Wednesday News Bucket

16 Comments

1. 

   CabinGirl on September 5, 2007 at 7:17 am

   seems hard to believe: CQ Politics/Yahoo

   A study of House and Senate floor votes, compiled by CQ over the August recess, also showed that House Democrats have backed Bush’s legislative positions this year only 6 percent of the time, making for the strongest opposition from either party against a president in the 54 years CQ has kept score.

   A separate analysis of so-called party unity votes, in which a majority of one party votes against a majority of the other, showed the possibility of another historic first for House Democrats. So far this year, Democrats have backed the majority position of their caucus 91 percent of the time on average on such votes. That marks the highest Democratic unity score in 51 years.

   Although any president can count on a certain amount of discontent from the opposing party — especially one that controls Congress — Bush’s low success rating and his low support scores among House Democrats are a direct result of disagreements with him over the Iraq War and spending priorities, according to a review of votes.

   By comparison, House Democrats supported President Richard Nixon 46 percent of the time in 1974, the year he resigned.

   All that organized opposition, and we’re still in a war in Iraq, FISA has been gutted, and impeachment is ‘off the table’.  Incredible.

2. 

   CabinGirl on September 5, 2007 at 7:28 am

   The military disagrees with the GAO report: WashPo

   A bleak portrait of the political and security situation in Iraq released yesterday by the Government Accountability Office sparked sharp protests from the top U.S. military command in Baghdad, whose officials described it as flawed and “factually incorrect.”

   The controversy followed last-minute changes made in the final draft of the report after the Defense Department maintained that its conclusions were too harsh and insisted that some of the information it contained — such as the extent of a fall in the number of Iraqi army units capable of operating without U.S. assistance — should not appear in the final, unclassified version.

   And Greg Sargent at TPM reminds us:

   The GOP is desperate to undercut this thing because it threatens to overshadow the Gospel According to Petraeus. So the Republicans’  spin today is that the GAO report’s methodology is flawed and that nobody will grant this nonpartisan, Congressionally-mandated report the level of credibility that they’ll grant General Petraeus’ assessment…of his own performance.

   This despite the fact that Republicans themselves overwhelmingly voted for the Iraq supplemental spending bill that mandated this GAO report and mandated that it hold the Iraqis to strict benchmarks.

   I won’t be holding my breath waiting for our corporate media to remember that key fact in their coverage, will you?

3. 

   CabinGirl on September 5, 2007 at 7:38 am

   Coming soon to an LA Times near you…Crave online

   The Los Angeles Times and Fox Walden today announced that the paper will feature the first ever ad using scented ink to uniquely tout the 20th Century Fox release of a Walden Media and Mandate Film, Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium opening nationwide on November 16th.

   Starring Academy Award winner Dustin Hoffman and Academy Award nominee Natalie Portman, Magorium is the story of the strangest, most fantastic, most wonderful toy store in the world and the equally fantastic and wonderfully innovative ad will debut in the paper’s annual Fall Movie Sneaks section on September 9th.

   The Times becomes the first major newspaper in the country to successfully present and implement the pioneering application which adds a rich, new dimension to the medium.

   Fox Walden seized the opportunity to create new levels of involvement and connection with Southern California’s readers and moviegoers and chose the universally beloved frosted cake scent to remind consumers of all ages to be young and have fun.

   How does the idea of a cake-scented newspaper sound to you?

   • 

     hens teeth on September 5, 2007 at 3:57 pm

     So much for ever buying another newspaper again.  I waste enough time sniffing bottles in the grocery looking for the least smelly shampoo.

   • 

     chocolate ink on September 5, 2007 at 5:01 pm

     Just what the obesity epidemic needs.

4. 

   ask on September 5, 2007 at 7:52 am

   Africans still seething over Sarkozy speech

   DAKAR (Reuters) – A month after French President Nicolas Sarkozy laid out his vision for African relations, intellectuals across the continent are still seething over a speech they say may have poisoned a chance for better ties.

   During his first visit to sub-Saharan Africa since winning power, Sarkozy outraged public opinion in Senegal with a speech in late July laced with allusions to colonialism and the suggestion Africa had failed to embrace progress.

   “Maybe he does not realise to what extent we felt insulted,” said Boubacar Boris Diop, one of Senegal’s most prominent contemporary writers.

   “Strictly from a political point of view, his speech was a mistake. He will realise that Africans and the negroes from the diaspora will never forgive him.”

   For many, the speech represented a squandered opportunity.

   When he won power in May elections, African leaders in the French-speaking Maghreb and West Africa rushed to congratulate Sarkozy, who pledged to modernise the European power’s often opaque relations with its former colonies.

   […]

   Senegalese newspaper Sud Quotidien branded the speech the next day as “an insult”, echoing the outraged reaction of many students as they left the auditorium.

   Alpha Oumar Konare, chairman of the 53-nation African Union Commission, swiftly labelled Sarkozy’s speech as “declarations of a bygone era”.

   The speech has since drawn criticism from politicians and intellectuals across Africa who denounced it as unacceptable and based on long-discredited stereotypes. For many, it was a throwback to France’s murky colonial past.

5. 

   ask on September 5, 2007 at 8:06 am

   US economy ‘heading for slowdown’

   The US economy will slow sharply in the second half of the year and the risk of it going into recession cannot be ruled out, the OECD has warned.

   The 30-nation group of top economies said the global financial fallout from the current US sub-prime mortgage crisis would continue for some time.

   […]

   The OECD said the contraction in the US housing market and the wider problems in the financial markets it has triggered would have a negative impact on the US economy.

   It is now forecasting economic growth to fall to 2% in the third quarter and 1.5% in the fourth quarter from the 4% recorded between April and June.

   “We are looking at a slowdown in the US economy which is quite significant,” said the OECD’s chief economist Jean-Philippe Cotis.

   • 

     CabinGirl on September 5, 2007 at 8:08 am

     I guess that’s what happens when your economy is based on buying lots of stuff manufactured in other countries with money you don’t actually have…

6. 

   CabinGirl on September 5, 2007 at 8:07 am

   heard this before? AP/Yahoo

   The No. 2 U.S. commander in Iraq said Tuesday that the next three to four months will be crucial in determining whether the United States can start to withdraw troops from Iraq without sacrificing security gains since the troop buildup began early this year.

   Lt. Gen. Raymond Odierno said the number of attacks in August fell to their lowest level in more than a year, although he gave no figures. Odierno insisted that overall violence was declining — a sign that the buildup ordered by President Bush was working.

   “I think the next three to four months are critical,” Odierno told reporters. “I think that if we can continue to do what we are doing, we’ll get to such a level where we think we can do it with less troops.

   :::think, think, think…:::

   • 

     ask on September 5, 2007 at 8:55 am

     Well, at least we are down to fractions of a Friedman Unit…/sn

     But it is time to get rid of the broken record.

7. 

   on September 5, 2007 at 10:49 am

   Corpo-News Finally Gets It Right

   In an unbelievable “Did they just say that” moment Boston’s own channel Seven reported the incident in Frankfurt Germany as ” a terror plot against US interests”.

   Truth finally, even if no one else noticed.

8. 

   CabinGirl on September 5, 2007 at 10:53 am

   Keeping us all safe, yes indeedy: MSNBC

   An Air Force squadron commander has been relieved of his command after five nuclear weapons were mistakenly loaded aboard a B-52 bomber and flown cross-country last week.

   Five 150-kiloton warheads were attached to cruise missiles that were flown Aug. 30 from Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota to Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana to be dismantled, but the warheads should have been removed.

   Military officials insist the warheads remained “under control” at all times and did not pose a danger.

   Dumbasses.

   • 

     cruz del sur on September 5, 2007 at 12:38 pm

     What surprissed me of that report was that they daid that since the nukes were not armed there was no danger. So let’s make it clear: dirty bombs ard no danger. Yeah right!!

     • 

       CabinGirl on September 5, 2007 at 3:12 pm

       Yep.  “It’s only dangerous if we say so and there’s something in it for us.”

       Schmucks.

9. 

   dada on September 5, 2007 at 6:21 pm

   Since disbanding the Iraqi Army worked so well, how about we dispand the national police too?

   Study: Iraqi security forces not ready

   WASHINGTON – Iraq’s security forces have made “uneven progress” and will be unable to take over security on their own in the next 12 to 18 months, according to an independent assessment.

   The study, conducted by a 20-member panel led by retired Gen. James Jones, found the Iraqi Army shows promise of becoming a viable, independent security force with time. But the group offers a scathing assessment of Baghdad’s Ministry of Interior and recommends scrapping Iraq’s national police force, which it describes as dysfunctional and infiltrated by militias.

   […]

   link

   After 4+ years of training, billions of dollars, and untold arms, many unaccounted for; General Betreaus’ work doesn’t appear to have been very successful….much like the surge, l would add.

   Golly gee whiz….musta been one of those infamous unknown unknowns…how much more of this clusterfuck are we supposed to endure?

   lTMF’sA

   

   • 

     cruz del sur on September 5, 2007 at 7:11 pm

     Wondering if they are ever going to decide to disband the occupation army too. Now that I would support!