Think Progress

Waxman: ‘You Must Do The Oversight If We’re Going To Keep People Honest’

A May 18 report from the Office of Special Counsel found that General Services Administration chief Lurita Doan engaged in a “serious violation” of federal law by holding a meeting of federal employees prior to the 2006 midterms to discuss how they could “help our candidates” win the next election.

On the heels of the OSC’s finding, House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman called for Doan to testify again before his committee on June 7. In her first testimony before Waxman, Doan displayed a horrible memory, failing to recall anything of substance about the GSA’s political briefings except that “there were cookies on the table” at one of her meetings.

ThinkProgress recently sat down with Waxman to ask him about the investigation into Doan. Waxman told us:

The investigation is a very important one and what it has shown is so often when you press these issues to people in the administration, you find out what they had said wasn’t true. … I just think it’s worth noting when people say “I can’t remember, I don’t recall,” it usually means they don’t want to say anything because it’s going to conflict with what they had said in the past or they’re going to say something for which they may well be committing perjury.

Waxman cited Doan’s testimony as a classic example. “She said the most incredible thing — ‘Congressman, I’m just so embarrassed. I can’t remember. I suppose I was there, but I can’t remember it.’ … Well, give me a break,” he said. Watch it:

[flv http://video.thinkprogress.org/2007/05/waxmanint.320.240.flv]

Waxman explained that “you must ask the questions” and “you must do the oversight if we’re going to keep people honest, if we’re going to provide the checks and balances that our Constitution envisions.” By pressing forward with the investigation, investigators have revealed a disturbing pattern by Doan to mislead and cover-up her true intent regarding these partisan briefings. Some examples:

– When asked by the OSC investigators about her role in the briefing, she said “she was uninterested in the topic” and “was on her Blackberry…reviewing emails…and only periodically looked up and down.” But a review of her e-mail use during the meeting failed to corroborate that she was checking or sending email via her BlackBerry.

– Doan claimed the GSA employees who spoke out about her were employees who were poor performers. The OSC investigators said that Doan’s claim regarding the witnesses “appears to have been purposefully misleading and false” since none of the seven employees had “between a poor to totally inferior performance.”

– Doan claimed “she does not care about polls or election results.” But innvestigators report that Doan contributed $226,000 to Republican candidates and Republican organizations. Doan responded by testifying that the contributions had been ‘taken out of context.’”

Digg It!

Transcript:

WAXMAN: The investigation is a very important one and what it has shown is so often when you press these issues to people in the administration, you find out what they had said wasn’t true.

Then they change their story. Then they start saying “I don’t remember. I don’t know. I can’t recall.” I just think it’s worth noting when people say “I can’t remember, I don’t recall,” it usually means they don’t want to say anything because it’s going to conflict with what they had said in the past or they’re going to say something for which they may well be committing perjury.

A good example of this was when we had Lurita Doan, the head of the General Services agency. And she had, at GSA headquarters, a teleconference all around the country with GSA employees, a review of the Republican Party’s agenda for the 2008 election [Note: Waxman meant to say it was the 2006 election.]

And they talked about what incumbent members of Congress were going to be in trouble, what opportunities for seats they had to pick up. And at the end of all this, she stood up and said, “We’ve got to do our best to help our Republican candidates.”

Well, she came before our committee, under oath. And we asked her about this meeting that took place at the GSA and the comment that she made. Well, she said the most incredible thing — “Congressman, I’m just so embarrassed. I can’t remember. I suppose I was there, but I can’t remember it.”

We asked her, we’ve had six or seven people that we’ve interviewed that indicated you stood and said “let’s help our Republican colleagues.” Do you think they’re lying? She said, “Well, I don’t want to say they’re lying. But I just don’t remember.” Well, give me a break.

So I think that these inquiries are interesting because you must ask the questions. You must do the oversight if we’re going to keep people honest, if we’re going to provide the checks and balances that our Constitution envisions.



218 Responses to “Waxman: ‘You Must Do The Oversight If We’re Going To Keep People Honest’”

  1. VerbalKint says:

    The Bush administration is composed of people fully committed to breaking the law. They are literally a Mafia-like organization. Oversight is not about keeping them honest. It is about catching them, indicting them, convicting them, and imprisoning them.


  2. PTF says:

    She was probably checking e-mail on the Karl Rove gwb43.com network — which of course remains beyond public reach.

    No, on second thought, even Karl would have figured her to be too dumb to be trusted with something like that.


  3. Bruce Gorton says:

    To TP.

    Reduce the yellow a touch. The guy looks like an orange.


  4. billjpa says:

    I watched the woman during her testimony and there isn’t any question in my mind: she is a liar. The OSC found her to be a liar. The comittee chair found her to be a liar.Why in hell can’t someone in the democratic party call her for what she is– a LIAR!
    She remembers cookies but that is all? Stop. Enough.
    However- since the dems continue to show no willingness to do anything other than voice a gooper lite position, I guess the only choice left is to leave the party. Leave it now and refuse to donate a single cent until the “leadership” decides to take public positions that reflect the desires of the voters!


  5. beefeater says:

    Mean while, when reached in Greenland where she’s watching ice melt to cure “Global Warming”, Nancy Pelosi said that she agrees with Waxman and the vote to give Bush a blank check on Iraq is only the beginning of our oversight efforts.
    Thank You, Nancy!


  6. VerbalKint says:

    #5 Try writing something coherent next time.


  7. bob (not the hacker) says:

    The republcans put mcdoogle in jail when she wouldn’t testify, why aren’t the dems doing the same thing?


  8. ToxicEd says:

    Amazing the level of corruption. Why do I feel like I’m living in a third-world junta-run country that doesn’t have a Constitution or a Bill of Rights? The US tries to export “democracy” and the Bible but can’t follow any of the principles in either. We’re doomed. This country is being lead by mean, stupid, stubborn people – - the worst combination you can get – - who are supported by big oil, insurance and pharmaceutical money. We’re screwed.


  9. Badmoodman says:

    Henry Waxman makes me proud to be a Californian. The guy is the modern model of what a Congressman should be.


  10. Badmoodman says:

    Comment by beefeater – - We welcome all comments from the gay community too.


  11. Briseadh na Faire says:

    Comment by bob (not the hacker) — May 28, 2007 @ 3:24 pm

    For the same reason impeachment was pulled off the table.

    We only have the illusion of oversight; oversight without consequences. People “resign” to go into higher paying private-sector jobs.

    Their high-paying government jobs were paid for by taxes. Their higher-paying private sector jobs are paid for by higher prices.


  12. Bruce Gorton says:

    Right, so far lets take stock of the situation.

    The Democrats were voted into power on the idea that they would punish GW Bush. America was peeved at getting lied into a war and wanted some revenge. I must admit I thought the Democrats would at least have the balls to take that revenge. I was wrong.

    The Democrats’ stated mandate (What they said they were elected to do) was to get America out of Iraq and reintroduce oversight in the house of Congress. So far they have failed miserably, and then applauded their own cleverness in their failure.

    Nancy Pelosi has run away from her critics to Greenland. The general consensus within the Democrats is smugly satisfied at its own defeat and the Democratic base is basically pissed off.

    The Democrats don’t give a shit about anybody but themselves, and their own political backsides, they don’t give a shit about America, and they don’t give a shit about actually doing the right thing. They are gutless cowards who are smugly impressed with their own cowardice.

    The traditional alternative is the Republican Party, which is worse. In a battle between cowards, we all lose. The real alternative is to vote Green in the next elections. Everyone in America must make up their minds to show the two major parties, left and right, that they will not stand for corruption, stupidity, cowardice, lying, or a bunch of weasels more concerned with what their beltway strategists say then the good of the country.

    It is time for America to vote Green.


  13. LandSurveyor says:

    On the record. That’s why Bush won’t allow Rove to talk on the record. Too many lies to have to remember.


  14. beefeater says:

    We welcome all comments from the gay community too.
    Comment by Badmoodman — May 28, 2007 @ 3:38 pm

    If calling me a queer makes you feel superior (and I would guess that it does, because everyone knows that queers are inferior) then I’m happy for you. Whatever floats your boat.
    Is that a communal we? Are you expressing the prevailing opinion of the vast majority of people on this blog?


  15. El Tonno says:

    Why do these people hold meetings if they can’t remember anything afterwards? Don’t they even take notes? Distribute Action Item or To Do lists?

    Bet y’all know the “Subpoenas … now with Immunity” clip..

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qp-yRI_HJoM


  16. Dr. Wu says:

    It was time for people to vote Green in Florida in 2000, too. Thanks for George W. Bush, guys.

    As for Doan, screw the June 7 hearing–indict her tomorrow. She has committed as blatant a violation of the Hatch Act as I’ve ever seen, and lied to Congress to boot. If she’s going to rat out Rover, let her do it as part of a plea bargain to avoid prison time. If not, let her rot in a cell. All Waxman will be doing by interviewing her again is giving her another opportunity to lie.


  17. Bruce Gorton says:

    Dr. Wu

    1st: Those who voted Green in Florida would not have voted Democrat anyway, they simply wouldn’t have voted and might even have voted Republican. They voted Green out of disgust at a party seeking to be its opposition.

    2nd: You can either accept what the two parties have become, or you can do something about it. If you are not willing to vote for what you want you cannot complain when the next GW Bush comes along, next time on a Democrat ticket.

    The guys who you should be sneeringly thanking for Bush are those Republicans who thought Bush a bad presidential candidate, but voted for him anyway because he was not a Democrat. When the situation gets reversed, don’t make the same mistake as those contemptable sots did.


  18. Jeremiah says:

    Henry Waxman’s power to investigate the gross corruption of George Bush’s administration is the silver lining to the Republican’s inquisition of President Bill Clinton.

    I hope Henry Waxman continues his public investigations until George Bush is long gone from office. There needs to be a thorough accounting of the high crimes and misdemeanors committed by Republicans.


  19. valiant venus says:

    Tooooo bad Henry wasn’t advising Congress about check kiting and former President Clinton about lying under oath. If Waxman was so interested in “honesty” he would get to the bottom of the “cold” hard cash in William Jefferson’s freezer……Hypocrite!


  20. Willy says:

    Dr. Wu:

    Those of you who blame either the Green party or Ralph Nader for Bush’s victory are nothing but blame-everyone-except-me whiners. You remind me of the Republicans who whine over and over “Clinton did it.” Take responsibility for once instead of blaming others. Gore lost because he ran one of the most incompetent, milk-toast campaigns ever. Gore initially had a huge lead in the polls and then blew it because he seemed to stand for nothing. If you’re a progressive, stop behaving like a whining Republican.


  21. Saywho says:

    “Capture one of these killers, and he’ll be quick to demand the protections of the Geneva Convention and the Constitution of the United States,” the Vice President said in the Saturday morning speech. “Yet when they wage attacks or take captives, their delicate sensibilities seem to fall away.”


  22. DreamCrusher says:

    Yeah, yeah, when Waxman goes after Plame for her inconsistencies in testifying to Congress, I’ll pretend to care. Your not credible if you only go after your political enemies, it’s called hypocrisy, Mr. Waxman.


  23. unbelievable says:

    5/26/2007

    Yep, Hostages To Lieberman:

    This week, the Rude Pundit posited that the real reason for the Democratic cave on war funding was Joe Lieberman, him of the hangdog face and Droopy voice, seeking to exercise some of his mighty power of bipartisanship by sinking a bill supported by the vast majority of the American people. His threat? Jumping to the Republican caucus, thus assuring that this would be his last term in office.

    And now we know that he’s been a-threatenin’.

    Ya think George Soros could use some of his scratch to bribe Chuck Hagel into going independent and caucusing Democratic? And then we can tell Lieberman to go uck himself.

    http://rudepundit.blogspot.com/


  24. katy says:

    dr.wu – bruce gorton is from south africa…
    i’ve never been able to figure out his attitude and reasoning
    for telling u.s. citizens how they thould vote…
    it’s very confusing to me…

    the only way a third (or more) party can have any chance in today’s
    political elections is to eliminate the electoral college…
    and intsitute public financing of elections…
    i’m all for both!

    now, back out to finish mowing and wait for some more rain…


  25. unbelievable says:

    I agree with Bruce and Willy – that Gore could have done a better job with his campaign, and his loss was not because of Ralph Nader (though he didn’t actually lose according to several independent re-counts).

    And to give Mr. Gore that opportunity to run a better campaign, we’d like to invite him to run again in 2008… :D


  26. unbelievable says:

    May 22 (Bloomberg) — Senator Joe Lieberman, a Connecticut independent, says his disagreement with the Democrats over the Iraq war won’t prevent him from working with his former party. For now.

    “I hope the moment doesn’t come that I feel so separated from the caucus” that he decides to shift allegiance to the Republicans, he said in an interview. Asked what Democratic actions might cause such a break, he invoked Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart’s famous 1964 definition of pornography: “I’ll know it when I see it.”

    http://electioncentral.tpmcafe.com/blog/electioncentral/2007/may/22/lieberman_again_threatens_to_switch_parties_a_week_after_admitting_hed_promised_not_to


  27. unbelievable says:

    “it’s called hypocrisy, Mr. Waxman.
    Comment by DreamCrusher — May 28, 2007 @ 4:43 pm”

    No, it’s called the opposition party. Don’t like it? Dig up a corpse of a Founding Father and berate him…


  28. Briseadh na Faire says:

    Interesting you bring up Jefferson. Although his office was raided a year ago, he has yet to be charged with any crime.

    And you’re hardly one to talk about honesty. I’ve given you multiple opportunities to disavow this is from your myspace, and you have refused to do so at every turn:

    I have:
    1. Syllabi and draft papers for comparison.
    2. Samples of your previous work
    3. Samples of my writing and the ability to compose a comparable essay on command.
    4. The ability to completely prove my point. “Dear Sir, I helped someone do something dishonest. The paper that Giuliano DePieri turned in about medicinal marijuana/jurisprudence was actually written by me. Let me show you how”

    http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.ListAll&friendID=79943506&MyToken=27ddd5ef-c1e0-47b2-9bea-14363ccf4c80ML

    Pretty damning stuff, coming from one who also claims to be a defense attorney.


  29. Jake says:

    GO LIEBERMAN!!! Independents Rule!


  30. Briseadh na Faire says:

    Your (sic) not credible if you only go after your political enemies, it’s called hypocrisy, Mr. Waxman.

    Comment by DreamCrusher — May 28, 2007 @ 4:43 pm

    Hence you are credible, because you attack hypocritical Republicans as well, right?

    Wait, no…a review of your entries indicates you only attack Democrats…

    oh my gosh! You’re not credible!


  31. El Tonno says:

    Lieberman is the antithesis of “rule”.


  32. DreamCrusher says:

    unbelievable,

    Oh, so Congress under the leadership of the Democrats should only seek perjury charges against Republicans, even when Democrats get on the stand and perjure themselves? Interesting legal concept you got going there. I wonder how you apply that to your political enemies. Snort.


  33. valiant venus says:

    Dream Crusher – I just want to know why William jefferson is still in the Congress and not awaiting pending felony charges??? (If you want progressives to admit to being the hypocrites many of them are – you’re in the wrong place.)


  34. unbelievable says:

    “I wonder how you apply that to your political enemies. Snort.
    Comment by DreamCrusher — May 28, 2007 @ 5:00 pm”

    I thought we were all Americans. Now you’re labeling your fellow Americans as enemies? How Fascist of you, Mussolini.


  35. Jake says:

    For the record, the 22 year old from the MySpace page above claims she is in commodities trading, not law.


  36. unbelievable says:

    “Lieberman is the antithesis of “rule”.
    Comment by El Tonno — May 28, 2007 @ 4:58 pm”

    As jake is the antithesis of independent…


  37. Jake says:

    Johnnie Walker Lindh was an American AND enemy. Rosie O’Donnell and Cindy Sheehan too. Thank God all three are gone finally!


  38. LandSurveyor says:

    What was Plame inconsistant about? And weren’t Republicans there to question her? I’m confused.


  39. Tom3 says:

    I see the trolls are all awake and out from under their bridge.


  40. angryvietnamvet says:

    RE #12’s suggestion to “vote green”…..hum, I think some liberal folks voted green in 2000 for Ralph Nader and it resulted in the worst precidency in american history….No, I will not throw my vote away on any third parties, no matter how appealing their limited agenda….The 08 election is just too important to give a vote to the republicans by voting “green” third party…Ralph Nader is just as much a Bush enabler as the Supreme Court appointment of Bush.


  41. Ginko says:

    dreamcatcher

    Your kindergarten philosophy of “they did it so it’s ok if we do it” is ridiculous.

    Is the height of stupidity. BOTH parties should be held to the same high standard and held accountable for their actions. Im for transparency and accountability, it is not a PARTISAN issue!
    The real problem the Neocons have is that the vast majority of criminals in our government are REPUBLICANS not DEMOCRATS. That is not to say SOME Democrats commit these acts. Lay aside your party affiliation, you are an AMERICAN, we ALL ARE. Geez, grow UP and develop some ethics! The ” he did it so I can do it” defense is the stuff of children.


  42. Tom3 says:

    I refuse to vote for Ralph Nader.

    He took money and help from the GOP.

    He is a major reason Chimpy got in and stayed in.


  43. RUCerious says:

    Good luck with the whole keeping this administration “bunch” honest deal.


  44. LandSurveyor says:

    Lindh, Rosie, Sheehan? What the hell is going on here? Weird stuff, Jake.


  45. angryvietnamvet says:

    Valient Venus et al re William Jefferson, Congressman and his cool $100K….
    Waxman’s committe is not the place to be investigating Jefferson…he has nothing to say about it as the matter is in the hands of the Justice Department i.e. the FBI….It will be up to a U.S. attorney to charge Congressman Jefferson, not Henry Waxman.


  46. RUCerious says:

    Tom3
    Any volunteers to blow up the bridge?


  47. DreamCrusher says:

    venus,

    Jefferson is still in Congress??? Are you serious? Hasn’t he been indicted on corruption charges?

    unbelievable,

    I thought we were all Americans. Now you’re labeling your fellow Americans as enemies? How Fascist of you, Mussolini.

    No, I said YOUR political enemies. Don’t be disingenuous, you can read any thread here at TP and you god damn dupe liberals clearly and explicitly express Republicans as your enemies, more so than the terrorists who would take your life in an instant. Nice try at projection, though, noob.

    LandSurveyor,

    Plame contradicted her earlier testimony to the Senate Intelligence Committee, and came up with a brand new story that she never told anyone earlier. Senator Bond has, after she testified, investigated with the CIA whether or not what she was saying was true, and the CIA has not found any cover for the things she stated.

    Plame would have to testify again for the Republicans on the committee to ask her to explain herself, and regardless, the Democratic chairman would have to be the one to bring perjury charges, if I’m not mistaken. Will that happen, Mr. Waxman? Nope. Plame’s a golden Democratic asset, she’s not going anywhere, regardless of whether she lied or not. Waxman’s not interested in the truth, but he can easily prove me wrong by bringing Plame in for questioning again.

    Ginko,

    I’m asking Waxman to hold both parties to the same standard, but he obviously won’t, which was my whole point.


  48. angryvietnamvet says:

    Senator Bond is the dumbest windbag in Congress…and that’s saying a lot….my dog has more brains.


  49. Zooey says:

    It will be up to a U.S. attorney to charge Congressman Jefferson, not Henry Waxman.
    Comment by angryvietnamvet

    An actual attorney would know that. :D


  50. LandSurveyor says:

    What testimony? That she was covert? Isn’t that what this is all about? Hasn’t that been settled?

    DC both parties protect their own so leave it alone. I personally think the Republicans have more to hide (obviously). Shall we start with Foley?
    Tell you what, clean your house first. Then we’ll do ours. Democrats love to clean their own houses, anyway, unlike Neocons. At least the meager citizens do.
    I believe that loser Jefferson is still in office because the Bush feds illegally raided his office. Hell even poor Hastert was having to defend Jefferson. LOOOOOL!


  51. Saint Saddam says:

    Why wont Waxman answer questions about Sibel Edmonds. He just wont respond to thousands of concerned citizens regarding this vital issue.


  52. Ginko says:

    RUCerious

    Hope springs eternal. We have seen some good progress with people like C.R.E.W. transparency and accountability will be ours if we demand it from our elected “leaders” regardelss of party. The irony of Bush having his own “Monica problem” is too rich for words.


  53. CaptainMantastic says:

    Help me with this. With all the allegations of wrongdoing, especially in regards to Bush. The tampering of intel, the allegations that he orchestrated 9/11, the criminal involvement and profiteering in the war. Democrats have had 4-5 years to bring the charges. They have both houses of congress. President Bush has a 30% approval rating.

    If all (or any) of the allegations are true. If the evidence is so obvious and overwhelming. Why isn’t the Democratic controlled congress (they no doubt have the motivation) able to bring the man to justice.

    Is it possible the charges are not that credible? Isn’t it reasonable for me to have doubts about the charges of Bush’s wrongdoing, if his bitter opposition is unable to act on them?


  54. Tom3 says:

    Stupid troll is just proving that he’s in Repuke Bizarro World.

    Valerie Plame was an undercover CIA agent who ran an undercover CIA company and they were both outed by the Chimpy regime.

    Those are the real facts on Plamegate. Chimpy and his goons outed the CIA.

    That’s treason.


  55. Tom3 says:

    Waxman can’t talk about Sybil Edmunds because Chimpy put a gag order on her.

    We already know what she is all about. The Turks are the middlemen for heroin coming out of Afghanistan. The US government knows about it and is keeping it covered up.

    She blew the whistle on it, and Chimpy’s goons put a gag order on her.

    Her entire case is classified and that’s probably why Waxman won’t talk about it.


  56. shane says:

    For the record, the 22 year old from the MySpace page above claims she is in commodities trading, not law.

    Comment by Jake — May 28, 2007 @ 5:10 pm

    Sure Jake, and one day you’re a lawyer, then you’re not, then you are. Which is it today?


  57. midori says:

    If you want progressives to admit to being the hypocrites many of them are – you’re in the wrong place.)
    Comment by vilevermin

    You could start by admitting your hypocrisy first, vv–not that I really expect you to. In any case, you prove it with almost every post you submit here.


  58. kvb says:

    You know some jail time could refresh her memory. It was good enough for Judith Miler, who was also not forthcoming with info.


  59. kvb says:

    How to become a republican.

    step 1) indulge every selfish, greedy thought you’ve ever had

    step 2) Lie your way over to patriotism


  60. Saint Saddam says:

    According to Luke Ryland, one of the foremost experts on the Sybel Edmonds case

    “Sibel Edmonds’ case is about the intersection of illegal arms trafficking, heroin trafficking, money laundering, terrorist activities and the corruption of many “highly-recognizable, highly-known names” in and around the US government. Sibel says that the people involved will go straight to prison if we can get hearings into her case. Richard Perle, in prison. Douglas Feith, in prison. Dennis Hastert, in prison. Marc Grossman, in prison…”

    http://wotisitgood4.blogspot.com/


  61. Briseadh na Faire says:

    Comment by Jake — May 28, 2007 @ 5:10 pm

    For the record, valiant venus, aka M!ghty Aphrod!te claims to be a lawyer. Strange that she absolutely refuses to respond to questions regarding the myspace link. Someone else dug that up and claims it’s hers, and I’ve been trying to get her to confirm or deny it, either way.


  62. shane says:

    I wonder how you apply that to your political enemies. Snort.
    Comment by DreamCrusher — May 28, 2007 @ 5:00 pm”

    I thought we were all Americans. Now you’re labeling your fellow Americans as enemies? How Fascist of you, Mussolini.

    Comment by unbelievable

    Republicans started treating Democrats like the enemy during Carter’s administration and perfected it during Clinton’s. Unfortunately the Democratic voters unlike the Republican voters demand accountability and civility from their politicians. In effect neocons have been waging a noviolent civil war against us that started with the assasination of JFK.

    Since Bush Sr. appears to be complicit in much of what has happened since then I guess the “I don’t know” testimony of Doan just follows the success initially achieved by Reagan during Iran/Contra. At a time when technology has made it incredibly easy to take notes and save calendars in several places at one time, not one member of the administration is able to remember anything that was said or when it was said or who was present.

    Maybe Bush Sr. needs to be hauled in and questioned about why he was in Dallas during the assasination and how all his cronies from those days ended up in such high positions and how his dumbest son became president. Something is askew and the checks and balances that are supposed to protect our country from the control of fascist-like leasers has failed.


  63. Mr. President says:

    Dems like to shine flashlights in underlings a$$holes


  64. Ginko says:

    bruce gorton

    The Democratic congress wasn’t elected for some sort of revenge against Bush. They were elected because people want change and the first change we want is this war on Iraq to end and the efforts be focused on diplomacy rather than the military. Republicans are so incredibly corrupt (and being indicted left and right across the nation finally) but we have a very slim majority and that is problematic in getting change moving. the wheels of progress move slowly and people take that to mean the Democrats are weak. I don’t see it that way, the system will eventually grind towards Justice if we can get it back on track and we have a great team of Dems ( though not perfect) in place to do just that.


  65. shane says:

    An actual attorney would know that. :D

    Comment by Zooey — May 28, 2007

    Good one Zooey!


  66. shane says:

    Dems like to shine flashlights in underlings a$$holes

    Comment by Mr. President — May 28, 2007 @ 6:31 pm

    And since Republicans ARE a$$holes we need to shine a spotlight on THEM.


  67. Zooey says:

    Good one Zooey!
    Comment by shane

    Hey, Shane. This girl’s got her mojo back. :)


  68. unbelievable says:

    “No, I said YOUR political enemies.”

    I know exactly what you said, I scored a 99% in Reading Comprehension on the high school graduation test when I was 17.

    “Don’t be disingenuous, you can read any thread here at TP and you god damn dupe liberals clearly and explicitly express Republicans as your enemies, more so than the terrorists who would take your life in an instant.”

    I’m an Independent, I don’t have political enemies. I do have religious enemies though.

    “Nice try at projection, though, noob.
    Comment by DreamCrusher — May 28, 2007 @ 5:30 pm”

    If you’re gonna resort to childish name calling because you can’t understand my response, you show yourself to be incapable of debate. Sheesh.


  69. Mr. President says:

    And since Republicans ARE a$$holes we need to shine a spotlight on THEM.

    Comment by shane — May 28, 2007 @ 6:44 pm

    Hey, what ever gets you off. Different strokes for different folks. Just make sure to keep it safe.


  70. Zooey says:

    Hey, what ever gets you off. Different strokes for different folks. Just make sure to keep it safe.
    Comment by Mr. President

    Do you like a plain condom on the flashlight, or the ribbed…?


  71. unbelievable says:

    “Maybe Bush Sr. needs to be hauled in and questioned about why he was in Dallas during the assasination and how all his cronies from those days ended up in such high positions and how his dumbest son became president.”

    That works! :D

    “Something is askew and the checks and balances that are supposed to protect our country from the control of fascist-like leasers has failed.
    Comment by shane — May 28, 2007 @ 6:23 pm”

    Well said.


  72. shane says:

    Hey, Shane. This girl’s got her mojo back. :)

    Comment by Zooey — May 28, 2007 @ 6:46 pm

    So glad.

    And may I say thank you to all you progressives who covered my back all the times in the last week when my DSL crashed and I was unable to finish my own argument. You guys rock.


  73. Lora says:

    An actual attorney would know that. :D
    Comment by Zooey — May 28, 2007

    Good one Zooey!
    Comment by shane

    I was going to write the same thing, but Zooey got there ahead of me. In any case, Vile Venus/MA has proved once again her/his ignorance of the profession she/he pretends to engage in.


  74. Mr. President says:

    Do you like a plain condom on the flashlight, or the ribbed…?

    Comment by Zooey — May 28, 2007 @ 7:04 pm

    I wouldn’t know. I won’t bring out my flashlight until my wedding day.

    hmmpff.

    And besides, aren’t they ribbed for *her* pleasure.

    (yes, I’m being dense)


  75. shane says:

    Well said.

    Comment by unbelievable

    Thanks unbelievable especially for cutting me slack on the typos, being a teacher and all. That was fascist-like LEADERS if anybody thinks I’ve lost my mind. Apparently my fingers don’t work holidays.


  76. shane says:

    And besides, aren’t they ribbed for *her* pleasure.

    (yes, I’m being dense)

    Comment by Mr. President

    *her* pleasure – isn’t that another topic you know nothing about?


  77. Mr. President says:

    *her* pleasure – isn’t that another topic you know nothing about?

    Comment by shane — May 28, 2007 @ 7:13 pm

    No, it is a topic I *care* nothing about!

    Heyooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Am I right fellas?

    Yeah, y’all know what’s up.


  78. Zooey says:

    I wouldn’t know. I won’t bring out my flashlight until my wedding day.
    Comment by Mr. President

    Heh. A “surprise” for the little woman, Mr P? Just don’t tell her where you keep it, ok?


  79. RUCerious says:

    Mr. Idiot, with a blowup doll like Laura, it probably doesn’t know how to do the orgasm thing, but most women are very “appreciative” of a guy who rocks their ocean. Dork.


  80. david says:

    Well, I see no point in voting Green. Not if I was an American. It’s different in Canada. And, if Bruce Gorton is South African, I’m sure they too have a parliamentary democracy, which can handle multi-party elections. Indeed, SA has the edge on Canada by having proportional representation.

    Sadly, I can’t see third parties in America as being anything more than protest parties. And the Greens leave me cold. I’ve met too many who are either Far Left or Far Right for me to think this is anything but a one-note party.

    Now, if an amendment could be passed to bring in Prop Rep to the House, and the numbers increased to double what they are now, I’d have more hope for America. I don’t think 870 is an unwieldy number. And if the vote was coupled (male/female), there’d be gender parity.


  81. Laura, the blow-up doll says:

    Mr. Idiot, with a blowup doll like Laura, it probably doesn’t know how to do the orgasm thing, but most women are very “appreciative” of a guy who rocks their ocean. Dork.

    Comment by RUCerious

    *sniff*

    He doesn’t even kiss me….


  82. shane says:

    Mr. Idiot, with a blowup doll like Laura, it probably doesn’t know how to do the orgasm thing, but most women are very “appreciative” of a guy who rocks their ocean. Dork.

    Comment by RUCerious

    Something tells me the no orgasm thing isn’t the only reason Mr. President can’t get a woman.


  83. shane says:

    *sniff*

    He doesn’t even kiss me….

    Comment by Laura, the blow-up doll — May 28, 2007

    Dear blow-up Laura, please shed no tears over Mr. P, he can be replaced by anything mechanical that also has no brain.


  84. Mr. President says:

    Comment by RUCerious — May 28, 2007 @ 7:38 pm

    Why should I give a damn?

    You don’t know my m.o.?

    I’m a patriarchal, male chauvanistic, egotistical, narcissistic, racist, intolerant, fat, greedy, fascist, megalomaniac.

    Oh yeah, and I’m a young American male, so my motto is: you know it ain’t workin’, if ya thang ain’t squirtin’.

    Other than that, I could care less.


  85. Zooey says:

    Other than that, I could care less.
    Comment by Mr. President

    Just as I suspected — virgin.

    Heh.


  86. Briseadh na Faire says:

    sheesh…I’m gone for a little while and the thread has degenerated from Waxman to whacksoffman!


  87. Mr. President says:

    Just as I suspected — virgin.

    Heh.

    Comment by Zooey — May 28, 2007 @ 7:57 pm

    ‘Tis true.

    I shall remain chaste and pure.

    My one love is for the heavenly father

    and his one true son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

    Amen.


  88. Mr. President says:

    sheesh…I’m gone for a little while and the thread has degenerated from Waxman to whacksoffman!

    Comment by Briseadh na Faire — May 28, 2007 @ 8:05 pm

    yup, she’s a beaut’ ain’t she?!


  89. Zooey says:

    sheesh…I’m gone for a little while and the thread has degenerated from Waxman to whacksoffman!
    Comment by Briseadh na Faire

    Heh. That’s a shiny one!

    I take partial responsibility, and as a consequence I’m going to watch “Shaun of the Dead.” :-)


  90. circusfifthfloor says:

    What sounds does a blow-up doll make when having an orgasm? Zooey, give the trolls(goobers) a shot at this one…ok? Oh…go ahead…..


  91. CompTROLLER V-1 says:

    Mr. President, how’s your pretzel?


  92. Zooey says:

    I shall remain chaste and pure.
    Comment by Mr. President

    Yeah, you’ll remain something alright…. :D


  93. Mr. President says:

    Mr. President, how’s your pretzel?

    Comment by CompTROLLER V-1 — May 28, 2007 @ 8:14 pm

    CT!!!

    Long time no see.

    My pretzel, no comprenday seenyour.


  94. El Tonno says:

    Steady increase of entropy defines the macroscopic arrow of time. This also applies to the comment section.


  95. Mr. President says:

    Yeah, you’ll remain something alright…. :D

    Comment by Zooey — May 28, 2007 @ 8:14 pm

    Do you dare question the character of a man of the Book?

    I shall have you know, I live by a code of efficks.

    This is an outrage, an affront!!!!

    Have you no shame?

    hmpff.


  96. Briseadh na Faire says:

    Comment by Mr. President — May 28, 2007 @ 8:06 pm

    For some reason, in the context of the above conversation, that comes off as just a bit gay….


  97. shane says:

    I’m a patriarchal, male chauvanistic, egotistical, narcissistic, racist, intolerant, fat, greedy, fascist, megalomaniac.

    Oh yeah, and I’m a young American male, so my motto is: you know it ain’t workin’, if ya thang ain’t squirtin’.

    Other than that, I could care less.

    Comment by Mr. President

    I believe we already new all of this.


  98. Peti Pez says:

    Her name was lurita

    and she was a show girl

    at the Coo-Coo Banana! ‘

    –Manilow
    [somewhat]


  99. CompTROLLER V-1 says:

    Mr. President, since Nance isn’t at the House (that business trip to Greenland), perhaps you can sneak in a phat party!


  100. Mr. President says:

    Comment by Briseadh na Faire — May 28, 2007 @ 8:21 pm

    The audacity!!!

    Your shame knows no bounds!!!

    I have maintained devotion and piety, I asure you!!!

    Not once has an the tempation of an indiscretion corrupted me!!!

    And now you bring this accusation of sins against nature?

    May the Lord have mercy upon your soul.

    For slanderous tone of your post,

    you brought sin to

    yourself.


  101. shane says:

    Do you dare question the character of a man of the Book?

    Comment by Mr. President

    We didn’t know you trolls got a Book. I alway though you guys met in a cave and compared scribbles.


  102. Mr. President says:

    Mr. President, since Nance isn’t at the House (that business trip to Greenland), perhaps you can sneak in a phat party!

    Comment by CompTROLLER V-1 — May 28, 2007 @ 8:26 pm

    Fo’ Sho’ CT! You know how we do.


  103. Mr. President says:

    We didn’t know you trolls got a Book. I alway though you guys met in a cave and compared scribbles.

    Comment by shane — May 28, 2007 @ 8:34 pm

    OUTRAGEOUS!!!

    Hath not thou heard the Holy Word?

    Hath not thou forsaken the ways of the barbarian?

    Hath not thou found the Truth of the Word of

    Jesus Christ our True Lord

    and Saviour,

    Amen.


  104. erict says:

    Jail time you liar. “I don’t remember” is only a defense for someone with advanced Alzheimer’s.


  105. valiant venus says:

    “For the record, valiant venus, aka M!ghty Aphrod!te claims to be a lawyer. Strange that she absolutely refuses to respond to questions regarding the myspace link. Someone else dug that up and claims it’s hers, and I’ve been trying to get her to confirm or deny it, either way.”
    Comment by Briseadh na Faire

    Braid Faire – Are you suffering from early dementia? Not to be unkind, I HAVE answered that variation of the same question a myriad of times. Either put the runes or your bong down.

    Perhaps you think I have have applied to the Copyright Office for the name “mighty aphrodite” – I have not. But fankly, IF you think, What you think, WHY you think, is of no concern to me.

    Angry Vet- Where did I imply that a Congressional investigation would be in place of the U.S. Attorney or FBI?? Oh….I didn’t…..Hmmmm – - if you assumed a bit less and thought a tad more, you wouldn’t look so “quick draw”…..or ill-informed…..

    Tooodles….


  106. shane says:

    Hath not thou found the Truth of the Word of

    Jesus Christ our True Lord

    and Saviour,

    Amen.

    Comment by Mr. President

    Gee one post your acting all Catholic priestlike and now you go get all Pentecostal Evangelical.

    So what are you waiting for the Confessional or the Rapture? Can’t you do that out of the closet?


  107. shane says:

    For some reason, in the context of the above conversation, that comes off as just a bit gay….

    Comment by Briseadh na Faire

    Just a bit?


  108. El Tonno says:

    Jesus is long dead and buried and if he came back today he would be clobbered within inches of his life by some irascible redneck the moment he steps off the elevator and turns his first cheek.


  109. Armando Gomez says:

    1. The Bush administration is composed of people fully committed to breaking the law. They are literally a Mafia-like organization. Oversight is not about keeping them honest. It is about catching them, indicting them, convicting them, and imprisoning them.
    Comment by VerbalKint — May 28, 2007 @ 3:02 pm

    Although I believe and agreed with Mr. Verbalkint’s position in “oversight” on Condi Rice’s crimes against the United States I do have a problem with its relationship between Henry Waxman and reality: WHY IN THE HELL IS WAXMAN DRAGGING HIS FEET IN BRING RICE TO JUSTICE? BETTER YET—WHY IS CONDI ALLOWED TO TELL WAXMAN SINCE LAST APRIL TO SHOVE HIS SUBPOENAS UP HIS ASS? THOSE SUBPOENAS ARE FOR THE IRAQ-NIGER CLAIMS AND CIA’S PLAME-OUTING CHARGE—AND THEY’RE BOTH ROASTING UP IN WAXMAN’S BUTT! WAXMAN—LIKE JOHN CONYERS—IS NOTHING BUT A BAG OF HOT AIR!


  110. beefeater says:

    Well it has been a real slice, but I gotta go participate in the absolute, crepe hanging over Saint Cindy Sheehan’s demise elsewhere. Man it’s almost too easy. TTFN!


  111. Juan C says:

    I think the thread is hilarious and that women here are being a little too tough on Mr. President, that can be a pretty likeable and intelligent supporter (but he doesnt like to show that too much).


  112. flex says:

    great job Waxman, keep the oversight investigations coming.

    but when, oh when are we going to see the CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS?


  113. shane says:

    Well it has been a real slice, but I gotta go participate in the absolute, crepe hanging over Saint Cindy Sheehan’s demise elsewhere. Man it’s almost too easy. TTFN!

    Comment by beefeater

    This is how you people support the troops. Defile the name of a woman whose son gave his life for this country. If her son is looking down how do you think it makes him feel, the way you treat the mother he left alone?


  114. erict says:

    God is for sissies.

    Real men and women know that religion is a bunch of bull shit invented to maintain control and assuage the reality of the eternal nothingness and abyss.

    Scary, but real. Get over it and enjoy life with your fellow humans.


  115. shane says:

    Sorry Juan, we’ll be more gentle with Mr. President next time. I guess we don’t handle virgins with the same care men do.

    Sorry again, I just can’t help myself.


  116. Juan C says:

    Sorry again, I just can’t help myself.
    Comment by shane

    No, I think it is OK, but have you noticed how he takes our sh*t? With some humor, and I respect a lot people that can joke about themselves. Pretty much like hacker bob some months ago.

    I was only saying.


  117. david says:

    What happened here? Hardly serious talk about oversight.

    The premise of oversight is that Official A says she’s telling the truth and doing a heck uv a job and Official B says he’s telling the truth and doing a heck uv a job, but one is lying. Which one?

    BTW, Eric Idle’s Not The Messiah opens in Toronto this week. “Always look on the bright side of life.” Was the Messiah a Cross dresser??? (And The Life of Brian has some very sound theology in it, don’t you know?)


  118. Jay Randal says:

    Rep. Waxman is one of the few Democrats in the Congress that has a spine. Unfortunately Rep. Pelosi tries to hinder his investigations like she does to Rep. Conyers. She is too afraid to stand-up to Bush on anything.


  119. valiant venus says:

    “Real men and women know that religion is a bunch of bull shit invented to maintain control and assuage the reality of the eternal nothingness and abyss.
    Scary, but real. Get over it and enjoy life with your fellow humans.”

    Comment by erict

    Erict, you seem to be mixing a few concepts. Are you discussing God…or the human institutions of religion? Your arguyment is unclear as to whether you understand the differences and nuances. Are you a public school student?

    REAL MEN and WOMEN know that “Progressive” politics was formed to give the state more power and control over the citizenry (i.e. Hugo Chavez and Fidel “Sicko” Castro)…..Those same REAL people know they aren’t the center of the universe or the end all, be all…..

    Tooodles…….


  120. valiant venus says:

    Shane once again mixes fact and fiction. Casey Sheehan did not leave his mother “alone”. He volunteered – twice – and was sadly killed. Then his mother (poor woman!) went round the bend, became BFF with Hugo Chavez and was divorced from Mr. Sheehan. THAT resulted in poor Cindy being left “alone”…….


  121. Zooey says:

    For some reason, in the context of the above conversation, that comes off as just a bit gay….
    Comment by Briseadh na Faire

    Well, Mr P is FAB-U-LOUS!! :D


  122. Zooey says:

    Ahh, Mighty Asshole pulls the “are you a public school student?” card. Lordy girl, you’re not any better than trollie michael with that one. Have you met? He’d like you, hun.

    Ok, so I’m not planning on responding to your blather in #119 — is that going to hurt your feelings again? Should I just go ahead and throw something out there?

    Nah…


  123. shane says:

    THAT resulted in poor Cindy being left “alone”…….

    Comment by valiant venus

    Your respect for the troops sure does flip flop. I should have said left his mother without her son. But then I’m sure you would find another portion of the statement on which to split hairs. You don’t think this dead soldier deserves to have his mother respected. How do you think that would make him feel, to know how you talk about her because she doesn’t agree with your politics. So that basically any parent of a dead soldier is open game if they don’t want to send more soldiers to Iraq. Nobody is ever allowed to disagree with you people. So it’s not enough for them to sacrifice their children, they also have to sacrifice their opinion, morals and ideals. Nice.


  124. shane says:

    Then his mother (poor woman!) went round the bend, became BFF with Hugo Chavez and was divorced from Mr. Sheehan
    Comment by valiant venus — May 28, 2007 @ 11:30 pm

    You have a link for the Chavez story because the rest is all crap.


  125. Lora says:

    (1) Your arguyment is unclear as to whether you understand the differences and nuances. Are you a public school student?
    (2) REAL MEN and WOMEN know that “Progressive” politics was formed to give the state more power and control over the citizenry (i.e. Hugo Chavez and Fidel “Sicko” Castro)…..Those same REAL people know they aren’t the center of the universe or the end all, be all…..
    Tooodles…….
    Comment by vile vermin

    I find the way trolls like VV and michael constantly put down public school education, when their frequent misspellings and bad grammar hardly make a case for the supposed “superiority” of private schooling. And, of course, VV throws a temper tantrum almost every time her bad spelling, grammar and/or punctuation are pointed out.
    INTELLIGENT MEN AND WOMEN understand the differences between Castro or Chavez and what American progressives/liberals support. And, oh, VV/MA, you don’t seem to mind the government’s control over women’s bodies, or its warrantless wiretapping (even though it has a huge backlog of untranslated intercepted calls because or a dire shortage of people in the US intelligence agencies competent in Arabic or other languages spoken in the Middle East and Afghanistan), do you?


  126. valiant venus says:

    Shane, I respect Casey Sheehan with EVERY ounce of my being…..His mother (pooor woman!) has brought great disrespect UPON HERSELF. When she cozied up to Hugo Chavez, I was unable to dig any deeper for sympathy for HER.

    Nobody is ever allowed to disagree with you people.”
    You are toooo funny. Progressives disparage ANYTHING and EVERYTHING traditional about our country and you found yourself able to type those words with a straight face????? You’re such a phony…..


  127. Matt says:

    Hey, America had a chance in 2004 to “wake up and smell the coffee.” We knew Bush, et al had lied us into war back then. We knew about the warnings that Iraq would turn into a disaster. We knew about the lying, rule breaking, cronyism and law breaking in the administration, and the Republican party. But “we”, that is, most people who voted, didn’t vote to oust Republicans or George Bush from office. They reelected him.

    And we got exactly what we asked for. It’s our own fault for “not knowing he was such a dumbass mofo”.

    Republicans are very effective. They will lie, call names, cheat, and impeach for all the wrong reasons.

    Democrats are screw ups. They won’t lie, call names, cheat, follow rules or impeach for the RIGHT reasons.

    We are SCREWED and we deserve it because we don’t do anything about it.


  128. Lora says:

    Accidentally left out the word “amusing” in my first line in #123.
    BTW, Ms. Vermin, my public high school has produced a Nobel Prize-winning scientist, a former Secretary of State, a Newbery Medalist, at least one Pulitzer Prize winner, and I won’t even go into all the Oscar and Emmy winners, since the school has an advantage there, being in southern California. What distinguished graduates has your “superior” private school produced, if any?


  129. Jay Randal says:

    valiant venus > tell everybody on here the truth. You are a skinny single lady in San Diego who gets paid to post on TP by Karl Rove.


  130. Lora says:

    You are toooo funny. Progressives disparage ANYTHING and EVERYTHING traditional about our country and you found yourself able to type those words with a straight face????? You’re such a phony…..
    Comment by vile vermin

    Progressives don’t disparage anything and everything traditional about the USA–particularly the Bill of Rights, which neoCONs like yourself are so willing to throw away because of some imagined terror threat. You are too much of a newCON robot even to be funny, humorous-less troll.


  131. valiant venus says:

    I could care less about my too rapid typing corrections – I’ll leave that for the anal retentive…..Oh rocket scientist, progressives were the ones defending Hugo Chavez – quit trying to change history….

    As for abortion…..women control their own bodies if they choose to sleep around….Should they be fairly bright, they might even take control of their bodies and utilize a concept known as birth control. Abortion is intrinsically evil and is the ultimate in selfishness…..You must be a selfish conservative……

    As for my lack of love for public education. The NEA and contemporary teaching methods are determined to DUMB DOWN American school children – - that’s ONE way to narrow the achievement gap…..The other way might eliminate ROTTEN teachers thru firing (and not transferring them to the poorest schools – those teachers are referred to as “lemons”). How about starting teachers at $75K a year and no TENURE. Rewarding the best and most enthusiastic teachers would get rid of the deluge of “C” college students who end up in the classrooms of our country…..How about requiring parental participation (if not in the classroom, helping with “busy” work at home?)

    I decided along time ago the problem with the Dem Party was the amazing ability to languish in victimhood…..You want to see victims – go to Darfur…..


  132. Zooey says:

    Ah hell, Vile Venus, it’s Memorial Day.

    Tell us the funny story again about your dead child. We can all recite it by now, but your original telling is the best!


  133. Mr. President says:

    Ah hell, Vile Venus, it’s Memorial Day.

    Tell us the funny story again about your dead child. We can all recite it by now, but your original telling is the best!

    Comment by Zooey — May 29, 2007 @ 12:02 am

    Is this the real Zooey?

    Seems a little insensitive regardless if we’re talking about VV.


  134. valiant venus says:

    Lora – Please show us where the “right” to an abortion is in the Constitution…I kept looking for that “right to Privacy” and I couldn’t find it. In short Roe was poorly reasoned Law. But you have to admire a Liberal Supreme Court who pulls legal argument from thin air – what’s next rabbits out of hats??

    Nice of you to stick up for poor downtrodden terrorists. They appreciate your efforts to make it easier for them to communicate and transfer money!!!!The Constitution does not mandate we commit national suicide….much to the chagrin of many anti-American Progs….


  135. Jay Randal says:

    Zooey > MA/valiant venus still tries to claim she is a lawyer, married to a soldier, and has a bunch of kids, but she is just GOPer single female.


  136. Jay Randal says:

    Mr. President > valiant venus told us all a story about one of her children who died, but she actually has NO kids.


  137. Zooey says:

    Is this the real Zooey?
    Seems a little insensitive regardless if we’re talking about VV.
    Comment by Mr. President

    It’s the real me, Mr P.

    How insensitive is it for a “mother” to tell a funny story about her dead “child.”

    Of course, she is no mother, and she has no children.


  138. valiant venus says:

    Zooooey IS an insensitive b*tch – - but since she and her friends have much in common…no one is surprised…….or cares……..


  139. shane says:

    His mother (pooor woman!) has brought great disrespect UPON HERSELF. When she cozied up to Hugo Chavez, I was unable to dig any deeper for sympathy for HER.

    “Nobody is ever allowed to disagree with you people.”
    You are toooo funny. Progressives disparage ANYTHING and EVERYTHING traditional about our country and you found yourself able to type those words with a straight face????? You’re such a phony…..

    Comment by valiant venus

    I know you and your dead baby jokes might have trouble understanding this but there is no deeper grief a normal parent can suffer than the loss of a child. She met with Chavez once and you call that “best friends forever”. But frankly you people destroyed the woman before she ever met with him. Only sociopaths would be unable to sympathize with this woman. And people who truly respect the troops would respect the people who have suffered through this loss.


  140. Jay Randal says:

    Truth hurts MA > lol.


  141. Juan C says:

    Zooooey IS an insensitive b*tch – - but since she and her friends have much in common…no one is surprised…….or cares……..
    Comment by valiant venus

    Did I miss something? Have Zoo made a joke about a dead kid? Have Zoo not felt any remorse for all the Iraqi civilians dead by a lie? Have Zoo not felt any remorse about all the US soldiers dying for a lost cause?

    Sorry to say this, but you need 10 more lives after this one to catch up to Zoo´s humanity.


  142. Mr. President says:

    Comment by Jay Randal — May 29, 2007 @ 12:09 am

    Did she make two contradictory statements?

    I would not put it past her to make up a story like that, but, how do you know she never had a kid?

    Because technically, if s/he had died then VV would no longer have children.


  143. valiant venus says:

    Jay,

    My husband is no longer an active duty Marine. He is retired. And you KNOW I have “no children” …because……THAT will come as a surprise to Prince Valiant and the kids….


  144. Zooey says:

    Zooooey IS an insensitive b*tch – - but since she and her friends have much in common…no one is surprised…….or cares……..
    Comment by valiant venus

    Heh.

    Have I touched a nerve, Haggie?
    Another win in my column, you lying skank.


  145. Mr. President says:

    Comment by Zooey — May 29, 2007 @ 12:10 am

    Okay, it just seemed odd reading a post like that from you. But it makes more sense in context.


  146. valiant venus says:

    Yes, Juan, hate to burst your naive bubble but Zoooey is an “insensitive B*TCH”- she made jokes about MY dead child…..The good thing? She lives in Idaho…..I don’t.


  147. Zooey says:

    Okay, it just seemed odd reading a post like that from you. But it makes more sense in context.
    Comment by Mr. President

    She’s been outed as the most vile of liars, and yet she continues to try to peddle this crap, and act like some sort of victim. Every time she does it, she will be exposed by one of us. After the amusing dead child story, we feel no need to be kind — especially those of us who are parents.


  148. Jay Randal says:

    Mr President > one of the bloggers on here investigated valiant venus, who used to be mighty aphrodite, and he found out she is a single female and he saw a pic of her too. She never stops lying about having children, but we believe she has pet rats or gerbils that she calls her kids > lol.


  149. shane says:

    I would not put it past her to make up a story like that, but, how do you know she never had a kid?

    Because technically, if s/he had died then VV would no longer have children.

    Comment by Mr. President

    Somebody who’s ever had a child or lost a child would not disparage Cindy Sheehan for her grief over losing her child.


  150. valiant venus says:

    Zoooette – Your ad hominem attacks don’t carry q


  151. shane says:

    My husband is no longer an active duty Marine. He is retired. And you KNOW I have “no children” …because……THAT will come as a surprise to Prince Valiant and the kids….

    Comment by valiant venus

    Oh so you are able to fabricate an entire family, impressive. But not surprising as shown by the creative misrepresentation of facts appearing in your posts.


  152. shane says:

    YOU calling somebody else an insensitive bitch is the epitome of irony. Now you are telling Juan that you do have a dead baby when you denied the dead child and the jokes all this time. Pick a story liar and stick with it.


  153. valiant venus says:

    con’t = Zooote quite the weight your hairsplitting, nit-picking with unbelievable from a few months ago. Losing your abilities?

    Mr. P – I have one deceased child and several other children who are alive. Shane, how dare you presume HOW every other mother would
    react???

    This thread was flushed long ago………Tooodles………


  154. Jay Randal says:

    valiant venus > tell the truth and it will set you free. Once you stop lying, then the fog in your brain that defends Bush will vanish. You will feel so much better after you stop lying on here.


  155. shane says:

    VileVenom, if you don’t like the treatment you receive here please feel free to take your leave at any time. Take your imaginary prince valient etal with you when you go freak.


  156. valiant venus says:

    Shane – your memory is a spotty as your reputation. I have never joked about my “dead child” — I recounted how my son tried to cheer me when he discovered me crying, no more – no less……..No more bongs or beers for you!

    Goood night……..


  157. Jake says:

    Ouch, valiant venus. Zoooey made jokes about your dead child?! Don’t worry yourself about it. They falsely claim I am not a Korean War vet as well.


  158. Mr. President says:

    Comment by valiant venus — May 29, 2007 @ 12:23 am

    What happened to your child VV?

    And what would give people the impression that you were fabricating the story?


  159. Mr. President says:

    con’t = Zooote quite the weight your hairsplitting, nit-picking with unbelievable from a few months ago. Losing your abilities?

    Mr. P – I have one deceased child and several other children who are alive. Shane, how dare you presume HOW every other mother would
    react???

    This thread was flushed long ago………Tooodles………

    Comment by valiant venus — May 29, 2007 @ 12:29 am

    O.K., I can see this is a touchy subject, no need to answer my last post.


  160. valiant venus says:

    Jake – These people will stop at nothing to advance their agenda and tear down critics of their perverted ideology…Thank you for your service!

    Good night….


  161. Juan C says:

    she made jokes about MY dead child…..
    Comment by valiant venus

    Nope, she hasnt. She has criticized you, as a mother, for making a joke about your own kid. Thats how low you will go. Sacrifice the memory of your child for making a political joke/statement about your political rivals. Thats how low trolls go here. Principles mean nothing if it gets in the way of senseless concepts like “victory” or “safety”, including the destruction of some fundamental rights (habeas corpus, illegal wiretapping, selective justice, etc.).

    You will never read anyone here in agreement with jihadists. You will read here the hypocresy of right wingers when it comes to describing jihadist activities. You will never read anyone here being happy with their political party if it gets in the way of the will of majority, as it was shown some days ago with Dems and the Iraq bill. This is how we try to work: our principles above all, no colors, no parties, no personal tastes obstruct our principles. Your principles seem to be dictated by the day-by-day Republican activities, which is sad. I just feel very sorry for you, cuz you seem to be always angry about anything.


  162. Zooey says:

    con’t = Zooote quite the weight your hairsplitting, nit-picking with unbelievable from a few months ago. Losing your abilities?
    Mr. P – I have one deceased child and several other children who are alive. Shane, how dare you presume HOW every other mother would
    react???
    This thread was flushed long ago………Tooodles………
    Comment by valiant venus

    You’re accusing ME of ad hominem attacks? That’s rich…

    You got nothing, Hag. No career, no husband, no kids, no integrity, no life, no future.


  163. Jay Randal says:

    Mr. President > VV plays this game on here all the time. The story about her dead child has changed over time. It is a fabrication. She gets paid to post on here, so she concocted an entire family for herself, a job as a lawyer, and a husband who was in the military.


  164. Zooey says:

    Ouch, valiant venus. Zoooey made jokes about your dead child?! Don’t worry yourself about it. They falsely claim I am not a Korean War vet as well.
    Comment by Jake

    Well Jake, it seems to me that you tried to prove your service in Korea by plagarizing someone else’s service record, and you got caught.

    That says way more about YOU than it says about ME. You don’t see me claiming to be anything I’m not — and then making up shit to prove it.


  165. Jake says:

    Good night, valiant venus.


  166. Mr. President says:

    Comment by Jay Randal — May 29, 2007 @ 12:41 am

    That’s hilarious.

    Oh, some dude named Tracy’s talkin’ smack about you by the way.


  167. Zooey says:

    Juan,

    Thank you so much for everything. You know I think the world of you. You’re a wonderful human being.

    ((((hug))))


  168. Jake says:

    For the record, I never plagarized someone else’s service record — I never claimed to be anything I’m not — if anyone NOT on the Ignore List has a question about that, let me know.


  169. Juan C says:

    You’re a wonderful human being.
    ((((hug))))
    Comment by Zooey

    Yeah, I know that. /sarc :D


  170. Jay Randal says:

    Mr. President > Tracy is mad at me because I call him a female. Tracy is a female name, so I assumed he is a she > lol. He chose his screen-name, so to stop confusion, then he should pick a masculine name for blogging.


  171. Zooey says:

    Shorter Jake: Everything I say is a lie.


  172. Lora says:

    Nice of you to stick up for poor downtrodden terrorists. They appreciate your efforts to make it easier for them to communicate and transfer money!!!!The Constitution does not mandate we commit national suicide….much to the chagrin of many anti-American Progs….
    Comment by vile vermin

    Please tell me where in my post I stuck up for terrorists. Using the favorite neoCON trick of changing the subject doesn’t work here. I simply pointed out the fact that the Bushevik administration hasn’t even had the sense to train enough intelligence agents to be competent enough in Arabic and/or other languages spoken in the Middle East and Afghanistan and that there is a huge backlog of intercepted calls that remain untranslated.
    Pray tell us, Ms. private school genius-ette, how we are going to stop money transfers or the like when the calls that may mention them go untranslated for months? As has already been pointed out here previously, a call referring to “tomorrow (9/11)” as “a day of glory” didn’t get translated until after the terrorists struck. Your beloved preznit and apparently you, too, have learned nothing from that.
    Toodles, noodle-head


  173. Jake says:

    More “feminine” names:

    Antoine Louis Claude Destutt de Tracy

    Chad Tracy

    Spencer Tracy

    Tracy Byrd

    Tracy McGrady


  174. Jake says:

    If everything I say is a lie, then Zooey is smart.


  175. Lora says:

    #169 Jake:
    The first three names you cite are family–not given–names and irrelevant to the point you are trying to make. Still, I recognize the possibility that Tracy can be a male name, even though it is more common among females like Marion (John Wayne’s real name) and Lynn.


  176. Jay Randal says:

    LOL Jake > Last names are a different matter guy. If Tracy called himself Mr. Tracy, like Mr. President, then I would know he was male. I have never met a guy with a first name of Tracy.


  177. Mr. President says:

    LOL Jake > Last names are a different matter guy. If Tracy called himself Mr. Tracy, like Mr. President, then I would know he was male. I have never met a guy with a first name of Tracy.

    Comment by Jay Randal — May 29, 2007 @ 1:08 am

    Why is Jake even in that discussion? It was between you and Tracy. I think he’s just looking for a fight.


  178. Juan C says:

    I think he’s just looking for a fight.
    Comment by Mr. President

    You, buddy, won the cigar.


  179. Jay Randal says:

    Mr. President > maybe Jake is Tracy? I have no idea who is who on here. I only post as Jay Randal > PERIOD.


  180. Jake says:

    Tracy Hickman

    Tracy Hines

    Tracy Kidder

    Tracy Lawrence

    Tracy Terrell

    Tracy Tormé

    Tracy Voorhees

    R. Tracy Walker


  181. Jake says:

    Shut up, Mr. President.


  182. Lora says:

    Jay,
    I haven’t seen the thread being referred to, but Tracy-troll seems to be very excitable. On one almost dead thread last year, I tried to advise him that his posts might be a bit more effective if he were a little more careful about his spelling; he retorted, “Your grammer(SIC) sucks.” Really! (The “sic” here added by me.)


  183. Jay Randal says:

    Jake > I do not know who those people are that you list. I have never heard of them. You could list Tracy Randal for all I care > lol.


  184. Mr. President says:

    Mr. President > maybe Jake is Tracy? I have no idea who is who on here. I only post as Jay Randal > PERIOD.

    Comment by Jay Randal — May 29, 2007 @ 1:19 am

    Yeah, same here, I’m always the same friendly Mr. P.

    Look at #175 Jake’s still going on about something.


  185. Jay Randal says:

    Lora > this Tracy stuff is on a way earlier thread with like almost 400 posts now. He went off when I said Alabama is filled with KKK nuts. He seems a bit nutty himself.


  186. Mr. President says:

    Comment by Lora — May 29, 2007 @ 1:23 am

    It’s the “Anti-war groups = terrorists” thread


  187. Jake says:

    Antoine Louis Claude Destutt, comte de Tracy (July 20, 1754 – March 9, 1836), was a French Enlightenment aristocrat and philosopher who coined the term “ideology”.

    The son of a distinguished soldier, he was born in the Bourbonnais. His family was of Scottish descent, tracing its origin to Walter Stutt, who in 1420 had accompanied the Earls of Buchan and Douglas to the court of France, and whose family afterwards rose to be counts of Tracy. He was educated at home and at the University of Strasbourg, where he was noted for his athletic skill. He went into the army, and when the French Revolution broke out, he took an active part in the provincial assembly of Bourbonnais. Elected a deputy of the nobility to the states-general, he sat alongside his friend, the Marquis de La Fayette. In the spring of 1792 he received the rank of maréchal de camp in command of the cavalry in the army of the north; but the influence of the extremists becoming predominant he took indefinite leave of absence, and settled at Auteuil, where, with Condorcet and Cabanis, he devoted himself to scientific studies.

    Under the Reign of Terror he was arrested and imprisoned for nearly a year, during which he studied Condillac and Locke, and abandoned the natural sciences for philosophy. On the motion of Cabanis, he was named associate of the Institute in the class of the moral and political sciences. He soon began to attract attention by the memoires which he read before his colleagues–papers which formed the first draft of his comprehensive work on ideology, named Eléments d’idéologie. He conceived of ideology as the “science of ideas.” The society of “ideologists” at Auteuil embraced, besides Cabanis and Tracy, Constantin-François de ChassebÅ“uf, Comte de Volney and Dominique Joseph Garat, professor in the National Institute.(see also: Les Neuf SÅ“urs)

    Under the Empire, Tracy was a member of the senate, but took little part in its deliberations. Under the Restoration he became a peer of France, but protested against the reactionary split of the government, and remained in opposition. In 1808 he was elected a member of the Académie française in place of Cabanis, and in 1832 he was also named a member of the Academy of Moral Sciences on its reorganization. He appeared, however, only once at its conferences, owing to his age and to disappointment at the comparative failure of his work. Destutt de Tracy was one of the principal advocates of liberalism during and after the Revolution. His advocacy of reason in philosophy and laissez-faire economics lost him favor with Napoleon. He died in Paris.

    Destutt de Tracy was the last eminent representative of the sensualistic school which Condillac founded in France upon a one-sided interpretation of Locke. He pushed the sensualistic principles of Condillac to their last consequences, being in full agreement with the materialistic views of Cabanis, though the attention of the latter was devoted more to the physiological, that of Tracy to the psychological or “ideological” side of man. His ideology, he frankly stated, formed “a part of zoology,” (biology). The four faculties into which he divides the conscious life–perception, memory, judgment, will–are all varieties of sensation. Perception is sensation caused by a present affection of the external extremities of the nerves; memory is sensation caused, in the absence of present excitation, by dispositions of the nerves which are the result of past experiences; judgment is the perception of relations between sensations, and is itself a species of sensation, because if we are aware of the sensations we must be aware also of the relations between them; will he identifies with the feeling of desire, and therefore includes it as a variety of sensation. It is easy to see that such conclusions ignore important distinctions, and are, indeed, to a large extent an abuse of language. As a psychologist de Tracy deserves credit for his distinction between active and passive touch, which developed into the theory of the muscular sense. His account of the notion of external existence, as derived, not from pure sensation, but from the experience of action on the one hand and resistance on the other, may be compared with the work of Alexander Bain and later psychologists.

    His chief works are Eléments d’idéologie (1817-1818), in which he presented the complete statement of his earlier monographs; Commentaire sur l’esprit des lois de Montesquieu (1806; Eng. trans., Thomas Jefferson, 1811); Essai sur le génie, et les ouvrages de Montesquieu (1808). See histories of philosophy, especially F. Picavet, Les Idéologues chs. v. and vi. (Paris, 1891), and La Philosophie de Biran (Académie des sci. mor. et pol., 1889).


  188. Jay Randal says:

    Anti war groups = terrorists thread is where Tracy goes off.


  189. fourdogs says:

    MA:

    I have one deceased child and several other children who are alive.

    You obviously don’t have kids. “Several other children”? What mother says she has “several” kids? Don’t you know how many?


  190. Jake says:

    Chad Austin Tracy (born May 22, 1980 in Charlotte, North Carolina) is a third baseman in Major League Baseball who plays with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Tracy also commonly known as “Opposit Field Tracy” bats left handed and throws right handed.

    Tracy compiled a .339 batting average during his career at East Carolina University strictly hitting the ball to the opposite field hence the nickname. He was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the seventh round of the 2001 draft.

    He starred at 3rd base in El Paso, Texas, as part of the El Paso Diablos. In four minor league seasons, Tracy hit .335 with 24 home runs, 85 doubles and 206 RBI in 337 games. In 2002, he was selected to participate in the Futures Game during the All-Star break as the starting third baseman on the U.S. squad.

    Tracy made his major league debut with Arizona on April 21, 2004. He finished his rookie season with a .285 average, eight home runs, 53 RBI, and a .343 on base percentage in 143 games.

    In 2005, Tracy had a breakout season as he batted .301 with 27 home runs and 72 RBI.

    Tracy’s numbers dipped slightly in the 2006 season. He batted .281 with only 20 homers and 80 RBI. His slugging percentage went down over 100 points from his 2005 total going from .553 to .451. His 129 strikeouts went up significantly as they nearly doubled his 2005 total.

    Engaged to Katie Martin during the off-season, they have a November wedding planned and make their home in Chandler, Arizona. Tracy graduated from West Mecklenburg High School in 1998, then attended East Carolina University where he played from 1999-2001, hitting .339 during his college career…he teamed for a couple of seasons with Clayton McCullough, son of Arizona scout Howard McCullough, who also played at ECU (1975-76) and inked Tracy to his first pro deal after he was selected in the seventh round of the 2001 draft…Tracy, who is making a position switch across the diamond in 2005, played first base for two seasons at East Carolina…he joined several of his teammates over the winter working out in Bank One Ballpark, as well as participating in the Hometown Tour through the state in late January.


  191. Jay Randal says:

    Jake is on a tangent of Tracy stuff this morning > lol.


  192. Jay Randal says:

    fourdogs > MA changes the number of kids daily > even she forgets how many to say now > lol.


  193. Lora says:

    #183 Jake,
    Again you are listing family–not given–names of Tracy–and French ones, to boot! It is all irrelevant to the point you are trying to make, and again I will reiterate that I recognize that Tracy is sometimes a man’s name.


  194. Jake says:

    Spencer Tracy (April 5, 1900 – June 10, 1967) was a two-time Academy Award-winning American film actor who appeared in 74 films from 1930 to 1967. Tracy is generally regarded as one of the finest actors in motion picture history. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Tracy among the Greatest Male Stars of All Time, ranking at No. 9. He was nominated for nine Academy Awards for Best Actor, winning in 1937 for Captains Courageous and in 1938 for Boys Town.

    He was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the second son of John Edward Tracy, an Irish American Catholic truck salesman, and Caroline Brown, a Protestant turned Christian Scientist, and was christened Spencer Bonaventure Tracy.

    Tracy’s paternal grandparents, John Tracy and Mary Guhin, were born in Ireland. His mother’s ancestry dates back to Thomas Stebbins, who immigrated from England in the late 1630s. Tracy attended six high schools, starting with Wauwatosa High School in 1915 and St. John’s Cathedral School for boys in Milwaukee the following year. The Tracy family then moved to Kansas City, where Spencer was enrolled at St. Mary’s Academy, a boarding school near Topeka, Kansas, then transferred to Rockhurst, a Jesuit academy in Kansas City, Missouri. John Tracy’s job in Kansas City did not work out, and the family returned to Milwaukee six months after their departure. Spencer was enrolled at Marquette Academy, another Jesuit school, where he met fellow actor Pat O’Brien. The two left school in spring 1917 to enlist in the Navy with the American entry into World War I, but Tracy remained in Norfolk Navy Yard, Virginia throughout the war. Afterwards, Tracy continued his high school education at Northwestern Military and Naval Academy in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, but finished his studies at Milwaukee’s West Division High School (now Milwaukee High School of the Arts) in February 1921.

    Afterward he attended Ripon College where he appeared in a leading role in a play entitled The Truth, and decided on acting as a career. Tracy received an honorary doctorate from Ripon College in 1940.[citation needed] While touring the Northeast with the Ripon debate team, he auditioned for and was accepted to the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York. His first Broadway role was as a robot in Karel ÄŒapek’s R.U.R. (1922), followed by five other Broadway plays in the 1920s. In 1923 he married fellow actor Louise Treadwell. They had two children, John and Louise (Susie).

    For several years he performed in stock in Michigan, Canada, and Ohio. Finally in 1930 he appeared in a hit play on Broadway, The Last Mile. Director John Ford saw Tracy in The Last Mile and signed him to do Up the River for Fox Pictures. Shortly after that he and his family moved to Hollywood, where he made over 25 films in five years.

    In 1941, Tracy began a relationship with Katharine Hepburn, whose agile mind and New England brogue complemented Tracy’s easy working-class machismo very well. Though estranged from his wife Louise, he was a practicing Roman Catholic and never divorced. He and Hepburn made nine films together. Seventeen days after filming had completed on his last film, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, with Hepburn, he died from heart failure at the age of 67.

    Almost forty years after his death, Tracy is still widely considered one of the most skillful actors of his time. He could portray the hero, the villain, or the comedian, and make the audience believe he truly was the character he played. In the 1944 film The Seventh Cross, for example, he was effective as an escaped prisoner from a German concentration camp despite his heavy-set build.

    Tracy was one of Hollywood’s earliest “realistic” actors; his performances have stood the test of time. Actors have noted that Tracy’s work in 1930s films sometimes looks like a modern actor interacting with the more stylized and dated performances of everyone around him.

    A new full length biography of Spencer Tracy is currently being written by James Curtis, author of the acclaimed 2003 biography of W.C. Fields.

    In 1988, the University of California, Los Angeles’ Campus Events Commission and Susie Tracy created the UCLA Spencer Tracy Award. The award has been given to actors in recognition for their achievement in film acting. Past recipients include William Hurt, Jimmy Stewart, Michael Douglas, Denzel Washington, Tom Hanks, Sir Anthony Hopkins, Jodie Foster, Harrison Ford, Angelica Houston, Nicolas Cage, Kirk Douglas, Jack Lemmon and Morgan Freeman.


  195. Jake says:

    Tracy Lamar McGrady, Jr. (born May 24, 1979 in Bartow, Florida), nicknamed T-Mac, is an American professional basketball player currently playing for the Houston Rockets in the National Basketball Association (hereinafter “NBA”).

    McGrady was one of the earliest players to go to the NBA straight from high school. He eventually became a seven-time All-Star. McGrady’s style has been compared to that of George Gervin. He is also a two time NBA Scoring Champion, winning the scoring titles in 2003 and 2004. He spent the first seven years of his career with the Toronto Raptors and Orlando Magic before being traded to the Rockets in 2004. McGrady was ranked #75 on SLAM magazine’s Top 75 NBA Players Of All Time in 2003. Tracy is also often compared to Michael Jordan.

    High school career

    McGrady played all 5 positions in high school at Mt. Zion Christian Academy, and entered the NBA without attending college. He created national buzz after his performance in the Reebok ABCD Camp, to which the best high school players in the nation are invited annually. He was named high school Player of the Year by USA Today.

    NBA career

    Toronto Raptors (1997-2000)

    Due in part to his strong showing at the ABCD camp, Tracy McGrady was selected ninth overall in the 1997 NBA Draft by the Toronto Raptors. Chicago Bulls GM Jerry Krause had arranged a draft-day trade to send Scottie Pippen to Toronto for the 9th overall pick, which he would have used to take McGrady. Krause decided not to make the deal when Michael Jordan threatened to retire if it was made.

    McGrady often found himself in teammate Vince Carter’s shadow. While Carter was responsible for scoring, it was McGrady’s job to be the team’s defensive stopper and ball distributor. The duo of Carter and McGrady led the Raptors to their first playoff berth in the 2000 NBA Playoffs, but they were swept by the New York Knicks in three games. The two also participated in the 2000 NBA Slam Dunk Contest.

    Orlando Magic (2000-2004)

    The Toronto Raptors made a sign-and-trade deal which sent McGrady to the Orlando Magic in exchange for a first round draft pick in 2000. In the 2000–01 season, he won the NBA Most Improved Player Award and was selected as a starter in the All-Star Game. In the 2002–03 season, McGrady averaged 32.1 points per game and captured the NBA scoring title, becoming the youngest player to do so since the NBA/ABA merger. In the 2003–04 season, he once again captured the NBA scoring title, averaging 28 points per game, and set a career high with 62 points against the Washington Wizards on March 10, 2004. With this performance, he became the fourth player in the past 12 years to score over 60 points in a game.

    Despite McGrady’s personal accolades, the Magic failed to reach the second round of the playoffs. In a rather infamous moment, during the 2003 NBA playoffs, the Magic (who were an #8 seed) surprisingly took a 3-1 series lead against the heavily favored #1 seed Detroit Pistons. Prior to the fifth game in Detroit, McGrady was quoted as saying that how wonderful it was to “finally be in the second round (of the playoffs)”. Orlando, however, lost Games 5, 6, and 7 by an average of 18 points, and Detroit advanced to the Second Round.

    In his fourth season with the Magic, problems with team chemistry, coaching, and management forced Orlando into a downward spiral. The season ended with Orlando failing to reach the playoffs and an impatient McGrady seeking a trade.

    Houston Rockets (2004-current)

    On June 29, 2004, McGrady, Juwan Howard, Tyronn Lue, and Reece Gaines were traded to the Houston Rockets in a seven-player deal that sent Steve Francis, Cuttino Mobley, and Kelvin Cato to the Magic. In his first year in Houston, McGrady teamed with 7′6″ center Yao Ming, to end the season ranked 5th in the Western Conference. The season started slowly for the Rockets, but by mid-season, coach Jeff Van Gundy altered McGrady’s role and made him the primary offensive option over center Yao Ming[citation needed]. On December 9, 2004, he scored 13 points in the last 35 seconds of a game against the San Antonio Spurs, with four consecutive 3 pointers (one of which was part of a four-point play), including a steal and the game-winning 3 pointer with 1.7 seconds left in the game. This helped the Rockets win 81–80.

    Despite McGrady’s play in the 1st round of the 2005 NBA Playoffs, Houston was eliminated in game seven by 40 points.

    In the early 2005–06 season, McGrady missed eight games because of multiple back spasms. His back problems resurfaced on January 8, 2006 when he had to be taken out at halftime in a game against the Denver Nuggets on a stretcher to hospital because of severe back spasms. He had been out for five games. Since his return, the spasms have still been a problem for McGrady. In the 2005–06 season the Rockets were 2–15 in games he did not play in and 2–16 in games McGrady did not finish. While McGrady was injured for five games with his back injury, the Rockets did not win a single game. Other injuries include him falling on his tailbone in a game against the Indiana Pacers.

    In the 2006-07 NBA season, McGrady started out slowly, and after missing 7 games with back spasms he visited a doctor. In a recent interview with TNT, McGrady said that he thought that his body was slowing down. He believed that he could no longer be as explosive as he was in the past due to his back injury. Since Yao Ming was having another breakout season, he was deferring to Yao as the number one option. However, since Yao went down with a leg injury, McGrady has stepped up his overall play, re-establishing himself as one of the game’s premier players and by doing so has led Houston to the 5th best record in the league. Despite his recent shooting slump, he continues to find his teammates for the assist. He averaged a career high in assists per game. However, in the playoffs, the Rockets lost their first round series to the Utah Jazz 4-3, again preventing McGrady from advancing to the second round of the playoffs. McGrady is currently under a contract which will end following the 2009-2010 NBA season, and the contract is worth an estimated 21.1 million U.S. dollars per year.

    McGrady has developed a close friendship with teammate Yao Ming.

    McGrady and Vince Carter are third cousins; McGrady learned that his grandmother and Carter’s grandmother were cousins at a family reunion while he was still in high school and Carter played at the University of North Carolina. The two played together with the Toronto Raptors for two years before McGrady left as a free agent.

    In 2002, McGrady signed a lifetime partnership with Adidas, agreeing to an endorsement deal that will last through his playing career and beyond.

    NBA career achievements

    2-time NBA scoring champion: 2003 (32.1), 2004 (28.0)
    7-time NBA All-Star: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007
    6-time All-NBA Selection:
    First Team: 2002, 2003
    Second Team: 2001, 2004, 2007
    Third Team: 2005
    NBA Most Improved Player Award: 2000-2001

    Orlando Magic franchise records

    Most points in one game with 62 (March 10, 2004 vs. Washington Wizards)
    Most points in one half with 37 in the first half (March 9, 2003 vs. Denver Nuggets)
    Most points in one quarter with 25 in the second quarter (March 9, 2003 vs. Denver Nuggets)
    Most free throws made in one game with 18 (December 25, 2002 vs. Detroit Pistons)
    Most points in a playoff game with 46 (in Game 2 of the 2003 Eastern Conference playoffs, First Round vs. Detroit Pistons)
    Most three-point field goals made, one half – 8 – Tracy McGrady, Orlando at Cleveland, January 26, 2004

    Career records

    Career 40+ point games (regular season): 41
    Career 50+ point games (regular season): 4
    Career 60+ point games (regular season): 1
    Career triple-doubles (regular season): 2
    Career 45+ point games (Playoffs): 3
    Most three-point field goals made, one half – 8 – Tracy McGrady, Orlando at Cleveland, January 26, 2004


  196. Jay Randal says:

    Spencer Tracy > Tracy is his family name, not his first name. You did not list Dick Tracy.


  197. Jake says:

    Tracy Lynn Byrd (born on December 17, 1966 in Vidor, Texas) is an American country music singer-songwriter. Byrd is the eldest child, and only son, of Jerry Lynn and Brenda Vaughn Byrd. He and his sister Debra were raised in Vidor, Texas and were students in the Vidor, Texas public school system. Tracy Byrd graduated from Vidor High School in May 1984. His first college experience was at Lamar University, Beaumont, Texas.

    Byrd never intended to become a singer. Byrd was never in Band or Choir in the Vidor School System. He began studying business at Texas State University (then called Southwest Texas State). One of his friends coaxed him into singing a cover of Hank Williams Sr’s “Your Cheating Heart” at a local mall recording studio. The owner of the studio was so impressed with his version that he entered Byrd into a local talent contest. Byrd discovered on that stage that he really liked the attention and applause that came with performing.

    Byrd began playing nightclubs in Southeast Texas, including working with then-struggling artist Mark Chesnutt. After Chesnutt secured a record deal, Byrd took over as the house band at Cutters Nightclub in Beaumont, landing his own record deal in 1992. His first three albums sold over 3 million copies.

    His first No. 1 single was 1993’s “Holdin’ Heaven,” although “The Keeper of the Stars” (1995) and “I’m From the Country” (1998) are considered his signature songs. Byrd finally scored his second No. 1 hit in the fall of 2002, with “Ten Rounds With Jose Cuervo.” He is also known for covering two 1970s-era hits for country music legend Johnny Paycheck — “Someone to Give My Love To” (1993, Byrd’s second chart hit) and “(Don’t Take Her) She’s All I Got” (1997).

    Byrd is an avid outdoorsman. He began fishing with his grandmother, Mavis Vaughn, when he was only three, and she bought him his first shotgun when he was six. His love of those sports has given him the opportunity to host two shows on the Outdoor Channel.

    Byrd is the National Spokesperson for Special Olympics International for the Country Music Association. He developed a crank bait fishing lure marketed by Norman Lures called The Lifestyles Of The Not So Rich & Famous’, named after his hit recording of the song written by Byron Hill and Wayne Tester. For every one of the lures sold Byrd donates ten cents to the Special Olympics.

    Byrd also hosts an annual golfing/fishing/music event, “The Tracy Byrd Homecoming Weekend,” in Southeast Texas to raise money for local charities, including the March of Dimes, the Children’s Miracle Network, and culminating in the donation of money to fund the Tracy Byrd Hyperbaric Medicine and Wound Care Center at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Beaumont. Byrd also raised money by soliciting pledges for his attempt to complete the 2001 Houston Marathon. He finished the marathon, and donated all of his pledges to the Children’s Miracle Network.

    In 1994, he made a cameo appearance in the film Radioland Murders. He has also published Eat Like a Byrd: The Tracy Byrd Cookbook which “uses rubs and marinades to create memorable meals.”[2]. He has also launched a line of spices, rubs, and marinades to go along with it, called “Tracy Byrd’s Tiny Town Products.” Byrd donates five cents from each sale to the Children’s Miracle Network. Tracy and his wife, Michelle, have two sons and daughter. The family lives in Beaumont, Texas.


  198. Mr. President says:

  199. Jay Randal says:

    Mr. President > Jake is being awfully defensive for Tracy on here. Must be friends or the same guy.


  200. Jake says:

    Tracy Raye Hickman (born November 26, 1955) is a best-selling fantasy author, best known for his work on Dragonlance as a game designer and co-author with Margaret Weis, while he worked for TSR. They also wrote the Dark Sword trilogy, the Death Gate Cycle, and the Sovereign Stone trilogy.

    Tracy Hickman was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. He graduated from Provo High School in 1974, where his major interests were in drama, music, and Air Force JROTC. In 1975, Tracy began two years of service as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His initial posting was for six months in Hawaii before his visa was approved, and he moved on to his final calling in Indonesia. There, he served as a missionary in Surabaya, Djakarta, and the mountain city of Bandung before being released honorably in 1977. As a result, Tracy can still speak conversational Indonesian, and occasionally bases his magical phrases on that language.

    He married Laura Curtis in 1977, and together they have four children. Tracy and Laura have been publishing game designs together for over twenty-five years including the popular and innovative Advanced Dungeons & Dragons “Ravenloft” module. They published their first joint novel, Mystic Warrior, in 2004.

    Tracy has worked as a supermarket stockboy, a movie projectionist, a theater manager, a glass worker, a television assistant director, and a drill press operator in a genealogy center. It was in 1981 — between jobs and wanting to buy shoes for his children — that he approached TSR about buying two of his modules, and ended up with a job instead. That job led to his association with Margaret Weis and their first publication together: the Dragonlance Chronicles.

    On his personal website, Hickman states that he continues to be an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and resides in St. George, Utah.


  201. Jake says:

    Tracy Lee Hines, born on May 1, 1972 in New Castle, Indiana is an American auto racing driver. He was the 2000 USAC Silver Crown Champion and 2002 USAC National Sprint Car Champion. Hines made his first attempt at a Busch race in 2000, when he attempted to qualify for the Cheez-It 200 in a car owned by Jimmy Spencer.

    2003

    Hines began his NASCAR career in 2003, when he and NASCAR Craftsman Truck owner Jimb came to an agreement with Hines to run 5 truck races for him in the later portions of 2003.

    His career started at Indianapolis Raceway Park (IRP). Hines qualified 30th in the #27 Dodge Motorsports Dodge Ram and had just made it into the top-10 when he wrecke and crashed into the wall, finishing 32nd. At the next race at Texas Motor Speedway, he qualified 4th, and ran in the top-15 all day, coming home with an eleventh place finish. Hines ran his last two races races that season at Martinsville Speedway and Phoenix International Raceway. At both racs, Hines qualified the #7 in 22nd place, and finished 13th.

    2004

    In 2004, Tommy Baldwin signed Hines to drive three races for the Hungry Drivers program, a Busch Series competition to see who would drive his #6 Ragú Dodge Intrepid that season. In his debut at Texas, he started 14th and finished 20th despite a late spin. After a 25th at Talladega Superspeedway, Tracy had his best finish of the year, a 17th at Michigan International Speedway.

    Hines continued to run in the Truck Series, replacing Matt Crafton in the #88 Menards Chevrolet Silverado for ThorSport Racing, competing for NASCAR Rookie of the Year. He finished 20th, 16th and 29th in the first three races, before posting a 5th place finish at Mansfield Motorsports Speedway. Starting at Texas, Tracy had a streak of 8 straight top-17 finishes, capped off by a 9th at IRP. He also led 2 laps at Gateway. Tracy finished off the 2004 season, with a pair of 13ths and earned an 18th place points finish.

    2005

    In 2005, the #88 had gone back to Crafton, and Paul Wolfe was in the #6 Hellmann’s Dodge for 2005. Despite a lack of sponsorship, ThorSport fielded a second truck for Hines, the #13. In 23 races he finished in the top-20 only 7 times. Despite a 5th at Richmond International Raceway and leading 2 laps at Kansas Speedway, he was released with two races to go in the season.

    Hines drove one race in 2005 the #43 Channellock Dodge for The Curb Agajanian Performance Group at California, where he started 26th and finishing 36th after a late crash. After Wolfe was released from the #6, Evernham Motorsports, who now owned the car, hired Hines to drive at The Milwaukee Mile, where he started ninth and finished nineteenth. He also ran at IRP in the #6, starting fifth and finishing 24th. Later in the season at Texas, he attempted a Busch race for Glynn Motorsports, however the #92 Ultra Comp Trailers Dodge crashed in practice and withdrew.

    2006

    Tracy was to have signed to drive the #92 Glynn Motorsports Dodge in the Busch series, but the team dissolved. Instead, he signed to drive the #14 Dodge Charger for FitzBradshaw Racing, with sponsorship from TakeMeOn Vacation, Bluegrass, and JaniKing. Hines was teamed with fellow hoosier Joel Kauffman. After an aborted attempt at Rookie of the Year, Hines resigned from Fitz Bradshaw Racing. Hines plans to spend the rest of this season racing sprint cars. He is open to another NASCAR ride, if it opens up for him.


  202. Jake says:

    Tracy Kidder (born November 12, 1945 in New York City) is an American author and Vietnam War veteran. Kidder may be best known, especially within the computing community, for his Pulitzer Prize-winning The Soul of a New Machine, an account of the development of Data General’s Eclipse/MV minicomputer. The book typifies his distinctive style of research. He began following the project at its inception and, in addition to interviews, spent considerable time observing the engineers at work and outside of it. Using this perspective he was able to produce a more textured portrait of the development process than a purely retrospective study might.

    Kidder followed up with House, in which he chronicles the design and construction of the award-winning Souweine House in Amherst, Massachusetts. House reads like a novel, but it is based on many hours of research with the architect, builders, clients, in-laws, and other interested parties.

    Bibliography

    Tracy Kidder, The Soul of a New Machine, Back Bay Books, 1981, ISBN 0-316-49197-7
    Tracy Kidder, House, Hougton Mifflin Co., 1985, ISBN 0-618-00191-3
    Tracy Kidder, Among Schoolchildren, Avon Books, 1989, ISBN 0-380-71089-7
    Tracy Kidder, Old Friends, Houghton Mifflin Co., 1994, ISBN 5-554-72949-5
    Tracy Kidder, Home Town, Random House, 1999, ISBN 0-671-78521-4
    Tracy Kidder, Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, a Man Who Would Cure the World, Random House, 2003 hardcover: ISBN 0-375-50616-0, 2004 paperback: ISBN 0-8129-7301-1
    Tracy Kidder, My Detachment: a Memoir, Random House, 2005, ISBN 0-375-50615-2 (a Vietnam War memoir)


  203. Jake says:

    Tracy Lawrence (born 27 January 1968) is an American country singer-songwriter. Tracy was born in Atlanta, Texas and raised in Foreman, Arkansas. He played in his first band at the age of 16 and attended Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia, where he was a member of Sigma Pi Fraternity. In 1990, Tracyleft Arkansas and went to Nashville, Tennessee.

    He took jobs as an ironworker and in phone sales while he tried to break into the Nashville music scene. He began participating in talent shows and earned enough money to live on. In 1991 he had a gig at the Bluebird Cafe and met Wayne Edwards who became his manager.

    With Edwards assistance, Tracy Lawrence signed with Atlantic Records and released his first album Sticks and Stones. On 31 May 1991 Lawrence walked his former girlfriend to the door of her hotel room and was confronted by three armed men. The men robbed them and attempted to force Lawrence and his friend into her motel room. Lawrence resisted and was shot four times, allowing his friend to escape. Two of the wounds were major and necessitated surgery. One of the bullets remains embedded in Lawrence’s pelvis.

    Lawrence’s album shot up the charts to number one on the back of publicity from the shooting and spawned several Top 10 singles. Lawrence’s second album Alibis went Platinum and generated three straight Number One singles.

    Lawrence was Billboard’s Top New Male Vocalist in 1992 and received the Academy of Country Music’s Best New Artist and Top New Male Vocalist in 1993.

    In 1994 Lawrence released his third album, I See It Now was also a Platinum album. Lawrence released a Live album in 1995 and another studio album entitled Time Marches On in 1996. In 1997 Lawrence released another album entitled Coast is Clear which he co-produced. Tracy also sang harmony on Trace Adkins’ 1997 single, “Every Light in the House Is On”.

    In March 1997, Lawrence married a former Dallas Cowboys cheerleader. But by September, they’d separated, and by December she’d filed charges against him in Nevada for allegedly throwing her into a wall, punching and threatening to kill her. Lawrence, who admitted to shoving his wife, was eventually convicted of misdemeanor battery and suspended by his record label until he got “his personal matters straight.” He was ordered to pay a $500 fine to a women’s shelter in Las Vegas.

    Tracy’s first greatest-hits album, called “Then & Now: The Hits Collection”, was released in 2005. The album featured re-recordings of many of Lawrence’s Top 5 hits, as well as two new songs, “Used to the Pain” and “If I Don’t Make it Back”, both of which were minor hits. New re-recordings of the older songs were featured because Lawrence had switched record labels, and the label for whom he was recording did not hold the rights to the old recordings.

    In 2006, Tracy started his own record label, Rocky Comfort Records. A partnership with his manager and brother Laney Lawrence, Rocky Comfort operates as a joint venture with CO5 Nashville. Tracy’s current single, “Find Out Who Your Friends Are”, was released to radio on August 21, 2006. For the Love, the first album on the label, was released in January 2007; the album is Lawrence’s first album of all-new material in almost three years. Two versions of “Find Out Who Your Friends Are” were recorded on the album: a solo version, and a remix with Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney as guest vocalists. Some radio stations play the remixed version instead of the solo version.


  204. Jake says:

    Tracy Terrell was an education theorist who, along with Stephen Krashen, wrote The Natural Approach. The natural approach is a comprehension-based language learning methodology which emphasizes the idea of exposure and the lowering of affective or emotional barriers to learning.

    Terrell was a professor at the University of California, San Diego.

    Partial bibliography

    The natural approach: Language acquisition in the classroom, Hayward, CA : Alemany Press, 1983.
    Dos Mundos, Spanish language textbook, McGraw-Hill
    Deux Mondes, French language textbook, McGraw-Hill


  205. Jay Randal says:

    I have never heard of these people, but are they mad at themselves for being named Tracy? Perhaps if a big time movie star had a first name of Tracy, like Tracy Travolta or Tracy Pit.


  206. Jake says:

    Tracy R. Tormé, the son of Mel Tormé, is a screenwriter and producer of such works as Saturday Night Live, Odyssey 5, Sliders, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Fire in the Sky and Carnivàle. He is a graduate of Beverly Hills High School.

    Political views

    During an interview with Brad Linaweaver during the 1990s, Tormé said he has libertarian tendencies and that he voted for Harry Browne, the Libertarian Party’s candidate for U.S. President in 1996. He finds the official Libertarian position too isolationist though he agrees with libertarians on 90% of domestic issues and says that if the whole world accepted libertarian principles, then there would be no need for an aggressive military.

    Torme has made connections between his politics and the television show Sliders that he co-created. He suggested that there has been a Libertarian tone to Sliders and said, “If we ever had the Sliders find a libertarian world, it would be the closest they’d come to Utopia as far as I’m concerned.”

    He stated he is an ex-Democrat. Tormé has also said that he is sort of a radical animal rights person, sort of a radical environmentalist, and that he is to the left by nature. He opposes political correctness because he sees it as the great lie of the left.


  207. Lora says:

    Okay, Jake, you can stop cutting and pasting from wikipedia. We get your point.


  208. Armando Gomez says:

    Alley Oop, created in 1933 by V.T. Hamlin, is drawn by Jack Bender and written by Carole Bender. The classic caveman comic strip is syndicated worldwide by Newspaper Enterprise Association.

    The comic strip revolves around the irrepressible Alley Oop, who travels from prehistoric Moo all the way to the 21st century in his friend Doc Wonmug’s time machine. Other favorite regulars in the strip include King Guz and Queen Umpa (the king and queen of Moo), Oscar and Ava (assistants to Wonmug), and Ooola (Alley Oop’s girlfriend).

    V.T. Hamlin worked on Alley Oop for 40 years. Hamlin hired writer Dave Graue to assist him in 1950, and Graue continued writing for the strip until 2001. Jack Bender joined Graue as an assistant artist in 1990, becoming the full-time daily and Sunday Alley Oop artist a year later. In 2001, upon Graue’s retirement, Carole Bender began writing the strip.

    Now what’s all this about General Services Administration chief Lurita Doan engaged in a “serious violation” of federal law by holding a meeting of federal employees prior to the 2006 midterms to discuss how they could “help our candidates” win the next election?


  209. loretta says:

    I didn’t read all of the posts, so sorry–
    did anyone else ask how someone on the government’s payroll can AFFORD TO GIVE $226,000 to Republicans?
    Apparently she is overcompensated in some way.


  210. ann says:

    “I didn’t read all of the posts, so sorry–
    did anyone else ask how someone on the government’s payroll can AFFORD TO GIVE $226,000 to Republicans?
    Apparently she is overcompensated in some way.”

    Indeed, especially given her poor memory.


  211. Kate Henry says:

    “Waxman explained that “you must ask the questions” and “you must do the oversight if we’re going to keep people honest, if we’re going to provide the checks and balances that our Constitution envisions.”

    The problem is that just “investigating” does nothing to fix the problem. There must be consequences for this kind of action for any possibility of fixing the problem. These people need to be charged with crimes. The Democrats need to stop “asking” and start “telling”, i.e. issuing subpoenas and when they are ignored, hauling the people in for contempt of congress or throwing them in jail until they cooperate (like the RepubliCONS did with Susan McDougall when she refused to lie about the Clintons). She spent 18 months in prison including 7 weeks in solitary confinement for civil contempt of court.


  212. War4Sale says:

    Henry Waxman is the man!


  213. valiant venus says:

    Ann – Overcompensated?? Perhaps much in the same way as monied Liberals (Kennedy, Kerry, Edwards, Clinton, Kohl, Rockefeller, etc.)


  214. Armando Gomez says:

    “Waxman explained that “you must ask the questions” and “you must do the oversight if we’re going to keep people honest, if we’re going to provide the checks and balances that our Constitution envisions.”

    The problem is that just “investigating” does nothing to fix the problem. There must be consequences for this kind of action for any possibility of fixing the problem. These people need to be charged with crimes. The Democrats need to stop “asking” and start “telling”, i.e. issuing subpoenas and when they are ignored, hauling the people in for contempt of congress or throwing them in jail until they cooperate (like the RepubliCONS did with Susan McDougall when she refused to lie about the Clintons). She spent 18 months in prison including 7 weeks in solitary confinement for civil contempt of court.

    BRAVO! Finally, after 207 postings, we’re back on track about the failures of the Democrats in shooting subpoenas at the criminals of this nation and putting them on trials.


  215. Bruce Gorton says:

    Okay, so Jake just outed himself as being Tracy then.


  216. Bruce Gorton says:

    Ginko

    I would have had a lot more patience with the Democrats if they had stuck by their guns on Iraq and not simply caved in on it.

    They have until the next elections to prove me wrong. If they don’t, you can’t vote Republican because they are outright corrupt, and you can’t vote Democrat because they are innefectual, pick another candidate and VOTE.


  217. Lora says:

    Ann – Overcompensated?? Perhaps much in the same way as monied Liberals (Kennedy, Kerry, Edwards, Clinton, Kohl, Rockefeller, etc.)
    I could care less about my too rapid typing corrections
    Comments by vile vermin

    As you should know, VV, the people you cite made their money outside of government. And funny but not surprising that you didn’t add Mr. Preznit, that MBA whose various companies all failed and were bailed out by Daddy’s friends.
    BTW, you haven’t answered my question in #172 about where (or what line/s) in my post #134 I offered support for terrorists, nor my very simple question about what distinguished people graduated from your “superior” private high school you so frequently boast about.
    Repeatedly writing “foment” as “fulment”(SIC) is clearly not a typo, nor can you attribute your repeated inability to spell common legal terms like “consensual” or “breach” to typos, despite your claims to be an attorneyette who should know better. And sweetie, your attacks on me after I occasionally point out your mistakes (and I could do it a lot more often) shows that you get upset, poor baby.
    Toodles, noodle-head


  218. circusfifthfloor says:

    Oh yeah, the sound that’s emited from a blow up doll goes like this…..JAAAAKE!!!!



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