The Dish

"Well, I guess I don’t know what you mean by equal justice under the law," – Scott Stanzel, White House spokesman today. Well, he got that right, didn’t he?

The latest CBS poll reveals that Republicans really are different than Independents and Democrats. Twice as many GOPers as Dems or Indies think it’s fine for religious leaders explicitly to back political candidates. The same gap appears when voters are asked if it’s important for a candidate to have strong religious beliefs.

A dog, a new outfit, and a promotional stunt by a German zoo. It worked!

Back at last!

Now here’s someone not expecting Christianity to provide a welfare state. Ryan Rodrick Beiler, the Sojourners web editor, calls himself a "freegan" and defends himself from Stephen Colbert. His statement of faith:

Though I’ll occasionally supplement my dumpster bounty with a trip to the natural foods co-op for some local produce or organic oats for homemade granola (bring on the stereotypes), I’ve come to rely mostly on society’s waste for my provision. As Jesus taught, "Do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’… Your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things" (Matthew 6:32). In this spirit, dumpstering’s spontaneity is both liberating and satisfying.

Tucson, Arizona, 1 pm.

For a newly updated, global gallery of Dish readers’ window views, click here.

Candy versus climate change?

A British reader writes:

Although I don’t live in the US I have visited it many times and consider it a great and wonderful country. However, I have taken the conscious decision not to visit during the current Presidency. Like you I was a pretty strong supporter of GWB when he first became President (mainly because I didn’t rate Gore very highly), but again like you I have come to realize what a danger he represents to US democracy and world security. However, particularly in relation to Part VII of your series yesterday the fact is that I, as a perfectly normal and innocent non-US citizen do not feel secure visiting the US safely.

I regularly read blog entries, even in your own blog, expressing horror that a US citizen can be treated so badly (Padilla), but the reaction to non-US citizens being treated extra-judicially by your government is, for a lot of Americans rather different. I know the Florida tourism people, for example, have been running advertising campaigns here (the UK) trying to encourage visitors after a number of outrageous incidents involving British citizens had been widely publicised here and had led to a downturn in tourist bookings from this country. The US is a great country and will, undoubtedly, regain its equilibrium in due course, but meantime there are many other parts of the world where I can vacation without feeling I have to glance over my shoulder.

Any non-citizen in this country is at risk of government detention at any time. If they can do it to citizens, they sure can to aliens.

That would be Fred Thompson in the Watergate era. My suspicion is that henceforth he will be Cheney’s.

Actually, 1,200 beers to be exact. That’s the number of pints now paid for and waiting for John Smeaton, the Glasgow airport security version of Groundskeeper Willie, featured here, at the Glasgow airport Holiday Inn. Smeaton wrestled the Muslim nutcase who tried to blow up the airport last weekend. In Scotland, accepting thanks routinely requires a series of alcoholic black-outs. But I’m sure Smeaton can handle it.