McMaverick--Not

Robert Greenwald Presents , The Real Mavericks

The Wickedness of the GOP

Again the Grand OLD Partisan republicans are setting it up to steal the election. Poll numbers are all over the place. McCain internal polls are saying the race is "essentially tied." Election fraud and voter suppression stories are popping up even on in the corporate media despite the right-wing drivel about "voter fraud " and ACORN. All a set-up for the fourth election in a row to be stolen by the immoral GOP. My only hope lie in the extraordinary registration and turn-out of new (and old) Democrats and if the darkside seems to pull it off, on November the Fifth, the American people will pull a "V for Vendetta" of some kind. Is this really America? Have we all been asleep this long?

Saturday Night Music

Rickie Lee Jones Live at Montreal Jazz Festival, "Tigers" Love this song.



"Climbing up the brick to your window using the sharp end of what you said...yeah yeah"

The Inconvenience of Posse Comitatus

Enacted after Civil War Reconstruction in 1878, Posse Comitatus (U.S.C. 18-13850) has always been a double-edged sword. The compromise of the North with the South which withdrew Federal troops from former Confederate states and allowed racism and the general disenfranchisement of former slaves to flourish, was also intended to end the federal military from taking part in police actions. Yet once again, the Bush administration stretches law to it breaking point, while pushing our over-burdened military ever closer to the precipice.

News out today from the US Northern Command that the Army's 3rd Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team will be the nation's 'new police'. The 3rd ID is the most rotated combat component in Iraq and now they're home to do the same duty as part of the newest permanent part of the Army -- CBRNE Consequence Management Response Force.

The 3rd Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team has spent 35 of the last 60 months in Iraq patrolling in full battle rattle, helping restore essential services and escorting supply convoys.

Now they’re training for the same mission — with a twist — at home.

Beginning Oct. 1 for 12 months, the 1st BCT will be under the day-to-day control of U.S. Army North, the Army service component of Northern Command, as an on-call federal response force for natural or manmade emergencies and disasters, including terrorist attacks.

What is played down in the articles out of NORCOM, Ft. Stewart and the Dept. of Homeland Security is the element of CCMRF (sea-smurf) being implemented to 'deal with' protesters and civil disturbances.

Posse Comitatus became law for a number of reasons but first and foremost was so American servicepersons would not be put in the position of turning weapons on the American public. It seems we creep ever-closer to martial law as the reins of power slip from the GOP's fascist grip. As the divides in American ideology deepen, the political landscape of the presidential race features McCain mobs yelling, "kill him...terrorist" and worse, while my beloved military is put in the untenable position of having to defend not the Constitution, but the ideologic policies of a rogue government.

This election can not end soon enough for me.

AYFKM Alert:

AIG Executives Go ON A 400K Luxury Retreat After Receiving 85 Billion Dollar Taxpayer Bailout

Today on CSPAN Rep. Cummings (MD-D) of the House Oversight Committee gave AIG exec the business.



Really. This is what they do with bailout money. Welcome to the dark side America. Story at Think Progress with a sidebar from Fucked in California blog.

Either Or

At a McCain 'rally' yesterday during the inflammatory speech grandpa made, in response to what he says you can hear from the crowd what sounds like either, "terrorist," or "kill him." I listened several times and can't be sure which it is, but regardless, McCain heard it as you can tell from his immediate reaction, and yet does or says nothing. Is that leadership? Come on. Really. Ask yourself, is it? Certainly McCain is not responsible for what others say or do but if he knows of it he has the responsibility to say something. Think about it. This is not the way to act "presidential."


Note to regular readers:I have recently joined some milblogs as a reader commenter and am posting regularly a some military message boards. I find myself currently on a mission to change minds and am writing not with the choir in mind.

Motivate Yourself

Lifted from the comments at the Unruly Mob's place, Les Enragés.org


I would also like to point out a new button on the sidebar. A link to Dogtown, at Best Friends Sanctuary, the largest animal sanctuary in the states. Click it an give them a look-see and a donation if you can.

Winky McWinkerson Goes to the Debate

And doggoneit she did just swell. Yikes, nightmare on Wasilla 's Main Street. Yes, but funny.

Creepy McMeltdown

"If I were a dictator, which I always aspire to be..."

Direct quote from John McCain's meeting yesterday with the editorial board of The Des Moines Register. Finally a little truth creeps onto the "Straight Talk Express." Watch the entire interview or short segments on specific topics, but do listen to Gramppy utter the same famous words as Junior. The clip is: Full Editorial Board, dictator statement begins at 56:50. I would like to point out, as John McCain so often does, that he had long military career. The military is not a democracy. No wonder he wants to be a dictator.

"Is this the United States Congress or the board of directors of Goldman Sachs?"

Dennis Kucinich's one minute speech has more substance in it than all the talking heads and msm reports over the last weeks. I really love Dennis.

Tuesday Night Music Club

Abby Ahmad Live in NYC "Tri-Me"


I need to step outside. Another day marks another way. Marks a new reason to hide.
It's true when you slip, you slide. On the ground, been pushed down by this primitive pride. [complete lyrics]

Sarah and the Fatwah

Oh shit alert. IBN tells of the fatwah by a Pakistani cleric because of Pakistani President Zadari's, "shameful behavior."

Lost in the Wilderness

When Palin does the crash and burn, someone ought to let her use one of her lifelines; it's the humane thing to do. Another respected journalist jumps off the Scary Talk Express. Culled from TruthDig:

Calling Sarah Palin’s recent interview with CBS anchor Katie Couric “the last straw,” Newsweek editor and columnist Fareed Zakaria tells Wolf Blitzer on Monday’s episode of “The Situation Room” that it’s not a matter of Palin not giving the right answer when faced with a complex question about the economy or foreign policy, “it’s that she clearly does not understand the question.”

The highlight reel begins at 1:54.

Incurious George and His Imperial Presidency

The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia hosted political writer and former Clinton administration senior advisor, Sidney Blumenthal just before the last midterm election. His talk recounts the content of his book, How Bush Rules, and is both prescient and insightful, speaking to the radical departure from constitutional protections and and precedent as exercised by the Bush administration. This 50 minute presentation is extraordinary documentation of the unprecedented attempt of the Bush administration to undermine our democracy and recent-history revisited that should be required listening for any American who cares about our country. Listen. Please. This segment appears about a quarter of the way down the page.

The Maritime of Foreign Policy

What, you say? Exactly. Sarah Palin is asea. SNL and Tina Fey have done it again, this time the Couric interview. Scary. They actually used some of Palin's own dialog.

In the case of Palin's debate performance, a little learning is a dangerous thing as observed and roundly condemned by conservative columnist Kathleen Parker in NRO who called for her to resign from the campaign, ""Palin can save McCain, her party, and the country." Included in Parker's commentary was the statement, "My cringe reflex is exhausted."

Godspeed Mr. Newman

We lost a great one last night. Rest in Peace Paul Newman.

Senator McCain counted his mc-chickens before they mc-hatched. Debate polling results.

A Fighting Chance

60 Minutes did a segment last year, A Fighting Chance, on the field medical hospital at Balad AB, Iraq, its personnel, and the CCATT missions to Landstuhl, Germany. I know some of the people in the segment and as a result of being married to a CCATT doctor for the last several years, I understand the anguish. A fact to keep in mind:

"Many hospitals in the United States treat perhaps three or four trauma patients a month. Balad handles 246 monthly, with 150 evaluated for traumatic brain injuries, from admissions totaling 500."

Please watch it and let yourself feel about the people who show up everyday to save lives and those they care for. These medical personnel make the horror of this misbegotten war/occupation a tiny bit easier to bear because of the care these brave people provide. Watch it here.

Palin Scheduled For Remedial English Course

At least she should be. The GOP is right to hide her. Certainly until she's taught to construct an intelligible sentence. I now see why it took attending five colleges before she could wrangle a degree. Maybe she should have shot one down from a helicopter. Somebody needs to learn that girl.
From her interview with Katie Couric:

COURIC: You've cited Alaska's proximity to Russia as part of your foreign policy experience. What did you mean by that?

PALIN: That Alaska has a very narrow maritime border between a foreign country, Russia, and on our other side, the land-- boundary that we have with-- Canada. It-- it's funny that a comment like that was-- kind of made to-- cari-- I don't know, you know? Reporters--

COURIC: Mock?

PALIN: Yeah, mocked, I guess that's the word, yeah.

COURIC: Explain to me why that enhances your foreign policy credentials.

PALIN: Well, it certainly does because our-- our next door neighbors are foreign countries. They're in the state that I am the executive of. And there in Russia--

COURIC: Have you ever been involved with any negotiations, for example, with the Russians?

PALIN: We have trade missions back and forth. We-- we do-- it's very important when you consider even national security issues with Russia as Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where-- where do they go? It's Alaska. It's just right over the border. It is-- from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right there. They are right next to-- to our state.

No Barracuda

Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart have said it best, so I'll leave it to their eloquence. Click on image to make bigger.Pop by their place and give 'em a thumbs up.