<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:blogger='http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd="http://schemas.google.com/g/2005" xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552</id><updated>2024-11-01T07:33:03.715-04:00</updated><title type='text'>iotas</title><subtitle type='html'></subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default?redirect=false'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>21</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>25</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-2590087425615041623</id><published>2010-02-25T23:46:00.007-05:00</published><updated>2010-05-11T10:26:22.992-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Reality check</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style:italic;&quot;&gt;Behold the wounded giant:&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A bankrupt predator nation whose power  rests solely on naked aggression and international rapine;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A  nation which has abdicated the responsibilities which are concomitant  with the leadership position earned by the sacrifices of millions of its  people in two world wars;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A nation which blindly follows the  dictates of a corrupt and internationally condemned coterie of thieving  banksters;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A nation which stands idle while its constitution is  befouled to protect the privileges and security of corporate plunderers;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A  nation whose military is instructed to practice torture and the planned  massacre of civilians;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A nation which has abandoned millions of  its citizens to the ravages of poverty, ignorance and unemployment.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In  this arena, behold an Obama playing touchy feely bipartisan politics  with the bullies and hoodlums of the Republican opposition...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;No one should be allowed to be that obstinately clueless, unless he aims to be known as another Dubya.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/2590087425615041623/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/2590087425615041623?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/2590087425615041623'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/2590087425615041623'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2010/02/reality-check.html' title='Reality check'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-713674321284607799</id><published>2010-02-11T01:47:00.005-05:00</published><updated>2010-02-11T09:06:19.593-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Evanescent Change</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;One year ago, a Hope mantra was being smartly peddled to an American public asphyxiated by the stench of effluents oozing across the nation from the Washington cesspool of greed, hypocrisy and corruption.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And Barrack Obama strutted confidently on stage.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He promised Change.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And then:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Barrack Obama proceeded to condone many of the most deleterious economic and constitution wrecking practices and policies of the Bush maladministration.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In the name of his irrational faith in a euphemism called bipartisanship, Obama entrusted the power of his presidency to a cabinet stuffed with lobbyists and Banksters&#39; puppets.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Under a delusional Stockholm syndrome of subservience to the back alley bullies of the previous régime and under cover of a Department of Justice stuffed with Bushist lawyers, Obama has buried the myriad of horrendous crimes perpetrated by the Bush Cheney cabal.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In his New York Times blog, Mr. Krugman charitably states that Barrack Obama is &quot;clueless&quot;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Let&#39;s stop kidding ourselves and face the fact that the shadow of an Uncle Tom is looming ever more darkly over a very Short Changed Uncle Sam.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/713674321284607799/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/713674321284607799?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/713674321284607799'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/713674321284607799'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2010/02/evanescent-change.html' title='Evanescent Change'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-3131511889869084822</id><published>2008-02-24T22:23:00.006-05:00</published><updated>2008-12-11T13:10:30.579-05:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;a onblur=&quot;try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}&quot; href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2_eIpp5pAkextZIdREL7luPxKIfBfSNYmT6RsgJnfQVSNB6PI1l6McvQjAHOE0ONptQtUCLkEZpnR6vVV7dl_HtTLLpHHjJ2v1GiIZLrK8cR9nCnhnIus8GzMOKI9-Jm1ZGsxHF-EhUc/s1600-h/lynch.jpg&quot;&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2_eIpp5pAkextZIdREL7luPxKIfBfSNYmT6RsgJnfQVSNB6PI1l6McvQjAHOE0ONptQtUCLkEZpnR6vVV7dl_HtTLLpHHjJ2v1GiIZLrK8cR9nCnhnIus8GzMOKI9-Jm1ZGsxHF-EhUc/s320/lynch.jpg&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; id=&quot;BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5170757070568764866&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(204, 51, 204);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:verdana;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 102);&quot;&gt;American Elites lounging in Bush Gardens ...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;You thought it just started around 1933 and ended in a bunker in 1945 ... and this time, you think it just started around   1999 and is about to end in 2009 ? Well ... you ain&#39;t any better informed than  millions of &quot;patriot-act&quot; americans who sleep walk the US to its inevitable demise while prophets scream their agony in the great MacWorld void :&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;a style=&quot;color: rgb(153, 0, 0); font-style: italic;&quot; href=&quot;http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page/JB23Aa01.html&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;The Age of Barbarism Lite&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;                By Karen J Greenberg                 &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;&quot;                  Someday, Americans will have to reckon with this period of time - and with a                   group of leaders who were more comfortable with definitions out of the darker                   ages than ones out of the Enlightenment era.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;This administration&#39;s bold                   flirtation with torture, medieval-style, has led us into sorry company, whether                   in the past or the present. Its top officials told the world they would do                   &quot;what it takes&quot; in their &quot;war on terror&quot; and in the Middle East, with or                   without allies.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;They then chose to leave the family of nations and take up                   kinship in the family of torturers&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;.&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Q.E.D.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/3131511889869084822/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/3131511889869084822?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/3131511889869084822'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/3131511889869084822'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2008/02/american-elites-lounging-in-bush.html' title=''/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2_eIpp5pAkextZIdREL7luPxKIfBfSNYmT6RsgJnfQVSNB6PI1l6McvQjAHOE0ONptQtUCLkEZpnR6vVV7dl_HtTLLpHHjJ2v1GiIZLrK8cR9nCnhnIus8GzMOKI9-Jm1ZGsxHF-EhUc/s72-c/lynch.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-2374809881547759924</id><published>2007-12-29T00:20:00.001-05:00</published><updated>2008-12-11T13:10:30.856-05:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;&lt;span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:180%;&quot;&gt;Redacting America&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a onblur=&quot;try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}&quot; href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_wWPPaKcREOJy0d5TRQfND3WRAajTXhE-CAXkn4UZD7r02qUg0W6KSB4IEQ46N3UpBlWxjPcad29cQgWEJPR7j2HfRIX54WXxUUbxyhrA8fPGFppBw_FN0M8zjA0UIXWm41iLyqIIY_Y/s1600-h/constitution+-+redacted+-+30+Oct+07.gif&quot;&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_wWPPaKcREOJy0d5TRQfND3WRAajTXhE-CAXkn4UZD7r02qUg0W6KSB4IEQ46N3UpBlWxjPcad29cQgWEJPR7j2HfRIX54WXxUUbxyhrA8fPGFppBw_FN0M8zjA0UIXWm41iLyqIIY_Y/s320/constitution+-+redacted+-+30+Oct+07.gif&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; id=&quot;BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5149262983082781778&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&quot;Constitutional rights are minor inconveniences, noisome chatter, flies to be batted away on the steady road to despotism. And no one, not the courts, not the press, not the gutless Democratic opposition, not a compliant and passive citizenry hypnotized by tawdry television spectacles and celebrity gossip, seems capable of stopping the process. &lt;a href=&quot;http://tinyurl.com/3dywea&quot;&gt;Those in power know this&lt;/a&gt;&quot;. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;According to plan, [see &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JG9CM_J00bw&quot;&gt;&quot;The Shock Doctrine&quot; by Naomi Klein&lt;/a&gt;] the perpetrators of &quot;Disaster Capitalism&quot;, led by American neo buccaneers,  have already plunged humanity into an irreversible socio-political maelstrom by creating and exploiting a complex network of real or contrived conflicts.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Brandishing military powers and propaganda technologies immensely superior to those of their recent predecessors in imperial hubris, Stalin, Hitler and company,  these  power-crazed predators will not be stopped before they have been sated with the life blood of a privatized mankind.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Darkness at 2008&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/2374809881547759924/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/2374809881547759924?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/2374809881547759924'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/2374809881547759924'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/12/beware-ides-of-march.html' title=''/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_wWPPaKcREOJy0d5TRQfND3WRAajTXhE-CAXkn4UZD7r02qUg0W6KSB4IEQ46N3UpBlWxjPcad29cQgWEJPR7j2HfRIX54WXxUUbxyhrA8fPGFppBw_FN0M8zjA0UIXWm41iLyqIIY_Y/s72-c/constitution+-+redacted+-+30+Oct+07.gif" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-3970380267833020745</id><published>2007-11-13T15:59:00.000-05:00</published><updated>2007-11-13T16:01:06.364-05:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;&lt;o:p&gt; &lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 14pt; font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;; color: rgb(102, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;PLAN “B” ...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 14pt; font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;; color: maroon;&quot;&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;From the emergence of the Neocons as an ideological power base dominant over U.S. foreign policy, to destruction wreaked on the Bill of Rights by illegal surveillance of citizens, to the senseless creation of the bureaucratically monstrous Department of Homeland Security and passage of the Patriot Acts, to the initiation of “wars of choice” leading to the devastation of two nations and the killing or displacement of perhaps a million Middle Eastern non-combatants, to violation of international treaties and conventions against wars of aggression and torture of prisoners, to presiding over an economy ruined by the continued export of manufacturing jobs and the creation and deflation of the housing bubble, to the wrecking of the federal budget by over a trillion dollars of wartime expenditure, to the abandonment of the city of New Orleans during and after Hurricane Katrina, to tax cuts for the most wealthy while the income of the middle class has drastically eroded, and to threats to start another war, this time against Iran, based on deceptions similar to those which preceded the Iraq invasion, the Bush/Cheney administration has brought the U.S. to the brink of catastrophe. &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;      What is now being asked is whether there was a plan that was to take place in September-October 2007 whereby the rest of the job would have been done. Speculation was that a nuclear device was to have been detonated in a &lt;/span&gt;&lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;U.S.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt; city, perhaps one of the six attached to cruise missiles that were “inadvertently” carried by the Air Force B-52 bomber that flew from &lt;/span&gt;&lt;st1:state&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;South   Dakota&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:State&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt; to &lt;/span&gt;&lt;st1:state&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;Louisiana&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:State&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt; just before Labor Day.... &lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;MORE: &lt;a href=&quot;http://tinyurl.com/2dv65w&quot;&gt;http://tinyurl.com/2dv65w&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/3970380267833020745/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/3970380267833020745?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/3970380267833020745'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/3970380267833020745'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/11/plan-b.html' title=''/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-6317013826283841090</id><published>2007-11-06T21:24:00.000-05:00</published><updated>2007-11-06T21:26:33.255-05:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;&lt;o:p&gt; &lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 14pt; font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;; color: maroon;&quot;&gt;On the complicity of the US Congress with George W. Bush&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;&lt;o:p&gt; &lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;i style=&quot;&quot;&gt;Bush may not observe the rules, but the country abides by them&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;SPECIAL COMMENT&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;By Keith Olbermann&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;Anchor, &#39;Countdown&#39;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;updated &lt;st1:time minute=&quot;42&quot; hour=&quot;21&quot;&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;time&quot;&gt;9:42 p.m. ET&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/st1:time&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;time&quot;&gt;,&lt;/span&gt; &lt;st1:date year=&quot;2007&quot; day=&quot;5&quot; month=&quot;11&quot;&gt;&lt;span class=&quot;date&quot;&gt;Mon., Nov. 5, 2007&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/st1:date&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;It is a fact startling in its cynical simplicity and it requires cynical and simple words to be properly expressed: The presidency of George W. Bush has now devolved into a criminal conspiracy to cover the ass of George W. Bush.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;All the petulancy, all the childish threats, all the blank-stare stupidity; all the invocations of World War III, all the sophistic questions about which terrorist attacks we wanted him not to stop, all the phony secrets; all the claims of executive privilege, all the stumbling tap-dancing of his nominees, all the verbal flatulence of his apologists...&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;All of it is now, after one revelation last week, transparently clear for what it is: the pathetic and desperate manipulation of the government, the refocusing of our entire nation, toward keeping this mock president and this unstable vice president and this departed wildly self-overrating attorney general, and the others, from potential prosecution for having approved or ordered the illegal torture of prisoners being held in the name of this country.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;&quot;Waterboarding is torture,&quot; Daniel Levin was to write. Daniel Levin was no theorist and no protester. He was no troublemaking politician. He was no table-pounding commentator. Daniel Levin was an astonishingly patriotic American and a brave man.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Brave not just with words or with stances, even in a dark time when that kind of bravery can usually be scared or bought off.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Charged, as you heard in the story from ABC News last Friday, with assessing the relative legality of the various nightmares in the Pandora&#39;s box that is the Orwell-worthy euphemism &quot;Enhanced Interrogation,&quot; Mr. Levin decided that the simplest, and the most honest, way to evaluate them ... was to have them enacted upon himself.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Daniel Levin took himself to a military base and let himself be waterboarded.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Mr. Bush, ever done anything that personally courageous?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Perhaps when you&#39;ve gone to Walter Reed and teared up over the maimed servicemen? And then gone back to the White House and determined that there would be more maimed servicemen?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Has it been that kind of personal courage, Mr. Bush, when you&#39;ve spoken of American victims and the triumph of freedom and the sacrifice of your own popularity for the sake of our safety? And then permitted others to fire or discredit or destroy anybody who disagreed with you, whether they were your own generals, or Max Cleland, or Joe Wilson and Valerie Plame, or Daniel Levin?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Daniel Levin should have a statue in his honor in &lt;st1:state&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;Washington&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:State&gt; right now.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Instead, he was forced out as acting assistant attorney general nearly three years ago because he had the guts to do what George Bush couldn&#39;t do in a million years: actually put himself at risk for the sake of his country, for the sake of what is right.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;And they waterboarded him. And he wrote that even though he knew those doing it meant him no harm, and he knew they would rescue him at the instant of the slightest distress, and he knew he would not die — still, with all that reassurance, he could not stop the terror screaming from inside of him, could not quell the horror, could not convince that which is at the core of each of us, the entity who exists behind all the embellishments we strap to ourselves, like purpose and name and family and love, he could not convince his being that he wasn&#39;t drowning.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Waterboarding, he said, is torture. Legally, it is torture! Practically, it is torture! Ethically, it is torture! And he wrote it down.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Wrote it down somewhere, where it could be contrasted with the words of this country&#39;s 43rd president: &quot;The &lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;United States of America&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt; ... does not torture.&quot;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Made you into a liar, Mr. Bush.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Made you into, if anybody had the guts to pursue it, a criminal, Mr. Bush.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Waterboarding had already been used on Khalid Sheik Mohammed and a couple of other men none of us really care about except for the one detail you&#39;d forgotten — that there are rules. And even if we just make up these rules, this country observes them anyway, because we&#39;re Americans and we&#39;re better than that. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;We&#39;re better than you.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;And the man your Justice Department selected to decide whether or not waterboarding was torture had decided, and not in some phony academic fashion, nor while wearing the Walter Mitty poseur attire of flight suit and helmet. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;He had put his money, Mr. Bush, where your mouth was.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;So, your sleazy sycophantic henchman Mr. Gonzales had him append an asterisk suggesting his black-and-white answer wasn&#39;t black-and-white, that there might have been a quasi-legal way of torturing people, maybe with an absolute time limit and a physician entitled to stop it, maybe, if your administration had ever bothered to set any rules or any guidelines.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;And then when your people realized that even that was too dangerous, Daniel Levin was branded &quot;too independent&quot; and &quot;someone who could (not) be counted on.&quot;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;In other words, Mr. Bush, somebody you couldn&#39;t count on to lie for you. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;So, Levin was fired.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Because if it ever got out what he&#39;d concluded, and the lengths to which he went to validate that conclusion, anybody who had sanctioned waterboarding and who-knows-what-else on anybody, you yourself, you would have been screwed.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;And screwed you are.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;It can&#39;t be coincidence that the story of Daniel Levin should emerge from the black hole of this secret society of a presidency just at the conclusion of the unhappy saga of the newest attorney general nominee. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Another patriot somewhere listened as Judge Mukasey mumbled like he&#39;d never heard of waterboarding and refused to answer in words … that which Daniel Levin answered on a waterboard somewhere in &lt;st1:state&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;Maryland&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:State&gt; or &lt;st1:state&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;Virginia&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:State&gt; three years ago.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;And this someone also heard George Bush say, &quot;The United States of America does not torture,&quot; and realized either he was lying or this wasn&#39;t the &lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;United   States of America&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt; anymore, and either way, he needed to do something about it.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Not in the way Levin needed to do something about it, but in a brave way nonetheless.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;We have &lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;U.S.&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt; senators who need to do something about it, too. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Chairman Leahy of the Judiciary Committee has seen this for what it is and said &quot;enough.&quot; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Sen. Schumer has seen it, reportedly, as some kind of puzzle piece in the &lt;st1:state&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;New York&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:State&gt; political patronage system, and he has failed. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;What Sen. Feinstein has seen, to justify joining Schumer in rubber-stamping Mukasey, I cannot guess.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;It is obvious that both those senators should look to the meaning of the story of Daniel Levin and recant their support for Mukasey&#39;s confirmation. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;And they should look into their own committee&#39;s history and recall that in 1973, their predecessors were able to wring even from Richard Nixon a guarantee of a special prosecutor (ultimately a special prosecutor of Richard Nixon!), in exchange for their approval of his new attorney general, Elliott Richardson.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;If they could get that out of Nixon, before you confirm the president&#39;s latest human echo on Tuesday, you had better be able to get a &quot;yes&quot; or a &quot;no&quot; out of Michael Mukasey.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Ideally you should lock this government down financially until a special prosecutor is appointed, or 50 of them, but I&#39;m not holding my breath. The &quot;yes&quot; or the &quot;no&quot; on waterboarding will have to suffice.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Because, remember, if you can&#39;t get it, or you won&#39;t with the time between tonight and the next presidential election likely to be the longest year of our lives, you are leaving this country, and all of us, to the waterboards, symbolic and otherwise, of George W. Bush.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Ultimately, Mr. Bush, the real question isn&#39;t who approved the waterboarding of this fiend Khalid Sheik Mohammed and two others. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;It is: Why were they waterboarded?&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Study after study for generation after generation has confirmed that torture gets people to talk, torture gets people to plead, torture gets people to break, but torture does not get them to tell the truth.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Of course, Mr. Bush, this isn&#39;t a problem if you don&#39;t care if the terrorist plots they tell you about are the truth or just something to stop the tormentors from drowning them.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;If, say, a president simply needed a constant supply of terrorist threats to keep a country scared.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;If, say, he needed phony plots to play hero during, and to boast about interrupting, and to use to distract people from the threat he didn&#39;t interrupt. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;If, say, he realized that even terrorized people still need good ghost stories before they will let a president pillage the Constitution,&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Well, Mr. Bush, who better to dream them up for you than an actual terrorist? &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;He&#39;ll tell you everything he ever fantasized doing in his most horrific of daydreams, his equivalent of the day you &quot;flew&quot; onto the deck of the &lt;st1:city&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;Lincoln&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:City&gt; to explain you&#39;d won in &lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;Iraq&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Now if that&#39;s what this is all about, you tortured not because you&#39;re so stupid you think torture produces confession but you tortured because you&#39;re smart enough to know it produces really authentic-sounding fiction — well, then, you&#39;re going to need all the lawyers you can find … because that crime wouldn&#39;t just mean impeachment, would it? &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;That crime would mean George W. Bush is going to prison.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Thus the master tumblers turn, and the lock yields, and the hidden explanations can all be perceived, in their exact proportions, in their exact progressions.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Daniel Levin&#39;s eminently practical, eminently logical, eminently patriotic way of testing the legality of waterboarding has to vanish, and him with it.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Thus Alberto Gonzales has to use that brain that sounds like an old car trying to start on a freezing morning to undo eight centuries of the forward march of law and government.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Thus Dick Cheney has to ridiculously assert that confirming we do or do not use any particular interrogation technique would somehow help the terrorists.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Thus Michael Mukasey, on the eve of the vote that will make him the high priest of the law of this land, cannot and must not answer a question, nor even hint that he has thought about a question, which merely concerns the theoretical definition of waterboarding as torture.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;Because, Mr. Bush, in the seven years of your nightmare presidency, this whole string of events has been transformed.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;From its beginning as the most neglectful protection ever of the lives and safety of the American people ... into the most efficient and cynical exploitation of tragedy for political gain in this country&#39;s history ... and, then, to the giddying prospect that you could do what the military fanatics did in Japan in the 1930s and remake a nation into a fascist state so efficient and so self-sustaining that the fascism would be nearly invisible.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;But at last this frightful plan is ending with an unexpected crash, the shocking reality that no matter how thoroughly you might try to extinguish them, Mr. Bush, how thoroughly you tried to brand disagreement as disloyalty, Mr. Bush, there are still people like Daniel Levin who believe in the United States of America as true freedom, where we are better, not because of schemes and wars, but because of dreams and morals.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;textbodyblack&quot;&gt;And ultimately these men, these patriots, will defeat you and they will return this country to its righteous standards, and to its rightful owners, the people.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;© 2007 MSNBC Interactive&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21644133/&quot;&gt;http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21644133/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsM0VUVEZJ8&quot;&gt;http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsM0VUVEZJ8&lt;/a&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyPpuXzccH8&quot;&gt;http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyPpuXzccH8&lt;/a&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 11pt; font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;;&quot;&gt;&lt;o:p&gt; &lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/6317013826283841090/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/6317013826283841090?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/6317013826283841090'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/6317013826283841090'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/11/on-complicity-of-us-congress-with.html' title=''/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-817457444968048339</id><published>2007-10-30T11:31:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-10-30T11:58:08.180-04:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:180%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;Redacting the &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;st1:country-region  style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;font-size:18;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:180%;&quot;  &gt;USA&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;  &lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;o:p&gt; &lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;a onblur=&quot;try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}&quot; href=&quot;http://www.truthdig.com/images/eartothegrounduploads/constitution-redacted300.gif&quot;&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;&quot; src=&quot;http://www.truthdig.com/images/eartothegrounduploads/constitution-redacted300.gif&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;i style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:14;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;i style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:14;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;i style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:14;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;i style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:14;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:100%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;i style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:14;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&quot;Constitutional rights are minor inconveniences, noisome chatter, flies to be batted away on the steady road to despotism. And no one, not the courts, not the press, not the gutless Democratic opposition, not a compliant and passive citizenry hypnotized by tawdry television spectacles and celebrity gossip, seems capable of stopping the process. Those in power know this. We, too, might as well know it&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://tinyurl.com/3dywea&quot;&gt;http://tinyurl.com/3dywea&lt;/a&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/817457444968048339/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/817457444968048339?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/817457444968048339'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/817457444968048339'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/10/redacting-usa-constitutional-rights-are.html' title=''/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-2093951027591749042</id><published>2007-10-14T10:30:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-10-14T22:29:45.167-04:00</updated><title type='text'></title><content type='html'>&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;  &lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: 16pt; font-family: &amp;quot;Trebuchet MS&amp;quot;; color: maroon;&quot;&gt;Anarchists on the move&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;Assailed by the Bush administration’s pervasive and egregious assaults against America’s democratic traditions, critics in the blogosphere, and occasional journalists who dare break with our national media’s policy of disinformation, strive to document the neocons’ ever tightening strangulation of our judicial, legislative and executive institutions.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;o:p&gt; &lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;The term fascism aptly describes the tactical means by which the immense powers of the White House shock and awe the nation into benighted submission. Implacably, the neocons emulate the fascist tactics of the German, Italian and Leninist autocracies: thought control, disinformation, fear-mongering.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;In order to secure their control over as much of the planet’s resources as other powers will allow, &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;America&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;’s neocons have been weakening foreign governments everywhere through economic and political manipulation, through wars of aggression as in &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;Vietnam&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt; and &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;Iraq&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;Tying our own government into its real and concocted Gordian knots through the willing or unwitting complicity of a supine, fully bought Senate, House, Judiciary and Executive, the neocons are steadily eroding the credibility of our political apparatus.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;o:p&gt; &lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Their goal: to destroy our so-called democratic government and replace it with a clique of deregulated enronic neocons unfettered by political constraints, free to pillage the nation and assuage their greed at will.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;o:p&gt; &lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;  &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;For the few who remember another Sarajevo ... Behold the return of the  Anarchists ...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/2093951027591749042/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/2093951027591749042?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/2093951027591749042'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/2093951027591749042'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/10/anarchists-on-move.html' title=''/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-4836210109866536043</id><published>2007-09-20T10:55:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-20T17:26:34.401-04:00</updated><title type='text'>What&#39;s that gurgling sound I hear?</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;  &lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt;Might it be the sound of the US dollar being flushed down the international drain?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Enronic embezzlement which vaporized billions from pension funds and individual investors was but a pale reflection of the institutionalized thievery of a financial system which sells puffs of wind as gold nuggets.&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&amp;amp;aid=6816&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;Bushwhacking the commonweal...&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt;&quot;&lt;i&gt;In 2000, &lt;b&gt;when Bush took office&lt;/b&gt;, gold was $273 per ounce, oil was $22 per barrel and the euro was worth $.87 per dollar. Currently, gold is over $700 per ounce, oil is over $80 per barrel, and the euro is nearly $1.40 per dollar. If Bernanke cuts rates, we’re likely to see oil at $125 per barrel by next spring.&quot;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&amp;amp;aid=6816&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;a onblur=&quot;try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}&quot; href=&quot;http://www.atimes.com/atimes//images/dollar-mouse.gif&quot;&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;cursor: pointer; width: 156px; height: 119px;&quot; src=&quot;http://www.atimes.com/atimes//images/dollar-mouse.gif&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/II20Dj01.html&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;Defrauding its Lenders ...&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot; style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt;&lt;br /&gt;“The &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt;US&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt; Federal Reserve&#39;s cuts of 50 basis points ... sent the greenback into a tailspin, while stocks surged. The cuts also put &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt;&lt;st1:country-region&gt;&lt;st1:place&gt;China&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/st1:place&gt;&lt;/st1:country-region&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt;, with its massive wad of cash kept as US dollars, in a fix. But the Fed, despite the debasement of its own currency and the defrauding of its lenders, can be expected to keep the party going with more cuts next month.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;  &lt;p class=&quot;MsoNormal&quot;&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:&amp;quot;;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Gurgle ... Gurgle ... Gurgle...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;o:p&gt;&lt;/o:p&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/4836210109866536043/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/4836210109866536043?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/4836210109866536043'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/4836210109866536043'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/09/whats-that-gurgling-sound-i-hear.html' title='&lt;b&gt;What&#39;s that gurgling sound I hear?&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-7065511731732085997</id><published>2007-09-18T16:47:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-18T17:12:13.806-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Lifeline or hangman&#39;s rope?</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;The Fed cuts the Benchmark Rate by half a point ...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;a onblur=&quot;try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}&quot; href=&quot;http://www.tnr.com/slide/jillgreenberg/images/62.jpg&quot;&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px;&quot; src=&quot;http://www.tnr.com/slide/jillgreenberg/images/62.jpg&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:85%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:times new roman;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;Monkey Slide show from Jill Greenberg, The New Republic&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:85%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:times new roman;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family: lucida grande;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;Now...Let&#39;s see how much cash can I throw in the pot ...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/7065511731732085997/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/7065511731732085997?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/7065511731732085997'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/7065511731732085997'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/09/lifeline-or-hangmans-rope.html' title='&lt;b&gt;Lifeline or hangman&#39;s rope?&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-7609193203566586185</id><published>2007-09-17T12:23:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-17T12:52:47.926-04:00</updated><title type='text'>After Funny Money, the deluge?</title><content type='html'>&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;The Fed wouldn&#39;t let financial prestidigitators squirm while the house crumbles ... would it?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/II18Dj03.html&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;A RATE CUT WITH A SHOESHINE AND A SMILE&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;The Fed has already fired off two of its big guns, open market operations and, on August 17, a discount-rate cut, to little avail. The next step is a cut in the Federal Funds target rate, the benchmark overnight interest rate used by big banks to lend one another money.&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 153);&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Answer, tomorrow at 14:15 EST.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/7609193203566586185/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/7609193203566586185?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/7609193203566586185'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/7609193203566586185'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/09/after-funny-money-deluge.html' title='&lt;b&gt;After Funny Money, the deluge?&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-3947421666445284520</id><published>2007-09-14T08:41:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-15T08:04:19.809-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Round and Round the Bushie-Merry-Go-Round</title><content type='html'>&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;Mirror, mirror on the wall...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Last night, unashamedly, in front of his TV audience, Mr. Bush relieved himself  of another barely disguised &quot;Mission Accomplished&quot; speech.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;In a no holds barred refutation of Mr. Bush&#39;s delusions,&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;a style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot; href=&quot;http://edition.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0709/13/acd.02.html&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;Michael Ware&lt;/u&gt; &lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;provided,  point by point, a more realistic appraisal of the situation in the field:&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);&quot;&gt;        &quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;The president said that:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;If America were to be driven out of Iraq, &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255); font-style: italic;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;extremists of all strains would be emboldened.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 51, 51); font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;They are [emboldened] now&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Al Qaeda could gain new recruits and new sanctuaries.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;They have that now&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Iran would benefit from the chaos and be encouraged in its efforts to gain nuclear weapons and dominate the region.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;It is now&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Iraq would face a humanitarian crisis.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;It does now&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255); font-style: italic;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;That we would leave our children a far more dangerous world.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;That&#39;s happening now&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;.&lt;/span&gt;&quot;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: center;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;***********&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span&gt;&quot;Take that, you fools&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;With his usual unbridled hubris, &lt;u&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/13/washington/15full-text.html?_r=2&amp;amp;pagewanted=all&amp;amp;oref=slogin&quot;&gt;Mr. Bush&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/u&gt; put the world on notice that imperial America is in Iraq to stay!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255);&quot;&gt;&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255);&quot;&gt;This vision for a reduced American presence also has the support of Iraqi leaders from all communities. At the same time, they understand that their success will require U.S. political, economic and security&lt;/span&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;engagement that extends beyond my presidency&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255);&quot;&gt;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255);&quot;&gt;&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: center;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;*************&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;Saigon yesterdsay, Baghdad while the oil lasts, upheaval tomorrow...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;The United States have officially declared military bases in 146 countries strategically located to counter a resurgence of Russian influence and an assured economic and probable military confrontation with China.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;While Mr. Bush and the neocons are moving their imperious agenda inspite of any and all warnings of impending disaster, I agree with &lt;u&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2007/09/14/notes091407.DTL&amp;amp;nl=fix&quot;&gt;Morford&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt; on &lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt; the stark reality of our predicament.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;    &quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span id=&quot;bodytext&quot; class=&quot;georgia md&quot;  style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255); font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;Because the truth is, we are well past the point of salvaging anything noble or honest from Bush&#39;s massive, historic debacle. We have only this brutal reality: Iraq is, and forever will be, one of the most extraordinary wastes in all of American history&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(51, 102, 255);&quot;&gt;.&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span id=&quot;bodytext&quot; class=&quot;georgia md&quot;  style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;The blogosphere and the polls hint at an awakening, a revulsion against Bushism stirring the populace.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span id=&quot;bodytext&quot; class=&quot;georgia md&quot;  style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;And the US Congress wallows in its self-inflicted self-serving political inertia, bound and gagged by its paymasters in the corporate and special interests kingdoms. &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Round and round the Bushy-Go-Round.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/3947421666445284520/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/3947421666445284520?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/3947421666445284520'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/3947421666445284520'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/09/round-and-round-bushie-merry-go-round.html' title='&lt;b&gt;Round and Round the Bushie-Merry-Go-Round&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-8410402864101825730</id><published>2007-09-13T11:06:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-15T08:05:00.334-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Sine Qua Non</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;To read &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;Scott Horton&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&#39;s &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold; color: rgb(153, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;&quot;No Comment&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(153, 0, 0);&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;is to adopt it.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Care to see for yourself?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://harpers.org/subjects/NoComment&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;Click here!&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;for Horton&#39;s brief comment of today on the classical &quot;New World Order&quot;:&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: left;&quot;&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;Novus Ordo Seclorum.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 51, 255);font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 51, 255);&quot;&gt;When the American Founding Fathers turn to this classical phrase, &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 51, 255);&quot;&gt; they are making a proud claim-that the introduction of democracy in America would mark a new age for mankind-just as the Augustan age saw its law-based state as the natural next step in the evolution of humanity from the Homeric world.&lt;/span&gt;..&quot;  &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255);&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(0, 0, 0);&quot;&gt; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/8410402864101825730/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/8410402864101825730?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/8410402864101825730'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/8410402864101825730'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/09/sine-qua-non.html' title='&lt;b&gt;Sine Qua Non&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-7107616348868883448</id><published>2007-09-11T10:54:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2008-12-11T13:10:31.312-05:00</updated><title type='text'>&quot;War on Humanity&quot; Reality Check ...</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 51, 102);font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&quot;...For water is dry, black is white, skyscrapers fall down for the wrong reasons, the sun revolves around our world formed only six thousand years ago and our stupidity is not burning it up...&quot;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://welcome-to-pottersville.blogspot.com/2007/09/apology-to-my-grandchildren.html#links&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;Apology to my grand children&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;   &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot; class=&quot;item-desc&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFBJTqPoQt5pQwRxglXtV5PDzjB6RK4ntlw1dZ3Mj3cHxNSzO67jTn5sa2EN4Tkdaj_pkOOWDv1GJgeF4hm8jy0NWehOpuB98s5FuAfsoE3gW9txEAdWyQ6XiWL6r3Lh3DJyDf6931uQjy/s1600-h/earthbaby.jpg&quot;&gt;&lt;img src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFBJTqPoQt5pQwRxglXtV5PDzjB6RK4ntlw1dZ3Mj3cHxNSzO67jTn5sa2EN4Tkdaj_pkOOWDv1GJgeF4hm8jy0NWehOpuB98s5FuAfsoE3gW9txEAdWyQ6XiWL6r3Lh3DJyDf6931uQjy/s320/earthbaby.jpg&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&quot;To you, Gavin, and my still-unborn grandchild, I am sorry that I have failed you.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I have failed you for not, as the wise philosopher once advised, leaving the world a better place than I had found it. When I was younger, stronger and more idealistic, it seemed so much easier to pull off.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Because surely one person can make a difference. Look at George Walker Bush, a man installed rather than elected into the White House. Never mind that three quarters of us did not want him or that he got less votes than the other guy. That is just the way it is, children, and this is the world that I have bequeathed to you.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You were and will be brought into the world into a country that does not care if democracy becomes fascism, cannot rouse itself to action if our government is stolen or even actually support the suspension of constitutional rights given to us by infinitely wiser men than we have today, rights that millions have died protecting so we can shelve them like unwanted Christmas gifts.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Forgive me for not jumping into the breach sooner, an abyss created by the holes burned out of the Constitution by four jetliners, white phosphorous, bombs and mortars and the flame of religious and political bigotry.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Less and less makes sense in this world I hand to you like a worn-out heirloom. We have helped fashion a world in which water is dry, black is white, skyscrapers fall down for the wrong reasons, the sun revolves around our world formed only six thousand years ago and gravity doesn’t exist.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This is your world and you must atone for our sins.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And as you sit on my knee with a room-brightening smile on your unblemished face, you are trusting that I am easing you into a world where all faces will always smile at you and voices will always be soothing and everything is soft. And it breaks my heart that I have to disappoint you.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Because, you see, this is a world in which humans kill each other over differences in politics and religion, wars that get babies like you killed without much if any apology.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;This is the ugliest of realities, my darling grandchildren, offered in the most perishable of mediums. But for now, I can continue smiling and dandling you on my knee, pretending that all is well and good in the wonderful expanding world. But, God help me, I cannot maintain it for much longer.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For fiction is overtaken by truth. Yet the truth is, the truth has been overtaken by the fiction.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For water is dry, black is white, skyscrapers fall down for the wrong reasons, the sun revolves around our world formed only six thousand years ago and our stupidity is not burning it up.&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;item-desc&quot;&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/7107616348868883448/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/7107616348868883448?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/7107616348868883448'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/7107616348868883448'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/09/war-on-humanity-reality-check.html' title='&lt;b&gt;&quot;War on Humanity&quot; Reality Check ...&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFBJTqPoQt5pQwRxglXtV5PDzjB6RK4ntlw1dZ3Mj3cHxNSzO67jTn5sa2EN4Tkdaj_pkOOWDv1GJgeF4hm8jy0NWehOpuB98s5FuAfsoE3gW9txEAdWyQ6XiWL6r3Lh3DJyDf6931uQjy/s72-c/earthbaby.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-1036803274491387906</id><published>2007-09-01T00:20:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-15T08:07:23.905-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Let&#39;em eat cakes</title><content type='html'>&lt;a name=&quot;1013305282203090938&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;                        &lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: left;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;On &lt;u&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://welcome-to-pottersville.blogspot.com/&quot;&gt;Krugman&lt;/a&gt; ...&lt;/u&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;i&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 102, 255);&quot;&gt;&quot;Two years ago today, Americans watched in horror as a great city drowned, and wondered what had happened to their country. Where was FEMA? Where was the National Guard? Why wasn&#39;t the government of the world&#39;s richest, most powerful nation coming to the aid of its own citizens?&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;i style=&quot;font-family: trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;The US government has not come to the aid of its own citizens because the country&#39;s governance has been hijacked...by parvenu millionaires wielding the power of imperious Roman senators and by members of that House on the hill filled with social and historical illiterates mired in arguments over the best ways in which to dismember and bury the American democratic experiment…for the greatest profit of a coterie of elitists empowered by the rapine of Enronic thugs.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;i  style=&quot;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 51, 255);&quot;&gt;... The question is whether any of this will change when Mr. Bush leaves office...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;The unconstitutional [fascist] powers which Mr. Bush has arrogated at the expense of a supine, self-serving Congress and with the help of a complicit judiciary will remain at the disposal of the next White House puppet.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;The real question is : Does not the lesson of the last seven years prove the adage that &quot;GOP power corrupts and Bushist power corrupts absolutely&quot;?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;i style=&quot;color: rgb(51, 51, 255);&quot;&gt;There’s a powerful political faction in this country that’s determined to draw exactly the wrong lesson from the Katrina debacle — namely, that the government always fails when it attempts to help people in need, so it shouldn’t even try [...] And I’m not sure that faction is losing the argument. The thing about conservative governance is that it can succeed by failing: when conservative politicians mess up, they foster a cynicism about government that may actually help their cause.&quot;&lt;/i&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;The job is just about done:&lt;/span&gt; the country is industrially, politically, infrastructurally, ethically and internationally bankrupt. While the US is still &quot;banking&quot; on its formidable array of armaments to pillage foreign resources and threaten the planet, an equally formidable assemblage of emerging economic powers and military alliances are poised to remind the American emperor that he really has no clothes...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot;&gt;Hear the Russians ... Chinese ... coming ?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;/span&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/1036803274491387906/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/1036803274491387906?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/1036803274491387906'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/1036803274491387906'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/09/31-august-2007-on-krugman.html' title='&lt;b&gt;Let&#39;em eat cakes&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-2235306977203029711</id><published>2007-08-31T23:58:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2008-12-11T13:10:31.873-05:00</updated><title type='text'>&quot;Katrina and the Raves&quot;</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;post hentry uncustomized-post-template&quot;&gt;     &lt;a name=&quot;3075606640879441089&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;                 &lt;div class=&quot;post-body entry-content&quot;&gt;   &lt;br /&gt;               &lt;div class=&quot;post-body&quot;&gt;        &lt;p&gt;       &lt;/p&gt;&lt;a onblur=&quot;try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}&quot; href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM7C8NkqbnIhKvY1pm66r74Ln69aLj8QHoV-ePGzA0J6niDK-rx90RVrdypNr9A2KCy8o1P3Ooq95WhkyN11tGzXWy5ctd6uPoq_Kiqn_P9AGJBeVQinhjyArg_2RW99QS6MRAc58bBoRM/s1600-h/katrina_dead.jpg&quot;&gt;&lt;img style=&quot;margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM7C8NkqbnIhKvY1pm66r74Ln69aLj8QHoV-ePGzA0J6niDK-rx90RVrdypNr9A2KCy8o1P3Ooq95WhkyN11tGzXWy5ctd6uPoq_Kiqn_P9AGJBeVQinhjyArg_2RW99QS6MRAc58bBoRM/s400/katrina_dead.jpg&quot; alt=&quot;&quot; id=&quot;BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5104247084629840786&quot; border=&quot;0&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;...&quot;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;Not so much as a syllable of complaint, censure or even constructive criticism from the neoconservative hyenas about 1800 dead, billions in damage and the virtual disappearance and subsequent martial takeover of one of America’s most historic, colorful and vibrant cities.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;Not even a joke about “Lake George” or “Row vs. Wade” in twenty foot-high fetid standing floodwater, not a breath mentioned of Bush demoting FEMA from a once-competent cabinet-level agency ably run by Clinton appointee James Lee Witt and made a useless appendage to a bloated and useless host called Homeland Security.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;Then again, the results speak for themselves: The poor that have been allowed to come back from the FEMA-run internment camps and formaldehyde-impregnated trailers for which they’ll have to start paying rent next year have been priced out of decent housing, priced out of decent schools for their kids, have seen whatever work they can pick up cleaning up their own city snapped up by Halliburton, that Bush tried to get around the 1931 Bacon Davis prevailing wage act, that their water system’s been privatized and that Bush is now &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-06-14-fema-overpayments_N.htm&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;trying to get back $485,000,000&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt;, almost a half a billion dollars back, from these still largely jobless and homeless people because, with FEMA, it’s feast or famine.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;And the likes of Viguerie don’t hate Karl Rove because he failed as the face-saving Czar of New Orleans’ “reconstruction.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;And they’re not angry at Bush for rolling up record deficits that would bankrupt a dozen Bill Gates with endless tax cuts and that he’s got the chutzpah to hit Congress up for an &lt;u&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/28/AR2007082801984.html&quot;&gt;extra $50,000,000,000&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt; for his bloody oil war and, by doing so, is essentially saying, “Congress is my bitch.”&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;No, no, no, it’s none of that.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;You see, according the real dick-twisters on the Far Right, it’s because, after nearly 75 years, they never actually quite did away with that damnable welfare state that they’d inherited from that evil, wicked liberal FDR, someone whose worth to certain historically-challenged Republicans is solely in leading us to victory in a war that can used to analogize the war on terror.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;It’s because the rich, according to Scott Hodge at CPAC, &lt;u&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://blog.ourfuture.org/the_rich_are_getting_screwed&quot;&gt;still aren’t rich enough&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;They hate Bush for his seeming conciliatory immigration bill, therefore in not keeping America as white as it once was, in not being able to singlehandedly reverse a national trend of Hispanics being the fastest-growing minority in America. They hate Bush because he bloating the government beyond all manageable size in their view disqualifies us from the cherished oligarchy of which they wistfully dream.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;They hate Karl Rove for failing the party, for interrupting his string of consecutive successful thrown elections, for not fulfilling on his open promise of a 4th Reich of a thousand years that barely lasted four, because George couldn’t quite pull off opening up that string of McMocracies across the Middle East packed with right wing ideological puppets and got, instead, an unshaved version of George W. Bush in Nouri al-Maliki.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;They hate Alberto Gonzales for not firing enough US attorneys, for not being able to help pack the Justice Department with 93 solidly and certifiably insane Liberty Law School grads and turning the DOJ into the Democrat-hunting pogrom that they needed. They hate him for looking like a flannel-tongued fool on Quaaludes testifying to the Senate about the once-secret NSA wiretapping program and for bumbling into John Ashcroft’s ICU room in front of witnesses.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;They are all traitors to the cause, every one of them.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;But the 1800 that Katrina killed, the hundreds of thousands that she’d displaced? Well, they don’t seem to have a problem with that.&quot;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;Thank God some powerful people still have their priorities in order.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(255, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Gleaned from:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;a style=&quot;font-weight: bold;&quot; href=&quot;http://welcome-to-pottersville.blogspot.com/2007/08/katrina-and-raves.html#links&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;Welcome to Pottersville: Katrina and the Raves&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/2235306977203029711/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/2235306977203029711?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/2235306977203029711'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/2235306977203029711'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/08/katrina-and-raves.html' title='&lt;b&gt;&quot;Katrina and the Raves&quot;&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM7C8NkqbnIhKvY1pm66r74Ln69aLj8QHoV-ePGzA0J6niDK-rx90RVrdypNr9A2KCy8o1P3Ooq95WhkyN11tGzXWy5ctd6uPoq_Kiqn_P9AGJBeVQinhjyArg_2RW99QS6MRAc58bBoRM/s72-c/katrina_dead.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-4904306057879972482</id><published>2007-08-31T23:57:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-15T07:58:59.707-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Behold your new endless money supply ...</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;post hentry uncustomized-post-template&quot;&gt;     &lt;a name=&quot;6106688324269849705&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;                             &lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;post-body entry-content&quot;&gt;       &lt;p&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;Funny money&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;                                                    &lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;post-body entry-content&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;                                                        Friday, 27 August 07&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Securities used by institutional borrowers to obtain loans and leverage more Enronic rapine of pension funds are being exposed daily as worthless chits ... but don&#39;t worry, the Fed is here to rescue fearless and lawless financial adventurers.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;As the Fed cut discount rates today, breathless borrowers hanging at the end of their margin will get a brief respite in looser credit ... while the foundations of their trust in the viability of the system are disolving underfoot.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Billions of funny money injected into the system last week and coffin nails provided today in a desperate last move to prevent the inevitable.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/4904306057879972482/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/4904306057879972482?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/4904306057879972482'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/4904306057879972482'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/08/behold-your-new-endless-money-supply.html' title='&lt;b&gt;Behold your new endless money supply ...&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-224366313854528734</id><published>2007-08-31T23:55:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-15T08:10:52.090-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Another kind of Surge before the Fall</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot; class=&quot;post-body entry-content&quot;&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-weight: bold;font-size:130%;&quot; &gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page/IH08Aa01.html&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;&quot;Endless War&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;post-body entry-content&quot;&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&quot;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;...under the new dispensation when the netherworld has become the main show and the compensatory human rights rhetoric an ever more strident exercise in hypocrisy, legitimacy seems to come from impunity.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;And the American political class has no more patience with divergent interests, claims of independent judgment, or &quot;decent respect for the opinion of mankind&quot;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/224366313854528734/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/224366313854528734?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/224366313854528734'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/224366313854528734'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/08/another-kind-of-surge-before-fall.html' title='&lt;b&gt;Another kind of Surge before the Fall&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-7220390646487462146</id><published>2007-08-31T23:54:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-16T18:14:09.251-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Pelosi has met her Georgerloo ...</title><content type='html'>&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot; class=&quot;post-body entry-content&quot;&gt;       &lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;By all accounts, president George Bush has violated his oath to the Constitution by declaring himself and his administration neither answerable nor accountable to anyone he does not sanction.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;div class=&quot;post-body entry-content&quot;&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Madame Pelosi, first woman to occupy the powerful post of Speaker of the House, will also be the first sworn constitutional officer to witness and disregard a blatant rape of our Constitution.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;One may reasonable assume that madame Pelosi is more concerned with political gaming than with saving this rapidly crumbling democracy.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;&lt;u&gt;Nancy Pelosi embedded in not so funny Bushiness&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;object height=&quot;350&quot; width=&quot;425&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;movie&quot; value=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/QQEC7drmz0o&quot;&gt;&lt;param name=&quot;wmode&quot; value=&quot;transparent&quot;&gt;&lt;embed src=&quot;http://www.youtube.com/v/QQEC7drmz0o&quot; type=&quot;application/x-shockwave-flash&quot; wmode=&quot;transparent&quot; height=&quot;350&quot; width=&quot;425&quot;&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Anyone else hear the barbarians laughing at her from the Supreme White House?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/7220390646487462146/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/7220390646487462146?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/7220390646487462146'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/7220390646487462146'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/08/pelosi-has-met-her-georgerloo.html' title='&lt;b&gt;Pelosi has met her Georgerloo ...&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-7110632526297290464</id><published>2007-08-31T23:51:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-15T08:01:10.559-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Ahmadinejad vs George Dubious Bush</title><content type='html'>&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;color: rgb(153, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;i&gt;A few more atrocities, anyone?&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot; class=&quot;post-body entry-content&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Let&#39;s face it. If you combined the intellectual quotient of a Bush, a Rumsfeld and of all those imperious neocons who bask in their predatory delusions , you could not begin to solve the conundrum irremediably contrived by America&#39;s enronic corporate and political elites.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;They and they alone have dragged this nation into the maelstrom of dead-end régime changes; they, alone, are recreating today&#39;s drug dealing Afghanistan; they, alone are feeding the cause of fundamentalist extremism in blood-soaked Iraq; and these aberrations are but hypnotic distractions.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;These would-be conquerors now have their sclerotic vision fixed on Iran.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Roped into a tug of war with emerging power blocs who compete ever more aggressively for the planet&#39;s diminishing oil supplies, stripped of the international legitimacy which the USA once briefly claimed as a world leader, juggling with an exhausted military manpower, the Bushist neocons can neither abandon the oil fields of the Middle-East nor remain embroiled in the suicidal politico-religious Islamic confrontation which its military industrial profiteers have provoked.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Don&#39;t be surprised if these international thugs now resort to nuclear weaponry in order to try and delay their inevitable rout.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Given the Bushists&#39;s penchant for illicit, illegitimate and illegal expedients, nuclear atrocities may well be the next escalation in depravity to which they resort in a frantic search for a way out of their own contrived nightmare.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/7110632526297290464/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/7110632526297290464?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/7110632526297290464'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/7110632526297290464'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/08/ahmadinejad-vs-george-dubious-bush.html' title='&lt;b&gt;Ahmadinejad vs George Dubious Bush&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-642904995596228552.post-4119824853514595891</id><published>2007-08-31T23:48:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2007-09-15T08:02:03.872-04:00</updated><title type='text'>China Rampant</title><content type='html'>&lt;div  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Uneasy shuffling among the imperious ranks&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;Chinese submarines lurk in Japanese territorial waters, Sino-Japanese dispute rights to offshore gas fields, the European Union formally declares China a &quot;strategic partner&quot;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Great Balls of Smoke!&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&quot;Bonhomie is officially back in transatlantic relations after George Bush&#39;s fence-mending trip to Europe - but a fresh divisive crisis could be looming over the EU&#39;s determination to lift its 14-year arms embargo on China.&quot;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Ooops !&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&quot;China&#39;s growing domestic defence manufacturing capability has rendered the EU&#39;s  arms embargo meaningless&quot;.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Wrinkled Mirrors&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&quot;While Japan&#39;s Middle Eastern oil supplies are shipped through the Taiwan Straits, US concerns about Chinese rising power causes &quot;deep concern&quot; about any &quot;change in the balance of relations between China and Taiwan&quot;.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The US Treasury would go belly-up if either Japan or China decide to call in their markers!&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Hubris Major&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&quot;The US could retaliate by curbing technology exchanges with the European Union&quot;&lt;br /&gt;Watch Old Europe retaliate and stop exporting their Einsteins and Von Brauns.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;b style=&quot;color: rgb(102, 0, 0);&quot;&gt;Neoconism oblige&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;The U.K.&#39;s Gordon Brown, touting for business in Beijing and Shanghai while Mr Bush is in Brussels...&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p  style=&quot;text-align: justify;font-family:trebuchet ms;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;font-size:130%;&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div style=&quot;text-align: justify; color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-style: italic;&quot;&gt;&lt;span style=&quot;;font-family:trebuchet ms;font-size:130%;&quot;  &gt;&lt;b&gt;Round and round the Bushy-Go-Round...&lt;/b&gt;&lt;/span&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/feeds/4119824853514595891/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment/fullpage/post/642904995596228552/4119824853514595891?isPopup=true' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/4119824853514595891'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/642904995596228552/posts/default/4119824853514595891'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://iotas.blogspot.com/2007/08/china-rampant.html' title='&lt;b&gt;China Rampant&lt;/b&gt;'/><author><name>Unknown</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='https://img1.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry></feed>