I have a new fave

I have to say, based solely on how he handled his press conference today, that Patrick Fitzgerald would make a fine pick for SCotUS. He demonstrated a focus and understanding of the issues before the grand jury that surpassed everything I had hoped for. He was cautious, measured, and reasoned. He elected to pursue, via the grand jury, only those charges he felt met the standards of provable criminal activity, setting aside for later or abandoning altogether those charges he did not feel were supported by the investigation.

While it is not entirely fair to compare Fitzgerald, a Special Prosecutor, to Kenneth Starr, who was operating as an independent counsel (and special prosecutor), it is tempting. Fitzgerald kept the doors sealed, brooked no leaks, and refuses to produce a report, even if it is determined that such an act is within his rights.

He impressed me, in short, in much the same way as Chief JusticeRoberts impressed me during his Senate testimony. I have no idea where Fitzgerald stands on any issues, though he did indicate that he is not registered with any party. Since there is every possibility that he will impanel a new grand jury, he would not be able to accept a nomination to replace Justice O'Connor. Then again, he's not likely to fit the mold that the Bush administration is hoping to use, so this is all moot.

Wilma Comments

Florida Governor Jeb Bush has accepted responsibility for recent failures to get critical supplies to survivors of Wilma. He went on to point out, however, that residents had plenty of time to stock up before Wilma made landfall. Wow! So, while it's his fault, those who are suffering are really to blame?

Syria's Delay Tactics

A recent UN report blames high-ranking officials (without naming anyone) in both Syria and Lebanon for being behind or failing to prevent the assassination earlier this year of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. President Bush and his ambush, er, recess appointment to the UN, John Bolton, both of whom are strong critics of the organization, find the report troubling and are calling for a deeper examination of the findings. So far, so good.

Syria, for its part, is denying the allegations, citing a lack of detailed evidence or indeed names. This seems like pretty solid ground for making basic objections, but then the Syrian government goes one better. It claims that the report is "politically motivated" and based entirely upon information from people who are Syria's enemies (Syria has friends?). OK, that's not so great.

What interests me, of course, is the whole "politically motivated" findings part to this all. Neither Bush nor Bolton is willing to accept that defense, and rightly so. My question is, then, how do they feel about that defense when Texas Tommy "The Hammer" Delay uses it?

Now that would be a great one for a straight answer.

Harriet Who?

1. Go to Amazon.com.

2. Search: supreme court for dummies. (Yes, such a book exists.)

3. Look at the first customer review.

4. Laugh heartily and enjoy sharing the evil.

OR
click here

and skip to step 4. above.

Scottie v. Miers: Brain Cell Wars

Miers' life is under the microscope, of course. She's a nominee to SCotUS. Apparently, she made a comment while running for office in Texas in which she said she would do everything in her power to criminalize abortion (overturning Roe v. Wade would merely drop abortion from the status of a right under federal law). That's kinda scary, but she may have been in the throes of a (relatively) youthful passion about her newfound faith.

Along comes Scottie, White House spokestwit, and declares that nothing Miers has said indicates how she would vote on the court if the issues behind Roe v. Wade came before SCotUS. Um, what? Roe v. Wade guarantees that women in every state may receive abortions legally. Miers' comment about criminalizing abortion, then, was either a) the worthless ramblings of a candidate desperately trying to get attention, or b) a statement of her intention to use any means to make it criminal to receive an abortion in Texas—a task only possible if Roe v. Wade is overturned. In the first case, she doesn't present herself as a very judicious thinker, and I don't want her on the court. In the second case, she would be coming to the court with a little too much pink showing on her litmus test and could not, by the arguments the Republicans have been making since the Bork hearings, be considered a valid choice for the court.

Roberts has already proven himself a more than competent jurist, and the new court has already held balanced and interesting oral argument sessions. It would be sad to think that Miers might be the second most intelligent possible nominee as a "good conservative judge." Then again, no one has ever accused Republicans, as a group, of intelligence.

H5N1: The Plan

Yes, folks, the Bush administration has promised that by month's end it will have made public a plan for response to an outbreak of the H5N1, or Bird Flu, virus in the "United" States. Yep, that's right. By Halloween, we will know who in this country will get treated with our meager stockpile of Tamiflu. As I understand it, first responders (rightly, by the way) get first crack at it, but we don't yet have enough to treat 40% of that population, much less elderly and children or people with auto-immune problems.

Then there are the people who are probably ahead of the first responders, most of whom are of far less value to the nation than firefighters, police, and medical personnel. Anyone want to bet on Bush's chances of getting one? I suppose we should not risk any president under such circumstances, but Laura and the girls are of no value. Give their doses to doctors. Cheney is the only reason we even want Bush to get a dose, so Cheney and his family can forego doses. I suspect we'll need the extra officers, anyway. We could stand to lose a few blowhards on both sides of the aisle and in both chambers of Congress. Get doses to the entire court, though. Bush has gotten two appointments, and he doesn't need more. Governors and local officials must remember that they serve us, so they can get in line behind our cats if they want doses.

The simple truth is that Tamiflu may be the only thing that does anything to combat the H5N1 virus, but we have no idea when any pandemic may begin, specifically where it will begin (though Vietnam is the #1 suspect), and how quickly it may spread with migratory bird populations with respect to its detection as a form capable of human-to-human transmission. We can spot the virus, but if it has moved from Vietnam to Turkey before we realize that it can be passed easily amongst human, we're in one nasty shit house. Ah well. At least we'll have a plan.

Nothing to See Here, Subtitle: How You Like Me Now, Bitches?

What does W do when things aren't going his way? He raises the terror alert, that's what. But wait, the sheeple are catching on to that color-coding bullshit, aren't they? What could one do instead? Manifest a panic about Avian Flu, that's what. This flu virus and its potential pandemic repercussions have been known for years and yet the US had done very little to prepare for it. Now all of a sudden, the Administration has a "plan."

Thanks to MSM it's getting plenty of coverage, too. A news program this morning reported on said "plan" vis-à-vis the bird flu. The anchor was talking about how the "plan" acknowledges that there will be vaccine shortages, likely riots at clinics, and that hospitals in every big city will be so over-burdened they will have to turn people away.

It's a two-pronged attack on the citizens of the country by their leader, not the flu.

1. Create fear and panic so the sheeple won't notice those pesky and ever-growing scandals plaguing D.C. Repubs these days. Not to mention, the Miers nomination, which has his base more pissed off than the other side of the aisle. Aside: can you believe he thought that "trust me" coming from his petulant, bullying, lying, deceitful, hypocritical mouth was enough to actually make this happen?!

2. The devious, ugly, Rove-ian part of the plan; the side effect to the misdirection gambit (1). When the sheeple are afraid they love their Big Daddy W and begin to equate the accent and stupid grin with leadership ability.

My loathing and contempt are boundless.

The Intelligently Designed Curriculum

The President of The University of Idaho has banned intelligent design (ID) in its science classes. So far, the only serious complainer at Inside Higher Ed is a man named Donnell Duncan, and his (supposedly) best argument (he says, about one of my comments, that he "could not have said it better [himself]") is that ID should be taught in the classroom because ID "does not fit into science" (his words) and that by bringing it up, science professors could demonstrate just that point in class.

Wait a minute. His claim is that we should teach ID in science classes because ID can then be proven unscientific. Why waste the time?

Miers Redux

The real problem with Mier, given her record and Bush's stated intention of denying senators any access to her work product, is that not even Philip Glass could write music about the woman. There's just not enough substance.

Miers' Qualifications

Philippines? Indonesia? Nah...

For more than a decade now, the Philipppines and Indonesia have been locked in a struggle, each besting the other for months—even a year or two—at a stretch. Now, things have changed: The Big Boys are in the ring, and who, after all, can beat The Big Boys?

With the assistance (monetary) of the Philippine government, an ex-Marine working for the FBI and inside the White House has finally proven that someone with a connection to real intelligence spends time in that building. Sadly, said intelligence is intelligence gathering, not good ol' fashioned smarts. Oh well.

Yes, with the assistance of the Philippine government, for whom our own spy was spying, and with minor boosts from the likes of Karl Rove, Bill Frist, Tom DeLay, David Safavian, Jack Abramoff, Scooter Libby, Duke Cunningham, George W. Bush, and Michael Brown, The Big Boys (that's the United States, in case you didn't know) have thrown their hat in the ring, trying to win—nay, demanding they be voted—the most corrupt nation on Earth.

I think we have a real shot, don't you?

Polls, Schmolls

The majority of Americans demand withdrawal from Iraq (or at least a withdrawal plan).
We are denied the very notion by the Administration.

The majority of Americans want a non- or bi-partisan investigation into the disastrous Katrina response.
We are denied by both GOP-led houses of Congress and the President who could make it happen IF he wanted to. Q: What are they afraid of? A. Political fallout, of course. Not the loss of life, livelihood, and New Orleans, but political fallout.

The majority of Americans disapprove of how both the President and Congress are performing their jobs. Let's summarize, shall we?
Tom Delay: two indictments. One, two, that's two!
David Safavian: arrested.
Jack Abramoff: indicted.
Karl Rove: leaker of classified info for political retribution?
Scooter Libby: see Karl Rove.
Rep. Duke Cunningham: indicted.
Bill Frist: inside trader?
Lest we forget that it has been alleged that both the P and VP were involved in the discussions surrounding Plamegate.
Excellent job, Repubs!

And the majority of citizens believe that America is being led in the wrong direction.
I guess GW does have some leadership ability after all.