Think Progress

ThinkFast: October 30, 2006

By Think Progress on Oct 30th, 2006 at 9:01 am

ThinkFast: October 30, 2006


$7 trillion: The price the world will pay if it does not address global warming within the decade, according to a new report commissioned by the British Chancellor of the Exchequer “underlining how failure to act would trigger a catastrophic global recession.”

“The U.S. military on Monday announced the death of the 100th servicemember killed in Iraq this month.” October is the fourth deadliest month for American troops since the war began.

Despite significant gains in minority undergraduate and graduate enrollments at the nation’s colleges and universities,” an American Council on Education report finds “the rate at which black and Hispanic students attend college continues to trail that of white students.”

Returning to Baghdad after a year’s absence, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Anthony Shadid found the city “now is convulsed by hatred, paralyzed by suspicion; fear has forced many to leave. Carnage its rhythm and despair its mantra, the capital, it seems, no longer embraces life.” Shadid writes, civil war is “perhaps too easy a term, a little too tidy.”

“State Department career diplomats are in an uproar” over the recent appointment of Diane Zeleney, a mid-level civil servant, to a top job running the new Public Diplomacy Rapid Response office in Brussels. Zeleny lacks the usual veteran experience, but is married to Reuel Marc Gerecht, a neocon author who was an early participant in the Project for the New American Century.

“Safety experts for BP PLC warned their bosses of the potential for a ‘major site incident’ 2 1/2 years before an explosion at the company’s Texas City refinery killed 15 people.” “This place is set up for a catastrophic failure,” wrote one worker.

The challenge of limiting carbon dioxide emissions is “all the more daunting because research into energy technologies by both government and industry has not been rising, but rather falling.” U.S. federal spending on energy R&D — currently $3 billion a year — is “less than half what it was a quarter-century ago.”

“The American military has not properly tracked hundreds of thousands of weapons intended for Iraqi security forces and has failed to provide spare parts, maintenance personnel or even repair manuals for most of the weapons given to the Iraqis,” according to a new report by the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction.

A senior aide to House Speaker Hastert (R-IL), Ted Van Der Meid, reportedly blocked an investigation into “mismanagement of a secret security office and…allegations of bid-rigging and kickbacks from contractors to a Defense Department employee.”

And finally: For those of you with time on your hands at work, play the “match the sexually suggestive scene with the politician who wrote it” game at Slate. Find the answers here.

What did we miss? Let us know in the comments section.



105 Responses to “ThinkFast: October 30, 2006”

  1. Jay Randal says:

    What is Karl Rove up to today? Will he spring his “October Surprise” or will he wait till a couple days before November 7th election? To give Rove a taste of his own poison: Karl tell us about your hypocrite life in the closet?


  2. Sharon Cox says:

    8 Day’s and counting…Get out the vote America….Sad the losses are still mounting in Iraq….When will this madness end.?….Blessings to all as you go out to work or on with you’re day…….Peace


  3. Briseadh na Faire says:

    There’s 14,000 unregistered guns that may be in the hands of “terrorists.”

    I guess we’re arming them over there so we don’t have to arm them over here.

    I wonder if any of our young women and men have been killed by any of these weapons we didn’t bother to keep track of.


  4. Sharon Cox says:

    Good Morning BnF, heard these guns can’t be traced even if found, no serial numbers…..Like everything else in this administration, no accountability and total denial……..Blessings


  5. Briseadh na Faire says:

    Speaking of our young women and men in Iraq, we put them in harm’s way, then outsource their food and shelter to a Halliburton subsidiary, KBR. How’s that going?

    KBR won’t tell us. Apparently basic accounting, like how many meals it serves, is a corporate secret, akin to the secret recipe for Coca-Cola.

    http://michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=8228

    Meanwhile, ”

    American troops are now going door-to-door in Iraq begging the civilians for food, and writing home to their families asking them to send canned provisions. One troop wrote his mom that he and his squad dropped ten pounds in the first couple of weeks they were over there, and only get fed meager provisions twice a day while working 22-hour patrol shifts under combat conditions. ” http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/050506Z.shtml


  6. GSD says:

    Jesse Jackson had it right back in 2000. “Stay out the Bushes”.

    Another 100 “commas” for George W. Bush to ignore.

    Maybe we can hear about Lynne Cheney’s childrens’ books instead of troubling our beautiful minds with war dead and wounded.

    Maybe we can threaten to slap some Parkinsons disease sufferers or slap a quadrapalegic like the Christian Republicans Limbaugh and Barbara Cubin.

    -GSD


  7. Briseadh na Faire says:

    And in other news:

    Economy weakest in three years

    http://money.cnn.com/2006/10/27/news/economy/gdp/index.htm

    Bush is touting his tax cuts which gave quite a bit of relief to the richest, and was estimated to average $100 per year for working families. I don’t know about you, but that $100 went for about 3 tanks of gas this summer for me. And my health insurance premiums go up, and my co-pays go up, all faster than inflation. The only thing that doesn’t go up is my take-home pay.


  8. RichardinNYC says:

    PLEASE, PLEASE, people. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again. Stop ruining my beautiful mind with the talk of bodybags and war…why do you want to ruin MY day with this talk?

    Can’t the Queen Dowager of Amerika get any respect?

    Bar


  9. Jay Randal says:

    Well Faire after the November election, and Christmas season passes, then gas prices will shoot through the roof, so that $100 will be needed for one tank full of gas > lol not!


  10. Marie says:

    Lynn Cheney’s bio at the White House notes that she is an author, but omits any reference to her racy novel, “Sisters” that she wrote 25 years ago about a lesbian love affair.
    Webb’s book was also written 30 years ago – his novel was praised by McCain as being realistic because he wrote of what he saw in Viet Nam.
    But Webb is being vilified by the rightwingers while Cheney is calling the patriotism of her critics into question.


  11. Briseadh na Faire says:

    Good morning Sharon,
    Yes, according to the article:

    In its assessment of Iraqi weaponry, the inspector general concluded that of the 505,093 weapons that have been given to the Ministries of Interior and Defense over the last several years, serial numbers for only 12,128 were properly recorded. The weapons include rocket-propelled grenade launchers, assault rifles, machine guns, shotguns, semiautomatic pistols and sniper rifles.

    Of those weapons, 370,000 were purchased with American taxpayer money under what is called the Iraq Relief and Reconstruction Fund, or I.R.R.F., and therefore fell within the inspector general’s mandate.

    That means 98% of the weapons we have given Iraqis cannot be traced.

    And Bush wants us to trust Him to keep us safe?


  12. Briseadh na Faire says:

    Jay, I agree, it is possible that Big Oil will be willing to ruin the economy with high gas prices should the Democrats return to power.


  13. trueblue says:

    Where can I send some food for the troops?
    What do I send, though?
    Spam? Spaghetti O’s? Ick.
    Anyone know what they need?


  14. Marie says:

    Recently saw the film, Iraq for Sale; quite an indictment for the Halliburton, KBR, Blackwater,Caci, et al and the opportunity given them by the administration for greed and obscene profits all on the backs of the soldiers and the taxpayers.
    If the film were played on network TV, I think we might see citizens storming the White House and the Pentagon.


  15. Jay+Randal says:

    Faire > Big Oil will raise the prices even if the Repubs cheat to stay in power in the Congress > the gas price drop is just to help the GOP for the election > so those who vote for GOPers will deserve their screwing at the pumps > lol.


  16. plunger says:

    $7 trillion: The price the world will pay if it does not address global warming within the decade, according to a new report commissioned by the British Chancellor of the Exchequer “underlining how failure to act would trigger a catastrophic global recession.”

    That number, $7 Trillion, just happens to be the exact same amount that was stolen by Dov Zakheim to the benefit of Israel.


  17. wisedup says:

    Bush has gone along with keeping us ‘oil dependent’,and now messing up the whole planet. This is more of the ‘I’ve got my money,screw you’..mess they have caused.


  18. Marie says:

    OMG #5 BnF
    I read that article – do you think it’s true? It makes me sick to think it might be so.
    Weapons unaccounted for and now food is in short supply — WTF is going on — I didn’t think it could get much worse, but now I think it has.


  19. MakesYaThink says:

    BNF:

    More good news:

    The GAO says we’re headed for economic disaster…

    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061028/ap_on_go_ot/america_the_bankrupt
    /sarcasm off


  20. Briseadh na Faire says:

    Right you are, Jay, the only question is how much? At 10 BILLION dollars in profits every 3 months, just one oil company is getting $10.00 per month from each child, each woman and each man in the United States and redistributing that wealth to those who are already wealthy enough to own stock.

    Just think, if we socialized the energy industry, those profits could be used to reduce taxes for working and poor families far more than Bush’s tax cuts ever did!


  21. Briseadh na Faire says:

    I recommend reading the Slate link after you come home tonight. Otherwise you might have a hard time focusing on work today.

    speaking of which…gotta go.


  22. clif says:

    BTW, James Webb’s novel about the Vietnam war is on the List of recommended books by the Commandant of the Marine Corps, Mrs Dead Eye’s book, not so much.

    Ya think that is why she threw such a hissy fit with Wolf Blitzer?

    Her book did not stand up to Marine Corps Commandants standards?


  23. dlet says:

    “The American military has not properly tracked hundreds of thousands of weapons

    So its ok to spread weapons of destruction with no oversight and tracking as long as it is the US and they can only kill a few people at a time.

    Missing Weapons of Destruction.


  24. RUCerious says:

    And why would Zeleney’s appointment surprise anyone?
    This is an administration of the cronies, by the cronies and for the cronies.


  25. Jay Randal says:

    Here is my kick to Lieberman’s crotch for today:

    Lieberman embraces the Dark Side of the Force!

    Sen. Joseph Lieberman has completed the transition to the “Dark Side” GOP, and is NO longer a Democrat, so like Anakin Skywalker he has become Darth Vader.

    Just like the tragic character in the Star Wars movies: Sen. Joe Lieberman has embraced the GOP Sith Lord George W. Bush and has decided to sell his soul to him.

    Joe’s transformation into a GOP agent began in 2000, and intensified after Dubya stole the 2004 election, so now he has gone all the way to become a Republican.

    Like Darth Vader his mission from the evil Emperor is to undermine any opposition, from the Democrats, to the Iraq occupation fiasco and foment war on Iran.

    Karl Rove, the Emperor’s sinister brain-man, flatters Old Joe into believing he is irreplaceable in the Senate and makes him think he is invaluable to Bush Regime.

    But like Darth Vader he is being used, to further plans for an Oil Empire, and to sacrifice himself if the need arises in defending Pres. Bush from being impeached.

    Every decent voter in CT must vote to dump Old Joe on November 7th!


  26. dlet says:

    Returning to Baghdad after a year’s absence, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Anthony Shadid found the city “now is convulsed by hatred, paralyzed by suspicion; fear has forced many to leave.

    Just another person from the MSM telling the truth again. Wonder how long it will take to “liberalize” him.


  27. TerrytheTurtle says:

    #18 BNF – that’s a common theme isn’t it? The most important part of a company is the relationship to the shareholders, not the customers. Note that when Skilling went down for 24 years… it was for crimes committed against the shareholders, not the billions bilked from California and west coast power customers…

    Now I own shares sure, but you know, the emphasis there is just wrong.


  28. TerrytheTurtle says:

    Where’s Charlton Heston to defend the 2nd amendment rights of all Iraqi insurgents to own an AK47?

    This is right in line with last week’s vote at the UN on whether to start work (that’s right, START) on a small-arms treaty. Guess who was the only country to vote against even thinking about limiting small arms? Give you a clue, it wasn’t Russia.


  29. Sharon Cox says:

    Great post’s and link’s BnF,….Seems to me we need to do a lot of work here, more than the usual get out the vote and marching in protests….First we need to know where and how to ship food to our troop’s. Making sure they all get the food and what kind of food needed…Next we need to know how to get this front and center in the public view (quickly)… We are talking of a major problem along with all the other stuff we are dealing with….I am again appaled and sick at heart over this administration……..Some one here please get on this…..I will join in this after noon….Have to run and do my volenteering at the food bank this morning…….Blessings All


  30. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    You may be in luck!

    Chuck Schumer is making the fatal mistake of showing his slimy mug on major Sunday and evening news programs. People are starting to remember how they hate the two-faced spin miesters of the Clinton wing of the party, and pushing poll numbers towards Reps.

    It is now looking like Dems won’t even come close to taking the house, and it will be Schumer’s ugly face the blame. Progs will then have the opportunity to force Schumer / Emanuel out of power once and for all, and promote their own field of candidates for the 2008 presidential race.


  31. WaltTheMan says:

    Jason,
    Isn’t it a bit early to be totally soused?


  32. TerrytheTurtle says:

    Did somebody fart in here?


  33. dlet says:

    Where’s Charlton Heston to defend the 2nd amendment rights of all Iraqi insurgents to own an AK47?
    Comment by TerrytheTurtle

    They can pry this gun that I got from the Americans from my cold dead fingers. (new bumper sticker in Baghdad by the National Kalishnikov Association)


  34. bobcat_grad says:

    I’m curious how Jason is able to post a message on this blog from whatever alternate reality he is living in.

    Quite an accomplishment, really.


  35. Sharon Cox says:

    REMEMBER POSTER’S THE JASON’S AND JOHN’S ARE ALL THE SAME, THEY WANT TO “DISTROY” ALL DEMOCRAT’S….DON’T BOTHER WITH THEIR JUNK POST’S. WIN OR LOOSE THEY WILL NOT DISTROY US…..BLESSINGS


  36. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    #28, Walt / Turdle,

    That’s all you have as a response? I give you good news, and you come back with personal attacks?

    You should be happy – if Schumer / Emanuel wins, you guys would be completely out of the game – now you can force your issues to the fore of Dem politics, and get more respect.


  37. aguafiero says:

    #23…….
    I’d like to add a rock onto der Liebermans wagon:
    He is a strong supporter of the state of Isreal, for his own reasons, and the powerful Jewish community in Connecticut supports him mightily and surreptitiously……..
    I lived in that neighborhood as a child, I know………….


  38. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    #33, Sharon,

    You are already destroyed, you just don’t know it yet …


  39. TerrytheTurtle says:

    I usually don’t bother with personal attacks, but in your case, I think I can make an exception. You can’t debate honestly, can’t refrain from making your own uncalled for attacks and can’t stay on topic. You sir, are a total penis.


  40. hellinabucket says:

    #28. So sad that you allow your hatred of an administration long gone to cloud your judgement of today. This country is waking up all over and discovering the fear that they were shown is largley from the ones telling them to fear. Let’s see, lying about a blow job and not keeping track of hundreds of thousands of weapons that can and are being aimed at our soldiers who don’t have a clear set of objectives.

    Go ahead and live in the dark and believe the shadows your being shown are real. The rest of us are heading out of the cave to reality.


  41. Jay Randal says:

    Post 35 > I know Lieberman has powerful friends in the Israel Lobby, but he is NO Democrat > I call him a Trojan-Horse Republican agent, so shame on any Jewish Democrats who vote for him!


  42. aguafiero says:

    Enjoy one more week of the “curiously” low gasoline prices, folks…….
    It will jump a dollar a gallon at once due to the sudden turnover of legislators on capitol hill.
    (In the unlikely event of only a modest turnover of congress, it may take as long as six months for the price of a gallon of gasoline to climb back up to $3.00)


  43. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    #37, Turdle,

    You are projecting. I point out an undeniable trend and its consequences, and you respond with a fart joke. I am the one offering analysis, and you are throwing turds from your cage.

    #38, hell,

    I will be here on the morning after the election, and you can tell me all about how America is waking up then, ok?


  44. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    #40, agua,

    Gas prices are low to to a glut of oil on the market, because OPEC increased inventories due to a bogus forecast of “worst hurrican season ever” warnings from pseudo-scientists and pseudo-climatologists who factor “global warming” into their projections. Global warming is NOT true, and it shows in the bogus forecasts.


  45. Jay Randal says:

    I will be back later > bye all.


  46. dlet says:

    I point out an undeniable trend and its consequences, and you respond with a fart joke.
    Comment by Jason+M.+Hendler

    “Undeniable trends” with no facts or statistics given or linked to are about as solid as a fart. So it was fitting.


  47. TerrytheTurtle says:

    you respond with a fart joke

    If it’s good enough for Dear Leader, it’s good enough for me.

    Global warming is NOT true

    Michael Crichton says so. HAHAHAHAHA


  48. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    #44, dlet,

    I will be here the morning after the election, in which the Dems fail to even take the House, and we can then talk about how progs can push out Schumer and Emanuel in lieu of candidates who better match progressive policies. Too much of a stretch for you to plan ahead?


  49. Zimzone says:

    Jason, I know it’s Halloween & you’re just trying to play the role of that guy in ‘Friday the 13th’.
    Are you still wearing a hockey goalie mask?
    Do you ever take it off when you drink kool-aid?
    It must get hot in there. I’ll bet you break out in a cold sweat each time you see mAnn Coulter! Yeah, sure, you betcha.
    Take your white, pimply neoslut ass back to the closet, Jason.
    I ain’t afraid of no ghost!


  50. dlet says:

    Too much of a stretch for you to plan ahead?

    Comment by Jason+M.+Hendler

    Unflortunately you are confusing me with someone with actual control of the policies and innerworkings of the Democratic Party. I should thank you though for thinking so highly of me.


  51. hellinabucket says:

    Jason M. Hendler, here’s a projection I found this morning

    Projected New House*: 225 Democrats 208 Republicans 2 Ties

    Dem pickups: AZ-08 FL-13 FL-16 IA-02 IN-02 IN-08 IN-09 NC-08 NC-11 NH-02 NM-01 NY-19 NY-24 NY-25 NY-29 OH-15 OH-18 PA-06 PA-07 PA-10 TX-22 WI-08

    GOP pickups: none

    Please show us all some of your Rovian projections to support your theory of Rebulicans keeping the house.


  52. RUCerious says:

    AH, Hendler and his wild ass optimism.
    Go to your favorite right wing site RealPolitics and look at their call.
    Ten slam dunks for seat changes, and 20 or so tossups, that when you examime the polls, half of them have dems ahead.
    My call – 22-25 seats switch in the House.
    The Senate turns on Tenn, Mo and Va.


  53. hellinabucket says:

    Here’s another.

    GOP 216 -16
    DEM 219 +17
    IND 0 -1


  54. Sharon Cox says:

    Zooey, Marie, Unbelievable, Kate and Cyra…..I found the button I had lost…”Of course it hurts, you’re getting screwed by an elephant”…….

    Any one get an address and answer to what kind of food to send our troop’s.?…..Blessings


  55. aguafiero says:

    #42
    Agreed that there was overproduction, and you are most likely correct in that oil producing countries anticipated demand due to a severe hurricane season, and along with that another collosal screwup by our current leadership to deal with such a catastrophe.
    This also suggests said oil producing entities are listening to the scientists and climatologists. And no one can totally predcict the weather anyways, silly…..
    Saudi Arabia, however, did not participate in OPEC’s recent move to cutback production, and undersold OPEC in price and production. (Any idea why they would do that?)
    And still somehow Exxon manages to turn in a 10 billion dollar profit for the quarter…. a result of the $3.00 a gallon price level this summer, knowing that Dubious and Oily Dick were going to ask them for a little help running up to the elections.


  56. klyde says:

    Please show us all some of your Rovian projections to support your theory of Rebulicans keeping the house.
    Comment by hellinabucket

    Diebold/suppression/court & House of Rep challenges. There

    It’s not who vote but who counts the votes that matters.


  57. RUCerious says:

    On gas prices, everyone at the Halloween party Sat eve was of the same mind, enjoy them until around Nov 10th, when a sudden spike in demand from cold weather starts them up on a steep increase track that lasts until around Jan 15.


  58. kevkev says:

    Hello Truthseekers
    Mike Malloy Is Back!!!
    Listen Live 9PM ET,
    http://novamradio.com/
    http://www.1480kphx.com/
    http://www.mikemalloy.com/
    (please post this everywhere)


  59. katy says:

    that’s a good one, sharon… i’d almost forgotten that one…
    will have to make room for it also… thanks!


  60. aguafiero says:

    Oh, and we know where at least one of the assault rifles gone missing turned up, in the hands of the schoolkid who brought it to school a couple weeks ago, and fortunately only fired a round into the ceiling.
    Since it was an AK-47, maybe it wasn’t one of the weapons we gave to Iraq, more likely it was from the entire army’s worth of weapons that disapeared into the palm trees as American forces approached Bagdhad….


  61. hellinabucket says:

    Here’s another from realclearpolitics.com

    Net Democratic Pick Up = 18 Seats

    Shall I continue Jason…..Jason? Helllllooooo.


  62. ForTruth says:

    $7 trillion: The price the world will pay if it does not address global warming within the decade, according to a new report commissioned by the British Chancellor of the Exchequer “underlining how failure to act would trigger a catastrophic global recession.”

    Did the British Chancellor of the Exchequer have any reactions to the report?

    Time to act on Global Warming.


  63. katy says:

    Shall I continue Jason…..Jason? Helllllooooo.
    Comment by hellinabucket — October 30, 2006 @ 11:02 am

    NO !!! please don’t get comfortable about this election…
    it’s a loooooong time till 11/7…


  64. Exley says:

    #13 Trueblue…I cannot vouch for the organization sponsoring this Web site, but it seems to provide some useful information about what types of items, including food, that could be put into a military care-package.

    http://www.operationmilitarypride.org/packages.html


  65. Democrat Soldier says:

    #28 – Mr. Hendler, it loks like the “conservative” predictions of the House majority party will be Democrat!

    -16 GOP seats, -1 Independant seat and +17 Democratic seats!

    With a predicted 219 Democrats and 216 Republicans, it means that Speaker Pelosi will save us from Republican excesses.

    http://www.electionprojection.com/elections2006.html


  66. RUCerious says:

    hellina…
    That was the site I was mistakenly referring to as RealPolitics.
    Of the tossups they list, only Reynolds NY-26, Roskam-IL6, Bachmann MN-6, Simmons CT-2 and Reichart WA-8 are actual tossups. The 10 leans Dem are slam dunks, plus 10 of the 15 “tossups”…
    That’s 20 seats.


  67. RUCerious says:

    katy – agreed, we can’t assume anything for the next eight days. Keep working your neighborhoods, churches, anyplace you can talk to people about the critical choices we are about to make!! Fire UP!


  68. Mark says:

    Republicans have long been lambasted as a party that is at war with science. I would like to propose that they are not at war with science and that they have created massive technological breakthroughs. An earlier post in this thread clued me in to their break through. They have a machine that apparently allows them to travel between our world, which we know as the real world, reality if you will, and an alternate universe where screw-up’s and errors are looked upon as success and hard facts are looked upon as irrelevant or lies. Either way they are able to transport between these worlds at will. I think we, as citizens need to get them all to transport to the alternate universe, then destroy the machine.

    Also anyone who thinks Bush is delusional when he looks at Iraq and see success, needs to look at it through his eyes. He pretty much has worked to divide the US as much as posisble. Angry factions are better than concensus, and he feels that his work here is a success, he has made no mistakes. What does Iraq have right now? They are pretty mucha mirror of the US under Bush except we are not shooting each other in the streets. So when he looks at Iraq he sees the US as he has pushed it in the last few years. Must be a success.


  69. james+k.+sayre says:

    The Goopers are back to their old vote-stealing tricks in Florida, see the DemocraticUnderground article and discussion on 10/29 about how Democratic voter selections on electronic voting machines are yielding Republican votes…

    Cheers.


  70. hellinabucket says:

    Hello Katy, I absolutely agree not to let up now. In fact, the opposite should be happening. Full court press type stuff. I don’t trust this administration and I’m sure they have a few tricks up their sleeve.

    When the likes of Mr. Hendler show up spouting that crap I won’t sit by. If he has facts then he should state them and we can debate. If he comes here spewing bile and can’t back it up I’m going to point that out.

    While the national trend is going away from Republicans and towards Democrats it’s still the local elections and far too often the mindset is “Congress is full of crooks, except for my guy/girl”.


  71. RealScientist says:

    Global warming is NOT true, and it shows in the bogus forecasts.

    Comment by Jason+M.+Hendler — October 30, 2006 @ 10:28 am

    Yeah, whatever, nutjob.

    Some people just won’t give up, no matter how foolish they look.


  72. Mark says:

    One other factor in the price of oil is that the US did not make their usual purchase of oil to add to our strategic reserves, thus freeing up millions more barrels for the market lowering the price. Hmm, who made that decision and why?

    I was at an audit seminar last week in DC. It was pretty interesting. One of the speakers every year is a lobbyist for tax issues. This guy predicted that the dems will easily take the house and, at the time he thought the republicans would still control the senate with a worst case (for them) scenario of a 50/50 split with darth cheany as the tie breaker. This was all based on his companies polling and with discussion of various members of congress. He also predicted gridlock because of the presidents veto power. I predict that the president will veto every bill presented to him by a democratic held congress. Bush and his people view any compromise as a loss and will not accept anything less than 100% his way.

    One of the other interesting trends discussed at this seminar was the audit frequencies. The lowest frequency of audit was for people reporting $200K – $1,000K in income. The highest was for under $25,000 because of the earned income credit. However the greatest potential for fraud $wise is where the big bucks are while the greatest potential for fraud as far as the number of people is concerned is with the EIC. The resources are being applied to area’s where the dollars are low and the potential to collect nil. Additionally for filers with small business income, schedule c, the rates of audit are 3 – 77 times higher that you will be audited than if you were without your small business. So much for being in favor of small businesses and the average people.


  73. RealScientist says:

    I predict that the president will veto every bill presented to him by a democratic held congress. Bush and his people view any compromise as a loss and will not accept anything less than 100% his way.

    Comment by Mark — October 30, 2006 @ 12:40 pm

    I hope this is true. Then the Democrats can put together legislation that triangulates moderate Republicans in a way that hurts them when Bush vetoes it. Let Bush continue to damage the GOP until his own party leads the charge to impeach him.


  74. RantingTommy says:

    Jason, as usual, you have zero credibility because you prove you are insane by stating your belief in the magic man in the sky.

    It’s about time we get crazy people out of politics.


  75. Briseadh na Faire says:

    Unlike the Democrats, the Republicans in the Senate will not hesitate to filibuster anything which might be headed for a Presidential veto.

    And how do you thing the Corporate Media will portray their tactics?


  76. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    To all,

    I don’t waste time with polls that say Busby will win CA-50, then show her losing in the election along historical results. You can can post links to polls, same as Christians quoting scripture – it doesn’t make it anymore credible.

    I will happily be back here on the morning after the election, to instruct you on how to overcome the Schumers / Emanuels, who would rather lose general elections to Reps, than win with progs …


  77. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    katy,

    Keep ole hellinahandbag straight – don’t let up! I want you all to waste every single minute either losing to Reps, or losing to Schumer / Emanuel Clintonista types. They will help Webb enough to lose by a thin margin, but lose none the less, so as to act like they are with you, when they are not. They don’t respect Lamont’s win in the primary, and help Lieberman crush him in the general election. You’ve all been duped by your supposed allies …


  78. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    btru,

    Normal, there is no response to your rants, but I do have one:

    For all your chest thumping and bluster, I am just not feeling your motivation this year. You all seem tired, not even believing your own talking points. It must be frustrating for you to be so adamant about something, yet the voters in the general election vote for the other guys.


  79. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    btru,

    I will be here on the morning after the election, yet I already know what you will say – the same thing you say after every election you lose:

    - Diebold voting machines stole the election
    - Reps kept minorities from voting
    - Reps used fear to win
    - Reps cheated, wah ….

    I guess you don’t understand what a powerful filter that is for recruiting. Only weak minded individuals stay with you, while the truly wise won’t believe you election after election, failure after failure. Those who orchestrate your movement have led you off a cliff, enjoy the fall.


  80. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    #85, btru,

    Even when you quote me, you seem like a pale echo.

    It has been many years since Reps lost, and all those “excuses” have been overcome by a simple formula:

    - identify and agree upon a core set of values that are shared by a majority of Americans
    - translate those values into policies that are supported by a majority of Americans
    - identify and promote candidates who embody those values and support those policies
    - create campaigns around the candidates, policies and values that win the majority of votes

    I will see you here on the morning after the election.


  81. Zooey says:

    “The U.S. military on Monday announced the death of the 100th servicemember killed in Iraq this month.” October is the fourth deadliest month for American troops since the war began.

    May they Rest in Peace.

    Unforgiveable…


  82. Briseadh na Faire says:

    “October is the fourth deadliest month for American troops since the war began.”

    That is, if the reports of casualties from Forward Base Falcon are false. I wrote the DoD asking if there was any global list of military casualties. that was a week ago.

    *** crickets chirping***


  83. Exley says:

    #87 Agreed, Zooey. We must never forgive or forget the crimes Al Qaeda and the Iraqi “insurgents” have perpetrated against our soldiers.


  84. Democrat Soldier says:

    #83 – “Only weak minded individuals stay with you, while the truly wise won’t believe you election after election, failure after failure. Those who orchestrate your movement have led you off a cliff, enjoy the fall.”

    Interesting. I wonder if that’s what people said about House Republicans from 1955 until 1995.

    Sweetie, all I expect for you to do is avoid TP on Nov. 8th when you hear that the next Speaker will be Rep. Pelosi.

    I’m no more confident about overwhelming Democratic gains in the House than you are underwelming Repuplican losses. While I can understand your exuberance, I think back on the number of times that the House and Senate has changed from Democratic to Republican majority, and then back again.

    While you seem quite confident over “One party rule, forever!” you seem to forget that history is not on your side. Every majority party loses that status over time, and the minority party get the chance to change the direction. Considering how much the Republican party seems to love crushing debt and fiscal instability in favor of tax cuts to the rich, eventually the credit card has to be paid off. While you want to continue going on a spending spree, you’re going to find that the final bill will tick you off to no end once it comes due.


  85. Zooey says:

    #89 – Stop with your stupid assumptions, Exley.

    You are living proof that in some people, the intestinal tract goes up the spinal column and through the cerebral cortex before exiting out the mouth.


  86. Democrat Soldier says:

    #89 – Agreed!

    Now, what’s the reason of the month for why we’re over there? I can never keep up with the flip-flopping and the constantly changing rational for war.

    The latest excuse (If we give up, they’ll follow us home!) fell apart when thinking people remembered that they had no problem finding us on September 11th, 2001.

    The terrorists and insurgents may be barbarians, but they sure can google the heck out of a travel plan from Iraq to New York!


  87. Exley says:

    #90 Every majority party loses that status over time, and the minority party get the chance to change the direction.

    Democrat Soldier is correct. Traditionally, the party in power usually takes substantial losses in the mid-term election held during a president’s second. Even the great Ronald Reagnan saw the Senate switch from Republican to Democratic in 1986. Electoral politics is often cyclical.


  88. Exley says:

    Awwww, Zooey….Always flirting! Anyway, I am glad to see we are on the same page on this issue. Al Qaeda’s and the Iraqi “insurgents” crimes against our military (as well as innocent Iraqi civilians) are indeed “unforgiveable.”


  89. WaltTheMan says:

    #91 – Zooey,
    In my family, we call it oral diarhea.


  90. hellinabucket says:

    Great concept Hendler, yet the republicans don’t follow what they Preach. Compassionate Conservative (this admin. is neither). Let’s look at your “Plan” and see how well the party in power has done:

    - identify and agree upon a core set of values that are shared by a majority of Americans yeah, that whole Family values thing is going real well. Closet homosexuals and misstres strangling reps.
    - translate those values into policies that are supported by a majority of AmericansLike Clear Skies that allows for more pollution and a bill for a 700 mile fence with no funding and don’t forget signing statements that directly go against the intent of the bill. That’s maintaining values
    - identify and promote candidates who embody those values and support those policies.Sherwood, Santorum and past greats such as DeLay and Cunningham.
    - create campaigns around the candidates, policies and values that win the majority of votes Like the campaign Cutter is running against Ford. Great family values thinking it’s ok to use interacial smut. I like how that whole family values thing keeps reappering

    Cheney just recently had a shredder company come to his house. He can talk tough all he wants but after this election there will be hell to pay for the complete incompetence this group has committed.

    I’m looking forward to you being here on Nov 8.


  91. Democrat Soldier says:

    #93 – The only time this doesn’t prove to be true is during war time. 2002 proved that “usually” isn’t “always”.

    Then again, people are getting tired of the same old excuses over why we got distacted by Iraq (no ties to Sept. 11th at all) and left Afghanistan (Taliban actively supported Usama bin Laden).

    I wonder if we’re going to hear about a “new initiative” in iran sometime over the next 7 days? It’s about the only thing Rove can do to change the tide. Either that or “mysteriously” find the remains of Usama bin Laden.


  92. Exley says:

    #92 Democrat Soldier…To be honest, I am no longer sure what purpose U.S. troops are serving in Iraq any longer. The main mission has been accomplished. Saddam is deposed. A structure of a new democratic government is in place (whether it succeeds or not is up to the Iraqis). Al Qaeda has been largely destroyed as an effective force in Iraq. Our troops should not be in the middle of a civil war between Sunnis and Shiites about who best worships Allah.


  93. Zooey says:

    Exley,

    We are on the same page on the fact that every time you open your mouth, you experience explosive diarhea.

    Wipe the shit off your chin, and for god’s sake use some mouth wash and see a dentist.


  94. Exley says:

    As classy as ever, my dear Zooey. The more you protest, Zooey, the clearer your attraction becomes….But I think we should get this out of the way right now…While Idaho is a lovely state (I was recently in Boise….Very cute city), I don’t see a future for us…Let’s just keep it friendly….


  95. Exley says:

    #97 Democrat Soldier…1998 also belied the conventional wisdom. It was thought the GOP would enjoy huge gains in the midterm elections that year, but that didn’t happen.


  96. Democrat Soldier says:

    #101 – Agreed!

    Interestingly enough, the Democrats gained House seats in the 1998 election! It went from D-206 R-228 to D-211 R-228.

    Here are the last seven House statistics:
    109th Congress 2005-2007 D-202 R-232
    108th Congress 2003-2005 D-204 R-229
    107th Congress 2001-2003 D-212 R-221
    106th Congress 1999-2001 D-211 R-223
    106th Congress 1997-1999 D-206 R-228
    104th Congress 1995-1997 D-204 R-230
    103th Congress 1993-1995 D-258 R-176


  97. Jason+M.+Hendler says:

    #90, Dem Soldier,

    I postulate that the country’s core values haven’t changed much in the last century, but the two parties have. Reagan stated it best – he didn’t leave the Democratic Party, the Democratic Party left him. I believe that today’s Reps are much like the Dems around WWII, and that the Dems have moved way to the left of mainstream America for any period in our history.

    Maybe control of the government has toggled between the two parties, but the general movement of the country’s values has changed little, with the exception of the feminist blip, which is literally dying due to the low fertility rates of feminist women (no kids, no legacy).


  98. PatrioticLiberalChristian(PLC) says:

    Exley

    Awwww, Zooey….Always flirting!

    Why bring a sexual attraction element to the discussion – is this much different than the JMH crap that I confronted and you didn’t like being associated with?


  99. hellinabucket says:

    103. Jason, it’s the Democrats that have been recently calling for a balanced budget and pay as you go instead of deficit spending. How is that left of mainstream? And that logic about feminists just doesn’t hold water. Explain homosexuality. No babies there.

    This administration is more removed from the key republican issues than you are from reality.


  100. Nancy Nangeroni says:

    The Slate ‘game’ about porn completely misses the mark. The quote from the writings of candidate Webb certainly qualifies as representing inappropriate sexuality, but 9 of the 10 other examples quoted represent two persons making love. Only the quote from Ken Starr decribing Clinton’s affair qualifies as in any way objectionable. Describing these quotes as “porn” is dishonest and misleading. Pornography is objectionable because it objectifies people; these 9 passages all describe appropriately erotic moments.

    Most disturbingly, TP’s blurb about it, though in quotes, replaces the word “porn” with “sexually suggestive”. What’s up with that? In so doing, you misrepresent the true nature of the Slate piece, which is to mislabel these writings in order to score political points. I want the democrats to win as much as anyone else, but if we stoop to the tactics of deceit – however slight – to win, have we really won? Or have we just replaced liars with lies, and, inevitably, new liars?


  101. Exley says:

    #104 PLC….Is this the type of highbrow discussion you are seeking to protect:?

    Stop with your stupid assumptions, Exley. You are living proof that in some people, the intestinal tract goes up the spinal column and through the cerebral cortex before exiting out the mouth.

    Comment by Zooey — October 30, 2006 @ 4:38 pm

    Nah…Zooey and I have a love-hate relationship (Lately, mostly hate). But back in the day, we were very lovey-dovey with another:

    Are you actually arguing that a person should put party above national security?
    Comment by Exley

    Sweetie darling, are you saying you support GWB, simply because he’s the president, and we have security issues? Even though GWB, as president, has done the most to put this country at risk? That defies logic! It has nothing to do with party at this point!

    Comment by Zooey — September 23, 2006 @ 7:22 pm

    Zoo…can I tell you that that post its the most tender I had read?
    Comment by Juan+C

    Sorry Exley, I’m breaking up with you.

    Juan is my new sweetie. :)

    Comment by Zooey — September 25, 2006 @ 10:51 pm

    Juan is my new sweetie. :)
    Comment by Zooey

    I was changed for a guy who speaks of GWB as the Great Liberator? :)

    Comment by Juan+C — September 25, 2006 @ 10:57 pm

    Ex-Exley,

    Welcome to the Those Who Have Been Impersonated Club.

    Comment by Zooey — September 25, 2006 @ 10:57 pm

    I was changed for a guy who speaks of GWB as the Great Liberator? :)
    Comment by Juan+C

    Do you want to be my new sweetie or not? :)

    Ex-Exley and I were only using each other anyway. It would have ended badly.

    Comment by Zooey — September 25, 2006 @ 10:59 pm

    So, as you see, PLC, Zooey and I have been alternatively friendly and unpleasant with one another in the past…Don’t take it so seriously.


  102. Zooey says:

    PLC,

    Exley is obviously a lonely idiot, whose existence disproves Intelligent Design. He has no gift whatsoever for sarcasm. I appreciate your chivalry. You are a gentleman.


  103. Exley says:

    As clever as ever, Zooey! Please don’t be mad that I can’t come to Idaho. I am a dyed-in-the-wool Northeasterner. But I will always be your “sweetie darling.”


  104. Exley says:

    But we agree yet again, Zooey. PLC is a good man. We don’t always agree (Although we did agree that Hastert should resign), but he is always courteous and civil.




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