Guilty Pleasure: Continual F-Bomb Fallout

This morning I find myself feeling just a little (very little) bit guilty for taking so much pleasure in the fact that political gangrene is devouring the republicans limb by limb. I find myself chuckling as I write this, and alternately doubling over, knowing I should try to remain a little dignified and somber at the impending death of the beast, but I just can't help myself.

Heather Wilson is toast. Gone. No MAS. Some years ago investigative journalist Larry Barker of KOAT-TV revealed in an interview with Heather Wilson allegations that she had removed a family file (at the time she was head of the Children, Youth and Family Division) that was embarrassing, and Heather denied it, quickly abandoned the interview and while leaving was caught stealing Larry Barker's own file! (I would direct you to YouTube at this point to watch this hilarious video snippet for yourselves but KOAT has just asked YouTube to remove it because of "copyright infringement" (wink wink). I have seen it, and as funny as the caught in the act theft was, the confrontation between Barker and Wilson and ensuing admission of guilt is even funnier. Well the file has hit the fan peeps, and let me tell you, I thought it would probably not amount to too much, perhaps a report of a family disturbance gone bad, something that you could understand a loving wife wanting to keep private, but it is WAY bad.

The report was made by a teenage boy living in Hogares, a youth group home, and who was being represented by Heather's husband, a lawyer. Apparently Hone, aka Mr. Wilson, invited the kid over for pizza and a "movie" and grabbed his ass when the kid got up. Now Hone tried to play it off saying he was reaching for another slice of pizza, but the kid swears he wasn't keeping it in his pants.

Now this in itself would be bad enough, but combine it with the fact that Heather was on the page board and though the debate is raging about who knew what and when about Foley (oh yeah and probably some other reps...more to come!) was up to and why they didn't do anything about it, it looks worse. It looks worse still that she took fistfuls of cash from Foley. My prediction? Heather will take a page from the Republican handbook and enter "rehab".

Add that to the fact that Patsy Madrid is lapping her in the polls, and I have one thing to say to Heather Wilson...enjoy that pension, girlfriend, and good luck in the private sector!

Back to the dying beast...

So apparently, there is a lot of finger pointing in the ongoing F-Bomb Hearings, and it looks like while the republicans keep having to amputate limbs of the beast to keep the gangrene from spreading, the head of the beast, Hastert, may be a necessary sacrifice.

I have also heard from well placed sources that there is a new page scandal just about to break, and it involves an Illinois congressperson and a teenage girl. More as the news hits.

Frankly, I know from experience not to get my hopes up, after all we know how rigged the machines are, we know that the republicans will do anything to retain power, and we know that the democrats have a terrible reputation of just putting on the pink tutu's and refusing to engage in fisticuffs, but I find it difficult to imagine a scenario where these guys can find redemption and save themselves in time for the election.

Morning Must Read

This Morning Must Read comes to us from Scott...

OUR RIGGED ELECTIONS (PART II)
The GOP Playbook: How to Steal the Vote

Excerpt:

From the start, George W. Bush has pointedly refused to ask that we make any national sacrifice to help us win the "war on terror." Soon after 9/11 he urged us not to curb our appetites in any way, although to do so would have made much sense, and makes sense now. After all, it's oil, in part, that U.S. troops are fighting for, and oil that indirectly pays for all the guns and bombs now blowing those troops, and countless others, to shreds. The patriotic thing would therefore be to lessen our national dependency on fossil fuels, by driving less (or not at all), and turning off the air conditioners, by buying fewer disposables, and otherwise deferring to the greater good. Bush, however, will have none of that, asserting that the best thing we can do to help win this war is just go shopping.

Yet in one respect it's not exactly right to say that our president has asked nothing of us. Since 9/11, Bush has made astonishing demands on all his fellow citizens, asking us to swallow more baloney than the U.S. government has ever fed the people of this country. He and his team have asked us to believe that 9/11 came as a complete surprise, that Saddam Hussein was part of it, and that Iraq would soon be lobbing atom bombs, poison gas, and lethal pathogens at Tel Aviv and Disney World. They also asked us to believe that the Iraqi people would bestrew our troops with flowers, then that the "mission" had been "accomplished," then that those friendly natives had been overrun by "foreign terrorists" intent on wrecking the "democracy" that we were there to build. And now Bush asks us to believe that things aren't half as bad in Iraq (not to mention Afghanistan), as they appear, and that his team can win this war.

That most Americans do not believe a word of it, and therefore will not vote Republican, attests to the diffusive power of truth, which in this country still resonates despite the efforts of both government and media to bury it. Bush's big lies have prevailed not just because his regime has so doggedly promoted them. For too long, those howlers also had the benefit of a compliant press that simply echoed them.

But the truth about Iraq could not be spun away as more and more Americans encountered it, traumatically, in their own lives, and as the word spread ever further through the Internet and other unofficial channels—an arduous process of enlightenment that the press has only recently begun to help along. (The Democrats have mostly sat there mute.) And so the White House's claims about Iraq—and about 9/11, Afghanistan, Katrina, the economy, the public schools, the global climate and the GOP's respect for "family values"—strike millions of Americans as utter hooey.

MORE.....

Good stuff!

Smart Words from a Smart Man...

The real menace to American kids

We demonize Mark Foley but ignore the industries medicating children and making them fat, and even open our schools to people trying to kill them -- military recruiters.

By Bill Maher

Oct. 13, 2006 | If you think the worst thing Congress doesn't protect young people from is Mark Foley, wake up and smell the burning planet. The ice caps are cracking, the coral reefs are bleaching, and we're losing two species an hour. The birds have bird flu, the cows have mad cow, and our poisoned groundwater has turned spinach into a side dish of mass destruction. Our schools are shooting galleries, our beaches are cancer wards, and under George W. Bush -- for the first time in 45 years -- our country's infant mortality rate actually went up.

Read the labels on your food. It turns out the healthiest thing you can put in your body is Mark Foley's penis. He was probably the first fruit those pages ever came into contact with that wasn't drenched in pesticide.

But that's America for you -- a red herring culture, always scared of the wrong things. The fact is, there are a lot of creepy middle-aged men out there lusting for your kids. They work for MTV, the pharmaceutical industry, McDonald's, Marlboro and K Street. And recently, there's been a rash of strangers making their way onto school campuses and targeting our children for death. They're called military recruiters.

More young Americans were crippled in Iraq last month than in any month in the past three years. And the scandal is that Mark Foley wants to show them a good time before they go? When will our closeted gay congressmen learn? Our boys aren't for pleasure. They're for cannon fodder. They shouldn't be another notch on your bedpost. They should be a comma in Bush's war. If I hear a zipper, it had better be on a body bag.

Why aren't Democrats and the media hammering away every day about who we're supposed to be fighting for over there and what the plan is. Yes, Mark Foley was wrong to ask teenagers how long their penises were -- but at least someone on Capitol Hill was asking questions. We're the predators. Because we have an entire economy built on asking young people what they want, making the cheapest, sleaziest form of it they'll accept, and selling it to them until they choke on it and die.

You know who's grabbing your kids at too young an age? Merck, Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline, by convincing you they're depressed, hyperactive or suffering from attention-deficit disorder and so they must all get medicated. The drug dealers hooking your kids aren't in South America, they're in the halls of Congress handing out campaign donations to your congressmen. Mark Foley says he never slept with those kids, and I believe him, because American children are so hopped up on pills I doubt any of them could get it up.

From 1995 to 2002, the number of children prescribed antipsychotic drugs increased by over 400 percent. Either our children are going insane -- which we might look on as a problem -- or, more likely, we have, for profit, created a nation of little junkies. So stop already with the righteous moral indignation about predators -- this whole country is trying to get inside your kid's pants because that's where he keeps the money Daddy gave him to stay out of his hair.

I don't care if Mark Foley had been asking boys to describe their penises because I have some sad news for you: Your kid is so larded out on Cheetos and Yoo-hoo, he can't even see his penis. We live in a country where the ultimate consumer is an obese 16-year-old hooked up at one end to a Big Gulp and at the other to a PlayStation. So many of our kids today are fat drug addicts, it's almost as if Rush Limbaugh had puppies.

In conclusion, we can pretend that the biggest threat to "our children" is some creep on the Internet, or we can admit it's Mom and Dad. When your son can't find France on a map, or touch his toes with his hands, or understand that the ads on TV are lying -- including the one in which the Marine turns into Lancelot -- then the person fucking him is you.

-- By Bill Maher

3000

No Bush Left Behind

This BUSINESS WEEK article paints a lovely picture of the No Child Left Behind Act's most notable beneficiaries...

There is this guy...

Neil Bush, brother of the BOGUS POTUS

And THIS guy

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal of Saudi Arabia

And my personal favorite white collar criminal...

Michael "Bilkin'" Milken
(you may not recognize him outside of his orange jumpsuit)

You simply must READ THIS ARTICLE, it's the SCAM of the century!

An Empowerment Wave of the Future Gets Its Due (thanks for the title Scott)

Few recipients of the Nobel Prize for Peace have so richly deserved their award. This year's recipient, Muhammed Yunus of Bangledesh, has helped many of his countrymen out of poverty through microloans over the last 30 years, empowering people to find their own way of earning a living.

Here's more...

Sometimes You Feel Like a Nut, Sometimes You Don't

a scene from my hottest fantasy...

In what promises to be this season's MUST READ, former Deputy Director of Faith Based Initiatives, David Kuo, says that White House officials courted evangelicals for their votes and then ridiculed them behind their backs. Kuo quotes our very favorite republican operative, Karl "Goebbles" Rove, as calling evangelicals "nuts."

READ ALL ABOUT IT!

Every day, in every way, this administration reveals its soul to us (or lack thereof).

America's Biggest Threat: The Axis of Ignorance

If it is true that, "there is nothing wrong with America that can't be cured by what is right with America," then we liberals have our work cut out for us.

A great many pundits and scholars have debated over the years what the greatest threat to America is. Some contend that threat is terrorism. Others blame Godless Liberals for pushing Jesus out of the classrooms and culture. Still others blame illegal aliens for bringing drugs and disease and crime over our borders, and stealing our jobs and feeding freely from the public trough.

I disagree. I believe that the greatest threat to America can be catagorized by what I like to refer to as the "Axis of Ignorance"...

At the top of this pyramid of shame is the current REPUBLICAN GUARD, not just the President and his kabal of liars and purveyors of homegrown terrorism and fear, but also the shameful trolls that lead the current congress, and the judiciary that behaves like a cloaked secret society, permitting injustices and abridgement of our documents of democracy. Today's Republican leadership have proven that they will stop at nothing to wrest every shred of power and control to further their own agenda. They will twist logic, warp values, and generate fear to get their people to the polls. They will create roadblocks to prevent the opposition from voting, they will fix the voting machines to falsely record votes, and when all else fails they will get the Supreme Court to rule that counting the votes impinges on their candidates' civil liberties.

The right side of the base of the pyramid are the RELIGIOUS FUNDAMENTALISTS. These people, who predominantly are truly good and kind folk dedicated to living their lives in the path of Christ, have been duped by the top of the pyramid into supporting an agenda clearly contrary to thier own. What would Jesus do? Well, I don't know for sure, but somehow I doubt he would approve of bombing the crap out of people who never posed a threat to us. I don't think he would approve of the reckless disregard for the environment shown by the conservatives of today, nor the wasteful approach to our national resources and finances. I also don't believe he would approve of public health care money going to pay for Viagra and Cialis, but not for indigent care. The republicans have led religious fundamentalists to believe that a vote for them is a vote against homosexuality (how wrong could they be?) and abortion and for prayer in schools. The fundamentalist do us harm in one other way, and that is by setting the agenda in our schools and laboratories they are causing America to lose its scientific edge in the world, and that is not doing us any favors.

Now, there is no left side of the base of this pyramid, so physics majors please just entertain me here...

The other right side of the base of this pyramid is more nebulous. It is CULTURAL INTOLERANCE. This is best exemplified by the current raging debate over Border Security, which is a thinly veiled attempt to divide Americans over racial and cultural issues. Nothing has changed with regard to immigration in the past decade, but the administration wanted a nice, fiery issue with which to club liberals over for the midterm elections and they chose this one. With the assistance of media hacks like Lou Dobbs who shamelessly profit off of this big smelly red herring they have managed to give this non-starter oxygen for the past several months. How sad they must be that the fruit of their efforts, this heinous Border Security bill, brought them so little glory. Perhaps if one of their members (pardon the pun please) had been able to stop himself with the teenage pages it would have gotten a little more attention. But the real goal is to minimize the ability of Mexican people to become citizens and earn the right to vote, because the republicans cannot afford the change in demographics.

There you have it, the biggest threat to America today: The Axis of Ignorance. We liberals have a big job to do, but have faith, because we are smarter, we are capable, and we are right.

Iraq's Staggering Death Toll

Imagine the cities of Memphis or Austin vanishing. Imagine losing Alaska, or Vermont, or North Dakota. All of the people in any one of those cities or states killed.

Well those states and cities have roughly 650,000 people residing in them. According to a study conducted by Gilbert Burnham and colleagues at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, US, and Al Mustansiriya University in Baghdad, Iraq, the death toll in Iraq is in the area of 655,000. They do not distinguish between soldiers and civilians.

Gee, I wonder why the insurgents are so damn mad.

Governor Richardson on Hannity and Colmes

Governor Richardson will be appearing on tonight's Hannity and Colmes, on the Faux News Network, consult your local listings. It will be interesting to hear the voice of a democrat on that show.

Governor Richardson on the Today Show

Governor Richardson, proving once again that in the theatre of American foreign policy he is the adult in the room, appeared today on The Today Show...

Click here to watch

PERVERTS AND LIARS AND CROOKS!!! OH MY!!!!

I am an army of one...

Oh yes! They have had their hands in the cookie jar! Oh yes! They have had their hands (well at least one hand) on the keyboard! Oh yes! They have had their secret meetings, their dirty dealings, their hushes, shooshes and cover-ups!
And now it is all on the table. Less than five weeks from the election people have looked behind the curtain and seen just how small, petty and pitiful the Great and Powerful Oz actually is, a weak, shrivelled man taking perverted delight in terrifying the masses with shock and awe techniques, color coded charts of terror, exploding liquids on planes, shoe bombers and anthrax. We know that while Oz was scaring us into submission the flying monkeys refused to stop him, refused to get involved, refused to do anything to harsh the gig of the "Great One".
Ladies and gentlemen, we are in need of new flying monkeys. We get our chance in four and a half weeks. Get out there and pick a new monkey, back the monkey and set it free.

Why this Foley Thang Feels Sooooooooo Good

It may seem a bit mean that this Foley scandal has brought us so much joy. I know I feel a little bit guilty when everytime it is mentiomed I giggle, wave my hands in the air and do a little happy dance...but it just feels so right. So I dance, and celebrate this beautiful, beautiful scandal.

But many may wonder why liberals are over the moon about the revelations about Congressman Foley and its aftermath. For those who are curious, let me shed some light.
First of all, eight years ago we had a marvelous president. He had worked wonders with our economy, we were at peace, people had jobs, things were sure looking up. Kenneth Starr, who had spent a fortune in government dollars trying to pin criminal charges on the President for a failed land deal in vain, instead went after the President for sexual activities. He was impeached, but an effort to remove him from office didn't work.

Following that national disgrace we had to endure years of puffed up republicans, claiming to be the bearers of all that is good, virtuous and holy. Democrats were incapable of leading, because they weren't MORAL enough. Republicans had "family values" and God liked them best.
Anytime there was a hint of impropriety in the ranks of the republicans they would get their loudmouth radio and tv personalities out there beating the Clinton/Monica drum. Democrats never once stood up to them because they are scared little spineless weenies. The democrats just let it slide, for eight years.

Well, after eight years of being shamed into silence and losing every single election since, we have a glimmer of hope. With each passing day this scandal weakens the republicans, not because democrats are tearing them down, but because they are cannibalizing themselves. It is a beautiful thing, because it brings the promise of a return to some balance in government, and perhaps some checks on this hideous Executive.

Perhaps most beautifully, though, it is bringing about the end of this false piety, revealing the dark smelly underbelly of conservatism, and negating years and years of righteous indignation served up by piggy right wingers. Oh you can still hear them try the old talking points, sputtering..."But! But! Bill Clinton did it! It was sex with a subordinate! It's the SAME THING!!!" through their tears, but anyone with a brain knows it isn't, it really isn't even close, and it is perverted just to try to equate the issues.

So I do my happy dance. I embrace the promise of a return to REAL decency, where perhaps we can see a light at the end of the Bush Presidency tunnel, a return to some balance, less slimy rhetoric from the right. These are all great things. It is high time for them.
Dance with me!

Photo of the Year

O'Reilly Labels Foley a Democrat

See anything wrong with this photo? That's right, Faux News, in its none too clever attempt to distance Foley from the mothership labled Mark (Taint) Foley as a DEMOCRAT. The graphic was used three times in two segments on the Bill O'Reilly show. Show your outrage, email O'Reilly, I am sure there is a link on the Faux News page but my eyes are dirty now from trying to find it for you. Tell him that he is a liar, and demand he set the record straight.

In Medical News Today...

Medical tubing manufacturers announced today an upgrade to the Foley Catheter. The new models will include a built in calibration system, to accurately measure penis size.

Manufacturers expect to have the new models available for use in hospitals nationwide November 8th.

New Developments in Masturgate

In breaking news...

TAINT

Taint Foley has entered Pervert Rehab.

In other news it looks like the smell of Taint is spreading throughout the Republican leadership. Already Hastert, Boehner, and Shimkus (these three guys all sound like euphemisms for kinky behavior) are reeking of Taint. Tony Snowjob is spinning out of control to keep Taint off of the White House. CNN is interviewing pages who don't even have first hand knowledge of Taint. Fox News is trying very hard to ignore it.

TAINT

Blood in the Water

Yes, folks, there is blood in the water. Republican blood, which I really thought would be neon green. It is time for democrats to be sharks. Nasty, biting, ruthless sharks. If you are a democrat running for congress (I am talking to you Patsy Madrid!!!!) you better find every photo of your opponent you can with Foley. They are out there, I saw them myself on the national news tonight (ABC). Get them. Use them. Make T-shirts and give them away.

It is time, be ruthless. Be like the shark.

Hume-ongous Blunder

Today on Faux News Sunday, Brit Hume argued, with regard to the Foley scandal, that there is a difference between republicans and democrats in matters such as these. He said that Gerry Sudds didn't lose his position for his improper relationship with a subordinate, that Barney Frank didn't lose his seat for his improper relationship with a subordinate, and that even Bill Clinton didn't lose his job for improper relationships with a subordinate.

Think about that.

Relationship with a subordinate???

Is that what we are calling teenage pages now? Subordinates?

How dare this man equate consensual sex between adults to the sexual stalking of a sixteen year old boy?

Why do republicans keep electing closet homosexuals? I will tell you why. They keep electing fundamentalist Christians, and you don't get much farther back in the closet than that. People who cannot be frank and honest about their natural sexual tendencies and identity tend to manifest this in very dark ways.

So if you are repressing your sexuality, do the world a favor. Go out and meet a nice person your own age, date them, and get laid. Keep your hands and instant messengers off the kids.