Fitz!

Marcy!!

Give truth back.

Is it even possible for a member of the Bush Administration to tell the truth?

Fitz!

Heh, Marcy — the probation revocation hearings take me back to the old days. Walton sounds just like every judge with whom I have ever had the pleasure of working in the “clean up your act, for hell’s sakes” stylings. Here’s hoping for some good deliberations today…

EW!
JANE!
FITZ!
Thanks for being there for us. Will we hear from the jury today? Bets?

Sounds like today may be a better day. Maybe it will be the last.

Marcy!

Christy Hardin Smith @ 6

Heh, Marcy — the probation revocation hearings take me back to the old days. Walton sounds just like every judge with whom I have ever had the pleasure of working in the “clean up your act, for hell’s sakes” stylings. Here’s hoping for some good deliberations today…

Yup, with the added benefit that he is African-American himself. At one point he said, “I go to prisons and all I see is our people” or something like that. I wonder if it works any better?

Marcy—

Admit it, you came back here for the weather.

Bet it would work better if these guys had any better job opportunities than Mickey D’s and the Army.

EW:
Thanks so much for being our eyes and ears during this process. Your coverage is enlightening, informative and exciting. I hope that you (and we) have a short wait for the verdict.

There are workmen playing in the ceiling, hopefully to give us more aircon.

Yikes! Republican dirty tricks alert! Watergate plumbers spying on court proceedings!

/paranoia

Are U ready for >>1 GUILTY verdicts today? Is the on-again/off-again power thingie getting U down? You could always join the regular “Gabbling of the Clan” over at

http://gabbly.com/firedoglake.com – put it in a sep window than this one and leave your sound on.

And if U didn’t see it already, maybe check out my http://tinyurl.com/yvu7pa (from last Friday evening)?

Based on Wolverine’s excellent start on “The Wrath Of Big Patrick Fitzgerald” (from Gordon Lightfoot’s original lyric of “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” ( http://tinyurl.com/nhqh5 )).

Soo… all together now…

Go jury, give us back the truth!

Pity we can’t spend even a fraction of the money we’ve spent blowing other peoples children up on giving our own children a shot at the dream

egregious @ 11

Marcy—

Admit it, you came back here for the weather.

Well, last time I came back here, I got accused of bringing MI’s weather with me! Granted, I hadn’t brought the -25 wind chill, but it sure looked icy and nasty here last time I was down, just like in MI.

I saw a copy of The Apprentice (Scoots’ book) at my local used bookstore over the weekend. ($5, if you want to snatch it up.)

Several blurbs inside – one from John Podhoretz, naturally. One from a Cynthia Grenier of the Washington Times – I wondered if she could be any relation to Robert Grenier formerly of the CIA. DC is such a small town, as we know…..

Paranoid Pat @ 14

There are workmen playing in the ceiling, hopefully to give us more aircon.

Yikes! Republican dirty tricks alert! Watergate plumbers spying on court proceedings!

/paranoia

Yes, seriously. Any way to keep an eye on them? This is not paranoia or funny.

This is probably OT, but you should check out Olbermann on
Condoleeza Rice’s latest.

Yes, Condi got KO’d last night!

emptywheel @
10

Christy Hardin Smith @ 6

Heh, Marcy — the probation revocation hearings take me back to the old days. Walton sounds just like every judge with whom I have ever had the pleasure of working in the “clean up your act, for hell’s sakes” stylings. Here’s hoping for some good deliberations today…

Yup, with the added benefit that he is African-American himself. At one point he said, “I go to prisons and all I see is our people” or something like that. I wonder if it works any better?

It probably works better than having a white judge say to them, “I go to prisons and all I see is YOUR people.”

Marcy, I posted in an earlier thread: Joe Conason will be at Politics & Prose in NW DC on Thursday night, 7 pm. If you want to take the metro out to this next of the woods (Friendship Heights or Bethesda stop), I can pick you up & give you a ride there. Other pups as well [but I only have a Prius].

Folks can contact me @ Mauimom at aol dot com

emptywheel @ 10

Christy Hardin Smith @ 6

Heh, Marcy — the probation revocation hearings take me back to the old days. Walton sounds just like every judge with whom I have ever had the pleasure of working in the “clean up your act, for hell’s sakes” stylings. Here’s hoping for some good deliberations today…

Yup, with the added benefit that he is African-American himself. At one point he said, “I go to prisons and all I see is our people” or something like that. I wonder if it works any better?

If Walton were a judge in Alaska or parts of Arizona or New Mexico, he would see mostly African-American and Native American young men. If he lived further south in AZ or NM, they would be mostly Latinos and African-Americans.

Even if Walton presided in an almost lilly-white community, he would mostly see an entirely unrepresentative racial sampling of the actual criminals in his community being brought before him day after day after day. It is called RACISM, and it truly sucks.

Mauimom @ 23

Marcy, I posted in an earlier thread: Joe Conason will be at Politics & Prose in NW DC on Thursday night, 7 pm. If you want to take the metro out to this next of the woods (Friendship Heights or Bethesda stop), I can pick you up & give you a ride there. Other pups as well [but I only have a Prius].

Folks can contact me @ Mauimom at aol dot com

If I’m still here, I might take you up on it.

But I’m hoping to be back in MI’s nasty slush and ice by then. We MI girls can only go so long without our fix, you know.

[Going out to shovel me some of this MI girl’s fix…]

Rayne @ 26

[Going out to shovel me some of this MI girl’s fix…]

Oh, gosh, I don’t know that I want so much as you guys get up north, mind you. That’s going overboard.

EPU-ed from last thread:

Adie said: it’s hard to argue with those who think our once noble country is now being run as a dictatorship.

George W. Bush @ pre 9/11 [spring, 2001] — “I don’t have a problem with dictatorships as long as I get to be dictator.”

Mission accomplished.

Every single public official, presidential candidate, msm muckety-muck, retired rake-in-the-big-bucks speechifyer should be asked from now until election day 2008:

What role did you play in facilitating the Bush/Cheney tyranny, and what have you done to redress your words/actions?

conniptionfit, this good old Republican Administration will never allocate our tax dollars for anyone in our country except the wealthy. It pains them to see those on corporate welfare suffer in any way.

Here’s an open question: does anyone know of a service that would use SMS to alert us of the 15-minute warning when the jury comes back with a verdict? I may not be near a computer over the next two days, and I’d haul ass to see if I could get near one.

And empty: speaking as someone who’s about to get on a plane to DC from Detroit, you ain’t missing anything weatherwise around here.

emptywheel @ 25

Mauimom @ 23

Marcy, I posted in an earlier thread: Joe Conason will be at Politics & Prose in NW DC on Thursday night, 7 pm. If you want to take the metro out to this next of the woods (Friendship Heights or Bethesda stop), I can pick you up & give you a ride there. Other pups as well [but I only have a Prius].

Folks can contact me @ Mauimom at aol dot com

If I’m still here, I might take you up on it.

But I’m hoping to be back in MI’s nasty slush and ice by then. We MI girls can only go so long without our fix, you know.

Marcy, did you grow up in Michigan?

I can see that you are someone who understands that tough weather builds character. I spent a lot of my youth near the UP. That is some serious cold.

Am still trying to decide whether fdl reminds me of a university or a bar, both are places you can hear a lot of interesting conversations.

The things I’ve learned here! And not just legal, tho that’s high on the list.

Sparkles @ 18:

Possibly his mother; if his father was Richard Grenier, d 2002, then probably his mother. (Google is so helpful sometimes.)

Edward @ 24 , it’s more than color – it’s usually economic factors. The whites in jail come usually come from poor backgrounds, just like any other race.

Don’t overlook the economics. Why is it we are seeing an overall increase in people incarcerated? People aren’t getting more racist – others are getting poorer.

Joe Hass @ 30

Here’s an open question: does anyone know of a service that would use SMS to alert us of the 15-minute warning when the jury comes back with a verdict? I may not be near a computer over the next two days, and I’d haul ass to see if I could get near one. [snip]

I’m thinking air raid sirens and church bells.

But seriously is there some tech solution for people that for their own foolish reasons are offblog at the critical moment?

egregious @ 32

Am still trying to decide whether fdl reminds me of a university or a bar, both are places you can hear a lot of interesting conversations.

The things I’ve learned here! And not just legal, tho that’s high on the list.

A college pub, like at Cambridge or Oxford. Each separate college within the university has its own pub, usually hidden away in an ancient basement.

hey while we wait -

someone mentioned teh upcoming Conrad Black trial – it may hold the possibility of a very special guest – FIREdoglake WALK WITH ME*g*

heh heh

I’m hoping for a Merry Fitzmas today.

If “guilty” is the answer, let the church bells follow–loud and long.

OT CNN – A car bomb has killed 18 children at a soccer field in Ramadi, Iraqi state television reports.

emptywheel @ 27

Wasn’t too bad here, just a couple inches yesterday, another inch overnight. They got 10-12 inches on Sunday night only 45 min. north of here, though, some seriously ugly lake effect.

There, did two “lines” of that white stuff — and all I have to show for it is something not unlike an ice cream headache. At least the sidewalk approach to the front door is clear before my tech friend shows up.

emptywheel @ 17

egregious @ 11

Marcy—

Admit it, you came back here for the weather.

Well, last time I came back here, I got accused of bringing MI’s weather with me! Granted, I hadn’t brought the -25 wind chill, but it sure looked icy and nasty here last time I was down, just like in MI.

MI isn’t ‘nasty and icy’,
it is ’season appropriate’.

twolf1 @ 40

OT CNN – A car bomb has killed 18 children at a soccer field in Ramadi, Iraqi state television reports.

I guess this is that one attack Laura was talking about. The rest of the day should be great over there.

egregious @ 35

Joe Hass @ 30

Here’s an open question: does anyone know of a service that would use SMS to alert us of the 15-minute warning when the jury comes back with a verdict? I may not be near a computer over the next two days, and I’d haul ass to see if I could get near one. [snip]

I’m thinking air raid sirens and church bells.

But seriously is there some tech solution for people that for their own foolish reasons are offblog at the critical moment?

Phone tree!!! Isn’t there a way to send a text to cells via email? I’m going to try…

OT–but related

From AP: Just in case you’re wondering, he’s fine:

February 27,2007 | BAGRAM, Afghanistan — A suicide bomber killed and wounded some two dozen people outside the main U.S. military base in Afghanistan on Tuesday during a visit by Vice President Dick Cheney. The Taliban claimed responsibility and said Cheney was the target.

(snip)

“The vice president is fine,” said his spokeswoman, Lea Anne McBride.

(snip)

Earlier, [Cheney] ate with soldiers, telling reporters that “breakfast was excellent” but making no other comments.

(snip)

*xyz @
31

Marcy, did you grow up in Michigan?

I can see that you are someone who understands that tough weather builds character. I spent a lot of my youth near the UP. That is some serious cold.

Nope. I was born in Binghamton, NY. Lived in every major IBM settlement in NY (Endicott, Poughkeepsie/Kingston, and White Plains/Armonk). I moved from there to San Diego, where I mourned the seasons. Since then, I’ve lived in Western Mass, SF, SLC UT, and now MI.

But I’ve set a record with MI. And the weather here is not much different from the weather in Binghamton, only where I live (as distinct from where Rayne lives), we get less snow.

Do you think Cheney has a food taster?

Since Typhoid Mary Schuster mentioned it on TV I guess we can say that there is no air circulation in the media room and folks say the flu is going around. I am sitting next to him and encouraging him to breathe in the other direction.

Matt Taibbi is also here, and I imagine TRex will be landing any minute now.

Pat_AlexVA did bring my glasses this morning so I can see again. Many thanks.

mack (42) — is that like Helen Mirren’s “age appropriate” dress?

Joe Hass (30) — I’m sure we can arrange for someone to text you…email me at rayne_today [at] yahoo.com.

conniptionfit @ 21

Yes, Condi got KO’d last night!

… and I just saw an article (BosGLOBE?) to the effect that Condi has been muscled out of the inner circle of policy deciders in the admin. Wouldn’t it be great if KO had something to do with that? Hopefully this will dash any hopes of her running for pReznit… ?

I don’t know if it is any consolation, Marcy, but it is raining in Poway (California) right now. Cool and dreary here. Does the sun shining on Prettyman Courthouse foretell that an event of great importance is about to happen?

BTW- I stopped at my local Poway library and asked them to order your book, which they did. Hasn’t come in yet. Of course I have my own personal copy but I think it is our patriotic duty, firepups, to make sure every library orders a copy.

Biodun @ 45

OT–but related

From AP: Just in case you’re wondering, he’s fine:

February 27,2007 | BAGRAM, Afghanistan — A suicide bomber killed and wounded some two dozen people outside the main U.S. military base in Afghanistan on Tuesday during a visit by Vice President Dick Cheney. The Taliban claimed responsibility and said Cheney was the target.
(snip)

Great – and, as per emptywheel’s prior post,
it doen’t take much to set him off.

IMHO the entire Iraq was can be summed up as inappropriate response to asymetrical attacks.

I’mn off to a routine dental appt. – will emerge with:

a) a renewed commitment to flossing, and
b) a twitchy mouse-click gesture, ready for verdict news

People aren’t getting more racist – others are getting poorer.

and don’t forget the cuts (40%) to community policing budgets – many of us bleeding heart libruls believe the cuts may have a negative impact on preventative vs. reactive law enforcement

While we’re waiting, a worthy read by columnist Richard Cohen in the WaPoo. Yeah, I know, I was surprised, too.

Gives high praise to Al Gore for the purposeful life he’s led the last six years…and contrasts with the wastrel boy king we’ve been saddled with.

Give it a read! And h/t to the folks at dailykos where I first read an excerpt while blog-cruising in an alt-window.

chris @ 51

I don’t know if it is any consolation, Marcy, but it is raining in Poway (California) right now. Cool and dreary here.

Now that’s news. It was actually Poway (nicknamed “Cowpie” by all the rival high schools) where I was busy mourning the seasons. It was a rare day when we got dreary, as I recall–which actually made me dreary.

Graduated from Cowpie High, you see. Several decades ago.

dorothy @ 43

twolf1 @ 40

OT CNN – A car bomb has killed 18 children at a soccer field in Ramadi, Iraqi state television reports.

I guess this is that one attack Laura was talking about. The rest of the day should be great over there.

& i can hear momma Bar from here: “Well, then. This seems to be working out very well for you.”

dorothy @ 47

Do you think Cheney has a food taster?

Is the wife along on this boondogle?

CancerCures @ 34

Edward @ 24 , it’s more than color – it’s usually economic factors. The whites in jail come usually come from poor backgrounds, just like any other race.

Don’t overlook the economics. Why is it we are seeing an overall increase in people incarcerated? People aren’t getting more racist – others are getting poorer.

More than one study has been done with results showing that in many urban areas with equal numbers of poor white and non-white poor, and with criminal activity enenly divided among the races, non-whites run into problems with the law resulting in time served behind bars or a felony conviction far more frequently than do whites.

One needs only look as far as the Democratic Party’s lack of interest in pursuing serious voter fraud in the 2000, 2002 and 2004 elections to realize how skittish or unknowledgeable most Dems are about their own party’s enabling of the continuity of institutionalized racism in the US legal and political systems.

Joe Hass @ 30

… does anyone know of a service that would use SMS to alert us of the 15-minute warning when the jury comes back with a verdict? I may not be near a computer over the next two days, …

Well, my plan is to leave the Gabbly window on with sound way up; so if I’m within earshot, the uptick in dingdong-enabled postings should draw me like flypaper… No help of course if you’re offnet… Oh well

Rayne @ 49

mack (42) — is that like Helen Mirren’s “age appropriate” dress?

Missed the AAWards
Nothing to keep me awake.

An ex-pat MIgander
(BirmingHamster as it were) now in Chi, where we look to the Mitten State as a moderate climate.

Jane Hamsher @ 48

Pat_AlexVA did bring my glasses this morning so I can see again. Many thanks.

Does this mean you never found your purse?
Payback for the comments about Comstock’s perhaps?
just wondering

Public health geeks R us:

More than you ever wanted to know about this season’s influenza.

If someone is well enough to be in the media room, they are unlikely to have the flu.

*xyz @ 36

egregious @ 32

Am still trying to decide whether fdl reminds me of a university or a bar, both are places you can hear a lot of interesting conversations.

The things I’ve learned here! And not just legal, tho that’s high on the list.

A college pub, like at Cambridge or Oxford. Each separate college within the university has its own pub, usually hidden away in an ancient basement.

A think-tank bar. Or a faculty lounge where undergraduates and graduate students are also allowed. Of course drinks all around.

Badwater @
4

Is it even possible for a member of the Bush Administration to tell the truth?

Well, Bush did once send Condi a note that read, “I need to pee.”

Cant’ really think of any reason to doubt his sincerity in that instance.

njr @ 58

dorothy @ 47

Do you think Cheney has a food taster?

Is the wife along on this boondogle?

Me-bets, no. She sent him. Got tired of ‘im mopin’ around the bunker. I say let’s get the wife to keep him home, and sedated, for the good of all…

Show of hands, please.

njr @
58

dorothy @ 47

Do you think Cheney has a food taster?

Is the wife along on this boondogle?

Why would he need someone to taste food when he lives on the fresh blood of orphaned children?

-GSD

Sorry duplicate! Was trying to edit.

More than you ever wanted to know about this season’s influenza. Note that Maryland and Virginia are listed as regional outbreaks, not widespread.

Biodun @
45

OT–but related

From AP: Just in case you’re wondering, he’s fine:

Tuesday during a visit by Vice President Dick Cheney. The Taliban claimed his cowboy boots saved him!

(snip)

“The vice president is fine,”

(snip)

dammit

Hear me, O gods and goddesses of justice: Jane is there and waiting. Marcy is there and waiting. Christy is standing by, and waiting. They have done their parts. We are all here. We are all ready.

It is time. Do it. Give us justice; give us back the truth. Give us back our country. Let it happen.

Amen.

Laura’s husband has gotten so much stock out of the one days worth of attacks in America repeated over and over and over again.

Now she wants us to ignore 4 years of daily bombings in Iraq.

It’s not easy being a Stepford this day and age….It’s hard work.

-GSD

Amen SQUARED, Scarecrow #70

scarecrow @
71

Hear me, O gods and goddesses of justice: Jane is there and waiting. Marcy is there and waiting. Christy is standing by, and waiting. They have done their parts. We are all here. We are all ready.

It is time. Do it. Give us justice; give us back the truth. Give us back our country. Let it happen.

Amen.

;->

punaise @ 53

I’mn off to a routine dental appt. – will emerge with:

a) a renewed commitment to flossing, and
b) a twitchy mouse-click gesture, ready for verdict news

Not to worry.

We’ll send you a radio announcement thru the little receiver in your fillings :)

At the core of every bully is a self-loathing coward. They need fixers to get them out of military service while sending our family members. They are a-skeered of horses. They are a-skeered of tart-tongued “mommy” strong women while they wrap themselves in their harpiness. And they are a-skeered of truth.

Chee-knee also needs fixers for his faux hunting ’cause he can’t even take on a quail without fixing.

They are history’s monsters…and they told us so. They see the opportunistic profit in using the tactics of those they profess to be fighting. They approve of dictatorship as long as they get to be dictator. Bush/Cheney–the conjoined twins of tyranny. They have become what they profess to revile.

God help us all.

You gotta see this from Weisman’s chat at the Poo-st today!

Anonymous: On a scale of 1 to 10, how much is this administration sweating the verdict in the Libby trial?

Jonathan Weisman: Uh, 1? WHy would they care? They’re just happy the trial is over.

holy crow!!!

So, Marcy, any chance during the down time to chat up some of the MSM boys and girls (other than Shuster, who gets it) and point out the difference between stenography and reporting? Or would that not go over so well? Glad you both are there, and hoping today’s the day.
–

Of course there’s a verdict coming today. I have a doctor’s appointment.

If the jurors could kindly hold off between the hours of oh, 9 – 11:30 am Pacific, I would be very, very appreciative!

-S

Jane Hamsher @ 48

Matt Taibbi is also here

What is Taibbi like? And what’s his take on things there in the Courthouse? I’ve been reading him since I was in Moscow during his eXile days, and he has only gotten better since returning to the States IM(Very)HO …

CityGirl @ 79

So, Marcy, any chance during the down time to chat up some of the MSM boys and girls (other than Shuster, who gets it) and point out the difference between stenography and reporting? Or would that not go over so well? Glad you both are there, and hoping today’s the day.
–

I would like the inside view of the MSM. What are they doing during this down time?

From Salon, eye-witness account in Afghanistan:

(snip)

What I saw was a skilled but unprepared U.S. force battling literally uphill against an unidentified enemy. 2006 was the deadliest year for coalition forces since the war began, with 191 dead. For the roughly 20,000 U.S. troops in the country, Afghanistan is only slightly less deadly per soldier than Iraq. But while a lack of troops may help the undermanned U.S. effort in the short term, it does not address a larger problem. American forces don’t have an adequate understanding of the culture, the many languages or the formidable terrain.
(snip)

My bold. This lack of understanding extends to all of the Middle East. In fact, to all of the Muslim world.

I like how they can pay for the AC but not put up the jury in some 3-star hotel

only saying….

Marcy, might I ask why you were at all the IBM establishments in NY? I spent a couple weeks up in Poughkeepsie a few years ago.

Strategerie @ 80

Of course there’s a verdict coming today. I have a doctor’s appointment.

If the jurors could kindly hold off between the hours of oh, 9 – 11:30 am Pacific, I would be very, very appreciative!

-S

Oh, and 2-3p EST, please.
annual checkup for 2 hopefully unsuspecting kitties, sh-h-h-h!
(Heck! That was stoopid of me. Lil’ girl kitty kin read bettr’n gdub! Quick. Hide this post wherever they dumped cheeknee’s festering pile of old promises!)

The waiting is stressful, but boy, I just keep thinking about yesterday and how close we came to a possible mistrial. We dodged a bullet.

Right now, more than anything, I am truly grateful for the fact that the jury is still sufficiently intact to render a verdict.

I can’t imagine going through this whole process again…

Joe Hass, Punaise, and Strategerie (and me): would anyone be willing to send a text message to our phones while we are gone? In case something happens. I figured out how to do it via email, for my provider anyway, and it is really easy…

dorothy @
47

Do you think Cheney has a food taster?

Too slow, it’s done with equipment now. Standard tests for chaumas and chaumurky.

Hi Marcy,
It is snowing and cold in Michigan today. You are lucky to be in balmy DC. Of course I skipped the MDP convention this weekend. I usually go. In the middle of the day on Sat. it occurred to me that you might be there. I could have said hello. Darn!

S.O.S. in MA @
50

conniptionfit @ 21

Yes, Condi got KO’d last night!

… and I just saw an article (BosGLOBE?) to the effect that Condi has been muscled out of the inner circle of policy deciders in the admin. Wouldn’t it be great if KO had something to do with that? Hopefully this will dash any hopes of her running for pReznit… ?

The problem is, who do you think is rushing in to fill that vacuum?

Der Spiegel has an illuminating take on the plight of the military here in Germany.

“As criticism of the Iraq war grows at home, some US soldiers abroad are rejecting Bush’s mission. On military bases across Germany, many are now seeking a way out through desertion or early discharge.”

Spanky Bernanke may be getting his baptism by fire real soon.

China’s markets plunge 9% and the US housing market is still in the tank.

Chimpy’s gonna be a double-dip recession president.

Is Pickles going to lament all the attention paid to the silly “one day” plunge in the stock market?

-GSD

Pat_AlexVA @ 84

Marcy, might I ask why you were at all the IBM establishments in NY? I spent a couple weeks up in Poughkeepsie a few years ago.

It’s a modern love story: mom and dad met at Endicott designing computers. And they had parallel careers moving from one IBM locale to another. The only thing that saved me from becoming a computer programmer is that I went to nursery school with teh Methodists, rather than the IBM nursery school my two older brothers went to. Though IBM did pay a big chunk of money toward my college education and it gave me some nice summer jobs.

sdf (Stu) @
80

Jane Hamsher @ 48

Matt Taibbi is also here

What is Taibbi like? And what’s his take on things there in the Courthouse? I’ve been reading him since I was in Moscow during his eXile days, and he has only gotten better since returning to the States IM(Very)HO …

Dunno yet, but will hopefully get a chance to chat over coffee later today. Can’t help it, I am a big, big (unapologetic) fan.

Crazy Horse @ 91

Der Spiegel has an illuminating take on the plight of the military here in Germany.

“As criticism of the Iraq war grows at home, some US soldiers abroad are rejecting Bush’s mission. On military bases across Germany, many are now seeking a way out through desertion or early discharge.”

The Bush diaspora.

America is beginning to collapse.

-GSD

Katie Jacob @ 89

Hi Marcy,
It is snowing and cold in Michigan today. You are lucky to be in balmy DC. Of course I skipped the MDP convention this weekend. I usually go. In the middle of the day on Sat. it occurred to me that you might be there. I could have said hello. Darn!

Me and Rayne and SharonRB all were there. It wasn’t bad. Between the standing room only crowd at our county convention two weeks ago, and this, I do believe the peoples are getting restless.

Let’s Play “Guess Who Said It?:

“They serve an extreme hateful ideology that rejects tolerance and demands total obedience. They want to seize control of a country in the Middle East, so they can acquire a base for launching attacks, and oil wealth to finance their ambitions. They want to target and overthrow other governments in the region, and eventually to establish a totalitarian empire that encompasses the region from Spain, across North Africa, through the Middle East and South Asia, all the way around to Indonesia.”

From Salon, more from the eye-witness account in Afghanistan:

(snip)

Showing me around the Kamdesh base was Ben Keating, a blue-eyed tree trunk of a young lieutenant on his first foreign deployment. Keating was proud of the 3-71’s mission, but thought time was not on the Americans’ side. “We’ve been up here for less than seven months,” he told me. He held up a thick book on Alexander the Great’s travails in the Hindu Kush mountains. “We have a couple of thousand years of history against us. You do the math.” Keating was a history and political science major in college. “I’m not saying we’re not doing any good — we are — but how long do we plan on staying? And what is the 82nd [the 82nd Airborne replaced much of the 10th Mountain Division this month] going to do with the progress we’ve made? How do you maintain the successes we’ve achieved?”

(snip)

My bold. You can say that about Iraq as well.

HotFlash @ 91

S.O.S. in MA @
50

conniptionfit @ 21

Yes, Condi got KO’d last night!

… and I just saw an article (BosGLOBE?) to the effect that Condi has been muscled out of the inner circle of policy deciders in the admin. Wouldn’t it be great if KO had something to do with that? Hopefully this will dash any hopes of her running for pReznit… ?

The problem is, who do you think is rushing in to fill that vacuum?

darn. forgot. meant to sweep today.
note to self….

HotFlash @ 90

… The problem is, who do you think is rushing in to fill that vacuum?

Why, Jebbie of course… and it’ll take WAY too much legerdemain to throw the next election to him… so it’ll have to be Martial Law… Yikes! :scared:

Ed*ard Teller @
59

CancerCures @ 34

Edward @ 24 , it’s more than color – it’s usually economic factors. The whites in jail come usually come from poor backgrounds, just like any other race.

Don’t overlook the economics. Why is it we are seeing an overall increase in people incarcerated? People aren’t getting more racist – others are getting poorer.

More than one study has been done with results showing that in many urban areas with equal numbers of poor white and non-white poor, and with criminal activity enenly divided among the races, non-whites run into problems with the law resulting in time served behind bars or a felony conviction far more frequently than do whites.

One needs only look as far as the Democratic Party’s lack of interest in pursuing serious voter fraud in the 2000, 2002 and 2004 elections to realize how skittish or unknowledgeable most Dems are about their own party’s enabling of the continuity of institutionalized racism in the US legal and political systems.

And the persistant failure to prosecute illegal activities such as voter fraud, mis and malfeasance, bribery and a whole array of ‘rich-white-guy’ crimes.

a-t

I guess Churchill or FDR.

emptywheel @ 93

Pat_AlexVA @ 84

It’s a modern love story: mom and dad met at Endicott designing computers. And they had parallel careers moving from one IBM locale to another. The only thing that saved me from becoming a computer programmer is that I went to nursery school with teh Methodists, rather than the IBM nursery school my two older brothers went to. Though IBM did pay a big chunk of money toward my college education and it gave me some nice summer jobs.

I’m picturing these toddlers in blue jumpsuits with white shirts and little black wingtip footies

the anti-thesis @ 98

Let’s Play “Guess Who Said It?:

“They serve an extreme hateful ideology that rejects tolerance and demands total obedience. They want to seize control of a country in the Middle East, so they can acquire a base for launching attacks, and oil wealth to finance their ambitions. They want to target and overthrow other governments in the region, and eventually to establish a totalitarian empire that encompasses the region from Spain, across North Africa, through the Middle East and South Asia, all the way around to Indonesia.”

Condi?

On line chat w/Wiesman at WaPo.Wiesman said Bush admin. doesn’t care if Libby is found guilty or not.They’re just glad the trial is over.Bullshit.Wiesman’s a idiot or a liar

Katie Jacob: Where do you live? It’s not snowing here in Southfield (just a bit of flurries), where I work. I live in Huntington Woods.

the anti-thesis @ 97
VPOTUS Cheney… (??) Tnx Google :)

Don’t want to annoy any of you MI ladies, but it is forecast to be 75 in So AZ today and we are moaning because a cold spell (59) is forecast for the next two days.

Marcy – glad you made it to DC in one piece. Flying in and out of National in Feb can be sporty business.

the anti-thesis @ 97

Let’s Play “Guess Who Said It?:

“They serve an extreme hateful ideology that rejects tolerance and demands total obedience. They want to seize control of a country in the Middle East, so they can acquire a base for launching attacks, and oil wealth to finance their ambitions. They want to target and overthrow other governments in the region, and eventually to establish a totalitarian empire that encompasses the region from Spain, across North Africa, through the Middle East and South Asia, all the way around to Indonesia.”

Clearly, a trick question.

It’s either Bush about bin Laden, or bin Laden about Bush.

*sigh*

re: Guess Who Said it @ 97

I’ll give you a hint: the speaker has no soul…..

Jane — Tell Taibbi that he has another very jealous, unapologetic big fan at home in WV. ;-)

the anti-thesis @ 111

re: Guess Who Said it @ 97

I’ll give you a hint: the speaker has no soul…..

Shooter.

Hey, Marcy. Glad to see you made it.

Please meet Arnold the Terminator “on the ground” in Afghanistan: Last installment from the eye-witness account :

(snip)

Next to speak was the CIA base chief, a man I’ll call Arnold. He was dressed like a toy soldier, with black “Terminator”-style sunglasses and an Under Armour T-shirt that even with elastic was stretched to its limits by his muscle. He looked like he should have been lifting weights in a gym. He told the Nuristanis a convoluted story about a wild dog he had killed near his farm in the United States. He had asked the dog’s owner, his neighbor, to put the dog down. After several attempts to reason with the neighbor, and with the dog still running amok, Arnold killed the animal. The Nuristanis, he said, were his neighbors, and the Pakistani-trained insurgents were the wild dogs. If the locals didn’t take responsibility for keeping insurgents out of their villages, he would be forced to kill the insurgents in their midst. “These [fighters] only know war in their heart,” he said, giving his left breast a double tap with a closed fist to make his point.

(snip)

Ahem.

Adie @ 85

Strategerie @ 80

Of course there’s a verdict coming today. I have a doctor’s appointment.

If the jurors could kindly hold off between the hours of oh, 9 – 11:30 am Pacific, I would be very, very appreciative!

-S

Oh, and 2-3p EST, please.
annual checkup for 2 hopefully unsuspecting kitties, sh-h-h-h!
(Heck! That was stoopid of me. Lil’ girl kitty kin read bettr’n gdub! Quick. Hide this post wherever they dumped cheeknee’s festering pile of old promises!)

It won’t help, they can read your mind.

the anti-thesis @ 110

re: Guess Who Said it @ 97

I’ll give you a hint: the speaker has no soul…..

nor farragamos, shoot. close tho, no?

Jane Hamsher @ 94

sdf (Stu) @
80

Jane Hamsher @ 48

Matt Taibbi is also here

What is Taibbi like? And what’s his take on things there in the Courthouse? I’ve been reading him since I was in Moscow during his eXile days, and he has only gotten better since returning to the States IM(Very)HO …

Dunno yet, but will hopefully get a chance to chat over coffee later today. Can’t help it, I am a big, big (unapologetic) fan.

You’ll report back? ;-)

the anti-thesis @ 110

re: Guess Who Said it @ 97

I’ll give you a hint: the speaker has no soul…..

… and the amazing thing is, leave out the geographical references to what is obviously “The Caliphate,” it’s pure projection of our Administration’s own goals!!! Criminently! (or should I have said CRIMINALently!!)

i felt in my bones that today’s the day. i still feel it.
a verdict and the so-called attack on cheney would make for a good pair of OVP stories in tomorrow’s papers.

unfortunately, this gentleman will probably have the last word on Afghanistan/Pakistan

Michael Scheuer on KO 2/19
(just scroll down)

mack @ 103

emptywheel @ 93

Pat_AlexVA @ 84

It’s a modern love story: mom and dad met at Endicott designing computers. And they had parallel careers moving from one IBM locale to another. The only thing that saved me from becoming a computer programmer is that I went to nursery school with teh Methodists, rather than the IBM nursery school my two older brothers went to. Though IBM did pay a big chunk of money toward my college education and it gave me some nice summer jobs.

I’m picturing these toddlers in blue jumpsuits with white shirts and little black wingtip footies

You’re not far off. We regularly played with flow chart template thingies at home, I’m sure they did at nursery school, too.

Someone’s I-Tunes went off in the media room and “God Only Knows” by the Beach Boys started playing. Someone cracked that “this is a made-for-bloggers moment” (which I suppose constitutes permission to write about it) so there it is.

And we wait.

Jane Hamsher @ 122

Someone’s I-Tunes went off in the media room and “God Only Knows” by the Beach Boys started playing. Someone cracked that “this is a made-for-bloggers moment” (which I suppose constitutes permission to write about it) so there it is.

And we wait.

Not sure if it was intended to be complimentary, either. Jeebus. Sense of humor!

HotFlash @ 115

Adie @ 85

Strategerie @ 80

Of course there’s a verdict coming today. I have a doctor’s appointment.

If the jurors could kindly hold off between the hours of oh, 9 – 11:30 am Pacific, I would be very, very appreciative!

-S

Oh, and 2-3p EST, please.
annual checkup for 2 hopefully unsuspecting kitties, sh-h-h-h!
(Heck! That was stoopid of me. Lil’ girl kitty kin read bettr’n gdub! Quick. Hide this post wherever they dumped cheeknee’s festering pile of old promises!)

It won’t help, they can read your mind.

i know i know. yer right. and I’m supposed to be the animal trainer. whut-a-joke!

Anyone have a link to the Weisman chat?

Also, I do wonder how much the White House does care. I am sure there is a certain dump Cheney element that would welcome a guilty verdict, as well as those that would welcome more focus on Cheney and taking the heat off Bush for a while.

I suppose Bush would probably rather not have to sully himself with a pardon, but I do suspect that some in the WH may see this as win/win.

the anti-thesis @ 96

Let’s Play “Guess Who Said It?:

“They serve an extreme hateful ideology that rejects tolerance and demands total obedience. They want to seize control of a country in the Middle East, so they can acquire a base for launching attacks, and oil wealth to finance their ambitions. They want to target and overthrow other governments in the region, and eventually to establish a totalitarian empire that encompasses the region from Spain, across North Africa, through the Middle East and South Asia, all the way around to Indonesia.”

Cheney?

http://www.defenselink.mil/New…..px?ID=3123

Umm, couldn’t they just open a window instead of turning on the AC in February? I sit in an office with lots of natural light. Most of the time, I never turn on the overhead light. Gore is right, we waste a lot of energy.

dmg @
119

i felt in my bones that today’s the day. i still feel it.
a verdict and the so-called attack on cheney would make for a good pair of OVP stories in tomorrow’s papers.

Yeah, great headlines if you ignore 19 were killed in the mortar attack. But hey, what’s a few more lives if you get great pair of headlines out of it?

Jane Hamsher @
122

Someone’s I-Tunes went off in the media room and “God Only Knows” by the Beach Boys started playing. Someone cracked that “this is a made-for-bloggers moment” (which I suppose constitutes permission to write about it) so there it is.

And we wait.

Just let everyone know that if they don’t keep providing these moments, you’ll have no choice but to make things up.

portia at 127 — No windows to open in the media room.

Here DP:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..01988.html

portia.vz @ 127

Umm, couldn’t they just open a window instead of turning on the AC in February? I sit in an office with lots of natural light. Most of the time, I never turn on the overhead light. Gore is right, we waste a lot of energy.

u forget. this is the gummint.

Re guess-who-said-it: I (and Google) claimed victory back in #107 IIRC :)

We knew what he thought of Congress all along. From Andrew Cockburn’s biography of Donald Rumsfeld:

Rumsfeld was offered no position in the administration of George H.W. Bush.

A few months after the inauguration, Donald Rumsfeld was invited to play the role of president of the United States in an exercise devised by a Washington think tank. In this scenario, “President” Rumsfeld was intent on securing congressional approval to go to war. “I don’t care what you tell them,” he barked at White House chief of staff Ed Markey, “just get over to Capitol Hill and make them do it, and make sure there are no constraints.”

Someone upthread mentioned turning on the ding-dong so they’s know when there were new posts here.

I hate to sound stupid, but how do you do that?

S.O.S. in MA @ 133

Re guess-who-said-it: I (and Google) claimed victory back in #107 IIRC :)

touchy…touchy…

Jane, I assume you’ll still follow orders and getchaself to the courtroom when the verdict is announced? :)

(and THANKS for all you’ve done)

dorothy @ 111

the anti-thesis @ 111

re: Guess Who Said it @ 97

I’ll give you a hint: the speaker has no soul…..

Shooter.

Ding

you are correct, it is the VP Dick

here he is waxing nostalgic at a rally in Guam: Hangar One Andersen Air Force Base…
other choice snippets:
I last visited Guam as secretary of defense.
and
We’re not dealing with adversaries that will surrender or someday come to their senses. We’ll be flexible.

ha ha ha

emptywheel @ 123

Jane Hamsher @ 122

Someone’s I-Tunes went off in the media room and “God Only Knows” by the Beach Boys started playing. Someone cracked that “this is a made-for-bloggers moment” (which I suppose constitutes permission to write about it) so there it is.

And we wait.

Not sure if it was intended to be complimentary, either. Jeebus. Sense of humor!

Once I played Trivial Pursuit and got the final question: What was the number one song the week Nixon resigned?
I remember it vividly because I was just a kid sitting in the backseat of my parents stationwagon after camping on Cape Cod for a week and listening to “When Will I See You Again? (Precious Moments)” by The Three Degrees. I won.
Even as an adolescent, I was a political junkie.
sigh

Swopa @ 129

Jane Hamsher @
122

Someone’s I-Tunes went off in the media room and “God Only Knows” by the Beach Boys started playing. Someone cracked that “this is a made-for-bloggers moment” (which I suppose constitutes permission to write about it) so there it is.

And we wait.

Just let everyone know that if they don’t keep providing these moments, you’ll have no choice but to make things up.

Hey, I found your vest jacket. Managed to glue the sleeves back onto it. Pray for a verdict today so I can get it to a mailboxes ETC and send it to you tomorrow.

S.O.S. in MA @ 100

HotFlash @ 90

… The problem is, who do you think is rushing in to fill that vacuum?

Why, Jebbie of course… and it’ll take WAY too much legerdemain to throw the next election to him… so it’ll have to be Martial Law… Yikes! :scared:

I think George H.W. Bush is manuvering to get Jeb to replace Cheney.

creeper @ 134

Someone upthread mentioned turning on the ding-dong so they’s know when there were new posts here.

I hate to sound stupid, but how do you do that?

Not here. That’s at gabbly. http://www.gabbly.com/firedoglake.com

care packages for troops go to snowed in reporters
Holley Bailey via Laura Rozen
Rough Ride of Air Force Two

Hey Adie #136, ah just hates to see The Google dissed!!! :) :)

Now we’re getting American the Beautiful over the speakers.

E*ward Teller @59: The Dem Party takes African-American votes for granted, and that upsets me a lot. Happy to show up in black churches during campaign season, but show up at Conyers’ hearings about possible voter fraud in Ohio, with African-Americans disproportionately affected? Can’t do that. To his credit, I do believe that Congressman Nadler showed support. And Boxer did second Tubbs-Jones (I think) about not seating the Ohio delegates. And that was it.

Cozumel @ 125

the anti-thesis @ 96

Let’s Play “Guess Who Said It?:

Cheney?

http://www.defenselink.mil/New…..px?ID=3123

using The Google is cheating, but Dick would appreciate the effort

the attack wasSue @ 128

dmg @
119

i felt in my bones that today’s the day. i still feel it.
a verdict and the so-called attack on cheney would make for a good pair of OVP stories in tomorrow’s papers.

Yeah, great headlines if you ignore 19 were killed in the mortar attack. But hey, what’s a few more lives if you get great pair of headlines out of it?

the attack was horrific. but the question of whether it was actually intended for cheney is far from settled.

I guess the jury is struggling with which charges to toss and which to find guilty. When they do this do they know the potential sentence for each charge – betweeen 2 to 5 years for this, etc…?

EPU’d from you last two posts;
“former and current officials said that the clandestine side has been guided by Cheney”

“Congressman Dingell started talking about how much more dangerous Dick Cheney will get as legal attention closes in on him.”

Just wanted to re-iterate a previous post of my own; “BEWARE THE CORNERED BEAST”

HE ALREADY CONTROLS A SHADOW SECRET SERVICE!

CHENEY’S “S.S.S.”

How appropriate that he should have one more “s” than Hitler.

Marcy – I’m so glad you made it back to DC safely and in time for a verdict.

Hey everyone – just following up from last thread. A few of us were discussing how it was convenient for both the admin and the Taliban to say that the Taliban were trying to assassinate Cheney at Bagram AFB, when it could be just that it was another lone suicide bomber who may not have known if Cheney was there.

I ran some errands about a half-hour ago, and I had Air America Radio on. During the CNN news, they said that the Bush administration is now scoffing at the notion that the Taliban was trying to assasinate Cheney – the admin says that the Taliban is just trying to capitalize on the bombing attack.

I laughed out loud, as we’d just discussed how Cheney might be “emboldening the terrorists” by claiming he was the victim of an assasination attempt. Heh.

(Someone remind me to watch my darn movie so I don’t have to pay for a third Blockbuster rental. I’ve had “Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World” by Albert Brooks checked out for so long, I had to pay for another week’s rental. I hope it’s good!)

Jeez, what is the jury doing in there?!
Someone should go over to the jury room, bang on the door and shout, “Hey! You almost done in there? I’ve got a case and I got to deliberate sooo bad. When are you going to be finished? Other people need to use this room, you know.”
See what happens. Go on. I’ll wait.

cbl @ 119

unfortunately, this gentleman will probably have the last word on Afghanistan/Pakistan

Michael Scheuer on KO 2/19
(just scroll down)

What’s happening now in Afghanistan, the resurgence of the Taliban, was foretold by Scheuer in his 1993 book, Imperial Hubris.

Biodun,

you left out the passages describing his rather itchy nuke trigger fingers

Herein lies an aspect of Rumsfeld’s career — and character — that remained deeply buried even after word of his participation in the COG exercises leaked out. Faced with the most awesome choices a simulated environment could present, placed in a situation that was designed and advertised as a rehearsal for what might one day be terrifyingly real, Rumsfeld had one primary response. He always tried to unleash the maximum amount of nuclear firepower possible.

Lunchtime at Prettyman now, I assume, right?

So, we can now observe the sitemeter take a nosedive, and the productivity meter soar….

Heh, back to the thesis

S.O.S. in MA @ 137

Jane, I assume you’ll still follow orders and getchaself to the courtroom when the verdict is announced? :)

(and THANKS for all you’ve done)

Yes, this is right thing for all of us.

FDL readers will get the verdict in real time anyway from the MSM anyway.

What we really want is Jane’s reporting on what went on in the courtroom while the verdicts were announced.

She will be there as a witness for all of this. She will report back to us afterwards.

This is priceless.

the anti-thesis @ 147

… using The Google is cheating, but Dick would appreciate the effort

Ooh, well said, and right on target! ‘Scuse me now, I gots to remove the birdshot from my face (and heart) :) :)

Marcy, I imagine that I work on software for the computers your parents helped to design. Small world.

dmg @
148

the attack wasSue @ 128

dmg @
119

i felt in my bones that today’s the day. i still feel it.
a verdict and the so-called attack on cheney would make for a good pair of OVP stories in tomorrow’s papers.

Yeah, great headlines if you ignore 19 were killed in the mortar attack. But hey, what’s a few more lives if you get great pair of headlines out of it?

the attack was horrific. but the question of whether it was actually intended for cheney is far from settled.

Possibly you should speak to the Taliban spokesman that made the claim. Apparently Cheney was just as surprised as you are that he was the intended target. He asked reporters who told them that. But great headlines, in pairs, don’t come around all that often, do they? Get while the gettin’s good?

DP @ 125

Anyone have a link to the Weisman chat?

Also, I do wonder how much the White House does care. I am sure there is a certain dump Cheney element that would welcome a guilty verdict, as well as those that would welcome more focus on Cheney and taking the heat off Bush for a while.

I suppose Bush would probably rather not have to sully himself with a pardon, but I do suspect that some in the WH may see this as win/win.

I suspect the WH is more concerned about the sentence, if Libby is convicted, than the verdict itself.

After all, if a guilty verdict is returned, the WH will continue to stonewall questions with the “Not going to comment while appeals are ongoing” response.

But *if* Libby is sentenced to start his prison term before appeals are completed, then the WH will be put in the politically inconvenient position of having to pardon Libby before the 2008 elections, *or* risking that Libby will finally come clean to prosecutors in return for early parole and prison amenities.

So they are more likely worried about sentencing considerations than the jury’s verdict.

More from Cockburn’s biography of Rumsfeld:

Rumsfeld loved these [war] games. There were others who were frequent players in the exercises, notably Dick Cheney. “Cheney and the others often had other priorities,” recalls the former Pentagon official. “Rumsfeld always came.” He wasn’t just trying to organize a devastated country. He was fighting World War III, or at least simulating what nuclear theory suggested such a conflict would be like.

Herein lies an aspect of Rumsfeld’s career — and character — that remained deeply buried even after word of his participation in the COG exercises [Continuation of Government; simulated war games] leaked out. Faced with the most awesome choices a simulated environment could present, placed in a situation that was designed and advertised as a rehearsal for what might one day be terrifyingly real, Rumsfeld had one primary response. He always tried to unleash the maximum amount of nuclear firepower possible.

kim @ 149

I guess the jury is struggling with which charges to toss and which to find guilty. When they do this do they know the potential sentence for each charge – betweeen 2 to 5 years for this, etc…?

I hope the jury doesn’t feel as though they have to toss any of the charges.

This would be as stupid as the preference for the “he said, she said” idea of “balance” over truth that dominates our current mainstream journalism.

wigwam
yes indeedy. btw, don’t you love that he could publish that, but Valerie can’t publish hers ?!?!

Graduated from Cowpie High, you see. Several decades ago.

But you look so young!

Crazy Horse @
91

Der Spiegel has an illuminating take on the plight of the military here in Germany.

“As criticism of the Iraq war grows at home, some US soldiers abroad are rejecting Bush’s mission. On military bases across Germany, many are now seeking a way out through desertion or early discharge.”

Great article. Another snip:

Increasingly, soldiers with distinguished records, some a few years from retirement, are seeking discharge or choosing not to reenlist, forfeiting the opportunity for generous pensions. These career military men and women say neither money nor pride can justify continuing to fight such a war. “I knew when I came back that I couldn’t do this anymore. I couldn’t be the tool to enforce policy that I thought was fundamentally wrong, if not a little evil,” says Sgt. Bob Evers, a 14-year Army and Navy veteran now living in the Bavarian hamlet of Schnackenwerth. “It is absolutely devastating to me to see what we’re doing and what we have become.”

Evers, 37, is a thoughtful Nebraskan with the manner and historical insights of a political science professor. This was his second Iraq War. As a recent high school graduate, he spent 1991 on a battleship in the Persian Gulf. A decade later, in Kosovo, he saw how people welcomed American troops. “It was what I thought being in the military was all about,” he says; one home he visited had photos of Bill Clinton and Tony Blair on the wall.

The Sunni Triangle was an ugly contrast. No one wanted Evers’s men there, and he could see why. Escorting oil trucks up and down roads where families lack electricity and water, “you’re doing more harm than good,” he says, “and to me that stings.”

Evers isn’t alone, but most won’t put their names out there in public like that.

cbl @ 154:

You beat me to it!

dipper @ 164

Graduated from Cowpie High, you see. Several decades ago.

But you look so young!

it’s that healthy Cowpie living, I tell you.

Either that or it’s the heartiness earned from lots of snow-living. They both work, I guess.

How dare the Libby jury find Scooter guilty when his boss, the Dear Vice President has just been attacked by terrorists!

-GSD

Biodun @ 161

More from Cockburn’s biography of Rumsfeld:

Rumsfeld loved these [war] games. There were others who were frequent players in the exercises, notably Dick Cheney. “Cheney and the others often had other priorities,” recalls the former Pentagon official. “Rumsfeld always came.” He wasn’t just trying to organize a devastated country. He was fighting World War III, or at least simulating what nuclear theory suggested such a conflict would be like.

Herein lies an aspect of Rumsfeld’s career — and character — that remained deeply buried even after word of his participation in the COG exercises [Continuation of Government; simulated war games] leaked out. Faced with the most awesome choices a simulated environment could present, placed in a situation that was designed and advertised as a rehearsal for what might one day be terrifyingly real, Rumsfeld had one primary response. He always tried to unleash the maximum amount of nuclear firepower possible.

There is the possibility that Rumsfeld treated the wargames literally as a game. That doesn’t do anything to make him more desirable (or more successful) as SecDef, though. The man is a screaming idiot and a four-on-the-floor sociopath.

No sense worrying about global warming as long as the folks in the media room are basking comfortably in the AC.

not Sue @ 159

dmg @
148

the attack wasSue @ 128

dmg @
119

i felt in my bones that today’s the day. i still feel it.
a verdict and the so-called attack on cheney would make for a good pair of OVP stories in tomorrow’s papers.

Yeah, great headlines if you ignore 19 were killed in the mortar attack. But hey, what’s a few more lives if you get great pair of headlines out of it?

the attack was horrific. but the question of whether it was actually intended for cheney is far from settled.

Possibly you should speak to the Taliban spokesman that made the claim. Apparently Cheney was just as surprised as you are that he was the intended target. He asked reporters who told them that. But great headlines, in pairs, don’t come around all that often, do they? Get while the gettin’s good?

not understanding your tone.

From the WaPo’s Reliable Source column today:

With a massive snowstorm canceling Sunday flights out of Chicago, how did Very Special Prosecutor (and former People mag “Sexiest Man Alive” runner-up) Patrick Fitzgerald make it to the Scooter Libby trial at 9:30 yesterday morning? “Alternate means,” he told our colleague Carol Leonnig, meaning: He drove. All 15 hours or whatever! Whatta guy.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..01856.html

Biodun @ 161

More from Cockburn’s biography of Rumsfeld:

Rumsfeld loved these [war] games. There were others who were frequent players in the exercises, notably Dick Cheney. “Cheney and the others often had other priorities,” recalls the former Pentagon official. “Rumsfeld always came.” He wasn’t just trying to organize a devastated country. He was fighting World War III, or at least simulating what nuclear theory suggested such a conflict would be like.

Herein lies an aspect of Rumsfeld’s career — and character — that remained deeply buried even after word of his participation in the COG exercises [Continuation of Government; simulated war games] leaked out. Faced with the most awesome choices a simulated environment could present, placed in a situation that was designed and advertised as a rehearsal for what might one day be terrifyingly real, Rumsfeld had one primary response. He always tried to unleash the maximum amount of nuclear firepower possible.

That seems consistent with a social dominant personality in the kinds of games that Bob Altemeyer outlines in his book, The Authoritarians. If you haven’t had a chance to read it yet, I encourage you to do so ASAP and spread the word about it. It’s a free online book that needs to be read and understood by the largest number of Americans as possible.

emptywheel @
123

Jane Hamsher @ 122

Someone’s I-Tunes went off in the media room and “God Only Knows” by the Beach Boys started playing. Someone cracked that “this is a made-for-bloggers moment” (which I suppose constitutes permission to write about it) so there it is.

And we wait.

Not sure if it was intended to be complimentary, either. Jeebus. Sense of humor!

Oh the “blogger” cracks never are.

They don’t like getting their clocks cleaned, nobody ever really does.

New thread from Christy, on the Damage Bush has done and continues to do to the military

dmg @ 119
i felt in my bones that today’s the day. i still feel it.
a verdict and the so-called attack on cheney would make for a good pair of OVP stories in tomorrow’s papers.
————
Sue @ 128
Yeah, great headlines if you ignore 19 were killed in the mortar attack. But hey, what’s a few more lives if you get great pair of headlines out of it?
————
dmg @ 148
the attack was horrific. but the question of whether it was actually intended for cheney is far from settled.
————
Sue @ 159
Possibly you should speak to the Taliban spokesman that made the claim. Apparently Cheney was just as surprised as you are that he was the intended target. He asked reporters who told them that. But great headlines, in pairs, don’t come around all that often, do they? Get while the gettin’s good?
————
dmg @ 171
not understanding your tone.

Sorry, I was trying for satire, which is what I thought the tone of the day was. I apologize if it didn’t come across as satire.

[Mod Note; Please don’t nest more than 2 or 3 quotes, it can bust the margins of the page. Thanks.]

Completely OT–but couldn’t resist. (My apologies.):

From Fox News, a sore loser:

Eddie Murphy did not like losing the Academy Award for best supporting actor to Alan Arkin Sunday night. He split the show — exit stage left! — as soon as Arkin’s name was announced.

Murphy didn’t stay to see Jennifer Hudson win best supporting actress in “Dreamgirls” or his fellow castmates Hudson, Beyonce, Keith Robinson and Anika Noni Rose perform the show’s nominated songs in a stellar staging by “Dreamgirls” director/writer Bill Condon, who wasn’t an Oscar nominee.

CityGirl @ 172

From the WaPo’s Reliable Source column today:

� With a massive snowstorm canceling Sunday flights out of Chicago, how did Very Special Prosecutor (and former People mag “Sexiest Man Alive” runner-up) Patrick Fitzgerald make it to the Scooter Libby trial at 9:30 yesterday morning? “Alternate means,” he told our colleague Carol Leonnig, meaning: He drove. All 15 hours or whatever! Whatta guy.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..01856.html

Damn, more dedicated than I am!

Oh wait, he’s running this show.

S.O.S. in MA @
107

the anti-thesis @ 97
VPOTUS Cheney… (??) Tnx Google :)

at least you fessed up, so un Scooter-esque of you

Christy’s got a new thread upstairs.

Portia.vz @ 173:

Thanks. I’ll pick it up.

Ooh – for those attending the Colin Powell speech/Q&A session at Tulane, I just found a great nugget for ya!

hat tip to Think Progress for leading me to this interview of Richard Perle by NewsMax. In it, Perle blames a lot of people for failure in Iraq – including Colin Powell.

Perle: We just don’t have the best and the brightest. I think Colin Powell was a disaster. He never liked the president’s policies. He did almost nothing to get them implemented.

link to Perle interview

I’d love to know what Powell thinks of that comment (and Perle’s next sentence, that “Condi was in over her head”).

EW @ 121

OMG – I still have some of those green thingies!!

I first worked on the 704 and 1401 – they are in the Smithsonian now!! No, I’m not very old!!!

Fresh Thread Upstairs

CityGirl @ 78

So, Marcy, any chance during the down time to chat up some of the MSM boys and girls (other than Shuster, who gets it) and point out the difference between stenography and reporting? Or would that not go over so well? Glad you both are there, and hoping today’s the day.
–

Marcy, is Richard “I’m Just Hear to Ask Softball Questions And Write Down the Answers Unlike Those Nasty Bloggers” Wolfe in the courtroom?

Okay, I’m going to throw this out there again.

The title of this thread forced me to request this again.

We really need some Talking Heads at the top of a thread. A little “Crosseyed and Painless” http://youtube.com/watch?v=v0odYPIgEKc

LandOfTheFree @ 182: “I’d love to know what Powell thinks of that comment (and Perle’s next sentence, that “Condi was in over her head”).”

Perle’s got an interesting strategy there: “Blame the Blacks”.

Sure to be a winner.

I know I know, epu but ….

re: IBM and those green plastic flow chart template thingies

yikes!

my birth announcement was an IBM data punchcard, how’s that for oldskool

Christy Hardin Smith @
130

portia at 127 — No windows to open in the media room.

Oh, in that case, crank it up. You don’t want any Fox Noise people sweating on you or leaving trails of persperation behind them.

Cozumel @ 126

the anti-thesis @ 96

Let’s Play “Guess Who Said It?:

“They serve an extreme hateful ideology that rejects tolerance and demands total obedience. They want to seize control of a country in the Middle East, so they can acquire a base for launching attacks, and oil wealth to finance their ambitions. They want to target and overthrow other governments in the region, and eventually to establish a totalitarian empire that encompasses the region from Spain, across North Africa, through the Middle East and South Asia, all the way around to Indonesia.”

Cheney?

http://www.defenselink.mil/New…..px?ID=3123

When Cheney said that, was he using “they” to refer to the Bush Administration?

Pat_AlexVA @ 158

Marcy, I imagine that I work on software for the computers your parents helped to design. Small world.

Lessee…..Marcy’s age; Poughkeepsie..East Fishkill maybe?… I’d guess they were doing S-360’s, maybe more likely 370’s at that time. DOS-VSE, MVS, JCL, all that fun stuff. TSS -> VM maybe?

Pat, you got a pet 3090 there? Can it come out to play? (Ask me about the time we ran, just for the heck of it, VM (XA) under VM under VM under VM etc. 68 page lookups every instruction. Took over 12 hours to load.)

/can’t help being a geek

the anti-thesis: EPU should always be capitalized.

the zen of waiting

sitting quietly,
doing nothing.
spring comes,
and the grass grows all by itself…

Notta Flatlander @ 190

Pat_AlexVA @ 158

Marcy, I imagine that I work on software for the computers your parents helped to design. Small world.

Lessee…..Marcy’s age; Poughkeepsie..East Fishkill maybe?… I’d guess they were doing S-360’s, maybe more likely 370’s at that time. DOS-VSE, MVS, JCL, all that fun stuff. TSS -> VM maybe?

Pat, you got a pet 3090 there? Can it come out to play? (Ask me about the time we ran, just for the heck of it, VM (XA) under VM under VM under VM etc. 68 page lookups every instruction. Took over 12 hours to load.)

/can’t help being a geek

Notta Flatlander, Fitz wanted to add a 12th and IPL the jury. He thought 11 was like running a program a register short.

JGabriel @
65

Badwater @
4

Is it even possible for a member of the Bush Administration to tell the truth?

Well, Bush did once send Condi a note that read, “I need to pee.”

Cant’ really think of any reason to doubt his sincerity in that instance.

The exact words were more like “I think I MAY need a bathroom break.”

What’s important here is the word “may.” It provides deniability.

Pat_AlexVA @ 193

Notta Flatlander @ 190

Pat_AlexVA @ 158

Marcy, I imagine that I work on software for the computers your parents helped to design. Small world.

Lessee…..Marcy’s age; Poughkeepsie..East Fishkill maybe?… I’d guess they were doing S-360’s, maybe more likely 370’s at that time. DOS-VSE, MVS, JCL, all that fun stuff. TSS -> VM maybe?

Pat, you got a pet 3090 there? Can it come out to play? (Ask me about the time we ran, just for the heck of it, VM (XA) under VM under VM under VM etc. 68 page lookups every instruction. Took over 12 hours to load.)

/can’t help being a geek

Notta Flatlander, Fitz wanted to add a 12th and IPL the jury. He thought 11 was like running a program a register short.

This proves you are geeks – you are gonna get a lot of grief for this!

IPLs…. eek… I associate them with being paged at 3 in the morning…

mightymouse @ 194

JGabriel @
65

Badwater @
4

Is it even possible for a member of the Bush Administration to tell the truth?

Well, Bush did once send Condi a note that read, “I need to pee.”

Cant’ really think of any reason to doubt his sincerity in that instance.

The exact words were more like “I think I MAY need a bathroom break.”

What’s important here is the word “may.” It provides deniability.

In any case, he was ultimately responsible for his own leak!

Fitz wanted to add a 12th and IPL the jury. He thought 11 was like running a program a register short.

Oh, that’s good. Touche!

I got my JCL manual out and was gonna write some for ya, then I thought the IPL reference would suffice. My first code change was Fortran IV. We had IF but no ELSE clause.

JoyB, you’ve ID’d yourself as understanding IPL. We’ve got your number. :-)

emptywheel @ 178

CityGirl @ 172

From the WaPo’s Reliable Source column today:

� With a massive snowstorm canceling Sunday flights out of Chicago, how did Very Special Prosecutor (and former People mag “Sexiest Man Alive” runner-up) Patrick Fitzgerald make it to the Scooter Libby trial at 9:30 yesterday morning? “Alternate means,” he told our colleague Carol Leonnig, meaning: He drove. All 15 hours or whatever! Whatta guy.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..01856.html

Damn, more dedicated than I am!

Oh wait, he’s running this show.

I think this explains why he was in a sour mood yesterday, though.

Maybe y’all should offer to let him stay at the Plame House for the weekends. Make him pay his way by posting at FDL. ;)

Coming soon to a theatre near you:

“SIXTH SENSE MEETS COURT TV”

Most memorable line from the movie?

“I see guilty people…”

CancerCures @
34

Edward @ 24 , it’s more than color – it’s usually economic factors. The whites in jail come usually come from poor backgrounds, just like any other race.

Don’t overlook the economics. Why is it we are seeing an overall increase in people incarcerated? People aren’t getting more racist – others are getting poorer.

The so-called criminal justice system is a war against the poor. Approximately 90% of all defendants charged in criminal cases in state and federal courts aren’t able to afford counsel. The courts appoint public defenders and private counsel who are willing to work for substantially reduced fees that won’t even cover their overhead expenses.

There was a time not so very long ago when federal prosecutors devoted much of their time to investigating corporations for illegal activities. By recently firing 9 United States Attorneys for “performance related issues” just a few months after they had received excellent performance evaluations, Attorney General Gonzales has delivered a powerful and foreboding message to federal prosecutors across the country: You will be fired if you investigate and prosecute corporations and Republicans who support Bush and Cheney’s criminal dictatorship.

Meanwhile half the people serving sentences in our nation’s prisons were convicted of drug offenses and half of them were convicted of marijuana offenses. Almost 800,000 people were arrested for marijuana offenses in 2005. With 2.5 million people in our nation’s prisons, isn’t it time to say, “ENOUGH!”

Think about that the next time you sit as a juror in a drug case. Think, JURY NULLIFICATION!

Mason at 202 — You think an argument in favor of jury nullification — which is a perversion of the juducial process — is going to go unchallenged on a blog where a former prosecutor writes? Thank again. You don’t like the laws? The remedy is to lobby your elected representatives to change them. Jury nullification is, and always will be, cheating. And some fo the most violent murders and crimes that I have seen over the years had a drug component to them — so I call bullshit. You want to make a difference? Work with kids at a young age who are at risk so that they have early intervention and stay out of the criminal justice system altogether. Call your elected representatives and ask for more funding for early intervention programs and for more appropriate penalties. But jury nullification? That’s just wrong — you are asking a jury to cheat because you don’t feel like working on a solution that comports with the rule of law. Which is, pretty much, what we castigate Dick Cheney and George Bush for not doing as well, and rightly so.

That’s just complete and utter crap. And if you’d spent any time whatsoever dealing with violent criminals, child rapists or the like — who on any number of occasions do their crimes while coked up or drunk off their asses — you’d know that. And having worked as defense counsel for any number of indigent defendants through the years, I have a very good idea of all of the ramifications of our policies — but the remedy is to change how things work, not be a cheater, not subvert the rule of law.

Aw, shit.

Dude, you pissed off the red haired lady.

*runs for cover*

*crickets*

So!

I just came from yoga class. It was great! I managed to not shred the little mat with my giant talons or knock anybody over by swishing my huge scaly tail.

It was really nice of them to have class in an airplane hangar for me.

If the lawyers and the prosecutors and the judges didn’t have so many easy-money drug laws, the gravy in the train would thin dramatically.

Jury nullification, when there is an informed and intelligent jury, could cover a multitude of legislative sins.

But how often are juries instructed that they can, essentially, create their own precedent, if they all agree?

The drug laws Mason refers to were made and upheld by a dysfunctional government, creating a war against our own citizens. IMHO, for this moment in time, the nullifying jury might be the only course to real justice until that dysfunction can be remedied.

However, it is not to the benefit of the legal system as a whole to promote real justice, if it thins out their gravy.

I don’t suggest for a moment that the Libby case even comes close to an issue where the jury would have to create law to achieve justice. The laws Libby broke are the kind that relate to national security and public trust in an elected government, not personal habits.