said retired Marine Gen. Anthony C. Zinni, and so, he said, 'we're in danger of failing.'



In an impassioned speech to several hundred Marine and Navy officers and others, Zinni invoked the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War in the 1960s and '70s. 'My contemporaries, our feelings and sensitivities were forged on the battlefields of Vietnam, where we heard the garbage and the lies, and we saw the sacrifice,' said Zinni, who was severely wounded while serving as an infantry officer in that conflict. 'I ask you, is it happening again?'"

More good news.

U.S. Employers Unexpectedly Slashed Jobs in Aug. (washingtonpost.com): "August was the seventh consecutive month of cuts in payrolls, a survey released by the Labor Department showed, indicating continuing weakness in the job market. But the overall seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell from 6.2 percent to 6.1 percent of the labor force, as reflected by a survey of U.S. households. "

The River Cities' Reader Online: " A year ago, American General John Abizaid published an internal Defense Department book about urban warfare. Abizaid%u2019s %u201CDoctrine for Joint Urban Operations%u201D (see sidebar) was all but ignored by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and General Tommy Franks, who ran the Iraq war and the initial postwar occupation.

Abizaid wrote about the massive troop requirements for urban warfare; warned of rapid burnout of soldiers and equipment assigned to urban battlegrounds; and time and again referenced catastrophic instances of over-confidence and under-preparedness among commanders and of disastrous misunderstandings of local cultures and their motivations. He also stressed how "essential" it is "law enforcemen" and other "routine activities" be "returned to civilian agencies as quickly as possible."

Abizaid was brought in a month ago to clean up the mess created by Franks and Rumsfeld. But it might be too late.
"

Link courtesy Talking Points Memo.

A tiny light in the darkness.

Embattled Judicial Nominee Estrada Withdraws (washingtonpost.com): "Miguel A. Estrada, whose nomination to the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington has been blocked for months by Senate Democrats, has withdrawn from consideration for the post.



'I believe that the time has come to return my full attention to the practice of law, and to regain the ability to make long-term plans for my family,' Estrada said in a letter to Bush, the Reuters news service reported."

James Carroll on our accomplished mission.

Boston.com / News / Boston Globe / Editorial / Opinion / Op-ed / Facing the truth about Iraq: "

THE WAR IS LOST. By most measures of what the Bush administration forecast for its adventure in Iraq, it is already a failure. The war was going to make the Middle East a more peaceful place. It was going to undercut terrorism. It was going to show the evil dictators of the world that American power is not to be resisted. It was going to improve the lives of ordinary Iraqis. It was going to stabilize oil markets. The American army was going to be greeted with flowers. None of that happened. The most radical elements of various fascist movements in the Arab world have been energized by the invasion of Iraq. The American occupation is a rallying point for terrorists. Instead of undermining extremism, Washington has sponsored its next phase, and now moderates in every Arab society are more on the defensive than ever."

Who are the 17%, and how do they function?

CBS News | Poll: U.S. Losing Grip In Iraq | September 3, 2003 10:44:32: "Americans do think the Bush Administration has not been forthright about its dealings with Iraq; 61% think the Administration has usually told the truth but has hidden some things. 19% think it has mostly lied, while 17% think the Administration has told the entire truth about Iraq."

Good riddance.

'I Expect A Great Reward' (washingtonpost.com): "Hill's planned execution at the Florida State Prison in Starke is drawing new attention to the extremist groups that advocate violence to stop abortions and is sending pulses of anxiety through the nation's 450 abortion clinics. Extra security precautions were being put in place at clinics today in anticipation of a possible backlash from some radical antiabortion activists inspired by Hill who has been labeled a martyr and 'a true American hero' on Web sites run by groups such as the militant Army of God. Hill -- a man whose inflammatory rhetoric filled the airwaves in the mid-1990s -- is going out talking. He conducted a group interview today on the eve of his execution, smiling and appearing composed in footage of the hour-long session at the northern Florida prison.



'I expect a great reward in heaven,' Hill said. 'I am looking forward to glory. I don't feel remorse. . . . People have asked me if I would do it again; if I was put in a similar circumstance, I believe I would act similarly.' "

Sarah Marshall, Delivering Twice the Fun (washingtonpost.com)

Sarah Marshall, Delivering Twice the Fun (washingtonpost.com): "Uncle Joe Stalin doesn't seem like a monster in Howard Barker's political-historical fantasy 'The Power of the Dog,' presented by those lovers of British avant-garde theater, the Longacre Lea company. The play is at Catholic University's Callan Theatre through Sunday.



As a starting point for what becomes a fanciful meditation on war, power and coercion of the masses, Barker uses an actual 1944 Kremlin meeting between World War II allies Stalin and Winston Churchill. Director Kathleen Akerley and her cast viewed newsreel footage of the two men for research.



The play moves between the Kremlin (where a Scottish comedian has been shanghaied to entertain Churchill) and the Eastern front, where a photographer records atrocities, a Red Army unit shoots a propaganda film, a young woman searches for the body of her hanged sister.



'I just thought it was so incredibly wonderfully written,' says Akerley.



'The fact that it hasn't been professionally produced in this country was completely baffling to me. . . . I feel what he's saying is that you can't understand a war until you've looked at it from everyone's perspective. In that sense, I don't consider it a straightforward antiwar piece.'



She tackled the sprawling play with her company of young, gung-ho actors by doubling up on characters. In the troupe's low-tech performance space, special effects are tough. 'The biggest challenge probably facing us was the hanging,' says Akerley. With Adam Magazine's lighting and fight captain Lewis Shaw's expertise, the scene has grim authenticity. Actress Fiona Blackshaw, 'our resident dead woman,' says Akerley, 'was very game about it.' "

Kind of hard to take the University of Maryland seriously with things like this.

UM Libraries

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | So George, how do you feel about your mom and dad?

Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | So George, how do you feel about your mom and dad?: "Most fundamentalist Christians have authoritarian personalities. Two core beliefs separate fundamentalists from mere evangelists ('happy-clappy' Christians) or the mainstream Presbyterians among whom Bush first learned religion every Sunday with his parents: fundamentalists take the Bible absolutely literally as the word of God and believe that human history will come to an end in the near future, preceded by a terrible, apocaplytic battle on Earth between the forces of good and evil, which only the righteous shall survive. According to Frum when Bush talks of an 'axis of evil' he is identifying his enemies as literally satanic, possessed by the devil. Whether he specifically sees the battle with Iraq and other 'evil' nations as being part of the end-time, the apocalypse preceding the day of judgment, is not known. Nor is it known whether Tony Blair shares these particular religious ideas.

However, it is certain that however much Bush may sometimes seem like a buffoon, he is also powered by massive, suppressed anger towards anyone who challenges the extreme, fanatical beliefs shared by him and a significant slice of his citizens - in surveys, half of them also agree with the statement 'the Bible is the actual word of God and is to be taken literally, word for word'.

Bush's deep hatred, as well as love, for both his parents explains how he became a reckless rebel with a death wish. He hated his father for putting his whole life in the shade and for emotionally blackmailing him. He hated his mother for physically and mentally badgering him to fulfil her wishes. But the hatred also explains his radical transformation into an authoritarian fundamentalist. By totally identifying with an extreme version of their strict, religion-fuelled beliefs, he jailed his rebellious self. From now on, his unconscious hatred for them was channelled into a fanatical moral crusade to rid the world of evil. "

This is not the kind of critical reception you are looking for.

Guardian Unlimited Film | News | Tears as Emma Thompson comeback bombs: "Emma Thompson came out fighting yesterday after her emotional comeback film, Imagining Argentina, was booed and jeered at the Venice film festival. "

It's especially bad because "The film, set during the seven-year reign of terror in which 30,000 people "disappeared" at the hands of the Argentinian military junta."

It runs in the family.

THE GRINCH THAT STOLE LABOR DAY: "Finally, on this Labor Day weeend, it's time this nation took a cold look at the issue of hard-core unemploymen. Neo-conservatives have warned us about families that pass on joblessness from generation to generation.


Take, for example, the sad case of the Bush family. When Poppy Bush was president unemployment hit a generational high of over 9 million Americans. Bill Clinton, through education and hard work, put more than 3 million of those citizens back on the job.


Now Bush Junior, repeating his family pattern of encouraging joblessness, has presided over the return of unemployment for 9 million Americans.


This was not unexpected, sociologists warn us. Hard core unemployment, through failed schooling and a don't-care attitude, takes on a nearly genetic character. The acorn falls only so far from the tree. Especially when the nut falls on its head.
"