Archive for the ‘Splenetics’ Category
Indiana U-Turn
What are we to make of this? On 4 October we got news from Indiana that State Representative Patricia Miller proposed to save un-made babies from un-fit parents: INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana legislative committee is considering a bill that would prohibit gays, lesbians and single people in Indiana from using medical science to assist them […]
In: All, Raised Eyebrows Dept., Splenetics
A Republican Motto
Today we were driving back from our Saturday shopping, and we talked for a moment about the latest bit of Bush League shenanigans, whatever it was — it's hard to keep track. However, I can say with certainty that it would have had something to do with bilking avearge Amerians in some way to line […]
Effective Governing?
Hurricane Katrina struck at the core of Bush's presidency by undermining the central assertion of his reelection campaign, that he was a strong and decisive leader who could keep the country safe in a crisis. To paraphrase the favorite question of an earlier Republican president, do y'all feel safer than you did 5 years ago? […]
In Shambles
How many places will be in shambles by the time the Bush crew leaves office? [Maureen Dowd, "A Fatal Incuriosity", The New York Times, 14 September 2005.]
In: All, Common-Place Book, Splenetics
Trying to Learn a Lesson
Very popular this week has been remarking on the parallels between preparedness for large-scale natural disasters and preparedness for large-scale terrorists attacks, which finds people saying "if Katrina had been an actual terrorist attack" and this had been the response of the "we can keep you safer" Bush League, we'd be in deep water, just […]
Dressed for Success
I think y'all are being unfair about whether Michael Brown, the besieged head of FEMA, is qualified for his job. One should be careful to keep in mind the current set of standards that we use. You may recall that when the newly named Secretary of State Rice made her first official visit to Europe, […]
We'll Be Back
It's a shame that "Schwarzenegger" is so difficult to spell when he looks to be heading towards a significant spot in the history of impeding social progress. Tsk. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was a profile in timidity this week when he vowed to veto a pioneering bill authorizing gay marriage in California. The bill, which both […]
In: All, Plus Ca Change..., Splenetics
Poor Oil Companies
It seems fitting to paraphrase Barbara Bush and say that things seem to be working out pretty well for the poor oil companies: Oil companies came under new fire yesterday when it emerged that ExxonMobil's profits are likely to soar above $10 billion this quarter on the back of the fuel crisis. That's $110 million […]
In: All, Raised Eyebrows Dept., Splenetics
Let Them Eat Cheap Cake Then!
On Aug. 30, the day after the hurricane hit, the Census Bureau released figures showing that the poor had increased by 1.1 million since 2003, to 12.7 percent of the population, the fourth annual increase, with blacks and Hispanics the poorest, and the South remaining the poorest region. Since Bush has been in office, poverty […]
In: All, Common-Place Book, Splenetics
Did He or Didn't He?
Well, this is silly. Kartina made landfall on Monday, 29 August. The "enormous gay rights celebration", known as "Southern Decadence", takes place on Memorial-Day weekend, which is to say it didn't even get started until 5 days later. As I've pointed out before, if He was really so upset with New Oreans over the homo […]
In: All, Raised Eyebrows Dept., Splenetics
The Real Thing
Can y'all remember, back in those more prosperous, more productive, happier days of Democratic administrations, how whenever one correct-thinking individual would criticize some idiotic statement that came out of a regressive mouth, that said regressive would yell "Censorship! Censorship!" Remember? Anyway, we'd often pause, take a breath, and explain calmly that we were not indulging […]
We/2 Told You So
Spin is in, has been for too long. Framing is everything, at least when there are cardboard cut-outs in charge. New words pop up like mushrooms: how many times have you heard the verb "to blame-game" used in the last 10 minutes? (One would suggest that Rove shouldn't press the "blame-game" vocabularly too much lest […]
Goading into Action was Necessary
NEW YORK Appearing on the Larry King show on CNN Monday night, former President George H.W. Bush defended his son against criticism for his response to the hurricane disaster, suggesting it was mainly media-generated. […] Asked about the criticism, the former president said, "I think any time there's a crisis people want to blame someone. […]
Marxist Lawn Mowing
A couple of nights ago, I was mowing the grass — well, to be honest, the weeds that make up what we call our "lawn" — and thinking, as I often do. The steady noise of the lawnmower, plus the focus on repititive physical activity seems to create something approaching a meditative state for me. […]
In: All, Reflections, Splenetics
Unnamed Senior Bush Officials Not On Vacation
As of Saturday, Blanco still had not declared a state of emergency, the senior [unnamed, unattributed] Bush official said. [Manuel Roig-Franzia and Spencer Hsu, "Many Evacuated, but Thousands Still Waiting: White House Shifts Blame to State and Local Officials", 4 September 2005.] [Later:] Correction to This Article A Sept. 4 article on the aftermath of […]
In: All, Raised Eyebrows Dept., Splenetics
NO Green Zone
Iraqis watching the New Orleans drama unfold are suggesting that a section of the city be found which is still dry and not on fire which can be designated a Green Zone. There a little city within a city can be set up with running water, lights, toilets, air conditioning and a mess hall suitable […]
In: All, Common-Place Book, Splenetics
"Biblical Proportions"
Hard work. Think 'bout it a lot. My heart bleeds, I have to admit. I feel the President's pain. "It was not enough for the president to bank his plane and look at the window and say, 'Oh, what a devastating site,' " Senator Frank R. Lautenberg, Democrat of New Jersey, said in a statement […]
In: All, Raised Eyebrows Dept., Splenetics
Chimps? Bush?
Has anyone tried yet to sequence the President's DNA to determine how close he is to chimpanzees, genetically speaking, of course? THE CHIMP: COMPLETE GENETIC MAP CONFIRMS DARWIN'S THEORY. Scientists at MIT and Washington University, St. Louis, announced Wednesday that they have determined the precise order of the 3 billion bits of genetic code needed […]
In: All, Common-Place Book, Splenetics
Boo! They're Republicans
Just because Maureen Dowd wrote What Hillary has going for her is exhaustion. Exhaustion kicks in with any party in power for eight years, let alone one that tricked the country into war. I can't stop freely associating things like: Republicans are the Hallowe'en Party: every day is Trick or Treat Will they be taking […]
In: All, Eureka!, Splenetics
The LTEC Administration
In my blog reading, I'm seeing a bit of frustration and incredulity being expressed about the impressive speed with which the Bush League has been responding to the anticipated yet still terrifying disaster in Southern Louisiana.* I suppose it will be only the America-hating liberals who will be slapping their foreheads, trying to understand how […]