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Weekend Open Thread

I'm going to take advantage of the great weather and then attack a massive amount of wiretap discovery for the rest of the day.

Here's an open thread where you can pick the topics.

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    Last night's TV... (5.00 / 1) (#2)
    by desertswine on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 03:04:55 PM EST
    Bill Moyers with Bruce Fein (Associate Deputy AG under Reagan), and John Nichols (The Nation) discussing the impeachment of Bush and Cheney, was the best TV I've seen in a long time.

    Granted I don't get cable.

    THE BEST (5.00 / 3) (#11)
    by Sumner on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 06:20:48 PM EST
    Bruce Fein is a Constitutional scholar extraordinaire. When he worked at the Department of Justice, his Constitutional pronouncements from there, used to send me into a fury. I remember formulating Constitutional theories like mad to try and counter Fein's own.

    When Bruce Fein would appear at hearings I would scream at the television. He has always worked me up into a dander. So, I watched in awe last night as he articulated with far more clarity than I have been able to summons, the urgency for exigent attention to the usurpations and betrayals by the current administration, and why they cannot go unanswered.

    Bruce Fein has honed his keen edge of an intellect of Constitutional awareness into a meticulous focus that spins circles around my own. I am so grateful to be on the same side as he is now. He gets me every bit as worked up as much as always, but now, finally, while fully in agreement.

    Parent

    Just finished streaming it and yes - BRILLIANT (5.00 / 2) (#23)
    by conchita on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 10:55:30 PM EST
    for those who missed the show last night, you can stream here.  quite possibly the most important hour of television i have ever watched.  watching it should be required of each member of congress.  heh, maybe then we'd actually have a legislative branch that values the tripartite government our founders intended.

    Parent
    Live and learn (1.00 / 1) (#5)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 04:04:02 PM EST
    I didn't know the scifi channel was on anything but cable.....

    Parent
    Thanks... (5.00 / 1) (#10)
    by desertswine on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 06:15:18 PM EST
    for the usual childish view from the peanut gallery.

    Parent
    Your welcome (1.00 / 1) (#13)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 07:36:16 PM EST
    Actually I was thinking of "Fantasy Island."

    Parent
    To be serious (1.00 / 1) (#16)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 07:58:18 PM EST
    Hilarious. (none / 0) (#17)
    by Edger on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 08:19:38 PM EST
    It's a conspiracy, ppj.

    Moyers won't DRINK THE FUKIN' KOOL-AID!

    [h/t to ACitizen]


    Parent

    A Wingnuts Dream (1.00 / 1) (#18)
    by Edger on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 09:12:45 PM EST
    The Impeachment Movement
    There's going to be a temptation to get the public overwhelmingly behind the Democrats by impeaching Cheney and Bush.  The thinking would run something like this: "If we give the public what it wants and show that we stand for the rule of law and are capable of enforcing it, we'll win with such a huge margin that nobody will be able to steal the victory from us.  And if we fail to convict Cheney or Bush in the Senate, the Republican senators who block it will be out on their ears.  We win either way."  

    I assume you've already spotted the problem: if you reinstate the rule of law, then you might elect Hillary as President, but she won't be Emperor.

    So, let me suggest a different approach: Cut a deal.  Cut a secret deal with Bush and Cheney.  Hillary will pardon them and Halliburton of any crimes, honor their service, place a monument to them on the National Mall, and rename the occupation of Iraq, "Operation Dick and Dubya".  Only a Democrat can promise those things.  In exchange, both camps will agree to steal the election for Hillary.

    Then... watch out world!  And, Sean Hannity?  Get yourself a personal Blackwater contingent.

    I think this can be done.  I know it sounds utopian.  The biggest danger, I think, is that Republicans will catch on too soon and start saying things like Bruce Fein said on Bill Moyers' show last weekend, start pushing the old quaint idea that impeachment protects us all.

    Hey wingnuts! You'd better get behind impeaching Dick and George before this turns into A Wingnuts Nightmare.

    But remember, whether you do or whether you don't, it's you wingnuts who are hanging Dick and George.

    Ain't karma a mean bi*ch sometimes?

    Parent

    Not necessary and not entirely accurate Edger (5.00 / 1) (#19)
    by ctrenta on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 09:38:59 PM EST
    Hey man, I don't mind if you disagree with impeachment. But caling us wingnuts is NOT nice and not fair. I don't want to play Mr. Rogers in all this but if you strongly disagree at least be respectful and engage us in a meaningful way.

    How much time have you spent with people advocating for impeachment?  Granted there are quite of few shrill individuals that spout off some ignorant and non-intelligent things but not everyone is like that.

    I live in the hear of the Vermont impeachment movement and it's been amazing to see the number of diverse people get involved. My favorite stoey comes from Town Meeting Day where a leading Democrat in the town of Wilmington introduced an impeachment resolution and the person who seconded it was the chair of the Wilmington Republicans. That was an amazing bipartisan effort I've seen in quite a while.

    There has been support from young as nine to 88 years old, I've met evangelicals from northern Vermont who've gotten behind the effort and witnessed 200-250 Vermonters jam packed the House chamber for the House vote on impeachment. If you saw what I saw, you'd be amazed to see how many people were not wing-nuts. Many of them never even participated in politics. So it was really inspring.

    I think our shot at impeachment is just as good as the Democrats trying to end the war and bring the troops home. The difference is, and history backs this up, is that impeachment can lead to a speedy withdrawl. The impeachment hearings brought to light some signifcant information on the war in Vietnam and REALLY set the ball rolling in bringing them home. I think the same could happen now.

    Other than that, that latest impeachment poll by the American Research Group  was encouraging and I think as time goes on more Americans will jump onto the idea as the right and appropriate solution to the war and ESPECIALLY to our system of goverment. As John Nichols said last night on Bill Moyers

    Impeachment is not a punishment but a cure .

    Can't get any more accurate than that.

    Parent

    Vermont... (5.00 / 1) (#21)
    by dutchfox on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 10:03:19 PM EST
    I was in Montpelier back in March, when nearly 300 impeachment people gathered to lobby the legislature here.

    Parent
    I guess I can see how that might (none / 0) (#20)
    by Edger on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 09:51:13 PM EST
    have been misinterpreted, ctrenta. I have nothing against impeachment other than there is no way to gather enough votes for it. And because of that, it is my opinion that Bush/Cheney/Rove et al are solidly behind the movement because they would see it as Democrats wasting their energies.

    THEY are the 'wingnuts' I referred to above, not you. If you are familiar with my comments you'll know that most of them are designed to be nightmares for wingnuts, or to rub the wingnuts noses in the messes they've made. That is how I intended the above to be read.

    Parent

    More wingnut idiocy (5.00 / 0) (#22)
    by Edger on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 10:22:59 PM EST
    Way to go, George:
    Britain's most senior generals have issued a blunt warning to Downing Street that the military campaign in Afghanistan is facing a catastrophic failure, a development that could lead to an Islamist government seizing power in neighbouring Pakistan.

    Amid fears that London and Washington are taking their eye off Afghanistan as they grapple with Iraq, the generals have told Number 10 that the collapse of the government in Afghanistan, headed by Hamid Karzai, would present a grave threat to the security of Britain.

    Where was it that al-Qaeda was based again?

    Oh yes, Iraq! How silly of me...

    edger (1.00 / 1) (#24)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 09:23:24 AM EST
    You are very eager to believe retired Generals who say leave, but won't believe active Generals who say we meed to fight.

    If you ever need surgery it will be interesting to watch who you chose as the cutter.

    Parent

    Read the article (none / 0) (#25)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 09:31:53 AM EST
    before you crawl back under your bridge, ppj:
    Inge's remarks reflect the fears of serving generals that the government is so overwhelmed by Iraq that it is in danger of losing sight of the threat of failure in Afghanistan. One source, who is familiar with the fears of the senior officers, told The Observer: 'If you talk privately to the generals they are very very worried.


    Parent
    edger (1.00 / 1) (#26)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 10:13:45 AM EST
    Hmmm... The palatial Retirement Compound doesn't have a bridge, edger, so your trollish suggestion
    doesn't work very well. It does have a high spot where I overlook the grounds and thank our country for what it is has allowed me to do.

    As for the article, I read it. It reminded me of some of the complaints that MacArthur was shooting off to Truman... Have you read Manchester's bio of MacArthur? A truly remarkable man. When everyone else was screaming defense he went on an end run that saved thousands upon thousands of American and Japanese lives. He, more than anyone else, is the father of modern day Japan.

    Anyway, he was prone to complain that Europe was getting the most attention, ignoring that the reason for that was simple. We could lose the war against Hitler Inc., but not against Japan. After the Battle of Midway.... I gave you a short piece about that just the other day when you were busy insulting  those who had served and died in Naval Aviation, remember?....the best Japan could hope for was a draw after Miday.

    So MacArthur's complaints were valid, as to the specific problem, but not as to the war in total.
    So I have no doubt that Inge is right, but at this moment we are engaged in Iraq.

    Perhaps that would not be so if the Left, for the past, at least, three years, had not been busy screaming for out withdrawal and Bush dumbly trying to placate them by not just turning the military loose.

    Parent

    Jim's post '68 stress disorder (5.00 / 0) (#29)
    by jondee on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 01:48:05 PM EST
    is kicking in again: if the liberal media, enemy emboldening "Left", and Bush (Johnson, Nixon) would just "turn the military loose" (nuke Hanoi etc) and not worry about placating the majority of the citizenry, it'll make the wounded tribal narcissism of sixties armchair warriors all better.

    Parent
    It's tough for him (5.00 / 0) (#30)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 03:04:51 PM EST
    claiming to support the troops only as long as the Generals toe Bush's line and let them die them for no good reason.

    Parent
    jondee (1.00 / 0) (#31)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 03:28:46 PM EST
    Glad you brought up the bombing of Hanoi.

    Everytime Nixon did they started talking peace.

    Unfortunately he didn't figure out that what he should do was keep bombing while they discussed peace and stop only when they the discussion became "yes! yes! We surrender!!"

    Now, as dumb as that was, you seem to not be able to figure out the concept at all.

    Parent

    Ummm... (5.00 / 0) (#33)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 03:36:47 PM EST
    You're supposed to be in Iraq to "liberate" the Iraqis, remember?

    Not kill them, ppj.

    Oooops.

    Parent

    edger (none / 0) (#61)
    by jimakaPPJ on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 07:18:53 PM EST
    No. We went there to change regimes.

    Parent
    And (none / 0) (#64)
    by squeaky on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 09:18:03 PM EST
    "Cleanse" the population as well?  Sounds very colonial.

    Parent
    Glad you're such a predictable one (5.00 / 0) (#58)
    by jondee on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 01:05:46 PM EST
    note poney.

    The peace talks started under Johnson. And thanks to your Pre-Iran Contra sc*m bag buddies, they were sabotaged by Rethug weasals promising the South a better deal that they never delivered on.

    Meanwhile tens-of-thousands more died. Although not many from the 101st Keyboard Commando Division.

    Parent

    jondee (1.00 / 1) (#62)
    by jimakaPPJ on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 07:20:37 PM EST
    So the communists not negotiating had nothing to do with it??

    Well, I see that the Left's idea of negotiations has changed in 40 years.

    Surrender.

    Parent

    No. (none / 0) (#27)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 10:37:08 AM EST
    It would be not so if Bush had not attacked a country that was no threat.

    Parent
    edger (1.00 / 1) (#32)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 03:36:03 PM EST
    And if we had some ham we'd have some ham and eggs if we had some eggs.

    Most adults understand the concept of "here and now."

    If Saddam had been more forthcoming...

    If we had....

    If the rabbit hadn't stopped....

    If Clinton had taken OBL off the Sudan's hands...

    If the FAA, FBI, etc., had taken Rice's warnings of 7/5/01 seriously...

    We are at where we are. If we withdraw it will be regarded by the whole world as a defacto defeat.

    Parent

    And like certain (none / 0) (#28)
    by jondee on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 01:38:15 PM EST
    other federal appointees, as soon as they say it's a disaster, they wont be active any longer.

    Parent
    from slashdot again: (5.00 / 1) (#34)
    by Sumner on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 08:01:11 PM EST
    Yes (none / 0) (#44)
    by squeaky on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 11:02:42 PM EST
    Jorn Barger rocks.

    Parent
    For all you folks who concerned over bees (1.00 / 0) (#6)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 04:06:04 PM EST
    My Crepe Myrtle trees are totally covered. They sound like a jet about to take off...

    DA Do the Left Wing Shuffle (1.00 / 0) (#37)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 09:54:45 PM EST
    When in trouble,

    Fear or doubt

    Run im circles

    Scream and shout..

    Parent

    ppj (none / 0) (#45)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 11:13:18 PM EST
    What Are You So Afraid Of?
    Sex? Gays? Terrorists? God? In BushCo's fear-drunk world, only one question really matters.
    ...
    Fear is bombing Afghanistan, right now. Fear is why we are decimating Iraq. A massive murderous budget-busting U.N.-hating war on a nonthreatening nation would have been unspeakable and intolerable had the GOP not deliberately engaged in truly world-class fearmongering beforehand, all about leveraging the sadness of 9/11 and tying it to nonexistent WMDs and biotoxins and nukes and scary bearded foreigners who are all hell bent on slaughtering American babies with rusty machetes.

    Don't forget the bees, ppj. They can sting.

    Parent

    edger (1.00 / 0) (#47)
    by jimakaPPJ on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 10:14:17 AM EST
    You're the dude with the conspiracy theories..

    I bet if you check around you'll find that all of this is caused by Bush...

    Trans fat..... cigarette smoke...refined sugar..christians....


    Parent

    Scream and shout (none / 0) (#57)
    by jondee on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 12:58:57 PM EST
    "The terrorists are coming! The terrorists are coming!"

    Add some colored coded terror alerts if it's an election year.

    Parent

    We don't need no facts (none / 0) (#36)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 09:49:04 PM EST
    One or two isolated occurrences of bees, I mean terrorists, doesn't mean they are everywhere.

    Forget science and facts. Use superstition and prayer instead.

    Parent

    A Flash from the past... (1.00 / 0) (#38)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 10:01:33 PM EST
    I miss Minh Duc very much. He was one of my favorite commenters and bloggers,....

    Minh Duc may not be unique, but I don't personally know of anyone with his experience. Not only did he endure the re-education camps and killing fields after we abandoned the Vietnamese to their bloody fate, he also survived the boat trip and made it to the US. When he grew up, he joined the military and served for several years in Iraq.

    Link

    To the men and women who would do this, I maintain that you are nothing but a group of tucktails. If the Iraq War is so bad, so immoral, do everything in your power to stop it. Allocate no funds. Bush vetoes? Keep allocating no funds. Force Bush to choose between literal force protection and a staredown.

    Stupid, immoral, cowardly excuses for human beings, the lot of you. If this war is merely a waste of lives and treasure, you are honor-bound to stop it at all costs. So do it. Relive the 1970s. Show us that you accept the inevitable slaughter of millions as irrelevant so that we can all watch the evening news without being bothered. Prove that refugees dying on boats and in camps are merely pictures, and not men, women, and children possessed of human dignity, being tortured because the United States won't live up to its promises. Remind the world again that we are a paper tiger, and then grieve when another embassy is held hostage.

    He does have quite a way with words, eh??

    What? (5.00 / 0) (#59)
    by jondee on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 01:10:13 PM EST
    No more fabricated Gen. Giap quotes? He had a "way with words", too.

    Parent
    Prove that refugees dying (none / 0) (#39)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 10:20:47 PM EST
    are merely pictures, and not men, women, and children possessed of human dignity, being tortured because the United States won't live up to its promises.

    Washington Post Foreign Service, Saturday, July 7, 2007

    In April, the United States and other Western countries pledged financial help for Iraqis fleeing violence and chaos. But even as the number of refugees in Syria and Jordan swells to more than 2 million, aid has been minimal. So far, donations total $70 million, with an additional $10 million in pledges. But hundreds of millions of dollars are needed to cope with the crisis, U.N. officials said.
    ...
    About 4 million Iraqis have been displaced inside and outside Iraq. Syria continued to be the biggest host of Iraqi refugees, receiving an estimated 30,000 a month. The United States accepted 63 Iraqi refugees last month, and just 36 in the first five months of this year, according to the State Department.
    I'll be here all week, ppj. Take your time.

    Parent
    Fast enough?? (1.00 / 1) (#40)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 10:33:38 PM EST
    The way to prevent a problem is find a solution for the root cause.

    REPORTER: Mr. Bin Ladin, will the end of the United States' presence in Saudi Arabia, their withdrawal, will that end your call for jihad against the United States and against the US ?

    BIN LADIN: So, the driving-away jihad against the US does not stop with its withdrawal from the Arabian peninsula, but rather it must desist from aggressive intervention against Muslims in the whole world.

    Get rid of terrorism throughout the world and the problem is gone.

    Parent

    Get rid of homicide (5.00 / 1) (#60)
    by jondee on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 01:14:55 PM EST
    rape, torture, Rethug weasals who move their businesses offshore during a time of "national sacrifice" etc And the problem is gone.

    Parent
    Impeach and hang (none / 0) (#41)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 10:38:18 PM EST
    Cheney and Bush?!?!

    Shouldn't we give them a fair trial first, ppj?

    And while they're being questioned in prison do you think they deserve better treatment than they've given to other American Citizens they have in captivity?

    Or do you think the same treatment is good enough for them, considering how many hundreds of thousands they've killed?

    Parent

    I do agree with you that (none / 0) (#42)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 10:40:28 PM EST
    they should desist from aggressive intervention against Muslims in the whole world.

    Glad to see you finally coming around, ppj.

    You're not going to renege again are you? Unlike most rethugs, your word actually means something, yes?

    Parent

    Really edger, you have become boring (1.00 / 1) (#48)
    by jimakaPPJ on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 10:21:25 AM EST
    I do agree with you that they should desist from aggressive intervention against Muslims in the whole world.

    Agree with me??

    You know that the quote comes from OBL, not me.

    So why do you misquote? You don't want to admit that OBL layed it all out in 1997 and the Left has been ignoring it for years?

    Parent

    So you are going to renege after all, huh? (none / 0) (#50)
    by Edger on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 10:49:13 AM EST
    Should I be surprised? I guess not.

    The Left has been ignoring it for years? The left has been telling you to desist from aggressive intervention against Muslims or anyone else in the whole world for years, ppj. Because it causes people to retaliate and results in horrors like this.

    ppj, you're testing my faith. I'd be pretty close to losing my religion over you.

    If I had one.

    Parent

    ppj, you still haven't told me (none / 0) (#51)
    by Edger on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 11:02:31 AM EST
    what you plan to do for the 4 million Iraqi refugees you've "liberated" by murdering nearly a million of their countrymen.

    Especially their children.

    Or are you just avoiding the question? Again?

    Parent

    edger (1.00 / 1) (#53)
    by jimakaPPJ on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 12:31:06 PM EST
    Let them return home and straighten out their own country.

    Did you not read my comment?  All that Hamas money, UN money, Oil For Food scandal money..

    When are you leaving for Tehran??

    Parent

    Refugees, ppj. (none / 0) (#55)
    by Edger on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 12:40:34 PM EST
    You started his subthread talking about refugees, ppj.

    Should I be surprised that given a little bit of reality you immediately start avoiding the subject now?

    You still haven't told me what you plan to do for the 4 million Iraqi refugees you've "liberated" by murdering nearly a million of their countrymen.

    Especially their children.

    Or are you just avoiding the question? Again?

    Why?

    Parent

    You do have (none / 0) (#52)
    by Edger on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 11:04:50 AM EST
    a place in your heart for the children, don't you, ppj?

    Or don't you?

    Parent

    If you had a religion? (none / 0) (#54)
    by jimakaPPJ on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 12:32:02 PM EST
    Don't worry.

    The Moslems will give you one.

    Parent

    Hah. (none / 0) (#56)
    by Edger on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 12:41:12 PM EST
    They won't have any more success than you've had.

    Parent
    But (none / 0) (#43)
    by Edger on Sun Jul 15, 2007 at 10:46:12 PM EST
    We are where we are.

    What do you propose doing for the 4 million Iraqi refugees from Cheney and Bush's unprovoked attack and destruction of their country?

    Especially the children. You do have a place in your heart for the children, don't you, ppj?

    Parent

    edger (1.00 / 1) (#49)
    by jimakaPPJ on Mon Jul 16, 2007 at 10:28:52 AM EST
    It would be helpful if you, and Firedog lake, would take such concern into the ME. Especially Iran, Syria and SA. While there you can also meet with Hamas, Hezbollah and al-Qaida...

    In the meantime we should sieze all the money stolen during the Oil For Food Scandal and stop sending money to Hamas, etc.... We can also quit wasting money on the "We fly first class only" UN bureaucrats by stoping all UN payments...

    That would give us a start....

    Will you join me??

    Of course paragraph will require you to actually do something. Paragraph two will hurt your pets..

    So I'm guessing you will be digging through the excuse locker trying to find another reason why you only talk..

    Parent

    Pura Vida! What's happening? (none / 0) (#1)
    by Gabriel Malor on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 02:19:28 PM EST
    Howdy all, I'm back from Costa Rica. I didn't watch all that much news while I was gone and only checked the internet infrequently. I caught: pieces of the immigration bill debate, the London terrorism, Libby's commutation, some calls of racism directed at the Supreme Court, and the overturning of the ruling in the NSA wiretapping case. I was pleased to see that the Sixth Circuit did just what I thought they would back in August 2006 when I wrote:
    There are serious problems with the judge's conclusion regarding standing.

    What else did I miss while I was gone?

    You missed the Chief Justice of the SCOTUS... (5.00 / 1) (#4)
    by Dadler on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 04:02:59 PM EST
    ...actually claim that a few white kids unable to get into their first school of choice today were just like the Little Rock Nine who integrated public schools in the 50's, and who faced guns and police dogs and riots to do so.  Whatever you think of this court decision, this part of Roberts' opinion is inarguable and infuriating garbage.  A shame on the court.  Roberts displayed, for all to see, an intellect so lacking it would be laughable were it not so disgraceful for the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.  At least justice Breyer had the balls to laugh at him when he said it.

    By Roberts' rationale, all firefighters who set backfires to stop larger fires should be charged with arson.  No difference, right?

    As for Libby, I'm still waiting for the thousands of commutations Bush should be granting prisoners all over the country.  That way I'll know that his stated reasons for commuting Scooter are not the steaming pile of horsesh*t, the cowardly half-a-man lies that they logically remain.

    Then again, I'm still waiting for his discussion of how hard he's tried to get his daughters to join the military and go to Iraq.  And how they HAVE to go, because the fight is really as important as he says it is.  Oh wait, I'm still waiting for you to join up too, Gabe.  My brother needs help, he's back to Iraq in a few months.  Are you finally going to be a man and put your money where your mouth is?  Or are you going to keep lying about how much you support the war and how vital you think it is.  Because I'll say it again, G, until you join up and fight, then all your words about the war are childish lies.  

    But Maliki says we can go now, so you're safe.

    Wink wink.


    Parent

    Hi Dad, (1.00 / 1) (#9)
    by Gabriel Malor on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 06:12:04 PM EST
    Wow, I don't know what I expected but if anything I'd say you're more outraged now than when I left.

    Regarding the school case, I don't know much about it except that the majority of the court ruled that schools cannot use race to make school diversity assignments and that the dissenters disagreed, believing that such diversity assignments pass the strict scrutiny test.

    You probably wont be surprised that I tend to agree with the majority (without knowing more about the case, at least). At some point, labeling people according to their ancestry and then allocating resources, benefits, or burdens based on that label is something that governments should be getting out of the habit of. The dissenter's position is a perilous one because rather than a straightforward "racial discrimination is wrong" it champions the more easily abused "racial discrimination is wrong unless we like it" standard.

    This seems to be the thing that you are talking about, Dad, when you write that there is such a thing as "good" arson: backfires. The idea that some racial discrimination is a good thing is, I think, contrary to the Fourteenth Amendment and, aside from its legal status, altogether an immoral one.

    I said you seemed more outraged than when you left, but your Libby statements are just what I expected them to be when I heard about the commutations. Well, not you specifically, but more generally the gang here at TalkLeft.

    Finally, I'm still waiting for you to explain why parents forcing their children to join the military is a good thing, even for those parents who support the war. It seems to me that the children should have something to say about that, shouldn't they?

    As ever, you are correct that I haven't joined up, attacks on my manhood notwithstanding. And my words about the Iraq war and on any other subject stand very well on their own, regardless of my personal status.

    I will pray for your brother and ask that you pray for mine. He's been over there for a month now (this is his second time). At last report, I was succinctly informed that it is "hot," which is his idea of a joke. On my way back into the States, I stopped to see my sister-in-law and my niece. She's nine months old now and a little bundle of perfect. Jahi (my brother) just missed her first unaided steps.

    Parent

    Pura Vida! (none / 0) (#3)
    by Jen M on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 03:31:07 PM EST
    was it rainy season or shaky season?

    Parent
    Rainy (none / 0) (#8)
    by Gabriel Malor on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 05:44:17 PM EST
    Well, it is the early months of the green (wet) season, but it wasn't too bad. Everywhere we went in it was just a few hours of rain a day and maybe a little more at night. I particularly enjoyed the thunderstorms (that's something I miss from back home that they don't have here in L.A.) and I think my L.A.-born-and-raised travel buddies liked them too.

    The country is simply wonderful, and by "the country" I mean the people, the places, the food, everything. I enjoyed it much more than I did England (in which I lived for a short while) and France (which I only visited). If anyone is looking for a fun and not too expensive vacation (or perhaps a place to retire?) which is just a few short flights from our East Coast, Costa Rica would be a good choice.

    Parent

    Did you play any poker at the casino?? (none / 0) (#7)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 04:08:04 PM EST
    Sadly no. (none / 0) (#12)
    by Gabriel Malor on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 06:26:45 PM EST
    As I've mentioned before, I love poker (hold'em, of course) and there were signs for it all over San Jose Central. Unfortunately, while we were in San Jose we were just too busy to spend time in a casino and when we were on the coast, there just wasn't a casino nearby.

    Instead we played football, er, soccer, with nine university kids from Alajuela (on the Caribbean side) who had rented a vacation house in the small town we were staying in (on the pacific side). They took one look at my buddy and me running along the beach one day, thought "soccer players," and waved us over to play with them.

    It was casual beach soccer and therefore fun even though I hadn't played soccer since I was nine or ten years old. My buddy plays here in L.A. and is, of course, just sickening with fancy footwork. We ended up playing with them for the next five nights, too.

    Our penultimate night there, they treated us to a banquet on the beach of beans, tortillas, sausage, and an unusual mixed drink that I wish I knew what was (something with raisins in it). Only two of them spoke English, but that was alright, because my buddy and I needed the practice in Spanish. Incidentally, I probably learned more creative ways to curse than ever before.

    Our most interesting conversations involved comparisons of Costa Rica's and the U.S.'s health care systems, talking about school and deciding on careers, and talking one fellow out of idolising Derek Jeter.

    A great time, but no poker.

    Parent

    Gabe (none / 0) (#15)
    by jimakaPPJ on Sat Jul 14, 2007 at 07:56:54 PM EST
    Sounds like a young man's fun....  ;-)

    It is a beautiul place...

    Parent