Im first......

You're a distant second to Howard Dean.

Im in2ThomasPaine

That pillow fight looked like fun HQ ;-)  Good on you!  Sometimes you just need to readjust or create a new-er frame of mind.  Deep breathes work, but you guys found a way to do more.   Cool.

Doh, Im n2 Howie, too.

Michael a distant second?? No. He runs real fast. Or so I am told.

 Were is the Mason-Dixon line, anyway?

Everyone outside of the southern state hate the old south, so the Dems should exploit that.  Maybe? ;-) 

The treasonous south said, "we're gonna to it again"

And George is from Texass. 

just above mason and just below dixon. and virginia is above it. so we really aren't in the southe except for the red necks in southwest va.

Thanks for the article on 'Cain, HQ.

Louisville vs. North Carolina

Go Cardinals! 

I see it all before me:
the days of love and torment;
the nights of rock-and-roll.
I see it all before me.
Sometimes my spirit's empty;
don't have the will to go on.
I wish someone would send me
energy.
Give me something.
Give me something to give.
Oh, God, give me something:
a reason to live.
My body is aching.
Don't want sympathy.
Come on. Come and love me.
Come on. Set me free.
Set me free.
The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures.
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul.
He leadeth me through the path of righteousness for His name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.
Hey, Lord, I'm waitin' for you.
Oh, God, I'm waitin' for you;
waitin' to open Your ninety-eight wounds
and be Thee, be Thee.
Lead me, oh, lead me.
Leave me something.
Leave me something to live.
Oh, God, give me something:
a reason to live.
I don't want no handout;
no, not sympathy.
Come on. Come and love me.
Come on. Set me free.
Set me free.
Come on. Set me free
Set me free . . .
Oh, I'm so young, so goddamn young.
Oh, I'm so young, so goddamn young.
Oh, I'm so young, so goddamn.
Set me free.
In the presence of my enemies,
Thou anointest my head with oil.
My cup runneth over.
Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life.
And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Ah, damn, goddamn, goddamn, goddamn.
Here I am.

Patti Smith Privilege (Set Me Free) lyrics

Everyone here knows you are not a Confederate, linda b.   You have the long-term interests of the Union in what you do for U.S..  Kudos and thanks.

I'm for the government of Iraq - not the malitias.  So, I want Sadr crushed.  I know, many want peace.  Me too.  Me too.

------

Emerson Lake & Palmer  Tarkus Medley   Atlantic  Live At the Royal Albert Hall  0:31:09 (Real | MP3 |

http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/26649

9:36 PM EDT

revenge is sweet:

N E Revs beat the Houston Dynamo

3-0

9:37 PM EDT

so, how many Eastern Time Zoners here participated the last hour 8-9 pm EDT in ?:

http://www11.earthhourus.org/

Ok

I read a good article in the NYTimes

And, I recall the audio tapes my father sent from Viet nam (1967-1969)

During the Tet offensive he had his last rites given when surrounded, but called home when he was able ... before which my mother nearly died herself.

which I ecourage you to read all 'til the last at page four (internet)

that I include here.  it is a  letter (you the kind, "if I don't make it home, then read)

but play Sylvia's Mother on the turn table

or listen to

Electric Light Orchestra - DoYa

or

ELO - Living Thing

 

(page four)

And then Specialist Gomez fell in love. An e-mail flirtation with Katy Broom, his sister’s close friend, gradually led to a cyber exchange of guarded promises about the future. Headed home for a rest break in May, the tentativeness lifted and they began to rely on each other to get through the day. The two joked about “the best sex we never had.”

...this R&R there is someone new in my life. Exactly what she is too me, and what I am to her is uncertain, but its not really important at the moment. Just the thought that I could spent a second of my life with her, before I have to come back here makes everything worth it.

Daniel Gomez, Myspace blog, May 9, 2007

Rest and relaxation in Georgia went better than expected. He fell in love with the love of his life all over again, this time in person. The couple shared one kiss during his leave.

“He was everything I expected and more,” said Ms. Broom, 20, who spent one week and two days with him. “It was kind of surreal when we met. It’s almost like a perfect love and war story.”

Not many soldiers leave behind a just-in-case letter. Specialist Gomez did. He handed Ms. Broom an envelope at the airport with the words, “Don’t read unless something happens to me.”

On July 18, 2007, two months after his leave, Specialist Gomez died in Adhamiya when the Bradley fighting vehicle he was in struck a roadside bomb. The explosion and flames also killed three other soldiers.

Ms. Broom waited three days after she got word to open the letter. She sat alone in the couple’s favorite spot, her apartment balcony.

“I was very thankful that he wrote it,” she said of the letter. “I have opened and closed it so many times, I’m surprised it hasn’t fallen apart.”

R+R 2007

Hey baby. If you’re reading this, then something has happen to me and I am sorry. I promised you I would come back to you, but I guess it was a promise I could not keep. You know I never believe in writing “death letters.” I knew if I left one for my folks it would scare them. Then I met you. We were supposed to meet, darling. I needed someone to make me smile, someone that was an old romantic like I was. I was going through a very rough time in Iraq and I was startin to doubt my mental state. Then one day after a patrol, I go to my facebook and there you were...

I can’t stop crying while I writing this letter, but I have to talk to you one last time, because maybe the last time I heard your voice I did not know it would be the last time I heard your voice....

I Love You. Go be happy, go raise a family. Teach your kids right from wrong, and have faith, darling. I think I knew I loved you even before I met. I love you, Katy. * Kiss * Goodbye

_________________

10:01 PM EDT

http://sports.yahoo.com/mls/news;_ylt=Ah18g8dAcUWy_X4w53O_qzhQ0bYF?slug=ap-mls-dynamo-revolution&prov=ap&type=lgns

7 minutes ago

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP)—Steve Ralston and Adam Cristman scored first-half goals Saturday as the New England Revolution opened the season with a 3-0 win over the Houston Dynamo in a rematch of the last two MLS Cup finals, both won by Houston.

...

*r

Love you man, but updates?  You can  express more.  I know though - we all do the same.  I am just tweaking you because of time and place.  Nothing personal...more a commentary on the state of the blog.

I find it hard to understand (but 4 $$$) plating soccer or baseball in March in New England. X

t s/b y

I think I have read that letter three times and have cried each time.  It is not often that I cry, so I am thankful for reality.

http://www.doctorhook.com/

video 

Dr Hook & the Medicine Show - Sylvia's mother.flv

+

 http://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/national/gomez_letter.pdf

See, the brilliance of the blog (BFA - a wholly owned relevant subsidiary of DFA) once was that stupid hog blogging troll-isms like mine would fade ... into... the wind.

hi paine - I'll save the letter for a bit later, thank you.  I doubled my earth hour fun by dozing off for an extra hour!  going off the grid (mostly - I didn't turn the heat off - it's in the single digits tonight!) for an hour each day would be a good thing.  I try to keep things off when not in use but I am BAD about leaving my computer on all day when I'm home...  it seemed nice to shut down early tonight, but here I am, back online!

Daniel

of the HQ variety

when will the blog be unbroken? 

Will The Circle Be Unbroken

I'm for the government of Iraq

That's like being for Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy. 

Hi Joe.

I cried.

Sitka

is it always a response, or do you create vectors by other means.    

puddle

that makes my day, after crying twice already.  My eyes are irritated from crying. 

Texas:

TIMESTAMP - 9:50PM, 3/29/07

Clinton Delegates

Obama Delegates

TOTAL

of 7,649

Conventions Reporting

(of 284)

TOTAL

1,749

2,580

4,329

108

PERCENT

40.40%

59.60%

56.60%

38.03%

Lost my chart, lol!  That's Obama 59.60% to Hill's 40.40%

Sitka: you're against the tooth fairy?

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/...

British and US forces drawn into battle for Basra

.....The Sadrists-SIIC rivalry is behind the timing of Mr Maliki's Basra assault. Though he said it was aimed at all militias and illegal armed movements, the attack has only been against the Mehdi Army and not against the Fadhila party and the SIIC, which both control parts of the city. The SIIC is now the main support behind Mr Maliki.

---------

I don't know if America can stand a hundred years of this garbage as McCain says we're going to be subjected to. There isn't any rationale for what we're doing there. Its a disgrace.

Such a waste of time...one of the biggest nothings in American history.

Averitt Freemoney phillips, jr.

< what? 

Bean/Zappa '08?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=OsphFdcAKTw

11:25PM

Oh, thanks for the release, Lenny.

OK, paine. You can check out this version too; should be same track different video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IlE8yAmW3E&feature=related

11:39 pm

I'm for the government of Iraq - not the malitias.  So, I want Sadr crushed. 

"...........Mr Maliki's confident prediction that he would crush the Mehdi Army is turning out to be a dangerous gamble that is fast eroding his authority. It is damaging to President Bush, who had claimed the US "surge" had brought about a turning point in America's five-year-old war to pacify Iraq. Mr Bush had praised the offensive as showing that the Iraqi security forces, trained and supported by the US, could at last stand and fight on their own. So far, the gun battles in Baghdad and the Shia south of Iraq are providing evidence that exactly the opposite is true............."

very good contribution, Lenny

sunlight

<I am OK with evidence of Bush's failure as CinC becoming ever more evident.  Let it be on the Republicans, but let us not support the those who are backed by Iran.  Not me, anywho. 

It's so strange to think that a country needs military bases all over the world to defend it's security at home.

When you look at China's history you know it has a different approach in trying to rule the world.

11:54 pm EDST

and I gotta rest/sleep/dream

night good folks. 

YouTubehttp://www.infowars.com/?p=1152

TX caucus convention threads.

 Wow.

 Go, Obama!

I admit, as a last resort China does as the US, use physical force.

Who will win?

The moral or the physical forces?
America will loose if it relies solely on physical forces.
That's what the Bush doctrine has been.
Rely on physical strength.

point of reference

1:03 am

Sadr won a place in the government, and had imposed a ceasefire on his followers so now we initiated a civil war and we can't leave because the surge is working or can't leave because the surge isn't working.

the American people see through this

that's why Obama keeps rising in the polls

McCain is tired old "100year war man" who will be lucky to carry 15 states

I find it hard to understand (but 4 $$$) plating soccer or baseball in March in New England. X  

Everywhere else in the world football (soccer) is a winter sport.  they would never dream of playing it in 100 degree weather like in the US.  They play all winter in Russia, Holland, Germany, Soctland, England, Belarus, Czech republic.  France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, every country has their own league.   It is a winter sport so playing in spring is really nice compared to 35 degree and driving rain in  Villa Park in December.

I'm for the government of Iraq

That's like being for Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy. 

the delegate allocation process allows for growth in numbers by the front runner as others drop out by holding multi-stage voting like in Texas and most other states and it is a slow motion IRV but is rolling towards an Obama nomination by a comfortable number (sorry Gore fans)

we had the meeting of the convention committees for our District today (activist leaders) and our rules allow a caucus by preference and may well have if it was close enough for the election of the committee chairs to matter but we declined and met as committees as a whole

our next reporting will very likely show additional delegate pickups for Obama just like Texas and as that goes forward in won't matter too much whether Clinton wins PA

I don't have any problem with the voting continuing because we need to organize those states for the fall election anyway, no reason for Clinton to drop out, the allocation of delegates process delivers that result anyway

If we had moved right to elections as Jay Garner wanted in Iraq they would have elected Sistani's pick and we would have avoided having to hunt down the sunnis before we have to hunt down the shias before we have to hunt down the sunnis before we have to hunt down the shia (before we switch sides again for a hundred years like McCain suggests)

we armed the sunni militia and called it a surge and now we are weakening the shia so the "right" negroponte death squads can go about finishing the ethnic cleansing neighborhood by neighborhood and our national guard can go around putting up concrete barriers street by street?

HUH!!!???? 

Patraeus is "brilliant" ???   lol

BTW Fox, Hamas won an election in Gaza.

who doesn't like elections? lol

I think I might have missed a pretty good basketball game during the blackout

I'm going to share a bit of our platform deliberations now that we have voted to adopt five out of six subcommittee reports, we finish next Sat.

nite all

Fox Mulder
I'm sorry, I don't get your feelings.

Sitka calling the Iraqi government the Tooth Fairy means he despises the electoral process?

Calling soccer a winter sport kind of disputes your credibility.

Just for fun:

12:38 am

 The thing that makes absolutely no sense to me is that this blog has no timestamp and no proper sequencing.

I know a kid who wrote blog software from scratch that has a timestamp proper sequencing.
He claims it took him 12 hours.

So, that's what I can't figure out: Why is this blog kept on a short leash by claiming it takes months if not years to make this blog work?

Another question:
Why are we tolerating this barely functioning blog and continue to blog here?

As always you depise the electoral process. Either in the primaries here or in Iraq. They voted and we are stuck with the results whether we like it or not. =========

As always, like most Republicans, Fox, you have a superficial understanding of the electoral process. Inherent in a democracy is a fundamental belief in the rule of law. Do you believe that most Iraqis believe, or even really understand the concept of a government of laws not men?!?!?!?!?

Please sign up at your community college for US History 101 or at least watch John Adams currently on PBS...you can sit on YOUR fat arse and, hopefully learn something.

Congressmen:   CDC punished doctor for good work

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has begun a process that could lead to the firing of an Atlanta scientist who tried to make public environmental dangers in the Great Lakes region and in trailers housing Hurricane Katrina's victims, congressional investigators said....

In an interview with the Journal-Constitution last month, De Rosa said he was demoted for insisting the CDC thoroughly investigate the long-term health risks of formaldehyde in trailers the federal government purchased to house victims of Hurricane Katrina. The CDC and the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced in February that thousands of Katrina victims need to be moved out of trailers because of dangerous levels of formaldehyde, a colorless gas used in the production of plywood....

http://www.ajc.com/gwinnett/content/news/stories/2008/03/28/cdc_0328.html

"...the fighting in Iraq is not what it seems. The central-government-versus-renegade-militias narrative doesn't fit neatly. Excellent point. Cluing into the power struggle dynamics is indeed critical to understanding what's going on.

But here's another reminder. Isn't the fact that the Center v. Militias story line doesn't fit itself highly significant?

I don't usually go in for simple binary good guy / bad guy breakdowns, but isn't this a situation where it should actually be appropriate? If a governing authority is legitimate, then the government should have a legal monopoly on force.

And if Iraq's rulers are one more set of contestants for power rather than truly being at the helm of the state, can I ask what the hell we're doing there?"

http://www.democracyarsenal.org/

1.

Tony Cordesman had a pretty good summary of what we know and what we don't know.

Much of the current coverage of the fighting in the south assumes that Muqtada al-Sadr and the Sadr militia are the "spoilers," or bad guys, and that the government forces are the legitimate side and bringing order. This can be a dangerous oversimplification. There is no question that many elements of the JAM have been guilty of sectarian cleansing, and that the Sadr movement in general is hostile to the US and is seeking to enhance Muqtada al-Sadr's political power. There is also no doubt that the extreme rogue elements in the JAM have continued acts of violence in spite of the ceasefire, and that some have ties to Iran. No one should romanticize the Sadr movement, understate the risks it presents, or ignore the actions of the extreme elements of the JAM.

But no one should romanticize Maliki, Al Dawa, or the Hakim faction/ISCI. The current fighting is as much a power struggle for control of the south, and the Shi'ite parts of Baghdad and the rest of the country, as an effort to establish central government authority and legitimate rule.

http://www.democracyarsenal.org/2008/03/...

2.

The nature of this power struggle was all too clear during a recent visit to Iraq. ISCI had de facto control over the Shi'ite governorates in the south, and was steadily expanding its influence and sometimes control over the Iraqi police. It was clearly positioning itself for power struggle with Sadr and for any elections to come. It also was positioning itself to support Hakim's call for a nine governorate Shi'ite federation -- a call that it had clear Iranian support.

The US teams we talked to also made it clear that these appointments by the central government had no real popular base. If local and provincial elections were held with open lists, it was likely that ISCI and Dawa would lose most elections because they are seen as having failed to bring development and government services.

There was no real debate over how bad the overall governance of the south was at the provincial level, how poor the flow of capital was from the central government in Baghdad, and how poor government-related services were even in Shi'ite areas. As recent ABC polls show, incompetence and corruption are not sectarian. The south may be more secure, but Shi'ites only receive marginally better treatment from the central government than Sunnis.

3.

Members of the US team differed over how much the Sadrists had a populist base and broad support among the poor Shi'ite Iraqis in the south, and how well the Sadrists could do in any provincial and local elections, although most felt Sadr still had a broad base of support in Baghdad. One of the key uncertainties that emerged during visits to the south was over how elections would shape up when there were no real political parties operating with local leaders, and in a framework of past national elections that only allowed Iraqis to vote for entire lists (most with many totally unfamiliar names) for the main parties and that made no allowance for the direct election of members of the COR that represented a given area or district. Optimists hope for a populist upswell; realists foresee an uncertain mess.

There were also differences over how much Sadr was waiting out the effort to defeat Al Qa'ida before allowing the JAM to become active again, and how much he was repositioning himself to strengthen his political and religious position for a more normal political life. In practice, he may be doing both, may be as confused by the uncertain nature of Iraqi politics and security as everyone else, and may be dealing with a movement so fractured and diverse that effective control of even its mainstream is difficult to impossible.

It was also clear that Basra was a special case. The British position had essentially eroded to the point of hiding in the airport. There was a fair amount of bluster about joint planning, training, and patrols, but little evidence of substance. Moreover, the power struggle in Basra differed sharply from the struggle in the other Shi'ite provinces. Basra was essentially divided up among Shi'ite party mafias, each of which had its own form of extortion and corruption. They sometimes fought and feuded, but had a crude modus vivendi at the expense of the rest of the nation. Basra also had far more Iranian penetration in both the civil and security sectors than the other Shi'ite governorates. However, it was clear that Iran and the Al Quds force continued to be equal opportunity supporters of all the Shi'ite militias, and that Iran effectively was ensuring that it would support the winner, regardless of who the winner was.

4. (and last from Democracy Arsenal)

This does not mean that the central government should not reassert control of Basra. It is not peaceful, it is a significant prize as a port and the key to Iraq's oil exports, and gang rule is no substitute for legitimate government. But it is far from clear that what is happening is now directed at serving the nation's interest versus that of ISCI and Al Dawa in the power struggle to come. It is equally far from clear that the transfer of security responsibility to Iraqi forces in the south is not being used by Maliki, Al Dawa, and ISCI to cement control over the Shi'ite regions at Sadr's expense and at the expense of any potential local political leaders and movements. Certainly, the fact that these efforts come after ISCI's removal of its objections to the Provincial Powers Act may not be entirely coincidental.

Is the end result going to be good or bad? It is very difficult to tell.

If the JAM and Sadr turn on the US, or if the current ISCI/Dawa power grab fails, then Shi'ite on Shi'ite violence could become far more severe. It is also far from clear that if the two religious-exile parties win, this is going to serve the cause of political accommodation or legitimate local and provincial government.

It seems far more likely that even the best case outcome is going be one that favors Iraqracy over democracy.

Fox Mulder
I'm sorry, I don't get your feelings.

Sitka calling the Iraqi government the Tooth Fairy means he despises the electoral process?

Calling soccer a winter sport kind of disputes your credibility.

Your lack of knowing that every country in the world plays soccer from Fall through Winter into May in the Northern hemisphere and just the opposite in the Southern Hemishpere means either you are not interested in soccer or do not travel to europe often. 

Okay,

i admit I don't know the schedule that much. Winter in Europe is not really winter as I know it.

Well, I'm interested in soccer somewhat but I admit I don't travel to europe.

Soccer is a year round sport.

Except in the Us. Here it's a fall sport.

spam took over the browse all and it is a weekend of auto-pilot

good luck with that

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Obama won Texas,

when will the Subday morning shows admit the truth?

Sitka: you're against the tooth fairy? 

Not at all. I just know that, like the "Iraqi government," there is no such thing. 

Obama won Texas,

It depends on the definition of "won."

If it means, "got more votes in the primary," Hillary won.

If it means, "wound up with more delegates," Obama did. 

 ____________As always you depise the electoral process.

As always, you despise the truth and make it up for your own ends out of whole cloth. 

Either in the primaries here or in Iraq.

Both processes were concocted by the corrupt to serve the corrupt. 

They voted and we are stuck with the results whether we like it or not.

In an election as rigged as the one that put Bushboy in the WH.  And while Iraqis are stuck with it for now, we aren't.

they have an elected parliment with a judiciary risking their lives everyday

It was weighted before the so called electetion ever took place. 

while you sit in peace over here on your fat ass and bad mouth them. 

We can't all kiss Bush's lying ass as you do. 

ATTN: All friends of Al Gore:

Gore On Climate Naysayers - Al Gore says that thinking climate change isn't manmade is like believing the moon landing was staged and that the earth is flat. He speaks to Lesley Stahl this Sunday, March 30, at 7 p.m. ET/PT.

http://www.cbsnews.com/sections/i_video/main500251.shtml?id=3974505n

Good morning, BFA! Time change on schedule so now we're back to six hours ahead of EDT.

********
Noticed an exchange about football (US = soccer; everywhere else in the world = football; US *football* = *American football*) upthread.

I am hardly an expert on football/soccer, but our Fox oversimplifies, as usual, to make things fit into whatever frame he makes.

While the European *season* (it's generally different from how we consider seasons in any event) may end in May, the various championship games continue throughout the summer, so it is patently not true that there are no games played in the summer heat. I remember driving through Spain in July 1982, for example, the year that the World Cup matches were played throughout that country. Things were very tense between Spain and the UK because of the Falklands War (Spain, of course, favored Argentina). And the temperature was hot too. LOL

This year, the UEFA Cup (Euro Cup) championships will be played in Austria and Switzerland in June. Qualification games for those championships began in August 2006. People around here are VERY excited, to say the least. And UEFA HQ is literally just down the road a bit.

In you are interested and want some real info, check out these sites. There are also plenty of others.

http://www.tompgalvin.com/features/socce...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euro_2008

Sorry, just ran a memory fact check ... drove through Spain in mid June-early July 1982. Close ... and it was 26 years back ... senior moment.

************
Paine, cC posted good facts that should get you thinking about the fighting in Basra. Remember Basra = majority Shi'ite area. The Shia in general are close to Iran. Remember the triumphal visit of the Iranian PM to Baghdad and how much was made (ah well, perhaps not to much was made of it in the US press after all) of its being openly publicized as contrasted with the sneaky *surprise* visits of putz, prick & Condi.

This is Shia infighting. So saying that you *back* the Maliki faction against the Sadr faction because Iran backs Sadr is really like six of one, a half dozen of the other. If is just that the US backs the Maliki faction because the Maliki government = US puppet.

The Maliki faction also includes powerful very unsavory characters like Chalabi, who pushed to get the US into this illegal invasion and occupation in the first lace. Just which faction do you believe that the Iraqi people in general empathize with, whether they happen to be Shia or Sunni?

Bottom US lines = O. I. L. and B.A.S.E.S.

But another upcoming global resource battle will also be W.A.T.E.R.

========================
Those who control oil and water will control the world
New superpowers are competing for diminishing resources as Britain becomes a bit-player.
The outcome could be deadly
John Gray The Observer, Sunday March 30 2008

History may not repeat itself, but, as Mark Twain observed, it can sometimes rhyme. The crises and conflicts of the past recur, recognisably similar even when altered by new conditions. At present, a race for the world's resources is underway that resembles the Great Game that was played in the decades leading up to the First World War. Now, as then, the most coveted prize is oil and the risk is that as the contest heats up it will not always be peaceful. But this is no simple rerun of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Today, there are powerful new players and it is not only oil that is at stake.

[...]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/...

Good morning, everybody

John McCain is Vietnam's revenge on US.  We send him to bomb; they sent back a guy with a twisted shoulder and a twisted psyche.

So, OK, he's not the only guy who likes the idea of bombing brown people back to the stone age, but it's not a practice we should celebrate.

This campaign season let's make it two for two--toss "experience" on the scrap heap of history.

What were they thinking making an ad with the guy flat on his back reciting his name and serial number?  They're using Hanoi propaganda images?  Trying to sell Hanoi John.

Looks like the Rove MO--make strengths out of your weaknesses.  Contrast that with the BO MO--wiry and wiley; not weak. 

As of last night, 1 USD = CHF .99

Thanks again, putz, for all that your administration has done to destroy our country.

This threat is a real one ... and it is imminent.

================
Dollar chilled by rise of euro
The once-unchallenged world hegemony of the US currency is under threat as its value plummets and investors desert it
Richard Wachman
The Observer, Sunday March 30 2008

Lurking behind the headline-grabbing stories about the credit crunch, the US housing crash and the near-death experiences of Northern Rock and Bear Stearns, is the bigger one about the slump in the value of the American dollar.

So steeply has the greenback fallen in value against its main rivals - the euro and the Japanese yen - that economists are talking about the dollar losing its status as the world's reserve currency, a position it has held since 1945.

[...]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/...

For the sake of Zimbabwe, let us hope that this is true ... and, if true, let us hope that these results will be honored.

It is long past time for the tyrant Mugabe to fall.

But tyrants do not like being denied what they believe is their *just due.*

Let us also remember that in November. 'CainCo = putzCo III

=================
Zimbabwe opposition claims huge poll win
· MDC says Mugabe party 'massacred'
· Result released 'to stop fraud attempt'
Chris McGreal in Harare
The Observer, Sunday March 30 2008

Zimbabwe's opposition party claimed an overwhelming victory against President Robert Mugabe in yesterday's presidential election, saying that the flow of results showed its candidate, Morgan Tsvangirai, had 'massacred' the ruling Zanu-PF party.

The Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) defied a government ban on pre-empting the official announcement of the election results and released the count from polling stations that showed Tsvangirai beating the man who has ruled Zimbabwe for 28 years, even in the president's home territory of Mashonaland.

[...]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar...

Hi, Monica, sorry to keep pushing you down! I can't help myself ... LOL.

HQ, please, this really should not be rocket science.

yes, judy, I've been trying to make the point that the Iraqi Constitution we shoved down their throats gives the national government control over ALL natural resources (land, minerals, water and forest products).  It should have told us something that the first thing the US corps of engineers did was have the marshes near Basra restored to retard the flow of water to the Gulf.  The US also took care to protect the dams, even though they bombed the water wells in Al Anbar.  It's my sense that the plan was to redirect the water supply lines over to Jordan and Israel.  The longer the mayhem continues, the longer they can hide the grand scheme.

The thing that really irked Saddam's opponents was his effort to industrialize agriculture by relocating farming villages to clear the land an make it easier to work with machines.  This land use policy was attractive to the likes of Monsanto and Cargill.  Indeed, one of the first disasters of the occupation was the poisoning of the farmers who ate the seed they were given, instead of planting it.  It had been laced with insecticide or herbicide.

Iraq is nothing but an old fashioned land grab. 

A *new* civil war in Iraq? I didn't realize that the *old* one had ceased.

Who won the *old* one? Did I miss when *the Decider* declared *Mission Accomplished* yet again? We know how much we can rely on any pronouncement from that source.

==============
Under siege in Baghdad's Mahdi army stronghold
The violence that began in Basra and spread to the capital continues as fears of a new civil war grow
Sudarsan Raghavan
The Observer, Sunday March 30 2008

The gunfire built to a steady rhythm. American soldiers in a Stryker armoured vehicle fired from one end of the block. At the other end, two groups of Shia militiamen pounded back with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades. US helicopters circled above in the blue afternoon sky.

As a barrage erupted outside his parents' house, Abu Mustafa al-Thahabi, adviser to the Mahdi army of Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, rushed through the gate to take shelter. He had just spoken with a fighter by mobile phone. 'I told him not to use that weapon. It's not effective,' he said, talking of the rocket-propelled grenade. 'I told him to use the IED, the Iranian one,' he added, referring to an improvised explosive device. 'This is more effective.'

After nearly a year of relative calm, US troops and Shia militia engaged in pitched battles last week, underscoring how quickly order can give way to chaos in Iraq.

[...]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar...

sunlight, suffering the blog is our penance for Iraq.  How can we complain about a bit of randomness when Iraqis are being bombed to hell and back by our bombs and missiles.

The AF finally couldn't resist anymore yesterday and had to show the video from a cockpit of a hellfire missile "taking out" three insurgents at once, along with a building in a fireball.  Need to go see how much a hellfire missile costs.

' 

Actually, Monica, it is my considered opinion that the NSC could do a lot worse than to give you an assignment as a researcher in a Dem administration. You could even work from home if you want to work for wages at all.

Relying on RW think tanks certainly has gotten US into very deep sh**.

And the Dems in Congress should have known and should now know better.

Shame on every last one of them who has voted to support putzCo's policy in Iraq in any way whatsoever.

Both of the current Dem candidates have vowed to do better, but of the two Clinton has made more missteps, IMO, and I personally am very sorry to see that she has never really owned up to them. I am also sorry to see how her campaign has deteriorated and degenerated over these past few weeks with both bad campaign strategy and bad campaign strategists. This did not need to happen.

But I am also furious at a MSM that basically gives 'Cain a free pass. I hope that will change once there is a clear Dem nominee. (I won't hold my breath, however.)

We have been at the least badly served by our MSM, if not actually betrayed. I lean towards outright betrayal myself.

Yes, I know that it is petty to complain about the blog sequencing when there are real problems out and about. But still, sequencing used to work.

If it wasn't *broke,* why was it *fixed?*

Sorry for big white space.  That was little finger stuck on return instead of shift.

Anyway, the action in Iraq is evidence of control.  Al Sadr says 'stop fighting' and a cease fire holds for six months.  Then he says 'resist' and they do.  That's control.  I get the sense that the US military still hasn't caught on that they don't need electricity to communicate in Iraq.  You can tell from the fact that they always report what the loud-speakers from the mosques are announcing, as if that was significant. 

I suspect the sequencing problem, which showed up long before they shut down the time stamp, is a software problem in the operating system, rather than the blog application.  That means they have to get new server software and probably new computers.  One of my linux boxes has a clock problem in the sense that the clock keeps losing minutes and doesn't get set by the international system on the web.  The reason your computer clock doesn't go off when you turn it off, is because there's an internal clock, like in your car, and some sort of battery.  Perhaps the batteries in the DFA server have gone bad.  Since they want the system to stay up round the clock, they have to have multiple servers and be able to switch back and forth.

I remember how I inadvertently ran into the leader of one of these Doomsday cults in Missoula, MT in the winter of 1979. Their beliefs literally do boggle the mind of anyone who is reality-based.

I had gone into a local print shop to get my CV printed (remember when we used to have to do that?) when the owner, who was waiting on me, asked me why I wanted to leave Missoula because the world was going to end early in 1980 and Missoula would be the only *safe* place.

I first thought that he must be joking but realized that he was as serious as he could be.

I told him that I believed in hedging my bets and that, if he wanted my business, he should just go ahead and print off the cv, which he did. It was a success, since now I am here, although the manner of getting here was definitely not a straight line, lots of interesting zigs and sags.

The world didn't end as his group thought it would, so in a local newspaper interview in 1980, he backtracked a little, saying that *something* had occurred on the designated date (which I truly cannot remember) that would lead to the end of the world.

On that point, he may be correct, but it's taking a while to take effect. But Mount St. Helen's DID blow its top a few weeks after that interview and the ash cloud came and settled over Missoula so that we were supposed to avoid going outdoors for a week, with schools and all activities other than some food stores and emergency services being shut down. The gray-filled days until the cloud moved on put us all in mind of a nuclear winter. It was an mpressive and frightening experience.

With 'Cain potentially at the US helm, that scenario could actually come true, if putzCo don't beat him to the punch.

I wonder whether that particular cult is still there. I'm sure that there are others in its place, if not.

=============
Russian doomsday cult members emerge from cave
By Mike Eckelin
Sunday, 30 March 2008

Seven women members of a Russian doomsday cult who have been holed up in a cave since November awaiting the end of the world have emerged blinking into the daylight.

More than two dozen members, including four children under the age of two, remain inside the cave in the Penza region, about 400 miles south-east of Moscow. It is not known if they plan to stay there until the predicted apocalypse, in May.

The vice-governor of the Penza region, Oleg Melnichenko, said the group's leader, self-declared prophet Pyotr Kuznetsov, was brought from a psychiatric hospital to help persuade the women to come out.

[...]
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/europe...

Thanks for your thoughts on the sequencing, Monica. Perhaps that is what is causing the problem. I am one of those who believes that machines that work are literally miracles (lots of good little gremlins running about inside).

It's a good thing that my spouse is an engineer, with a much more practical turn of mind.

The Clinton campaign was pretty shitty from the start.  They did incredible things in NH--like refusing admittance to people with home-made signs and then handing out the self-same message on manufactured ones.  It was clear that the consultants and ad people had an agenda to spend money on certain things and not others and that was initially true of both the Obama and Clinton campaign.  Obama's got better, in the sense of getting down to brass tacks; Clinton's didn't.

If you were to go back and read my early reaction (on Bluehampshire) to the campaigns when they arrived last winter, you'd see that I was equally critical of both.   The difference was that the Clinton apologists routinely attacked the messenger, instead of the problem.  The "loyalty" theme was apparent early on.   Clinton got an advantage in NH because they had connections to the state party elite, many of whom were still lusting for another chance at a tour in D.C.

This is the last for now ... have good ones!

*******
It's time to pack up *Ole Dan* and head for *them thar hills.*

*Ole Dan* may look more like an SUV or ATV these days, but Dan doesn't use expensive gas to get there.

==========
Economic woes spark new US gold rush
By David Usborne
Sunday, 30 March 2008

Soaring precious metal prices, accompanied by a national economy that is suddenly on the skids, is spurring a modern-day gold rush across northern California, and other sections of the western United States and Canada, that veterans of panning and sluicing have not seen in many a decade.

It is not quite the stampede of 1849, the year that marked the beginning of the original Gold Rush, when some 300,000 adventurers rushed to California in covered wagons and by sea. Where the "49ers" were rugged and wild, the "08ers" generally turn up on weekends with metal detectors in minivans.

But, as gold prices reach historic highs – passing $1,000 an ounce earlier this month, and with the spring thaw just beginning, the traffic in these areas is expected to be heavy.

[...]
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/...

BTW, before I check KOS, I just think that whenever the "t" word is used, we should correct to "services." 

"No service" --That's the ticket.  Just like no service at the soda fountain in the drug store; no service at the lunch counter in the five and dime; no service at the public pool; no service at the emergency room; no service at the neighborhood catholic church; no service at the parochial school.  What we're being promised is another "NO" administration.

It's the "swimming pool solution" writ large--just shut everything but the prisons down.  What a way to run a country. 

7:14 am edt

NEW THREAD

http://www.blogforamerica.com/view/24606#comments

7:15 - hey, cool, it ended up on the bottom!

NEW THREAD

http://www.blogforamerica.com/view/24606#comments