Rendering Reporters

This is comforting huh:

A cameraman for Reuters in Iraq has been ordered by a secret tribunal to be held without charge in Baghdad's Abu Ghraib prison until his case is reviewed within six months, a U.S. military spokesman said on Wednesday.

Ali Omar Abrahem al-Mashhadani was arrested by U.S. forces on August 8 after a search of his home in the city of Ramadi. The U.S. military has refused Reuters requests to disclose why he is being held. He has not been charged.

His brother, who was detained with him and then released, said they were arrested after Marines looked at the images on the journalist's cameras.

"The CRRB has determined that Mr. Mashhadani remains a threat to the people of Iraq and they recommended continued internment," Lieutenant Colonel Guy Rudisill said, referring to a hearing of the Iraqi-U.S. Combined Review and Release Board held at a secret location in Baghdad on Monday.

He said Mashhadani would be entitled to a review of his case within 180 days and would be held at Abu Ghraib.

Rudisill said he would not be allowed to see an attorney, his family or anyone else for the first 60 days of his detention, which began in Abu Ghraib last week.

I wonder if the New York Times will cry about this guy. Plus I wonder if the freepers who perpetuated Eason Jordan's demise won't look back and gaze at their navels. The man said reporters were being targeted.

Well here you go. Now we have a reporter who was jailed simply because of the pictures in his camera. He won't have a lawyer, see his family or anybody for 60 days. You know it takes a while to run those wires up to the testicles and gather the others for ass piles and such.

How can the US Military report this with a straight face? How did this press gaggle go? Were there follow-up questions? I doubt it.

UPDATE: Continued to read the article apparently its not the first time:

Rudisill said he was aware of five journalists for major news media in detention, including Mashhadani and another freelance cameraman who has worked for Reuters, as well as a cameraman for the U.S. television network CBS.

Journalists for other major international organizations have recently been released without charge after many months in custody.

Reuters is urgently seeking a detailed account of any accusations against Mashhadani.

Reuters soundman Waleed Khaled was killed in Baghdad on Sunday, apparently by U.S. troops, and cameraman Haider Kadhem, who was wounded in the same incident, has been held ever since by the U.S. military for questioning. Reuters has demanded his immediate release.

Iraqi police said U.S. troops fired into the car carrying the Reuters team.

OK so anybody know who these folks are? Can we get them to talk to us?

Here National Guardie Guardie....

Direct from the National Guard's website thier mission is:

At the state level, the governors reserve the ability, under the Constitution of the United States, to call up members of the National Guard in time of domestic emergencies or need.

The Army National Guard's state mission is perhaps the most visible and well known. Nearly everyone has seen or heard of Guard uhttp://www.blogger.com/images/ftp.gif
http://www.blogger.com/images/ftp.gifnits responding to battle fires or helping communities deal with floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, snowstorms or other emergency situations. In times of civil unrest, the citizens of a state can rest assured that the Guard will be ready to respond, if needed.

Really?! OK folks in the Katrina affected areas. Rest assured, the guard should be packing up their stuff over in Iraq any minute now, so long as they can make it past that road to the Baghdad airport without driving over any IEDs they will be there shortly.

Hang tight, and stay dry! The National Guard will stop guarding Iraq's national emergency any day now, and they should be "providing trained and disciplined forces for this emergency soon.

George Bush's America!

AH! George Bush's America! Can't you just feel the wonderfulness of it all! Congratulations to the latest 1.1 million folks in the last two years to join the exclusive Poverty Club!

WASHINGTON (AP) --The nation's poverty rate rose to 12.7 percent of the population last year, the fourth consecutive annual increase, the Census Bureau said Tuesday.

The percentage of people without health insurance did not change.

Overall, there were 37 million people living in poverty, up 1.1 million people from 2003.

Asians were the only ethnic group to show a decline in poverty -- from 11.8 percent in 2003 to 9.8 percent last year. The poverty rate among the elderly declined as well, from 10.2 percent in 2003 to 9.8 percent last year.

The last decline in overall poverty was in 2000, when 31.1 million people lived under the threshold -- 11.3 percent of the population.

Funny how these folks aren't affected by this "fast growing economy."

Hmm, I wonder how many of these 1.1 million folks are elligible for military service? I bet the Pentagon is wondering the same thing.

Also worth noting, "clowns to the left of me jokers to the right, here I am":

The median household income, meanwhile, stood at $44,389, unchanged from 2003. Among racial and ethnic groups blacks had the lowest median income and Asians the highest. Median income refers to the point at which half of households earn more and half earn less.

Regionally, income declined only in the Midwest, down 2.8 percent to $44,657. The South was the poorest region and the Northeast and the West had the highest median incomes.

Well one can only hope the South Park Republicans are on their way to becomming South Park Democrats!

The number of people without health insurance grew from 45 million to 45.8 million. At the same time, the number of people with health insurance coverage grew by 2 million last year.

Ok maybe those 800,000 folks are just babies born into the world without health insurance. No biggie. They have their whole lives ahead of them and I am sure they will be healthy for a good part of it.

''The good news is that poverty is a lot lower than it was in 1993, but we went through a hell of an economic boom,'' Danziger said. ''Nobody is predicting we're going to go through another economic boom like that.''

Yeppers! That's great news!

And finally just what is poverty?:

The poverty threshold differs by the size and makeup of a household. For instance, a family of four with two children was considered living in poverty if income was $19,157 or less. For a family of two with no children, it was $12,649. For a person 65 and over living alone, it was 9,060.

Funny how in George BUsh's America, we preach Intelligent Design but we practice Darwinism at its best.

SInk or swim baby!

Code Pink

Pilecki has more on the people reporting, organizing, and all the nitty gritty stuff. Including a link to little old me!

It seems Pilecki actually did some investigative work. You know like journalists used to do a long long time ago.

Shorter Kornblut

Roberts speaks English good. And as such we shouldn't be so critical of his positions.

On Vigils and Protests

A well-meaning-right-corrupted friend of mine e-mails me enough material to fuel an excellent blog, However, should I ask him for permission the material would probably dry up faster than a piss puddle in Mosul.

But this latest gem of his brought out some good musing so I thought I would share it. Here was his latest:

Man, you guys are so blind. The Dems could put a monkey up and you'd vote
for it.

Today is going to be crazy for me, so I don't think I'll be able to
participate too much.

Two things: My girl Ann Coulter has a great book out ... How to deal with
Democrats, only if it is necessary. Also, the Dem Party has become so
pathetic that it now calls "Protests", "Vigils".

What a bunch of pin-headed loosers!

Ignore if you will the rest of the vitriole and focus solely on the bold faced type that is of course my doing. He has a point! This is utter bullshit if I have ever heard it. Like some magic trick, protests have now become vigils! And sometimes even the vice versa occurs! So my response is as follows. Excuse the lack of regard to basic grammar, I am of the school of thought that e-mail invokes thoughts of e.e. cummings and so I emmulate him in my e-correspondence:

The reason protests are now vigils is the same reason a warmongering spendthrift is called a "compassionate conservative"

and there are two answers that are actually the same.
1. focus groups.
2. since protests have become associated with anti-americanism, terrorist appeasement, flag-burning, bra-burning, draft-card-burning, and violent extremist anti-patriotism, we need a new terminology to give it a rosey look and feel.

reinvent it if you will. vigils have a faith based connotation and as such require a bit more respect from the right wing smear machinations.

since this country and the left thinks they need to insert faith into every single issue in order to a) avoid criticism, b) avoid the appearance of criticism, or c) gain legitimacy, they feel it necessary to use semantics to fool stupid people who listen to sean hannity.

but the short answer is again, focus-groups.

and i don't know if you can tell by my response here, but I think its a bunch of bullshit and useless semantics. as a matter of fact i'll go further and call it exactly what it is, a major problem that faces this country. political correctness to this degree (not necessarily all degrees) keeps the citizenry of this country stupid enough to go along with anything their political leaders tell them to. vigils, bullshit. its a protest dammit. and the causes are justified in most cases at the very least by the 1st ammendment.

But alas protest (that form of patriotism so high on the patriotic scale of patriotism that it is protected by the very 1st ammendment to the constitution) has been demonized by the right. or whomever you would like to call them. For if they are the libertarians that preach freedom mongering, than their demonization of the all american protest is a vile perverted contradiction of their freedom filled rhetoric.

SO I will continue to call them PROTESTS. If possible, the word itself should be written in alternate colors of red white and blue.

I am sure my buddy S will write back.

Code Pink - Revisited

More info is out on the story I posted about last week.

As it turns out, as usual, Sean Hannity is not to be trusted. And neither is CNS news (thanks Odub). I was already skeptical about CNS news but a quick search on Media Matters turned up kinda thin, so I figured they must be OK.

Cheers to Margaret Talec of the Sacramento Bee for doing some shoe leather reporting that would have been impossible for me. This excellent report shows that while Hannity and friends are successful in drawing people to a cause, he is usually fact-defficient in his wanton name calling of folks he has never met, let alone seen in person.

Hannitzed Indeed!

Emmett Louis Till

Yesterday August 28th, was the 50th anniversary of the bludgeoning death of Emmett Louis Till.

Though we have come a long way, justice has yet to be served in this and many other cases from the Jim Crow era.

I urge you all to see this film as soon as you can.

UPDATE: Welcome O Dub fans. I think I shoudl add that this is a particularly interesting anniversary with all this talk about the Bell Curve.

NJ Carnival of the Bloggers, #15

The new Carnival is up!

MSNBC covers Biodiesel

A rather excellent article except it is poorly researched in some respects. However, it demonstrates the market exhists, and that it needs help growing. Which if the invisible hand has its way, we will all be driving fry daddies to work some day (hopefully in the near future).

Code Pink! Hannitized?

Is Code Pink being Hannitized? I am still unsure of it. I was listening in the car yesterday to Ariana Battle away with a freeper and Sean Hannity about Cindy Sheehan. Somewhere in between Hannity accusing Ariana of not answering questions and the freeper convincing the world that Ariana and Cindy Sheehan were lesbian sith lords trying to have sex on national TV while simultaneously tattooing each other's asses with swastikas, Sean Hannity brought up the "vigils" Code Pink has been having in front of Walter Reed medical hospital.

At first I was puzzled. Saying well any protest by a liberal group becomes fodder for Hannity. However, without an intravenous way of connecting to the internet in my car, I was held to the conclusion that perhaps they were just protesting the closing of Walter Reed. Since no timeframe was given I thought I would sink my teeth into this one today on MIT. I thought for shizzle I would catch Hannity in a crazy whitewashing of the lies he spews on a constant basis.

Alas, in going to Ariana's Hufpo I not only found silence about her bout with Hannity, I found good old Michelle Pilecki reporting on it. You may or may not know MIchelle but she has even linked to little old me in the past. She's no enemy of the left to say the least.

Now after reading Michelle's post and checking out the links including the video report by Marc Morano, (who was also on the Hannity show yesterday, though I missed his segment due to my attempts to contain violent episodes of reverse peristalsis) one must question what the hell is really going on.

I check out Code Pink first. They have a website describing things from their perspective here.

I contacted Code Pink with an email and they replied with a press release and some kind words. Here is the press release in its entireity:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT:
August 25, 2004 Gael Murphy 202-412-6700


CODEPINK Statement on Vigil Outside of Walter Reed Hospital

Right-wing attacks on peaceful vigil come on same day as announcement that
Walter Reed Hospital will be closed.

Washington, DC ­ Since March 25, CODEPINK: Women for Peace members in
Washington, DC have been holding vigils outside Walter Reed Hospital every
Friday evening, to shed light on the plight of injured soldiers. Gravely and
seriously injured soldiers from Iraq and Afghanistan arrive at Walter Reed
for treatment late at night, under cover of darkness, so that the public
does not become aware of the number of soldiers wounded and the severity of
their injuries.

These are vigils, not protests, and participants have included Washington,
DC-based members of Veterans for Peace, Military Families Speak Out, and DC
Labor Against the War, who all want more support for veterans.

³Since we started these vigils, we feel we have helped put the spotlight on
the needs of the soldiers and helped achieve positive results, such as
greater VA funding and a rollback of attempts to make soldiers pay for their
own meals, phone calls, daily hospitalization fees and increased
co-payments,² said CODEPINK¹s Gael Murphy, one of the vigil¹s organizers.

The vigilers still have concerns about veterans¹ care, such as a projected
$3 billion shortfall for 2006 VA funding, the closing of veterans hospitals
(including Walter Reed), the bureaucratic hurdles facing soldiers with
long-term disabilities who are trying to get disability payments, and the
Army¹s recent statement that it is ³revisiting² 72,000 cases of
post-traumatic stress disorder (PSTD) recorded in past 5 years because
misdiagnosis and fraud have inflated the numbers. ³We are continuing the
vigils because there is still a need to push for better care,² said Laura
Costas of CODEPINK and Military Families Speak Out, whose brother served in
Iraq. ³Yes, we want to bring the troops home, but we also want to ensure
that they are well-cared for when they return.²

The vigilers have often received encouragement from the wounded soldiers and
their families, who often join the vigil themselves. ³The first time I
attended one of the vigils, a soldier¹s wife invited me to come inside and
visit her severely wounded husband,² said Medea Benjamin of CODEPINK. ³He
shared his worries about the care he would get when he returned to his
hometown and the financial burden on his family, and he thanked us for being
there. His parting words were ŒPlease don¹t forget us like veterans of other
wars have been forgotten.¹²

In recent weeks, the vigil has attracted some people who have tried to
change the tone and message of the vigil, including yelling and holding up
inappropriate signs. The organizers have asked the newcomers to be
respectful and wonder if they might indeed be infiltrators whose aim is to
disrupt the vigil.

The organizers also suspect that the sudden attention to the vigil on the
part of the conservative media is part of a well-orchestrated smear campaign
against the peace movement. ³With the war in Iraq so disastrous and public
opinion turning against this war, there is a new desperation on the part of
the some conservative groups,² said CODEPINK cofounder Jodie Evans. ³Despite
their mud-slinging, the peace movement continues to gain momentum, as we see
in Crawford, Texas and will see at upcoming massive anti-war rally on
September 24 in Washington DC.²

PHOTOS of the vigil are available from Andrea Buffa,
andrea@globalexchange.org.

Thus, they maintain that its a vigil not a protest, and that they are there to bring attention to the fact that wounded soldiers are being whisked into the hospital in the dead of the night. Avoiding media scrutiny. Plus they are bringing attention to the fact that DC politicians are failing to provide adequate funding for the VA hospital system. Indeed this news comes on the same day as the announced closure of Walter Reed. Plus we remember Operation Truth getting a good return on their investment with this ad. Yet if the shortfall is 3 billion, they only got half of what they need. Plus with the announced closure of the hospital, the support the troops crowd should perhaps guide their anti-anti-war protests towards the politicians actively engaging in picking and choosing which troops will have bases and hospitals to come home to.

However, it is fair to point out that Morano's report includes signs saying "Maimed for lies."

Honestly, I don't think that is appropriate. If I am in that hospital without a leg or an arm or both, last thing I need to be reminded of is that I lost them for a lie. It may be the truth and the truth hurts, but these guys are without limbs, their pain is enough as it is.

If the protesters down at Walter Reed want to bring attention to the pain our soldiers are going through, thats fine. But an anti-war movement needs not a rehashing of the poor treatment Veterans of the Vietnam war got back in the 60's. Being anti-war is OK, being anti-soldier is NOT OK.

McCain believes in Flying Spaghetti Monster

This cannot be! Must be a side effect from all that testicular electrolysis that Johnny boy endured

"McCain told the Star that, like Bush, he believes 'all points of view' should be available to students studying the origins of mankind.

The theory of intelligent design says life is too complex to have developed through evolution, and that a higher power must have had a hand in guiding it."

Just who is the Flying Spaghetti Monster?

The Sphere... She is Round!

Once again I am at a loss of ideas for shit to write on this godforsaken blog that has taken me through whirlwinds of twists and turns from distraughtitude (screw it others in blogsconcin make up words why shouldn't I) to elation back down to feeling a bit above the common weevil.

So since today I only have a computer long enough to get through the rest of the shit I read daily, might as well point out a few things I checked out this morning for yall. Be informed much of it comes from Atrios one whose readership I can only dream of attaining someday.

Here goes, First I remember a bunch of ass holes with purple fingers in the halls of Congress and a nicely set up photo op of an Iraqi lady and an American Lady who had lost her son hugging and basically pissing on all us lefties by doing so.

Well thanks to the Ben Franklins over in Iraq that lady may well be burned at the stake. Or something figuratively like it.

But Billmon puts it rather cutely. He also follows up nicely. And hits a homer Redford style with this little diddy.

Finally all them hawks that think more troops will make everything better like neosporin on a freshly opened wound, how bout another 1,500 or less than 1% increase.

Republicans are anti-military. So stop blaming Clinton for the size of the armed forces. The new pentagon, where all of the $500,000,000,000 go directly to big missile producing corporations! Who said that labor is dead in this country?

The French really hate us. So much so that the only world renowned athlete currently on our roster is now being accused of taking a drug that would make him able to assimilate oxygen better than the average bike rider. And here he was just yesterday, still high from biking with President Vactioner.

This is kinda like dog bites man, but so what, the president has always been one of the highest consumers of gas thanks to all them cool vehicles he gets to fly, ride, and drive around in. What makes it more of a man bites dog story is that gas is so damned expensive these days.

Democrats should be sending us a bunch of these in the mail.

Katie Couric keep getting colonoscopies, you are much more useful by doing so.

If Pat Robertson was a liberal he would be out on the streets with an empty coffe cup faster than you could say "could you spare me some cutter mate." But alas, he is a radical christian cleric and we love those people here in the great USofA.

Speaking of Radical Clerics, Fallwell.com is not what you think it is. Nor has the honorable Jerry been too pleased with it.

Dissent among the GOP ranks! Shocking just Shocking!

I think this should definitely be in the next Bobo's world.

And finally why is training Iraqi's taking so damned long?

Well that's it folks!
As you can plainly see, She is NOT FLAT!

Southwest Florida's Finest Broadcast

Whoops! Southwest Florida's New Leader in News must be WINKing so fast they can't read instructions.

I wonder what the penalty is for a news station that forgets to follow the Associated Press's instructions.

Oh here it is the AP's code of ethics:

ACCURACY

The newspaper should guard against inaccuracies, carelessness, bias or distortion through emphasis, omission or technological manipulation.

It should acknowledge substantive errors and correct them promptly and prominently.

But hey Fox news is in constant violation of the AP code and they keep using their stuff too.

Oh well, if antyhing WINK's webmaster will get a chance to fix this little doozy.

Biodiesel: Ready for Primetime!

It has been a while since that teleconference with Senator Corzine when I promised to do a bit more detailed research into Biodiesel for the Senator hoping to be Governor. Since the Senator seems a bit lax on laying down the Environmental plan why not use this opportunity to educate him and others on the benefits of biodiesel and why it should be the centerpiece of any smart environmental policy.

First some research. Straight from University of New Hampshire Biodiesel Group, we have excellent prospectus for a biodiesel based energy system in this country. Here are the major points:

First what is biodiesel. It is naturally modified vegetable oil. The source of which can come from any plant matter from algae to corn. The wiki pretty much explains it all:

Biodiesel is an alternative to petroleum-based diesel fuel made from renewable resources such as vegetable oils or animal fats. Chemically, it comprises a mix of mono-alkyl esters of long chain fatty acids. A lipid transesterification production process is used to convert the base oil to the desired esters and remove free fatty acids. After this processing, unlike straight vegetable oil, biodiesel has combustion properties very similar to those of petroleum diesel, and can replace it in most current uses. However, it is at present most often used as an additive to petroleum diesel, improving the otherwise low lubricity of pure ultra low sulfur petrodiesel fuel. It is one of the possible candidates to replace fossil fuels as the world's primary transport energy source, because it is a renewable fuel that can replace petrodiesel in current engines and can be transported and sold using today's infrastructure. Biodiesel use and production is increasing rapidly, especially in Europe, the United States, and Asia, though in all markets it still makes up a small percentage of fuel sold. A growing number of fuel stations are making biodiesel available to consumers, and a growing number of large transport fleets use some proportion of biodiesel in their fuel.

Biodiesel, with a flash point of 150 °C, is not as readily ignited as petroleum diesel (64 °C) and far less so than the explosively combustible gasoline (-45 °C). Indeed, it is classified as a non-flammable liquid by the OSHA, although it will of course burn if heated to a high enough temperature. This property makes a vehicle fueled by pure biodiesel far safer in an accident.

Biodiesel gels at higher temperatures (around 0 °C) than petroleum diesel, which limits its pure form use in cold climates.

Unlike petrodiesel, biodiesel is biodegradable and non-toxic, and it significantly reduces toxic and other emissions when burned as a fuel. The most common form uses methanol to produce methyl esters, though ethanol can be used to produce an ethyl ester biodiesel. A byproduct of the transesterification process is the production of glycerol.

Currently, biodiesel is generally somewhat more expensive to produce than petroleum diesel, which is often stated as the primary factor keeping it from being in more widespread usage. Economies of scale in biodiesel production, however, as well as the rising cost of petroleum, may reduce, eliminate, or even reverse this cost differential in the future. Current worldwide production of vegetable oil and animal fat, however, is not enough to replace liquid fossil fuel use. Some environmental groups, notably the NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council), object to the vast amount of farming and the resulting over-fertilization, pesticide use, and land use conversion that would be needed to produce the additional vegetable oil.

This last point is pretty well disputed within the UNH study I highlighted above. While they don't address the Global Energy demand they do address the US energy demand and its replacement with biodiesel.

Per the Department of Energy's statistics, each year the US consumes roughly 60 billion gallons of petroleum diesel and 120 billion gallons of gasoline. First, we need to realize that spark-ignition engines that run on gasoline are generally about 40% less efficient than diesel engines. So, if all spark-ignition engines are gradually replaced with compression-ignition (Diesel) engines for running biodiesel, we wouldn't need 120 billion gallons of biodiesel to replace that 120 billion gallons of gasoline. To be conservative, we will assume that the average gasoline engine is 35% less efficient, so we'd need 35% less diesel fuel to replace that gasoline. That would work out to 78 billion gallons of diesel fuel. Combine that with the 60 billion gallons of diesel already used, for a total of 138 billion gallons. Now, biodiesel is about 5-8% less energy dense than petroleum diesel, but its greater lubricity and more complete combustion offset that somewhat, leading to an overall fuel efficiency about 2% less than petroleum diesel. So, we'd need about 2% more than that 138 billion gallons, or 140.8 billion gallons of biodiesel. So, this figure is based on vehicles equivalent to those in use today, but with compression-ignition (Diesel) engines running on biodiesel, rather than a mix of petroleum diesel and gasoline.

...

National Renewable Energy Laboratory's research showed that one quad (7.5 billion gallons) of biodiesel could be produced from 200,000 hectares of desert land (200,000 hectares is equivalent to 780 square miles, roughly 500,000 acres), if the remaining challenges are solved (as they will be, with several research groups and companies working towards it, including ours at UNH). In the previous section, we found that to replace all transportation fuels in the US, we would need 140.8 billion gallons of biodiesel, or roughly 19 quads (one quad is roughly 7.5 billion gallons of biodiesel). To produce that amount would require a land mass of almost 15,000 square miles. To put that in perspective, consider that the Sonora desert in the southwestern US comprises 120,000 square miles. Enough biodiesel to replace all petroleum transportation fuels could be grown in 15,000 square miles, or roughly 12.5 percent of the area of the Sonora desert (note for clarification - I am not advocating putting 15,000 square miles of algae ponds in the Sonora desert. This hypothetical example is used strictly for the purpose of showing the scale of land required). That 15,000 square miles works out to roughly 9.5 million acres - far less than the 450 million acres currently used for crop farming in the US, and the over 500 million acres used as grazing land for farm animals.

So you see we can easily find enough land within the US to farm enough algae to easily convert our fuel source to biodiesel.

There is also the mention of Biodiesel Hybrid vehicles which would make even more of an impact on fuel conservation.

Now for the cost estimates of buidling algae farms for the fuel:

In "The Controlled Eutrophication process: Using Microalgae for CO2 Utilization and Agircultural Fertilizer Recycling"3, the authors estimated a cost per hectare of $40,000 for algal ponds. In their model, the algal ponds would be built around the Salton Sea (in the Sonora desert) feeding off of the agircultural waste streams that normally pollute the Salton Sea with over 10,000 tons of nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers each year. The estimate is based on fairly large ponds, 8 hectares in size each. To be conservative (since their estimate is fairly optimistic), we'll arbitrarily increase the cost per hectare by 100% as a margin of safety. That brings the cost per hectare to $80,000. Ponds equivalent to their design could be built around the country, using wastewater streams (human, animal, and agricultural) as feed sources. We found that at NREL's yield rates, 15,000 square miles (3.85 million hectares) of algae ponds would be needed to replace all petroleum transportation fuels with biodiesel. At the cost of $80,000 per hectare, that would work out to roughly $308 billion to build the farms.

The operating costs (including power consumption, labor, chemicals, and fixed capital costs (taxes, maintenance, insurance, depreciation, and return on investment) worked out to $12,000 per hectare. That would equate to $46.2 billion per year for all the algae farms, to yield all the oil feedstock necessary for the entire country. Compare that to the $100-150 billion the US spends each year just on purchasing crude oil from foreign countries, with all of that money leaving the US economy.

Are you still unconvinced about biodiesel and its practicality in today's fuel economy? Well there are states and local governments already implementing biodiesel use.

Take Wassau, Wisconsin. A law just signed encourages school buses to fill up with biodiesel, and soon they will force gas stations to carry ethanol and biodiesel too:

Farmers stand to benefit most from a state law signed Wednesday that encourages more schools to fill their buses with fuels made from crops.

The law will reimburse schools for the difference in cost between environmentally friendly biodiesel and regular diesel fuel. Biodiesel fuel is made from vegetable oil derived from soybeans and other renewable sources.

In addition, lawmakers are considering a bill that would require all gas stations to offer customers a fuel that contains a small amount of ethanol, which can be produced from corn. The fuel would be slightly cheaper than regular unleaded gasoline.

"There could be a lot of positives for us out of this," said Bob Biadasz, 53, of Amherst, who grows 420 acres of corn and 300 acres of soybeans.

"Hopefully there's going to be a stronger market pretty soon for corn, which would dictate a stronger price if it's used in ethanol. And if soybeans are used for biodiesel fuel, that has the potential to create a stronger market for us, too," he said.

ALERT DEMOCRATS! Wisconsin is a RED STATE. Come out with a "biodiesel bill" and you can win over the hearts and minds of midwest red state farmers.

Willie Nelson has started a franchise of biodiesel gas stations including one in Texas.

IOWA, another red state, is building a new biodiesel plant. They already have 3 and two more are underconstruction.

These are all real developments. All rather profitable. For each of their states. The energy bill recently passed by congress falls far short of stimulating domestic biodiesel production:

There is nothing in the energy bill, however, when it comes to encouraging oilseed crop production, although agriculture cooperatives can take advantage of the extension of income tax credits to help pay for a biodiesel plant and crushing facilities. The income tax credits, available until 2008, come to the cooperative through distribution of the B-100 blend and is worth $1 a gallon. An excise tax credit is available in blends at a rate of 1 cent per each percent of blended biodiesel.

Biodiesel is more than just a clean burning, fuel that weans us off of the oil comming from unstable middle east countries. It is a fledgling business with enormous potential for our fuel and agricultural economies. At the same time a transition to biodiesel would easily result in cleaner air and almost a complete reversal of green house gas emisions. Almost all states would benefit from involvement in a biodiesel economy and the reality of growing the proper crops and producing the fuel required to farm those crops solely from biodiesel is within our reach.

Add to that the potential of biodiesel hybrids and we can realize not only our energy crisis, but Rudolph Diesel's dream. After all the engine he designed was built to run on peanut oil not petroleum.

Shorter Asbury Park Press

Any stream that has the possiblity of a registered Democrat abutting its banks should be disqualified from being classified as a Protected Environmental Stream.

Forrester-Wilson Pulls A Homer!

I knew that once Forrester put Tom Wilson in charge of dirt collection, this campaign would start jiffy popping gems like these out:

Yesterday in response to the news that Corzine has stakes in companies in Delaware:

"Jon Corzine needs to stop hiding the facts and start practicing the transparency he preaches," said Tom Wilson, the New Jersey Republican State Committee chairman.

Today

"Forrester was part of a group that incorporated Western Sierra Insurance Services in Delaware in November 2004 as a limited liability company (LLC)."

DOOO!



So Tom Wilson, should Doug Forrester "stop hiding the facts and start practicing the transparency he preaches?"

Patty Patty Buch Buch

Every once in a while even I agree with that old geezer. Cindy Sheehan has done wonders for the anti-war movement. She basically kick started it back into motion.

Most people have got to now agree that we didn't loose the election because of Michael Moore or being anti-war. We lost because John Kerry voted for it before voting against it. And that was the nasty ugly and goddamned expensive road that the establishment DLC democrats led us down by throwing all their chips onto John Kerry.

I like John Kerry, hes a good man in my book. But in my opinion, you can't be an opposition party or candidate when your voting record shows that you voted for the war you are preaching against. It just doesn't work that way. I am sure anyone voting on that fateful day had lost many an hour o' sleep thinkin' if I don't vote for it and it turns into the great achievement of the first Iraq war, then I'll be outta a job.

Just to show that I have some understanding of the politics behind such a vote.

Back to the anti-war movement. Unfortunately for Buchannan he doesn't quite grasp how fast things move in the internets these days when he says:

Why is no leader in the Democratic Party giving voice to the antiwar cause with the perseverance and passion of Cindy Sheehan? Why are they all hiding in the tall grass, or making statements about how they support the war and the troops, but just disagree with how Bush has managed it. If polls are to be believed, half the nation now agrees with Cindy Sheehan.

our boy Russ has done it. He just ain't in the tall grasses of Crawford because Michael Moore is there. And if you hang out with Michael Moore the swift boaters and their minions on the right will call you the anti-christ.

Thanks to Cindy, lefty bloggers are again revisiting the idea of pulling out, many of them flip flopping their positions of not too long ago. This is excellent if you ask me, however disgusting I find political oppotunism to be. It's fantabulicious because you have folks like Ezra Klien, a smart kid who wonks with the best of them, bringning the whole, why should we stay question.

Even Kevin Drum (also a DLC sypathizer) has joined the question posing crowd.

Look Iraq is FUBAR. It just simply is. There is no longer a viable exit stratergy. We can hope that once they accopmlish all those "goals" we set out for them that they can go on and do the rest themselves.

However, staying the course is no longer a viable option. It fuels the insurgency and argueably dissallows anything from happening positively since we are the cause of the violence. I don't buy that bullshit that just becaues they are blowing up random civilians that they are no longer targeting Americans. Its bulshit and you can tell by the ever growing numbers of American Dead Soldiers.

As for the movement here at home, we need to bring it to the front steps of the White House after Bush gets back to work. He hates the fact that one eye is on him on vacation while the other eye is looking at Cindy Sheehan just outside his front door.

This needs to continue in order for Bush (and the press) to get annoyed at the war. The anti-war movement of Vietnam was successful not just because of the numbers of people involved, but because they hounded Washington (ie. where the press lives). If the press were comming out of a gaggle to a greeting from 100 anti-war protesters perhaps they would start asking these folks some questions. Live protest shots would ensue.

Perhaps someone white would go missing, and then a cable media blitz would occur, it would be perfect. That way we could trick even Gretta Van Sustern into covering it.

Crawford folks, once this vaca is over, move to DC. If anything its a bit cooler and the grass is kept shorter. Then report the whitest hottest woman you got missing.

The Web Page that Never Was...

Too bad doug-forrester.com didn't become the official home of the campaign. There is a great Forrester news tracking section to the left:



Classic Stuff!

The Trenton Times Caught Again

OK this is two days in a row that The Trenton Times shows a blue streakCorrect me if I am wrong, but so far jury is still out for statements such as this:

"But unlike Forrester, whose captive insurance company is prohibited by New Jersey law, the companies in which Corzine is involved could have been incorporated in the Garden State."

I think that is why the Department of Banking and Insurance and the Attorney General are looking into it.

As I said yesterday. MIT is an equal opportunity media critic.

The Sphere... She is Round!

OK folks,
So much out there today that basically represents itself pretty well that MIT has decided to bring it all back to the latest installation of The Sphere... She is Round! It's been too long anyway!

First up, to think that most people just flush their pee away!

Also be sure to read the latest Krazy Keyboard Kommandos!

Perhaps the anti-Korean Nuclear Proliferation six party talks that are getting nowhere would be more useful if they included say, the reverend Joo Dong Mun, president of the Washington Times.

The left was wrong! There was planning before the invasion of Iraq. WAY BEFORE!

Trent Lott is an anti-American terrorist sympathizer if I have ever saw one.

There are lots of Wankers on the Right. This one is perhaps the king of them all with this statement. Particularly when his statement stems from a source that has already been proven a bit untrustworthy when it comes to the Cindy Sheehan story.

If only rule of law stuff like this could be done in this country. Wait it can right? Oh no that's only for blow jobs.

If you read, listen to radio, or watch tv in search of the truth, try something else. It isn't working.

Frank Gaffney should be banned from The Newshour. Write them here.

And finally, If you live in Jersey, get Clean Renewable Fuel!

As that's about it, as you can see here:

She is NOT FLAT!

Herbert Joins Operation Yellow Elephant

Must read!

Health Mystery in New York

Classic really.

"Death rates from heart disease in New York City and its suburbs are among the highest recorded in the country, and no one quite knows why."

How about this reason, ALL THE SHIT THAT'S IN THE AIR!

Forrester's Anti-Corruption Balloon Deflating

So now Forrester's prime example of someone who has brought "NJ to bankruptcy and shame" is found to have business ties with exactly that person from The Times

Forrester, the Republican gubernatorial candidate, and Norcross, the South Jersey Democratic Party insider, haven't sat down across a desk and intimately hammered out insurance packages for their clients.

But Forrester's pharmacy benefits management company, Benecard Services, and Norcross' Commerce Insurance Services do do some business together.

Norcross is CEO and president of Commerce Insurance Services, a division of Commerce Bank. And that puts Forrester in an indirect relationship with Norcross, who Forrester repeatedly has accused of being part of a group that has 'brought New Jersey to bankruptcy and shame' while demanding that U.S. Sen. Jon Corzine, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee, explain his relationship with Norcross.

Please let Forrester use the Chewbacca Defense!

Still, Forrester's campaign notes there's nothing untoward about the relationship, noting Benecard does business with numerous brokers and has no say in whether Benecard works with Commerce Insurance.

That decision, a spokeswoman said, is the choice of Benecard's clients, who look to brokers such as Commerce Insurance to get employee benefits coverage at the cost they want. Benecard, based in Lawrence, provides prescription drug and vision programs.

"Commerce Insurance is one of many brokers which places Benecard business," Forrester spokeswoman Sherry Sylvester said.

DING! DING! DING!

I knew he would use the chewbacca defense! For those of you who don't know what that is too bad.

Look, I don't like Walmart, I don't like what it is doing to this country. I think Walmart is bankrupting and shaming this country. So I don't shop there. If I were a business, I wouldn't do business with them. Isn't this simple? I mean aren't there other Insurance Services that Forrester's company could use instead of one that is tied to George Norcross?

This from a man who had an ad placing Corzine in Norcross' backpocket due to a breakfast meeting! Here is part of the ad:

"It's a very disturbing pattern," an announcer says in the ad. "Tapes released by the attorney general make it clear: Jon Corzine is too close to the most powerful Democrat bosses to bring the change New Jersey demands."

Yeah if an alleged breakfast meeting (that didn't happen) can bring Corzine too close to the most powerful Democrat bosses to bring the change New Jersey demands, then what would a multi million dollar business contract do to you Doug Forrester?

Fair is Fair

A little while ago I pointed out how the Asbury Park Press had chosen a not so regular guy to be the regular guy in an interview.

Today it is the Times follows in the APP's footsteps with this doozy

"'Doug Forrester's hoping to run out the clock and get through this campaign without offering a detailed vision for New Jersey,' said Preston Taylor, a retired Air Force brigadier general."

So who is today's man behind the curtain?

Say hello to Democratic Candidate for Sherriff Preston Taylor.

We here at MIT are equal opportunity media critics.

Blame Clinton

Frankly, I am surprised at this New York Times article which features among other mistruths misstatements and downright lies, MIchael Scheuer whom I thought was a truth teller given his recent tome.

The lede pretty much readies the eye for the turds of bovine origins to come later on in the piece.

State Department analysts warned the Clinton administration in July 1996 that Osama bin Laden's move to Afghanistan would give him an even more dangerous haven as he sought to expand radical Islam "well beyond the Middle East," but the government chose not to deter the move, newly declassified documents show.

Yes the piece goes on to highlight recently declassified documents from a FOIA request from Judicial Watch:

In what would prove a prescient warning, the State Department intelligence analysts said in a top-secret assessment on Mr. bin Laden that summer that "his prolonged stay in Afghanistan - where hundreds of 'Arab mujahedeen' receive terrorist training and key extremist leaders often congregate - could prove more dangerous to U.S. interests in the long run than his three-year liaison with Khartoum," in Sudan.

The declassified documents, obtained by the conservative legal advocacy group Judicial Watch as part of a Freedom of Information Act request and provided to The New York Times, shed light on a murky and controversial chapter in Mr. bin Laden's history: his relocation from Sudan to Afghanistan as the Clinton administration was striving to understand the threat he posed and explore ways of confronting him.

In one of the latest moves by the press to dig in and try and pin the blame for 9/11 not on the sitting president who ignored counterterrorism experts and memo's that warned of imminent attack, but on the usual suspect Bill Clinton. Matter of fact, also today another article in the Times is sure to get some traction in the land where 2+2=5. Where it "clearly" states (according to a Fox news account) that Mohammed Atta was found on Curt Weldon's secret chart back in mid 2000. No doubt Clinton told the army to hush up so that we can let terrorists operate within the United States.

But let me get back to Michael Scheurer's comments towards the end of the article:

Michael F. Scheuer, who from 1996 to 1999 led the Central Intelligence Agency unit that tracked Mr. bin Laden, said the State Department documents reflected a keen awareness of the danger posed by Mr. bin Laden's relocation.

'The analytical side of the State Department had it exactly right - that's genius analysis,' he said in an interview when told of the declassified documents. But Mr. Scheuer, who wrote a book in 2004 titled 'Imperial Hubris,' under the pseudonym 'Anonymous,' that was highly critical of American counterterrorism strategies, said many officials in the C.I.A.'s operational side thought they would have a better chance to kill Mr. bin Laden in Afghanistan than they did in Sudan because the Sudan government protected him.

'The thinking was that he was in Afghanistan, and he was dangerous, but because he was there, we had a better chance to kill him,' Mr. Scheuer said. 'But at the end of the day, we settled for the worst possibility - he was there and we didn't do anything.'

UM OK then. Why was there a certain.... I dunno .... Bombing of Afghani Terrorist training camps back in 1998?

Right that was to distract us from the blow job. Sorry Michael. I thought you were the expert on this.

UPDATE:Atrios get's scooped by yours truly and Seeing the Forrest scoops me.

Airport Insecurity

Of lax security and wonderous hijackings of airoplanes. Let's bring back the old days when Airport Security folk were the bottom of the barrel minimum wage, "I don't get paid enough to give a shit" workers protecting the friendly skies. Yes, let's got back to the days where businesses ran the gates of security with competitive contract bidding for the lowest possible price to protect you and I from the kneiving terrorists. After all it worked all these times! Let's make a list of people who travel frequently, and once you reach 100,000 frequent flyer miles you don't have to be screened anymore. That sounds like a bright idea, makes total sense. It's not like if I were a terrorist and had access to enough cash from Osama Bin Hidin's Bank Roll I couldn't rack enough miles to be exempt right? After all my brown skin would surely tip off the $5.05 an hour high school kid tripping out on shrooms and looking at the color x-ray as if it were an intriguing episode of South Park. I mean, if I were a terrorist and was able to keep my ass out of terrorist activities just long enough to be exempt from being screened I wouldn't dare dream of taking that opportunity to blow a plane up or anything.

Besides this Federal Commy Security system has me waiting too fucking long to get on a plane. Particularly becase I like to bring knives and small weapons on board with me. In case a terrorist does show up, then I can kill him with my pocket knife. I mean ever since they locked those cockpit doors you know pilots are just gonna let whatever happens in the back of the plane happen. So long as those selfish bastards that are flying the plane get to land their assess safely on the ground why the hell would they want to care about the people in the back!

For all these wonderful ideas on how airport security should be handled, I nominate John Tierney to Airport Security Czar.

Frank Rich

is back from his vacation. Thankfully!

Hillary Don't Run

Amy Sullivan does a decent job but she forgets one major thing. This country won't vote for a girl if there is a war on. This country is still loaded with bigotry and sexism runs as rampant as racism. Particularly in the privacy of voting booths. So Hillary while it would be historic, excellent, dreamy even, don't run cuz you will loose. It's as simple as penises and vaginas. Sorry but that is the sad reality in this country.

Credibil-o-meter

GODDAMN does this President know how to say the most stupidest shit I think any President of this nation has ever spewed from their mouths. Virtually everyone left right and center say the prez should get out there and invite Cindy Sheehan inside for some steers and beers. If only he could work it in between his busy schedule including, but not limited to, brush clearing, napping, reading, bikefalling, fund-raising, and... well "his own life" that he has to "get on" with.

Never mind the fact that as commander in cheif during a war that he started is taking yet another long ass vacation. Cindy Sheehan's request for a meeting is not only within the limits of normalcy, it is constitutionally guaranteed under the 1st Ammendment to the Constitution of the United States where any citizen (certainly one that gave birth to a soldier who later died in the service of his country and his President and Commander in Chief) is given the right to peaceably assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievance.

If loosing a son in a war that this president is ultimately responsible for isn't a grievance worthy of redress than I have no fucking clue what is at this point.

And how can the the president who ran as a "compassionate conservative" prefer a nap to being compasionate with a mother like Ms. Sheehan? Why the fuck would a Commander in Chief during wartime be taking naps? Aren't there important military decisions that a Commander in Chief needs to know about or be breifed on, being that he is ultimately responsible for any decision made on the battlefield? Why the fuck would a Commander in Chief who has enough time for reading novels and riding bikes (with famous cancer survivors) not have any time to meet with a mother of a soldier that was killed under his command (ie. the mother of a war un-survivor)? It would be one thing of the Commander in Chief was basically busy doing war shit. However, napping, reading and fund-raising (for the RNC) do not war shit make.

Byron "VLWC" York on Press the Meat basically laid out why Cindy's plight has no bearing:

MR. YORK: Of a site called Democrats.com. And she said--she thanked her anti-war bloggers for all their support. She said, "Thank God for the Internet. Without it, we'd already be a fascist state because one party controls everything, and the mainstream media is the propaganda tool of the government."

Now, this is the kind of rhetoric that you normally associate with fringe elements on the left. And if she does more of that, I think she'll diminish her own credibility.

Thus is the problem of Cindy Sheehan and her recent comingling with members of the Vast Left Wing Conspiracy. She, and we simply don't have any credibility. Only right wingers have credibility because... well because Byron York said so?

NAY, Media In Trouble has learned why only the Right has any credibility and why even though most of the time Lefties are alone in truth telling, we somehow have lost all signs and simptoms of the ellusive statistic of credibility. The excellent yet well guarded secret to the right's success at garnering credibiltiy. Ladies and Gentlemen of the left...The Credibil-o-meter!

The right has been using them for centuries! A Credibil-o-meter looks a lot like a VU meter in that it gives an instant reading of how credible something is as it is being said or written. Though I have never seen such a device, I have heard descriptions and have even seen drawrings of them. Apparently everyone on the right with a blog, syndicated column, or even access to a microphone at FOX news has one. Why GM even offers in-dash Credibil-o-meters in almost all the SUV's it produces to Passport holding citzens of Wingnuttia. The Credibil-o-meter measures credibility in ICU's. Not to be confused with hospital sections devoted to treating patients in seriously critical conditions (like say some of the soldiers comming home from Iraq), ICU's are International Credibility Units. ICU's are the only international unit for measuring credibility. The scale in which Credibility units are measured was determined long ago by Masonic Secret Societies and were hidden for many years in paintings by Leonardo Da Vinci. Somewhere between deciphering the Fabionacci sequences and applying Boyle's law in conjunction with the Pythagorean Theorem, lies the secret decoding of words into ICU's. This is the genious of the Credibil-o-meter. You see anyone posessing a Credibil-o-meter can vary their speech in order to achieve high levels of credibility. Before giving an example of how a Credibil-o-meter is used, please take into account the scale on which one operates. The scale runs from "complete and utter bullshit" to "It's so true, it's in the Bible." In between are varying levels of "Come On" (typically shows up on Bil O'Reilly's meter), "Rat shit", "Phony-Baloney", "Fugaizee", "Even Science has Proven it", and my favorite "Intelligently Designed." I'll let you the reader figure out to which side of the scale these reside in.

Take Colin Powell's famous UN speech. It was obvious his Credibil-o-meter was pointing towards the "complete and utter bullshit" side of the scale (perhaps teetering in the "Intelligently Designed" portion of the scale) when he pulled out that vial of anthrax. That gesture alone changed his Credibil-o-meter to just shy of "it's so true, it' in the bible" pointing to "truth by fear." President Bush's Credibil-o-meter is constantly wavering from one side to the other although it typically resides on the "right" side of the scale (that which tips towards "complete and utter bullshit"). Actually the president goes through Credibil-o-meters like underwear. It seems he manages to break one at least every State of the Union address where facts and bullshit intermingle constantly with lies, deceptions, and fear mongering. Since he is the President (and not Cindy Sheehan) he gets a new one everytime he breaks one.

The problem with credibilitometer's are their cost. These fundamentally obscure and complicated devices are priced so that you cannot just waltz into a WalMart and get one. As such we on the left need whole fundraisers specifically aimed at buying our operatives their very own credibilitometers. Since Credibil-o-meters are factory callibrated for right winger use, we on the left will have to callibrate our Credibil-o-meters differently. We may need customized meters.

So bloggers, while the Presidential Vacation is starting to look like a crazy boondoggle of napping, brush clearing, reading, golfing, fishing, bike riding (and falling, I'm sure), pretzel eating, turd stomping, cattle ropin', and just plain old fasioned Texas BBQ, we on the left should stop Cindy Sheehan dead in her tracks and start using this "media whore" to generate some funds so that we can all buy some Credibil-o-meters. This way when the next Cindy Sheehan camps outside of the Crawford Ranch during the next Presidential Vacation (we have at least 53 more to look forward to), we will be able to support our claims in hard data points such as ICU's rather than just plain old words and pesky facts.

Michelle Malkin True Patriot!

From an obscure but quaintly relevant Manglalangalana column at Town Hall we realize that Michelle is not new to the art of politicizing the deaths of American service men and women. Here we see her taking Memorial Day of 2003 as the perfect opportunity to do the most patriotic of things anyone can do on such a day.

Why raise money for Sean Hannity and Oliver North, of course:

Memorial Day has never just been about remembering the dead. In issuing the first Memorial Day order on May 5, 1868, Civil War General John Logan called on the nation to decorate the graves of soldiers and sailors who died in defense of their country -- but also to remember their surviving families:

"Let us, then, at the time appointed gather around their sacred remains and garland the passionless mounds above them with the choicest flowers of spring-time; let us raise above them the dear old flag they saved from dishonor; let us in this solemn presence renew our pledges to aid and assist those whom they have left among us a sacred charge upon a nation's gratitude, the soldier's and sailor's widow and orphan."

This is the quaintly relevant part. I wonder if Michelle was wondering about Casey Sheehan and his grieving family this past Memorial day.

Right back to the part about using a National Holiday to help Sean Hannity and Treasonist Ollie North raise money:

Across the country, Americans have united to help the spouses and children of those who sacrificed their limbs and lives for the ongoing war on terror. Here are just three worthy causes to keep in mind after this weekend's parades and holiday barbeques are over:

1. The Freedom Alliance and Hannity Scholarship Fund. Nationally syndicated radio talk show host and FOX News Channel host Sean Hannity has created a scholarship fund for children of military men and women killed or wounded during the call of duty. He'll host a live Freedom Concert on July 11 at the Six Flags Great Adventure theme park in Jackson, N.J. Proceeds will go to Retired Lt. Col. Oliver North's Freedom Alliance, which provides scholarships and charitable programs to members of the Armed Forces and dependents of those who have been killed on duty. The group has donated tens of thousands of dollars to parents, children and spouses of veterans, including those who served in Vietnam and Lebanon; delivered overseas care packages during Gulf War I; and donated memorial funds for families of sailors killed during the 2000 terrorist attack on the destroyer USS Cole in Yemen.

Contributions to the Hannity Scholarship Fund and/or Freedom Alliance can be sent to Freedom Alliance, 22570 Markey Court, Suite 240, Dulles, VA 20166; online at www.freedomalliance.org ; or by calling 1-800-329-5454. For more information on obtaining tickets to the July 11 Freedom Concert, call 1-732-928-1821.

Where does Ollie come in?

Who do you think founded the Freedom Alliance?

RNC BulliesTV station in Bangor

This pretty much says it all doesn't it? from FOX News regarding the pulling of the NARAL ad

"At least one television station had already refused to run the ad. Mike Young, vice president and general manager of WABI in Bangor, said his station ran the ad before deciding to pull it Thursday after receiving a challenge from the Republican National Committee.

'After careful thoughtful analysis, we determined the ad was at worst false, and at best misleading,' he said."

Why is the RNC bullying a small TV station in Bangor?
I dunnaknow?

I Make a Mean Biscuit

My secret lies in this op-ed. Bring it back fat back!

Cindy Sheehan

If you don't know who she is because you spend too much time watching news programs that don't necessarily broadcast the news anymore, The Peking Duck has about the best round up (including side links etc.) of the story thus far.

In short, mother has child. Child goes to war for Bush, Child dies tragically (as all war related deaths are). Mother meets with Bush. Mother unsatisfied (despite what the right is saying). Mother wants to meet with Bush again. Bush snuffs Mother. Mother camps outside Bush ranch. National Media ignores mother. Blogosphere takes over. National Media continues to ignore Mother. Bush sends out Hadley the Handler to meet with mother. Mother still unsatisfied. Bush clears brush. Mother draws protesters. Michele Malkin and Bill O'Reilly and all right wing pundits destroy Mother's character in attempt to discredit Mother.

Mother statys strong still waits despite the right wing smear machine.

Right wing decides mother of dead soldier against bush worse than the days of communist Russia. Right wing decides supporting troops and troop families only applies to families of dead troops who support the President blindly.

Anyway Peking duck does a pretty decent job.

White Men Can't Bomb

I wonder if this will get the Natalie Halloway treatment?

The Blogging of the Blogosphere

Matt and Chris offer up this wonkish report about the current status of political blogging in this country. The data is staggering and the good news is that the left is winning the numbers game in terms of shear quantity. The god news is made better by the fact that the left is totally self grown whereas the right's blogosphere is overwhelmingly astroturfed.

The bad news is that the left is loosing the GWOT you never hear about Great War on Traffic. I have said this plenty of times. Big bloggs on the left link to other big blogs on the left. Its like they started this movement and have all met each other and have this great slumber party sense of who each other is. However, it is rare (although lately I have seen more of it) that the big bloggers will break the norm and link to a little blogger on the left.

Why just yesterday, the biggest racist blogger in the world Michele Malkin linked to little old NJ blogger Enlighten NJ.

While I hope that politicians will glean a bunch from this report. I doubt the big bloggers will. However, it is encouraging that Matt is working with us NJ bloggers to help manage the messages surrounding the NJ Gubernatorial race. In fact he has even helped yours truly with some decent advice. SO read the report. If anything the simple line that politicians should hire Netroots folks may open up some avenues for payment for those of us here in left blogistan.

Thanks Matt

They Don't Call Her the Grey Lady For Nothin'

Somehow this story about a Congressman Spewing about the 9/11 commision missing Mohammed Atta in Brooklyn, is getting some attention. In fact this is no scoop, if anything the Congressman's information was displayed for all newsmakers to view way back on June 12th's Press the Meat. Did whatever investigation Jehl and Shenon perform really take this long (almost 2 months to the day) to determine wether or not Rep. Weldon was spewing on Meet the Press was acurate?

Here is the Transcript:

REP. WELDON: Well, that, again, differs with the meeting I had on January 26 in my office with two members of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the governor's representative for security, the intelligence officer for New Hampshire. They, in fact, told me that the first day that they were informed of the credible threat to Seabrook was on November the 24th. That was the exact day that my informant told me that the reactor was going to be hit.

You know, Tim, this gets down to whether or not we're going to allow the CIA to be totally trusted. There are good agents in the CIA, doing great work. My book's dedicated to them. But they failed in 1992 when the highest-ranking-ever KGB defector, Vasily Mitrokhin, wanted to defect to the U.S. The CIA said, "We don't need him." His information, which was picked up by the British--he became a person who lived in Britain till his death last year--was a treasure trove of information about the Soviet KGB.

The CIA doesn't have a good record. They failed to predict 9/11. They failed to understand North Korea had a three-stage missile before it was launched in 1998. They were wrong on the National Intelligence Estimate, 95, 19, about the threat of long-range missile attack against us. And they've ignored Able Danger, the Special Forces command's secret project against al-Qaeda that ran in '99 and 2000, which CIA officials I've talked to said they weren't even aware of.

I do remember quite fondly saying WOW some tin foil hat stuff comming from the other side. However, I too am guilty of not really raising an eyebrow. I mean just listening to Michael Savage whilst stopped in Holland Tunnel traffic can give you a fair sampling of at least 20 simliar theories. Like I said, the only eyebrow I raised was the one that is stimulated by people in power spewing such theories and of course who the hell this Ali or Able Danger guy he's talking about was. Another Curveball? Perhaps Screwball? How about Sinker or Slider? There are only so many pitching refferences one could come up with.

However, if the congressman has been spewing this information out since way before the 9/11 commision was formed (according to War and Peace), an obvious question is raised:

Why the hell didn't this guy walk up to the commision and tell them "HEY this dude Able Danger had Atta in his Brooklyn sites in 1999!" Suddenly the guy who claims to be pissed off that the intelligence community is flawed at protecting us, becomes complicent himself in not wanting to fix the intelligence agencies until after loads of squabling resulted in passing legislation that some say doesn't address the problems at all.

Had Weldon blasted into the 9/11 commission hearings with his information, then perhaps an entire new post created to somehow relieve the National Security Advisor of the responsibility of reviewing intelligence on National Security (aka NID) wouldn't have to be created. As at least one able minded 9/11 family member rightly points out in today's Asbury Park Press.

Update: Suburban Guerilla knows Weldon better than any of us.

Senator Domenici is a Terrorist Enabler

Yes we libruls may be terrorist sympathizers, but at least we aren't Terrorist Enablers.

My Feeble Ode To Peter Jennings

Charlie Rose doesn't have transcripts. But he did about the best job anyone could have done in remembering Mr. Jennings.

Forgive the length, but a man such as Jennings does not deserve a snarky silly excuse of a post. I'll leave that to Fafblog. After all they did a pretty decent job when the great Dr. Hunter S left us.

I grew up with Peter Jennings. My mother was a news addict which I am now convinced is a genetic trait passed along the X chromosome from the maternal side of the family. While today's anchors attempt to be brave by broadcasting from the middle of Hurricane's. Peter Jennings was the first to establish a news bureau in the middle of Israel! If it weren't for him who knows when we would find out there was an Israeli-Palestinian conflict!

Yes Peter Jennings embedded himself! Without an army protecting him. So maybe it was the looks and his youth, but my mother loved him from day one. She learned a lot of English from that man. She also was able to hold her own in any political discussion she chose to partake in. Which was basically anytime my dad heard some crapsky news on 1010 WINS, that besides the networks lazy reporting, would have been only half understood by my dad. If he decided to open his mouth about that, my mother would cite Peter Jennings as her source of factactular lusciousness that would leave my dad mumbling utter nonsense that even he knew he couldn't stand behind. Such was the stubborness in my family. Which I am now convinced is also a genetic trait, in this instance, the Y chromosome houses said gene, and it is passed obviously down from the paternal side.

Enough, I stopped watching once I discovered News Hour. So I would only hear Peter Jennings references when my parents would visit. They are now retired and live in Portugal most of the year. I would get second hand accounts from my mother discussing much of the news you weren't hearing on the cable greats. I would read something in the blogosphere that day and report it to my mother and she would sometimes scoop me with information from Peter Jennings, or how she would typically refer to it in its entirous "world news tonight with Peter Jennings."

Such was the case when the Social Security nonsense began. Just as the regular media was still beating the dead horse of "faith based voters," Peter Jennings discussed Social Security. He started with the source. (I can't find a transcript if someone watched as religiously as my mom, please send a link to the transcript).

He started to educate the public of the notion that "if it is broke, this is why." He proceeded to describe a simple graphic discription of how money from the people would funnel to Washington and that Congress and the President had spent Clinton's budget surplus. He went on to educate people that the surplus was built up to avoid the so-called shortfall. Etc. Etc. All things that would be hashed out all over the internets in the comming months.

I don't know maybe it was this show.

In other words, Peter Jennings was the first to say, if their is a problem, its the fault of the Congress and the President for squandering all that money they got from Clinton.

For once, I am advocating another media navel gazing experience with the death of Peter Jennings. In part because all of them will elude to lung cancer and the dangers of smoking, which should kick some habits for sure. That's not a bad way of going about it either. However, moreso, a navel gazing centering on the one person with whom they can all learn volumes from (such is the state of our media). If the media will be picking lint for a while they might as well be thinking about what a true journalist should be. An educator of the public.

Mr. Jennings, rest in peace. We here in blogdom are trying like hell to bring your standards back. Give some time and we'll make you proud!

Media In Trouble

10,000!

Congrats to me! 10,000 poor bastards have visited this site according to Bravenet. Sitemeter gives me much more than that. Since Sitemeter tends to give me more factual information and has a huge disparity to the positive. I am dumping Bravenet.

So tommorow after you all read this post and then look down the sidebar saying, wow he did get 10,000. I will remove it. Then if you are so interested in my stats, you will have to click on the rainbow box which will lead you to Big Gay Al's Big Gay Stats Sanctuary!

Oh Happy Day!

Forrester Changes Head - Corruption Comes Along for the Ride

Yesterday: Tom Wilson named new head of Forrester "Anti-Corruption" campaign.

Today:

A local taxpayer group is questioning why the Burlington County Bridge Commission paid $2.7 million to a politically connected public-relations and lobbying firm over six years.

Rick Perr, head of the Burlington County Taxpayers Association, said documents he reviewed at the commission's office gave no indication of work performed by the Strategy Group from 1997 through 2001.

The Republican-controlled commission did release quarterly reports by the Strategy Group for 2002, the last year the firm was retained.

Perr noted that Tom Wilson, the state's GOP chairman, has been a partner in the Strategy Group. Wilson, who was named yesterday to head the campaign of GOP gubernatorial candidate Douglas Forrester, could not be reached for comment.

Can't wait for the DOBI report!.

Take Me Out To The Desert

Take me out to the crowds!

Buy me some Humvees and IEDs

I don't care if my mom doesn't see

Cuz its one, two, three strikes your out

In the old War Game!

Warlog!

Hey Jeff, the war isn't popular anymore. Time to change that sitemeter! 

Site meter is a web traffic tracking system that is free for all users of the internets. It is useful and typically, as in MIT's case, the title of the Sitemeter matches the website's title. not so in Jeff's case. Whose blog (if you didn't know already) is called Buzzflash.



(10 gallon hat tip to Matt)

Tell Me Lies Tell Me Sweet Little Lies

Tell Me, Sunday President WC said in his radio address

"Recent economic reports show that our economy is growing faster than any other major industrialized nation."

Whatabout China? Isn't that a major industrialized nation?

The world's sixth biggest economy [China] clocked in at a higher-than-expected 9.5 percent growth in the first half of 2005.

UPDATE:
If you are one of those folks who think that China not being a member of the g8 automatically disqualifies it from being an industrialized nation, I present Russia. A bonified member of the g8 and it's economic numbers are:

GDP increased by just 5.2 percent in the first quarter, the lowest quarterly figures for Russia in three years

From the White House August 9th:

Economic Indicators Show Sustained, Robust Growth. Recently released Commerce Department figures show that the U.S. economy grew at a solid 3.4 percent annual rate in the second quarter, the ninth straight quarter in which GDP increased at a rate above 3 percent. Smaller inventory figures from the most recent data also signal further growth in the near term.

The APP Interviewees: A Closer Look

With all the latest controversy surrounding the NJ Gubernatorial campagn the Asubury Park Press takes to the street to find out what "common people" are saying about the controversy, let's start with John Lebrio

"In fact, residents interviewed on Friday said their opinions of Corzine haven't changed, despite a torrent of stories in the state's major newspapers and chatter on the state's political Web sites questioning potential conflicts of interest.

'You have to wonder was this coincidence or was this done for other reasons that would be obvious to a lot of other people,' said John Lebrio, 56, a retired bus driver for the New York City Transit Authority. 'I can't give you an answer one way or another. Absolutely, it makes one wonder.'"

Lebrio, a registered Republican who said he would vote across party lines, said he hasn't decided how he feels about this week's news reports.

Just your local regular run of the mill retired NYC bus driver who happens to be a registered Republican. A regular old Ralph Cramden. Retired, chillin' and minorly upset about the current negativity surrounding the race.

What reporter Richard Quinn happens to miss is that well, John Lebrio is not simply a guy who comes home to Alice and occasionally threatens to send her to the moon. No, Mr. Lebrio is in fact a former Candidate for the local School Board. Someone who oposed a slight 19 cent school tax increase.

19 cents?!

Only a wingnut could possibly be opposed to a 19 cent tax increase that will go towards the School System.

hehe. (hat tip to Matt)

However, it is not the only time the APP has gaffed to such an extent (besides the other times we have noted here at MIT)!

Why just yesterday reading through the Letters to the Editor section I found a beauty written by a teacher! (Perhaps someone who would be affected by the 19 cents John has a gripe about). I republish the letter in its entirity for your reading pleasure:

Remarks misconstrued

In good faith, I gave an interview to the Press for the July 11 "School's out" article. But my words were misconstrued. This gave a very negative tone toward my remarks about being a teacher.

Since I was in first grade, I wanted to be a teacher. It has been a lifelong dream and a passion of mine that I have made come true as a third-grade teacher in Freehold Township. I enjoy waking up in the morning to go to school and seeing my students' faces light up. I love my students and miss them during the summer months. Their success in life means a lot to me.

Taking a vacation to rejuvenate in the summer is good for anyone who is working, especially for teachers. Teachers should be recharged for the following school year.

I have a summer job because I like the change of pace. For someone who has just graduated college, it can be difficult to get started on your own, so having the extra income helps supplement the 10-month income of a teacher.

The Press reporter took my story and turned it around. I am offended by this article.

Erica Green

OCEANPORT

I would be pissed too if this is what a reporter like Matt Diamond had written this:

When her first year as a full-time teacher drew to a close, Erica Green was drained.

She taught third graders and always felt like she was on stage, performing. She had to act chipper no matter how bad she felt. And she often stayed late to grade papers and write lesson plans.

When the year was over, Green, 23, of Oceanport, was happy to take a desk job in the office at Sea Bright Beach Club, overseeing the reception area and mailing bills.

"The end of the year, you're like . . . thank God," Green said. "You're burned out."

So take home message: If the APP calls Hang UP, unless you are a Republican operative willing to get talking points published!

I hate to say it but

Tierney is a must read today

Interesting Conflicting Interests? Or just plain Wankery?

We report you decide!

Already we see the lesser of two evils script being drafted by members of the NJ Press. First Doug was in trouble for skirting tax and election law liabilities by having the foresight to plant his company in DC rather than in Jersey, the place where Doug has personally made $50 million off of tax payers. Now the news arrives that Corzine has given his ex-lady friend some monetary help, a friend who happens to be the labor union boss for state workers. The gift was $470,000 and was used to help Carla Katz buy out her ex-husband's share of their home. This is an interesting part of the story. I mean this thing could have been hashed out in divorce court at a huge cost to the state, instead Corzine decides to put a quick end to it all. (I thought republicans were FOR tort reform). Anyway, Carla gets home, divorce made easier, life goes on.

Many of Forrester's minions in the press (like Mike Kelly, and the Asbury Park Press Editorial Board) continue to push the "conflict of interest" upon Corzine. For if he becomes King of the State he will have to deal with the union which represents his employees. The Union is currently headed by Carla Katz an ex-girlfriend of Corzine's. She's up for re-election in October so Mike Kelly calls for the two birds with one $470,000 stone. What a glorious victory it would be a for a pundit like Mike to have a wish like this granted.

Since little blogger dudes like me want to be like Mike (in the status sense, not in the wanker sense) let me give his editorial the snarkaranious treatment it deserves! He starts with a great opening:

SUPPOSE Jon Corzine was not a U.S. senator running for governor. Suppose he was still a hotshot corporate executive, in the running for a new job - say, CEO at General Electric.

What do you think GE shareholders might say if Corzine disclosed he had a romantic relationship with a female union boss representing thousands of GE workers? And what would shareholders say if Corzine also disclosed he gave this woman a cash "gift" of almost $500,000?

Right of the bat this becomes an anti-populist anti-worker, and I would argue ANTI-FREKIN-AMERICAN statment. Wankers like these would love for entire state governments to be totally frekin privatized and allow the corrupted not-so-free market to run the joint like a Super Wal-Mart. Yeah the state's workers are unionized, yes they are underpaid and who knows perhaps overworked. I never heard of people working for the state (politicians excluded of course) buying mansions, yachts, and a pony each for their kids! Their salaries just aren't good enough for this type of living. Add that to the cost of living in New Jersey (one of the highest on the eastern Seaboard) and you have state workers getting the shaft constantly. So, Mike Kelly is anti-labor. Golly-Gee Mike Kelly, if your attempting to pick off the labor base of the Democrats you are doing a fine job here! Keep on comming:

Remember how he gave money to the Black Ministers' Council when he ran for the U.S. Senate - then managed to get the council's endorsement? How about the $873,000 payout to South Jersey political boss George Norcross in return for his backing?

More recently, as Corzine lined up support to run for governor, he donated thousands to county Democratic clubs in return for endorsements. He even skirted campaign contribution rules by having his 89-year-old mother in Illinois give $37,000 the Bergen's Democrats.

But asking Corzine about any of these questionable donations is like confronting an alcoholic still in denial. Even Democratic leaders say they are met with either angry retorts, slick sidestepping or stony silence when they try to speak to Corzine about his spending.

Mike Kelly brings up the genious move to demonstrate that Corzine has made contributions from one Democrat to another as some kind of allegation. Call me a novice but I thought this was called basic politics. Something the punditocrisy should know a bit about! Besides if Doug Forrester is your man Mike, don't forget all millions in donations he has given to his own party mates within the state.

Also, when will pundits stop calling politicos names. Calling anyone an alcoholic is unbecomming at best and simply rude at worse. Alcoholism is a serious disease that deserves much more respect than this. This statement alone demonstrates the penchant for dillusions of grandeur Mike Kelly suffers from.

Who are these Democrat leaders Mike Kelly is talking to who are being sidestepped? I haven't heard of any of these.

Also why didn't an editor pick this one up:

Posing that question to him is a waste of time. Similar concerns about Corzine's spending have dogged him since her entered politics five years ago. But he has never seriously faced them

Some more goodies come from the Kellymeister:

By the way, the press conference was supposed to focus on Homeland Security and terrorism - important issues, right? But the small matter of Corzine's gift to Katz sidetracked things.

But hey, Corzine sees no conflict. When first asked, he blathered that he hoped voters would remember what a wonderful corporate reformer he was. It was like Robert Torricelli, in the midst of questions about his tawdry gift-taking, declaring that he was such a "fighter" for the little guy.

SO which is the lesser of the evils here? Gift Getting or Gift Taking? I thought gift getting was bad! Or is gift giving only bad when it is for girlfriends. Isn't gift giving in order to get state business bad? Pay-to-play or play-to-pay? Mike Kelly is obviously forgetting the cardinal rule of Republicanism: "STAY ON MESSAGE, NO MATTER WHAT!"

As for Katz, she doesn't see the problem either. Asked about Corzine's gift, she initially stonewalled. Then, she declared that she would fight for her workers just as strongly if her ex-boyfriend became governor.

Yeah, right. Does Carla Katz have any idea how serious professional women - women who would never take money from men they might have business dealings with - are laughing at her now? If she had any honor, Katz would resign from her union post and give Corzine's money back.

Her answer, though, speaks volumes about her: "It's private," she says.

Yes, Mike Kelly, now you are onto something. Smear a woman as anathema to feminism! Doomed forever in the sights of feminists who surely see not the forest of "woman championing worker's rights" for the forrest of the gift her boyfriend gave her! Strike two in trying to pick off another Democratic constituency!

To understand this hypocrisy, imagine what would happen if it was disclosed that a Republican gubernatorial candidate was found to have dumped $470,000 into the bank account of a union boss. The questions about Corzine's money are not new. But the public silence by so many Democratic leaders is numbing.

As the week ended, there was yet another revelation about Corzine's spending - and more hollow answers.

Barely a month before he announced he was running for governor, Corzine invested $7 million in a hedge fund with links to an Atlantic City casino. Such an investment would be a clear conflict for any governor, not to mention a violation of state ethics laws.

Finally the finish of this peristaltic column. If a republican gave a ton of money to a Union boss it would create a revolution of Republicanism anywhere in this country. It would make national headlines like "Long-Time Political Enemies Kiss and Make Up", or the more simpler "Republican Defies Party - Embraces Labor!"

If donating money to some corporation that just so happened to profit off of your decisions once you came to office we would be without at least one prominent man in American Politics (if not an entire national party leadership).

Let's make one final distinction here. Doug Forrester made his millions by siphoning tax payer dollars from New Jersey. He used many of these Tax dollars to pay off politicians to get MORE Tax Payer dollars.

Jon Corzine gave an ex-girlfriend some money to help her buy her home. His money was made the old fasioned way, he earned it. He was the CEO of and Investment Firm and was not in business to get business from the state. A true Capitalist. If you are going to criticize him for being a Capitalist where do you fall on the Socialist Doug Forrester? Corzine's voting record is far from corrupt and even further from being bad for New Jerseyans.

So to answer Kely's final question:

Do New Jersey's voters [have principles]?

I certainly hope so! At the very least they will see past the love story of Corzine and Katz and look at the candidate for what he has done for their state.

So without further ado I present today's New Jersey's own Wanker of the Day!