Once a commie always a commie.Her and Bill are two Maximum Marxists.

As we've all seen this picture (I hope):

"No wonder they make them shut up and wear bags over their heads"

they are not maximum marxists--they are mastercard marxists

"I'm from the government, and I'm here to help you".

Remember, it's a privilege to pay taxes. It's the government's money, not yours.

/yeah right

After a comment like that the Republicans will make hash of here in any presidential bid.

All hail the porcine one.

Since I have been "outsourced" for almost a year, I expect Hillary to give me 25% of the proceeds of "Lying (oops--"Living") History and Bill to give me 25% of the proceeds of "My Lies (oops--"Life").

That shouldn't be too much to ask. It's not like I'm demanding 50% or more. That would be too greedy.

Hillary can send me the pearl necklace and the pearl earrings and the gold bracelet she is wearing in this picture and I won't complain.

That one seemingly innocent phrase is the root of tyranny

And I'm sure is willing to assure us it hurts her a lot more than it does us.

I don't know how they stand each other.

that is "I'm sure she is willing to assure us it hurts her a lot more than it does us."

I for one welcome our new tax-collector overlords...

/LLL

It is refreshing to see honesty in politics for a change.

That was fairly inartful of her. Almost un-Clintonesque.

But another quote in the article is bothering me too:

"He was here so dad gum much when he was president that outside of Arkansas, his highest level of support is probably the Bay Area," said Martha Whetstone, executive director of the Bar Association of San Francisco and a longtime friend of both Clintons.

I think there's a law on the State books that if a Californian allows the term "dad gum" to escape his/her lips, they will be driven to the state line and told never to return.

And if there isn't, well dad gum, there should be.

We’re going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good

Mrs. Clinton, go read the Wealth of Nations and get back to us when you have a fucking clue.

OT - Joe Wilson on The Late Show with David Letterman

Well, awhile back I stopped watching al-Nightline and unsubscribed from their mailing list, after it became a nightly shot of anti-American, anti-Bush propaganda. I switched over to watching The Late Show with David Letterman.

Tonight, Letterman holds up a copy of The Politics of Truth, by former ambassador Joe Wilson, about his bogus "investigation" about the documents claiming that Iraq attempted to buy uranium before the Iraq War.

Great, The Late Show turns into al-Nightline. Another show to scratch off of my list.

Well, ain't that special, she's going to take MY money away for the "common good". Whose common good, pray tell?

"From each according to his abilities,
to each according to his needs."
-- Karl Marx

Now, what if you have a lot of abilities, AND you need a lot to achieve what you do? I guess you give all your money to the government, and then they give it all back to you. Or maybe we could skip a couple steps and let everybody keep what they earn.

I for one support that radical notion of a 0% income tax for individuals, supplanted by a national sales tax. 98% of the governmental bureaucracy and paperwork would be eliminated, but the national treasury would get the same revenue every year (if the national sales tax was accurately determined). Though I do favor keeping an "income tax" for non-individuals, such as corporations and other businesses.

Anyway, that's my two cents. Hey I said it was MY two cents! Now give it back to me, Hillary!

Hey! What's the matter with you guys? Don't you know a deal when you see one? That's all the convincing I need. I'm in! Sign me up!

No, really. I'm not kidding here. Honest.

/barf

Never trust a woman with stolen furniture in her home.
Thomas Sowell tries to make it simple.
Low Taxes Do What?

Communism and Socialism seem to be getter more popular again. Looks like we didn't really win the cold war and it really just shifted gears into the covert. Our nation has been possibley fataly infiltrated. She is divided against her own sons and her own purpose for existance. Compromise and collectivism have taken hold. Welfare is at an all time high. We have spent more on the welfare system than on defense. We are losing out on productivity and enginuity to 3rd world coutries. Our education system is dwindleing as well as our attention span as a nation...Wait! Ooo! Out Back Jack and Joe Millionaire is on TV. Gotta go. Later.

combine this one with " I voted for the $18 billion, before I voted against it"

and the election should be a slam dunk... but Im assuming a rational voting public. Silly me.

To quote Menkin, I think:

Whenever A proposes to take something from B for the benefit of C, A is a scoundrel.

Hello? Sound like anyone you know?

OT

But has anyone been hearing the stories about the Iraqi police busting heads and brutalizing hoods since the recent turnover.

I understand that the street merchants are enthusiastically happy about the pistol-whippings and whatnot, but I wonder if that is a sustainable model.

After all, isn't that the same kind of behavior that got them in the pickle in the first place?

Just wondering...

Mr. E Train, I think that was $87 billion.

Trouble with HRC is that she can't recognize UNcommon goods-- like freedom-- when she sees them.

Hillay, new spokesman for the common good

Hillary speaks of the common good. The common good of who or what? How ambiguous and ingenious!
Like we're all just dance with joy, hand out sweets and fire our guns into the air over having the government take more of our money from us.
I just loved working 12 hour shifts, lots of time more than that so I could have big brother poke his hand into my wallet and take the money I've worked my ass off for away from me...for the common good.
Hilliary is nothing more than a damned communist.

Well, zombie, y'know, it takes a village...

#24

World News > New Iraqi police unit uses old tactics

On Sunday, the most notorious criminal haven in central Baghdad was the target of the first major operation mounted by the new Iraqi interior ministry's Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team and members of the new intelligence services.

They went house-to-house, rounding up known criminals and terrorists, reports UPI. Well over 100 suspects were identified, arrested, beaten and processed in the raid.

And residents of Tahrir Square neighbourhood, commonly known as the "Thieves Market", seemed shocked as doors came crashing in and metal batons and plastic hoses were prominently and somewhat gratuitously deployed to send a message to Baghdad's criminal elements.

Hillary Clinton told several hundred supporters -- some of whom had ponied up as much as $10,000 to attend -- to expect to lose some of the tax cuts passed by President Bush if Democrats win the White House and control of Congress.

"Many of you are well enough off that ... the tax cuts may have helped you," Sen. Clinton said.

This p.o.'s me to no end. The super rich like Warren Buffet supporting higher taxes. Hey, billionaires can afford for the government to take 50% of their earnings. They still have $500 million left over! It's the average guy (and girl) who gets royally screwed when the government grabs half their paycheck.

And one day Hillary will be president :-p

Echoes of the Grand Inquisitor: "so men rejoiced that they were again led like sheep..."

"Oh, we shall persuade them that they will only become free when they renounce their freedom to us and submit to us. And shall we be right or shall we be lying? They will be convinced that we are right, for they will remember the horrors of slavery and confusion to which Thy freedom brought them.

Freedom, free thought, and science will lead them into such straits and will bring them face to face with such marvels and insoluble mysteries, that some of them, the fierce and rebellious, will destroy themselves, others, rebellious but weak, will destroy one another, while the rest, weak and unhappy, will crawl fawning to our feet and whine to us: "Yes, you were right, you alone possess His mystery, and we come back to you, save us from ourselves!"

… When the Inquisitor ceased speaking he waited some time for his Prisoner to answer him. His silence weighed down upon him. He saw that the Prisoner had listened intently all the time, looking gently in his face and evidently not wishing to reply. The old man longed for him to say something, however bitter and terrible.

But He suddenly approached the old man in silence and softly kissed him on his bloodless aged lips. That was all his answer. The old man shuddered. His lips moved. He went to the door, opened it, and said to Him: 'Go, and come no more... come not at all, never, never!' And he let Him out into the dark alleys of the town. The Prisoner went away."

"And the old man?"

"The kiss glows in his heart, but the old man adheres to his idea."

--F. Dostoevsky, “The Grand Inquisitor” (from The Brothers Karamazov

#29 jinnderella
Well, zombie, y'know, it takes a village...

It takes a whole lot of villages to grow enough grain to ship back to Moscow so they won't label us reactionaries. In return, they send us orders to grow more grain next year. Now, that's a fair trade, isn't it? After all, this bread made out of chaff and sawdust doesn't taste half bad.

#19 J.D.  

Never trust a woman with stolen furniture in her home.

LOL! And when Hillary runs for president, that will be the sticker on my car.

Thinking of the Grand Inquisitor makes me think that there are ... very big forces at work in all this.

And I don't just mean political parties.

"Together, through the ages, we have fought the long defeat." --Galadriel

Let me get this straight...

Hillary wants to take my stuff and use it as she sees fit because she knows better than me?

The same Hillary that didn't have a clue about Bill. Or what to do with him after she had the clue handed and read to her...

Ha-ha. Ha-ha-ha. Ha-ha-HAA-ha-ha.

She's nuts. She's also politically fucked from the point she uttered those words.

D. Edgren

"And if we should happen to have the same futures broker, I have instructed him to park all my losing trades in your accounts, on behalf of, well...my good.

Oh, and did you know I was named for Sir Edmund Hillary, even though I was six years old when he became famous for scaling Mount Everest? It's true, up until then my parents just called me Hey You!."

/Her

#16 Swamp Woman

"Whose common good, pray tell?"

Why, Yassir Arafat and the PLO, of course, and all those poor Palestinian refugees! We send them money all the time! And then there's the two-billion we send Egypt every year, so they'll love us (which they don't), and all the foreign aid we give out to, oh, so many, many, deserving nations around the world, not to mention all the welfare we pay out to poor, hapless victims of capitalism, right here in the USA, and the UN, which provides such wonderful programs as Oil for Food, and---and---and---

/Head explodes, from too much sarcasm!

/. . . But fortunately I was able to glue it back together.

I am using ancient rabbinical magical spells to construct a golem made from equal parts of Alan Keyes, Pim Fortuyn, and Victor Davis Hanson. Oh, what a golem it will be!

Look on the bright side, folks: Hillary will seize control of the Senate, raise taxes, then Bush will use all that extra money to buy some more AC-130 gunships and Daisy Cutters. Thanks for the munitions, Hil-baby!

Lady of Shalott

Powerful posts...I just finished the Brothers Karamazov last month...

And I too fear you are right...events are happening that are very very powerful behind the scenes that are not too the common good of us...

One can't but wonder what a man like Orwell would say too all of this?

Thanks

Proud Albertan

Pissed off Canadian

We’re going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good.

So when are she and Bill going to deport themselves?

Zombie,I love your "silver lining" approach.(#40)

she can do anything she wants --but--she better not step on my--uh-- blue suede shoes

The trick is to stop thinking it is your money

can you imagine if nancy reagan said this--they were after her for wanting to buy a new set of china for the white house

her 2008 campaign song will be "expropriation"--sung to the tune of carly simon"s "anticipation"

How much of Teh-RAY-sa's money is Mrs. Bubba going to take for the common good? Not to mention the five mansions, 7 SUVs, two motorboats, private jet, etc. etc.

she's a "commongoodest"--21st century version of "communist"--plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose

[Link: news.bbc.co.uk...]

don't you get the feeling to say "ah shuddup already" when you read this!

make that "commongoodist"--i'm frothing and i can't spell

I hope those words she so casually uttered haunt her the rest of her political career.
She is the only other person I can think of right now that scares me worse than Kerry as president.

#50 Dave Ray

Rowan Williams is a prize jackass. I can't believe he's the "spiritual head" of my church.

He is a succubus on the Church.

/spit

OT

Another reason why not to use Microcrap Exploder

Oh Hillary how I despise thee! This woman wants us on a one way track to socialism. This quote will be spun by her minions I'm sure saying she was only talking about Bush's tax cuts but there is a problem there. It was plural and not singular. This one qoute has stuck with me all day. What does she mean? Guns? Income? Freedom of speach? Will the common good end up being a sorry bunch of people that have no freaking desire in life to work hard and make a decent income.

I truelly fear for this country with the rhetoric comming out of these democrats mouths. Where it will lead we do not know.

By the way, hello. I'm new to posting but have been here for quite a while. The knowledge here is very impressive.

@54 ordog Johnson

Which is why I use either mozilla or firefox. :)
If I could I would uninstall IE to keep it from ever being used again on my system. You named it right, microcrap

But…wait?!?! I thought only John Ashcroft was taking things away from us for the common good. Ohhh, no! That's for good of "greedy corporate oil barons", or so the wannabe Leninites tell us.

#17 zombie

You forgot the corollary…

All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others
George Orwell

#31 Cornholio

The super rich like Warren Buffett don't pay taxes. They set up trusts which pay them tax free wages. Gotta love those loopholes.

#36 D. Edgren (the Merciless Infidel)

She's nuts. She's also politically fucked from the point she uttered those words.

One can but wish. If she has anywhere near the teflon her doorstop producing, tree killing husband had, the subject will never even be mentioned

@55 AZIslamophobe

Welcome minion. :)

The battle is always unending, when you're in the fight for freedom. Always there will be those that wish to overlord and control every faction of life.
Knowing who your enemy is, is half of the battle. Now, if we could just get Bush to utter those most important words!

I'm off to sleepy land...night all

Charles, thank you so much for all the hard work you've put into this, one of the most successful blogs I've ever seen!

Can you imagine if we have Kerry as president and then Hillary? Sorry, ugly thought, I know.

"I've never shaken the hand of a president," said Thomas, who added that he had one grandma who couldn't stand Clinton and one who thought he was the best president ever.

"Even better than George Washington," said Thomas

What the hell happened to our education system that Clinton can be compared to George Washington?

Screw Clinton!!! (but you'll have to get in line).

#54 ördög Johnson

Ahhh and Cingular Wireless, my carrier, in their infinite wisdumb, has managed to make their online bill paying MSIE only. It's the one and only reason it's still on my Mac.

Oh, I called customer service today to complain but the poor gal on the other end was just a phone rep. She in no way had anything to do with the web site and probably will have no way to communicate my disgust at this garbage even if she were so inclined. AND there's no way, either by phone or on their web site, that I could find to contact the appropriate people to b*tch to.

Jeff S. (#37)

Oh, and did you know I was named for Sir Edmund Hillary, even though I was six years old when he became famous for scaling Mount Everest? It's true, up until then my parents just called me Hey You!."

LOL! They are such pretentious tools.

I want to point out that George Washington loved the Nation, whereas William Clinton loved himself.

My favorite Hillarism:

I'm not going to have some reporters pawing through our papers. We are the president.

#64 - mine too.

zulubaby,

Can you imagine if we have Kerry as president and then Hillary?

Thanks, now I'm going to have nightmares.

Wouldn't be easier to just ask all these well-off, generous, liberal do-gooders to GIVE their excess for the common good? I mean, can't she just put up a webpage with PayPal donation button?

addendum to #64

a "f---king Jew bastard"

used in a 1976 campaign is a close second.

Geepers, sorry, but I had to say it out loud in a superstitious kinda way. Besides, I don't see why I should be the only one tortured by my thoughts ;-)

#53 Lady of Shalott

'nother OT
Ays definition of occupiers at Iraq at Glance

Congratulations to Iraq and Iraqis on this great day.. A day which is considered a big blow on the heads of those who call the United States and the coalition: ‘occupiers’.. Well.. thank you very much for the ‘occupiers’.. Those who helped us in liberating our country from the tyranny, the ‘occupiers’ who liberated Iraq on the 9th of April, the ‘occupiers’ who sent Mr.Paul Bremer as we did not have a governor at that time..the ‘occupiers’ who helped us in forming a governing council.. The ‘occupiers’ who helped us in the interim constitution.. The ‘occupiers’ who stood against the terrorists.. The ‘occupiers’ who helped us in forming and training our army...etc.. then those ‘occupiers’ handed over the sovereignty to the Iraqis... they are the best ‘occupiers’ I’ve ever seen.. I hope they’ll ‘occupy’ the countries who are in need to be improved !

zulubaby, I see. Could you add some sort of evil curse to the superstition is you only ever say it once?

Compare Iraqi blogs with utterly disgusting Newsweek sewage from the other side.

Bletch. Going to take a shower...

Geepers, saying it out loud dilutes it. Or something like that. It's hard to explain.

zulubaby, so long as its bad juju for them both I can live with it, .. I guess. ;-)

You know, if we didn't have all of the EVILLL Bush tax cuts, what would the economy be like? Or the stock market? I have a few dividend-paying stocks, and am thankful for the "tax cuts for the rich." I am not rich (I have a small Laverne & Shirley-type apt), but I wish I were, as I'm sure many people do. What is wrong with having money? I would like to take care of myself, and I'm planning on leaving what I have left for a grandchild of a beloved co-worker (he is mentally retarded). OH, and Barbara Boxer has an ad on DailyKos.

#61 NTropy

Try Safari with debug menu on. Use IE as user agent.
Type the following command in Terminal (while Safari is NOT running):
% defaults write com.apple.Safari IncludeDebugMenu 1

Why are Dems so careless with OUR money? Could it be that most of them pay NO income taxes (don't approx 1/2 of Americans pay no income taxes?) ? Then, there's the stupid "progressive" tax rates. Which are absolutely idiotic. Even Russia has a flat tax.

#59 Zulubaby

Can you imagine if we have Kerry as president and then Hillary? Sorry, ugly thought, I know

Now I will have nightmares, and it's all your fault! BTW, wash your keyboard out with soap, young lady!

G'nite...to sleep, perchance to have a massive nightmare?

OT

SADDAM HANDED TO IRAQIS

The former dictator will appear in court on Thursday, accused of genocide and crimes against humanity.

Regarding this comment by Hillary...I tell you, this is one Femnazi that scares me...hell all femnazis are vile but Hillary is the Queen...

This will come back to badly haunt the dems in November and Hillary whenever this elite degenerate decides to run!!!

Thanks

Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses SO I CAN RULE THEM! (Apologies to Emma Lazarus)

#72 I'm going to download that and print it up.

I want to have it on hand the next time some fool says "what liberal bias"?

That article is a disgusting, filthy, miserable piece of propaganda.

-ron

NY Nana, I'll get the bleach to my keyboard immediately!

Sweet dreams :-)

You know, in a perfect and just world, Bill Clinton would contract a terminal STD and then give to Hillary... Sigh... Alas, this is not a just and perfect world... Guess we're going to have to stop this Elitist Bitch the old fashioned way: at the ballot box...

I do try to look on the bright side of the Clintons still being around on the political scene... One thing I can say for them is that they're always entertaining.

#76 Daybrother

Thanks but no joy. I already had the debug turned on for some reason. I hadn't run Safari Enhancer or anything like that on this machine either as far as I remember. Especially since it had caused trouble on my old machine.

I must say, my online experience with Sprint was much better than it's ever been with Cingular. And I HATE when stuff is written specifically for that lousy, bug ridden, insecure steaming pile of DUNG.

Isn't this called 'skipping with bill' or some such?

jayzus, when the quote was first posted I thought, nooo way. Just one of those rumors. To think we have 4 months with a few days change until the election day is a sure guarantee of some very entertaining Deansqué or Algoulish dhimmicrat moments. How fun!

Slightly off-topic, I just noticed that GW is having a great time at the Nato summit.

He may be testing the theory that the fwrench have become to close with their beloved 'sploding militants or whatever their calling them today.

I'm sure we all read/heard about GW getting Chirac worked into a tizzy earlier, resulting in Chirac's having one of his 'special moments' and telling GW off. GW evidently tried holding the button down and made another call for Turkey's EU inclusion.

Anyone hear of Chirac having, maybe, a terminal violent release of energy, gas, liquids, solids, etc...later?

gee, I just hate seeing the fwrench being in another lose-lose proposition to which they appear to have developed an affinity. /not

I want to point out that George Washington loved the Nation, whereas William Clinton loved himself.

Well he and Monica loved him...

(Ack don't throw anything at me for the weak joke)

And on Kerry being magically elected, I've already decided to leave the country as long as he's in office..Hillary being somehow voted in would just extend my visit to the foreign country...

She doesn't honestly see anything wrong with this kind of statement? I mean as you have all pointed out, it's boarder line communism and all that mess..

Rayra, I thought you'd like these.

#88 Right Wing Animator: I thought you were an anime fan-- Kerry can never be elected-- He is a Demon (not the good kind)! :)

#90 jinnderella

Heh, I always figured he'd sold his soul..

Quick - whoever is on - I need a thread about the Guardian's anti-semitism.

I am searching through old pages but can't find one now that I need one.

I am chatting with someone who WORKS for them and said they have "diverse political opinions".

Anyone awake? (I'm not... making this more difficult)

Here is one Chana:

[Link: www.littlegreenfootballs.com...]

#93 PDM

oooh good one.

This person and I have a good working relationship - I hope I am not about to end it...

Thanks

another:

[Link: www.littlegreenfootballs.com...]

Chana, there are lots of threads about the Guardian.

#91 Right Wing Animator:
You saw Princess Mononoke, right? Both Hilary and JohnKerry touched the source demon, Clin-ton. The chance cannot be stopped, only slowed.

#62 zulubaby

We may laugh, but I'm afraid the joke's on us. They lie with impunity because they know they'll get away with it. Whether it's bald-faced lies such as the Edmund Hillary fabrication, the hubris of the Travelgate firings, or the petty thievery and staffers' vandalism that marked their departure from the White House, nothing ever sticks to these people, the true Teflon President(s).

#94 Chana,

You're welcome. The link in #96 is all you'll need though. Good luck.

#92 Chana

Google is your friend.

Guardian Spew

My condlences for having to chat with a Guardian employee.

Oops, I meant the 'change' cannot be stopped. My shameful, endless spelling errors.

That's "condolences". Just a mention of that rag causes me to lose my spelling ability.

You saw Princess Mononoke, right? Both Hilary and JohnKerry touched the source demon, Clin-ton. The chance cannot be stopped, only slowed.

Heh...that's a disturbing way to put it, though I take it these two won't have the good ending the movie did ( I always hate about studios, they always seem to leave you largly hanging..)

true Teflon President
This sounds like a band name to me...
now opening for the True Teflon Presidents, it's the Lying Lefties and Moore the Hutt and the warped Views

PDM and zulubaby:

google - why didn't I think of that?

I need sleep.

Thanks a lot.

An earlier poster remarked that these remarks were almost remarkably Un-Clintonesque in their clumsiness.

Is it possible that they don't like the poll parity they see, and are giving a wee nudge?

Whatever Kerry, MSM, Michael Moore, and a couple hundred thousand moonbats think, the Democrat party's plans for Kerry end this November.

If you just remember that the party is comprised of Bill, Hill, and Terry MacAullife's checkbook, it's pretty easy to understand.

She can say anything she wants. She won't get called on it.

#103 Right Wing Animator: Studio Ghibli! My favorite is Totoro, or maybe Spirited Away...Den Beste is awesome on anime as metaphor-- his new site has a great post up on Chaos Theory (BTW, I am planning on arguing with him about it)-- but he is the god of anime around here.
I did not think it was a happy ending. I preferred the Forest Gods.

OT

CALLING CHIRAC'S CHARADE

In the face of unceasing French attacks on American foreign policy, President Bush has struck back in a way that is deeply embarrassing to France's President Chirac.

Okay so it wasn't a "good ending" in the usual sense, but as far as the 'heroes' go, it was a good ending more or less, I was a fan of the wolves myself.

TmjUtah
You live in Utah or are you just from here?

and she might get called on it but I don't think anyone would care..

I'm off to sleep, my computer screen is blurring on me..
Goodnight everybody

IMHO, even the dems don't want kerry to win-- it would only complicate hilary's run. If she must wait for 8 years, well, she is looking a little long in the tooth. TV cameras are not kind to aging XX beings. Maybe Kerry is only a stalking horse for his party.

Production I.G. is the one behind one of my favorite titles, all you Right Wing animators! Ghibli's always a treat for the eyes, though...

I've always been an Otomo fan. Since the motorcycle fight in Akira, I was hooked.

Gee, i hope we're still allowed to say g'nite to people?
Goodnight Right Wing Animator!

And goodnight al qittus sa'il-- LOL, the ironing is still delicious!

To be fair about it, she is saying nothing that controversial. Everyone knows that Republicans prefer small government and less monies pumped into social programs while Democrats prefer larger governments with more monies pumped into social programs. It is a defining marker between the two parties and always has been. Furthermore, to be fair about it, the Democratic party does not tow the communist line. I guess the Democrats version of government is similar to that of Canada, the UK or Australia.

As Charles said, "at least she is being honest about it."

Anyone who has read my prior posts knows that I am not a Troll. The problem is that when we magnify small issues to giant proportions, we dilute the strength of our voice with respect to the real issues. This, in my opinion, is a non-issue. That is, to the extent it is an issue, it is an issue that has always divided Democrat from Republican and always will, but certainly nothing to villify a person over.

BRUTUS,

It's the hypocricy that pisses us off. She and the rest of the Limousine Liberals and Mastercard Marxists already have their wealth and Income Taxes hardly effect them. There is no "Wealth Tax" to speak of, and most of the Trust Fund Tuhrayzas out there get a large proportion of their income through tax-exempt bonds. In the Kerrys' case, it's about $5 million a year, tax-free. Should Kerry be elected and his tax proposals go through, the value of their bond holdings would also increase substantially, as higher tax rates make tax-exempt bond more popular as a shelter.

Brutus,

I've nothing against your having an opinion. However, this is certainly an issue.

I really can't find anything to say on this point; it's more than annoying; it's infuriating. As someone already posted, Karl Marx wrote, "From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs."

The former part is what I have a problem with. Switch the two clauses around, maybe, and you'd have something... from each according to his needs (take less from the needy), to each according to his abilities (pay super-geniuses a hell of a lot).

I guess the Democrats version of government is similar to that of Canada, the UK or Australia.

Yes, but the GNP of the U.S. is higher than all of those countries put together. We also have about half the unemployment of any one of them -- only slightly less than Australia, but still less.

*affect*

PIMF, damnit, it's late.

Can you imagine if we have Kerry as president and then Hillary?

Charles,
Would this fall under the particularly offensive category?

Jinni,

Goodnight.

I mean, GAZE...

Yea, fair-the-well, brothers and sisters-- listen to a story of a fellow pilgrim, who went astray, She was slovenly and a lay-about. Her work habits were poor and she expected us to support her! Yes brothers and sisters, her name was Common Good and she was lazy and of the devil...

/Hill telling Colonial stories

OT

'They are Not the Victims of Israeli or American Aggression; Therefore, They are Not an Issue for Concern'

This is how an approach of indifference towards others outside the circle of conflict with foreigners, and of permitting their murder, is spread as you read and write about the Darfur crisis and consider it an artificial issue, or one unworthy of world protest.

From Kragar's link

France and the other European powers that oppose Turkey's inclusion believe — though it is rarely said publicly — that the E.U. should remain an organization of exclusively Christian countries.

Chirac is high if he thinks France is a Christian country anymore. Hell, there are probably more active Christians in Turkey.

does not tow the communist line

OK, I have a bone to pick here. One does now tow a line, unless you are physically picking up, say, a rope, and pulling it. In the sense that Brutus is attempting to use the word, he should be using toe.

This announcement was brought to you by the Committee Of People Who Know What's Good For You(TM).

Meh!

One does NOT tow a line...

"Marxists"?!!! How on earth can you possibly - even jokingly - think of equating withholding tax cuts to the well off to Marxism?! There are loads of daft, damnable, damaging and dangerous things done in the name of liberalism and socialism; there are also crazy ideological bug bears on the right, one of them being that force feeding the already wealthy with more money is somehow a Good Thing. Taxation, like all things, should be in moderation - making the wealthy poor helps no-one and is immoral. However, tax cuts as well should be in moderation and should be affordable given the socio-economic context of the time and place. If someone's wealthy then let them pay more tax for the common good - because they, too, are included in the common good. They, too, will benefit from more effective policing and public services that (if not run by bleeding hearts who want to excuse every vice) aim at giving the less privileged a greater opportunity at generating wealth (for themselves and, thus, for others). Finding the balance between taxation levels and public necessity is difficult, yes. But to dismiss a reasonable option out of hand is the triumph of ideological petrification.

force feeding the already wealthy with more money

Force feeding money to the wealthy. Uh huh. Are you high? No, seriously... are you?

#128 Kalev

Attitudes max all the difference. I've got no problem with paying taxes. I have a major problem with left wing idiotlectuals speaking at $10,000 dollar a plate dinners saying I need to pay more taxes when I work my ass off. Adding the further implication that the average citizen is too dumb to know whats best for them and should give up their money to support programs for drug abusing serial unemployed single parents or studying the effect of owl farts on the ozone layer and you can't give me one frickin reason or scenario where I'll support these assholes.

that should have read "makes the difference", working on a caffeine buzz.

Hilary has been taking tax lessons from her old mate Tony!

Rayra, Kragar, yes, Akira was the First! And the Holy Macross!! I grew up watching Lin Min Mei and her drunkard cousin Lin Kyle after school! :)
I actually had a course in anime and japanese cinema as an undergrad-- I have a total passion for anime! It is the best!

I haven't read all the threads today (time-zone challenged and all that) so for all I know someone may have already posted this, but according to the AP as reported in the Jerusalem Post, Saddam Hussein has been transferred to the Iraqis, together with other high-ranking officials of the former regime, and his trial will be televised. He will be making his first court appearance on Thursday.

1928 Party Platforms - Socialist included - (UCLA Library gif images)

There is something wrong when some people pay no income taxes, yet populate a party that desires to increase them for the rest of us. People care about things they pay for...

#137 Rayra

see post #123 above

There ought to be one day - just one - when there is open season on senators.
Will Rogers (1879-1935)

I love that comments like that are unusual in America :-)

Good morning! Saddam handed over

I hope he gets his daily undies on his head. Hell, I hope I do.

#128 kalev --- and why should Princess Hillary be the one to decide what the common good is?

Hillary "Robin Hood" Clinton. Maybe she can serve the common good by "taking things away" from mega-bucks First Lady-in-waiting Theresa Heinz Kerry. She seems to have a lot of scratch to spare.

OT: I hate it when Bush panders to his RoSBP audiences. Here he's telling university students in Istanbul that embracing reform needn't mean adopting "the cultural excesses" of America. Disparaging your own culture won't win you any hearts and minds abroad; it will only make them hate you more, and perhaps alienate some of those folks back home enjoying all the "cultural excess".

#145 scaramouche

American audience: "Hollywood sucks." (the 30% who have GWB voodoo dolls stick in another pin) (intelligent moderates wince) (religious conservatives look skyward for rescue craft)

Istanbul* audience: "Exactly. That is why we must kill all of you infidels who will not submit to peace."

*Formerly Constantinople, please update maps. (I get confused sometimes)

Anybody know how long the Bush = Hitler ads were on the MoveOn.org website.

My LLL brother claims Kerry's internet manager had nothing to do with the ads, they were part of a contest, and MoveOn.org did not approve. I recall seeing one of them at the MoveOn.org website, but I don't know how long they were actually up.

Today my brother emailed back with some quote from Arlen Specter (R D-Pennsylvania) about how the acts was being abused and how terrible Ashcroft was. There will be no convincing him.

#128 Kalev

Hearing a politician say that she wants to take things away from you for some undefined "common good" doesn't scare the shit out of you??

Have you been so brainwashed by wolf-in-sheep's clothing socialism/collectivism that you willingly let them take your money?! And then thank them for the "services" they provide??

The "common good" is best served by vigorous, raucous individualism and free markets. Not nationalization of wealth as Hillary would have it.

{Oh yeah - and abolish the income tax as well. Is there anything more odious or immoral than punishing the producers of wealth?}

Two words: Animal Farm

For those of you not intimately familiar with Orwell's novel, Democrat supporters are the sheep, the politicians are the pigs, the working wealthy are the horses and the Republican leadership are the farmer.

I propose a Saddam Death pool be started.

I say he will be executed by July 15.

$5

#150 Dar ul Harbarian

From the news coming out, he is still in physical US custody, just legally in Iraqi custody. They say they want to try some others first, build up the case and make an example out of him. I say next year, spring time at the earliest.

Of course the great thing about inherited wealth, is once the big tax bite happens at the time of inheritance (and the Kennedy type rich set up trusts and the such to minimize that) its yours. Interest/dividends may be taxable, but once again Kennedy rich means good lawyers and accountants.

Heinz-Kerry and Ted Kennedy (D-Chappaquidick) won't mind a 50 or 60% max tax rate that much at all.

BTW, it is not a sign of Hillary's stupidity that WJC has been screwing everything with legs and boobs since they married. She got into that marriage because WJC was a rising star, and it has worked brilliantly. As Dick Morris has suggested, and various web sites have also claimed, Hillary is either lesbian or bisexual. I suspect she had company some of the nights that Bill was out chasing Arkansas state employees around their desks.

#148 Thom

How is (was?) Egypt?

Hillary always struck me as being one of those look-but-don't touch kind of gals--icy, cerebral and sexless.

Israeli Supreme Court orders new fence route to ease Arab suffering

Dany Tirza, the army's chief planner of the route of the barrier, said the decision would delay construction "certainly by many months."

The Israeli Supreme Court must be truly out there if Amram Mitzna (Labour) is saying things like this:

12:29 Labor MK Amram Mitzna: Fence ruling shows High Court is the true wall defending Israel

#148 Thom

Hearing a politician say that she wants to take things away from you for some undefined "common good" doesn't scare the shit out of you??

Let's also remember what Queen Hillary's idea of the common good is.

Her 1993 Health Care Plan would have abolished the private practice of medicine in the United States. Her health plan included prison terms for doctors who helped patients without government authorization.

And when told that the costs of her plan would bankrupt many small businesses, she sniffed, "I can't be responsible for every under-capitalized business in America."

OT

Will be driving (in a car, the boss needs the company Silverado diesel 4WD to go to our recompletion in Vermilion parish to supervise our simple recompletion up hole which has turned ugly, with multiple casing leaks and squeezes) down to near Cuero, TX to watch a couple of our old wells being plugged and abandoned. A new landowner brought the property and mineral rights, and didn't want oil wells marring his scenery. So 30 or 40 barrels per day of Texas oil production will be permanently lost, as it is doubtful anyone will ever pay in the ballpark of $200k to redrill wells near there for 15 to 20 BOPD production each.

I hope I don't get stuck.

Major flooding and heavy rains throughout Texas.

Disasterous river flooding along Frio, Sabinal and Nueces rivers.

Sabinal River at Sabinal, TX four orders of magnitude higher than usual flow

#149 Ayatollah Ghilmeini

Two words: Animal Farm

"All Americans are equal, but some Americans are more equal than other Americans."

Ahh...the dirty little secret of American politics. The super-rich are rarely Republican and almost never conservative. Ms. Clinton spouting off the rhetoric of sacrifce at a $10K / plate dinner should clue anyone in. The law increasing taxes Hillary would ask for would almost certainly include some innocuous sounding provision about "carryforward of certain ongoing expenses relating to..." or somesuch. The bright young men and women at Goldman or Morgan Stanley will be looking into the provisions before the legislation is even in debate. I very much doubt that anyone in the audience, the primary market for those bright young men and women on the Street, will pay an additional dime in taxes. Who will? Oh, the hardware store owner who still carries the business as a sole proprietorship, the young M.D. who, after internship, residency, and a couple of hundred grand in college and med school bills is starting to make a little bit,...you get the picture.

#153 Colt

Still here. Fine so far, although I wouldn't want to live here.

For one thing, the air pollution makes my lungs hurt! A curious factoid: in Cairo the lead-on-particulates air pollution is equal to 60% of the same pollution in the entire US! (Hopefully I won't contract Pb poisoning. LOL.)

OT: The Official Liquor of the John Kerry 2004 Campaign

(Found it at Lileks.)

Ed Moran

"My LLL brother"

Ed, I had a brother that sounded as yours does, and as many have indicated here, that relatives do.

Chuck, (my bro) died of brain cancer last year. While I found his 'thinking' and 'politcal stances', truly bizzare and laughable, I sure do miss his looniness.

My real pleasure was taking his money on a golf course.

#162 V the K

I thought Hillary was the official licker?

#161 Thom

Wow. Did Egypt sign Kyoto? :-)

#157 V the K

I was unaware of the prison terms, but it is unsurprising. Independence of thought or action is a grave threat to the socialist utopia Hillary would bestow upon us, or any socialist utopia.

---

To my #148:

Is there anything more odious or immoral than punishing the producers of wealth?

I should have added:

... and using the revenue generated by those fines and penalties to reward the indolent, the non-producers, who merely consume?

OT: The UN symposium on anti-Semitism. At least the UN is acknowledging the problem, even if it's being done in a sheepish, half-hearted way. Too bad the UN has been intstumental over the years in perpetuating and expanding the problem.

#165 Colt

Hmmm ... Dunno, lemme look into that.

(Actually, they must have because there are no tree-hugging loonies protesting the savaging of the environment.)

/riiight

Bad news for Gordo, Lame Stain and the other tools ... Allawi: Saddam connected to Al Qaeda

115 and 116

It's the hypocricy that pisses us off. She and the rest of the Limousine Liberals and Mastercard Marxists already have their wealth and Income Taxes hardly effect them. There is no "Wealth Tax" to speak of, and most of the Trust Fund Tuhrayzas out there get a large proportion of their income through tax-exempt bonds. In the Kerrys' case, it's about $5 million a year, tax-free. Should Kerry be elected and his tax proposals go through, the value of their bond holdings would also increase substantially, as higher tax rates make tax-exempt bond more popular as a shelter.

First, being right of center, I cannot begrudge a man (or woman) his wealth. Second, democrats would argue, and somewhat justifiably, that Bush's tax cuts do not benefit the middle class as much as the rich. A middle class employee receiving a few hundred dollars back from the IRS gains a minor, but in no event, "Freedom 55" windfall. The windfalls received by the affluent, however, are far more meaningful. I am not saying that I agree with this argument, merely that it is legitimately made. Also, regardless of whose in power, there will always be tax shelters for the affluent to exploit.

I see no problem with having two (or more) differing views on how best to tax the US - I do, after all, live in a democracy where this kind of thing is encouraged. The problems I have with the left extend beyond traditional party lines - they extend to things like like Kerry's flip flops, like Michael Moore's lies, like Rall's shameless (and in my view, treasonous) cartoons disparaging the good name of a fallen hero, etc...

I really can't find anything to say on this point; it's more than annoying; it's infuriating.

That may be so, but it is infuriating because you hold a different view from certain other Americans. I do not begrudge other Americans to hold different views than my own, but only to the extent that their views do not threaten or harm myself, my family, my country or most importantly, the principles on which this country stands. When airports refuse to profile muslims and actually limit the number of muslims they will search to 2 per flight, then I am threatenned by the wilful blindness of the left... then I get infuriated. When Moore portrays OBL as a modern day Paul Revere, then I get infuriated. When Hillary says that she will do what every other democratic president in history has done, I shrug my shoulders.

125

I stand corrected - toe the line.

I'm off to the airport to see my kid off. Next stop Ft Jackson and a rude surprise.

It's "for the common good". I can't stand Hillary C. She is such a smug bitch. I bet her kid never serves in the military, thank god.

Now, jes' one second har.

Tha "Common good" or, sah, "rights of society" are just legal fictions used to restrict individual rahts.

The only demonstrable rights in a laboratory are individual rights.

Course, I'm just a country lawyer. I'm not used to wranglin' with high-priced legal talent like Hillary Clinton (who is a Marxist).

OK, this will be my last fish for a hat tip, but this article kind of gets me right in the schadenfreude French wine-growing region in worst crisis in 50 years as sales plummet

What got me is this para right at the end of the story.

For many, Bordeaux wines are over-rated and over-priced. According to Malcolm Gluck, writer of the Guardian's Super plonk column, Bordeaux is "a fatuous circus, run by spin doctors ... and those sycophantic wine writers whose main preoccupation is maintaining the myths ".

Fatuous circus? Preoccupation with maintaining the myths? Is he talking about Bordeaux or Chirac's government?

If it were really for our good, she'd be in Chappaqua baking cookies.

OT
Carpet-humper says: more Islam please!

[Link: www.arabtimesonline.com...]

Second, democrats would argue, and somewhat justifiably, that Bush's tax cuts do not benefit the middle class as much as the rich.

LOL. Reason #361 why the income tax should be abolished:

Taxation as a means of redistribution of wealth for purposes of social engineering.

Closely followed by Reason #362:

Bureaucrats (the mob) deciding who gets whose money and why.

The blitheness with which some accept this outrage on our freedoms is more than alarming, it is downright sickening.

Yes! Let's give communism one more chance! Surely it'll work here!

{puke}

#149 Ayatollah Ghilmeini

For those of you not intimately familiar with Orwell's novel, Democrat supporters are the sheep, the politicians are the pigs, the working wealthy are the horses and the Republican leadership are the farmer

So the Dogs are DU Posters?

;)

Hillary's psuedo-marxism isn't under the table anymore. She's an out and out Marxist from the cadre school of Saul Alinsky. Her comments are nearly identical to those of past union bosses that would fight for its members but skim millions of dollars off the top for all their friends.

The Bush family are assholes, but the Clinton's are worse.

Hillary is the finger to the wind Senator.

Ok, gang. Repeat after me: "Liberals always know what's good for everybody else."

Socialism pure and simple.

OT: Why Does this (Abomination) Look Vaguely Familiar?

Thom,

Did you get to visit Egypt's "1973 War Museum?" If so, how was it?

OT: INSURGENTS: CAPTURED MARINE HAD DESERTED

www.nytimes.com/2004/06/30/international/middleeas t/30MARI.html

There are a number of things I find disturbing about this article. One of them of course, being the soft-label "insurgents." But even more alarming is the idea that the marine was handed over to "the bad guys" by people who worked on his U.S. base.

What are people with such close ties, and sympathies, doing with access to a US military base?

How well are the local employees vetted?

#175 peace be upon me

If Islam were a basketball player, Muslims would play it 48 minutes every game until it died.

Hmmm? Am I trying to say something by that?

At this point, having studied some Islam, I'd pick virtually any other organized religion on the face of the Earth, were a "gun to my head" as someone pointed out the other day.

*Jehovah's Witnesses approach my door*

Me: "Hey, I was just doing some comparison shopping and I've got a Mormon and a Baptist already here, have a seat!"

HMrs. Clinton is a communist. See, she admitted to taking for the common good. Question: How on Earth does she know what good is?

Seems the captured Lebannese Marine is a Deserter.

Marine Deserter NYT

If he is in fact a deserter, I sympathise a whole lot less with his plight. Probably the first in USMC history.

Fellow, LGF'ers,

Does anyone have a subscription to {barf} "The Nation" magazine online? Reason being, I want to read the winning poems from the DISCOVERY contest this year. Although the left-wing rag does post some of its drivel online, it withholds the poetry results for paying subscribers.

Even if I HAD spare US bucks, I wouldn't spend it on that LLL, Israel bashing baby wipe. They DO, however, sponsor an excellent national poetry contest, so if anyone has access and doesn't mind posting it, I would be oh-so-grateful.

Thanks!

#182 merav

I haven't been there yet, but I hope to next week.

Not to worry, there will be pictures and wry comments when I get back.

andrew 2, #184,

Even if he IS a deserter, I still sympathize with him. According to the article, he started falling apart after he saw his sergeant blown to bits. It's hard to say what kind of effect that could have on a person, even a Marine.

What he was (apparently) kidnapped FOR, was his status as a Marine. And what he's facing beheading for, is being a US Marine. If they gave a #$%@ about his Muslim status, they wouldn't be holding him. To them, he's first and foremost a US Marine.

So for that, (and the fact that my dad was a Marine,) I feel a great deal of pity for him. Yeah, he messed up. He deserves to be court-martialed. But he doesn't deserve the fate his captors have planned for him.

OT: Oy vey! As if Flatulence 9/11 wasn't bad enough, must we now contend with the "Michael Moore of the right"? Hot-and-cold-Neo-Com-cabal-conspiracy theories, courtesy Pat "Israel Sucks" Buchanan.

#185 merav

Does anyone have a subscription to {barf} "The Nation" magazine online?

I guess it's worth a try, but it's kinda like asking the MoveOn crowd if they have a subscription to The Wall Street Journal online.

'187 MEARV

Well said. My father was a US Marine, still is. But I still sympathise a lot less with him. I don#t however want him decapitated though. Just thrown in the brig for a couple of Also, is it possible that he could have planned to help his Muslim brothers ambush some Marines?

The Marine may or may not be a deserter. If the [bigoted word]s holding him are smart, they'd use him for anti-US propaganda. The threat of death would probably make him say anything, if he was indeed a deserter.

But they like killing too much. Even if he spouts the bin Laden party line, they'll still probably kill him.

BTW, my wife and my combined income is well under $100k. We're pretty solidly middle class, and the Bush tax cuts saved us a couple of thousand dollars on our 2003 taxes.

So it isn't just the rich who benefit.

Thom,

I'm looking forward to your report! :-)

This one is easy people...

The "Common Good" is having liberal Democrats in office, as opposed to the dangerous state of things now under Republican control. In order to do that she needs votes, and since Democrats can't rely on truth or logic to convince people to vote for them they must buy these votes. Preferably with someone else's money. So she takes money from the wealthy, most of whom were going to vote against her anyway, and gives it to the dumb masses, who then eagerly vote to keep her in office so they can get more money from her next time.

Claudia Rossett is very amusing this morning on the disfunctional UN "family". Kinda like The Sopranos, but without the compensations of comic relief and baked ziti at Vesuvio's

#191 Ed Moran: Abu GOMEX aoa 28C

So it isn't just the rich who benefit.

But, but the people whose earnings are below poverty level did not get a tax cut!!!

/LLL spout, ignoring or blissfully ignorant of the fact that poverty level earners do not pay taxes and receive a full return of withholdings...

#184 andrew2

If he is in fact a deserter, I sympathise a whole lot less with his plight. Probably the first in USMC history.

Sadly, he is not the first. One Marine stationed in Hawaii went AWOL so he would not have to go to the Mideast in the first Gulf war. Said he didn't join the Marine to go to war. Duh!. He was caught and is probably still making little rocks from big ones.

The Marines will still want this guy back alive so that THEY can deal with him. I will guess that they may not risk people like they would if he was not a deserter.

This is a pro-Bush ad waiting to be made - we are just now beginning to recover from a recession and we have Hillary out there telling us she wants our cash ... smart.

Q: How do you defeat the Democrats?
A: Catch them accidently saying what they really believe and then televise it

Ni

remeber folks, if you pay taxes you are the evil rich

Perhaps Hilary and Bill should donate Bill's book advance to the greater good? Lotsa great charities out there. What a great idea.

Feh! That's why I couldn't ever live on a kibbutz ("whadaya mean I got my toilet paper allocation for the month").

OT: Very depressing but important article from NRO about what's happening in Sudan.

Lastly-scathing review in the National Post of MM's "crockumentary". I love it!

#193 Enkil

So she takes money from the wealthy, most of whom were going to vote against her anyway, and gives it to the dumb masses, who then eagerly vote to keep her in office so they can get more money from her next time.

No, she takes money from the middle and upper middle class. The true rich have many ways not to pay tax if they don't want to. People like me who get most of their income from a salary don't have many ways to protect it from taxes.

"If I knew for a certainty that a man was coming to my house with the conscious design of doing me good, I should run for my life."

—Henry David Thoreau

Maybe I've beaten this to death... but Hillary (and Kerry, and most democrats) define the "common good" in terms of hiring thousands and thousands of unionized public employees (bureaucrats, teachers, bureaucrats, policemen, bureaucrats, firefighters). In doing so, it raises the amount of money in the coffers of public employee unions... and just who is the beneficiary of campaign contributions from public employee unions?

#169 V the K

Allawi: I believe very strongly that Saddam had relations with al-Qaida. And these relations started in Sudan.

You remember in 1998, when Clinton bombed the al-Shifa pharmaceuticals facility in Sudan? Richard Clarke said he believed al-Shifa was used to create VX gas. He also said that al-Qaeda was trying to procure VX from this factory, and that the factory was run by the Sudanese government and... Iraqi scientists.

OT: Muslim voters prefer Kerry.

This is one for either the "what would we do without the media" file, or the "duh" file.

#185 merav
Use this to get past the registration.

#199 WriterMom

Great minds--I just sent that NRO link to Charles!

Have you recovered from your post-election disappointment. I thought David Frum in the Post today did a very good post-mortum--the Tories were done in by a combination of poor message delivery on their part and misleading attack ads by the Liberals. Now we're stuck with a Paul Martin who'll have to pander to Jack Layton--a worst-case scenario if there ever was one.

By now, most people should know that when someone advocates taking from the fortunate to distribute to the unfortunate they are likely just trying to protect either their own wealth and power or that of their allies and financiers.

It's like Warren Buffet railing against ending the estate tax when he has massive business interests in maintaining the estate tax. If eliminated he is a big fat loser.

By the way. if you think the Nation Magazine loves poetry then you probably think they hate oil. In reality, the Nation Institute is made possible by oil wealth.

Yea right Muslim voters support Kerry. Wait until Kerry tries to pull a "I'm with the Jews" speech as cover that he is pro-Israel.

The Muslim vote is either staying home in November or voting for Nader.

RE: Sudan
When is it genocide - never by the UN

Many thousands more are at risk of starving due to a lack of food in the camps where they have fled.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan has refused to use the term genocide, which would carry a legal obligation to act.

Jeeezus. He never ceases to shame himself.

the Tories were done in by a combination of poor message delivery on their part and misleading attack ads by the Liberals.

Not to nitpick, but "failure to get our message out" and "unfair attacks" were exactly what Democrats blamed their losses in 2002 on. Maybe that's the fallback position for all losing parties to fall back on.

Frankly, it seems to me that Canadian voters are just more socialistic than Americans.

#199 writersmom:

The Sudanese situation is indeed quite scary. It's Rwanda redux. Complete with Annan refusing to get the UN to act because if he calls the situation there genocide, he must act. So he calls it everything else but what it really is.

Into this vacuum, expect folks like Hizbullah who use the civil strife to profit to jump on into the country and exploit it - just like Hizbullah did in Sierra Leone's civil war, which allowed Hizbullah to profit from the sale of conflict diamonds.

That's right folks - terrorist groups love this kind of civil strife since it gives them a stranglehold on the local vices/crimes/material resources, and can flip them into usuable cash, weapons, and recruitment for future terrorist operations.

That's why you can't turn away from situations in Africa like Rwanda, Sudan, Congo, and all the other failed states. That's why nation building is important. That's why the fight against terrorism must include dealing with failed states. That's why the phrase "Never Again" must mean something and not be some empty platitude recited by some UN lackey all the while watching hundreds of thousands displaced, dispatched, and dead.

#194 scaramouche

That's St. Claudia of Rosett to me. While the Pope passes out sainthoods, I thought I might try to get a piece of the action.

I never realized how corrupt from top to bottom the UN really is. Believe it or not, after the first Gulf War, I thought it was a good idea to involve the UN, listen to the Arabs, Europeans, and leave Saddam in power.

That led to the failed rebellions, more mass murder, terrorism, starvation through oil-for-food, and massive UN corruption from top to bottom.

Man, what an idealistic, idiotic, piece of intellectual crap I was.

If you are from the UK, could you please explain to me how the definite article works? I'm beginning to think we use it wrong. Grammar is not my favorite subject either. Feel free to ignore.

#202 V the K I know! I know! Call on me! Link

Ah but #191,
you are rich, in Billhillaland! And it's not allowed.
Sharing is caring.

/ugh.

That MSN/Newsweek article link is horrible. The author is having an online chat at Noon eastern time. I would like to say a thing or two myself to that guy.

Inside the Asylum: Why the UN and Old Europe are Worse than You Think

I believe EVERY word already!

#189, scaramouche,

Yeah, I guess I was hoping that someone may work at a place that subscribes to it, and could post that.

#190, andrew2,

Re: planning to help them ambush other Marines? That's a horrible thing to accuse a person of, but in the post 9/11 world, we have to be open to all possibilities. I'd prefer to give him the benefit of the doubt, and continue to pray for his safefy and release. Then the USMC can investigate to its heart's content, and take the appropriate punitive actions.

It's that possibility, however, that alarmed me about the "middle-men's" access to a US military installation. As farfetched as it may sound, with that access, it wouldn't be impossible for them to capture a high-ranking officer, and the resultant shockwaves could be devastating.

G-d forbid.

scaramouche/VtheK

I am still really upset about the elections and I think the conservatives lost because too many Canadians want Big Government to take care of them, and are very left wing-so VtheK, I think you are correct.

I have very few Jewish colleagues, but one came by yesterday day to say he voted Liberal because they ought to be the reigning supreme power in government, and he didn't like the conservatives. This is someone who is supposedly concerned about Candada's position vis a vis Israel, and "disgusted" by the anti-war lunatics. And then he goes and votes Liberal!

I said first "how on earth can you say that?", and then that I simply would not be able to have a conversation with him about this topic. I have also publicly declared in front of shocked colleagues that I hate the Liberals. And I do. I really hate this group think mentality and that nobody gives a crap here about how much money they have wasted and their namby pamby attitudes about terrorists and anti-Americanism. It's a frikkin nightmare. I'm so isolated politically!

scaramouche-let's have lunch again to rant about them all!!!

OT

Bad day to float down the Sabinal, Frio, Blanco, Nueces, Guadalupe, Blanco or San Marcos rivers in an innertube

CenTex radar loop

The Blanco River at Wimberley headed off the chart

Did you know there is a Medina River in Texas? Well, its starting to flood quite badly near Bandera, TX

For that matter, its fixing to flood in San Antonio, TX

I've been drunk in San Antonio, and have attended a Spurs game at the not really that old Alamo Dome.

#21 Egfrow
Communism and Socialism seem to be getter more popular again. Looks like we didn't really win the cold war and it really just shifted gears into the covert.

Socialism lost in the east and won in the west. They are using legislation, propaganda and lies to achieve what they cannot do in a violent revolution.

I don’t know if I would call Clinton’s remarks honesty or just a stark reality of what many democrats view as a simple redistribution of wealth. I don’t know anyone who does not want to help out individual when in need but just handing out entitlements does not speak much for what this country was built upon – hard work, risk and yes sometimes failure. I’ve always get a kick of the lack of description of who the evil, stealing, uncompassionate are. Politicians wave around figures of figures like $150,000, $200,000, etc. The fact, or lack of common sense, most of these elected officials can grasp is that $150,000 dollars a year for a family varies greatly in “value” from city to city and state to state. Is one rich in the city of Los Angeles or New York making $150,000 a year versus individuals living in the same state but much smaller towns? Anyone who has lived in both environments can easily “feel” the difference. It is much easier however, or rather simplistic, to use divisive labels such as “rich” to further divide the country for political cause instead of instilling the competitive need for a good education and hard work.

MERAV #216

You're right, after a couple of days of Marine "Punitive action" he'll be wishing he was back with those slimeballs.

Thanks, writermom, I was expecting the smackdown for my observation.

#218 Ed Moran: Abu GOMEX aoa 28C

Q: What's the world's most boring job?

A: Egyptian meteorologist.

The weather's always the frickin' same here! What I wouldn't give to see a cloud!

#220 don't pollute this discussion with the introduction of such warm and fuzzy things as facts. It only pollutes the mind /sarcasm

I happen to live in the NYC metro area, and know that even with the income levels you talk of $150-200k per year, many are still living paycheck to paycheck (consider housing costs, transportation, and all the other monthly bills such as student loans, etc.).

But into that, now NJ is definining a millionaire as someone making 500k or more.

Textbook Jihad in Egypt

VtheK

I definitely think that the conservatives blew it on the abortion "issue" because they couldn't keep people from flapping their mouths and giving the Libs fodder. But for the most part-Canadians are quite left wing, but often without much knowledge of history or economics...just knee-jerk leftism.

OT: Back to the Sudan-did anyone post this yet? It's MEMRI's translation of some Arab commentators on the situation in Sudan.

Very interesting:

"They are not the victims of Israeli or American aggression; therefore, they are not an issue for concern. This is how an approach of indifference towards others outside the circle of conflict with foreigners, and of permitting their murder, is spread as you read and write about the Darfur crisis and consider it an artificial issue, or one unworthy of world protest."

Writermom, a friend of mine just had his racing helmet custom painted. Thought you might like to see it.

#223 Thom

Do you eat ful? That must cause a little excitement down in the delta.

#205, reaganite,

Thank you so much!!! :-) (I have the world's slowest computer, which is still processing it.)

#223, thom,

"to see a cloud" I know! I was a-gonna ask Ed Moran for some weather goodies on Israel (where I am), and then I realized, what's the point? The only weather news for most of the year is whether there's gonna be a "sharav" (a heatwave hotter than - well, YOU know, you Egyptian, you).

It's five PM here and I'm waiting for it to cool down a bit so I can go outside to the patio and do my laundry. Without getting sunstroke.

41C at Luxor and it is 35C in Cairo.

VtheK

Is that helmet a tribute to Canada, or is he Canadian? It's lovely, but why did he put Canadian flags on it?

OT:
Lay back, have some popcorn and watch the new Iraqi prison scandal:

As the arrestees were piled into cars, trucks, vans and buses, they received humiliating slaps, kicks and occasionally significant beatings. In the backs of pickup trucks, Iraqi police officers worked over some of the detainees with lengths of garden hose and metal batons.

It was a public display to remind Baghdad of a time when the security services were respected and feared.

Inside the compound, the arrestees were roughly dragged from the vehicles and forced to run a gauntlet of screaming police officers who slapped, kicked and whipped them until they formed a human puddle in front of the building.

Naah, wrong perpretrators.

#231 --- He's an ex-pat living in the Environs of Detroit. His father took the family out of Canada twenty years ago because he thought they would have better opportunities in the US.

Uh-oh...

Ahhh!?!?!

writer mom,

Hi! Looking forward to the get-together in July. Are you familiar with Cafe Aroma? I was thinking it might be a nice place to meet. There's one close to me with a well-guarded outdoor patio garden, overlooking a waterfall (man-made of course; we ARE in the middle of a desert). Just a thought. :-) I'll e-mail you.

Charles, come quick! Something weird has happened to the comments!

For too long, the Democrats have hidden their socialist agenda behind that neutral party name. It's time to start calling them what they are -- they are definitely not for true democracy. They are Marxist control freaks.

If they can tar the right by calling them "neocons," I recommend we start calling the Democrats "neosocs."

Maybe, if enough people start using that term, it'll turn on the "WTF?" light in the minds of some of the voters.

#217 WriterMom

Kidlet is off to day camp so my days are mosty free. Email me time and place.

OT - Our Left, you know the ones, the ones who are anti-war, support the freedom fighters, martyr's, okkkupation resistance, the militants the f'ing terrorists, etc, etc, etc, ad neausa... have blown gaskets galore and are in complete meltdown over the newly sovereign interim government in Iraq.

These are the same wing-nuts that demanded U.N. participation, multinational co-operation and/ force, ta-da, ta-da, ta-da...have now decided that the Iraq Interim Government is the new dictatorship and should not be exercising their sovereign rights to govern or control the security, blah, blah, blah...

This from the TNR:

SEX, IN ACCORDANCE WITH CHASTITY: Newly "sovereign" Iraqi Interim PM Iyad Allawi looks posed to declare some form of martial law. President Bush has given him the green light. "Prime Minister Allawi, as head of a sovereign government, may decide he has to take tough measures to deal with a cold-blooded killer," Bush said yesterday in Istanbul. "Our job is to help." The imposition of martial law backed by force of U.S. arms is a very serious gamble, one that could risk inflaming sectarian divides--are "tough measures" going to extend to northern cities, where Kurdish forces are evicting Arabs? If not, how will Arab cities under martial law, particularly in the Sunni Triangle, react?--and risks making Allawi appear a puppet of foreign agents. And once governments in places that have never known democracy start imposing martial law, they can find it extremely difficult to put their foot on the brake...

They've already conveniently forgotten it was their beloved U.N. which set-up, supervised, monitored and approved the new government. Gawd almighty.

Surely their is a lower standard, some description, other than 'morally and ethically bankrupt' to describe these...these ignorant hypocrites.

Is it just me or did someone blow up da thread?

I'm a bit late to this thread, but I want to point out James Lileks' Monday Bleat, scroll down to the last item where he has a Kerry girl at his house and see her closing statement before she stomps off in a huff.

The next day I heard Hillary's bald statement.

For the Left, it's never your money, it's the State's (and only if the State is run by the correct people), because...well, you're too stupid, venal and cannot be trusted to spend it the correct way.

Everything looks fine to me, except that #232 Trumpeter's comments are a huge blank space. Trumpeter, can you repost your message? Before it disappeared, as I was scrollling up, I thought I saw a reference to the poetry contest in The Nation that I was asking about earlier on the thread.

Shira, are you coming to the LGF-get-together?

Ayn Rand clearly identified the fact that there is no such thing as the "common good", just as there is no such entity as "society". Society is merely a collection of individuals, and those who use coercive force in the name of the "common good" are, NECESSARILY, sacrificing some individuals for the sake of others. This is the ANTITHESIS of the principle of individual rights, upon which America was founded- i.e. that the individual has a right to live for his OWN sake, neither sacrificing himself to others NOR others to himself.

The "common good" has been evoked by every totalitarian state in the history of mankind. It is their mantra. That a (likely) future president is spewing this garbage is frightening. Ideologically, Hillary has not surpassed the level of the primitive savage who tosses virgins into a volcano. That the sacrificed proposed by Hillary is the producer, instead of the virgin, and the recipient is the needy, instead of the volcano god, is irrelevant. They are identical in principle. After the individual is burned, it is irrelevant to him to whom his flesh was fed against his will.

This IS pure Marxism, and Marxism is just as mystical as religion despite Marx's claims of atheism. He simply replaced the concept of a supernatural God with a mystical notion of "society"- a collective consciousness floating around in the ether while the individual is regarded as just a mass of flesh and glandular squirtings. Sacrificing the individual to either notion is morally repugnant.

#215 MARY

that NRO article really stirrs up some old hostility I feel towards the Great Stain Maker, Bill Clinton.

If J(F)Kerry and his wife's millions control the White House, we will probably wish Clinton was back there screwing things up.

Seriously, Kerry represents something new in American politics, yes, even lower than Clinton. Kerry represents the LLL, backed by Mommy Warbucks, the Queen of liberalism.

The 57 faces of Mrs. Heinz.. and her zombies are now mainstream.

Kerry would be guaranteed to win if he had O'l Fat Bastard Mike-Al- Moore as VP.

/
venting off

Abolish income tax in favor of sales tax? How is that more equitable? Wouldn't poor people get hit harder by this? And wouldn't it dampen consumer spending?

I really like the idea of a flat tax with exemptions for under $28k-ers (a threshold that can be indexed to rising incomes). I only worry that legislators will use the mammoth rise in tax revenue as a means of extending federal/state power.

Russia has had good results with a flat tax, presumably. Can anyone point to more data about this?

The only thing I *really* dislike is Hillary's purportedly "liberal" and "progressive" income tax -- and the whole current tax regime.

We just need someone with more brio and youthful vitality to advance the idea. Steve Forbes wasn't the best quarterback for it.

From Joseph Green's "The Anarchy Of Production Beneath The Veneer Of Soviet Revisionist Planning" (Communist Voice, vol. 3, #1, March 1, 1997):

The Soviet ministries planned production in the interests of the ruling class, which was a new bourgeoisie. Marxism has never held that nationalization necessarily means planning on behalf of all society--it means planning on behalf of the class that controls the state.

Hillary: Politburo all the way. One day, I hope to read of her slow, horrifying, agonizing demise in a chemical toilet accident.

Joel T.

I see that Micheal Moore sat on the comments, again.

Where are his handlers?

#246 godfrey

Not just Russia; Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and the Ukraine are all floating flat tax policies.

Here's a Hoover Digest link about the flat tax.

Oh yeah, if you want A LOT more information on policy issues then I recommend

Merav-I love Cafe Aroma...mmm, their hot chocolate with the square of milk chocolate on the bottom and the whipped cream?!?! Yummy.

Sound good. Also thinking a kid/playing event maybe at Gan Sacher or the Mifletzet park?

[Alexander Haig stereotype]

OK, it's a hacking people. Don't worry, it's just the best website. I'm in charge.

Does anyone know how to turn this thing on?

What's a .sys file?

/AHS

Um, that's like modern art, dude.

34C in Tel Aviv.

Thats about a normal late June/early July day in HOU, but it hasn't been normal.

We'll probably pass 2001 for the all time rainiest June in HOU today. The record was 19.2" (48.8cm), most of which fell during Tropical Storm Allison. All this w/o benefit of a tropical cyclone. Of course, IAH got less rain than most during Allison, with some locations in Harris County getting 40 inches (over 1 m) of rain.

But, the sub-tropical jet stream should be shifting back to where it belongs, as finally, it looks like the daily value of the Southern Oscillation Index, a measure of relative pressures between Darwin and Tahiti has gone neutral. By one definition, a 90 day SOI greater in magnitude than -5 is considered an El Ni&ntildeo. That would mean a dull hurricane season for the US, but that seems to be diminishing as a threat.

The Indian Monsoon is slowly getting active again, another sign a strong El Ni&ntildeo is not imminent.

July is usually a very quite month for Atlantic tropical cyclones in the Atlantic (not the Northwest Pacific, though, as Cat 3 Typhoon Mindulle will batter Taiwan.

Of course, last July Hurricane Claudette hit just south of the HOU area in Matagorda Bay, but that is unusual, which is good, as most of Texas needs a couple of weeks of near 40C heat and sunshine to dry out. The recent rains, clouds, and associated river run-off has actually cooled the immediate coastal waters of Texas below 28C. 26.5C is minimum for tropical cyclogenesis, 28 to 28.5C is the minimum for a major cyclone.

All quiet in the Eastern Atlantic, as well as the Western Atlantic, however, things may be heating up a bit in the eastern North Pacific.

#243 Merav

I'd love to! When and where will it be? (I'd like to cast my vote for a kosher, non-smoking venue.)

The left are getting way to scary for reality.

Speaking of the Clinton - The brilliant Evan Coyne Maloney over at Brain Terminal has a video of fine young Clinton fans with nice pants.
"The Clinton Legacy".

[Link: www.brainterminal.com...]

Guys, in my younger days I used to support Bill Clinton. OK? I confess.

I even considered Hillary a possible first female US president.

Then she hugged Sura Arafat, after Madame Terrorist announced that Israel was poisoning Palestinian water with chemical weapons. Did she question such a ridiculous statement? No. Was a handshake sufficient? No.

Then I sent in my absentee ballot for NY senate. It was the first time I'd ever voted Repulican, and the last time I can ever imagine voting Democrat. Her opponent, Rick Lazio, lost, but at least I had my vote.

#244 Boston patriot

Spot on. THere are those who will not understand why it disconcerts/scares/upsets me so much to read words like "the common good."

"How could we be against good? What is wrong with good for everyone in general, isn't that the job of government, like making parks?"

They don't understand that it is, as you said, the antithesis of the principle of individual rights, or to put it another way, the polar opposite of freedom.

I am not a farm animal! I don't need anyone to take care of me. Leave me the heck alone and I'll see to me and my family.

Speaking of the Baltic states. Lithuania just elected a former 50 year exile who fled the Red Army as President. He lived in Chicago for almost 50 years before returning to Lithuania in '97.

Shall we expect the uber:libs/progresslaves to protest that former exiles are winning executive offices in former Soviet Client states?

Re: LGF meet-ups

Is there any talk of a meet-up of Florida lizardoids??? I'm in the Tampa area.

17 Zombie -
Actually, the case is even stronger for repealing taxes on business - the 'extra' mony winds up in someone's pocket where it's taxed, invested, or spent. Or the prices come down, improving compettitve nature, sales go up, hire more people, make more money (see a|) all good for the econ.
Likely be a combo of both.
Further advantage of a sales tax is that it (by nature) encourages saving and investment.
Besides, who says any 'new' tax system needs to be remotely revenue nutral? Gov'ts too large by at least half already...

242 Darlene

That's classic and hilarious, thanks.

#256 merav

As a lifetime Republican (if there were ever a worthy, non-socialistic Democrat, I would consider him/her), welcome to the light. ;-)

Speaking of Lithuania - a friend of mine went there and saw these: (hill of Crosses) She said it was incredible.

[Link: www.sacredsites.com...]

The true rich have many ways to pay tax if they don't want to.

And they usually end up living like Leona Helmsley.

The Tax Reform Act of 1986 slammed the door on abusive tax shelters. A couple dozen new shelters were created in the nineties, but they had no economic substance. People who were foolish enough to invest in them are wishing they hadn't; the IRS is going after them and hitting them with back taxes and stiff penalties (plus they're out the shelter fee that they paid the promoter).

It's a myth that rich people pay no tax. In fact, rich people pay disproportionately more on average.

#260 Pete(Detroit)

I think the time is ripe to tear down the greatest wall limiting freedom - The New Deal. Which is really an old deal, dreamed up by early marxists to concentrate capital in the hands of government.

If there ever was a group of people that should oppose the New Deal it is those groups that die at the earliest age; specifically, Blacks, American Indians and Hispanics. You'll pay into SS your whole life, but if you die before you qualify to collect your contributions are swallowed into the system.

#263 - Has the ACLU seen that!!!

#263 Free Speech Is Only For über-Libs

Thanks for that link, I had never heard of this place in Lituania. Very interesting and inspiring.

#259 a soldier's dad

I know SwampWoman is in Florida, but that's all I can recall right now.

Renna, #257,

Good point. "How could we be against good?" That argument is often applied against Israel for defying UN demands to hack her security, while ignoring Sudanese starvation and slavery.

How often have we heard the phrase, "the good offices" of the UN, or of the Secretary General, etc.

When I used to be a liberal, I used to believe that there really was a universal common good. I thought that those who didn't agree were simply less educated, less enlightened or less evolved. And THAT was to avoid labeling them as heartless.

That's the attitude I still see when debating with LLL's. This attitude of, if you'd only taken the courses I have, if you'd only read my paper on that topic, if you had half the common-sense that I have, you'd be a liberal too. It really never occurred to me, that, yes, there are educated people who disagree. Not out of ignorance, but because they've (we've) considered all of the arguments, and consider the conservative one to be most sensible.

Common good, IMHO, is almost impossible to administer. How can there be a COMMON good, when what's "good" for one people, is the annihilation of another?

From #263 link

The Soviets repeatedly removed Christian crosses placed on the hill by Lithuanians. Three times, during 1961, 1973 and 1975, the hill was leveled, the crosses were burned or turned into scrap metal, and the area was covered with waste and sewage. Following each of these desecrations local inhabitants and pilgrims from all over Lithuania rapidly replaced crosses upon the sacred hill.

#266 Renna

Really.

Captured by Germany in World War II, the city suffered heavy damage when Soviet Russia retook it at the war's end. From 1944 until Lithuania's independence in 1991, Siauliai was a part of the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic of the USSR. During the Soviet era, the pilgrimage to the Hill of Crosses served as a vital expression of Lithuanian nationalism. The Soviets repeatedly removed Christian crosses placed on the hill by Lithuanians. Three times, during 1961, 1973 and 1975, the hill was leveled, the crosses were burned or turned into scrap metal, and the area was covered with waste and sewage. Following each of these desecrations local inhabitants and pilgrims from all over Lithuania rapidly replaced crosses upon the sacred hill. In 1985, the Hill of Crosses was finally left in peace. The reputation of the sacred hill has since spread all over the world and every year it is visited by many thousands of pilgrims. Pope John Paul II visited the Hill of Crosses in September of 1993.

The Soviets repeatedly removed Christian crosses placed on the hill by Lithuanians.

It seems the former Soviets and the ACLU have something in common. To both - religion is poison and any expression of it should be banned. - especially Christianity.

ACLU = Commie.

Renna -

LOL! I owe you a drink.

OT - The french take a stand

French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier has urged Israel to end the isolation of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in the West Bank town of Ramallah.

After meeting Mr Arafat in Ramallah, Mr Barnier said the living conditions were "not dignifying" for the elected Palestinian leader.

"We think that this situation should come to an end because he [Arafat] is the legitimate and elected president of the Palestinian people," Mr Barnier added.

He also said that he "transmitted... a message of friendship and solidarity" during his talks with the Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei.

France condemns Arafat isolation

#268 RIP Ford

Thanks for the info. For some reason, I thought SwampWoman would have been in Louisiana. I'll ask her about it next time I run into her on one of the threads.

And yet they kept putting them back. Not exactly our reaction, sad to say.

The link in #232 should be:

[Link: www.newkerala.com...]

Renna.

yeah- Christianity/spirituality is losing out in this country. Sadly it is being replaced with "worship the state/ worship feeling good/ Clinton style".

Sad times.

Tough choice, support the Stalinists or the Islamists.

Police in Azerbaijan have raided a mosque in the capital, surrounding the building and expelling worshippers.

'Dissident' Azeri mosque raided

But this human rights imam is, according to the government,

Mr Ibrahimoglu is an Islamic fundamentalist with links to radical Shia groups across the border in Iran.

Azeri mosque haunted by Soviet past

The tax man cometh!! Hillary and her comrades want to make sure you support the common good whether you like it or not. Resistance is futile!

When you earn it by the sweat of your brow, there is an Income Tax.

Try to avoid income taxes, then there is the Alternative Minimun Tax.

Married? Sorry, there is a tax penalty for that.

If you spend it, there's a Sales Tax.

If you invest it, there's a Capital Gains tax and more income taxes.

If you give it away, there's a Gift Tax.

If there is any left over when you die, there's an Estate Tax.

Maybe give it to the grandkids? Well, then there is the Generation-Skipping Transfer Tax.

Never mind real estate taxes, transfer taxes, excise taxes, corporate level taxes, various state taxes, various local taxes, hotel/entertainment taxes, sin taxes, gasoline taxes, personal property taxes, or intangible taxes.

It is your patriotic duty, comrades!

Abolish income tax in favor of sales tax? How is that more equitable?

If necessities are exempt, the tax becomes voluntary. What could be fairer than that?

And wouldn't it dampen consumer spending?

Yes, but it would encourage saving and investment.

Wouldn't poor people get hit harder by this?

Yes, it's a regressive tax; that's why it'll never happen.