F.B.I. and States Vastly Expand DNA Databases

By GottaLaff

I bet the Rushpublics will demand that their DNA secede from the United States to avoid government overreach:

Law enforcement officials are vastly expanding their collection of DNA to include millions more people who have been arrested or detained but not yet convicted. The move, intended to help solve more crimes, is raising concerns about the privacy of petty offenders and people who are presumed innocent.

Until now, the federal government genetically tracked only convicts. But starting this month, the Federal Bureau of Investigation will join 15 states that collect DNA samples from those awaiting trial and will collect DNA from detained immigrants — the vanguard of a growing class of genetic registrants.

The F.B.I., with a DNA database of 6.7 million profiles, expects to accelerate its growth rate from 80,000 new entries a year to 1.2 million by 2012 — a 17-fold increase. F.B.I. officials say they expect DNA processing backlogs — which now stand at more than 500,000 cases — to increase.

Law enforcement officials say that expanding the DNA databanks to include legally innocent people will help solve more violent crimes. They point out that DNA has helped convict thousands of criminals and has exonerated more than 200 wrongfully convicted people.

But criminal justice experts cite Fourth Amendment privacy concerns and worry that the nation is becoming a genetic surveillance society.

VIDEO: Pat Robertson urges his callers to crash Homeland Security hotline

By GottaLaff



I saw this video yesterday, but forgot to post it. My bad. In case you missed it...

Pat's all a-froth over the DHS report that we've referenced here before. He's taking it a little too far, requesting, make that insisting, that callers jam the DHS phone lines. How's that for keeping America safe?

His attack on the DHS yesterday, alongside his coanchor Terry Meeuwsen, featured an unending stream of flatly false information and mischaracterizations. Plus, of course, the requisite gay-bashing and liberal bashing, all wrapped up in a neat little ball [...]

And if you jam up their lines, good for you!

While I could think of a few organizations whose lines it might be a good idea to jam, Homeland Security would not be one of them.

Hell, if Janet Napolitano and Obama were half the tyrants Pat Robertson makes them out to be, wouldn't they be charging him with an act of terrorism?

And by all means, don't miss the part where he spouts this little nugget of brotherly love:

Robertson: It -- it shows somebody down in the bowels of that organization is either a convinced left-winger or somebody whose sexual orientation is somewhat in question.

But it's that kind of thing, somebody who doesn't think that we should have abortion on demand, is labeled a terrorist! It's outrageous!

I once wrote about a million jokes for a big project I was hired to do for The Family Channel. Pat Robertson was my boss.

He refused to let me use the words "toilet paper".

The Full Ginsburg definition of "tea party"

By GottaLaff

Drum roll:

Tea Party • \TEE-PAR-tee\ • noun

a) a “spontaneous” “grass-roots” event to protest against a lot of things, and for some other junk, maybe.

b) a slang term utilized in a situation where there is a conspicuous lack of minorities.

ie. “Huh. So it looks like this dodgeball league’s a real Tea Party.”

Allow me to add an entry of my own:

Tea Tantrum • \TEE-tan-trum\ • noun

a) something the dodgeball moms throw on a regular basis in order to show off their handcrafted hats and signs.

b) an event at which Fixed Noise hosts promote/appear/practice deception while claiming to be news reporters

ie. "There are 5,000 25,000 millions of Tea Tantrums that sprang up in taxpayer-funded parks, sponsored by no right wingers whatsoever, so that we could try to legitimize it a populist uprising by July 4."

Tuh-Weet! Joe Scarborough mixes it up on Twitter edition, now with bonus video!

By GottaLaff

Yesterday I posted about how Morning Joe mocked torture. Joe is Tweeting his mouth off again, creating quite a little dust-up. Here he is, folks... Joe Scarborough, unplugged:

The Left makes fools of themselves when they deny the obvious. The Pew poll headline says clearly that BHO is most polarizing in modern era.

It is still very early. And sometimes one polarizes because he is courageous. I just don't want leftists denying the obvious.

To which one of my favorite Tweeters, Cody, tweeted a link to the obvious, which included input from Nate Silver. Via Andrew Sullivan:

The key to judging whether a president is polarizing is how the middle, or Independents, are seeing him. The reason is simple. A president might be as open to engagement as possible, but if his opposition is determined to destroy and demonize him from Day One, he can't do much about that. But independents give a better sense of whether the president is forcing the center to divide into two poles. [Laffy Note: Please click on link to see charts]

Joe:

I get it. All Bush's fault. Great. Forget all those Dems who knew about waterboarding in 2002 and loved it because they were scared.

To which Cody said:

YOU'RE bastardizing the obvious, Joe.

And then she re-linked him to the above post that references Nate Silver's analysis, aforementioned graphs included.

To which Joe responded:

He's not conservative nor did he claim to be one in the campaign. But he did claim to be a unifier and moderate. He is neither.

Cody:

Answer the question Joe..... Did we prosecute the Japanese for doing the same exact thing to our POWs... or did we not?

Joe added, responding to yet another Tweeter:

It means we have another divisive president. From Clinton to Bush to Obama. It is not healthy for US. And btw, many Dems like me.

And another of my faves, Shoq, reacted like this:

So Joe, let's understand . All that polarizing just started in January, right? 15 years of Fox, and you, had no influence, right?

Joe finally responded to Cody:

Americans did the "exact thing" as Japanese troops in WWII? That's just not so. The Japanese technique was far more savage.

Just look at the ranking D's on intel committees in 2002 and draw up the indictments.

Cody shot back that she was happy to look at any Democrats who might have been involved.

Shoq:

You're very good at puppet shows, Joe. But the real world you want real props from isn't Mika and Lamb Chop.

Cody, to Joe:

That's just not so. The Japanese technique was far more savage. || Bullshit. I don't ever see you trying to make that case.

Reps and Dems alike.... clear America's conscience, Joe. Stand up and be a man when it comes to our exceptionalism, not our shame.

Joe, responding to nobody in particular:

I will be back soon, but I'm wasting my time with people who call anyone who disagrees with them racists and rednecks. Wake up.

Jake Tapper came in out of nowhere, hat in hand, begging for conservative Tweeters to follow Joe's Tweet, "My God. Do no conservatives or moderate Democrats Twitter? I am Custer at Little Big Horn. As goes Twitter, so goes France":

conservatives -- @joeNBC is crying out for you to follow him ...he feels alone in the twuniverse

Joe ended with this:

Have a great weekend and try to have a long conversation with someone with whom you genuinely disagree. Show respect and learn something.

Oliver Willis jumped in, responding to Joe's citation of this Pew poll:

Joe: except thats not what Pew says

also, the right has disrespected us from before clinton. they call us socialists, etc now but obama and us shld just take? no mas

bush drove us into a ditch and his copilots now are carping about obama's efforts to pull us out.

dont agree with calling all cons racists/rednecks but gop refuses to deal with in-party bigotry. fans the flames to keep bubba vote

Then Oliver directed Joe to this:

Perry says "secede", TX House votes to wipe out his budget; Vets win

By GottaLaff

I love it when the good guys score a win:

House members virtually wiped out Gov. Rick Perry's office budget Friday in order to help veterans and the mentally ill.

With little debate, the House on a voice vote approved erasing 96 percent of the nearly $24 million that budget writers had recommended for Perry's office operation over the next two years.

Some Democrats cast the House's move as a rebuke of the governor's recent comments about Texas seceding from the Union.

"That's the headline: 'Two days after governor says we ought to secede, House zeroes out the governor's budget,' " said Appropriations Committee vice chairman Richard Raymond, D-Laredo. [...]

"At the end of the day, the governor will be fully funded," said House GOP caucus chairman Larry Taylor of Friendswood.

In that case, I hope the Nation of Texas accepts U.S. dollars.

If at first you don't secede, sell Texas on eBay

By GottaLaff

I wish the seller all the sec-cess in the world:

(click on image to enlarge)

Bush's living there may be a deal breaker.

H/t

Vandals hit Coleman's house again -- this time with eggs

By GottaLaff

How this one got by me for two days, I'll never know:

A week that started out badly for Norm Coleman went further downhill Tuesday night after a vandal lobbed eggs at his house in St. Paul, according to a police report.

Police reported that the egging occurred about 9: 20 p.m. Tuesday, when an unidentified person in the house saw a man outside of it. [...]

The vandalism occurred one day after a three-judge panel ruled that Democrat Al Franken won the race for the Senate seat Coleman used to hold.

It's not the first time his home has been vandalized. Last fall, Coleman's house -- and those owned by five other members of the state's congressional delegation -- were spray-painted with graffiti.

Toker Norm should be walking on egg shells. Instead he's scrambled around, egged on by his lawyers, trying to deprive Minnesota of their senator. The yolk's on him, though. The election may not be over easy, but even some hard boiled Rushpublics are realizing that it's Toker Norm who has ended up with egg on his face.

Yes, I'm done. But now I'm really in the mood for an omelet.

VIDEO: Fox News: Tea Baggers caused stock market bounce

By GottaLaff

Thanks to Oliver Willis's Tweet, you get to witness more Fox atrocities:



Do these people have any grasp of reality?

H/t

VIDEO-- Charles Barkley: "Unpatriotic... b.s." Limbaugh, "idiot" Hannity, "whack nut job" Republicans

By GottaLaff

Charles Barkley rips into Hannity and Limbaugh

Charles Barkley says publicly what many of us have been saying privately and/or here at TPC for some time now:

NBA great Charles Barkley dipped into some political punditry during a Tonight Show appearance on Friday, tearing into conservative talking heads who have rooted for President Obama to fail.

Based on this interview, it goes without saying he's an Obama and Franken supporter. Barkley refers to Al Franken's book, Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Liar [sic], saying that the book "was true", and that the Rushpublics "went right-wing, whack, nut job on America and screwed up the country".

I couldn't have put it better myself.

U.N. Official: Obama's Decision Not to Prosecute Torture Violates International Law

By GottaLaff

If it isn't one thing, it's another:

President Barack Obama's decision not to prosecute CIA operatives who used questionable interrogation practices violates international law, the U.N.'s top torture investigator said Saturday. [...]

In a brief telephone interview with The Associated Press, Manfred Nowak, an Austrian who serves as a U.N. special rapporteur in Geneva, said the United States had committed itself under the U.N. Convention against Torture to make torture a crime and to prosecute those suspected of engaging in it.

"They are party to the convention and the convention is very, very clear," Nowak said when asked to confirm comments contained in an interview he gave Austria's Der Standard newspaper. "The fact that you carried out an order doesn't relieve you of your responsibility," he said, adding it could be a mitigating factor.

Nowak, who said he would soon travel to Washington for meetings with officials, also called for a comprehensive independent investigation into the matter and added it was important to compensate the victims.

"Now we need to know all the facts -- not just bits and pieces," Nowak said. "First you need the truth and then you need justice."

One way or another, there will be repercussions for BushCo's war crimes. Will Nowak's statements be enough to get the ball rolling?

Lichen Obama more and more

By GottaLaff

Just when you thought you've heard it all:

Knudsen, a curator of the plant-like combination of fungi and algae at the UC Riverside Herbarium, named a new species of tough, orange-colored lichen, Caloplaca obamae, after Barack Obama.

"I supported him running for president, and while we were doing the collecting the election was in its last couple of weeks," Knudsen, 58, said Thursday. "It was real suspense, so we were talking about that every day." [...]

Knudsen, who has studied lichens for about 10 years and roamed the California coast looking for them, said the naming decision wasn't about publicity.

"After the Bush administration, I appreciated the change to an administration supporting science and science education," Knudsen said.

Judge Rejects President Obama's 'State Secrets' Argument

By GottaLaff

There's been another setback for the state secrets argument:

As a case against President Bush for withholding documents about allegedly illegal wiretapping became a case against President Obama for withholding documents about allegedly illegal wiretapping, President Obama has once again assumed the same "state secrets" arguments as his predecessor. And a judge that rejected the argument under Bush yesterday rejected the argument under Obama.

In the case, Al-Haramain v. Obama, (formerly Al-Haramain v. Bush) the leaders of a now-defunct Islamic charity, allege that the National Security Agency under President Bush engaged in illegal warrantless wiretapping.

In 2004, while preparing to defend the charity -- which had been placed on the government's terrorist watch list -- the charity's lawyers accidentally obtained a document indicating the wiretapping had taken place.

The lawyers returned the document and have ever since been denied the ability to obtain it again to use it to show the charity had been allegedly illegally wiretapped.

The Bush administration had argued that the document could not be "disclosed without causing serious harm to national security," even if the plaintiff's lawyers are given access to the document under secure conditions after extensive background checks.

U.S. District Chief Judge Vaughn Walker denied the Bush administration's argument repeatedly. The Obama administration repeated the same "national security" argument in February, and yesterday Judge Walker said that the government "should now comply with the court's orders" to hand over the documents.

Happy Record Store Day!!!

Where do you buy your vinyl? I didn't know this before, but not only is today Record Store Day, it is also my bff Jeff's birthday, and if you knew Jeff you'd understand how cosmic that is. Here's Jeff's favorite local vinyl store, Orbit Music in IN. More on Record Store Day here.

HAPPY (mumble mumble)TH BIRTHDAY JEFF!!

Michael Steele Steele Claims Government Is Monitoring Anti-Abortion Rallies

Totally clueless. Via Think Progress. Very slow news day kids, so prepare to be bored. But, it is a really nice day here!

President Obama Summit Of The Americas Speech

Part one above, part two below.

Saturday Linkage

I have to run out for a bit, so here's some links to keep you busy.

Iran jails journalist as US spy

Alaska abortion notification bill stalls in State Senate health committee

From Six-Figure Salaries To Food Stamps

CIA interrogators inflated suspect's importance: NYT

Prince Philip sets record as royal consort

Expert: Redeployment sparks many suicides

Study: Dullness can kill a marriage

CIA officials inflated suspect’s importance

Pic via Cat of course.

President Obama's Weekly Address- 4/18/09

Happy Obama Photos

Holy crap, even Chavez is kvelling.

We have new ads so please click through and check them out. You can also always make a donation through the PayPal button to the right, and if you are thinking of buying anything from Amazon, if you use the links over to the right, just using one of those links to buy anything gets us a couple pennies a transaction.

Pics stolen from Al.

VIDEO-- Countdown: This week in teabagging

By GottaLaff

Tea Tantrum mockery heaven:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

VIDEO--Rep. John Culberson on Hardball: Obama, Pelosi are "trying to turn America into France"

By GottaLaff

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Tweety let Rep. Culberson get away with saying that the Tea Tantrums were "a spontaneous horizontal reflection of the mood of the American people" (at about 8:05). My jaw dropped... and not just because I had no idea that an uprising could be horizontal. In fact, I had no idea that Rushpublics ever got horizontal at all. But that's another post for another time.

In the blink of an eye, Culberson went on and on ad absurdum about wanting the government out of Texans' lives. There go all those durn Texan libraries, fire and police stations, schools, etc., etc. And this blowhard even brought back that old chestnut, France. Yes, France.

Indeed, we are at a tipping point, he ranted. I'll have him know I haven't been tipped once.

But Tweety did have his moments, starting at about 7:20 and notably at about 10:22 ("You say you love the country, but you can't wait to leave it").

See "Tantrums, Tea: Backfiring".

Senator Whitehouse will fight for Dawn Johnsen's confirmation

By GottaLaff

Hey boys and girls! It's time for your Daily Dose-O'-BuzzFlash! Today's episode:

GOP May Offer Fireworks, But Sheldon Whitehouse Will Lead the Senate Fight To Confirm Dawn Johnsen

You all remember Dawn, right? She's the one the Rushpublics fear. She's the one who could nail BushCo. Moving along:

When the U.S. Senate reconvenes after its Spring recess Monday, will partisan sparks fly, filibusters be mounted, and confirmation fights rage over President Obama's remaining appointments that have yet to get their up-or-down confirmation vote on the Senate floor? Maybe, in the case of the President's nominee to head the Office of Legal Council in the Department of Justice, Dawn E. Johnsen.

On a conference call Friday with BuzzFlash and other Internet-based reporters, Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island indicated that, if it comes to that, the Democrats are ready. "If the Republicans really do decide they're going to filibuster this nomination, I think they're leading with their chins and that gives us the chance to go on the offense," he said.

Read the rest here.

Tea Tantrums Backfire: Independents Turned Off, Some GOPers Worried

By GottaLaff

Gee, it seems them wacky, zany Tea Tantumers, those patriotic paragons of secession and racism, are embarrassing their own party. Some people never learn. Oh well:

While the anti-tax sentiment of the protests may have been sincere, the images pulled from the events have often been offensive, embarrassing, or politically problematic.

It is a development that has tripped up the GOP before. The rallies outside McCain-Palin events included some of the same bile that was seen at the tea parties: charges of fascism, terrorism and other malicious criticisms leveled at Barack Obama. And it did the Republican ticket little good in its efforts to bring moderate voters to the cause. [...]

"My own sense that is I don't see anything going on that is good for Republicans," said Doug Bailey, a longtime Republican consultant who helped co-found the centrist reform movement Unity08. "I just don't get it. [...] [A] large segment, in terms of numbers, doesn't amount to a couple hundred people demonstrating in Washington or wherever. That's a non-event ... Nobody likes taxes. So, of course, I'm sympathetic myself. I might throw a tea bag myself. But the fact is, that it is particularly ineffective for the Republican Party when it is Rush Limbaugh and the likes stirring it up. That just doesn't speak to the middle."

Of course, because the series of nationwide tea parties were geared towards a specific day (Tax Day), the political ramifications of the events seem naturally limited. "Those tea parties will be long forgotten by, oh, say tomorrow," said Stu Rothenberg, of the Rothenberg Political Report. "Do you really think that next November, when people go to the polls, the April 15 tea parties will be on their minds?"

That said, plans are in place for a next wave of protests in July. More significantly, as the GOP continues to stake their future on a wave of populist anger at the government and economy (witness: Texas Gov. Rick Perry talking about secession), the likelihood only increases that the most vocal and offensive elements of that anger will come to personify the party.

Then by all means, keep doing what you're doing. Offending Americans is the best way to alienate them, hence, the fastest route to losing more elections. So please, be our guests: offend away.

More fun here.

US, Cuba Trade Warmest Words In Last 50 Years

By GottaLaff

It's nice to know that all that inexperience is paying off:

Trading their warmest words in a half-century, the United States and Cuba pressed ahead Friday with a dizzying series of gestures as leaders of the Americas gathered for a summit. The momentum was so great that the head of the Organization of American States said he'll ask his group to invite Cuba back after 47 years.

In a diplomatic exchange of the kind that normally takes months or years, President Barack Obama this week dropped restrictions on travel and remittances to Cuba, then challenged his Cuban counterpart Raul Castro to reciprocate.

Within hours, Castro responded with Cuba's most open offer for talks since the Eisenhower administration, saying he's ready to discuss "human rights, freedom of the press, political prisoners _ everything." Cuban officials have historically bristled at discussing human rights or political prisoners, of whom they hold about 200.

H/t: Ellen

VIDEO-- "Morning Joe" Scarborough mocks torture: "This is a laughable proposition...what is now considered torture"

By GottaLaff

"This is a laughable proposition actually, what is now considered torture But if not letting terrorists sleep, and throwing cold water on them, and putting a caterpillar in a room with a terrorist is now considered torture, then I am afraid we as a country do not have what it takes to protect our people."

That's some video clip. Way to take both sides of a controversial argument, Joe. And way to snicker at inflicting stress positions and horrifying people with bugs. But hey, if these interrogation techniques are so giggle-worthy, then what was so wrong with releasing the memos again?

Here's a thought: Ask these children if torturing them with crawly things was "laughable".

Ask the people who were the victims of "unnecessary" torture (as if any of it is "necessary", let alone productive) if waterboarding seemed like casual splashing around.

Joe Scarborough, if what you imply is true, that these techniques are no big deal, then why did BushCo's legal department have to go to such pains to concoct memos to justify waterboarding and other methods of "enhanced interrogation"?

Oh, and just in case there are any skeptics left out there, there's this little tidbit:

In the wake of Obama’s decision to release the torture memos, some folks connected to the administration of George W. Bush are claiming that he gave a big boost to terrorists by revealing secret torture techniques that Obama or other presidents might have wanted to use in the future.

The claim is largely bogus. While a few technical torture details in the memos were new, much about the techniques themselves had already been public. Indeed, what’s actually new about the memos is that they reveal in unprecedented detail the Bush administration’s effort to legally justify already-known techniques.[...]

For instance, the recently released report from the Red Cross contains detailed descriptions of techniques... [...]

One more time: What was actually revealed in yesterday’s memos was the nature of the Bush administration’s efforts to legalize and justify the “harsh interrogation techniques” that we mostly knew about already. And it’s not terribly difficult to imagine why some folks would want those legal efforts kept under wraps.

Hey MoJo, your mojo's not working no mo'.

Poll-itics: President Obama's first 90 days get highest job approval in 30+ years

By GottaLaff

Gol-durn it all! Guess all them Tea Tantrums didn't work:

New data out of the indispensable Gallup polling organization shows that President Obama's average job approval during his first 90 days in office is 63 percent, the highest rating in its surveys during that critical time period in more than three decades.

Since Jimmy Carter scored an average of 69 percent approval rating in his first 90 days in office, the ratings for the subsequent presidents have steadily declined from Ronald Reagan (60 percent), to George H.W. Bush (57 percent), to Bill Clinton (55 percent). George W. Bush's 58 percent average in the Gallup poll for his first quarter in office was only a slight improvement over his direct predecessors. [...]

What should we take from these numbers?

First and foremost, context matters.

And for that context, go read the rest here.

U.S. court strikes down Bush oil leasing plan

By GottaLaff

Another one down:

An appeals court on Friday struck down the Bush administration's five-year plan for offshore oil and gas leasing, saying it was put into effect without proper environmental review.

The U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, D.C. ordered the Interior Department to rewrite the 2007-2012 plan, which was challenged by a coalition of environmental groups and Alaska Natives.

Although the case disputes oil development in the Alaska outer continental shelf, the court's ruling mandates a rewrite for the entire nation, said Peter Van Tuyn, an Anchorage attorney who represented an Inupiat Eskimo village and some of the environmentalists who objected to the plan.

CIA Memo footnotes: There was unnecessary waterboarding

By GottaLaff

We've been told ad nauseam by the Rushpublics that waterboarding was necessary. It was necessary because it produced results, they insist. It produced results, so it was justified, they claim. America is safer because of all that torture, they aver. Oh, and did I mention how necessary they say it was?

Oh, um, except for that (at least) one time when....

We spotted one in footnote #28 on page 31 of a May 30, 2005, memo from the Department of Justice, where the DOJ admits that waterboarding of a detainee may have been used unnecessarily “on at least one occasion.”

The CIA’s inability to figure out which detainees had useful information “may have resulted in what might be deemed in retrospect to have been the unnecessary use of enhanced techniques,” the partially redacted footnote states.

Don'tcha hate when that happens?

In this case, the CIA “reasonably believed” Mr. Zubaydah was withholding important information that might help protect the U.S. against terror attacks, says the memo, so it was acceptable to waterboard him even though the belief was later proved false. The memo is signed by Deputy Assistant Attorney General Steven Bradbury.

I believe I had to kill that guy because I believed it was in self defense because I believed he was carrying a gun and I believed he was thinking about killing me. Never mind that the guy was 7 and didn't have a gun.

I don't believe in BushCo's belief systems. And I don't want my country using their belief system to justify torture.

I believe torturing people is wrong, self-defeating, unreliable, illegal, and immoral. That's what I believe.

Shallow Thoughts: Someone else's Deep Thought edition

By GottaLaff

Today's Shallow Thought is a Deep Thought from Josh Marshall:

Conservatives are so incensed by warnings about the threat of right wing radicalism that they're considering overthrowing the federal government.

That was today's Deep Shallow Thought. Thank you for wading in.

Update to the latest (John) Ziegler Follies

By GottaLaff

Earlier I posted a video revealing John Ziegler's latest psycho antics, or the Ziegler Follies as I shall now call them. But what have we here? Why, I believe it's called The Truth:

This afternoon, the Huffington Post spoke to James Grant, the Executive Director of Media Relations for USC. Their version of events goes a little counter to Ziegler's narrative.

According to Grant, in the days before his eventual appearance on campus, Ziegler publicly announced his intention to demonstrate at the Couric event. USC was happy to accomodate Ziegler, and provided him with a designated area, where he could register his protest, be seen by event attendees and the student body, and pass out whatever materials he wished. These arrangements were ready upon Ziegler's arrival.

However, according to Grant, Ziegler showed up for the event making unexpected demands. He was no longer a demonstrator. Now, he was a journalist, with cameramen in tow, insistent that he had a right to enter the event. Told that the event was invitation only, Ziegler contended that he had the right to range up and down the entryway and stick microphones into the faces of attendees.

Said Grant, "The University both respects and facilitates the right to free speech, but we reserve the right to set reasonable ground rules that respect the rights of everyone, and provide for the safety and security of the University community." Ziegler, opting against the ground rules that had been mutually agreed to, was given the choice of leaving campus or being arrested, and eventually chose to leave campus.

This guy's entire professional life is an epic fail. If you need further proof, watch him in this dating video. You remember, the one in which he gets rejected? Yeah, that one.

Bush memos: Children were tortured with insects

By GottaLaff

They tortured little kids:

Bush Administration memos released by the White House on Thursday provide new insight into claims that American agents used insects to torture the young children of alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. [...]

The memo was dated Aug. 1, 2002. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed’s children were captured and held in Pakistan the following month, according to a report by Human Rights Watch.

Thom Hartmann just read aloud the following on his radio show:

At a military tribunal in 2007, the father of a Guantanamo detainee alleged that Pakistani guards had confessed that American interrogators used ants to coerce the children of alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed into revealing their father’s whereabouts.

The statement was made by Ali Khan, the father of detainee Majid Khan, who gave a detailed account of his son’s interrogation at the hands of American guards in Pakistan. In his statement, Khan asserted that one of his sons was held at the same place as the young children of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

“The Pakistani guards told my son that the boys were kept in a separate area upstairs and were denied food and water by other guards,” the statement read. “They were also mentally tortured by having ants or other creatures put on their legs to scare them and get them to say where their father was hiding.” (A pdf transcript is available here)

Hartmann went on to say that the kids were about 7 and 9 or 10 years old. The claims were repeated by Ron Suskind in his book The One Percent Doctrine, he said. Here's an interview in which Suskind confirms Hartmann's assertions:

Suskind: With extraordinary minutes passing he earned a sort of grudging respect from interrogators. The thing they did with Mohammed is that we had captured his children, a boy and a girl, age 7 and 9. And at the darkest moment we threatened grievous injury to his children if he did not cooperate. His response was quite clear: "That's fine. You can do what you want to my children, and they will find a better place with Allah."

Unfortunately, the implementers of torture are legally off the hook. All we can do now is hope that those who gave the orders will be prosecuted, and call for that to happen... loudly and clearly.

VIDEO-- Maersk crew member on how they gained control over the pirates: ‘We’re union members.’

By GottaLaff



The Rushpublic party would love nothing more than to completely bust the unions. Why? Because they are strong Democratic supporters. Relevant segment at 1:14:

As Marcy Wheeler and Nick Baumann have pointed out, the crew members belonged to the Seafarers International Union, the Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association, and the International Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots. Baumann noted that the seamen received “anti-piracy training” from the unions.

AFL-CIO Maritime Trades Department President Michael Sacco, speaking on behalf of the maritime unions involved, said, "We are extremely proud of the efforts shown by the crew of the Maersk Alabama. These well-trained American merchant mariners exemplify the very best in our industry."

You won't see the anti-union party challenge these crew members to their faces. No, it's a little too challenging to disparage well-trained, patriotic heroes, isn't it?

Just go after the organizations who prepared them so well.

Sad Comment-ary

By GottaLaff

Comments on two of my YouTube posts have gotten out of hand. One of them has finally settled down, mainly because it's been around awhile. But the other, which I posted here at TPC the other day, is generating so many hostile, disgusting, vile homophobic comments that I had to disable them.

The difference in content between the two comment threads was notable. While, along with the spew, there was an outpouring of support for the Obama video, the opposite was true of the Anderson Cooper clip. The majority of responses was so hate-filled that I couldn't allow them to continue. It was too time-consuming to keep blocking and removing, so I finally deleted and disabled them today.

What a sad commentary. Even though YouTube may not be an accurate representation of the population in general, it's a terrifying reminder that bigotry is alive and kicking in America.

Just ask the Tea Tantrumers.

Glimmer of hope? Spanish judge wants to keep Gitmo case alive

By GottaLaff

I'm getting whiplash. I'm not too optimistic, but this is still good to hear:

MADRID, Spain (CNN) – A Spanish judge moved Friday to keep alive an investigation into six former Bush administration officials for alleged torture of prisoners at the U.S. detention camp for terrorism suspects at Guantanamo Bay. Cuba.

He acted just hours after prosecutors urged the case to be dropped, according to a court document.

The more attention paid to BushCo's war crimes, the better, so I consider this good news, no matter how it plays out.

VIDEO: MisinterPerrytation

By GottaLaff

Ohhh, so this is what he really meant:

"I was kinda thinking that, maybe the same people who hadn't been reading the constitution right were reading that article and they got the wrong impression about what I said," he told reporters as in the Texas State House.

"Clearly, I stated that we have a great union. And Texas is part of a great union. I see no reason for that to change. I think that may not be the exact quote, but that is, in essence what I said," he added. [...]

In clarifying his remarks Thursday, Perry also said he has "never been prouder of Texans" for standing up to Washington, DC. [...]

Meanwhile, Texas Democrats have sharply criticized Perry's original comment, calling it an "attack on our country."

"It is the ultimate anti-American statement," State Rep. Jim Dunnam of Waco told reporters Thursday.

Aww, come on, fellow Dems. Go easy on the guy. It's so obvious we all... all... got the wrong impression. All of us.

It was clearly our mistake. We should have been examining the essence of what he said, not what actually came out of his big, fat, treasonous mouth.

Our bad.

Sarah Palin weighed abortion "for a fleeting moment"

By GottaLaff

For a fleeting moment, I agreed with Sarah Palin. On Thursday night, in Evansville, Indiana, at a right-to-life gathering, Preachy McFlauntKids surprised the crowd:

PoliticsDaily.com Melinda Henneberger reports, "In her first out-of-state political appearance since last fall's presidential election, former GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin confided to 3,000 at a right-to-life event here that she had "just for a fleeting moment" contemplated seeking an abortion after learning she was pregnant with her son Trig, who will turn 1 on Saturday."

VIDEO-- Sarah Palin's wannabe filmmaker John Ziegler: "I'm just as much a journalist as Katie Couric"

By GottaLaff

If you are trying to remember who John Ziegler is, go here, here, and here. Warning: Memories of Ziegler may result in PTSD, but it's a chance you'll have to take. Hint: He's the one who went on Mr. Laffy's dating show... and lost. Now he's making a fool of himself again, and I'm guessing he's still dateless:

Link:

Via TBogg:

Human publicity stunt and all-around douchebag, John Ziegler, goes to USC and hilarity ensues as John squirms, giggles, and fails to understand the concept of private property while acting like the smirky semi-employed always-getting-fired asshole that he is.

Shameless promotion of Frangela

By GottaLaff

I now have a running MySpace conversation going with Frangela, a terrific comedy duo, (Frances Callier and Angela V. Shelton, both of The Second City), who have a political talk show on progressive radio out here in California. As a result, I'd like to give them a well-deserved promotion here on TPC. Here is the relevant part of their most recent message to me:

You rock! [...]

We're in Chicago until saturday night - oh and we'll be on from 2 to 6 pm on Sunday - filling in for the time slot they too from us! Ha! And for Mario [Laffy Note: another KTLK host] who is off! But no saturday show . . . strange :)
thank you and have a great weekend,
angela & frances aka frangela

The times are Pacific Daylight, and they can be streamed here.

If you have a chance, give them a listen. If you like what you hear, please let the station know.

Glenn Beck goes after LGF's Charles Johnson

Catfight!! At least Johnson is sane, but in this fight that may not work to his advantage. Video in question here.

Apparently he claimed that the woman in the video I posted who shouted “Burn the books!” was a leftist infiltrator. Leaving aside this claim (which is unsupported by any real evidence), I guess we’re supposed to ignore the fact that the audience at that “Glenn Beck tea party” actually applauded when she shouted this. And we’re supposed to ignore the speaker ranting about digital cable boxes being “brainwashing devices,” and spouting John Birch Society talking points. And we’re supposed to ignore the moderator, promoting the extreme right-wing/libertarian/Dominionist Constitution Party.

Never mind all that. Hey, look over there! It’s an infiltrator!

Texas Secession Poll: 75% Of Texans Say No

Good news for Kay Bailey Hutchinson.

A new poll out Friday shows that, should Texas Gov. Rick Perry decide the time is right for his state to secede, he might not have much support. Seventy-five percent of Texans would like to stay in the union, according to Rasmussen. However, a sizable minority would be with him: 18% would vote to secede, and seven percent are not sure what they'd choose. And a full 31% of Texas voters believe that their state has the right to secede from the United States and form an independent country if it wants.

The Daily Show- Tea Party Tyranny

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	M - Th 11p / 10c
Tea Party Tyranny
thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Economic Crisis Political Humor

Didn't any of them ever crack open a history book? Gaw.

Normy Begins Media Blitz

He's working the "throw up enough dust" defense. Via Taegan-

With polls showing Minnesota voters want the race over, the Minneapolis Tribune reports Norm Coleman "is using a media blitz to convince Minnesotans weary of the recount process and frustrated that they are still a senator short that he has good reason to appeal Democrat Al Franken's victory in the U.S. Senate election trial."

Said Coleman: "I'm hopeful. I think the law is on our side... "In spite of what some say, that somehow this is an effort to delay something -- no. There are very legitimate, important constitutional questions regarding whether or not people's vote should count."

Cartoon of the Day

Click to enlarge, via.

Friday Links For Thee

Anyone else catch the mention on Morning Joe that "people" are encouraging Joe to run again for office? My wildest dream come true...

Injured war zone contractors fight to get care

Camilla's Pub Toilet Seat Sold On EBay

After 100 days as Minnesota's only senator, Klobuchar embraces all the extra work with humor

Dallas Morning News: Texas Senate defies Perry by voting to take stimulus money for jobless fund In a sharp rebuff of Gov. Rick Perry, the Senate on Thursday tentatively voted to accept $555 million in unemployment aid from the federal economic stimulus plan.

How a sitcom a day can keep the doctor away

Clancy Candy, Chrissy's Crumpets.

Hitler-signed watercolors to be auctioned

NYT: Task to Aid Self-Esteem Lifts Grades for Some Some seventh graders who were struggling in class did significantly better after performing a series of brief confidence-building writing exercises, and the improvements continued through eighth grade, researchers reported Thursday.

O'Reilly: I Take FULL Credit For Spain Backing Off Torture Prosecutions

This gave me the biggest laugh I've had in weeks. I was going to say you can't make this shit up, but then again, you can.

Ex-McCain aide to call for gay marriage support

If they were smart, they'd listen to him. But you know how that goes...

WASHINGTON (CNN) - Steve Schmidt, a key architect of John McCain's presidential campaign, is making his first public return to Washington a bold one.

Schmidt will use a speech Friday to Log Cabin Republicans, a gay rights group, to urge conservative Republicans to drop their opposition to same-sex marriage, CNN has learned.

"There is a sound conservative argument to be made for same-sex marriage," Schmidt will say, according to speech excerpts obtained by CNN. "I believe conservatives, more than liberals, insist that rights come with responsibilities. No other exercise of one's liberty comes with greater responsibilities than marriage."

Schmidt makes both policy and political arguments for a Republican embrace of same-sex marriage.

“Great American” Sean Hannity Supports Threat of Secession

Via Newshounds. Great American indeed.

If anyone doubts that “Great American” Sean Hannity's patriotism is more about show than substance, last night's Hannity proved that Hannity is willing to rip apart the country to suit his purposes. In a “Great American” panel discussion about Texas Governor Rick Perry's threat to secede, Hannity repeatedly voiced his support for Perry despite heavy opposition from Geraldo Rivera and conservative Jonah Goldberg.