ThinkFast: March 27, 2006
81: Number of Iraqis reported killed on Sunday and Monday, “one of the bloodiest 24-hour periods in weeks.” Thirty of the victims, most of them beheaded, were “found dumped on a village road” north of Baghdad.
The U.S. embassy in Iraq faces criticism for “hiring its local staff from neighboring Jordan, rather than recruiting Iraqis.” One “highly placed American official…told a reporter he hired only non-Arab guards. “I don’t trust Iraqis,” he said.
Predatory lending is increasingly aimed at low-income minorities. A 2005 Federal Reserve study “showed that blacks and Hispanics are far more likely to receive high-cost home loans than whites, even when adjusting for factors such as income.”
Ohio can no longer charge some unmarried people under the state’s domestic violence law because “it conflicts with the state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage” passed in 2004, an appeals court has ruled.
The nation’s railways, which “transport more than 1.7 million shipments of hazardous materials every year,” remain dangerously vulnerable to attacks. “Chemical transport is clearly the greatest vulnerability in the country today and for some reason…the federal government has not acted,” said Richard Falkenrath, President Bush’s former deputy homeland security adviser.
Air Force retreat: Under pressure from evangelical groups and right-wing members of Congress, the Air Force has again revised its guidelines on religious expression. The new rules open “the door to sectarian prayer” and to “inappropriate religious pressure on cadets and service members.”
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has closed the new Critical Infrastructure Partnership Advisory Council from the public eye, waiving a law requiring such groups to meet in open session and make public its decisions.
Increasingly under pressure to meet reading and math testing requirements laid out in President Bush’s No Child Left Behind, many schools are eliminating or trimming courses such as social studies, science, and art.
In January 2003, President Bush proposed “flying U2 reconnaissance aircraft with fighter cover over Iraq, painted in U.N. colours” in order to bait Saddam Hussein into violating a U.N. resolution and provoke a confrontation.
And finally: “Country radio may be ready to make nice with the Dixie Chicks.” The Chicks’ new single, “Not Ready to Make Nice” — a response to their conservative critics — “is now in rotation in several major markets, pushing it to No. 36 on Billboard’s country singles chart after its first full week of airplay.”
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Ohio can no longer charge some unmarried people under the state’s domestic violence law because “it conflicts with the state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage†passed in 2004, an appeals court has ruled.
That’s my state! Woo-hoo! We’re bass-ackwards!
So, some people are so homophobic that when they raced to put together that bill in 2004, they didn’t word it right. And now heterosexual domestic violence is occuring. Good job, homophobes. Good job, indeed.
Idiots.
March 27th, 2006 at 9:22 amThe nation’s railways, which “transport more than 1.7 million shipments of hazardous materials every year,†remain dangerously vulnerable to attacks. “Chemical transport is clearly the greatest vulnerability in the country today and for some reason…the federal government has not acted,†said Richard Falkenrath, President Bush’s former deputy homeland security adviser.
If the Bush administration’s approach to securing our railways is anything like their approach to port security, there should be a pending sale of all of the rail companies to [Insert company with shady ties to terrorists here].
March 27th, 2006 at 9:25 amIt’s really never been my habit to intrude,
March 27th, 2006 at 9:25 amBut it don’t take a rocket scientist,
To see we’re bein screwed.
So just raise your voices. Don’t be afraid of bein rude.
There must be 50 Ways To Dump The Dubya!
Increasingly under pressure to meet reading and math testing requirements laid out in President Bush’s No Child Left Behind, many schools are eliminating or trimming courses such as social studies, science, and art.
Bush: You have to follow our regulations. Good luck at funding it, suckers.
March 27th, 2006 at 9:27 amIn January 2003, President Bush proposed “flying U2 reconnaissance aircraft with fighter cover over Iraq, painted in U.N. colours†in order to bait Saddam Hussein into violating a U.N. resolution and provoke a confrontation.
Anyone else not really suprised by this?
March 27th, 2006 at 9:29 amSo in other words, life is good under the leadership of president bush.
March 27th, 2006 at 9:40 amSnakes on a plane
I think Iraq is past the point of no return. And Americans are caught in the middle. If yesterday is any indication, we are now fighting both Sunnis and Shiites. We are fighting with the so called Iraqi Government forces. We have put ourselves in a situation where if we leave things get worse, if we stay things get worse. We are reaping what we sowed. And to top it of, because we don’t understand the culture or the language, we are being played.
March 27th, 2006 at 9:52 amBobcat, nothing, I repeat, nothing this bunch of liers and thieves does suprises me any more. A huge pack of rabid, extreme reich wing nut jobs are running our country. There are a large number of the left that have become enablers and vote with them. Untill we can boot them out and clean up our government we are all screwed..
About the rail dangers, it is huge…Heard in one of the senate meetings last fall the rail lines in D.C. were a worry. Several senators had said large quanaties of costic chemicals and weapons were being shipped close to the capital and they were all woried. Like everything else, nothing more was said on the senate or house floor. It’s a long way from there to where I am so guess I shoulden’t worry, nuf to worry about right here. How much would we loose if it were to all blow up while they are in session…..Guess they aren’t concerned enough to do anything, huh.?….Odd, their priorities are only on how they can saddle us with more debt and less protection…….Blessings
March 27th, 2006 at 9:54 am$350 Billion: The size of the tax gap, the difference between what taxes are owed and what is paid.
4: The number of days until hearings on the censure resolution.
March 27th, 2006 at 9:55 amI know I continue to harp on this particular subject, but I feel strongly about it:
When Bush took office in 2001, he had a $236 billion budget surplus to play with - after six years of Republican rule in the White House, Senate, and House of Republicans, we now have a $400 billion deficit.
Similarly, the national debt in 2001 was $5.7 trillion - after six years of Republican rule it is now $8.2 trillion.
Yup, the GOP. The party of fiscal responsibility. So, these are the facts. Follow that up with an email from Republican Bill Frist:
The Democrat alternative to Republican efforts to restrain spending is clear: Continue to spend beyond our means, mortgaging our children’s future by saddling them with a debt of $8 trillion … and continue to ratchet up taxes to pay for their fiscal irresponsibility, stifling the American economy.
Crazies.
March 27th, 2006 at 9:58 am17: The number of years since the Exxon Valdez.
Remember the moral of the story: Exxon decided that it would save money by disregarding the laws and taking the risk. Publicly they promised everything but did nothing. They still haven’t paid their fine. This is how corporations work.
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/ environment/ archives/ 102168.asp
March 27th, 2006 at 10:07 am81: Number of Iraqis reported killed on Sunday and Monday
Hummmp. If that rate continues, that would be nearly 15,000 killed a year. In a country whose population is 10 million less than the state of California.
Just Thinking Fast here but I’m guessing most don’t seem to be grasping Bush’s idea of “freedom” and “democracy.”
March 27th, 2006 at 10:15 am#7, anybody with an ounce of intelligence should be able to see that we will never “win” this abomination in Iraq. I dread the day the “Iraqi Army” that Bush is so proud of training starts shooting our kids in the back. An Iraqi who has taken up arms against his own people will not hesitate to kill an “infidel” and become a glorious Jihad’s freedom fighter as soon as the tide turns against the occupiers.
How long before that day dawns?
March 27th, 2006 at 10:16 amAbby, for all we know it may be happening already……Blessings
March 27th, 2006 at 10:26 am[…] Taking a Beating by Ryan @ 9:37 am. Filed under north dakota, civil rights ThinkProgress: Ohio can no longer charge some unmarried people under the state’s domestic violence law because “it conflicts with the state constitutional amendment banning gay marriage†passed in 2004, an appeals court has ruled. […]
March 27th, 2006 at 10:35 amAnother topic..I read the article aboout the immigration march in California had over 500,000 people. Amazing that in this country a march for immigration can gather more people than a march about illegal wars and corrupt administartions. Goes to show…immigrants not only take the jobs that “americans” don’t want to do but they also fight for what is right and just which apparently the “americans” don’t want to do either.
March 27th, 2006 at 10:40 amThe Civil War in Iraq has begun.
March 27th, 2006 at 10:41 amAnother topic..I read the article aboout the immigration march in California had over 500,000 people. Amazing that in this country a march for immigration can gather more people than a march about illegal wars and corrupt administartions. Goes to show…immigrants not only take the jobs that “americans†don’t want to do but they also fight for what is right and just which apparently the “americans†don’t want to do either.
#16 Hey, thanks, Republicans! Thanks for swinging the Hispanic vote completely over to the Democrats. Appreciate it!
Now, if you can just keep up the unscripted questions for Bush and the non-pre-screened audiences, that’d be great. Love the quotes we get from those.
March 27th, 2006 at 10:46 amChilling words from an Iraqi Blog.
Our mere presence is the most destabilizing force in the region. It’s time to get out. If Saddam was a problem, Saddam is no longer in power. It is time to remember the real reason why our army left our shores in the first place and it’s time we rejoined the fight against terrorism and went after Bin Laden. You remember Bin Laden, don’t you? You know – the 9/11 attacks? The guy who is poised to release a message of terror just in time for the November elections? Of course you do. The question is, does Bush?
March 27th, 2006 at 11:07 am#16 so is it ‘immigration’ illegal and otherwise people march for? Looks more like ‘manifest destiny’ to me.
March 27th, 2006 at 11:19 amI remember the day’s when the Republicans were so much better at everything than the horrible Democrats.
After having the Republicans in control of all three branches for so long, it’s become quite obvious that they are NOT the solution. At least, they are major failures as a “one-party system”.
It’s interesting that even though they’re the only party with power, that any failures they make are somehow the fault of everyone else.
Republican: never having to say your sorry or admit your responsibility.
March 27th, 2006 at 11:24 am#11 and they’ve actually made more money paying lawyers to stall and investing the fine. The Exxon Valdez event is done as far as Exxon is concerned.
Now BP has spilled the second-largest spill in Alaska ever, and guess what, poorly maintained pipeline is the reason. Why would a company that makes so much money, spend so little on maintenance….?
March 27th, 2006 at 11:26 amSorry forgot BP link
March 27th, 2006 at 11:30 amA little over a century one of my greatuncles was drafted into the Imperial Russian Army. Since he was Jewish he was given not only the most menial of jobs but jobs that violated his religious beliefs like slaughtering pigs and cooking them, not to say that he was forced to eat this as otherwise he had no access to any other food.
After five years of this, his steadfast refusal to be baptized exasperated his superior officer to the point of using violence against my greatuncle. He defended himsels and since this was a capital offense he escaped and got on a boat to New York as part of the crew with literally nothing but the clothes on his back.
Has the clock turned full circle?
March 27th, 2006 at 11:33 am#18 - Bobcat, Have you noticed how when they come out and say that they’re actively courting a specific demographic of the population, they then almost invariably follow it up with some heinous piece of legislation or massive failure (ie-Katrina) that fucks over that demographic? Makes me wish they’d come out as courting more of the vote in this country.
March 27th, 2006 at 11:37 amBill Frist should not be in charge of anaything…but should be in jail for insider trading of his family’s HCA,Inc, The Frists and HCA,Inc, the largest for -profit health provider in the nation, was fined 1.7 billion dollars in 2003 for th elargest MEDICARE fraud in US history! Why is this criminal still in office and dictating what is to be done about our immigration future?
March 27th, 2006 at 11:40 amHe should be sitting in jail!
Post 24 Interesting story about your uncle being forced to join the Imperial Russian Army > was this prior to WWI and the revolution overthrowing the Czar? Yes unfortunately you are right > America is just like the Czar’s Russia before it was swept away for warmongering and massive corruption!
March 27th, 2006 at 11:41 amYou missed the obvious “plant” at the Wheeling West Virginia speech of GW Bush..it was “sold out” i.e. tickets provided free of charge to the Wheeling WV Chamber of Commerce to distribute. The audience plant asked a softball question now being given airplay on, you guessed it FOX network…”Why is the press only reporting the bad stories out of Iraq?” That woman was NOT a West Virginian…as a West Virginian, I know how we speak, our accents, inflections etc.
March 27th, 2006 at 12:41 pmHeadlines : Government
Abramoff Probe Widens to Murder
Sun, 26 Mar 2006 21:39:03 -0800
Summary:
Boulis was killed in the midst of a bitter dispute over SunCruz, which he had sold in September 2000 to Abramoff and New York businessman Adam Kidan.
Was Abramoff involved?
[Posted By ShiftShapers]
By AP [Unattributed]
Republished from The Washington Post
Court Grants Request to Question Abramoff in SunCurz Slaying Trial
Fort Lauderdale, Flordia – A judge has approved subpoenas for former lobbyist Jack Abramoff and an ex-business partner to answer questions about the mob-style slaying of the owner of a gambling fleet they bought.
Abramoff and Adam Kidan have insisted, through their attorneys, that they know nothing about the slaying of Konstantinos “Gus†Boulis, who was ambushed in his car by a gunman in Fort Lauderdale a few months after the pair bought SunCruz Casinos from him.
A lawyer for Anthony “Big Tony†Moscatiello, one of three men charged in the 2001 slaying, wants to question Abramoff and Kidan, according to court documents. Circuit Judge Michael Kaplan approved the request Thursday, but the subpoenas had not been issued as of Friday.
Abramoff and Kidan are not charged in the slaying. Their lawyers did not return telephone calls or e-mails seeking comment Friday.
March 27th, 2006 at 1:14 pmTwo details that we should be talking about regarding Guantanamo. The White House forgets that we are moving more and more into counter terrorism with our own troops. I assume those men seen riding around on Camels as part of the pre war preparations were not in uniform either. Does that mean we want them not to receive the protection of the Geneva Accords if they are captured?
March 27th, 2006 at 2:05 pm#28 She is from OHIO tweety had her and her military propogandist husband on his show, narrow minded bushites both……
March 27th, 2006 at 3:33 pmHere’s a big one you guys forgot
http://www.fortwayne.com/ mld/ journalgazette/ news/ nation/ politics/ 14177032.htm
March 27th, 2006 at 4:00 pm[…] Think Progress […]
March 27th, 2006 at 6:25 pmCensure not onlyBush,but also Cheney;add approbation of renditions and spying on non-violen tgroups.Cheney-Bush are adisgrace. They are anti -scientific.They are profligac spenders.
March 27th, 2006 at 9:43 pmRe today’s edition, Scalia should recuse himself from just about every issue that comes before the Court as he has ready opinions on almost every subject!
March 27th, 2006 at 9:49 pmThere is an issue at the root of most of the conflicts that we’re wrestling with today, yet, as usual, among politicians the focus is on something other than the big picture. When was the last time anyone mentioned overpopulation as a problem? The world has added at least a billion people in the last 20 years, and in many places people already compete desperately for water, food, or land.
Each person justifiably wants a decent life for himself and his family and will do what he must to survive. Poor countries like those in Central America can’t support their own populations, so people flee to the north. In Africa, vast populations are on the move fleeing war, drought, and famine. This is happening in developed nations too — witness the struggles Europe and America are having over immigration, while Asia and wealthy Middle East nations face increasing pressures on their populations. Wars are fought over scant resources, and the losers lose everything.
The Lord has provided the means for our planet to control its population, yet religious fundamentalism threatens the reproductive rights of women. The Catholic Church alone could influence entire continents if it changed position and allowed the practice of birth control.
Global warming, jobs, housing, education, natural resources, urban sprawl, food safety, traffic, immigration, health care, endangered species, human rights, economics — there is no major issue that isn’t exacerbated by population growth, yet it’s virtually ignored in the media and in politics. If we could get a grip now and make this issue a major focus of our activism, we could begin almost immediately to make a difference in such areas as overdevelopment, air and water quality, Third World living standards, deforestation, health care, and climate change. Even areas like my home, Orange County, might begin to spare some open space from bulldozers, or do a better job educating the kids already here, or reduce air pollution, or manage our water supply, or eliminate the need for another toll road. And if this happened in every community, the effects worldwide would be enormous.
The alternative is to continue adding a few billion people per decade to the limited living space we have, then trying to feed, shelter, cure, and educate them all, and without raising taxes or fighting wars. We would be risking rather than raising the living standards for EVERY community, because no matter how many fortress walls we build, the tide of humanity will overwhelm them. Did we enjoy the last Ice Age or Dark Ages? It’s not inconceivable that we could face them again.
March 29th, 2006 at 9:15 am