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About The Author
BooMan
Martin Longman a contributing editor at the Washington Monthly. He is also the founder of Booman Tribune and Progress Pond. He has a degree in philosophy from Western Michigan University.
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Recent Posts
- Day 14: Louisiana Senator Approvingly Compares Trump to Stalin
- Day 13: Elon Musk Flexes His Muscles
- Day 12: While Elon Musk Takes Over, We Podcast With Driftglass and Blue Gal
- Day 11: Harm of Fascist Regime’s Foreign Aid Freeze Comes Into View
- Day 10: The Fascist Regime Blames a Plane Crash on Nonwhite People
Iraq’s decaying infrastructure has resulted in open canals
of wastewater and a return of cholera.
Photo: Thomas Hartwell/USAID
Lack of security along with poor reconstruction efforts
combine to prevent clean drinking water and sewage
disposal in Baghdad. The polluted water brings cholera to
the city, sickening and killing Iraqi children.
Link
With the recent discovery in epigenetics, they could pass it on to their children even without any genetic mutuations. This could affect the Iraqi people for hundreds of years.
Not a whole heck of a lot… I seem to be better at understanding geopolitical events than my own personal life :))
Isn’t that the way it always goes? I swear my life is turning into a Romanian soap opera.. it’ll be good for some laughs in say about 10 years 😉
Pax
how is the Romanian romantic connections thing going? Go ahead and promote it!!
are you aware your link at bottom of comment is not working, or at least not on my browser…Just wanted to let you know.
Hey that reminds me, what the hell is going on with Lavrov blaming Andijan on Chechens?? I used to respect that guy… but Chechens? That’s pure nutjob stuff.
And the State Dept isn’t much better either… sheesh. Is the base in Karshi-Khanabad really that damned vital??
Pax
.
Bislan Ismailov, a 25-year-old Chechen, was arrested in Tours, central France, last week. Dutch prosecutors want Mr Ismailov extradited as they suspect he was an accomplice of Van Gogh’s alleged killer Mohammed Bouyeri – now awaiting trial.
Press reports say Mr Ismailov’s fingerprints were found on a suicide note left behind by Mr Bouyeri.
Van Gogh, a critic of Islam, was shot and nearly decapitated in an Amsterdam street last November. A militant Islamist diatribe was pinned to his chest with a knife, threatening the scriptwriter who had written his last film Submission, which had denounced violence against women in Islamic society.
A second Chechen refugee Marat J., 22, was arrested in Schiedam in the Netherlands, a fingerprint was found on an audio tape in the home of Mr Bouyeri. Also part of the Dutch probe is an investigation into a possible link with the Hofstad group, a member Samir A. had traveled to Chechnya at the age of 16.
Oui – Liberté – Egalité – Fraternité
The Dutch murder is a different kettle of fish… that was related to groups already living in the Netherlands.
The Andijan uprising/massacre in eastern Uzbekistan was related to a group of businessmen in the Ferghana Valley who were tortured into confessing they belonged to an outlawed religious sect. Deutsche Welle interviewed at least one of the men convicted in the original trial which sparked off the subsequent protest and jailbreak…
I’ll give credit to Chechens where credit is due, but Lavrov is off his rocker on this one. I’ve looked at pro-Chechen websites and seen nothing whatsoever about participating in Andijan or anything else related to the May massacres in Uzbekistan..
No, what Lavrov is doing is what Jose Maria Aznar did after the 3/11/04 Spain bombings, he’s blaming Public Enemy #1 because it plays well to the peeps, not because it has anything to do with reality. Next thing you know he’s going to blame the indigenous protests in Bolivia on Chechnya… or the Oklahoma City Bombing.. or that every suicide bomber in Iraq is a Chechen or that Osama bin Laden is being protected by a Chechen guard…
“Chechens” are just the bogeyman in Russia, same way “ETA” is in Spain or “Al-Zarqawi” is in Iraq – if a dog sneezes it’s blamed on them whether or not its true.
Pax
http://www.care2.com/dailyaction/primary.html?da%5Btoday%5D=2005-06-03
Today is World Environment Day-this link is a simple 4 question quiz to see how much CO2 emissions you use in your household….and how many trees you should plant to make up for use.
I have no car(as I can no longer drive) and never fly yet my estimate said I’d need to plant 26 trees to make up for my household use of appliances and trash generated in my very very tiny apartment.
So how’d you do?
The 95 th. anniversary of the death of O. Henry, a gifted writer of ironic tales.
“The Gift of the Maji”
http://www.auburn.edu/~vestmon/Gift_of_the_Maji.html|
Enjoy, considered a classic.
“The Ransom of Red Chief” was a favorite around here…
and it’s been raining for a week. Typical June (it and Sept. are the rainiest months in the wet season). Three counties in SoFla are on flood watch.
Left over from 2004 season — Still 500 + families living in FEMA trailers in a pasture in Charlotte. No homes, nowhere to go.
Here’s the NOAA forecast for 2005: The forecast calls for a 70% probability of above average activity, with 12-15 tropical storms, 7-9 hurricanes, and 3-5 major (Category 3 and above) hurricanes.
Here we go again.
But you can count on Dim Son and Jebbie Bro to make a high-profile photo op appearance, dispensing manna, after the first ‘cane that does substantial damage in a red county.
Like that! One question, though — steamed or fried?
Otherwise don’t get me started on the LACK of governmental effort and expenditure (just this year’s state budget bill) and the PRESENCE of fraud and corruption in hurricane relief and recovery efforts from Florida’s 2004 hurricane season.
Here’s summary from Florida budget 2005-6:
Very friendly because issued from the Gov.’s Office.
We’re steamed, and eventually he’ll be fried (even if it doesn’t take place during his life on earth)
Was on in the background while I worked this afternoon. And it reminded me of a favorite phrase: “Sometimes you just gotta say ‘What the f—‘.”
Anyone feel like sharing something you’ve done with that sentiment in mind?
As for me, my biggest WTF moment involved walking away from a 23 year career at a (toxic) Fortune 100 corporation with nothing lined up for income/benefits and no cash reserves. Just walked away with a smile on my face and a wave of the hand.
There hasn’t been one split second over the past many years when I’ve regretted that decision. It was the most empowering thing I’ve ever done, and it makes you truly realize how very little it takes to get by – just a bit of creativity now and then when funds get low. (Much in line with past diaries about minimalist living and ridding oneself of material possessions)
Most surprising of all was the support I received from my depression-era parents. I thought they’d hit the roof, but apparently in your twilight years you appreciate happiness over job security, and you especially appreciate the concept of “Sometimes you just gotta say. . .”
That’s totally understandable – I spent 3 1/2 months at a Fortune 100 company and that was all I could take. In that time, I took 5 sick days and the only thing wrong with me was I got sick to my stomach at the thought of going into work. There are many others who share those sentiments. Congratulations on your move – it’s great you’re happy now and get to enjoy your life!
Thank you curly! 3.5 months? You wuss :^) Actually, you exhibited far more common sense than I. The backbiting, credit taking, incompetent, soulless, unaccountabile “leaders” I worked with created a great emotional struggle for me day in and day out. (infidelpig clearly worked with the same type of dickheads before he decided to make his leap out of corporate America)
The best part of all is that my husband works from home as well, and we found out that we enjoy each other’s company immensely. (Apparently as do you and ask.) And heaven forbid that something happen to one of us prematurely, but if so, we’ve enjoyed these years and these memories while still in our 40s – and we’re quite the team. And while no longer working in that horrendous environment, I still maintain dozens of friendships developed through those 23 years.
As I’m wrapping up the client projects that had me pulling all-nighters this past week, I do so with a smile on my face, knowing I can kick back for a few days until my next round of deadlines.
Good night!
From the day I started that position I felt the back-stabbing and negativity. Work was just a giant political minefield. It was awful, but also a real education.
It’s great that it all worked out so well for both you and your hubby. You’ve confirmed my philosophy that everything happens for a reason (even if it time takes some time to get there!), and usually for the better.
Kudos!
ask and I spent a splendid Sunday in NY’s Central Park. Plenty of sunshine, good food and sufficient quantities of wine.
My backyard.
Does anyone know how to use Google’s satellite imaging?