Cindy Doesn't Need The Democratic Party, And Neither Does Anyone Else

Cindy Sheehan is quits with the Democratic Party, and I don't blame her. After she mobilized the antiwar sentiment in this country, the Democrats exploited her, then chewed her up and spit her out like Grandma's anise candy once they gained control of Congress. Proving they are as useful as an asshole on your elbow, the Democrats have disappointed all but the blindly loyal members, who are as stupid as the 28% of Republicans who still support the commander guy. Kool-aid drinkers are essentially the same no matter what flavor they prefer.
At least the Republicans gleefully admit their evilness and wear it proudly like a swatztika on the lapel. The Democrats pretend to be concerned and in touch with the American people, but then Rahm Emmanuel and the DLC work behind the scenes to ensure that in the end, there is no real difference between the two parties. Having two parties that accomplish the same thing makes about as much sense as wearing two pairs of socks in the summer so one pair can absorb all the extra sweat.
Yes, the Democrats have put our expectations on the permanent down escalator to Hell. As Ms. Sheehan put it:

I am deemed a radical because I believe that partisan politics should be left to the wayside when hundreds of thousands of people are dying for a war based on lies that is supported by Democrats and Republican alike. It amazes me that people who are sharp on the issues and can zero in like a laser beam on lies, misrepresentations, and political expediency when it comes to one party refuse to recognize it in their own party. Blind party loyalty is dangerous whatever side it occurs on. People of the world look on us Americans as jokes because we allow our political leaders so much murderous latitude and if we don’t find alternatives to this corrupt "two" party system our Representative Republic will die and be replaced with what we are rapidly descending into with nary a check or balance: a fascist corporate wasteland. I am demonized because I don’t see party affiliation or nationality when I look at a person, I see that person’s heart. If someone looks, dresses, acts, talks and votes like a Republican, then why do they deserve support just because he/she calls him/herself a Democrat?

Why, indeed.

What's Right For America?

George W Bush today attacked opponents of his immigration bill by saying "they don't want to do what's right for America." This of course begs the question: Does Bush know what's right for America?
-He ignored intelligence on alQaeda's determination to strike in the US. This led to 9/11. Was that the right thing to do for America?
-His rampant cronyism in political appointments put an incompetent in charge of FEMA (Michael Brown) who was unable to respond to a major crisis (Hurricane Katrina). He also put another crony (Paul Wolfowitz)in charge of the World Bank, who then shook them down for a raise for his mistress. Was that right for America?
-His choice for VP schemed to concoct false intelligence that was the basis for a war based on lies with no clear mission, and no viable exit strategy. Now the war has gone on to create more animosity towards the US, recruiting more extremists who wish to attack Americans. Was that good for America?
-Has signed a directive that allows him to stay in power in order to assure "continuity of government" in case of any incident, regardless of location, that results in extraordinary levels of mass casualties, damage, or disruption severely affecting the U.S. population, infrastructure, environment, economy, or government functions. This decision is left to the deciderer, and we know how good his decisions have been in the past. Is establishiong a corporatic dictatorship good for America?
So Bush thinks this latest bill is good for he country, but is it good for the US to flood the labor pool when forty million American skilled workers are about to have their jobs outsourced by the corpocracy? Espesially when the US economy is leaving record numbers in severe poverty. Just how out of touch is the president?

''Last November, the American people said they were frustrated and wanted a change in our strategy in Iraq,'' he said April 24. ''I listened. Today, General David Petraeus is carrying out a strategy that is dramatically different from our previous course.''
''I recognize there are a handful there, or some, who just say, 'Get out, you know, it's just not worth it. Let's just leave.' I strongly disagree with that attitude. Most Americans do as well.''

Is it right for America to have a leader so out of touch, so deep in denial that he has no idea what the message was that people sent to him and the other members of the corpocracy last November?
No.It is not.

Something To Remember....

Today is Memorial Day, the one day of the year Americans are supposed to honor the people who sacrificed themselves so that we can watch 217 channels of shit, drive a gas sucking pig of a car, throw garbage in our streets and argue about pointless things like sports and/or movies. Everybody sticks up their flag, attaches another yellow ribbon magnet on their vehicle and never question whatever the almighty telebvision tells them about the world, because to do so would be admittance that their whole lives have been a waste up to this point. Most places have a parade where they trot out whichever war survivors they have left and everybody lines the street and waves flags and thanks them once again for all they did in the service of the corpocracy (except in Grand Rapids, where the Republican conservative are much too busy to take time out from their schedules to actually honor those people, this year, it's been moved to Wednesday evening, where it's more convenient and nobody has to actually get out of bed and sacrifice their pillowtime for the Vets).
In the meantime, for the rest of the year, we stash our war wounded in atrocious conditions such as were witnessed at Walter Reed, until an actual journalist (which, these days, are a dying breed) exposed the atrocities and the Republicans and Democrats both paid lip service to fixing conditions, until the next media distraction came along, and things went back to normal. Nowadays, our Vets have to rely on radio stations to fill the gap left by budget cuts for those who sacrificed themselves for the corpocracy, while the funding for a war that should have never been continues on because neither party wants it to appear as if they don't support our troops, at least while they are overseas fighting.
It was this piece, from a Vet that points out that much hasn't changed since the days of General Smedley Butler. Yes, we will always honor our soldiers, as long as they keep killing or dying for the corpocracy, anything in between is unacceptable.
(Cross posted at Lose The Noose)

Would You Vote For A Trained Chimp?

Well, the Republican narrative on Iraq has shifted again. Now it's no longer about "fighting them over there so we don't have to fight them over here". Now it's we're "fighting alQaeda to keep their hands off our oil supply (funny, I thought the oil belonged to the Iraqi people)and cut it off to drive gas prices even higher" than the oil companies are doing all on their own. (See, it was all about the oil)The Republican change excuses more times than the number of costume changes at a Cher concert.
So, it must be apparent to anyone who does the math that the Republicans, like the Democrats who gave Bush a blank check to continue the wholesale slaughter, that the voters who demanded change last November were too stupid to realize that they don't have a choice if they aren't able to fill their party's war chest (at least as much as Aipac)because both parties are more concerned with how all this plays out on Fox News than in the way the majority of voters perceive it all. But credit must be given to the Republicans, at least they didn't say they were going to do one thing, and then turn around and do the complete opposite when given the chance. No, they have said all along, and will continue to say that for whatever this week's reason is, that's why we need to be in Iraq. Like a bunch of trained chimps reading from Karl Rove's copy of Joseph Goebbels' playbook(the more you repeat a lie, the more people will believe it), they are going to continue to lay lie upon lie to justify letting our troops die.
But they have abandoned out troops. They need someone who's going to send them off to defend our country, not act as an excuse for defense contractors to continue to fleece the country. Because if you really supported the troops, you'd see that their dying to support a failed foreign policy of pre-emptive war is neither noble nor patriotic, just plain stupid. If you really supported the troops, you'd realize that putting them in harm's way with no clear obtainable objective or exit strategy not only puts them at risk, it puts us all at risk because instead of being here to defend us, they're on the other side of the planet defending....the corpocracy. Proving once again that to the Republicans, the citizens of this country don't matter at all.

Saturday Morning Subversion

When it comes to music, most people will list one or two genres that they don't care for, usually one or two, and the same ones:country music and rap. In my opinion, there are only two types of music, good and bad.
While most modern country music is jingoistic flag waving propaganda, rap music has gone the other way, and seems to embrace the 9/11 Truth movement, as exemplified by this video.
Mos Def, Immortal Technique, Eminem-Tell The Truth

In 1969, John Lennon was trying to reach the US with a message of peace, unable to enter the country because of a drug conviction in England (from the famous Sgt. Pilcher, who was later to have been found guilty of planting evidence). So he flew to Toronto to perform at a Peace Festival there, bringing along a version of the Plastic Ono Band, featuring Yoko, Alan White on drums, Klaus Voorman on bass, and yes, that is Eric Clapton. Their performance was released on Apple records as Live Peace In Toronto 1969.
Plastic Ono Band-Give Peace A Chance (Live)

..and finally, for a larf here some Bill Hicks

The Very Definition Of Insanity

Some people never learn. After years of covert US operations around the globe, the Bush administration authorized new covert operations against Iran. Maybe this time things won't get totally fucked-up, but given Bush's track record, if I was a wet dream, I'd be pretty fucking scared right now. No wonder so many people want to get rid of Bush.
The thing is, the IAEA has still to find all the things the corporate media has claimed Iran is guilty of. But that won't stop the US from starting another war. I guess they can always call in the UN after they totally botch that war, too

Audioslave-Doesn't Remind Me

Just Who Are The Bad Guys?

This morning, as I readied for work, I was listeneing to the local radio morning show (which is syndicated, mostly in the east), as they talked to a man who was scheduled to go back to Iraq, shortly after the birth of his second child. One of the propagandists, as the caller was finishing, suggested he that when he got to Iraq, he "kill a lot of the bad guys". And I thought, bad guys?
The resistance force in Iraq has a right under international law to fight an occupation force. The US had no right to invade under international law, so who's the bad guys again?
It was odd, because the night before, I had been at Information Clearinghouse, a good source for opinion and other articles, when I came across and watched this three part video on the Iran-Contra Affair, and what was covered up in the hearing. For instance, in one part Barbara Honegger, former policy analyst with the Reagan administration, described how during the n1980 campaign, George HW Bush and a second party met with parties from Iran to make a deal for them to hold the hostages they had taken until after the election, and in return, the Reagan White House would provide the weapons Iran needed in it's ongoing war with Iraq at the time (whom we also were supplying weapons. Gee, I guess Ron Paul was right!)
The video details a shadow government that was consistently directing us into war, so they could thereby profit from it. It is narrated by Elizabeth Montgomery and features the music of Pink Floyd.

The second part focuses in on our actions in Nicaragua, and how we were funnelling money from arms sales into supporting the Contras.The cContras, trained by the CIA, would cross into Nicaragua and indiscriminately kill villagers (including women and children)in order to turn public opinion in that country against the Sandinista government. In otherwords, we were using terrorism.
Also, it details the attempted assassination of a second, more popular, anti-Sandinista leader in Costa Rica by the CIA, in which several journalists were killed, including an American. The plan was to turn public support here at home against the Sandinistas (who were to be blamed). Hmmm. Killing Americans to gain support for a war that enriches a select few. Curious.

So, who is the bad guy? Is it the citizens around the world who seek self-determination with outside interference from the US? Or is it our government, which has consistently had a foreign policy of perpetual war ath the expense of the poorer and weaker countries on the globe?

Sunday Night Black & White

There are two kinds of music in the world: good and bad. It doesn't matter if a song was recorded yesterday, or seventy years ago, truly good music will stand the test of time. Once one abandons any preconceived notions of what makes a recorded performance good (i.e., style, artist, recording techniques)it becomes easier to discern what makes a good song. But just because talented musicians covera good song does not make a good recording. If that were true, all the American Idol winners would still be dominating the pop music charts.
It is in this spirit that we dig deep into the recesses of American music to find these gems that radio no longer plays, and with the exception of a few musicologists, most people would never listen to any more. Enjoy!
Cab Calloway-Reefer Man

Jimmie Rodgers-Blue Yodel No.1 (T For Texas)

Mills Brothers-Paper Doll

Lefty Frizzell-Saginaw, Michigan



You're right, PT this does get addictive

Somebody Just Learned How To Post Videos........

With the recent work on my computer, I once again have sound! So I've been spending time (perhaps too much time) at YouTube. Couldn't figure out how to post these damn things, so I tried something, and whaddya know! It worked. Some please indulge me while I post what I calls Saturday Morning Subversion!

John Lennon-Instant Karma! (We All Shine On)


The Clash-The Call Up


The Ramones-We Want The Airwaves

Michigan GOP To Deny Reality

Michigan's state GOP chairman wants to bar Ron Paul from any future debates because he had the temerity to suggest that the reasons that the 9/11 commission as well as the CIA gave for the attacks on September 11 were the real reasons, and not the spurious "They hate us because we're free" mantra chanted by kool-aid chugging flagwaving half wits like Rudy Giuliani.
Perhaps Saul Anuzis is worried that after Blinky pounced on Paul's accurate description of the causes of terrorism, Paul's numbers went up and he wound up beating Rudolf by six points in the Fox News text message poll following the debate.
Paul dared to deviate from the accepted Republican reality that allows endless wars to enrich defense, I mean war contractors (because, really, they aren't defending anything but their own wealth), at the expense of the America taxpayer and the inevitable collateral damage that conveniently happens to be a different religion than the money worshipping members of the GOP. Just because our lopsided foreign policy is stacked against the majority of Muslims in the Middle East is no reason for them to attack us, is it? Paul even suggested we had been bombing Iraq every week for ten years, which, according to Mr. Anuzis, is "off the wall and out of whack", even if it happens to be true.

Lew In The Land Of The Televison Watcher

For the past week or so, I have been lost, set adrift in the land of the television watcher while my computer was being repaired, leaving me out of touch with reality and at the mercy of the spoon feeding liars of the corporate media. Many events may have happened I was not aware of, because television doesn't report events, it creates propaganda.
The other night I was subjected to a mother of a fallen soldier, saying how proud she was of her son for dying for his country. I immediately thought of all the mothers of our soldiers who reaize that Iraq is no where near our country and posed as much of a threat as a toothless squirrel on an acorn. The war in Iraq is as if someone told you that your arm was gangrenous, so you began to slowly hack it away with a dull saw, until you realized that now there was no evidence of the gangrene before, but your actions have caused gangrene to set in.
I also had to navigate the sea of "reality" shows, where soulless spotlight seekers ritually debase themselves to garner the attention of a nation for no other reason than to say "Look at me!" None of these people will last because none of them have the sense to realize that while they may have developed one talent, they never developed the intelligence to do anything with it besides let someone else exploit it for them. Once that attention has been received and starts to diminish, it's the long slide down to other reality shows where they cling to that shred of notability they had until even the CW won't put you on a show.
I also found that the television sitcom, with the exception of Thursday evenings, is dead, and most of the networks schedules are filled with dramas that pumped me full of fear for the safety of my children, even though I feel they are safe at their mother's house. So I delved into my long neglected video library, watching movies I enjoyed once, but now lack the proper psychotropic inducements to appreciate fully.
But what I missed most was the writing. Being cut off from my online community of commiserates, who feel as I do about the direction we seem to be heading towards as a society, was very hard to take, as most of the people I deal with daily are television watchers, those media manipulated masses who actually believe it's reality television, and it really matters who wins some stupid competition.
But now I'm back, and while it may take me a day or two to get back up to speed, I hope I never have to leave again.

Now I'm off to YouTube, to enjoy some great videos.

It's Not Bad Enough That They rape You, It's the Fact That They Overcharge You For The Lubricant

In case you have noticed, gas prices are going up, just in time for that busy summer travelling season. I'm sure we'll be reading orhearing stories at the end of the quarter of the oil companies raking in record profits again. But why are the prices rising? There has been no refinery fire or Katrina like disaster, and tensions between Iran and the US are still the same, they're not as bad as when they were during the British sailor crisis of awhile back.
According to the Detroit News

drivers are burning through gas at a greater volume than refineries can produce it.

Hmmm. Tha sounds familiar. Where have I heard that before?

The Hubbert peak theory, also known as peak oil, is an influential theory concerning the long-term rate of conventional oil and other fossil fuels production and depletion. It predicts that future world oil production will soon reach a peak and then rapidly decline.

You see, it's not that there's not enough oil, hell, we just gained control of the second largest known oil reserve in the world, otherwise known as Iraq, it's that we aren't refining it fast enough to meet demand.

"There is plenty of oil, and oil prices are well below their record highs," he said. "It's that we're not getting oil made into gas fast enough."

Look for the oil companies to blame this on environmentalists, or someone else other than their ownseves for not sinking those record profits from last quarter into building more refineries. But why should they? Paying less for oil and gouging, excuse me, charging us more for it just means that many more golden parachutes for retiring oil executives.
As for me, I'm planning on walking more, or maybe winning that Harley~Davidson at the company picnic next month.

Greatest American Zero

Like Ralph Hinkley (or is it Hanley?) discovering a new power with his wacky outer space suit, George W. Bush has discovered the power of the veto. Only his powers don't come from some ET's, it comes from the Constitution and the fact that there is somewhat of an opposition party in Congress. He first discovered this power last year, when he vetoed a bill on stem cell research. He used this mysterious power for the second time last weeek to veto a bill for Iraq war funding that set a timetable for withdrawal.
Now Bush has threatened to use this power on legislation that isn't even being considered. You see Bush, perhaps seeking approval from someone somwhere for something has threatened to veto any bill that attempts to weaken federal policies that restrict abortion. This was hailed by the hypocrites at the National Right To Life, who feel it's wrong to kill the unborn, but perfectly okay to send their fathers to their deaths in an illegal unwinnable unending war.(Not to mention the 655,000+ Iraqi civilians killed in the war, plus uncounted unborn Muslim babies) Bush needs to shore up support among his base because not only has he cost his party control of Congress, it's fairly certain that he has also blown their chance of holding onto the White House.

As It Turns Out, Oliver Stone Was Right

Every once in a while, Wilbur gets in a question asking mood, and myself, compelled to tell the truth, or at least as I see it, try to give him the correct answer. Not the "politically correct", just the answer the best suits the evidence.
So here's a story you probably won't be reading in the newspaper, or being run repeatedly on any cable news outfit (not that I would know, not having cable). As it turns out E Howard Hunt made an audio tape laying the Kennedy assassination at the feet of rogue elements within the CIA. These people, Cord Meyers, David Phillips, David Morales, and Hunt himself were directed by LBJ to eliminate JFK because:

They saw him as soft on Communism, soft on Castro, guilty of sending their friends to their torture and deaths during the Bay of Pigs fisasco and a bad risk for the future of the country. They also did not respect him as a person for his philandering and other behaviors which had yet to become public knowledge but would have been known to them.

So next time Wilbur asks me who killed John Kennedy, I'll have an honest answer, albeit one he won't be reading in the history books at school anytime soon. Lucien Sartie, the Corsican born French hit man who fired the head shot from the Grassy Knoll.

Dick Van Patton

The US has "gained" new intelligence that says Iran is three years away from enriching enough material for nuclear weapons, although where this report comes from isn't clear. The last NIE stated that Iran was at least ten years away, but I'm sure now the Cheney regime has replaced all intelligence officials who wouldn't file falsified reports it wouldn't be too hard figure out where this "new" intelligence came from, much the same way all the commanders in Iraq who dissented on obtainable victory were replaced by the likes of Gen. Betrayus, so Bush could still say he stands behind his commanders.
Cheney is the likely suspect for the change in intelligence (not just because he keeps getting stupider) as he was the one who had the "yellow cake" documents forged. This was what led to the whole Lewis Libby trial, Cheney, enraged that he had been called out as a liar, leaked Valerie Plame's name to the media in retaliation. And according to former British Defense Secretary Geoff Hoon, Dick Cheney called all the shots in the Iraq invasion that has led it to be the abyssmal failure that it is. Funny how somebody who had "other obligations" when he was of age to serve his country (and gain combat experience) likes playing soldier now that he doesn't have anything to risk beyond his stock portfolio.
That's why we need to get Congress to back Dennis Kucinich's impeachment legislation. If we don't, this heartless bastard will surely start another war doomed to be as abyssmal as the previous two are turning out.