According to the wires Saddam gonna hang at
dawn. It's a suitably melodramatic moment. I suppose why waste the day. I won't cut the evil bastard any slack here but the fact that he was tried in an Iraqi kangaroo revenge court and convicted in same under what can best be described as civil war conditions (is chaos too strong a term?) does not bode well for the aftermath of the execution.
The irony of course is that even under the conditions as they are in Iraq, Saddam was guaranteed more even jurisprudence than he would have been had Bush tribunalized him in Gitmo.
All that aside, Bush has never been one for the rule of law so to see him bollocks up this one isn't a surprise. Bush could of had Saddam tried under international law as the international criminal that he (Saddam not the other one) is.
Or he could have actually assisted the Iraqis in a Truth and Reconciliation process instead of his "The Iraq government is sovereign because they can do whatever I tell them to do" trial. But that time has long since past. Both for T&R and for Iraqis giving a jackshit what George Bush thinks.
A cynic might say (oh. not I for sure) that Bush didn't see to it that Saddam went to the Hague because he didn't want to enhance the prestige of a court at which he himself might one day be in the docket. But we shall leave that for cynics and for those that dream what might have been.
What we will have instead is Saddam hung at dawn. Likely it will be privately videotaped and somehow just somehow the execution will be leaked and next week we can look forward to seeing Saddam dangle all over the internets just like we saw Britney's nethers dangle a few weeks ago.
And in the next 24 hours we will get the Bush gloat and smirk as he calls a press conference to discuss the end of tyranny and the triumph of democracy in the middle east. Not withstanding the fact the neither justice nor democracy nor anybody's well-being was served by Bush and his thugs destroying Iraq in order to save it(s oil) and shredding the Constitution in the process if I may gratuitously add.
All the while he is planning to escalate the troop level in the war in Iraq another very useful 10% or 15% for no reason other than because he gotta do something to look all deciderful and stuff.
Well so long, Saddam. You no doubt will find some amenable company in Hell. Now and in the future.
Friday, December 29, 2006
Saturday, December 23, 2006
George Bush - homunculus
George Bush continues being the homunculus of the American Presidency. He has cast himself in no particular order as Truman, Washington, Lincoln, FDR, JFK (remember Mars), Poppy and now both LBJ and Nixon. As if in a political manifestation of Moore's Law, these last he is conflating with breathtaking speed. It was only November 7 that he had his LBJ moment. The American voters no matter how you read it told Old George to go fuck himself and to take his fucking war with him.
Of course W's Nixononian tendencies have been there for all to see with De Facto Re Cheney making the rules and the Fristulan Congress being let's say compliant while George stomps all over the Constitution as he heralds it in support of his imperium.
But now as I said, no sooner has he had his LBJ moment that he is going into his Nixonian "peace with honor" phase which George calls "victory" and "A new way forward" (He's got me so turned around for once I don't know whether to give him props for honesty in that he ain't getting out and unlike Nixon he doesn't care who knows). Nonetheless his slogans would make nifty banners. I bet in years to come those in-house tee-shirts and coffee mugs will fetch an even bigger bundle on E-Bay than the usual run of the mill presidential detritus - I mean memorabilia.
But to my point. Despite the fact that George has dabbled with his inner Nixon with the aid of Cheney and Yoo, he has now gone full Milhouse with his plan to escalate the war in Vi*** - no I mean Iraq. Shit that ghost has presence.
But here we are - after a complete repudiation by the American voters, a continuing repudiation by the polls, a repudiation by the Joint Chiefs of Staff until the White House did the Republican thing and held the voting open until they could knuckle the opposition, even after all that - George is going to send even more American soldiers to endanger themselves for no apparent reason - at least no reason that I and the majority of the American people and even George W Bush can articulate.
And he is doing it right on time. It is Christmas - that magical time of year when illegal wars are escalated through illegal means that will in future times constitute sound arguments for accusing the inhabitant of Office of the Executive of War Crimes.
Of course W's Nixononian tendencies have been there for all to see with De Facto Re Cheney making the rules and the Fristulan Congress being let's say compliant while George stomps all over the Constitution as he heralds it in support of his imperium.
But now as I said, no sooner has he had his LBJ moment that he is going into his Nixonian "peace with honor" phase which George calls "victory" and "A new way forward" (He's got me so turned around for once I don't know whether to give him props for honesty in that he ain't getting out and unlike Nixon he doesn't care who knows). Nonetheless his slogans would make nifty banners. I bet in years to come those in-house tee-shirts and coffee mugs will fetch an even bigger bundle on E-Bay than the usual run of the mill presidential detritus - I mean memorabilia.
But to my point. Despite the fact that George has dabbled with his inner Nixon with the aid of Cheney and Yoo, he has now gone full Milhouse with his plan to escalate the war in Vi*** - no I mean Iraq. Shit that ghost has presence.
But here we are - after a complete repudiation by the American voters, a continuing repudiation by the polls, a repudiation by the Joint Chiefs of Staff until the White House did the Republican thing and held the voting open until they could knuckle the opposition, even after all that - George is going to send even more American soldiers to endanger themselves for no apparent reason - at least no reason that I and the majority of the American people and even George W Bush can articulate.
And he is doing it right on time. It is Christmas - that magical time of year when illegal wars are escalated through illegal means that will in future times constitute sound arguments for accusing the inhabitant of Office of the Executive of War Crimes.
Monday, December 18, 2006
A modest proposal
Y'know how George Bush likes to think of himself as the CEO president? I mean, he has called himself the decider - that essence of CEO-ness. He is the one to make the decidings that affect everyday life. Because that is what CEO's do.
It's become pretty clear that the American people don't think much of George Bush or of his deciderings.
Via Political Wire
comes this
"Monday's poll results suggest the widespread dissatisfaction with the Iraq war may be dragging down public approval of Bush's handling of anti-terrorism efforts as well. Support for his management of that issue plunged to 42 percent, down from 50 percent in a poll taken Oct. 13-15, while the percentage of those who disapproved rose from 47 percent to 55 percent -- the first time more than 50 percent have registered disapproval on that topic."
What to do? Well everyone knows that the witch hunt that was the Starr Inquisition has destroyed the integrity of the impeachment process. Impeachment being a supremely political act is always dicey. Once turned into the rabid and idiotic farce that the Republican Congress made of it under the Clinton Administration, it has become political anathema.
That is only marginally so bad. impeachment of a president - even for just and legal reasons - is too powerful a remedy to be taken for any but the most heinous conditions. This isn't to say that I don't think that George W Bush should have his political ass impeached and hung on its very own Wall of American Shame. I'd mix the concrete myself.
But clearly that will only happen is we can reach near acclamation in our desire to be rid of George Bush. And how likely is acclamation if there are still 30 or so percent of dead-enders who can't bring themselves to admit that George Bush is a royal fuck up (and who has fucked them up pretty good along the way). Not to mention that guy out there who thinks he's doing a good job.
Now as I said - Lonesome George is a CEO president. And when CEO's fuck up - as George Bush has done mightily, there is one thing that CEO's understand. The Buyout.
Happens all the time. CEO gets caught spying on its board of directors say, or CEO takes too much advantage of home decorating opportunities or worst of all runs the company's stock into the sewer what comes next?
The Buyout! Call it the Golden Parachute, The Golden Handshake. Whatever, invariably it involves gold. And equally invariably it gets the bastard's ballast out of the corner office and more importantly off the stock price. America's stock price isn't doing too good in the world just now - if you know what I mean. And given the holy mess that Lonesome George has created in his mad pursuit of what we might laughingly call his Iraq policy if it wasn't so tragic, it ain't gonna improve much over the next eight business cycles.
We have reached that point in the sad, sorry stain on our nation that is the Bush Presidency. Let us all buck up and be true to our Capitalist principles.
I say forget ISG - he already pissed all over that one. Forget hearings, forget impeachment. No, forget all that. Instead, buy out George Bush's Contract. Throw in Cheney's for good measure - pure chump change. It can't possibly cost more that a few days in Iraq - worse case. And it has to be a lot better than enduring these fools for one more market.
It's become pretty clear that the American people don't think much of George Bush or of his deciderings.
Via Political Wire
comes this
"Monday's poll results suggest the widespread dissatisfaction with the Iraq war may be dragging down public approval of Bush's handling of anti-terrorism efforts as well. Support for his management of that issue plunged to 42 percent, down from 50 percent in a poll taken Oct. 13-15, while the percentage of those who disapproved rose from 47 percent to 55 percent -- the first time more than 50 percent have registered disapproval on that topic."
What to do? Well everyone knows that the witch hunt that was the Starr Inquisition has destroyed the integrity of the impeachment process. Impeachment being a supremely political act is always dicey. Once turned into the rabid and idiotic farce that the Republican Congress made of it under the Clinton Administration, it has become political anathema.
That is only marginally so bad. impeachment of a president - even for just and legal reasons - is too powerful a remedy to be taken for any but the most heinous conditions. This isn't to say that I don't think that George W Bush should have his political ass impeached and hung on its very own Wall of American Shame. I'd mix the concrete myself.
But clearly that will only happen is we can reach near acclamation in our desire to be rid of George Bush. And how likely is acclamation if there are still 30 or so percent of dead-enders who can't bring themselves to admit that George Bush is a royal fuck up (and who has fucked them up pretty good along the way). Not to mention that guy out there who thinks he's doing a good job.
Now as I said - Lonesome George is a CEO president. And when CEO's fuck up - as George Bush has done mightily, there is one thing that CEO's understand. The Buyout.
Happens all the time. CEO gets caught spying on its board of directors say, or CEO takes too much advantage of home decorating opportunities or worst of all runs the company's stock into the sewer what comes next?
The Buyout! Call it the Golden Parachute, The Golden Handshake. Whatever, invariably it involves gold. And equally invariably it gets the bastard's ballast out of the corner office and more importantly off the stock price. America's stock price isn't doing too good in the world just now - if you know what I mean. And given the holy mess that Lonesome George has created in his mad pursuit of what we might laughingly call his Iraq policy if it wasn't so tragic, it ain't gonna improve much over the next eight business cycles.
We have reached that point in the sad, sorry stain on our nation that is the Bush Presidency. Let us all buck up and be true to our Capitalist principles.
I say forget ISG - he already pissed all over that one. Forget hearings, forget impeachment. No, forget all that. Instead, buy out George Bush's Contract. Throw in Cheney's for good measure - pure chump change. It can't possibly cost more that a few days in Iraq - worse case. And it has to be a lot better than enduring these fools for one more market.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
jeff greenfield hearts Iran?
Here's what he said:
"But, in the case of Obama, he may be walking around with a sartorial time bomb. Ask yourself, is there any other major public figure who dresses the way he does? Why, yes. It is Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who, unlike most of his predecessors, seems to have skipped through enough copies of "GQ" to find the jacket-and-no-tie look agreeable."
Is Jeff Greenfield a walking time bomb right there on CNN?
you decide
exhibit a: http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/2006/WORLD/meast/12/12/iran.holocaust.conference.reut/newt1.2130.ahmadinejad.ap.jpg
exhibit b:
http://i.cnn.net/cnn/2003/US/Northeast/08/15/otsc.greenfield/story.greenfield.jpg
control:
http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:NPks_Yj_x4NUeM:http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/photo/homepage/hp4-25-05d.jpg
"But, in the case of Obama, he may be walking around with a sartorial time bomb. Ask yourself, is there any other major public figure who dresses the way he does? Why, yes. It is Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who, unlike most of his predecessors, seems to have skipped through enough copies of "GQ" to find the jacket-and-no-tie look agreeable."
Is Jeff Greenfield a walking time bomb right there on CNN?
you decide
exhibit a: http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/2006/WORLD/meast/12/12/iran.holocaust.conference.reut/newt1.2130.ahmadinejad.ap.jpg
exhibit b:
http://i.cnn.net/cnn/2003/US/Northeast/08/15/otsc.greenfield/story.greenfield.jpg
control:
http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:NPks_Yj_x4NUeM:http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/photo/homepage/hp4-25-05d.jpg
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