Bush's Midas Touch
(AP Photo/Karim Kadim)
The first known case of sex recorded on a mobile leading to murder was in 2004. Film of a boy making love with a 17-year-old girl circulated in the Kurdish capital, Arbil. Two days later she was killed by her family and a week later he was murdered by his. -- The IndependentThey are burning women alive in Iraq. Pouring paraffin over them and letting the die a horrible death because they have had sex. Shaira law is spreading in Basra and in other areas of southern Iraq. After decades there are men fighting in the streets in Lebanon again. Turkey has all but permanently invaded northern Iraq. The fallacy that Bush has made America safer is only valid if you don't include losing New Orleans or protecting our civil liberties. Or if you believe that "hasn't happened yet" equals "not going to." But, it is extremely clear that the middle east is not only a much more dangerous place, it has descended into religious terror and violence across the region.
Remember when our foreign policy was all about maintaining peace in the region? Remember fears of setting the middle east ablaze? Like many things from the reality based community that concept went out the window with reverse midas Bush. I am sure that Israel thought our invading Iraq and posting 100,000 troops next door in Iraq was a good idea, but as more and more goes wrong in more and more places, I suspect that that feeling of safety is running on par with Bush's polling numbers.
Our inability to win the "peace" as the pentagon's Orwellian phrase goes is a major factor in this. This is now beyond a military solution and has been for years. Having less people with guns around is a good first step. Nobody notices the sniper on the roof across from the womens shelter because that's normal.
- Original article
- FILED UNDER: Guest Blogger
- May 19, 2008
criminal and tragic
what we have done on our part to destabilize the region is both criminal and tragic. The repercussions of this 8 years are likely to be felt for generations.
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By the littlest gatorMay 19, 2008 - 9:16pmWhat do the above stories have in common?
Wait for it.....ISLAM... Thank you very much, I'll be in the area all week! Try the fish!
"My presidency will be al Qaeda's worst nightmare." -John McCain Sep 4, 2007
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By Fight4itMay 19, 2008 - 10:19pmI suppose that the beatings
I suppose that the beatings and stonings of "emo" girls in Mexico is Islam's fault also.
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By MichtouMay 19, 2008 - 11:16pmEmo girls???
Are those girls that do Emo Phillips imitations? Maybe they deserve to be stoned!
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By UffdaguyMay 20, 2008 - 12:08pmEmophobia
Here is some background on "emos."
http://www.emo-corner.com/
It does discuss the anti-emo attacks in Mexico, but the worst of the attacks, one that I saw on You tube--which was almost immediately taken down--was an attack on a girl with fists, kicks, stones and even bricks. I doubt she survived the attack, or if she did, she probably was in serious condition.
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By MichtouMay 20, 2008 - 8:17pmIslam o hatin knuckleheads
Thats right Fight4it, McCain will be a nightmare for them. Just like Bush, except by nightmare you mean excellent recruiting tool, fundraiser, and anger builder...
McCain doesnt even know the difference between the Shia and the Sunni and his freaking dentures.
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By HubrisSonicMay 20, 2008 - 12:19amWhat do the above stories have in common?
Your gas pump dollars at work... Thank you very mu...what's
that fish smell?
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By dewbie dubaiMay 20, 2008 - 4:41amBy Fight4it May 19, 2008 - 10:19pm
What do the above stories have in common?
---------------------
They are all largely a consequence of our actions.
Well, that was easy...
____________________
The "Dream Ticket" is a Death Trap!
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By SJerseyIndyMay 20, 2008 - 10:06amPicture this, you fool
A young man is accused of raping a girl. He is hunted down bay armed men with dogs. When found, he is beaten to within an inch of his life, before being hauled to a nearby large tree. All the "good folk" of the town come out with torches. The assembly develops a carnival atomsphere while men with pillowcases over their heads throw a sturdy rope over one of the branches and tie a noose in it. The young man has is head placed in the noose, and despite his pleas that he didn't do it, and cries for mercy, a box is kicked out from under him. As he struggles and his eyes bulge out, a hooded man steps forward and disembowels him with a knife as he dies.
Arbil? Nope. Kuwait? Nope. Pakistan? Nope. Iran? Nope. The American South. The scene was captured on paper (no photographs were allowed) by Bill Mauldin, an editorial cartoonist, from descriptions given him by witnesses. And oh yes, among those present was the local sherriff, in uniform.
Muslims are not the only people capable of cruelty. You ever read the story of King David's wars in ther Old Testament?
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By blogbobMay 20, 2008 - 11:39amBy blogbobMay 20, 2008 - 11:39am
When did I say that there aren't people in this country capable of cruelty? I didn't.
Did we have slavery? Yep, and we faught a war to end it.
Did we have segragation? Yep, and we passed laws banning it.
Did we have trouble passing the Civil Rights Bill? Yep and Byrd led the charge to defeat it. REPUBLICANS passed it (gotta hate facts)
Are we perfect? OH HELL NO but as a culture we are FAR better than the Middle-East....
By the way, WHEN exactly did that wrongful execution occur and were there prosecutions of the guilty parties?
Oh and how long ago did honor killings in Islamic countries occur (daily)? How long ago were the heads of non-muslims cut from bodies on Islamic websites? How long ago did a mob want to see a teacher KILLED because she let her class name a teddy bear Muhammod? How long ago did mob injure and KILL people over cartoons of Muhammod? THAT is ISLAM...
"My presidency will be al Qaeda's worst nightmare." -John McCain Sep 4, 2007
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By Fight4itMay 20, 2008 - 11:48amCorrections...
1. We didn't fight a war to end slavery - that was never the goal. It was to preserve the union. The ending of slavery was just a fortunate byproduct.
2. We passed laws banning it, but de facto segregation still exists - both via economics and cleverly written laws that accomplish the same goals as segregation without outright saying it.
3. We do have a civil rights bill, but BushCo is steadily dismantling our other civil rights. And it's all well and good to have a civil rights bill, but when policy runs counter to that bill without being blatent enough to openly run afoul of it, do we really have "civil rights" for all?
Quick history lesson. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was introduced by President Kennedy (D). I'm not saying that there weren't a few bad apples in the Democratic party at the time, but civil rights has always been a cause championed by the Democratic party.
Not going to defend honor killings either. But that was going on long before we got there, out presence is doing nothing to curtail it, and it will go on long after we left. Alienating the entire Arab world isn't going to produce the culture shift needed to move past this type of act of ignorance and violence.
-- McCain = Four more years of the same --
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By dtaylo75May 20, 2008 - 1:29pmBy dtaylo75May 20, 2008 - 1:29pm
1. The slavery thing....OK, technically you're right. It was a fight to preserve the union becasue the South wanted to succede because they wanted slavery...
2. De facto segregation is a product of what people want. There are certain areas of my town that I would NEVER live because they have high crime. The also happen to have large populations of minorities. I do have minorities that live in my neighborhood. You know what I call them....NEIGHBORS. It has nothing to do with skin color it has more to do with culture. Who am I to tell a hispanic or black person that they can't live with other hispanics or blacks or whites for that matter?
3. Civil Rights Bill correction... It wasn't a "few bad apples", it was the Democratic Party...
The Senate version, voted on by the House:[6]
Democratic Party: 153-91 (63%-37%)
Republican Party: 136-35 (80%-20%)
37% of Dems and 20% of Repubs voted against it... 91 Dems and 35 Reps....
I'd say the Dems had more "bad apples" than the Reps....
"My presidency will be al Qaeda's worst nightmare." -John McCain Sep 4, 2007
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By Fight4itMay 20, 2008 - 1:59pmDo you think the residents
Do you think the residents of the areas of town that "you would never live in" want to live in such conditions either!?!?!? Of course not! Poverty breeds crime, what would you expect? Without providing a real means for them to get out of poverty (and don't give me that "pull yourself up by your bootstraps crap), it will persist.
Your stats on the Civil Rights bill area bit disingenuous as you don't give the complete breakdown.
Southern Democrats: 7-87 (7%-93%)
Southern Republicans: 0-10 (0%-100%)
Northern Democrats: 145-9 (94%-6%)
Northern Republicans: 138-24 (85%-15%)
It was only the Southern democrats who really opposed the bill. Northern Democrats supported it at 94%, greater than the 85% of northern Republicans who supported it. On top of that, 100% of the Southern Republicans opposed it. Granted there were only 10 of them, but still... See that's called being "honest". I could have just said that 100% of Southern Republicans opposed it, but I gave full disclosure and said there were only 10 of them.
The "bad apples" were mainly in the South, where racism persisted (and still does) more prevalently!
-- McCain = Four more years of the same --
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By dtaylo75May 20, 2008 - 2:20pmBy dtaylo75May 20, 2008 - 2:20pm
Do you think the residents of the areas of town that "you would never live in" want to live in such conditions either!?!?!? Of course not! Poverty breeds crime, what would you expect? Without providing a real means for them to get out of poverty (and don't give me that "pull yourself up by your bootstraps crap), it will persist.
There will always be haves and have nots. We can't fix the culture that praises people like 50cent, snoop dog and gun toting animal fighting atheltes as heros and yet looks at education as a waste of time. In other words, the "Hip Hop" or "Urban" culture. There will always be and have always been slums.
Yes, I didn't include the entire breakdown on the 1964 CRB I just cited the final vote.
Racisim persists in the south...Really?
"All the early Black congressmen (and senators) were members of the Republican party. This is because the Republicans, exemplified by President Abraham Lincoln, were the party in office during the Civil War and many abolitionists belonged to the Republican Party. The Democrats were opposed to all attempts to banish slavery."
Other Blacks who were elected to the House and seated often had very rocky tenures. Only a few did not have to face hostile, organized opposition within Congress. A few examples are listed below.
• Robert C. DeLarge, South Carolina, elected in 1870
His election was challenged from the beginning and the challenge resulted in him serving twenty-two months out of twenty-four. The seat was declared vacant for the final two months.
• Josiah Thomas Walls, Florida, elected in 1870
Wells was the only Black representative unseated twice by opponents challenging his elections.
• Jefferson Franklin Long, Georgia, elected in 1871
Served an abbreviated term in 1871 (the election he won was held to fill an abbreviated term). White congressional opposition and intimidation of Black voters led to him not being reelected.
• Robert Brown Elliott, South Carolina, elected in 1871
An attorney before he entered politics, Elliott served two consecutive terms. He was also able to read, German, Spanish, French, and Latin.
• Joseph H. Rainey, South Carolina, elected in 1871
Served two consecutive terms, but as usual, the environment in Congress, especially from White southern representatives, was very hostile.
• Alonzo J. Ransier, Georgia, elected in 1872
Succeeded Robert C. DeLarge. He was Lt. Governor before he won DeLarge's seat.
• James T. Rapier, Alabama, elected in 1873
He served two consecutive terms and lost in 1875 when many ballot boxes were stolen and destroyed and replaced with others containing stuffed or illegally cast ballots. There was also armed intimidation of Black voters by Whites.
• John Mercer Langston, Virginia, elected in 1888
The only Black person ever elected to Congress from Virginia, Mercer was denied his seat for almost two years.
• Thomas E. Miller, South Carolina, elected in 1889
He served one term and afterwards was named president of the State Colored College at Orangeburg, South Carolina.
Funny, I see NO northern states in there....
www.ipoaa.com/1st_black_congressmen.htm
In 1989, Virginia became the first state in America to elect a Black man as its governor.
New York ONLY got a black man as governer by default when an "Elite" Dem stepped down...
In the Senate:
First African American Senator
Hiram Revels (R-MS)
On February 25, 1870, visitors in the Senate galleries burst into applause as Mississippi senator-elect Hiram Revels of Mississippi entered the chamber to take his oath of office.
www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/First_African_American_Senat...
In the Reconstruction era
Senator Party State Term
Hiram Rhodes Revels Republican Mississippi 1870-1871
Blanche Bruce Republican Mississippi 1875-1881
[edit] In the modern era
Senator Party State Term
Edward Brooke Republican Massachusetts 1967-1979
Carol Moseley Braun Democrat Illinois 1993-1999
Barack Obama Democrat Illinois 2005-present
[edit] United States House of Representatives
[edit] In the Reconstruction era
Representative Party State Term
John Willis Menard[1] Republican Louisiana 1868
Joseph H. Rainey Republican South Carolina 1870-1879
Jefferson F. Long Republican Georgia 1870-1871
Robert C. De Large Republican South Carolina 1871-1873
Robert B. Elliott Republican South Carolina 1871-1874
Benjamin S. Turner Republican Alabama 1871-1873
Josiah T. Walls Republican Florida 1871-1873, 1873-1875, 1875-1876
Richard H. Cain Republican South Carolina 1873-1875, 1877-1879
John R. Lynch Republican Mississippi 1873-1877, 1882-1883
James T. Rapier Republican Alabama 1873-1875
Alonzo J. Ransier Republican South Carolina 1873-1875
Jeremiah Haralson Republican Alabama 1875-1877
John A. Hyman Republican North Carolina 1875-1877
Charles E. Nash Republican Louisiana 1875-1877
Robert Smalls Republican South Carolina 1875-1879, 1882-1883, 1884-1887
James E. O'Hara Republican North Carolina 1883-1887
Henry P. Cheatham Republican North Carolina 1889-1893
John Mercer Langston Republican Virginia 1890-1891
Thomas E. Miller Republican South Carolina 1890-1891
George W. Murray Republican South Carolina 1893-1895, 1896-1897
George Henry White Republican North Carolina 1897-1901
LOTS of Southern "Racist" States there....
It wasn't until the "Modern" ear that the north had ANY real black representation.....
Get your facts straight....
"My presidency will be al Qaeda's worst nightmare." -John McCain Sep 4, 2007
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By Fight4itMay 20, 2008 - 2:37pmBy Fight4itMay 20, 2008 - 2:37pm
You've been told again and again.
The south was the region that did not vote for the CRA.
The south was controlled by so called dixiecrats.
The republicans form the south also voted against it.
Furthermore if you look outside of that region, the percentage of republicans that voted against it was greater than for the democrats.
But the old stand by for dimwits like yourself is to cherry pick the numbers.
We've been through this before multiple times on this board.
In summary: you are an idiot.
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By f u bush2May 21, 2008 - 2:14amBy Fight4itMay 20, 2008 - 1:59pm
Jesus christ now you are trotting out hatenomore's logic.
Most people with a brain will look at the CRA vote in both houses of congress and see the truth. The south is the clear difference. For both republicans and democrats the no votes are from the south. The democrats had more members in that region so you can look at the numbers and slant them to say the dems voted no by larger numbers. But both parties had greater numbers of no votes in the south. Furthermore the republicans had a larger percentage of no votes outside of the racist south.
But do continue posting your anne coulter talking points. It shows everyone how gullible you are so they won't take you seriously.
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By f u bush2May 20, 2008 - 2:25pmHeckuva job, Chimpie
...way to get those streets to run with gold.
RED gold.
'Nuff said.
If all else fails, immortality can always be assured by spectacular error. ~~~John Kenneth Galbraith
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By nonexistent manMay 20, 2008 - 12:22amBush supporters are responsible
Included the trolls on this board.
They are the largest terrorist group on the planet.
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By f u bush2May 20, 2008 - 1:07amNot defending Bush's boneheaded foreign policy and war but....
....the Middle East wasn't exactly a sea of peace and tranquility before he came into office.
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By SgtDMay 20, 2008 - 2:08amNever said it was...
Never said it was...
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By HubrisSonicMay 20, 2008 - 4:21amBy SgtD May 20, 2008 - 2:08am
Is it better or worse off than it was eight years ago? End of story.
____________________
The "Dream Ticket" is a Death Trap!
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By SJerseyIndyMay 20, 2008 - 10:05amOoo, Ooo, Mr. Kah-tare! I
Ooo, Ooo, Mr. Kah-tare! I can answer that one!
MUCH worse.
I get 20 points for the right answer and 50 more for the "Mr. Kotter" reference!
-- McCain = Four more years of the same --
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By dtaylo75May 20, 2008 - 11:03amEEEHHHHHHHHHH!!
EEEHHHHHH!
The best Horshak impression I can do on a keyboard.
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By gt6May 20, 2008 - 11:15amWorse...
...not my point though.
Even with Obama fixing Bush's mess the region will still be looneyville. All the more reason to make an all out effort to become energy independant some time in our lifetimes. Then we won't have to give a crap about the region....
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By SgtDMay 21, 2008 - 1:24amWe'll always have to give a crap about the Middle East
We left blood all over the sand. Some of ours. Mostly theirs.
bush needs to be beaten badly with a two-by-four. Allowed to heal.
Then beaten badly again.
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By dewbie dubaiMay 21, 2008 - 11:01pmCui Bono ...
Carlyle's 4th Reich!!!
www.democracynow.org/2008/5/19/spies_for_hire_the_secret_world#middle
poprelics.com/ ... cui-bono-who-benefits
When Kerry took a dive in '04, Cui Bono?
http://airamerica.com/node/74057/427200#comment-427200
Top ten war profiteers (annotated)
www.snipr.com/ConnectIranDotsNOW
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By SingSingMay 20, 2008 - 4:48amTwo things that can't be done at the same time
End Terrorism.
Make wealth for Saudi Princes.
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By dewbie dubaiMay 20, 2008 - 6:08amAt the street bazaar
At the street bazaar, I saw a big burly mountain man pull the veil from the face of a young Arab woman. Her Arab male companion produced a long curved dagger, brushing its blade across the big man's beard.
There were no police around, and the incident did not escalate.
Yet, I felt unduly intimidated by all three characters...
I like my public mundane.
"Let's reserve a state for the worshipers of the mundane.
And another state for the hopelessly chronic theatrical."
-aaazzz111
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By dewbie dubaiMay 20, 2008 - 6:01amMemo to all idiots that do not know their history
The CRA vote:
Look at the house:
The south is clearly the "no" vote region. Still some dems voted for it. NO republicans voted for it.
Outside the south the republicans and democrats are about equally represented and the democrats voted for it by a larger margin.
Look at the senate:
Only one southern senator voted for it and that was a dem.
Only one non-southern dem voted against it and 5 republics voted against it. Again the dems did better outside the south.
Source for numbers: wikipedia
But of course the right wing radio hosts ignore the south as a region and just count R's vs. D's. Forget that the democratic party with its control of the congress brought this to vote and so lost the south. Forget that the southern voters that were so upset were courted by the republicans as a place where their bigotry would be welcome.
This is another example of how ill informed the right is concerning history.
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By f u bush2May 21, 2008 - 2:22am