The Vet Who Didn't Vet

This is seriously funny, kinda sad, but funny nonetheless.



What a tragic chapter in the history of the U.S.

Sarah Palin is going to disappear from the radar in the next few days. I am willing to bet that she'll have a difficult time holding on to her governorship in 2010.

My Electoral Prediction

Here is the way I see the electoral college going on Tuesday. My beloved home state, Ohio, has lots of kooks in the southern part of the state so it's gonna be close. Cleveland and the surrounding areas are Obama country, not so much Cinci.

OBAMA/BIDEN '08

>2008 Election Contest: Pick Your President - Predict the winner of the 2008 presidential election.

Popular vote: Obama 51% McCain 46% Other 3%

FL & PA will go to Barack. This will mean the election should be called rather early in the evening. I would love to see IN, MO and GA go blue, but NC will suffice. A blue NC will make Jesse Helms roll over in his grave...good stuff.

I am closely watching the Franken/Coleman race in MN. I would love to see Al in the Senate.

Other projections:
Post-election Senate make-up: 58 Dems, 40 Reps, 2 Others
Post-election House make-up: 256 Dems, 179 Reps

This Says It All

Wake up America! Palin is NOT the answer.



p.s. Eerie how much Tina Fey looks like Palin, eh?

And the Nomination Goes to:

Mayor Quimby!

The actions of John McCain in the past few days have left me dumbstruck. I have been genuinely trying to see the logic behind his nomination of Sarah Palin for the VP...it ain't there!

This all comes down to a total lack of respect for the process and the American people. How can you put someone a heartbeat (a 72 year old heartbeat that has been diagnosed with cancer 4 times) away from the leadership of the 300,000,000 people that is so unqualified???

Mrs. Palin didn't even have a passport until 2007!!!!! All the stuff regarding her family and ties to the "bridge to nowhere" are intriguing, this is downright frightening!

The possible Vice President of the United States has traveled abroad less than I have...scary stuff people.

I fear that we are getting fed the "average American that you'd want to have a beer with" crap again; much like we were in the early days of the dumbass in the White House.

We are electing a president. I don't want a "normal" person. I want an exceptional person with skills and a temperament suitable to the duties of leading the world.

Bottom line: your stance on abortion should not be the determinant factor when choosing a vice president.

McCain is in Trouble...

The new USA Today/Gallup poll has some revealing numbers. It's virtually a clean sweep for Obama. If the polls continue to swing towards Obama, this race could get seriously ugly. The Republican party has a long history of playing dirty pool and this game has just begun.

Here is the link to the entire article: USA Today

HOW AMERICA VIEWS THE CANDIDATES

Percentage of respondents who view presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama favorably and unfavorably:

	Favorably	Unfavorably
McCain	59%	35%
Obama	64%	31%

What respondents say would be the effect of Obama being black make on his effectiveness as president:

Make him more effective	9%
Make no difference	82%
Make him less effective	8%

What respondents say would be the effect of McCain's age would make on his effectiveness as president:

Make him more effective	11%
Make no difference	65%
Make him less effective	23%

What respondents say about the political views of McCain and Obama:

	McCain	Obama
Too conservative	40%	9%
About right	37%	43%
Too liberal	15%	40%
No opinion	8%	8%

Which of the following characteristics and qualities respondents say apply more to Obama or more to McCain:

Characteristic	Obama	McCain
Understands the problems Americans face in their daily lives	54%	29%
Cares about the needs of people like you	52%	30%
Is independent in his thoughts and actions	52%	36%
Would stand up to special interests, including those aligned with his party	48%	34%
Would work well with both parties to get things done in Washington	48%	35%
Shares your values	47%	39%
Can manage the government effectively	42%	42%
Has a clear plan for solving the country's problems	41%	31%
Is a strong and decisive leader	40%	46%
Is honest and trustworthy	39%	35%

Come On Up for The Rising!

This is a great moment. The use of Bruce Springsteen's wonderful song is perfect. Ya gotta believe that these two gentleman are going to get the U.S. back on track. The future is much brighter when you allow folks like this to lead us. It's refreshing to listen to leaders who have some eloquence and true compassion. Enjoy!



p.s. I am sticking to the prediction that I made in March, Obama/Edwards '08. Here is a link to that post:
Further Political Prognosticating

Myanmar / Burma, Enough is Enough!

As most of you know, Catherine is Burmese. So the recent storm, Cyclone Nargis, has been really tough to stomach for the both of us. I have consistently been a critic of the Burmese government but have tempered my criticism out of respect for Catherine. She loves her country and always reminds me that the problems are with the military men that run the country, not the people. Therefore, I have tried hard to compose myself when I feel the urge to rant about the litany of problems that have plagued the territory...I have reached my tipping point!

Click on this link to see why I just can't believe how screwed up this situation is and why the world has to do something:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080514/ap_on_re_as/myanmar_64

This particular paragraph sent me over the top:
Relief workers also reported some storm survivors were being given spoiled or poor-quality food rather than nutrition-rich biscuits sent by international donors, adding to fears that the ruling military junta in the Southeast Asian country could be misappropriating assistance.

The heartless bastards are hoarding all of the relief goods and giving the starving population some crusty old crap they had laying around.

I have never been a supporter of interfering with a countries ability to govern from within, but this is the last straw. The military junta has murdered monks in recent protests, been incredibly slow in their response to the current disaster, obstructed the world's relief efforts and now are withholding the basic supplies that are necessary in order to save one-million plus people in peril.

How much longer can we allow this kind of crap to go on?

For the first time in my life, I am advocating the removal of a sovereign government by outside forces. It will be ugly. The men in control are ruthless and have the support of China, so it won't be easy, either. Blood will flow but I believe it is necessary in order to bring some semblance of normalcy to Burma. Perhaps a unified force wearing the uniforms of the United Nations would be appropriate? Not sure if they are able or sanctioned to do such a thing, but I am all for it!

The above statement makes me sound a bit too much like the idiot in the White House, but I just can't see another way of resolving this mess.

Please keep Catherine and her family and friends in your thoughts when you see what's taking place there.

City Shots

Some photos I took recently while out and about in the city. The first 3 are from a political rally that took place near Catherine's work. The past few weeks there has been a constant stream of marches through the streets. I think it's great how involved the citizenry seems to be.



The following shots were taken while waiting for the subway. I think the second one illustrates the congestion in this city...it's overwhelming at times.

Further Political Prognosticating

I never thought I'd say it, but the Clinton's need to exit stage left. This primary cycle is far too costly and very well could turn many excited voters off. I think that Obama has a real chance to turn the U.S. in the right direction. The "he's all rhetoric and not fit to be president" argument coming from Hillary's people is misguided. It's provided a lot of fodder for the republicans.

Mathematically, Hillary can't win the nomination without some trickery. The only way she could manage to pull it off is if she does something that will undermine the existing process. If that happens, the democrats are doomed. If this nomination is seen as tainted, there is little hope for retaking the presidency. Manipulating the scorecard will gut-shot many prospective voters in the general election, thus causing them to stay home.

This primary controversy will be put to bed come the last week of April or first week of May. May 6th is the North Carolina primary. John Edwards, former Senator from NC, will almost surely endorse one of the two in the weeks before the primary in his home state. This endorsement will be the tipping point. He will endorse Obama.

**Fearless Prediction**
Obama/Edwards 2008! I have stated in previous posts that I would have preferred an Edwards/Obama ticket, but this scenario is just fine by me.

Edwards would be an ideal compliment to Obama because he is a southerner, populist, and has excellent name recognition. The south has long been a solid voting block for the republicans. Perhaps Edwards could help minimize the losses down there. He is a champion of the working-class, an area that Obama has struggled with. His popularity is much stronger amongst white-collar voters. Finally, Edwards has done this before and people are familiar with his stances; he is no stranger to the campaign trail.

These two gentlemen are what America and the rest of the world needs.

Bush, Lincoln and Fox News

Is there any doubt that The Fox News Channel is a shill for the Republican party? If there still is any doubt, check this out. Not only are they defending the idiot currently in the Oval Office, the "reporters" at Fox need a history lesson.

I tell you what — he thinks about Lincoln and the tough times that he had during the Civil War. 600,000 dead. The country essentially hated him when he was leaving office. -quote courtesy of thinkprogress.org

Did Lincoln "leave office"? Wasn't there an incident at Ford's Theater that made it a bit difficult for Abe to continue his presidency? He had been re-elected shortly before the assassination.

Watch the following video for confirmation of this mess:


How shockingly stupid and, as the host of the video puts it, embarrassing.

Change-Making Numbers

Here is a tally of the votes from the Iowa Caucuses in a way I haven't seen before. These numbers come via The Group News Blog. They added up the total votes, Republican and Democrat, and portrayed it as a head-to-head battle between all candidates from both parties. Granted it's only 356,000 people, but it is an interesting sample of what we may be seeing in the near-future.

Obama 24.5%
Edwards 20.5%
Clinton 19.8%
Huckabee 11.4%

These percentages are of the total vote in Iowa, across party lines. Looks like the first dagger in the heart of the Republican party. I wouldn't be terribly surprised to see the Democrats control the White House and both houses of Congress come November.

My gut tells me it's gonna be an Edwards/Obama White House. I think both these guys are terrific, but not sure Obama has the experience necessary to lead the ticket. These two men would be a welcomed change to the mess we currently have. Hillary is an incredibly strong woman with great leadership qualities, but I think she is too divisive. Her name hearkens back to many of the imaginary scandals of the Bill Clinton years and that just might be enough to cost the progressives this election.

With Friends Like These Guys...

Bush chumming it up with Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.Photo courtesy of americanprogress.org

Saudi Arabia are allies in the War on Terror?

This week, it was revealed that a 19 year old victim of a gang rape in Saudi Arabia was sentenced to 6 months in jail and 200 lashes. I should mention that she was initially sentenced to 90 lashes but she took her story to the media and the Saudi courts weren't pleased with her actions; so they tacked on the additional penalty.

She was found guilty of being in the company of an unrelated male in public...hmmm. Is the Saudi judicial system in some sort of time warp? This is barbaric, to say the least. This kind of misogyny has no place in the 21st century.

Apparently, the Bush administration is not so appalled. The Associated Press, via Yahoo reported the reaction of State Department spokesman Sean McCormack. He stated that the verdict "causes a fair degree of surprise and astonishment."

Wow, what a harsh indictment...huh? What the hell do the Saudis have on the Bushies? They just can't do anything wrong, I guess. 15 of the 19 hijackers on 9/11 were Saudi nationals. Makes me wonder how much of the Bush/Cheney mid-east policy is done at the behest of the Saudi ruling family?

Deadly Toxic Snowflakes

The hits just keep coming. Yesterday, The Washington Post obtained several internal memo's from former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld's office. The memo's were known as "snowflakes". The memo's were directives to his staff. Many of them contained his thoughts on how to manipulate the media in order to scare the public into supporting the misguided war strategy.

A reminder...This guy was the main architect of the invasion of Iraq.

When things started falling apart a few years back, he made some comments that are pretty scary:

"Talk about Somalia, The Philippines, etc. Make the American people realize they are surrounded in the world by violent extremists."

"Keep elevating the threat."

"Link Iraq to Iran."

There you have it! The administration has been planning to link Iraq to Iran for a loooooong time.

Don't believe the hype people. This was planned long ago. Rumsfeld, Cheney and crew are orchestrating an endless conflict that will make them VERY rich.

Here is a news clip covering the topic. Olbermann's show is the best source of news on TV.

The Nobel Peace Prize

The republicans/conservatives are not dealing well with Al Gore's win. Come on, the guy has done lots of good stuff regarding climate change. He has helped bring the issue to the forefront. He seems committed to leading the charge for change.

Check out the reaction from this woman...she is clueless. She states that no one knows the names of any of the past winners except Jimmy Carter and Yasser Arafat. Is she familiar with Desmond Tutu, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Theresa, Aung San Suu Kyi, The Dalai Lama and Elie Wiesel? The republicans have spent years dismantling the educational system in the U.S., this is a product of their efforts.



**Only 463 days until Bush returns to his ranch!

Childrens Do Learn...ARG!!!

This makes me queasy. I am beginning to think that President Bush needs some ESL (English as a second language) classes...lol. Jon Stewart adds some incisive commentary to the sad situation. Just 474 days left until he retires to his ranch and goes back to what he is best suited for, clearing brush.

Burma/Myanmar Update (Day 9)

What everyone has feared is happening...the military junta has opened fire.

(AP/NLFD)

It's chaos in the streets. The soldiers have killed up to 8 protesters, mostly monks, according to the latest AP report. The government has authorized the soldiers to raid monasteries and arrest the monks. There are several eye-witness accounts of monks being beaten to death. Looks like the government is no longer going to tolerate ANY disobedience.

Ignoring the directives from Beijing, the crackdown on the peaceful protests is in full-force. Many leading experts in the region have speculated that the only reason that the government has allowed the protests to take place as long as they have is because the Chinese government is weary of the bad press leading up the Olympics. Apparently, that is of no concern to Than Shwe, the leader of the military-run government. Ignoring the warnings of their big brother up north could spell trouble...

The United Nations is now taking action. A few days ago they announced renewed pressure on The State Law and Order Restoration Council, the party of those in control in Rangoon/Yangon. Burma has been the subject of sanctions for decades with little effect. This situation will not be resolved with economic pressure alone, not as long as China continues to prop-up the junta.

This fight is only going to get more intense. Let's hope the will of the monks breaks the proverbial backs of the illegitimate military strongmen.

Burma/Myanmar Update

(Stringer/Reuters)

According to Reuters, the junta has placed hundreds of troops in the heart of the area where the protests have taken place over the past week. This locale is also where the military junta slaughtered 3000 pro-democracy protesters in 1988. Government vehicles equipped with loudspeakers are cruising the streets warning the citizens about laws that prohibit free-speech and the consequences of breaking the laws. Despite the emergence of the military thugs, the brave Buddhist monks and their supporters are marching on. The next few days are pivotal and bloodshed is almost certain to be a part of the upcoming confrontation.

Keep in mind, Burma is 90% Buddhist. Violence aimed at the monks is surely not going to garner any goodwill from the general populace. There is no group in the country with more support than the spiritual leadership. Violence against the tens of thousands of monks will certainly come back to haunt the military junta.

Another very disturbing development, according to the Reuters report, is Aung San Suu Kyi has apparently been moved from her home to a high-security prison. It looks like the junta kingpins didn't approve of the display of love and respect she received during the monks visit to her the other day. I'm thinking they feel they have to put as much distance between Suu Kyi and the marchers as possible...a sad attempt to abate the uprising.

Stay tuned...

Bill Mahar and his New Rules

The following is from Real Time, a show hosted by Bill Mahar. Mahar is great. The writing is top-notch and always right on. This clip is from the August 24th episode.



The bits about Croc shoes, Chinese toys and Wal-Mart are solid.

"Let's have a war and cut taxes...what could go wrong?"
"I like his stand on the issues, but can he dunk?"...lol

With God On Their Side

You know you are in trouble when the National Coalition of Nuns calls for your head. Those gals have got a direct line to God...lol. Even if you're not Catholic, like me, ya gotta be a little afraid of the hooded ladies of faith.

Religion Briefs Coalition of nuns calls for impeaching Bush and Cheney

JOURNAL WIRE REPORT

Saturday, September 1, 2007

A progressive group of U.S. nuns has called on Congress to impeach President Bush and Vice President Cheney because of their roles in the war in Iraq.

“The National Coalition of American Nuns is impelled by conscience to call you to act promptly to impeach President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney for ... high crimes and misdemeanors,” the group wrote in a letter written on behalf of its board members.

The letter says that impeachment is warranted for their “deceiving the public under the false pretense that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction” and “destroying” the reputation of the United States and the good will of other nations.

“The time for impeachment is now — before the example of George W. Bush’s regime is set in stone,” they wrote. “Future generations will thank you for preserving the freedom of our nation and its relation to the entire human community.”

The coalition was founded in 1969 for individual nuns dedicated to issues of social justice and human rights.

The letter was approved during a mid-August meeting of the board, held in Chicago. During that same meeting, the board unanimously adopted statements opposing all war and affirming peacemaking efforts. “Rather than continuing support of a just-war theory, a more compassionate church would oppose all war and teach peacemaking skills for all levels of government and interpersonal conflict resolution,” the statement reads.

The board also adopted statements pledging to work to “moderate the impact we make on planet Earth,” and supporting nuclear disarmament and relief efforts for the poor in Africa.

Taiwan & Honduras

This news headlines this past week here in Taiwan have been dominated by President Chen's visit to Central America. The visit was a chance to meet with some of the nations that enjoy open relations with Taiwan...yes, there are still a few. Twenty or so countries have resisted jumping on the "One-China" philosophy, therefore recognizing Taiwan as a sovereign state. Not, in my opinion, the smartest economic move. Cooperation with Taiwan does not bode well with the mainland.

Anyhow, the purpose of this post is to express my joy at seeing one of my favorite places on the planet, Honduras. The pictures and stories that have been included in the reporting have stirred some good memories.

My year in the jungles of Honduras was a wonderful time in my life. I have never met better folks than those living in the less-than-ideal environment that is Central America.

The smiles on the faces and the endless hospitality that prevails there are priceless. I am really enjoying my time here in Taiwan, but I do miss that just happy to be alive mentality that runs deep in Honduras. Folks here are far too hurried and wouldn't dare to exhibit the overt acts of affability that you can count on when you are living/working/visiting Central America.

Taiwan, along with the rest of the world, should take a cultural cue from Honduras and their neighbors...loosen up and enjoy life.