Tuesday, October 05, 2004
Jugular: I know it’s easy to do it ‘from here’, but Kerry’s reluctance to lay out Bush’s failures is startling and befuddling. We know that most Democrats have trouble being combative, and as many have commented, there were innumerable opportunities to score big in last week’s debate.
A seemingly lesser example is over North Korea where a hard-to-understand exchange about the value of bi-lateral talks went on. Kerry didn’t tell the audience that the Bush Administration walked away from talks with North Korea, that their disengagement is what has so agitated those in D.C. who are capable of thinking.
Edwards similarly had oodles of opportunities, especially re Cheney’s lying re the al-Qaeda-Saddam non-link, the secrecy, the alliance with corporate Amerika and did a better job than Kerry. Still, he too took almost 30 minutes to remind us that Cheney didn’t answer the first question, and did so gently. Edwards did well re the 9/11 Commission, Heartland Security, “reaction” vs action.
Very difficult to listen to the drumbeat of lies from Cheney. The loss of “over 1 million jobs” from 9/11” is especially galling, as that claim keeps escalating, as it hasn’t been countered. And, the nonsense about 1.7 million jobs since last August- why don’t Kerry/Edwards say, "The economy must produce 1.8 million jobs for each 12 months just to keep up with the growing population.”
Of course Cheney does a much better job with his lies than Bush; they are “credible” for those who don’t know, which should make this event a draw. Again, SO many lies that Edwards could have said, ‘Gwen, there are so many misstatements, distortions and lies to correct, if I answered them all, I’d barely address your questions.’
Remember to visit some of these web sites to register your opinion.
CNNMSNBCFox NewsABC NewsCBS NewsSeattle Post-Intelligencer & Seattle TimesArizona RepublicSan Jose Mercury News / Contra Costa TimesPhiladelphia Inquirer/Daily NewsSan Diego Union-TribuneKansas City StarDetroit NewsLas Vegas Review-JournalSt. Petersburg TimesCleveland Plain DealerSt. Louis Post-DispatchOrlando SentinelOregonianPittsburgh Tribune-ReviewSt. Paul Pioneer PressGrand Rapids PressOrange County RegisterNew Orleans Times-PicayuneAkron Beacon Journal
NPR Shilling for Bush: Who needs Fox when you have Juan Williams? I’m trying to avoid NPR because of the fundraising, but managed to catch the house mediocrity Juan Williams parroting the Republican line that Kerry “talked about getting global consent for America to take preemptive action.” Naturally, the host, Renee Montaign, didn’t correct him.
Not to be outdone: ABC had a fair and balanced panel for the program This Week: 3 conservatives and a middle-road-should’ve-retired-when-she -said-she-would (2 years ago)- George Will, David Brooks, Fareed Zakaria, and Cokie Roberts
…Which reminds me:
Progressive Radio, Boston: This week begins Boston’s participation: 1430 on the AM dial hosts Air America programs. Al Franken, noon- 3PM is heartily recommended, and the hourly news casts are friendly. Try it; great for morale.
Bush To Give a Speech. He can’t do well in debates, so he gets time to explain Iraq / “war on terror”. Of course, Kerry will get equal time, or will the corporate media rule otherwise?
Playing on Fear: It works. We knew that; here’s some proof:
When the federal government issues a terrorist warning, presidential approval ratings jump, a Cornell University sociologist finds. Interestingly, terrorist warnings also boost support for the president on issues that are largely irrelevant to terrorism, such as his handling of the economy.
Robb Willer, assistant director of the Sociology and Small Groups Laboratory at Cornell and a doctoral candidate in sociology who expects his Ph.D. in May 2005, tracked the 26 times that a federal government agency reported an increased threat of terrorist activity in the United States between February 2001 and May 2004. He also tracked the 131 Gallup Polls that were conducted during the same period. He then conducted several time-series and regression analyses on the relationship between government-issued terror warnings and Gallup Poll data on approval ratings of President George W. Bush.
"Results showed that terror warnings increased presidential approval ratings consistently," says Willer. "They also increased support for Bush's handling of the economy. The findings, however, were inconclusive as to how long this halo effect lasts." http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/Oct04/terrorist.Bush.ssl.html
“Dirty Campaigning” in Full Swing: Minneapolis papers:
A series of billboards around the Twin Cities that brazenly declare "DON'T VOTE" have angered civil rights activists. Fifteen of the billboards have sprung up in Minneapolis, St. Paul and its suburbs in the last few days. Several are in areas with large minority populations, including the Phillips neighborhood in Minneapolis, leading the NAACP and other groups to criticize even the suggestion that citizens shouldn't exercise the right to vote [...]
And, there’s the “Group” and their web site, “Kerry Wrong for Catholics.’
http://kerrywrongforcatholics.com/.
If one takes a hard look at the site, you find:
Paid for by the Republican National Committee Not Authorized By Any Candidate Or Candidate Committee - http://www.gop.com/
Amen.
What’s Happening, Iraq: Poland Withdraws: The Coalition of the Drilling is NOT growing.
Poland should withdraw its troops from Iraq by the end of next year, Polish leaders said Monday, the first time the key U.S. ally has indicated a timeframe for pulling its soldiers out of the wartorn nation.
President Aleksander Kwasniewski said no final decision has been made on when to withdraw forces but Warsaw was considering the late 2005 deadline with the hopes that elections scheduled for January in Iraq would bring stability to the country. http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4534125,00.html
Ex-Hostages Lose Their Popularity. They were golden: two attractive Italian women released after five days in captivity. But, now…
"If you ask me about terrorism, I'll tell you that there is terrorism and there is resistance. The resistance struggle of people against an occupying force is guaranteed by international law."
The women's comments are likely to cause renewed anger in government circles, following their call soon after their release for Italy's peacekeeping forces to be withdrawn.
Miss Torretta admitted that was now studying Islam, although she denied that was planning to convert.
The two women have also ruffled feathers by thanking Italy's Islamic community for working for their release before thanking the government and the Italian Red Cross.
After they were taken hostage on Sept 7, the two Simonas achieved iconic status in Italy and the conservative government and the opposition put aside their differences to work together for the women's release. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/core/Content/displayPrintable.jhtml;sessionid=DTC5ZXO5CV1MBQFIQMFCM5OAVCBQYJVC?xml=/news/2004/10/02/wsim02.xml&site=5
Moonies and Bush Administration
President Bush has some new troops in his crusade to promote "healthy marriage" and teen celibacy with federal funds -- followers of the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, the controversial Korean evangelist and self-proclaimed new world messiah.
At least four longtime operatives of Moon's Unification Church are on the federal payroll or getting government grants in the administration's Healthy Marriage Initiative and other "faith-based" programs.
In some ways, Moon is an unlikely ally for President Bush's crusade to promote traditional family values.
The 85-year-old Korean is perhaps best known for presiding over mass marriage ceremonies for devotees whose unions are arranged by Moon or other church leaders. After marriage, Unification Church couples are given detailed instructions for their honeymoon, right down to the sexual positions they are supposed to assume during their first three conjugal couplings.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/10/03/MNG4M936HP1.DTL&type=printable
Bremer re the Troops: The Administration Lies Never Cease Edwards could have drawn this out even more.
Bremer, 10/4/04: We needed more troops.
Pentagon, 10/5/04: A senior Defense Department official said that Bremer never asked for more troops and expressed annoyance the ambassador appeared to be second-guessing the advice of military officials. Bremer stepped down after the June 28 handover to an interim Iraqi government. http://www.cnn.com/
Bremer: 7/1/03: The top American administrator in Iraq, confronting growing anti-U.S. anger and guerrilla-style attacks, is asking for more American troops and dozens of U.S. officials to help speed up the restoration of order and public services.Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld was reviewing the request from L. Paul Bremer, U.S. officials said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/special_packages/iraq/6213247.htm
Charley Pierce on Bush and Religion. Touche.
One element of the essential C-Plus Augustus that few people dare examine is the possibility that he's as ignorant of his professed Christianity as he of so many other important things in this world. I mean, that is one of the most famous passages in Christ's public ministry. Hell (you should pardon the expression), "casting the first stone" has become a famous secular colloquialism.
I think his Christianity is simply a form he found with which to give structure to what was rapidly becoming a wastrel's life. I think it's a set of exercises -- the way some reformed drunks take to jogging or lifting weights to fill up those long, thirsty hours. I think he has some faith-based palaver that he runs through as though it were calisthenics, the same way he tosses around words like "freedom" and "liberty" when he can't think of anything else to say to explain the hash he's made of things in Iraq.
We've had a year in which John Kerry's fitness to receive communion was a topic of extended debate, but the sincerity of his opponent's religiosity was taken on, well, faith. Here's what I think: I don't think this guy knows enough Scripture -- let alone enough theology -- to throw to a cat. And I can't think of an institution less capable of examining this question than the modern mass media. http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3449870/
True Believers: Gallup: 62% of Republicans think Saddam was personally involved in planning 9/11. So, what does it mean?Discuss.
In response to another question, 32% said they thought Saddam had personally planned them. The same poll in June showed that 56% of all Republicans said they thought Saddam was involved with the 9/11 attacks. In the latest poll that number actually climbs, to 62%. The independent commission that investigated 9/11 concluded in June that there was "no credible evidence that Iraq and al-Qaeda cooperated on attacks against the United States." The panel also said "contacts" between al-Qaeda and Iraq "do not appear to have resulted in a collaborative relationship." http://www.mediainfo.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000653667
Putin: The former democrat does his part.
Practically unnoticed in all the hoopla surrounding the presidential debate this week was Vladimir Putin’s signing of the Kyoto Protocol. Although the Russian parliament must still ratify the pact, Putin’s turnaround marks a key moment in the world’s efforts to do something about global climate change, inarguably the most fundamental environmental issue of our time. Well, not inarguably. Because there are still people who say the evidence is nonexistent, or mixed, or, even if it’s real, has nothing to do with human-caused emissions of greenhouse gases. Or, even if climate change is occurring, and even if humans are contributing to it, that contribution is small compared with, say, fluctuations in solar output. Or, even if climate change is occurring, and even if humans are the major cause, there’s nothing we can do about it. And, if we did do something about it, it would wreck our economy. This, of course, has forever been the argument against every bit of environmental legislation from the get-go. Foes of protecting endangered species, recycling bottles and cans, prohibiting clear-cuts, banning dangerous chemicals or curtailing tailpipe emissions have always found their most potent objection in economics, which, they boil down to “lost jobs.”
Polls:
National polls are mostly even, a few have Bush up by 3- 5 points. More importantly, the state polls have Bush ahead, but many remain statistically tied.
New Jersey: Kerry 50, Bush 45 (Survey USA)
Florida: Bush 51, Kerry 46 (Survey USA)
Florida: Bush 51, Kerry 47 (Rasmussen)
Nevada: Bush 50, Kerry 46 (Survey USA)
New Hampshire: Bush 50, Kerry 45 (UNH) http://politicalwire.com/
-R
A seemingly lesser example is over North Korea where a hard-to-understand exchange about the value of bi-lateral talks went on. Kerry didn’t tell the audience that the Bush Administration walked away from talks with North Korea, that their disengagement is what has so agitated those in D.C. who are capable of thinking.
Edwards similarly had oodles of opportunities, especially re Cheney’s lying re the al-Qaeda-Saddam non-link, the secrecy, the alliance with corporate Amerika and did a better job than Kerry. Still, he too took almost 30 minutes to remind us that Cheney didn’t answer the first question, and did so gently. Edwards did well re the 9/11 Commission, Heartland Security, “reaction” vs action.
Very difficult to listen to the drumbeat of lies from Cheney. The loss of “over 1 million jobs” from 9/11” is especially galling, as that claim keeps escalating, as it hasn’t been countered. And, the nonsense about 1.7 million jobs since last August- why don’t Kerry/Edwards say, "The economy must produce 1.8 million jobs for each 12 months just to keep up with the growing population.”
Of course Cheney does a much better job with his lies than Bush; they are “credible” for those who don’t know, which should make this event a draw. Again, SO many lies that Edwards could have said, ‘Gwen, there are so many misstatements, distortions and lies to correct, if I answered them all, I’d barely address your questions.’
Remember to visit some of these web sites to register your opinion.
CNNMSNBCFox NewsABC NewsCBS NewsSeattle Post-Intelligencer & Seattle TimesArizona RepublicSan Jose Mercury News / Contra Costa TimesPhiladelphia Inquirer/Daily NewsSan Diego Union-TribuneKansas City StarDetroit NewsLas Vegas Review-JournalSt. Petersburg TimesCleveland Plain DealerSt. Louis Post-DispatchOrlando SentinelOregonianPittsburgh Tribune-ReviewSt. Paul Pioneer PressGrand Rapids PressOrange County RegisterNew Orleans Times-PicayuneAkron Beacon Journal
NPR Shilling for Bush: Who needs Fox when you have Juan Williams? I’m trying to avoid NPR because of the fundraising, but managed to catch the house mediocrity Juan Williams parroting the Republican line that Kerry “talked about getting global consent for America to take preemptive action.” Naturally, the host, Renee Montaign, didn’t correct him.
Not to be outdone: ABC had a fair and balanced panel for the program This Week: 3 conservatives and a middle-road-should’ve-retired-when-she -said-she-would (2 years ago)- George Will, David Brooks, Fareed Zakaria, and Cokie Roberts
…Which reminds me:
Progressive Radio, Boston: This week begins Boston’s participation: 1430 on the AM dial hosts Air America programs. Al Franken, noon- 3PM is heartily recommended, and the hourly news casts are friendly. Try it; great for morale.
Bush To Give a Speech. He can’t do well in debates, so he gets time to explain Iraq / “war on terror”. Of course, Kerry will get equal time, or will the corporate media rule otherwise?
Playing on Fear: It works. We knew that; here’s some proof:
When the federal government issues a terrorist warning, presidential approval ratings jump, a Cornell University sociologist finds. Interestingly, terrorist warnings also boost support for the president on issues that are largely irrelevant to terrorism, such as his handling of the economy.
Robb Willer, assistant director of the Sociology and Small Groups Laboratory at Cornell and a doctoral candidate in sociology who expects his Ph.D. in May 2005, tracked the 26 times that a federal government agency reported an increased threat of terrorist activity in the United States between February 2001 and May 2004. He also tracked the 131 Gallup Polls that were conducted during the same period. He then conducted several time-series and regression analyses on the relationship between government-issued terror warnings and Gallup Poll data on approval ratings of President George W. Bush.
"Results showed that terror warnings increased presidential approval ratings consistently," says Willer. "They also increased support for Bush's handling of the economy. The findings, however, were inconclusive as to how long this halo effect lasts." http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/Oct04/terrorist.Bush.ssl.html
“Dirty Campaigning” in Full Swing: Minneapolis papers:
A series of billboards around the Twin Cities that brazenly declare "DON'T VOTE" have angered civil rights activists. Fifteen of the billboards have sprung up in Minneapolis, St. Paul and its suburbs in the last few days. Several are in areas with large minority populations, including the Phillips neighborhood in Minneapolis, leading the NAACP and other groups to criticize even the suggestion that citizens shouldn't exercise the right to vote [...]
And, there’s the “Group” and their web site, “Kerry Wrong for Catholics.’
http://kerrywrongforcatholics.com/.
If one takes a hard look at the site, you find:
Paid for by the Republican National Committee Not Authorized By Any Candidate Or Candidate Committee - http://www.gop.com/
Amen.
What’s Happening, Iraq: Poland Withdraws: The Coalition of the Drilling is NOT growing.
Poland should withdraw its troops from Iraq by the end of next year, Polish leaders said Monday, the first time the key U.S. ally has indicated a timeframe for pulling its soldiers out of the wartorn nation.
President Aleksander Kwasniewski said no final decision has been made on when to withdraw forces but Warsaw was considering the late 2005 deadline with the hopes that elections scheduled for January in Iraq would bring stability to the country. http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-4534125,00.html
Ex-Hostages Lose Their Popularity. They were golden: two attractive Italian women released after five days in captivity. But, now…
"If you ask me about terrorism, I'll tell you that there is terrorism and there is resistance. The resistance struggle of people against an occupying force is guaranteed by international law."
The women's comments are likely to cause renewed anger in government circles, following their call soon after their release for Italy's peacekeeping forces to be withdrawn.
Miss Torretta admitted that was now studying Islam, although she denied that was planning to convert.
The two women have also ruffled feathers by thanking Italy's Islamic community for working for their release before thanking the government and the Italian Red Cross.
After they were taken hostage on Sept 7, the two Simonas achieved iconic status in Italy and the conservative government and the opposition put aside their differences to work together for the women's release. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/core/Content/displayPrintable.jhtml;sessionid=DTC5ZXO5CV1MBQFIQMFCM5OAVCBQYJVC?xml=/news/2004/10/02/wsim02.xml&site=5
Moonies and Bush Administration
President Bush has some new troops in his crusade to promote "healthy marriage" and teen celibacy with federal funds -- followers of the Rev. Sun Myung Moon, the controversial Korean evangelist and self-proclaimed new world messiah.
At least four longtime operatives of Moon's Unification Church are on the federal payroll or getting government grants in the administration's Healthy Marriage Initiative and other "faith-based" programs.
In some ways, Moon is an unlikely ally for President Bush's crusade to promote traditional family values.
The 85-year-old Korean is perhaps best known for presiding over mass marriage ceremonies for devotees whose unions are arranged by Moon or other church leaders. After marriage, Unification Church couples are given detailed instructions for their honeymoon, right down to the sexual positions they are supposed to assume during their first three conjugal couplings.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/10/03/MNG4M936HP1.DTL&type=printable
Bremer re the Troops: The Administration Lies Never Cease Edwards could have drawn this out even more.
Bremer, 10/4/04: We needed more troops.
Pentagon, 10/5/04: A senior Defense Department official said that Bremer never asked for more troops and expressed annoyance the ambassador appeared to be second-guessing the advice of military officials. Bremer stepped down after the June 28 handover to an interim Iraqi government. http://www.cnn.com/
Bremer: 7/1/03: The top American administrator in Iraq, confronting growing anti-U.S. anger and guerrilla-style attacks, is asking for more American troops and dozens of U.S. officials to help speed up the restoration of order and public services.Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld was reviewing the request from L. Paul Bremer, U.S. officials said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/special_packages/iraq/6213247.htm
Charley Pierce on Bush and Religion. Touche.
One element of the essential C-Plus Augustus that few people dare examine is the possibility that he's as ignorant of his professed Christianity as he of so many other important things in this world. I mean, that is one of the most famous passages in Christ's public ministry. Hell (you should pardon the expression), "casting the first stone" has become a famous secular colloquialism.
I think his Christianity is simply a form he found with which to give structure to what was rapidly becoming a wastrel's life. I think it's a set of exercises -- the way some reformed drunks take to jogging or lifting weights to fill up those long, thirsty hours. I think he has some faith-based palaver that he runs through as though it were calisthenics, the same way he tosses around words like "freedom" and "liberty" when he can't think of anything else to say to explain the hash he's made of things in Iraq.
We've had a year in which John Kerry's fitness to receive communion was a topic of extended debate, but the sincerity of his opponent's religiosity was taken on, well, faith. Here's what I think: I don't think this guy knows enough Scripture -- let alone enough theology -- to throw to a cat. And I can't think of an institution less capable of examining this question than the modern mass media. http://msnbc.msn.com/id/3449870/
True Believers: Gallup: 62% of Republicans think Saddam was personally involved in planning 9/11. So, what does it mean?Discuss.
In response to another question, 32% said they thought Saddam had personally planned them. The same poll in June showed that 56% of all Republicans said they thought Saddam was involved with the 9/11 attacks. In the latest poll that number actually climbs, to 62%. The independent commission that investigated 9/11 concluded in June that there was "no credible evidence that Iraq and al-Qaeda cooperated on attacks against the United States." The panel also said "contacts" between al-Qaeda and Iraq "do not appear to have resulted in a collaborative relationship." http://www.mediainfo.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000653667
Putin: The former democrat does his part.
Practically unnoticed in all the hoopla surrounding the presidential debate this week was Vladimir Putin’s signing of the Kyoto Protocol. Although the Russian parliament must still ratify the pact, Putin’s turnaround marks a key moment in the world’s efforts to do something about global climate change, inarguably the most fundamental environmental issue of our time. Well, not inarguably. Because there are still people who say the evidence is nonexistent, or mixed, or, even if it’s real, has nothing to do with human-caused emissions of greenhouse gases. Or, even if climate change is occurring, and even if humans are contributing to it, that contribution is small compared with, say, fluctuations in solar output. Or, even if climate change is occurring, and even if humans are the major cause, there’s nothing we can do about it. And, if we did do something about it, it would wreck our economy. This, of course, has forever been the argument against every bit of environmental legislation from the get-go. Foes of protecting endangered species, recycling bottles and cans, prohibiting clear-cuts, banning dangerous chemicals or curtailing tailpipe emissions have always found their most potent objection in economics, which, they boil down to “lost jobs.”
Polls:
National polls are mostly even, a few have Bush up by 3- 5 points. More importantly, the state polls have Bush ahead, but many remain statistically tied.
New Jersey: Kerry 50, Bush 45 (Survey USA)
Florida: Bush 51, Kerry 46 (Survey USA)
Florida: Bush 51, Kerry 47 (Rasmussen)
Nevada: Bush 50, Kerry 46 (Survey USA)
New Hampshire: Bush 50, Kerry 45 (UNH) http://politicalwire.com/
-R
