Month: October 2004

This blog has been on the case of vanished and missing explosives and infrastructure from Iraq weapons sites for some time. It was worrying enough when materials disappeared during or just before the invasion. But the fact that large amounts of potentially deadly materials have been looted under the eyes of the American occupation is Exhibit A in the case for this administration’s incompetence. And, yes, “criminal negligence” is not hyperbole. In terrorist-ridden Iraq, the possibility of serious weaponry falling into the hands of the enemy and being deployed against American troops and conceivably American citizens is unforgivable. The whole point of the invasion was to prevent this kind of transfer from taking place. Yet, thanks to this administration, it may have precipitated it. Sure, we have enough troops. Sure.

THE CLINTON FACTOR: Bill Clinton is an immensely talented campaigner, as even his detractors concede. Al Gore was too proud or too close to utilize him on the campaign trail four years ago. And he will always be a divisive figure. But his heart by-pass operation surely makes his current campaign swing less complicated. Everyone wishes him well, apart from a few malicious nutcases. He will be greeted as a rock star and now with a certain degree of compassion from the Democratic base. He can appeal to black voters in a way the stiff Kerry cannot. If he’s deployed effectively this coming week, he could be the October Surprise of the Democrats.

My take on the differences between George W. Bush and John F. Kerry.

VOTING AGAINST BUSH: Here’s a sentence I could have written:

“Yes, Kerry is liberal. But what’s to fear from a liberal president? That he would run big deficits? That he would increase federal spending? That he would expand the power of the federal government over individuals’ lives? Nothing Kerry could do could top what President Bush has already done in those realms.”

That’s the Des Moines Register, endorsing Kerry. Then there’s Bob Barr, hardline fiscal conservative, finding it impossible to pull the Republican lever this time around.

LEFT OR RIGHT? In the Bush-Kerry battle, it’s not so simple any more. My take in Time.

The pro-war, increasingly centrist Washington Post endorses Kerry.

QUOTE OF THE DAY I: “I supported the war on the basis of what I believed to be the case and I am not moving away from that now. I do think that many people around this country would be very wary indeed of taking this government’s word on another occasion if a further military adventure seemed likely, given the history of what has happened on this occasion. That is very worrying,” – former British prime minister, and George H.W. Bush’s close ally in the first Gulf War, John Major, on the current occupation in Iraq. Agree with him or not, I think it’s empirically true that the United States will not be able to rely on even Britain in any coming military intervention. Any future pre-emptive wars under the current president will have to be unilateral, if they can occur at all. And that’s why the stark contrast now being drawn by some about the future differences between Bush and Kerry are, in my view, over-drawn. Bush has ensured that we are ham-strung in any future engagements: no troops left, no allies remaining. And people are worried about Kerry.

QUOTE OF THE DAY II: “People will often be misled into thinking someone is brighter if he says something complicated they can’t understand,” – professor Linda Gottfredson, an I.Q. expert at the Unioversity of Delaware, on why people might be surprised to find that Bush may have a higher I.Q. than Kerry.

EMAIL OF THE DAY: “Forgive me for correcting a minor misstatement you made on the Matthews Show this morning. I recall that you said that we do not have close re-elections for President in this country. Not since 1888, we don’t, but in 1888, the incumbent Cleveland was defeated for re-election by Harrison. Out of 11,000,000 popular votes, Cleveland won by a mere 104,000 (but he lost in the Electoral College, 168-233). The next one, in 1892, a re-match, was almost close. Cleveland defeated the incumbent Harrison by 350,000 votes out of 12,000,000 (and won in the Electoral College, 277-145-22, the latter being a Populist candidate).” The movie- perfect scenario this time around, of course, is for Bush to win the popular vote but to lose in the electoral college. History is ironic, of course. But rarely that ironic.

James Dobson, one of the most influential people in the Republican party, a man hard-wired to Karl Rove’s Blackberry, now says that allowing gays to marry will lead to global destruction:

Dobson warned those attending the Friday afternoon rally at Oklahoma Christian University that the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman must be protected. He cited examples of countries such as Norway that have allowed same-sex couples to marry as proof that fewer men and women get married. Dobson said 80 percent of children are born out of wedlock in Norway. “Homosexuals are not monogamous. They want to destroy the institution of marriage,” Dobson said. “It will destroy marriage. It will destroy the Earth.”

Someone please alert FEMA.

Strange things going on in Boston. Loads of people streaming past us on sidewalks wearing caps with “B” emblazoned on them. And small items of clothing as logos. Is there some sort of sporting event going on?

CORRECTION OF THE DAY: “In the Oct. 17 Sunday Source, the “Gatherings” story described a Republican barbecue held to watch a presidential debate. The item reported “the possibly unprecedented occurrence of a young woman in a cowboy hat pretending to make out with a poster of Dick Cheney.” The item should have explained that the woman was asked to pose with the vice president’s picture by the photographer working for The Washington Post. The woman also did not pretend to “make out” with the picture; at the photographer’s suggestion, she pretended to blow a kiss at it. The item should have explained that the party was hosted in response to a request from The Post, which discussed the decorations and recipes with the host and agreed to reimburse the cost of recipe ingredients.” – from the Washington Post.

“I forwarded the anti-Kerry anti-gay ad posted on your site to my few gay Republican friends. No caption. No commentary. Today a friend who is a Bush supporter called me. Direct quote: “I’m voting for Kerry.” When I asked why she said: ‘Bush doesn’t scare me but the people who support and defend him do.”

I became a Tory because I despised them so much. I still despise them. You’ve all read this excrescence in the Guardian:

Throughout the debate, John Kerry, for his part, looks and sounds a bit like a haunted tree. But at least he’s not a lying, sniggering, drink-driving, selfish, reckless, ignorant, dangerous, backward, drooling, twitching, blinking, mouse-faced little cheat. And besides, in a fight between a tree and a bush, I know who I’d favour.
On November 2, the entire civilised world will be praying, praying Bush loses. And Sod’s law dictates he’ll probably win, thereby disproving the existence of God once and for all. The world will endure four more years of idiocy, arrogance and unwarranted bloodshed, with no benevolent deity to watch over and save us. John Wilkes Booth, Lee Harvey Oswald, John Hinckley Jr – where are you now that we need you?

This kind of malicious, not-even-clever cant needs to be exposed and condemned. But the last thing it is is surprising. The editor should apologize. What on earth was he thinking? They’d never call for the assassination of the leader of Hamas. They’d condemn it if it happened. But the leader of the greatest democracy on earth? They have lost what minds they ever had.

Archaeologists think they have found the toilet whereon Martin Luther figured out that you could be saved by faith alone. Yep, the first protestant was seriously constipated, thereby beginning a noble tradition.

Josh, I think, nails the administration’s current attempt to rewrite history on what really happened in Tora Bora. It’s stuff like this that has undermined what confidence I had in the veracity of this administration. The gaps between what we know to be true and what they insist isn’t just keep multiplying. I used to give them the benefit of the doubt. No reasonable person can any more.

As usual, Jon Rauch has a calm, sane analysis of this election’s difficult choice. But he won’t say whom to pick! Jon, we need you! But it’s well worth reading. Money quote:

There is nothing wrong with Kerry’s senatorial “flip-flops.” Maneuvering is what senators do. More disturbing has been his irresolution on Iraq since becoming a presidential candidate. Most disturbing of all is that, with only days to go before the election, I still don’t feel I have a handle on what he is really all about. Perhaps Kerry is the scion of Dukakism, the doctrine that the election is about competence, not ideology. But Kerry is running for president, not city manager.
I don’t believe he is an empty suit. I just wish I knew what was inside the suit. I can understand why my father fears that Kerry might be captured by the Left.
Bush is a dynamic leader, but he lacks what a president most needs: guardrails. Kerry has guardrails, but where is the road? A dispiriting choice.
What’s a Swimmer to do? It helps to remember that the presidency matters a lot, but not quite as much as most people think. And that muddling through usually works out passably well. And that it is always darkest before the dawn, and you’ll never walk alone, and tomorrow is another day.
Think on that. And have a Prozac.

Prozac? How about a couple of valiums and a xanax?

BLOGJAM DC: The unutterably cool Bob Mould has put together a live blogjam in DC tomorrow night. A bunch of us will be reading from our blogs live, followed by Bob’s now famous Blow-Off night. There’s me, Wonkette, Geekslut, Vividblurry, Dog Poet, and many more. It’s at DC9 at 1940 9th Street NW, starting at 7 pm. Come have fun. Meet sexy bloggers. Dance. Forget about this damn election for a couple hours. See you there.

HEADS UP: I’m giving a keynote speech on marriage tonight in Boston at the Human Rights Campaign New England dinner. It’s at the Boston Sheraton. I’m also on Chris Matthews’ show this weekend, with Andrea Mitchell, Howard Fineman, and Katty Kay.