Archive for November 17th, 2004


In chaos, comes opportunity

Kick The Base, or, We Are All Joe Lieberman’s Now.


The Green Party has raised enough money for a recount. Meanwhile, David Wade, Kerry’s press secretary, sneers at democracy.


It’s been two weeks since Kerry lost to President Bush. “The votes have not all been counted in New Mexico and Ohio,” says Kerry’s campaign and Senate spokesman David Wade, who is waiting for Kerry outside the strategy meeting. “And if you believe some of what you read on the Internet. . . . ”

Wade is referring to the litany of conspiracy theories about voting irregularities. He says this while rolling his eyes. Message: Kerry is back at work.



I’m finding it hard to blog, because critical to my writing has always been a sense of optimism. I do not see any reason to be optimistic anymore. Pitiful.


Kerry’s refusal to challenge any of the vote counting, like Al Gore’s similar refusal in 2000, seems inexplicable. They both rolled over and played dead. Why?


In my view, it’s because both are multi-millionaire members of the elite, and thus, despite whatever populist platitudes they may mouth during an election campaign, neither wants to rock the boat, not even by a tiny bit. Goodness, were they seriously to challenge the system, then they might lose their memberships at exclusive country clubs. Plus, they certainly can’t countenance serious social tumult, can they, as this would be bad for business and might negatively effect their investment portfolios. Both are simply being true to their class and fuck you. So - don’t mourn, organize.


I am optimistic. The Left is coming together like never before. The lies of the Bushies (and the Kerrys and the Gores) are out in the open for the world to see now. The exit polls showed most voters are nervous about the war, that most favor abortion and LGBT rights. So, I’d say we are the majority.


The elite has moved to the right. The people have not. Virtually all major change in this country has been spearheaded by people in the streets - whether that be the right for women to vote, the 8 hour work day, civil rights, the anti Vietnam war protests, LGBT rights, etc. - so lets all join together and do it again.  The coming period will be tumultuous. However, the war and the economy will sink Bush. But we need to be there, actively organizing, when it happens.

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"Fallouja’s battle won, but fighting continues"

That’s what the headline in the L.A. Times say. But, if the fighting continues, then the battle is not won.


We’ve heard all this propaganda before, the US boasting about how they’d won some important battle, only to have events later show they hadn’t.


A top insurgent says fight has just begun



After a week of heavy fighting in Fallouja, a leading Iraqi insurgent said the battle was only the beginning of an uprising that had already roiled parts of Iraq dominated by Sunni Muslims.


“The battle of Fallouja is the beginning of other battles,” Abdullah Janabi said.


It’s only a matter of time until Baghdad explodes again. The US will not be able to “pacify” a city of six million. While DC attempts to put a happy face on what’s happening in Iraq, it’s clear the insurgency is now nationwide and growing fast. The US can not win. More brutal semi-victories like in Fallouja, where they’ve leveled a city of one million, will only cause more moderates to join the insurgency.


They never see the forest, rather, just one tree at a time.

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More crime, er ,"business" news

Teetering, Fannie Mae misses deadline to file report


Mortgage giant Fannie Mae missed a regulatory deadline Monday for filing its third-quarter financial results after its independent auditor KPMG refused to sign off on the report.


The government-sponsored company, recently cited by regulators in the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight for serious accounting problems and accused of earnings manipulation, notified the Securities and Exchange Commission that it would not file the third-quarter report on time.

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Climate change ‘ruining’ Everest

Environmentalists are calling for Mount Everest to be put on a UN danger list because of global warming.


Melting glaciers have swollen lakes and increased the risk of catastrophic flooding in the Himalayas, they say.

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Should Canada indict Bush?

From the Toronto Star



When U.S. President George W. Bush arrives in Ottawa — probably later this year — should he be welcomed? Or should he be charged with war crimes? It’s an interesting question. On the face of it, Bush seems a perfect candidate for prosecution under Canada’s Crimes against Humanity and War Crimes Act.


And from friends in Canada comes the following!

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