Let me up, I've had enough. Actively participated a few years ago, stayed for the progressive politics and great debates/discussions/diaries. Started to lurk a year or so ago. Made an attempt recently to wade back in to the comment wars. Am now completely disgusted by what I'm seeing day-in and day-out. This site is now so far from the Daily Kos I found so important just a few years ago. Markos, this has to be akin to watching your darling baby grow up to be an idiot thug. So innocent, so much potential, so eager - now just churning out the same under-researched, unsubstantiated bullshit you can read on any opinion poll on CNN.com or mirrored in countless rightwing blogs.
I wish I had hard facts for this diary - all I have is a story I heard yesterday from a family member living in western North Carolina. This individual is involved in the construction industry, and lives in an area famous for its Christmas tree farms. This week, the INS has staged several raids on illegal workers at these farms, just as their season is at its peak.
"'My country right or wrong' is a thing no patriot would ever think of saying except in a desperate case. It is like saying, 'My mother - drunk or sober!'" G.K. Chesterton in The Defendant, 1901
While catching up on the latest debates on torture, the weasling ways our rights and reputations and futures are being squandered, the latest signs that Democrats and the media are finding their spines, if not their voices - I was remembering a song from the early 1990s by the fabulous group, Midnight Oil, "My Country." The above quote also sprung to mind.
Well, well. The elements of a surprise thriller are in a CNN poll released today. The title of the article says what they perceive people want to hear: " Poll: GOP better against terrorism, Dems better on Iraq" but ignores a more interesting result they report in the body of the article.
I'm filling in the space for an open thread as there isn't one up right now... A comment in another thread pointed out that Michael Savage is on a tear tonight about Lamont.
I'd drop this in an open thread, but there isn't one right now. Go over to CNN and look for their poll at the bottom right of the headlines. Their question?
"When the war in Iraq started, did you believe the U.S. would suffer so many casualties?"
Yea! CNN asks the obvious a few years too late, but just in time for the 2000th American troop fatality. At least the numbers so far show that 4 out of 5 of their viewers weren't fooled...
Months ago there was a small number of diaries (see also BemusedBrit's and Musing85's entries) about a U.S. citizen named Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, 23. He's been charged, finally (he was arrested in Saudi Arabia in June 2003), with discussing possible ways to assassinate Bush. His biggest problems? He was tortured in Saudi Arabia for a while, and his "confession" may be allowed in a U.S. court...
Drowning in a puddle of little stories, more likely. And they go away, and new little ones are spilled in their place.
The dangers of our 24/7 newscycle, if not readily apparent before, are becoming staggeringly so now. Let us recap some of the major stories that have come out in the past few weeks - none of which will be given much play in light of the hurricane coverage:
Before all diary entries cry out for the falling sky around O'Connor's retirement, thought I'd try to slip this into the Diary Chain.
Mostly just a link to a CNN article (brief, news-lite, but there in a sea of stories about dumb celebrities, etc.), and also to continue following a story that is quietly humming in the background.
A few months ago there was a small flurry of diaries about CIA kidnappings in Italy, with the kidnapped ending up in Egypt for a little out-sourced torturing. This past Sunday, this diary pointed out a recent story about the 13 CIA operatives living large while waiting to swoop down on the Muslim suspects. This is just icing on the cake - the cake itself is pretty rotten. Ask the Italian government.
News coming out of Italy reports that the Italian government is pissed. It is no surprise, at least to anyone who has paid any attention these past 4 years, that Bush Co. would betray its own mother to achieve its ends.
Did I misconstrue the meaning of an NPR story this afternoon? I could've sworn I heard David Welna reporting that 1) not only did 7 Republicans split from the party to vote with Democrats to save Medicaid from massive cuts, but also 2) this might derail the budget, and therefore also close the door to ANWR drilling.
I nearly choked on my cereal this morning whilst listening to NPR. Apparently the White House worked behind the scenes to get Saudi Arabia to arrest Akmed Abu Ali and 3 other American citizens two years ago. The other three have been indicted in the U.S.; one of these was released due to lack of evidence. Abu Ali is still being held in Saudi Arabia, his lawyers cannot see the evidence, and he may have been tortured (fingernails torn out).
Just saw a story on CNN International about recent proposals to place a moratorium on debt loads of countries hit by tsunami. Sounds nice, but will it happen? And will it help?
In the wonderland that is the Bush Economy, I have moved frequently these past few years in search of better employment. With each upheaval comes the need to reestablish 401(k) at each new job...
