A Little on the Bus Strike

When my wife told me there might be a bus strike the first thing I said was that they would likely use the cost of gas as a reason for a low profit margin and the need to hold down wages... Sure enough they did use it as one reason for that. My beef with this tactic is that anyone with a half a brain has known that gas was going to continue to skyrocket so the bus companies should have made considerations for that when they worked out their last contracts for the services to the cities and schools.

ctblogger at Hat City Blog was nice enough to upload this video for us New Milford folks:



Kids get one day off from school but they will be back tommorrow so get used to driving them in to school until the bus drivers go back to work. Who knows how long this strike will be?

Tweety Hits a Homer Inside the Beltway

And the name of that Homer is bush:



Doh!

Local Cavemen Speak

Caveman O'Brien speaks:

Bill O'Brien, president of Connecticut Right to Life, said the group wants Rell to veto the bill. O'Brien said "the state has no business" telling Catholic hospitals to do something that goes against the church's teachings.

"We can't kill a person that was conceived of rape," O'Brien said.

Nothing like a baby that comes from a good old fashioned clubbing over the head!

Caveman Peter (FIC tribe) speaks:

As we have noted before, the next likely step will be a lawsuit based on the Connecticut Religious Freedom Act. Watch for more information.

Nothing like a caveman starting a lawsuit that will wind up cutting off all state funding to the hospital's medicine man. But that isn't what this post is about.

A quick look at the others that enjoy their women barefoot and pregnant, clubbed and dragged off to be raped and FORCED to bear them children... The leaders an outspoken members of some anti-woman groups as yanked from the FIC Blog:

The Rev. Deacon Tom Davis

Caveman

And JI editor Chris Powell

Caveman

the Catholic Church’s Dave Reynolds

Another caveman

Brian Brown

Might be more closely related to the chimps... But not as honest as his furry brothers.

Reverend James J. Cronin

And another caveman

The bishops of every state but New York fought the sort of law that is being advanced in the Connecticut legislature [emphasis added]. New York, for some reason, was the only state where Catholic lobbyists had no objection to such a law.

A whole lot of cavemen!

Notice a pattern here? I think you do...

(Image via the fat lady sings at My Left Wing)

(Edited with my apologies to Sen. Ed Meyer whose quote I misread when I addedhim here originally and my thanks to Maura! heh)

Sexist Racist Homophobic

David Horowitz at his best...

Sexist:

He defended former Harvard University President Larry Summers, who stepped down amid an outcry at his remarks to the effect that women are biologically impaired in math and science. In a public lecture at the University of Texas, Horowitz claimed that the fact that Oprah Winfrey—whom he called “a fat Black woman”—has made it to the top of society proves that racism is no longer a barrier to success for most Black Americans. He has argued that Blacks benefited from slavery.

Racist:

One year ago, conservative activist David Horowitz (pictured) seemed convinced that an occasional contributor to his FrontPage Magazine website – Lawrence Auster – trafficked in “racist” ideas. And he seemed to cast Auster out.

I take credit for that.

I had sent Horowitz and Jamie Glazov (FrontPage’s managing editor) an 11-page letter detailing Auster’s views on race, as expressed on Auster’s blog. (For example, his description of black people collectively as “the savages.”)

Concerning my letter, Horowitz emailed Glazov and myself on May 14, 2006. He wrote: “I think it’s a persuasive argument for not running Auster unless he publicly repudiates these positions which are racist and offensive.”

Sure enough, Auster’s essays didn’t appear in FrontPage Magazine after that.

Until today.

Yes, Lawrence Auster is back at FrontPage, alerting Horowitz’s readership to an epidemic of black-on-white rape.

Homophobic:

If you really want to piss off David Horowitz, call him a racist. Nothing makes him hit the roof faster. A few years ago at the University of Illinois at Chicago, Horowitz was outraged at a flyer calling him “Racist, Sexist, Anti-Gay.” Horowitz wrote: “I didn’t regard this as speech so much as a gesture like kicking me in the groin. It seemed extremely perverse of her to be defending her right to slander me to my face. So then and there -- in front of her and the university official -- I ripped down her sign.”

When Jack White wrote an opinion column calling Horowitz “A Real, Live Bigot” in Time magazine, Horowitz reports that he contacted Time’s publisher Walter Isaacson and falsely threatened to file a libel suit. Isaacson turned out to be a Horowitz fan, and Horowitz reported that Isaacson “sent columnist Margaret Carlson as an intermediary to an event I was holding in Colorado over Labor Day weekend. Our meeting led to a phone call from Isaacson and a meeting with Time’s editorial board.” Isaacson then ordered Time’s editors to run a review of Horowitz’s book Hating Whitey. (Not surprisingly, Time published a glowing account of Horowitz’s book soon after getting marching orders from the boss.)

Are you sure Homophobic?

David Horowitz's first charges against me were that I am a homosexual who pushes for gay rights, sexually harasses students in doing so and that I treat Christian students unfairly. When I heard that those charges were brought by two students (the President of the College Republicans at URI and his vice president) to the chair of my department, it was I and not the students who demanded a full investigation by the Affirmative Action Officer at the University and, of course I was vindicated.

Failing at these charges, now Horowitz moves to my credentials and as he has done with a number of the 101 Most Dangerous, he charges that we are not qualified to teach those subjects we have been assigned by the University to teach.

Yep...
David Horowitz is sexist, racist AND hompohobic:

GOP Death Spiral Continues - Moderates Leaving Them

Newsweek covers the continued hemorrhaging of moderates from the GOP that end up joining the more fiscally responsible and moderately conservative Democratic party.

Susan Eisenhower is an accomplished professional, the president of an international consulting firm. She also happens to be Ike's granddaughter—and in that role, she's the humble torchbearer for moderate "Eisenhower Republicans." Increasingly, however, she says that the partisanship and free spending of the Bush presidency—and the takeover of the party by single-issue voters, especially pro-lifers—is driving these pragmatic, fiscally conservative voters out of the GOP. Eisenhower says she could vote Democratic in 2008, but she's still intent on saving her party. "I made a pact with a number of people," she tells NEWSWEEK. "I said, 'Please don't leave the party without calling me first.' For a while, there weren't too many calls. And then suddenly, there was a flurry of them. I found myself watching them slip away one by one."

I am sure that some of them will end up in the Libertarian party, and or backing other non-GOP, and therefore more likely real, conservative candidates and parties, but the truth is many will follow on the heels of those like former Reagan Republican Markos Moulitsas and try and make the Democratic party even more conservative than it already is.

The fact is that the Republican party has continued to margenalize itself by pandering to radicals, continuous efforts to be unethical whenever given the oportunies, their inability to accept responsibility for any of their inumerable failures, and showing a complete lack of logic in their unending support of bush.

Little wonder why moderate voters are jumping ship from the GOP. It won't be long before the political rats in office start following their base in an effort to hide from their sinking GOP ship. It won't help them much because those rats have already been tagged with "GOP failures tracking devices" throughout the Blogosphere. Thanks Tehnorati! heh

GONEzo Gets Some Brownie Points

Via ThinkProgress:

“‘In the middle of all this, my wife sent [Alberto Gonzales’] wife an e-mail,’ said Michael Brown, the chief of the Federal Emergency Management Agency during Hurricane Katrina and no stranger to Category 5 storms of public ridicule. The e-mail message reassured her, simply, that ‘there’s life after Washington.’ Mr. Brown, who calls Mr. Gonzales a ‘true gentleman’ and a ‘friend,’ nonetheless subscribes to the belief that Mr. Gonzales is going down.”

Heckuva job GONEzo...

As of now, there is no word from the Judicary Committee on whether or not they will need to subpoena bush administration wives' Emails just in case White House officials were using those Email accounts to illegally hide more official government business from the regulations of the Hatch Act. /snark

What the Left is up against

Sadly No! points to this farcical story:

Utah County Republicans ended their convention on Saturday by debating Satan's influence on illegal immigrants.

The group was unable to take official action because not enough members stuck around long enough to vote, despite the pleadings of party officials. The convention was held at Canyon View Junior High School.

Don Larsen, chairman of legislative District 65 for the Utah County Republican Party, had submitted a resolution warning that Satan's minions want to eliminate national borders and do away with sovereignty.

In a speech at the convention, Larsen told those gathered that illegal immigrants "hate American people" and "are determined to destroy this country, and there is nothing they won't do."

Illegal aliens are in control of the media, and working in tandem with Democrats, are trying to "destroy Christian America" and replace it with "a godless new world order -- and that is not extremism, that is fact," Larsen said.

At the end of his speech, Larsen began to cry, saying illegal immigrants were trying to bring about the destruction of the U.S. "by self invasion."

Republican officials then allowed speakers to defend and refute the resolution. One speaker, who was identified as "Joe," said illegal immigrants were Marxist and under the influence of the devil. Another, who declined to give her name to the Daily Herald, said illegal immigrants should not be allowed because "they are not going to become Republicans and stop flying the flag upside down. ... If they want to be Americans, they should learn to speak English and fly their flag like we do."

Sadly NO! This is not satire (At this point in the post I had to click through on the link to make sure this wasn't a spoof!), but just a small except of the complete disaster that has become the Republican party. There is much more... There is so much worth noting that I am unsure what to excerpt and what to bold?

Letters supporting the re-election of party chairwoman Marian Monnahan and secretary Susan Bramble were mailed in envelopes bearing the party's return address, causing delegate Russell Sias to demand they be removed from office. A spokesperson for Alexander's Print Advantage, which handled the mailing, spoke at the convention, saying employees had mistaken put the address on the envelopes and the company took full responsibility for the snafu.

In a speech, Enid Greene, state Republican Party chair, announced to applause that she will remarry in a few months. Greene's first marriage came to an infamous end during her tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives when her husband, Joe Waldholtz, who was her campaign manager, was charged with embezzling. He eventually pled guilty to campaign fraud and other charges.

You would think that it can't get any worse than this... But it can and does:

All of the speakers praised those gathered. Lt. Governor Gary Herbert said Utah County Republicans are "guided by correct principles" and are the "best of the best" of the Republican Party.

Cough, cough... And I still haven't even excerpted all of the good stuff, leaving the real analysis to Sadly No!, and proving that it is certainly true when they say:

Truth is stranger than fiction.

And yes, this truly is representative of what the Left is up against across the country as the GOP only begins to exhibit how low they can really go. smirk

Obama Draws Racist Attacks

Just as almost any story at the Danbury NewsTimes might have comment threads laced with bigotry, it seems that articles on Barrack Obama have a tendency to draw comments from the worst that America has to offer:

Via CBSNews.com :

Today CBSNews.com informed its staff via email that they should no longer enable comments on stories about presidential candidate Barack Obama. The reason for the new policy, according to the email, is that stories about Obama have been attracting too many racist comments.

"It's very simple," Mike Sims, director of News and Operations for CBSNews.com, told me. "We have our Rules of Engagement. They prohibit personal attacks, especially racist attacks. Stories about Obama have been problematic, and we won't tolerate it."

CBSNews.com does sometimes delete comments on an individual basis, but Sims said that was not sufficient in the case of Obama stories due to "the volume and the persistence" of the objectionable comments.

There is no racism in America...
As long as you continue to ignore it.

Larson Joins the Chorus To Neuter Bush

Via Matt Browner Hamlin at MLN:

Just in my email box from Rep. John Larson (CT-01):

"I am pleased that my colleagues in the Senate have raised the issue of revoking President Bush's authority to wage war. The President callously and carelessly entered this war. Clearly, things have gotten worse and not better. We cannot afford to have a President that continues to abuse his authority and not listen to the Congress or the will of the American people. Taking this action would be another important step to keep the pressure on the President. Congress also needs to look to address the Congressional War Powers Act to ensure that this kind of an abuse of power never occurs again. In March, I introduced similar legislation in the House and hope that we can work together to take this critical step that can aid in ending this war."

Obviously I'm happy to see Larson take this opportunity to renew his pressure on President Bush for ending the war in Iraq.

Yesterday I posted on Gov. Bill Richardson and Hillary Clinton joining the calls to strip bush of war powers:

De-Authorize the War Now, No Residual Troops

There would be no need to negotiate the withdrawal with the President, and he could not veto the resolution.

The time has has come for Congress to stand up to this President who refuses to recognize that his war is bleeding our military and weakening our country. He believes mere stubbornness is a foreign policy and that he can just ignore the will of the American people. In the interest of our national security, he must be stopped.

Congress has the ability to end this war under the War Powers Act -- let's not wait or waver while more people die. And de-authorizing the war should mean removing all our troops. Every last one.

Hillary Clinton has joined Robert Byrd in calls for the same:

Via the NY Times:

Mrs. Clinton’s proposal brings her full circle on Iraq — she supported the war measure five years ago — and it sharpens her own political positioning at a time when Democrats are vying to confront the White House.

“It is time to reverse the failed policies of President Bush and to end this war as soon as possible,” Mrs. Clinton said as she joined Senator Robert C. Byrd, Democrat of West Virginia, in calling for a vote to end the authority as of Oct. 11, the fifth anniversary of the original vote.

Her stance emerged just as Congressional leaders and the White House opened delicate negotiations over a new war-financing measure to replace the one that Mr. Bush vetoed Tuesday.

In spin that only a right wingnut could choke down the NY Times also says that it is not clear if Congress has the power to withdraw the power that only they can empower upon the little brat...

Even if Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Byrd succeed in their effort, it is not clear whether President Bush would have to withdraw troops, or if he could resist by claiming that Congress cannot withdraw its earlier authorization but instead has to deny money for the war to achieve that result.

Sure... bush can claim it, but that does not make it credible in any way, shape, or form.

Can you say IMPEACH?



Yep...
No More Kings!

If you are unclear on the many reasons why the little brat needs to be impeached here is one of them:

“The Bush administration is urging Congress to pass a law that would halt dozens of lawsuits charging phone companies with invading ordinary citizens’ privacy through a post-Sept. 11 warrantless surveillance program.”

Richardson: "De-Authorize the War Now"

Gov. Bill Richardson joins the calls to strip bush of war powers:

De-Authorize the War Now, No Residual Troops

There would be no need to negotiate the withdrawal with the President, and he could not veto the resolution.

The time has has come for Congress to stand up to this President who refuses to recognize that his war is bleeding our military and weakening our country. He believes mere stubbornness is a foreign policy and that he can just ignore the will of the American people. In the interest of our national security, he must be stopped.

Congress has the ability to end this war under the War Powers Act -- let's not wait or waver while more people die. And de-authorizing the war should mean removing all our troops. Every last one.

Hillary Clinton has joined Robert Byrd in calls for the same:

Via the NY Times:

Mrs. Clinton’s proposal brings her full circle on Iraq — she supported the war measure five years ago — and it sharpens her own political positioning at a time when Democrats are vying to confront the White House.

“It is time to reverse the failed policies of President Bush and to end this war as soon as possible,” Mrs. Clinton said as she joined Senator Robert C. Byrd, Democrat of West Virginia, in calling for a vote to end the authority as of Oct. 11, the fifth anniversary of the original vote.

Her stance emerged just as Congressional leaders and the White House opened delicate negotiations over a new war-financing measure to replace the one that Mr. Bush vetoed Tuesday.

In spin that only a right wingnut could choke down the NY Times also says that it is not clear if Congress has the power to withdraw the power that only they can empower upon the little brat...

Even if Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Byrd succeed in their effort, it is not clear whether President Bush would have to withdraw troops, or if he could resist by claiming that Congress cannot withdraw its earlier authorization but instead has to deny money for the war to achieve that result.

Sure... bush can claim it, but that does not make it credible in any way, shape, or form.

Can you say IMPEACH?



Yep...
No More Kings!

If you are unclear on the many reasons why the little brat needs to be impeached here is one of them:

“The Bush administration is urging Congress to pass a law that would halt dozens of lawsuits charging phone companies with invading ordinary citizens’ privacy through a post-Sept. 11 warrantless surveillance program.”

When GOP Political Stunts Go Bad

They really go bad...

Via AMERICAblog:

Steny Hoyer and John Conyers just pulled a fast one on the GOP. The GOP has been refusing to support the hate crimes bill because it doesn't include members of the US Armed Forces and senior citizens. Conyers just rose and basically said, okay, I'll add them. The Republicans' response? Uh, no.

The Republicans have been railing for days about how this legislation doesn't cover our Armed Forces and senior citizens, and now that the Dems offer to put our Armed Forces and seniors in this legislation, the Republicans said no and affirmatively stopped the Democrats from doing it anyway.

That means the Republicans had no intent on helping our Armed Forces and seniors, on protecting them. It was just a stunt. The GOP leaders in Congress just got up and used our Armed Forces and seniors as political fodder when they had no intent on actually doing anything to help our Armed Forces and seniors.

A litlle bit of humiliation for the GOPeeons that play politics with the soldiers lives (and seniors too...)

Props go out to Conyers and Hoyer for pointing out how the GOP constantly uses the soldiers as political props in their propaganda.

Clinton Wants to Strip Bush of War Authority

Via the NY Times:

Mrs. Clinton’s proposal brings her full circle on Iraq — she supported the war measure five years ago — and it sharpens her own political positioning at a time when Democrats are vying to confront the White House.

“It is time to reverse the failed policies of President Bush and to end this war as soon as possible,” Mrs. Clinton said as she joined Senator Robert C. Byrd, Democrat of West Virginia, in calling for a vote to end the authority as of Oct. 11, the fifth anniversary of the original vote.

Her stance emerged just as Congressional leaders and the White House opened delicate negotiations over a new war-financing measure to replace the one that Mr. Bush vetoed Tuesday.

In spin that only a right wingnut could choke down the NY Times also says that it is not clear if Congress has the power to withdraw the power that only they can empower upon the little brat...

Even if Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Byrd succeed in their effort, it is not clear whether President Bush would have to withdraw troops, or if he could resist by claiming that Congress cannot withdraw its earlier authorization but instead has to deny money for the war to achieve that result.

Sure... bush can claim it, but that does not make it credible in any way, shape, or form.

Can you say IMPEACH?



Yep...
No More Kings!

[update]If you are unclear on the many reasons why the little brat needs to be impeached here is one of them:

“The Bush administration is urging Congress to pass a law that would halt dozens of lawsuits charging phone companies with invading ordinary citizens’ privacy through a post-Sept. 11 warrantless surveillance program.”

Rell's Moody Period is Back

tparty over at MLN picks up on another one of Rell's Moody periods:

• Jodi Rell, forgetful wanker, on April 20th:
  
  

  Legislative Democrats on Thursday threw pointed questions at Gov. M. Jodi Rell, asking if her Capitol staff worked to solicit campaign cash from arts and tourism leaders whose groups depend on state funds to operate....

  
  Rell's press office did not return several calls from The Courant beginning late Thursday afternoon....

  
  A month ago Rell's press secretary, Chris Cooper, acknowledged that Moody, Dukes and other Rell staffers "could have" provided the address list to the campaign although they "do not specifically remember" doing so. That prompted Democratic State Chairwoman Nancy DiNardo to request the current probe. "How could they not remember?" she asked.




• Jodi Rell, wanker with a memory, today:
  
  

  "The campaign received this list through Lisa Moody. The lists were provided on a computer disc. ... I believe all of the individuals on the list were mailed a letter," Kevin M. Deneen, the lawyer from Windsor who managed Rell's successful election effort last year, wrote in a letter faxed Wednesday to two Democratic state legislative leaders who had asked questions about the campaign solicitations.

When was the last time Rell had a Moody period?

Garfield only released part of the story:

Report: Top Rell Aide `Misled' Committee:
"Gov. M. Jodi Rell's chief of staff, M. Lisa Moody, 'misled' a legislative committee by giving sworn testimony that was 'not credible' regarding a Rell fundraiser last year, according to a draft copy of a new legislative report.

The report, obtained Wednesday by The Courant, also says that state elections enforcement chief Jeffrey Garfield should face 'some form of reprimand or censure' because he deleted important information from an investigative report and released the unedited version only after hearings were completed last spring."

Just in case you follow the FIC line of thought and didn't know, misled is another word for LIED, as for Rell's original reaction to her Moody Period:

Moody was suspended by Rell for two weeks after admitting that she handed out invitations to commissioners on state time. Her actions led to seven days of often-contentious legislative hearings in May. Sixteen of Rell's commissioners or deputies were fined $500 each to settle a case under a state law that prohibits those officials from soliciting campaign contributions from their subordinates.

The 14-page report quotes Moody as telling at least one senior staff member, "I am not twisting your arm, but I am," regarding the fundraiser.

The report also states that Moody told one deputy commissioner that "this meeting isn't happening" and another that "it's after 5" - meaning that the workday was officially over for state employees.

Also, we all know that "she testified at a legislative hearing that she did not fully read an ethics memo that it turned out she had edited." But I am betting there are alot more juicy details in the full unedited report that was released in a redacted (lying) version.

Go over and read it at the courant to see some of the reccommendations to stop this sort of waste of our government employees time. As for now I'll leave you with this last little snippet:

The report calls for Garfield's censure or reprimand because his investigation report deleted certain facts that the committee never knew about until after the hearings were closed. That included deleting the chief state's attorney's "interview notes" from two investigators who had spoken to Rell late last year, and deleting all references to DPUC Commissioner Anne George, "who kiddingly referred to Ms. Moody as `John Rowland.'" [...] Dan Moreland was said to have told investigators that when Moody handed George the fundraiser invitations, George responded, "Are you nuts?" George then told Moody, "OK, John Rowland" - a reference to the former governor who served a federal prison sentence on a corruption-related charge.

Goes to show that even the insiders know that Rowland politics are alive and kicking in the Governor Rell's office. As for Garfield, if he absorbs the bulk of the blame in the cover up of Rell's Moody period, wouldn't that make him the political equivalent of a used tampon? Time to trash him...

I wonder who will end up being the tampon that gets flushed this time around? Or maybe, just maybe, Rell and Moody will actually take responsibility for their own illegal and unethical campaigning actions for a change?

WestConn War Protest in Danbury

Undoubtedly in consideration of the preznit playing politics with the soldiers lives by vetoing the funding bill in an effort to push failure of the Iraq war on to the next administration, the NewsTimes covers one of the smaller war protests in the State of Connecitut and the nation yesterday:

DANBURY -- About 30 people protested the Iraq war at the center of Western Connecticut State University's midtown campus Wednesday, calling the war a human and environmental disaster.

Josh Durkin, a freshman from New Milford, cited the human toll, saying more than 3,340 U.S. military personnel have died, and there is no foreseeable end in sight.

"This is really history being repeated," Durkin said, mentioning how the French fought in civil wars in Algeria and Vietnam and had to leave. He said the Soviet Union ran into the same problem in Afghanistan, and the U.S. faced the same problem in Vietnam.

"The strategy is broken," he said.

And as sure as the fact that the conservative party has succumbed to fringe thinking wackos, the comments head right towards illegal immigrants.

Posted by: sage Thu, May 03 2007
I gotta' solution that would satisfy a lot of the patrons of this blog, a solution that would effectively kill 2 birds with1 stone: draft all the illegals in this country into the armed forces and make them serve in the army for 4 years. After they have served their country, then they can attain citizenship.

So put your money where your mouth is illegal. You say you love this country and you say you want to win the war in Iraq. Well here's your chance. The only catch is you only have 2 options: I either you accept this "invitation" to defend your country or you are given a one-way ticket back to Latin America. And this is not negotiable.

Another ill conceived idea from the failed "great republican experiment"...

Drafting illegal immigrants into a high tech military and then having to train them would pose many problems for the immigrants that cannot read english all that well (I know that is not the case for most of them! But for some, language is a bit of a barrier). Yay! The military will have to train them even more than usual!

For those of you "deferement type republicans" that haven't a clue about the military, never mind the modern day one, even the Infantry and Marine ground pounders need to be prepared to learn a lot of high tech material these days. That is why they had standards for enlistment. At least they had standards before bush broke the military and they had to lower them to meet enlistment quotas...

You conservatives sure come up with some wacky fringe thinking ideas that can never work out in the long run. (See Iraq)

Not knocking the NewsTimes on their story, but the participants in the comment threads are nutjobs. Who could've predicted that a comment thread on protesting the war at the NewsTimes might degenerate into another round of "Deport Them!" fringe thinkers bashing illegal immigrants?

HatCity BLOG

People speak out against comments laced with racism and bigotry in the News-Times comments section. From Saturday's article on an illegal immigration forum. ... hatcityblog.blogspot.com/ - May 2, 2007 - Similar pages

HatCity BLOG

ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION FORUM VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS: Members of the community and students protest ... Criticsim over News-Times comments section intensi. ... hatcityblog.blogspot.com/2007/04/anti-immigration-forum-video-highlights.html - Similar pages

HatCity BLOG

... illegal aliens; it has to do with drunk driving.” Incredibly, a similar argument has erupted locally, in the comments section of the Danbury News-Times. ... hatcityblog.blogspot.com/2007/04/news-times-faces-more-criticism-over.html - Similar pages

HatCity BLOG

illegal immigration forum (a.k.a. fear mongering) round-up. Sunday, April 29, 2007 Time: 8:03 PM ... Criticsim over News-Times comments section intensi. ... hatcityblog.blogspot.com/2007/04/illegal-immigration-forum-aka-fear.html - Similar pages

HatCity BLOG

The picture tells the story: Volume 1 · illegal immigration forum (a.k.a. fear mongering) ... Criticsim over News-Times comments section intensi. ... hatcityblog.blogspot.com/2007/05/news-times-failed-to-get-real-story.html - May 2, 2007 - Similar pages

HatCity BLOG

Danbury, home to an estimated 9000 to 20000 illegal immigrants, gained national attention this year ... Criticsim over News-Times comments section intensi. ... hatcityblog.blogspot.com/2005_12_04_archive.html - Similar pages

HatCity BLOG

illegal immigration forum (a.k.a. fear mongering) ... Criticsim over News-Times comments section intensi... Henry Rollins: This is how I protest the war ... hatcityblog.blogspot.com/2006_10_29_archive.html - Similar pages

HatCity BLOG

From today's Danbury News-Times. I was very pleased to read the comments of the Rev. ... How does Marcianoor the CTCIC know that illegal immigrants bring ... hatcityblog.blogspot.com/2005/08/immigration-control-president-shows.html - Similar pages

HatCity BLOG

Advocates enraged over the federal roundup of illegal immigrants at Kennedy ... in the Danbury News-Times that there would be an increase in immigration ... hatcityblog.blogspot.com/2006/09/danbury-11-press-conference-video.html - Similar pages

HatCity BLOG

As of mid-June 2006, over 2000 illegal immigrants have been arrested, over 800 of which were ... Criticsim over News-Times comments section intensi. ... hatcityblog.blogspot.com/2006_09_17_archive.html - Similar pages

While the small vocal minority (can you say shrieking?) of illegal immigrant bashers try to stay on their bigoted message, ctblogger is busy Blogging about what is really going on in Danbury that should infuriate its residents:

There been an alarming amount of misinformation from those who are pulling all the political tricks in order to push this so-called "parade ordinance" through the system.

From the misinformation regarding the impact this new policy will have on spontaneous celebrations (e.g. immigrants World Cup festivities), to the possible constitutional problems, which could ultimately cost the city a GREAT deal of money in legal fees, more than ever, it's important for people to have a better understanding about what Mayor Boughton is attempting to push through the Common Council.

Since the News-Times failed to fully inform the public, I felt it necessary to pick up the slack and do the job that the mainstream media refuse to do.

Army Puts a Chokehold On Military Blogs

The Army makes a move that could effectively shut down the military Blogosphere:

Army Regulation 530--1: Operations Security (OPSEC) (.pdf) restricts more than just blogs, however. Previous editions of the rules asked Army personnel to "consult with their immediate supervisor" before posting a document "that might contain sensitive and/or critical information in a public forum." The new version, in contrast, requires "an OPSEC review prior to publishing" anything -- from "web log (blog) postings" to comments on internet message boards, from resumes to letters home.

Failure to do so, the document adds, could result in a court-martial, or "administrative, disciplinary, contractual, or criminal action."

Despite the absolutist language, the guidelines' author, Major Ray Ceralde, said there is some leeway in enforcement of the rules. "It is not practical to check all communication, especially private communication," he noted in an e-mail. "Some units may require that soldiers register their blog with the unit for identification purposes with occasional spot checks after an initial review. Other units may require a review before every posting."

But with the regulations drawn so tightly, "many commanders will feel like they have no choice but to forbid their soldiers from blogging -- or even using e-mail," said Jeff Nuding, who won the bronze star for his service in Iraq. "If I'm a commander, and think that any slip-up gets me screwed, I'm making it easy: No blogs," added Nuding, writer of the "pro-victory" Dadmanly site. "I think this means the end of my blogging."

Active-duty troops aren't the only ones affected by the new guidelines. Civilians working for the military, Army contractors -- even soldiers' families -- are all subject to the directive as well.

There won't be much interesting coming out of the MilBlogs any longer if it all has to be Pentagon/White House approved propaganda...

Feingold Won't Back Down

Senator Russ Feingold, showing he has a spine, writes over at HuffPo:

After the Veto

The ink on the President's veto is barely dry, and already, a lot of Washington insiders - including some Democrats -- are saying Congress should just give in to the President. Never mind how hard people have pushed to bring Congress to this point, when we are finally standing up to the President's disastrous Iraq policy -- they want to give up on the binding language in the bill requiring the President to begin redeploying troops from Iraq.

But that's just letting the President have his way all over again. That's the kind of thinking that got us into this war in the first place, and it's not going to cut it anymore.

We can't keep giving in to this Administration on Iraq. Every time the Administration gets its way, it means that our troops will remain stuck in the middle of Iraq's civil war, and our national security will continue to be undermined. With so many Americans demanding that our involvement in this war come to an end, backing down is not the answer. No one else should die in Iraq to give political comfort to dealmakers in Washington.

Well I know whats right, I got just one life
In a world that keeps on pushin me around
But Ill stand my ground and I wont back down

Here's to you Senator Feingold:

Anemic Republican Response to Veto

Here is the anemic Republican response to their own failure to fund the troops:

“Several Republican leaders said Tuesday that they were likely to support such benchmarks, and White House aides said Tuesday that Mr. Bush…might back such a measure — but only if the benchmarks are nonbinding.”

Bush tells Americans that Congress can't have a say in what is going on because:

He said the measure would “impose impossible conditions on our commanders in combat” by forcing them to “take fighting directions from politicians 6,000 miles away in Washington, D.C.”

If bush really thinks this, why doesn't he just make those soldiers enlistment contracts "non-binding" and let them decide who they want to "take fighting directions" from? heh According to a January poll in the Military Times:

Only 35 percent of the military members polled this year said they approve of the way President Bush is handling the war, while 42 percent said they disapproved. The president’s approval rating among the military is only slightly higher than for the population as a whole.

I wonder where they would poll now considering the continued failures?

Anyways... What do Americans want their Congrees critters to do?

Do Democrats take John Edwards's suggestion, as relayed in his new campaign ad, and "send [Bush] the same bill again and again"? Or should Democrats and Republicans in Congress work with the White House to find some sort of solution that isn't likely to give either side a complete political victory?

A Pew Research Center poll released on April 26 suggests that the American public favors the Edwards approach, with each side standing their ground rather than compromising.

snip

Roughly six-in-ten people in the Pew sample (59 percent) said they want their member of Congress to back an Iraq funding bill that includes a timeline for American troops to begin withdrawing.

They want Congress to demand binding timelines. And they are right.

[Update]I just wanted to add these two responses to the Veto via The National Security Network:

Today, two retired Generals who led troops in Iraq expressed outrage at the President's veto of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Health, and Iraq Accountability Act.

The President vetoed our troops and the American people. His stubborn commitment to a failed strategy in Iraq is incomprehensible. He committed our great military to a failed strategy in violation of basic principles of war. His failure to mobilize the nation to defeat world wide Islamic extremism is tragic. We deserve more from our commander-in-chief and his administration.
--Maj. Gen. John Batiste, USA, Ret.

This administration and the previously Republican controlled legislature have been the most caustic agents against America's Armed Forces in memory. Less than a year ago, the Republicans imposed great hardship on the Army and Marine Corps by their failure to pass a necessary funding language. This time, the President of the United States is holding our Soldiers hostage to his ego. More than ever apparent, only the Army and the Marine Corps are at war - alone, without their President's support.
--Maj. Gen. Paul Eaton, USA, Ret.

'Nuff said.