Cknolls

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Sep 12, 2006 -> 08:37 AM) I would agree that I'd rather have a couple beers, or sit around the campfire, with W than Clinton. Clinton was a used car saleseman. Bush is pretty direct, and you get what you see. And I agree on our overreaching attempts to fully secure ourselves, which is futile and does in fact mean the terrorists have won that battle. But if you ask who I'd rather have as President, it would sure as heck be Clinton over W. Bush is just too short-sighted and small-minded to be effective at the job. Plus he comes off as a frat boy, which makes me cringe whenever I hear him speak (much like Mr. Genius said). I don't necessarily want Mr. Niceguy as President - I want Mr. Effective. And W ain't it. The speech? I don't think I've ever like one of his speeches, and this was no different. His overdramatizations belong on some reality TV show - they are just outrgeous for the sake of impact. Nothing interesting to report there. Effective= Khobar Towers, USS Cole, Dar es Salaam, Nairobi. But heh, we hired how many police officers over 8 years? It is a law enforcement problem dammit.

Jesse jr. says Daley should give up his 200k a year and live on 7.50/hr. if he thinks that wage is so good for everyone working at the big box retailers. And I think Jesse jr. should give up his congressional salary and other untold sums from daddy's shakedowns and live on 13/hr.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Sep 8, 2006 -> 12:49 PM) It would certianly be better if there were commercial breaks. It would also be better if they were not saying it was "Based on the 9/11 commission report" when it is based on the 9/11 commission report and a bunch of things were inserted that were not part of the 9/11 commission report. It would also be better if there was some means by which the things bashing Democrats and praising Bush in the movie were balanced (hell, they run Fahrenheit 9/11 commercial free also and I shut up). It would certainly be better if they weren't distributing it freely to students through the internet as though it was a 100% factual movie and should be treated as educational material. There's no reason to prevent people from seeing the film. It shouldn't just disappear. The ideal thing would be for it to get the same treatment that "The Reagans" got. It should appear on Cable. Disney is a part owner of A&E...I think that'd be an excellent place for it to run, maybe even a couple times. And put out the DVD's so that people can rent it, buy it, etc. But don't run a one-sided "Mockumentary" on a major network for free right before the election. And especially don't pretend it's educational and historical when its not. And especially don't do so without any balance. And especially don't run it commercial free, to the point where it is literally a campaign contribution. LMAO. you are calling for balance. F ing hysterical. Have you seen the movie? How do you know it praises the Bushies. From what I hear it rips both admins, especially Condi for transferring Clarke to another position.

QUOTE(Rex Kicka** @ Sep 7, 2006 -> 08:45 AM) Kap, that's not my point and you know it. I'm glad that they are detained too - but we should never have had a network of prisons that are undisclosed to the American public. And we should never have had them on foreign soil so that we can "get around" our justice system - UCMJ or regular old civilian legal system. If the way of life and system of government we're defending isn't good enough to take care of the people who are trying to bring it down, maybe those people have already made changes in our system that we don't want to give them credit for. You know? I'm glad that the US has finally decided that human beings are deserving of basic human rights. It's just a shame that it took nearly five years to come to that conclusion. I don't know about you guys but I feel a whole lot better now that I know we operated prisons outside of the country. I feel more complete. That made my day.

QUOTE(mr_genius @ Aug 28, 2006 -> 01:25 PM) meh not really a good reason to run with a bs story, but thats pretty much how things work in the media these days. true most of the members of the big media (besides FOX) are Democrats. they would LOVE to see Mr.Rove go to jail. he's pretty much considered the anti-christ in left-wing circles. Wonder if David Shuster is still waiting for the imminenet Rove indictment. LMAO Keep up the good work David and you could have your own show too!

June 7, 2006 
 The Honorable Paul S. Sarbanes 
 309 Hart Senate Office Building 
 Washington DC, 20510 
 Dear Senator Sarbanes, As a native Marylander and excellent customer of the Internal Revenue Service, I am writing to ask for your assistance. I have contacted the Immigration and Naturalization Service in an effort to determine the 
process 
 for becoming an illegal alien and they referred me to you. 
 My reasons for wishing to change my status from U.S. Citizen to 
illegal alien stem from the bill which was recently passed by the Senate and for which you voted. If my understanding of this bill's 
provisions is 
accurate, as an illegal alien who has been in the United States for five years, what 
I need to do to become a citizen is to pay a $2,000 fine and income 
 taxes 
for three of the last five years. I know a good deal when I see one and I am anxious to get the process started before everyone figures it out. 
Simply 
put, those of us who have been here legally have had to pay taxes every 
year so I'm excited about the prospect of avoiding two years of taxes in return for paying a $2,000 fine. Is there any way that I can apply to be illegal retroactively? This would yield an excellent result for me and my family because we paid heavy taxes in 2004 and 2005. 
 Another benefit in gaining illegal status would be that my daughter would receive preferential treatment relative to her law school applications. 
 If you would provide me with an outline of the process to become 
illegal (retroactively if possible) and copies of the necessary forms, I would be most appreciative. Thank you for your assistance. 
 Your Loyal Constituent, Pete McGlaughlin

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Aug 22, 2006 -> 02:54 PM) I said it a few weeks ago. Ford will win. Book it. Sold.

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Aug 21, 2006 -> 09:44 AM) That is exactly my point. The extremists are just violent people with a convenient excuse - the entire religion is not at fault (you targeted the entire religion, which is what I called you on). You may wonder why I consistently point it out when people apply violence to all of Islam. Its just bigotry - I don't have much tolerance for it. Be angry at the violence and those who cause it, not everyone who falls into one particular category with them. It is my firm belief that as soon as we get lazy with our anger and just point it at some billion-person slice of the world, that we lose all hope of ever gaining peace. How many muslims have denounced ANY terrorist act committed against the U.S., U.K., Spain, Israel, Germany, Indonesia, Italy. Any clerics? It is not limited, even though that soundbite plays well. That thinking will kill many more Americans.

QUOTE(Rex Kicka** @ Aug 18, 2006 -> 03:18 PM) So as much as I hate to admit it, I gotta pass out some Kudos to John Bolton at the UN. Somehow he managed to work enough with the French to get a ceasefire through the Security Council that has some teeth. Although we couldn't be the "honest broker" alone, by teaming up with France we were able to put together a solution that, if it holds, will help acheive Israeli goals in the region while potentially preserving Lebanese democracy. PARIS, Aug. 20 — The shaky, United Nations-brokered cease-fire in Lebanon suffered another blow on Sunday when the European countries that had been called upon to provide the backbone of a peacekeeping force delayed a decision on committing troops until the mission is more clearly defined. Their reservations postponed any action on the force at least until Wednesday, when the European Union will take up the issue. Haunted by their experiences in Bosnia in the 1990’s, when their forces were unable to stop widespread ethnic killing, European governments are insisting upon clarifying the chain of command and rules of engagement before plunging into the even greater complexities of the Middle East. “In the past, when peacekeeping missions were not properly defined, we’ve seen major failures,’’ a spokeswoman for the French Foreign Ministry, Agnès Romatet-Espagne, said Sunday. “There are the bad memories of Bosnia. This time we want the answers beforehand, so we don’t come to the problems when they have happened.’’ In addition, a senior French official said, “Italy, Spain and Finland have raised the same questions as France has.” Following the usual diplomatic practice, the official asked not to be identified. A spokesman for the Spanish Foreign Ministry said Spain was willing to send troops, “but the rules have to be clarified and agreed on.” Some countries, like Australia, which has placed forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, have flatly refused to commit troops. “We have no intention of making any significant contribution,” said a senior Australian government official, who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. “We don’t have any confidence in it. It is not going to have the mandate to disarm Hezbollah.” Kudos to France and Bolton, seems to be working really well. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?...MNGK9KLVH41.DTL LMAO. Incompetence knows no bounds at Turtle Bay!

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Aug 18, 2006 -> 03:02 PM) And no one has ever been murdered under the banner of Christianity? Please. My point is that religion isn't causing violence, whether Muslim or Christian or Jew. It is simply an excuse for the weak-minded to justify hatred and ignorance. You are serious right. These Madrassahs are just places of worship. Wahabbists are just your everyday muslims? Come on!

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Aug 18, 2006 -> 02:28 PM) Yup. I know every time I see some whacko who happens to go to church kill someone in this country for some stupid reason (or actually kills them IN a church)... I think its because of their religion. Why was this girl murdered? Was it random? NO. It was because she wouldn't conform to islamic customs. Get f***ing real here would you.

Italian police were searching yesterday for a man suspected of involvement in the killing of a Pakistani woman after her father and uncle were charged with slitting her throat because she dated an Italian man and refused to conform to an Islamic lifestyle. All together now: It is a peaceful religion.

How about this for a scenario: Dems win the Senate by one vote. Lieberman set to take chairmanship of Homeland Security committee. Lieberman passed over for chair. Lieberman switches parties. Repubs back in power. Sound familiar, Lincoln?

It is interesting, and possibly significant, that Judge Taylor was involved in a judge-shopping scandal in connection with her effort to preserve race discrimination at the University of Michigan, where her husband is a regent: Chief Judge Anna Diggs Taylor of the federal District Court in Detroit tried to take the suit against the law school away from Judge Bernard Freedman, who had been assigned it through a blind draw--and who was suspected of being skeptical about affirmative action--and consolidate it with a similar suit against the university's undergraduate admissions practice, which Judge Patrick Duggan was hearing. The chief judge dropped that effort after the judge hearing the law school complaint went public with a blistering opinion objecting to what he termed "the highly irregular" effort of the chief judge. Judge Duggan ruled in favor of the undergraduate racial preferences, while Judge Freedman ruled against the law school preferences. This case will be overturned on appeal. IMO

http://www.quinnipiac.edu/x11362.xml?ReleaseID=948

QUOTE(kapkomet @ Aug 14, 2006 -> 11:51 AM) Did anyone catch the 60 minutes interview last night? I wanted to, but I missed it. Mike Wallace, who is Jewish, was thoroughly impressed by the man. Personally, I think the guy was grandstanding for the cameras... from what little snippets I saw on TV before the interview. C-Span will air the CBS interview tonight, and then will air the entire interview w/o CBS editing. Interesting.

According to new Rasmussen poll, Lieberman has the lead in a three way race. Details to follow.

Der Spiegel reports on the assistance given to Iran by the Russians in developing a uranium-enrichment program despite Moscow's public opposition to its development. The introduction of Russian laser technology allows the Iranians to enrich uranium more efficiently and with less energy, moving them that much closer to production of weapons-grade material: Despite claims to the contrary, leaders in Tehran are apparently still pushing forward with research into uranium enrichment with the aid of laser technology. A Russian engineer recently told SPIEGEL that Iran has received help from his countrymen with a program that uses a laser system to divide heavy isotopes. The engineer, who works for an institute near Moscow and helps develop nucleaar reactors, claims that Iranians have since 2004 sought and secured technical aid from Russia for their domestic "laser system for the division of heavy isotopes" program. The laser technique would have important advantages for Iran. Uranium is often enriched using gas centrifuges, but the laser technique uses less energy, requires less space and yields more of the crucial materials -- Uranium 235 and Plutonium 239. Until now, though, the technology has been elusive for Iran. Supposedly Iran stopped working on this technology three years ago. At least that's what Teheran told the IAEA and Mohammed ElBaradei in August 2003, three years after first requesting technological assistance from the Russians. The expatriate group National Council of Resistance, which has provided critical intelligence on Iranian nuclear research in the past, has claimed that the demurral was nothing more than a ruse, and that the Iranians have never stopped their efforts on laser technology. Der Spiegel's Russian source now corroborates that claim. The increasingly unstable behavior of the Iranian government has made them a great danger. If the Russians and Chinese continue to provide them technological assistance and diplomatic cover, then the West will have some decisions to make about their commitment to the international institutions that these three nations leverage to stymie the West. We cannot pretend any longer that our diplomatic engagement with Russia and China over Iran will ever result in the steps necessary to rein in the mullahcracy before it does something very, very crazy

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Aug 9, 2006 -> 10:38 AM) Tragedy all around. For the kid, the family, and the cop who will need therapy. But as far as I can tell, the cop did zero wrong. And one might ask the families who are complaining... why is it your 14-year old kid out on the street pointing a gun at cops anyway? Where did he learn that was OK? I love all the young ones out protesting in front of Children's Memorial Hospital at 10:00 P.M.

QUOTE(mr_genius @ Aug 8, 2006 -> 11:41 PM) "McKinney, a six-term Democrat and outspoken critic of the Bush administration, suffered her second defeat in four years. Before the day was out, the incumbent was complaining of voting irregularities" haha of course! I heard they investigated one claim of a malfunctioning electronic voting machine and concluded that the woman voting had finger nails that were so long, they actually cast a vote for Johnson. Nevermind the fact that you have to verify who you vote for after you select a candidate. That requires reading. It is easier to complain and blame the GOP for your loss.

http://www.debka.com/article.php?aid=1196 With Muggy in the house, don't expect peace anytime soon. One tough SOB.

DEBKAfile’s military sources disclose: Hizballah’s rocket offensive against Israel is orchestrated from a rear command located in the Syrian town of Anjar August 7, 2006, 12:41 PM (GMT+02:00) While Israeli officials keep on insisting that Syria must be kept out of the conflict, the fact is that the Assad regime is already in it up to their ears – with a leading role in the Hizballah rocket attacks on northern Israel. The command which coordinates the pace of those attacks is located at the Anjar base of the Syrian Army’s 10th Division opposite the Lebanese town of Az Zabdani. It is manned by Iranian and Hizballah officers, who take their orders from a Syrian military intelligence center in Damascus to which Iranian Revolutionary Guards intelligence officers are attached. It is headed by a general from one of Syria’s surface missile brigades. This joint command is provided with the most up-to-date intelligence and electronic data available to Syria on targets in Israel and IDF movements. The timing and tempo of Hizballah rocket strikes are set according to that information. To keep the rockets coming without interruption, the joint Hizballah-Syrian-Iranian command is also responsible with keeping Hizballah supplied with an inflow of rockets and launchers. They use smuggling rings to slip the supplies into Lebanon by mule and donkey which ply the 5,000-7,000 feet mountain paths that straddle the Syrian-Lebanese frontier. A senior Israeli officer told DEBKAfile: We can go on bombing Lebanon for many weeks, but that will not stop the rockets

QUOTE(NorthSideSox72 @ Aug 8, 2006 -> 08:58 AM) Now, I do agree that Kofi, and many countries in that region and elsewhere, do indeed have a definite dislike of Israel. But in regards to the things you see as lacking, many of those things sound like normal war reporting to me. Of course death tolls drop precipitously in areas with no government in place. How do you think they get the estimates of 40 to begin with? Those people on the ground are clueless, and have every reason to exagerrate, but they are the only source available (since the Lebanese government is pretty much worthless at this point). Is that media bias? No, its pandemonium combined with biased locals being the only data source. And as for where are the "screaming headlines as Hezbollah hits a UN site", maybe you aren't looking for them - because I see them. Hezbollah isn't being looked at as much more than a terrorist organization outside the Arab world, which is as it should be. Not exactly big news that they are firing rockets indiscriminately, which has been reported DAILY. There is also another dynamic at work here, one more insidious. Ironically, those who claim to be semi-neutral in all this or even those who support a democratic Lebanon and/or want a ceasefire, are all displaying an underlying core of hatred and bigotry of all things Arab or Islamic. How, you might ask? Part of it is exactly what you pointed to - there is a higher level of expectation of conduct from Israel than from other nations in the region. The EXPECTATION is that, whether it be Hezobollah or any nation or sect or group in the region, they will behave in an inhumane, illogical fashion. In the case of Hezbollah, part of that (the inhumane part) is often true. But not so of the others, necessarily. That expectation is also centered on the absurd technological superiority of Israel's weaponry. The end result may indeed be more international outrage at Israel's conduct - which we are seeing. But the MEDIA is reporting what is going on - including all the world's biases, their reactions, etc. - which are news. All that aside though, I was referring to THAT article, which you and SC expressed in one way or another was biased in some fashion. I want to see that bias. I think what Evil's talking about is Kofi's lack of outrage at the intentional bombing of the U.N. people by the Hizbollah terrorists.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Aug 7, 2006 -> 10:59 AM) But here's the problem...if North Korea were to actually ship Iran a bomb or two, what exactly is there that we can do about it? We can't bomb the Hell out of Korea, because South Korea and Tokyo will cease to exist. We can't bomb Iran to tell them not to buy things from Korea, because all that us striking them will do is strengthen their government and give them even more reason to deal rapidly with the Koreans. And 2/3 of the U.S. army is currently not in any way, shape, or form ready for deployment, with a decent chunk of the rest tied up in Iraq. I agree. I'm just taking the under of 10 years.