Hot Monkey Sex In Republican Party Wasn't A Big Draw

Maybe I should have mentioned girls and porn or web cams. My little test didn't produce the thousands of hits I thought it would. Funny how the world always fools me.

Must Read IMHO

You might find this very interesting. Or not. Let me know.

It seems very important to some Zionists to find the origin of Palestinian and Arab resistance to Zionism in religious hatred. The latest example of this tendency is in the newly-fashionable term, “islamofascism”, to describe the outlook of movements such as Hamas. This is a very comfortable cop-out. It reassures us that any opposition to what Israel is doing to the Palestinians is simply the latest manifestation of the same old antisemitism, and so absolves us from having to think rationally or critically about what we are actually witnessing in Israel and the Occupied Territories.

It’s not to difficult to swallow that line of reasoning if you have grown up on the Zionist narrative of history that many people my generation did. The logic behind it goes like this: Zionism is simply a national liberation movement for Jews, who are simply a people like any other, seeking self-determination in a state of their own. This is an eminently reasonable thing to do; in fact, it is what every people wants. As it is so normal and so rational, the only reason that anyone would object to it must be that the people seeking self-determination in this case happen to be Jews. Therefore the people who resist Zionism do so out of antisemitism. Q.E.D

(read more)

I have no idea what this means

Perhaps I'm not the nerd I thought I was?

Step-By-Step Configuration of NAT with iptables

(read more)

Must Read IMHO

This is so right. Do it.

Jesus camp shutdown

I didn't like the idea of the Jesus camp. let me restate that. I hated the fact it existed.

After vandals damaged the campground last month and critics besieged Fischer with negative e-mails, phone calls and letters, the pastor said she's shutting down the camp for at least several years.

That said, it pisses me off people would terrorize Fischer. To disagree is one thing, but to vandalize and threaten someone is another. No Terrorist tactics should be acceptable.

(read more)

Its all in how you look at it

This from Defective Yeti:

It was 7:00 AM and I was at the the office, feeling peckish. I went to the next-door deli, but nothing on their breakfast menu appealed to me, so I asked if they could make a grilled cheese sandwich. Unfazed, the guy whipped up my order and handed it to me on a paper plate. I decided to eat it at my desk.

Now this was a few years ago, back when I worked at a call center. In order to return to my cubicle I had walk from the front door to the back of the building, passing dozens of my colleagues in the process. Many seemed agog at my breakfast selection.

"What is that?" asked one. When I told him, he seemed stunned. "A grilled cheese sandwich?" he said in disbelief. "At seven in the morning?!"

A few moments later, as I was still wending my way back to my work space, a second coworker asked me the same question. "Eating grilled cheese sandwiches for breakfast can not be healthy," she announced after I told her.

I wasn't safe from inquisition even after arriving at my desk. The guy in the cubicle next to me leaned over, saw what I was eating, and asked what it was.

I opened my mouth to say "grilled cheese sandwich," but abruptly decided to change tack. "It's breakfast cheese toast," I said instead.

"Breakfast cheese toast?" he exclaimed, with a note of wonder in his voice. "Where did you get it? That sounds delicious!"

Howard Dean gets Recognition

Fuck this. We have to stop it immediately.

Howard Dean made some risky moves over the last two years, but after the election results were in, he looked pretty smart. As Joe Conason noted in Salon today, the DNC chairman is "enjoying vindication."

As well he should. Though I've been hard on Dean on occasion, his strategy helped the party in the short term, and has positioned the party well for the long term. I can appreciate the fact that there's some kind of mortal struggle to the death to determine who, exactly, deserves the credit for Dems' success this week, but at an absolute minimum, Dean deserves a pat on the back for a job well done.

What he does not deserve is a pink slip.

Some big name Democrats want to oust DNC Chairman Howard Dean, arguing that his stubborn commitment to the 50-state strategy and his stinginess with funds for House races cost the Democrats several pickup opportunities.

Dean may have lost us some races, but he gave us many, many more and will in the future.

(read more)

What??????

This is the headline:

Exclusive: Charges Sought Against Rumsfeld Over Prison Abuse

'scuse moi? EXCLUSIVE?

What about this?

...along with Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, former CIA director George Tenet and other senior U.S. civilian and military officers, for their alleged roles in abuses committed at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison and at the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Gonzales and Tenet are new info, but not Rummy.

I hit the trifecta

In order, Bloggered, power outage, ISP problems. Argh!!

I'm In 7th Heaven

The Dems are showing some balls. Oops. I don't mean that literally like...

Legislation aimed at President Bush's once-secret program for wiretapping U.S.-foreign phone calls and computer traffic of suspected terrorists without warrants shows all the signs of not moving ahead, notwithstanding President Bush's request this week that a lame-duck Congress give it to him.

Senate Democrats, emboldened by Election Day wins that put them in control of Congress as of January, say they would rather wait until next year to look at the issue. "I can't say that we won't do it, but there's no guarantee that we're going spend a lot of time on controversial measures," Democratic Whip Richard Durbin of Illinois said Thursday.

In Senate parlance, that means no.

They're starting to bring down the dictatorship. W00t!!!1!!

Ponies for everyone.

(read more)

Dems pledge to sever ties to lobbyists

Be still my heart.

On Day 1 of the next session of Congress, newly empowered Democrats are promising restrictive rules to "break the link between lobbyists and legislation." The city's veteran lobbyists know what to expect on Day 2: requests for political donations from the Capitol's new stewards.

Ethics watchdog groups are hopeful as incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., readies the Democrats' "Honest Leadership and Open Government" initiative for opening day in January. The plan includes a list of changes designed to clean up what the party calls "a culture of corruption" in Washington.

Exit polls from Tuesday's election compel Democrats to act. Three-fourths of voters said corruption and scandals were very or extremely important to them. That group tended to vote for Democratic House candidates, according to voter surveys conducted for The Associated Press and the television networks.

But some lobbyists, tired of being condemned for Washington's influence culture, remain skeptical.

"Let's not place the entire blame on lobbyists, so you can have a press conference, and then call us the next day and ask for campaign contributions," said Paul Miller, president of the American League of Lobbyists. "There are just as many Democratic lobbyists as Republican lobbyists."

And that bullshit is exactly why K Street needs to be cleaned. Take a look at this:

When presidents pick someone to fill a job in the government, it's typically a very public affair. The White House circulates press releases and background materials. Congress holds a hearing, where some members will pepper the nominee with questions and others will shower him or her with praise. If the person in question is controversial or up for an important position, they'll rate a profile or two in the papers. But there's one confirmation hearing you won't hear much about. It's convened every Tuesday morning by Rick Santorum, the junior senator from Pennsylvania, in the privacy of a Capitol Hill conference room, for a handpicked group of two dozen or so Republican lobbyists. Occasionally, one or two other senators or a representative from the White House will attend. Democrats are not invited, and neither is the press.

The chief purpose of these gatherings is to discuss jobs--specifically, the top one or two positions at the biggest and most important industry trade associations and corporate offices centered around Washington's K Street, a canyon of nondescript office buildings a few blocks north of the White House that is to influence-peddling what Wall Street is to finance. In the past, those people were about as likely to be Democrats as Republicans, a practice that ensured K Street firms would have clout no matter which party was in power. But beginning with the Republican takeover of Congress in 1994, and accelerating in 2001, when George W. Bush became president, the GOP has made a determined effort to undermine the bipartisan complexion of K Street. And Santorum's Tuesday meetings are a crucial part of that effort. Every week, the lobbyists present pass around a list of the jobs available and discuss whom to support. Santorum's responsibility is to make sure each one is filled by a loyal Republican--a senator's chief of staff, for instance, or a top White House aide, or another lobbyist whose reliability has been demonstrated. After Santorum settles on a candidate, the lobbyists present make sure it is known whom the Republican leadership favors. "The underlying theme was [to] place Republicans in key positions on K Street. Everybody taking part was a Republican and understood that that was the purpose of what we were doing," says Rod Chandler, a retired congressman and lobbyist who has participated in the Santorum meetings. "It's been a very successful effort."

If today's GOP leaders put as much energy into shaping K Street as their predecessors did into selecting judges and executive-branch nominees, it's because lobbying jobs have become the foundation of a powerful new force in Washington politics: a Republican political machine. Like the urban Democratic machines of yore, this one is built upon patronage, contracts, and one-party rule. But unlike legendary Chicago mayor Richard J. Daley, who rewarded party functionaries with jobs in the municipal bureaucracy, the GOP is building its machine outside government, among Washington's thousands of trade associations and corporate offices, their tens of thousands of employees, and the hundreds of millions of dollars in political money at their disposal. [emphasis mine]

Its part of the culture. These assholes lie. They can't help themselves. Its what they do. And its exactly why we have to muzzle them.

Israel official: Strike on Iran possible

This was/is coming and Bushco is all in fovor or it. Wakeup call to the Dems. Stop these people before we're in WWIII or IV.

The deputy defense minister suggested Friday that Israel might be forced to launch a military strike against Iran's disputed nuclear program — the clearest statement yet of such a possibility from a high-ranking official.

"I am not advocating an Israeli pre-emptive military action against Iran and I am aware of its possible repercussions," Deputy Defense Minister Ephraim Sneh, a former general, said in comments published Friday in The Jerusalem Post. "I consider it a last resort. But even the last resort is sometimes the only resort."

Sneh's comments did not necessarily reflect the view of Israel's government or of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, said government spokeswoman Miri Eisin.

(read more)

Get Over It, Bill Maher

This was posted as a comment at Dependable Renegade, but was truncated:

I have to weigh in. Bill Maher had no right "outing" Mehlman. I admire Maher, usually, but feel this is out of line.

Mehlman's sexual preference is personal and none of our business so long as he hurts none of us.

Jesus H Christ on Press The Meat, it seems like each time someone "outs" someone it tells more about them than the person they're naming. It suggests they're homophobes

Who is/was gay? How many do you admire and respect. Does their sexual orientation matter to you? If it does, its your problem.

* Roberta Achtenberg, Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President Clinton (first open les/bi/gay person ever confirmed for a subcabinet post by the Senate); former San Francisco city supervisor
* Margie Adam, folk singer; founder of Women's Music movement
* Edward Albee, playwright
* Paula Gunn Allen,
* Native American writer and activist
* Dorothy Allison, novelist
* Pedro Almodovar, filmmaker
* Sasha Alyson, publisher
* Angunquac, Native American activist
* Tom Ammiano, schoolteacher, comedian, San Francisco School Board president
* Cal Anderson, Washington state legislator
* Emily Anderson, photographer
* Gloria Anzaldua, Latina writer
* Virginia Apuzzo, New York state government official; former head of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
* Gregg Araki, Japanese-American filmmaker
* John Ash, poet and literary critic
* John Ashbery, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet
* Don Bachardy, artist; life partner of the late novelist Christopher Isherwood
* Guido Bachmann, writer
* Joan Baez, singer
* Ann Bancroft, explorer and teacher (*not* the actress Anne)
* Paul Bartel, filmmaker
* John Bartlett, fashion designer
* Robert Bauman, conservative gay activist; former Republican Congressman from Maryland
* Bruce Bawer, poet and neoconservative journalist (A Place at the Table)
* Bishop Carl Bean, founder of the Unity Fellowship Churches
* Amanda Bearse, actress (Marcie on Married...With Children)
* Alison Bechdel, cartoonist
* Pia Beck, singer and pianist
* Andy Bell, lead singer of Erasure
* Dodie Bellamy, writer
* Lisa Ben, singer/songwriter and retired secretary; created L.A. lesbian newsletter "Vice Versa" in 1940s
* Miriam Ben-Shalom, sued military for reinstatement after expulsion for being lesbian; head of Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Veterans of America
* Eric Bentley, critic, theater director and translator
* Sandra Bernhard, comedian
* Troix Bettencourt, prominent teenage gay activist
* Joan E. Biren ("JEB"), filmmaker; director of 1987 and 1993 March on Washington videos
* George Birisima, actor and playwright
* Blackberri, African-American singer
* Mr. Blackwell, fashion designer; creator of annual "Ten Worst Dressed" list
* Marie-Claire Blais, French-language Canadian novelist
* Nayland Blake, artist
* Robin Blaser, writer
* Angela Bocage, cartoonist and writer
* Dirk Bogarde, actor
* Chastity Bono, rock musician; daughter of Sonny Bono and Cher
* John Boswell, historian
* Sharon Bottoms, Virginia woman stripped of custody of her son solely because of her lesbian relationship
* Roddy Bottum, keyboardist of Faith No More
* Angela Bowen, African-American lecturer
* Angela Bowie, poet and performance artist; ex-wife of David Bowie
* David Bowie, rock star and actor
* Paul Bowles, writer
* Boy George, pop star
* Rev. Malcolm Boyd, Episcopal priest and writer
* Joe Brainard, poet and artist
* Lily Braindrop, writer, editor and "vixen"
* Marlon Brando, actor
* Robert Bray, speaker for National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
* Susie Bright, writer
* Jos Brink, Dutch television host
* Harry Britt, former President of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors
* Nicole Brossard, novelist
* James Broughton, poet, filmmaker and playwright
* Olga Broumas, poet
* Forman Brown ("Richard Meeker"), writer and puppeteer
* Julie Brown, comedian
* Rita Mae Brown, novelist
* John Brunner, writer
* Ed Buck, Arizona businessman; led drive to recall Gov. Evan Mecham from office
* Ron Buckmire, founder of the Queer Resources Directory; Afro-Caribbean
* Jm J. Bullock, actor
* Glenn Burke, ex-Major League baseball player
* William S. Burroughs, novelist
* Scott Burson, artist
* Charles Busch, writer, director and actor
* Aldo Busi, Italian novelist
* Dick Button, Olympic athlete
* Paul Cadmus, artist
* Jerome Caja, artist
* Pat Califia, advice columnist and magazine editor
* Simon Callow, actor
* Jack Campbell, millionaire bathhouse owner and activist
* Margarethe (Greta) Cammermeyer, discharged longtime National Guard officer
* Renaud Camus, French novelist
* Scott Capurro, comedian and actor
* Craig Carver, artist
* Casselberry & Dupree, African-American singers
* Maggie Cassella, comedian and lawyer
* Marilyn Chambers, porno actress
* Rt. Rev. Otis Charles, retired Episcopal bishop of Utah
* Claude Charron, journalist and former Quebec cabinet minister
* Neneh Cherry, singer
* Abigail Childs, video maker
* Margaret Cho, comedian
* Meg Christian, singer
* Christopher Ciccone, artist and set designer; brother of Madonna
* Craig Claiborne, food writer
* Joe Clark, Canadian journalist (*not* the former prime minister)
* Karen Clark, Minnesota state legislator
* Michelle Cliff, Jamaican writer
* Kate Clinton, comedian; life partner of Urvashi Vaid
* Gary Cohen, physician and AIDS columnist
* Arch Connelly, artist
* Janet Cooling, artist
* Dennis Cooper, writer
* John Corigliano, classical composer
* Alfred Corn, poet
* Tee A. Corrine, artist
* Midge Costanza, White House aide to President Carter
* Quentin Crisp, writer, actor and humorist
* Michelle Crone, comedian
* Mart Crowley, playwright
* Joe Dallesandro, actor in Andy Warhol films
* Mary Daly, feminist writer
* Gasparino Damata, Brazilian writer
* Betsy Damon, artist
* Jaye Davidson, actor
* Juan Davila, writer
* Angela Davis, African-American professor and Communist leader
* Craig Dean and Patrick Gill, couple suing D.C. government for a marriage license
* John DeCecco, psychologist and journal editor
* Ellen DeGeneris, comedian
* Donna Deitch, filmmaker
* Samuel R. Delany, African-American science-fiction writer
* Lea DeLaria, comedian
* John D'Emilio, historian
* David Diamond, classical composer
* Rev. Johannes Willem DiMaria-Kuiper, minister
* Thomas M. Disch, poet and science-fiction writer
* Alix Dobkin, folksinger
* Tanya Domi, kicked out of military for being lesbian; now head of NGLTF Military Project
* Ron Donaghe, writer
* Tom Donelan, cartoonist
* Cecilia Dougherty, video maker
* David Drake, playwright and actor
* Jerry Dreva ("Jerri Bonbon"), writer
* Tom Duane, New York City Council member
* Martin Duberman, historian and autobiographer
* Michael Duffy, chair of Mass. Commission Against Discrimination, appointed by Rep. Gov. William Weld
* Robert Edward Duncan, poet
* Andrea Dworkin, radical feminist writer and anti-pornography activist
* Sally Edwards, athlete and businesswoman
* Kenward Elmslie, writer and librettist
* Evelien Eshuis, former member of Dutch parliament
* Melissa Etheridge, rock star
* Rupert Everett, actor, rock musician and novelist
* Lillian Faderman, historian
* Perry Farrell, lead singer of Jane's Addiction
* Justin Fashanu, British pro soccer star
* David B. Feinberg, novelist
* Dominique Fernandez, French novelist
* Ferron, folksinger
* Edward Field, poet
* Harvey Fierstein, actor, playwright and female impersonator
* William Finn, Tony-winning Broadway actor
* Members of The Flirtations Gary Floyd, leader of Sister Double Happiness
* Katherine Forrest, writer and editor
* Barney Frank, U.S. Congressman (Democrat from Massachusetts)
* Tyler Franz, openly gay Bush campaign staffer who alleged being demoted and fired after complaints from religious conservatives
* Aaron Fricke, writer (Reflections of a Rock Lobster); as teenager got court order allowing him to bring a male date to his high school prom
* Job Friszo, Dutch TV news reporter
* The members of Funny Gay Males Ed Gallagher, former college football lineman
* Jedd Garet, artist
* Jean-Paul Gaultier, French fashion designer
* Sally Gearhart, professor, writer and activist
* David Geffen, billionaire record and film magnate
* Gordon Getty, classical composer
* Sir John Gielgud, award-winning actor
* Ronnie Gilbert, folksinger, member of The Weavers
* Gilbert and George, visual artists
* Allen Ginsberg, poet
* Barbara Gittings, longtime lesbian activist
* Peggy Glanville-Hicks, classical composer
* Deborah Glick, New York state legislator
* John Glines, Broadway producer
* Rev. Peter Gomes, chaplain of Harvard University; African-American
* Jewelle Gomez, African-American writer
* Marga Gomez, Latina comedian
* Juan Goytisolo, Spanish novelist
* Annemarie Grewel, Dutch politician and scholar
* Barbara Grier, writer and publisher
* Susan Griffin, feminist writer and poet
* Larry Gross, writer (The Contested Closet)
* Doris Grumbach, writer and critic
* Thom Gunn, poet
* Allan Gurganus, novelist
* Marilyn Hacker, poet
* Pam Hall, African-American folksinger
* Barbara Hammer, filmmaker
* Christopher Hampton, playwright
* Michael Hardwick, challenged Georgia's sodomy law; the U.S. Supreme Court, on a 5-4 vote, upheld the law in 1986
* Joy Harjo, Native American poet
* Sherry Harris, Seattle City Council member; first African-American lesbian elected official in U.S.
* Beverly Wildung Harrison, Christian theologian
* Lou Harrison, classical composer
* Nina Hartley, porno actress and feminist
* Bob Hattoy, Interior Department official, campaign adviser to President Clinton; spoke at 1992 Democratic convention
* Harry Hay, founder of the modern gay-rights movement; organized the Mattachine Society (1950) and the Radical Faeries (1979)
* Bruce Hayes, Olympic gold medallist in swimming
* Christopher Hayes, actor
* Todd Haynes, filmmaker
* Lawrence Helman, film producer (Sex Is....)
* Essex Hemphill, African-American poet
* Nona Hendryx, pop singer
* Joseph Herzenberg, former vice-mayor of Chapel Hill, N.C.
* Rev. Carter Heyward, lesbian Episcopal priest and writer
* Billy Hileman, schoolteacher and organizer; co-chair, 1993 March on Washington
* Marjorie Hill, African-American psychologist; formed head of New York City Office of Lesbian and Gay Concerns
* Jon Hinson, gay-rights activist; former Republican Congressman from Mississippi
* David Hockney, painter
* William S. Hoffman, playwright and librettist
* Andrew Holleran, novelist
* James Holobaugh, expelled from ROTC for being gay (author of Torn Allegiances)
* The Hollywood Kids (John and Lance), gossip columnists
* Jeff Horton, member of Los Angeles School Board
* Richard Howard, poet, translator and editor
* Mark Huestis, filmmaker (Sex Is....)
* Tom Hulce, Oscar-nominated actor
* David Hutter, painter
* Kate Hutton, seismologist
* Janis Ian, singer
* Gary Indiana, writer
* Robert Indiana, artist
* Patricia Ireland, president of the National Organization for Women (NOW)
* Bob and Rod Jackson-Paris, pro models/bodybuilders
* Marc Jacobs, fashion designer
* Tove Jansson, Finnish children's writer and cartoonist; created the Moomins
* Elton John, pop star
* Jasper Johns, artist
* Holly Johnson, lead singer of Frankie Goes to Hollywood
* Phillip Johnson, architect
* Bill T. Jones, African-American dancer
* Cleve Jones, founder of The NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt
* Grace Jones, singer, actress and diva
* June Jordan, African-American writer and educator
* Jose and Luis, Latino pop singers; former dancers for Madonna
* Lani Ka'Ahumanu, bisexual activist and writer
* Frank Kameny, longtime activist; first openly gay person to run for Congress (1971)
* Robin Kane, NGLFT "Fight the Right" coordinator
* Arnie Kantrowitz, writer, teacher and activist
* Jonathan Ned Katz, historian
* Michael Kearns, actor and writer
* Dennis Kelly, poet
* Maurice Kenny, poet
* Kevin Killian, writer
* Billie Jean King, pro tennis champion
* Tommy Kirk, actor in Disney films
* Gwen Kirkpatrick, writer
* David Kopay, retired NFL player
* Kris Kovick, cartoonist and writer
* Joseph Kramer, founder of Body Electric massage schools
* Larry Kramer, playwright and AIDS activist; founder of ACT UP and Gay Men's Health Crisis
* Friedrich Krohnke, German writer
* Sheila James Kuehl, actress and journalist
* Hanif Kureishi, novelist and screenwriter
* Tony Kushner, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright
* Robert LaFosse, ballet dancer
* Kay (Tobin) Laheusen, longtime lesbian activist and writer
* Lili Lakich, artist
* Michael Lane and Jim Crotty (The Monks), magazine publishers and adventurers
* k. d. lang, country/crossover singing star
* Steve Langly, African-American singer
* Peter Lankhorst, Dutch member of parliament, leader of Green Party
* Jack Larsen, actor (Jimmy Olson on TV's Superman)
* Lynn Lavner, comedian
* Susan Leal, San Francisco city supervisor
* David Leavitt, writer
* Paul de Leeuw, singer, comedian, and Dutch TV show host
* Ursula LeGuin, novelist
* Bruce Lehman, U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce
* Raymond Leppard, conductor and classical composer
* Simon LeVay, medical researcher; found physiological differences between brains of gay and straight men
* Denise Levertov, poet
* Jeffrey Levi, activist; former head, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, now heads AIDS Action Council
* Mitchell Lichtenstein, actor
* Marvin Liebman, conservative activist, close ally of William F. Buckley
* Derek Charles Livingston, co-chair, 1993 March on Washington; African-American
* Jenny Livingston, filmmaker
* Lance Loud, columnist; came out to his family on TV during 1973 PBS documentary series "An American Family"
* Greg Louganis, actor; three-time Olympic gold medallist in diving
* Susan Love, breast-cancer surgeon and famous lesbian mother
* Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin, co-founders of the Daughters of Bilitis, first known lesbian organization in the U.S.
* Donald Maclean, British spy
* Jean Marais, French actor
* Eric Marcus, writer and television producer
* Miriam Margoyles, actress
* Johnny Mathis, singer
* Armistead Maupin, writer
* Glen Maxey, Texas state legislator
* Bernard Mayes, journalist, priest and university dean; founding chair of NPR
* Stephen McCauley, novelist
* Rev. Renee McCoy, African-American minister and activist
* David McDermott, artist
* Tim McFeeley, head of the Human Rights Campaign Fund
* Peter McGough, artist
* Sir Ian McKellen, award-winning actor
* Rod McKuen, poet and songwriter
* Brian McNaught, writer
* Rev. John J. McNeill, Jesuit priest, scholar and writer
* Taylor Mead, poet and actor
* Robert Medley, painter
* Mary Meigs, painter
* Herman Meijer, architect; member of Rotterdam (Netherlands) City Council
* Keith Meinhold, Navy officer fighting expulsion for being gay who has won reinstatement by a federal court
* Gian Carlo Menotti, opera composer
* William Meredith, poet
* James Ingram Merrill, poet
* Duane Michaels, photographer
* Carole Migden, San Francisco city supervisor
* Jeff Miller, country singer
* Tony Miller, acting California Secretary of State
* Kate Millett, writer
* Donna Minkowitz, Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist
* Issac Mizarahi, fashion designer
* David Mixner, millionaire businessman and gay-rights activist; estranged friend and advisor of President Clinton
* Paul Monette, novelist
* Cherrie Moraga, writer
* Timothy Morange, former president, National Association of Black Psychologists
* Mary Morgan, San Francisco municipal judge; life partner of Roberta Achtenberg
* Robin Morgan, feminist writer and editor
* Tom Morgan, New York Times reporter; former president, National Association of Black Journalists
* Mark Morris, dancer and choreographer
* Morrissey, rock star
* Dee Mosbacher, public health administrator and activist; daughter of ex-President Bush's campaign chairman and Secretary of Commerce
* Thierry Mugler, fashion designer
* Alex Munter, Kanata, Ontario, city councillor
* Michael Nelson, Carrboro, N.C., alderman
* Diane Murphy, child actress (Tabitha on Bewitched)
* George Nader, actor and science fiction novelist
* Nalty, comedian
* Martina Navratilova, pro tennis champion
* Three of the "NEA Four" (John Fleck, Holly Hughes and Tim Miller), performance artists whose federal grants were cut off because of homoerotic content in their work during the Bush administration
* Holly Near, folksinger
* Joan Nestle, writer
* Leslea Newman, children's writer (Heather Has Two Mommies, Gloria Goes to Gay Pride)
* Simon Nkoli, South African anti-apartheid and gay-rights activist
* Elaine Noble, first openly lesbian or gay person elected to a state legislature (Massachusetts, 1974)
* Pat Norman, African-American organizer; co-chair of 1987 March on Washington and Stonewall 25
* Harold Norse, poet
* Richard Bruce Nugent, writer and artist
* The members of The Nylons, Canadian all-male a capella singers
* Ron Nyswaner, Academy Award-nominated screen writer (Philadelphia)
* Erwin Olaf, photographer
* Todd Oldham, fashion designer
* Mary Oliver, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet
* Jenni Olsen, filmmaker, writer and curator
* Donald Olson, writer
* Torie Osborn, former head of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
* Annemiek Onstenk, member of Amsterdam City Council
* Antonio Pagan, member of New York City Council; Latino
* Camille Paglia, writer
* Dave Pallone, ex-Major League umpire
* Juan Palomo, newspaper columnist; Latino
* Robert Patrick, playwright
* Charlotte Patterson, research psychologist and professor; studies children of lesbian and gay parents
* Larry Paul, Atlanta municipal judge
* Ross Paxton, artist
* Darcy Penteado, Brazilian writer
* Rev. Troy Perry, founder of the Metropolitan Community Churches
* Robert Peters, poet, critic and teacher
* Roger Peyrefitte, French writer
* Phranc, folksinger
* Felice Picano, writer
* Charles Pierce, female impersonator
* Marge Piercy, writer
* Jody Pinto, artist
* The members of Pomo Afro Homos, African-American gay comedy troupe
* Iggy Pop, rock star
* Jill Posner, photographer
* Minnie Bruce Pratt, poet and teacher
* Rosa von Praunheim, German filmmaker
* Benno Premsela, designer and early European gay movement leader
* Deb Price, Gannett newspapers columnist
* Edward Reynolds Price, novelist
* Rev. Dusty Pruitt, MCC minister; sued military for reinstatement after expulsion for being lesbian
* Peri Jude Radecic, head of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force
* Anne-Imelda Radice, acting head of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) under ex-President Bush; denied grants for homoerotic art
* Anthony Rapp, actor (Dazed and Confused, Six Degrees of Separation)
* Toshi Reagon, African-American folksinger
* John Rechy, writer
* Donna Red Wing, led campaign to defeat Ballot Measure 9 in Oregon; Advocate Woman of the Year 1992
* Lou Reed, rock star
* Kenneth Reeves, mayor of Cambridge, Mass.; African-American
* Reno, comedian
* Gerard Reve, Dutch novelist
* Frank Ricchiazi, campaign co-chair for California Gov. Pete Wilson, 1990
* Adrienne Rich, poet and critic
* Marlon Riggs, African-American filmmaker
* Herb Ritts, photographer
* Larry Rivers, painter and sculptor
* Svend Robinson, member of the Canadian Parliament
* Tom Robinson, singer/songwriter
* Robert Rodi, novelist
* Edouard Herbert Roditi, writer
* Eric Rofes, writer
* Romanovsky and Phillips, folksingers
* Ned Rorem, classical composer and writer
* Jan Rot, Dutch pop musician
* Gabriel Rotello, New York Newsday columnist, former editor of OutWeek
* A. L. Rowse, historian
* William Rubinstein, gay-rights lawyer
* Paul Rudnick, playwright and screen writer Jane Rule, writer
* RuPaul, African-American drag entertainer extraordinaire
* Joanna Russ, feminist and science-fiction writer
* Paul Rutherford, singer, Frankie Goes to Hollywood
* Leigh Rutledge, writer (The Gay Book of Lists, etc.)
* Keith St. John, alderman, Albany, N.Y.; African-American
* Yves Saint-Laurent, fashion designer
* Dick Sargent, actor (second Darrin on Bewitched)
* Jose Sarria, drag entertainer; first openly gay candidate for public office in U.S. history (San Francisco, 1961)
* May Sarton, writer
* Benjamin Schatz, lawyer and activist
* John Schlafly, son of anti-gay conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly and lawyer for her organization, the Eagle Forum
* John Schlesinger, filmmaker
* Maria Schneider, actress
* Sarah Schulman, writer and activist
* James Schuyler, poet
* David Scondras, former Boston City Council member
* Scout, lesbian activist and organizer; co-chair, 1993 March on Washington
* Antony Sher, South African-British novelist and actor
* Siegfried and Roy, animal trainers and illusionists
* Michelangelo Signorile, journalist, activist, co-founder of Queer Nation
* Aguinaldo Silva, Brazilian writer
* Charles Silverstein, psychologist and writer; co-author, The Joy of Gay Sex
* Roy Simmons, former New York Giants tackle
* Ingrid Sischy, editor of Interview magazine
* Dave Slattery, former general manager, Washington Redskins
* Christopher Smith, member of the British Parliament
* Barbara Smith, African-American publisher
* Mike Smith, co-founder (with Cleve Jones) of The Names Project
* Nadine Smith, co-chair, 1993 March on Washington
* Jimmy Somerville, pop singer
* James Spada, writer
* Allan Spear, president of the Minnesota State Senate Stephen Spender, poet and critic
* Martin Sperr, German writer
* Stephen Spinella, actor
* Annie Sprinkle, writer and erotic photographer
* Starhawk, feminist theologian and spiritual teacher
* Joe Steffan, top Naval Academy cadet expelled for being gay, now suing for reinstatement
* Doug Stevens, country singer; leader of The Out Band
* Samuel Steward ("Phil Andros"), writer
* Tom Stoddard, gay-rights lawyer; former head of Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, now heads Campaign for Military Service
* Jeff Stryker, star of gay, straight and bi porno films
* Gerry Studds, U.S. Congressman (Democrat from Massachusetts)
* Suede, blues singer and trumpet player
* Andrew Sullivan, editor of The New Republic magazine David Surber, co-host and producer of Network Q
* Terry Sweeney, comedian
* Rich Tafel, former head of Log Cabin Federation, gay Republican group which refused to endorse George Bush for re-election
* Mutsuo Takahashi, Japanese poet
* Carla Tardi, artist
* Valerie Terrigno, first mayor of West Hollywood, Cal.
* Karen Thompson, obtained custody of her disabled lover Sharon Kowalski after six-year court battle
* Scott Thompson, comedian
* Tracy Thorne, U.S. Navy lieutenant discharged after coming out on Nightline
* Andrew Tobias ("John Reid"), Wall Street Journal editor and writer
* Jonathan Tolins, playwright (Twilight of the Golds)
* Lily Tomlin, comedian/actress
* Michel Tournier, French writer
* Pete Townshend, lead guitarist of The Who, composer
* Michel Tremblay, Quebecois novelist and playwright
* Arthur Tress, photographer
* Monika Treut, German filmmaker
* C. A. Tripp, psychologist
* Tommy Tune, Tony-winning Broadway singer/actor
* Robin Tyler, first "out" comedian; rally/festival producer and activist
* Urvashi Vaid, national movement leader; former head, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force; life partner of Kate Clinton
* Annelize van de Stoel, member of Amsterdam City Council
* Gus Van Sant, filmmaker
* Rev. Herman Verbeek, Catholic priest, Dutch member of European Parliament
* Gore Vidal, novelist
* Most members of Village People Linda Villarosa, editor of Essense magazine
* Jane Wagner, playwright; life partner of Lily Tomlin
* John Waters, filmmaker
* Sgt. Perry Watkins (ret.), won Supreme Court case for reinstatement to Army after expulsion for being gay; African-American
* William Waybourn, head of the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund
* George Weinberg, psychologist; coined the term "homophobia" in his book "Society and the Healthy Homosexual"
* Suzanne Westenhoeffer, comedian
* Edmund White, novelist
* Rev. Mel White, former aide to Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson; now MCC minister, writer and lecturer against Religious Right
* John Wieners, poet
* Gale Wilhelm, novelist
* Michael Wilhoite, children's writer (Daddy's Roommate)
* Danny Williams, comedian
* Jonathan Williams, poet and teacher
* Karen Williams, comedian; co-host, PBS's In The Life
* Cris Williamson, folksinger
* Val Wilmer, photographer and writer
* Barbara Wilson, writer and publisher
* Millie Wilson, artist
* Phill Wilson, AIDS director for City of Los Angeles; founder, Black Lesbian and Gay Leadership Forum
* Fran Winant, artist
* Jeanette Winterson, novelist
* Monique Wittig, writer
* B. D. Wong, Tony-winning Broadway actor; Asian
* Holly Woodlawn, actor in Andy Warhol films
* James D. Woods, professor and author (The Corporate Closet)
* Ivy Young, head of NGLTF Family Project; African-American
* Bohdan Zachary, filmmaker
* Jose Zuniga, U.S. Army sergeant,1992 6th Army Solider of the Year; discharged for saying he was gay after Clinton took office.

(courtesy link)

Bartering For Brides: An Old Tyme Game

This is educational, bizzare and quite disgusting.

If you know where to look, you can find all kinds of crazy stuff in the good book. So grab your King James Version and flip to chapter 18 of the first book of Samuel for the story of David (yes, that David, with the stone and the sling and the Psalms) and Michal. After David smote the heck out of Philistine badass Goliath, he went to live with King Saul of Israel. Saul, afraid of David and troubled by evil spirits, began to plot his murder. When Saul’s daughter Michal revealed her love for David, Saul made her a deal: Have David bring back 100 Philistine foreskins, and he can marry you. Now Saul had no particular affinity for foreskins; he just wanted David to get killed trying. But Dave and his posse, with God’s help, brought back 200 for the good king. Saul couldn’t help but bless his daughter’s marriage to such a go-getter.

My guess is the phallic symbol is purely coincidental, but I could be wrong.

(From Neatorama)

Cat Blogging

How many times do I have to mention I HAVE NO CAT?

Hot Monkey Sex In Republican Party

Technically this is just an experiment to see what words people are searching for. Should prove interesting. Here are some more words:

Perverts
Transvestites
Animals
Beastiality
Cat
Water sports
Boats
Goats
Horses
Outdoors
Public
Dog
Nude
Girls
Guys
Waffle iron

Let's see what generates hits, k? I'll be shocked if its waffle iron.

Evangelicals At The Gates

There's more over at Simbaud.

"Christians increasingly have an advantage in the educational enterprise," he says. "This is evident in the success of Christian home-schooled children, as compared to their government-schooled friends who have spent their time constructing their own truths." The students, all evangelical Christians, applaud loudly. Most of them were schooled at home before arriving at Patrick Henry - a college created especially for them.

These students are part of a large, well-organised movement that is empowering parents to teach their children creationist biology and other unorthodox versions of science at home, all centred on the idea that God created Earth in six days about 6000 years ago. Patrick Henry, near the town of Purcellville, about 60 kilometres north-west of Washington DC, is gearing up to groom home-schooled students for political office and typifies a movement that seems set to expand, opening up a new front in the battle between creationists and Darwinian evolutionists. New Scientist investigated how home-schooling, with its considerable legal support, is quietly transforming the landscape of science education in the US, subverting and possibly threatening the public school system that has fought hard against imposing a Christian viewpoint on science teaching.

...

According to the article, PHC grads held 7% of all White House internships in 2004, "a number even more striking when one considers that only 240 students were enrolled in the entire college. Last year, two PHC graduates worked in the White House, six worked for members of Congress and eight for federal agencies, including two for the FBI."

The truth is, I fear these people more than I fear Al Qaeda. Al Qaeda is like a potential broken arm or unlikely death. These people are like terminal cancer.

Please Help - Lost Dog

Looks like everyone is bailing out.

Another Pony?

Good thing I built that stable and corral.

SIDEBAR (courtesy of our esteemed colleague Clyde Clifford at Beaker St. Blog): And what about Mr. Gates's distinguished predecessor? Recent developments indicate that he may no longer feel a need to brush up on his conversational German:

In a message just sent to reporters, [lawyers who represent detainees at Guantánamo Bay] say they intend to file war crimes charges against Rumsfeld next week in Germany, arguing that his departure from the Department of Defense means that he's no longer entitled to immunity from prosecution . . . .

CCR lawyers say that, under Rumsfeld's direction, the Department of Defense has "adopted the practices of torture and indefinite detention" that they're challenging in a number of other cases. [emphasis mine]

(via Simbaud who has links)

The Perfect Image Of The 2006 Mid-Terms

From Neatorama.

Here We Go Again

Its the damn liberal MSM up to their old trick of touting progressives.
The 2006 election was defined by a) a repudiation of the war in Iraq and the current Iraq strategy, and b) widespread national victories for Democratic House, Senate, and gubernatorial candidates.

Yet, according to a press aide, this Sunday’s edition of NBC’s Meet the Press will include two interviews: one with Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-CT), an Iraq war supporter who defeated Ned Lamont (D-CT), and one with Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), who recently called for 20,000 additional U.S. troops to be sent to Iraq, and who was not up for reelection in 2006.

In other words, the first post-election edition of Meet the Press will exclusively feature politicians who support the war in Iraq, neither of whom ran as a Democrat.

(courtesy link)

Republican Senator From Wyoming Diagnosed With Leukemia

No gloating over this. Its a tragedy for everyone.

Sen. Craig Thomas, hospitalized since Monday with pneumonia, began treatment for leukemia on Thursday, his spokesman said.

The Wyoming Republican, who was easily elected to a third term while in the hospital, fell ill in church in Casper on Sunday and was taken by ambulance to Wyoming Medical Center. He and his wife, Susan, flew back to Washington later in the day.

Thomas, 73, canceled campaign events Monday and was admitted to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., that evening, his spokesman Cameron Hardy said Thursday.

While hospitalized, doctors noticed a low white blood cell count, and a bone marrow biopsy revealed leukemia, cancer of the blood and bone marrow. Thomas began a four- to six-week course of chemotherapy Thursday, Hardy said.

Thomas planned to remain at the hospital to reduce his risk of infection.

"I am joining all of the thousands and thousands of other cancer survivors in Wyoming," Thomas said in a statement. "I certainly didn't expect this diagnosis, but I will be back by the January session ready for full service in the new Congress."

Thomas was found to have acute myeloid leukemia, the most common form of the disease.

(read more)

A Plethora Of Ponies: John Bolton Confirmation

Love Dem ponies.

The Senate's prospects for extending John Bolton's job as U.N. ambassador essentially died Thursday as Democrats and a pivotal Republican said they would continue to oppose the nomination.

(read more)

Perhaps for now this logo:



Should be changed to this one:



Hehe!

AP: Startling Findings In Tillman Probe

This just keeps getting worse and worse.

They walked the landscape with surviving witnesses. They found a rock stained with the blood of the victim. They re-enacted the killings - here the U.S. Army Rangers swept through the canyon in their Humvee, blasting away; here the doomed man waved his arms, pleading for recognition as a friend, not an enemy.

"Cease fire, friendlies, I am Pat (expletive) Tillman, damn it!" the NFL star shouted, again and again.

...

All four failed to identify their targets before firing, a direct violation of the fire discipline techniques drilled into every soldier.

There's more:

Much more.

(read more)

John McCain - Potential GOP Presidential Candidate in '08

Can we hold him to this?

October 18, 2006 4:27 p.m. EST

Matthew Borghese - All Headline News Staff Writer

Washington, D.C. (AHN) - In an interview, Senator and possible 2008 GOP presidential candidate, John McCain (R-AZ), when asked what he would do if Democrats won control over Congress this November, says he would "commit suicide."

If not, he's the perfect candidate for the Repugs. He's already telling lies.

(read more)

Must Read IMHO

From rangeragainstwar.

In the past, I have questioned the wisdom of electing a former CIA director to be President (Pappa Bush.) I've further questioned placing a 4-Star Active-duty General in charge of the CIA. The CIA is now under the Department of Defense (DoD) umbrella, and now the DoD will be firmly under the control of a former CIA Eagle Scout.

It seems that DoD now controls the CIA and the CIA controls the DoD. The snake is swallowing its own tail.

We've Got Crystal Balls

This Is Why I Usually Don't Make Predictions: they can make me look três stupid if I'm wrong.

Making predictions is always a dangerous business, which is why we at the eXile decided that on this, our 250th issue, we'd roll the die and stake it all on a prediction that almost no one believes is possible. We'll stake ten years of hard-won credibility on just this one foolish prediction -- we're doubling down everything this paper is worth, and placing our girlfriends as collateral just in case. That's how good we feel about this. Ready? Here goes. THIS COMING TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2006, THE REPUBLICANS WILL KEEP CONTROL OF BOTH HOUSES OF CONGRESS. [emphasis in original]

Oops!

(read more)

The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy©

That's what it is. I've been Blogged for many hours and just when I was finally able to get in, a power outage. Argh!!!

I just know its the VRWC© behind it all. They're pissed they lost and we're gloating. And, if there is no such thing as a VRWC©, why do they have logos? Lots of 'em.

Bloggers, The New Gods Of Politics

Here's my take on the election from the blogger perspective.

Yes, bloggers influenced some voters by offering perspective and information they would never get from the MSM because we scour foreign news sources and find things Murdoch will never tell you. And we influenced some younger voters by providing historical info they are too young to have remembered and certainly would never get from history courses in school.

But, and this is as big a but as you'll find, we were not a major influence. Nope. None of us. Some raised money and raised awareness, but we all played a minor role. Polls show, at most, about 28% of people even consult blogs for political information.

So most people were not influenced by bloggers at all because they didn't read us.

That said, its like door-to-door flyer distribution, driving voters to the polls and calling people to remind them to vote. None are "important" yet all are important if taken as a whole. Perhaps our influence will grow as time goes on and I certainly hope so. Meanwhile we need to be humble and realize we're just a small part of the whole game. Bloggers didn't get anyone elected although we may have been a big help in getting some of the bums thrown out.

Message? What Message? From South Dakota?

So South Dakota is sending us a message?

That's what their vote on abortion is saying.

The verdict on abortion rights was particularly clear. Oregon and California voters defeated measures that would have required parents to be notified before a girl under 18 could get an abortion, and South Dakotans — by a margin of 56 percent to 44 percent — rejected a new state law that would have banned all abortions except to save a pregnant woman's life.

"This was really a rebellion in the heart of red-state, pro-life America — the heart of the northern Bible Belt," said Sarah Stoesz, head of the
Planned Parenthood chapter that oversees South Dakota. "It sends a very strong message to the rest of the country."

No. I'll tell you exactly what the message is South Dakota voters are satisfied by the laws they have. Period. End of story.

How they voted matters little to me and I get no "message" strong or otherwise. Its a state issue so doesn't pertain outside the state's borders and I couldn't care less how they vote. I still know my position and it isn't influenced by counted ballots in South Dakota.

To be clear about my position. Women should have control of their bodies. Period. No pun intended.

Outlaw vasectomies and watch for a huge groundswell for "control of our own bodies". And yes, vasectomies and abortions certainly are the same thing except for the timing. The abortin prevents a childbirth after conception and the vasectomy does the same thing before conception.

(read more)

Must Read IMHO

Shades of gray folks. It ain't all black and white, good guys and bad guys and there are always the innocents.

A lot of words will be written and spoken about the IDF's shelling of a residential area of Beit Hanun early this morning, which killed at least 18 Palestinians as they slept. As I live in the U.S., most of the words I read and hear about it will blame the Palestinians for their own deaths, insisting that if only someone hadn't sometime in the past fired some crappy Qassam missile possibly from somewhere in the vicinity of where those dead Palestinians lived, then the IDF would not be attacking Palestinians and everything would be fine.

(read more)

Food For Thought

Don't know the author. I found it here:

Think about it.

Joe gets up at 6 a.m. and fills his coffeepot with water to prepare his morning coffee. The water is clean and good because some tree-hugging liberal fought for minimum water-quality standards. With his first swallow of water, he takes his daily medication. His medications are safe to take because some stupid commie liberal fought to ensure their safety and that they work as advertised.

All but $10 of his medications are paid for by his employer’s medical plan because some liberal union workers fought their employers for paid medical insurance - now Joe gets it too.

He prepares his morning breakfast, bacon and eggs. Joe’s bacon is safe to eat because some girly- man liberal fought for laws to regulate the meat packing industry.

In the morning shower, Joe reaches for his shampoo. His bottle is properly labeled with each ingredient and its amount in the total contents because some crybaby liberal fought for his right to know what he was putting on his body and how much it contained.

Joe dresses, walks outside and takes a deep breath. The air he breathes is clean because some environmentalist wacko liberal fought for the laws to stop industries from polluting our air.

He walks on the government-provided sidewalk to the subway station for his government-subsidized ride to work. It saves him considerable money in parking and transportation costs because some fancy-pants liberal fought for affordable public transportation, which gives everyone the opportunity to be a contributor.

Joe begins his work day. He has a good job with excellent pay, medical benefits, retirement, paid holidays and vacation because some lazy liberal union members fought and died for these working standards. Joe’s employer pays these standards because Joe’s employer doesn’t want his employees to call the union.

If Joe is hurt on the job or becomes unemployed, he’ll get a worker compensation or an unemployment check because some stupid liberal didn’t think he should lose his home because of his temporary misfortune.

It is noontime and Joe needs to make a bank deposit so he can pay some bills. Joe’s deposit is federally insured by the FSLIC because some godless liberal wanted to protect Joe’s money from unscrupulous bankers who ruined the banking system before the Great Depression.

Joe has to pay his Fannie Mae-underwritten mortgage and his below-market federal student loan because some elitist liberal decided that Joe and the country would be better off if he was educated and earned more money over his lifetime. Joe also forgets that his in addition to his federally subsidized student loans, he attended a state-funded university.

Joe is home from work. He plans to visit his father this evening at his farm home in the country. He gets in his car for the drive. His car is among the safest in the world because some America-hating liberal fought for car safety standards to go along with the tax- payer funded roads.

He arrives at his boyhood home. His was the third generation to live in the house financed by Farmers’ Home Administration because bankers didn’t want to make rural loans.

The house didn’t have electricity until some big- government liberal stuck his nose where it didn’t belong and demanded rural electrification.

He is happy to see his father, who is now retired. His father lives on Social Security and a union pension because some wine-drinking, cheese-eating liberals made sure Dad could take care of himself so Joe wouldn’t have to.

Joe gets back in his car for the ride home, and turns on a radio talk show. The radio host keeps saying that liberals are bad and conservatives are good. He doesn’t mention that the beloved Republicans have fought against every protection and benefit Joe enjoys throughout his day. Joe agrees: “We don’t need those big-government liberals ruining our lives! After all, I’m a self-made man who believes everyone should take care of himself, just like I have.”

Maybe Lieberman Will Come Back To The Dems

Why do I think so? Because he's been touted as a likely replacement for Rummy as Secretary of Defense only to discover he ain't gettin' the job. Its going to Robert Gates.

See this and this and this

Then check out this.

Personally, I wish he had gotten the job. I think he might have been good at it and it would have gotten him out of the Senate.

I still don't like the idea of Lieberman's weilding exceptional power in the Senate. If one other Dem Senator sides with the Repugs, Lieberman becomes an 800 pound gorilla.

Being said huge simian would mean, of course, the Dem leadership would court him like a guy with his own ice cream shop.

And The Ponies Just Keep Coming

Rummy has stepped down...finally. All it took was the whole US military to say they don't support him.

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld stepped down Wednesday, one day after congressional elections in which opposition to the war in Iraq contributed to heavy Republican Party losses.

President George W. Bush said he would nominate Robert Gates, a former CIA director, to replace Rumsfeld at the Pentagon.

Too bad so many thousands had to die because of him.

(read more)

Thank You Howard Dean

This from Jill over at Brilliant at Breakfast:

The big winner here, and also in the Senate if Jon Tester prevails, is DNC Chairman Howard Dean, whose 50-state strategy of building organizations in every state, not just plowing money into just a few "sure thing" races, paid off big-time last night.

Nail, head. It was all probably impossible without his strategy.

I Say We'll Get A Second Pony

For what its worth (about what you're paying for it), here's what I think will happen.

Montana will go dem. Perhaps a recount, but the numbers suggest no problem.

Virginia will have a recount and end up Dem also.

Technically that's 3 ponies: House, Senate and Governorships.

Even 4 ponies if you include all the committees that will now be chaired by Dems. Time to build a stable I guess.

Unfortunately the Dems must now exercise their power creatively, intelligently and judiciously. The voters who put these people in power are gonna be watching their every move. The next 2 years could build or break the Dems' chances to take the White House in '08.

Why Do Governments Like Killing People?

They do ya know. Even Japan is now debating whether to change their constitution so they can kill people again.

At the talks beginning in Geneva today, the British government will fight attempts to ban cluster bombs.

By George Monbiot. Published in the Guardian 7th November 2006

The central mystery of the modern state is this. The necessary resources, both economic and political, will always be found for the purpose of terminating life. The project of preserving it will always struggle. When did you last see a soldier shaking a tin for a new rifle? Or a sponsored marathon raising money for nuclear weapons? But we must beg and cajole each other for funds whenever a hospital wants a new dialysis machine. If the money and determination expended on waging war with Iraq had been used to tackle climate change, our carbon emissions would already be in freefall. If as much money were spent on foreign aid as on fighter planes, no one would ever go hungry.

(read more)

Buh Bye Ricky Santorum

Many dems and progressive bloggers are graciously applauding Ricky's concession speech.

That's all well and good, but it wasn't a concession speech. That, folks, was the first stump speech in his bid for the presidency in '08.

We Got Our Pony