ThinkFast: August 10, 2007
ThinkFast: August 10, 2007
U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker said yesterday there are no “defining moments” in Iraq. “I don’t think there is a date on the calendar, whether it’s in September or any other time in which you can say, ‘This is the defining moment. It’s all coming together, or it’s all falling apart.’ It’s an enormously complex situation.”
President Bush said he can’t recall when he learned that Army Ranger Pat Tillman died by friendly fire. Just days before Bush delivered a 2004 speech that made reference to Tillman, a top general had written a memo to Gen. John Abizaid, then head of Central Command, warning that it was “highly possible” that Tillman was killed by friendly fire and making clear that the information should be conveyed to the president.
“The next decade will be a hot one, according to scientists unveiling the first 10-year projection of global warming. … The significance of the new study is that over the last century, global warming has contributed to about a one-degree rise in average temperatures.”
“Nearly half the people murdered in the U.S. each year are black, part of a persistent pattern in which African Americans are disproportionately victimized by violent crime, according to a new Justice Department study released yesterday.”
“I was at ground zero as often, if not more, than most of the workers,” said former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani yesterday. “I was exposed to exactly the same things they were exposed to. So in that sense, I’m one of them.” Battalion Chief John McDonnell, head of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association in New York, responded, “I think he’s really grasping and trying to justify his previous attempts to portray himself as the hero of 9/11.”
The Bush administration on Friday will announce plans to enlist state and local law enforcement in cracking down on undocumented workers, which previously was largely a federal function. The plans call for the administration to “train growing numbers of state and local law enforcement officers to identify and detain immigration offenders whom they encounter in the course of daily law enforcement.”
“A car bomb struck a market in a Kurdish area in the northern city of Kirkuk on Friday, killing at least eight people and wounding dozens, police said. South of Baghdad, the U.S. military said a helicopter was forced down, leaving two soldiers injured.”
The State Department is enlisting baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken for a new diplomatic role. Ripken will travel the world as a public diplomacy envoy to increase young people’s understanding of the United States by sharing with them his “impressive personal history and life experiences.”
And finally: The Senate’s #1 Batman fan gets an appearance on the big screen. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) will have a speaking part, though a “small role,” in the new flick The Dark Knight, out next year. Leahy, who “dabbles in Batman culture purely for fun,” had a cameo in the 1997 hit Batman & Robin.
What did we miss? Let us know in the comments section.
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Tehran and Baghdad are expected to agree a deal soon on a pipeline to transfer crude to refineries in Iran from oilfields in Iraq,
August 10th, 2007 at 9:06 am‘This is the defining moment. It’s all coming together, or it’s all falling apart.’ It’s an enormously complex situation.â€
Or, how about "it's all staying the same"? Because we seem to make progress then backslide then everything stays the same. And it will pretty much stay the same as long as we are the "fly in the ointment".
Since we don't seem to be able to get rid of our resident trolls, I'll hand them a question. Let's see if any of them can answer the question in a thoughtful and intelligent manner. So, here's the question:
August 10th, 2007 at 9:09 amHow do you "win" an occupation of another country?
Caption Contest:
Cheney: "Ah here comes the milk and cookies, Patsy, break out the Risk board, I'm feeling lucky"
August 10th, 2007 at 9:09 amAmerican Foreign Policy at Point Zero
http://www.antiwar.com/orig/kolko.php?articleid=11426
August 10th, 2007 at 9:11 am--------
Interesting, why didn't TP cover the Global Warming story from yesterday that said the Data was incorrect and that 1934 was the warmest year?
Does TP have an agenda?
Where I live, the last two weeks the weather has rarely reached 90 degrees. Odd, considering this time of year the temperatures are always 95+. So, where I live I'm experiencing cooling. Who can say?
--------
August 10th, 2007 at 9:12 am"The Bush administration on Friday will announce plans to enlist state and local law enforcement in cracking down on undocumented workers"
How about cracking down on the companies who hire undocumented workers? If you really want to solve the problem, that will solve it in a hot minute. Those people will not come to this country, nor will they stay in this country, if there are no jobs for them. Arrest the owners of the companies that hire them and put them in jail.
But, Bush will never do that. He secretly loves having all that cheap labor in this country to enrich his corporate friends.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:12 amTehran and Baghdad are expected to agree a deal soon on a pipeline to transfer crude to refineries in Iran from oilfields in Iraq,
Comment by Tobey Tall — August 10, 2007 @ 9:06 am
That's odd: Iran is short of refining capacity, they import gasoline and refinerd products....
August 10th, 2007 at 9:13 am"Tehran and Baghdad are expected to agree a deal soon on a pipeline to transfer crude to refineries in Iran from oilfields in Iraq"
Well, this is just another reason for the Bush administration to bomb Iran. We can't let Iran take that oil, it's OUR oil and we will not allow Iran to get their hands on it.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:14 am7. No Iran is Building 6 new refineries
August 10th, 2007 at 9:14 amWhere I live, the last two weeks the weather has rarely reached 90 degrees. Odd, considering this time of year the temperatures are always 95+. So, where I live I’m experiencing cooling. Who can say?
I can say you don't know what you are talking about with this paragraph. While you ponder why, please post your link for the first paragraph and try and recover some respect.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:15 am" So, where I live I’m experiencing cooling. Who can say?
——–
Comment by Ellen Griswald"
Well, then Ellen, that's proof positive that Global Warming doesn't exist. But I have a question for you. Are you willing to bet the future of your children, grandchildren and great grandchildren that you are right?
August 10th, 2007 at 9:15 am7. No Iran is Building 6 new refineries
Comment by Tobey Tall — August 10, 2007 @ 9:14 am
Got a link? - like to read about that.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:16 amIran to build petrochemical complexes in 4 countries
http://www.tehrantimes.com/
August 10th, 2007 at 9:17 amTehran and Baghdad are expected to agree a deal soon on a pipeline to transfer crude to refineries in Iran from oilfields in Iraq, whose oil industry has suffered major damage during decades of sanctions and war, Iranian media reports said.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/09/AR2007080900172_pf.html
August 10th, 2007 at 9:19 amComment by Tobey Tall — August 10, 2007 @ 9:17 am
I had 'heard' that US leverage on Iran was partially predicated on banning gasoline imports to Iran from across the Gulf - because Iran had oil but not enough refining capacity. I don't see anything in a set of four overseas petrochemical plants that deal with that.
Same reason why Chavez is building 3 new refineries.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:20 am**********
August 10th, 2007 at 9:22 amTour Guide: "Welcome to the Wax Museum's Chamber of Horrors Section."
From the Tehran Times:
Gah! Urea? Ammonia? Do you know what this means?? Iran and Oman are building the WORLD'S LARGEST KIDNEY!!!!
August 10th, 2007 at 9:23 amPresident Dubya, yesterday:
When asked about the importance of winning in Iraq in concluding a convoluted rambling non answer answer he stated:
"It matters to the security of people here at home if we don't work to change the conditions that cause 19 kids to be lured into airplanes to come and murder our citizens."
Trolls, you voted for this idiot!
August 10th, 2007 at 9:24 amJust a friendly reminder!
http://www.bushagenda.net/article.php?list=type&type=7
August 10th, 2007 at 9:25 amMy posts are blocked
Look at Antonia Juhasz website = Bushagenda
News updates
Chevron, Total sign Iraq oil contract for Majnoon Field
August 10th, 2007 at 9:27 amI live in a diverse urban neighborhood. We had another black man murdered a block away this week. He was a well-loved local barber and was shot in a robbery.
Black people need to stop shooting each other and start shooting Repukes.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:30 amInteresting, why didn’t TP cover the Global Warming story from yesterday that said the Data was incorrect and that 1934 was the warmest year?
Comment by Ellen "I'm A Moron" Griswald — August 10, 2007 @ 9:12 am
You mean this story - http://icecap.us/index.php/go/joes-blog/new_rankings_for_warmest_years/ ?
It's not covered because it's not important. A few high data points does not throw off the general trend of warming temperatures and does not invalidate the predictive models.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:30 amInteresting, why didn’t TP cover the Global Warming story from yesterday that said the Data was incorrect and that 1934 was the warmest year?
Probably because one erroneous data point in one NASA climate survey isn't significant in light of the vast amount of data collected worldwide, which has convinced all but the most hardcore energy industry shills and the GOP apologists at Fox News that the greenhouse effect is real.
Well, then Ellen, that’s proof positive that Global Warming doesn’t exist. But I have a question for you. Are you willing to bet the future of your children, grandchildren and great grandchildren that you are right?
If she's a Republican, then yes, she is--along with the future of all the rest of our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. Jesus will bail us out in the end, so what's wrong with letting some trust-fund babies at Exxon cash in for a while in the meantime?
August 10th, 2007 at 9:31 amAlso good Iranian news
http://www.presstv.ir/news.aspx
Iraqi oil law termed a disaster
August 10th, 2007 at 9:32 amI think Ellen is just another one of our usual Repuke trolls, having a little fun playing dress-up like his hero Trudi Julie Annie.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:37 amInteresting how Ellen hijacks a thread by not addressing the myriad issues presented, but by talking about an issue not address.
Thus forcing people to try to confirm a negative.
Rove Troll Protocol 101.
-GSD
P.S. First Romney equates his children with those in battle and now Giuliani claims he is the equivalent of a firefighter or rescue worker.
What next a story about how Scotter Libby is a soldier...Oh yeah, they tried that one too.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:41 amPhoto caption:
Cheney: "This Iraqi hash is DAMN good!!"
August 10th, 2007 at 9:44 amFor Crocker,Cheney and all of them...they can wait,and no need to rush ,no need for urgent deadlines? the picture shows how comfortably they are sitting.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:44 amBut for the soldiers,the Iraqis,and taxpayers paying the bills of war...it is another matter.
do you think that lawmakers will redefine the phrase
August 10th, 2007 at 9:45 am"I can't recall" into and instant felony charge?
we have a lot of folks that serve us that can't remember anything. They are either stupid or lying.
either way, they are not fit to serve dinner
This is the way it is
If Bush/Cheney gets Iraqs oil then there will be no war with Iran for fear of losing trillions , at this Moment Bush/Cheney are deliberately cutting supplies of water, electric, medical and food shortages, cities in Iraq are under seige , snipers are shooting people after 6 oclock.
Bush/Cheney are using these horrific methods to get the Oil
IF Buch /Cheney do not get the Oil - Then to spite everything Bush/Cheney will bomb Iran
This is the way it is
August 10th, 2007 at 9:46 amComment by GSD — August 10, 2007 @ 9:41 am
Ellen was on track - thick as pigshit, but on track
August 10th, 2007 at 9:46 amAs the September "deadline" approaches, with no improvement in sight in Iraq, I see that Ryan Crocker is leading the back-pedaling effort.
Now we are back to "the situation is very complex" -- translation: we have absolutely no hope of any improvement here, and we hope we can stall for another seventeen months.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:47 amdo you think that lawmakers will redefine the phrase
“I can’t recall†into and instant felony charge?
we have a lot of folks that serve us that can’t remember anything. They are either stupid or lying.
either way, they are not fit to serve dinner
Comment by oldtree
Yet they are still the heroes of 30% of this country, now THAT is a pathetic statistic!
August 10th, 2007 at 9:47 am"President Bush said he can’t recall..."
Proof that the Rethuglicans have officially changed the name of the party to the Dontrecallicans.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:50 am"interesting how Ellen hijacks a thread by not addressing the myriad issues presented, but by talking about an issue not address."
It is also interesting that Ellen high-tails it out of here when she is asked a question she doesn't want to answer. How can anyone bet the future of their family on the premise that global warming is a myth?
August 10th, 2007 at 9:52 amhere's one for the "HUUUH???" books...
i heard this on rachel show yesterday:
[...] airlines operating international flights will be required to send the government their passenger list data before the planes take off, rather than afterward, as is now the case.
Earlier sharing of passenger information is designed to give US authorities more time to identify terrorists such as Richard Reid, who attempted to light a shoe bomb on a trans-Atlantic flight in 2001, and keep them off planes.
"Now the airlines give us their manifests after the plane has left the ground and that is too late," Chertoff said.
[...]
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/08/10/new_flight_screening_program_proposed/
duh, really???
i was (shouldn't have been, i guess) surprised that the plane could take off before a passenger check...
the main downside - there goes "standby"...
August 10th, 2007 at 9:52 am...
"Earlier sharing of passenger information is designed to give US authorities more time to identify terrorists such as Richard Reid"
Please tell me how this would have stopped Richard Reid. He wasn't on any terrorist surveilance list.
August 10th, 2007 at 9:54 am34. Clyde
They might not 'recall' anything these days,but they loved California Governor 'recall' .
August 10th, 2007 at 9:55 amCasualties STARTING AUGUST 1st
Wednesday: 6 GIs, 1 Brit, 178 Iraqis Killed; 188 Iraqis Wounded
Thursday: 3 GIs, 116 Iraqis Killed; 76 Iraqis Wounded
Friday: 3 GIs, 22 Iraqis Killed; 13 Iraqis Wounded
Saturday: 1 Marine, 38 Iraqis Killed; 26 Iraqis Wounded
Sunday: 4 GIs, 116 Iraqis Killed; 49 Iraqis Wounded
Monday: 8 GIs, 123 Iraqis Killed; 131 Iraqis Wounded
Tuesday: 3 GIs, 1 Briton, 63 Iraqis Killed; 50 Iraqis Wounded
Wednesday: 93 Iraqis, 1 Briton Killed; 63 Iraqis Wounded
Thursday: 3 GIs, 2 Britons, 46 Iraqis Killed; 21 Iraqis Wounded
heres my report - Things are looking Bad
August 10th, 2007 at 9:55 amIs this another day of posts being lost and "null" appearing in the comments?
August 10th, 2007 at 10:01 amI had an idea the other day... how about training people that come to America legally to be immigration officers... they would have a vested interest in saying "I went through all the trouble to be here and you didnt.. get in line like I did..."
August 10th, 2007 at 10:03 amBush warns al-Maliki on Iran
http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/8573C138-9A2B-4F30-A9D9-D8C117F9A6B0.htm
August 10th, 2007 at 10:07 ami don't know, bilbo... are you sure about the list?
marie - i have never experienced the problems some have
complained about... other than a comment showing up late...
the other day, i had one deleted - i called another commenter
August 10th, 2007 at 10:07 aman a**hole braggart, with out the **... and he was...
but i can't blame TP for that...
...
Black people need to stop shooting each other and start shooting Repukes.
Comment by Tom3 — August 10, 2007 @ 9:30 am
Not a cool comment.
August 10th, 2007 at 10:12 am"U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker said yesterday there are no “defining moments†in Iraq."
What, Saddam's statue getting pulled down doesn't count anymore?
Wasn't it Iraq's Berlin Wall?
August 10th, 2007 at 10:17 amFrom the BOGUS POTUS: Don't, know, don't care, Pat who?, what day is it?, I want my mommy, oh please make them shut up, can't recall, Gonzo - go get my slippers, where am I? ...
August 10th, 2007 at 10:36 amCasualties STARTING AUGUST 1st
Wednesday: 6 GIs, 1 Brit, 178 Iraqis Killed; 188 Iraqis Wounded
Sunday: 4 GIs, 116 Iraqis Killed; 49 Iraqis Wounded
Tuesday: 3 GIs, 1 Briton, 63 Iraqis Killed; 50 Iraqis Wounded
Thursday: 3 GIs, 2 Britons, 46 Iraqis Killed; 21 Iraqis Wounded
heres my report - Things are looking Bad
Comment by Tobey Tall — August 10, 2007 @ 9:55 am
Not if you selectively choose the benchmarks. Look - a steady decline in US and Iraqi casualties. WE'RE MAKING PROGRESS!!!
August 10th, 2007 at 10:56 amWhy did Army personnel quit wearing dress uniforms in appropriate situations? Are we supposed to believe that Petraeus is ready at a moment's notice to dash out of a meeting and join in a desert firefight? It looks like a PR idea...to confer a combat soldier's credibility on a desk jockey.
August 10th, 2007 at 11:03 amI suppose it's good that a Navy frogman wasn't in the meeting pictured...or he'd be sitting there wearing flippers, mask, and scuba tanks.
“I don’t think there is a date on the calendar, whether it’s in September or any other time in which you can say,
Just a prelude to the "September is too early to tell if the surge is going to work or not" speech that's due no later than Sept 31, 2007, or is it 2008? 09? 2029?
August 10th, 2007 at 11:04 amI think when they hung those black water employees from that bridge and burned their bodies was a pretty "defining moment".
August 10th, 2007 at 11:28 am#48 You make a good point. No administration has ever gone to the great lengths to stage every possible photo opportunity than the uber-political Bush administration. I have no doubt that Petraeus was instructed by White House media handlers how to dress for this meeting.
August 10th, 2007 at 11:49 amIs this another day of posts being lost and “null†appearing in the comments?
Comment by Marie — August 10, 2007 @ 10:01 am
Yep -- and another day of intelligent inoffensive posts being deleted while inane troll droppings are allowed to stand. Sigh.
August 10th, 2007 at 12:27 pm#47
Thanks for the early afternoon chuckle. And your post before that was quite amusing as well. Keep it up!
We really need to get rid of this troll problem, though. Seriously, what are people thinking when the first like 4 posts are purchased by the republican party?
August 10th, 2007 at 12:56 pmI agree Missmolly and Marie......The site has become a nightmare and more annoying than I want to bother with...Not to mention it is the only site that messes up my old iMac..Same thing is going on as did in the past when I was banned, their filter's or what ever infect and crash my puter....Will be suprised if this post make's it at all...No matter, it is now...Troll Piss all the time any way...Blessings Ladies..
August 10th, 2007 at 12:58 pmWho knows, the Shadow knows: I know that General Patraeus is going to say exactly what Cheney wants him to say. He like all of the other lackeys (General) is going to toe the company line. When you go shopping for a General and find one who agrees with you, then all you have to do is jerk his chain. Unfortunately Generals are like other people and they are afraid of the boss. With Darth Vadar starring you down, would you disagree with him and Howdy Doody? If you do you do so at the risk of your career. No self respecting General wants to go down like General McArthur did by disagreeing openly with the Commander In Chief. Only a General with balls like McAthur or H. Norman Swartzkaft, and Colin Powell would do such a thing.
The Democrats in Congress are Cowards!
http://www.plainnews.blogspot.com
August 10th, 2007 at 1:51 pm"The hit Batman & Robin"
It's that one of the worst movies of all time according to votes at IMDB?
August 10th, 2007 at 2:45 pmBlack people need to stop shooting each other and start shooting Repukes.
Liberalism at its finest.
August 10th, 2007 at 4:03 pm“I don’t think there is a date on the calendar, whether it’s in September or any other time in which you can say, ‘This is the defining moment."
Crocker is already backing away from the White House position of "let's wait till September". He has changed his tune because he knows the surge has failed. But instead of admitting this failure, they are buying more time from the American people to pursue a policy that is flawed.
Global warming is real. Those who doubt it are connected to big oil and car manufacturers who care about profits rather than the truth.
Guiliani is no hero of 9-11. He is a politician who is not above using a tragedy to benefit his presidential ambitions. Under no circumstances can he compare himself to the heroic rescue workers.
August 10th, 2007 at 5:02 pmBlack people need to stop shooting each other and start shooting Repukes.
Comment by Tom3 — August 10, 2007 @ 9:30 am
Now there's a fine, upstanding lefty for ya! ;)
August 11th, 2007 at 1:24 amIt’s not covered because it’s not important. A few high data points does not throw off the general trend of warming temperatures and does not invalidate the predictive models.
Comment by toasterhead — August 10, 2007 @ 9:30 am
Yeah, don't confuse toasthead with any facts that conflict with what he believes. ;)
August 11th, 2007 at 1:28 am>Yeah, don’t confuse toasthead with any facts that conflict with what he >believes. ;)
Saddam and Al Queda were enemies.
Iraqi children feel pain when being killed. Embryos don't.
There was no WMD.
There are no good guys in IRaq. Its just two gangs and we just gave a different gang the upper hand.
We gave saddam hussien weapons and WMD to help him suppress the same population we are now claiming to liberate.
Giving the IRaq people freedom means they have the right to become an Islamic Theocracy and sell all their oil to RUssian and China..
you confused yet?
August 11th, 2007 at 5:53 am