Da Roolz and Otheh Administrivia
OH, one last thing. You really should feel free, all that discouragement above notwithstanding, to ping me for anything, including adds. I just make no promises for action. Clear? OK. Let's be about it.
I hope you all enjoy it.
![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
countgeiger) and will return all phone messages ASAP.The Zen of Time Constraints
Come let me plot thee,
I graph thee now, yet Phil denies thee still,
Art thou not, fatal economy, sensible
To shills and hacks, or art thou but
A recession of the mind, a false creation
Proceeding from the Nation of Whiners?
Issue One: The Senate is preparing to eviscerate the Fourth Amendment.
Those of you who are old enough to remember the Nixon presidency may still not know about one of its results - the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). This was enacted in 1978 to explicitly forbid the Executive from spying on American citizens without judicial review. During the Clinton Administration, the right wingers screamed that it wasn't strong enough, restrictive enough: the black helicopters were coming because the evil Democraps were in power!
Take a guess what position they took just as soon as it came out (in December of 2005) that their boy Bush had been flouting the law for years (even before 9/11, folks). The man announced it in a televised press conference, and defied Congress to stop him. And here we are, two and a half years later, with the Dem leadership (yes, Obama, too) capitulating and letting Bush get clean away with it. The vote's tomorrow.
Issue Two: The Department of Homeland Security is considering TASER bracelets for air travel. (hat tip to Crooks and Liars)
I predict train travel will experience a renaissance if this goes through. The most perceptive comment at the YouTube page?
wow, wouldn't it be sweet if a terrorist got a job as a flight attendant...then no passengers would be able to stop them lol
Issue Three: No big news here- McCain is a lying bastard and will be worse than Bush if elected. See, you knew that already. (again Crooks and Liars)
That's the stuff, for now.
- Mood:
cranky
who might decide to smite them
Metagods fear Metametagods
and so on ad infinitum
So, I leave you with the following. Who said it?
What, to the American slave, is your 4th of July? I answer; a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. To him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sound of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciation of tyrants brass fronted impudence; your shout of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanks-givings, with all your religious parade and solemnity, are to him, mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy -- a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. There is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody than are the people of the United States, at this very hour.
We have come so very far from this- but we have a long long way to go yet.
- Mood:
contemplative
In case there was any doubt whatsoever in your mind that the United States is torturing people, kindly turn your attention to this article by Christopher Hitchens.
He's a drunken, boorish, bullying asshole, but he had courage enough to find out what waterboarding is like so that he could tell us, and he speaks truly.
- Mood: angry
In point of fact, please feel free to send along suggestions for casting projects. We'll happily take any such (though with my posting habits I cannot promise to be timely in putting them up).
firehair28 and I (credit where due- it was mostly her) assembled for David Lynch's Dune. It's fucking brilliant.
So I have just spent an evening along with medancer coming up with the cast for one of our favorite books- Lois McMaster Bujold's The Curse of Chalion. Rather than horde all the fun for ourselves, we invite you to join in. Under the cut ('cause it really fucking long) is a poll containing our top choices for each major role in the story. If you think someone else would be better, we invite you to make your case in the comments.
And now ( on with the show! )- Mood:
accomplished
Sharper than Mykeru ripping on Christianists.
As funny as anything ever written by or to the Mall Ninja.
As tightly reasoned as anything written in the Federalist Papers.
Dr. Richard Lenski takes down right-wing loon Andrew Schlafly. Politely and completely.
And remember, boys and girls- never never NEVER take on a scientist in her/his own field.
You might just find yourself on the receiving end of an exchange like this one.
- Location:Edoras
- Mood:
amused
No links, people. No time, and it's all in the commentary of the blogs I read, anyway. The posters have been calmer than that.
(from TPM Muckraker)
Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Gitmo Detainees
By Andrew Tilghman - June 12, 2008, 10:27AM
From the AP:
The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that foreign terrorism suspects held at Guantanamo Bay have rights under the Constitution to challenge their detention in U.S. civilian courts.
The justices handed the Bush administration its third setback at the high court since 2004 over its treatment of prisoners who are being held indefinitely and without charges at the U.S. naval base in Cuba. The vote was 5-4, with the court's liberal justices in the majority.
Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the court, said, "The laws and Constitution are designed to survive, and remain in force, in extraordinary times."
- Mood:
Just Waking Up
How hot? Look at the timestamp on this post. Now know that there's a bird a few yards behind me in a tree chirping his fool head off. Normally my neighborhood is dead silent (minus the city hum) at this time of night.
Tank of gasoline - $50
Barrel of oil - $126
Heat high enough to flip diurnal animals into nocturnal activity - fucking insanity
Let's take a moment to tag a couple of current issues.
California's Supreme Court overturns a ban on gay marriage: Well, not quite. What they actually did what explicitly legalize gay marriage, saying not only that a ban was unconstitutional, but that half measure remedies (civil unions and/or getting the state out of the definition of marriage) were also essentially wrong. In short, the only legitimate remedy was to allow people to marry regardless of gender.
John Edwards finally endorses Barack Obama: I like Edwards, but this was not a politically courageous act on his part. When oh when will we have a politician who is a step ahead of the blogosphere? Oh, right. That'd be Obama.
Many Clinton supporters vowing to fight on - for McCain: Think I'm kidding? Go check out the comments in blogs like Talk Left, and No Quarter. Most especially this post at No Quarter. Not a commenter. The blogger himself.
Saw a comment the other day at Hillaryis44.com to the effect that Hillary Clinton losing the Dem nomination is a "gang rape".
If ever I was inclined to respect Hillary Clinton's supporters or had I any doubts about my choice of Obama (actually, I do, but that's neither here nor there), that would clinch it for me right there.
They just called and asked me to interview today. And I have no interview outfit.
AIIEEEEEE!!!
So I'm going to spend the day running around like a headless chicken.
Wish me luck!
Profile
- snowwy
- The Black Sword
- Magical Acts
Syndicate
