Blogrophenia: The Reverend Aton's Site

Bush Joke

Donald Rumsfeld is giving the president his daily briefing. He concludes by saying: "Yesterday, 3 Brazilian soldiers were killed."

"OH NO!" the President exclaims. "That's terrible!"

His staff sits stunned at this display of emotion, nervously watching as the President sits, head in hands.

Finally, the President looks up and asks, "How many is a brazillion?"

Thirty one years young today. So you see we're all getting up there now.

all the friends and family
all the memories going round round round,
Moses

Sleazy Anna Nicole Smith still lQQking to score old man Marshall's cash. The case is now going up before the Supreme Court. She should be happy she milked the old bastard for the 6 million she got and move on her way. . .

You never give me your money
You only give me your funny paper
and in the middle of negotiations
you break down,
Moses

OH NO, NOT AGAIN, IT HURTS SO GOOD, I DON'T UNDERSTAND:
MORE (BAD) RELIGION

Odelay! Well, since we discussed it so much here at Blogrophenia lately here's a really interesting little piece on religion based on a study that seems to indicate that religion actually causes damage to society. I need to Mellow (Gold) out with this later tonight devote more time it but I just thought I'd put it up for you Midnight Vultures and see what, if any, thoughts your puny guero minds could muster. Sea Change in the works for your blog master? A few Mutations maybe, but otherwise doubtful. Anyway. . . interesting stuff.

I asked Bobby Dylan
I asked The Beatles
I asked Timothy Leary but he couldn't help me either
They call me The Seeker I've been searching low and high
I won't get to get what I'm after Till the day I die,
Moses

Pete Townshend

The great Pete Townshend has just set up an interesting blog where he's serializing a novella. I haven't gotten a chance to read it yet, but I am looking forward to doing so. The Who will be releasing a DVD in November too and a new 34 song "best of" of Pete's solo material. Exciting times for fans of this wrongly persecuted man of staggering genius.

I won't let go the coat,
Moses

'Everything else can wait, but the search of God cannot wait" - George Harrison

This story is beyond moving. I like to think that Montana smiled as he rested in heaven in the Lord's embrace when he saw that play. Children should never die. It's absolutely the worst thing in the world.

And accept it all bravely,
With God on my side,
Moses

My Thing on Religion

I've gotten a few posts and a lot of e-mails about my views on religion. First, let me say that I am thankful that we live in a country where everyone is free to believe or not believe anything they want. I think that's wonderful. Secondly let me say I respect everyone EXCEPT for religious fanatics and thoughtless atheists. Religious fanatics are those who think they have a monopoly on the truth and that this gives them license to do as they please. People who fall into this category are Mohammed Atta, Pat Buchanon and to some extent George W. Bush. They feel that religion gives them the right to moralize, oppress and in some cases kill. That's fucked up. And mean.

I have an aversion to those types. Always have. It's why I choose to make my home in New York City, there seem to be less of those. Also, as a younger man I leaned very much towards atheism. In fact, so much so that I studied religion and philosophy so as to prove my position. I went so far as to be just short of a PhD in philosophy. I studied science and history to a lesser extent, then suddenly something happened, I came to agree with Bacon:

'A little philosophy inclineth men's minds to atheism; but depth in philosophy bringeth men's minds to religion.'

I started attending various religious services, Jewish Temples, Catholic Churches, Sunni Mosques, Hari Krishna services, Mormon services, Baptist services, Hindu temples, even talked to some Scientologists, etc. I found that the vast majority of religions contained tremendous beauty. Oh sure, I had problems with each of them and to some extent or another they all contained some ugliness. But, I found in almost all them comfort, peace, love and most importantly truth. I came to agree with the great American pugilist and icon Muhammed Ali:

Rivers, ponds, lakes and streams - they all have different names, but they all contain water. Just as religions do - they all contain truths.

I began to look around and saw that my previous aversion to religion had landed me in a place where I was surrounded almost exclusively by atheists. The vast majority of THEM were totally thoughtless or at the very least had not thought very deeply about religion. They'd accepted the overwhelming anti-religious sentiment around and accepted weak arguments against religion. Some seemed to think it made them more thoughtful to take this position, some had it just fit into their self-identity and yet others seemed to just take the default. I saw them as no different from the religious hicks in the Mid West. Finally, most of them had rejected religion wholesale, they had never bothered say, to think: "Well I don't like Catholicism, I wonder what Hinduism is about". In any debate or discussion I was running circles around them. I don't mean that as an arrogant statement, simply the way things are, they just had never bothered to look into religion or to think deeply about it, much less to study it. Preferring to do their thinking about sports, entertainment or their personal lives. Nothing wrong with any of that, but if that's the case at least respond as one of my friend's whose intellect I respect very much and say something like, "You know I really just don't think much about God or religion, it isn't my thing". To my mind that is preferrable to some half assed argument about how Catholicism is bad because a nun was mean to you as a kid or that you reject Islam is bad because some f-d up people have killed in the name of Islam.

I would add though that anyone who brings another life into this world has a serious responsibility to think about religion because religion is such an enormous part of the global order that it is borderline negligent to raise a child in a religious vacuum.

I have no problem with atheists then who have done extensive readings in philosopy, theology and science and can mount compelling arguments against religion but those are so rare that I think I can almost make the blanket statement that atheists are the mirror image of religious fanatics except with a negative dose of nihilism and pessimism to go with their insanity. . .

Amazing Grace,
How sweet the sound,
Moses

Just Not Right

While I am disgusted with many of the thoughtless atheistic lemmings that I am surrounded by who reject religion as a matter of course in the same way that a Midwestern fanatic may "embrace Jesus", I must say that if there was ever an argument against religion it is the Catholic Church's imminent and now seemingly inevitable decision to ban homosexuals from the clergy. This wholesale rejection by the Church of a group for what they ARE, regardless of whether or not they act on it, embodies everything that is wrong with organized religion and were it not so tragic in it's discrimination and scope would be comical in just how UN-Christlike it is. . .

I've defended the Church repeatedly over the years, but decisions like this are indefensible. . .

Yes, 'n' how many times can a man turn his head,
Pretending he just doesn't see?
Moses

The Yankees took the slimmest of leads in the AL East night with their victory over the Baltimore Orioles. Randy Johnson was what the Yankees thought they were getting in him and Mariano Rivera was his normal brilliant self in locking down the 2-1 victory. Meanwhile (once and future Yankees manager) Sweet Lou Piniella did his best to impress his (once and future?) Boss in the Bronx by letting Kazmir throw 117 pitches in a TB victory over the Sox.

Moose tonight. . .

Things should start to get interesting right about now,
Moses

Wondering what is being said in the blogosphere about something? Check out Google's new blog search engine.

The Cuban Sandwich Crisis:
The Five Best Cuban Sandwiches in Midtown

The Cuban sandwich is a true work of art, when done correctly it is a true culinary delight. With no further ado here are the five best Cubans in midtown.

5. LATIN AMERICAN, 29 W. 26th St. , between Broadway and Sixth Avenue. (212) 689-2750. Great Cuban very garlicky (has some blue paste on it, that looks odd but tastes great), great meat so-so bread keeps this "almost not midtown at all" place at fifth. . .

4. HAVANA NEW YORK, 27 W. 38th St., . (212) 944-0990 Tasty Cuban at reasonable prices. Ask for extra mojo sauce and order the dessert. Good cheap date place too.

3. BLUE SMOKE, 116 E. 27th St., between Park Avenue South and Lexington. (212) 447-7733. By far the least traditional Cuban of the lot, but they call it one, it's pretty similar in appearance and it's pretty tasty. The (barbe)Cuebano is a great treat, but definitely isn't cheap as it clocks at $12 and is by far the most expensive item of these five. If you're not in a Cuban mood the ribs and pulled pork are great too!

2. MAMBI, 933 Second Avenue. (212) 832-3500. Great combo of slightly fancy and just flat good. Good daily deal $7 for Cuban and soda. For a real treat though try the Manhattan sandwich, hands down the tastiest sandwich of anything on here, but not technically being a Cuban, #1 has to go to:

1. MARGÓN, 136 W. 46th St., between Broadway and Sixth Avenue. (212) 354-5013. Not fancy at all. Very, fast food (in atmosphere certainly not literally though) cafeteria style, but the sandwich is to die for. It's appropritely greasy and yet maintains it's crispy crunch. Absolutely stellar and super cheap at $4.50 a piece.

Knock, Knock, Knocking on You Heathen's Doors

You bastards will love this website, it's the Skeptics Annotated Bible (and Koran and Book of Mormon) where you can go through the Bible and find all of the contradictions.

You can use it to impress all your friends by looking smart as you mindlessly regurgitate the atheistic liberal anti-Christian and anti-Muslim propaganda that you so mindlessly like to slurp up from the agenda driven media.

http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.com/

Enjoy, you souless pricks.

Mama, put my guns in the ground,
Moses

Bob Dylan: No Direction Home Movie

More on this later, but had to post this hilarious excerpt from the Guardian's review of it:

The reason the singer stopped giving interviews is clear in some hilarious archive footage. Asked at a press conference in the 60s how many protest singers like him he thinks there are in America, Bobby deadpans "136". When his interlocutor queries how he can be so precise, he concedes it could be 142.

Like a Rolling Stone,
Moses

A Set of Balls to go with Big Unit

If the Torre, Randy and the Yankees have a set they should bring Randy back on short rest, and maybe get him another start before the end of the year. Even though he hasn't been his usual dominant self this year, he's probably still the best the Yankees have. Since he was ejected in the 2nd inning yesterday (Yankees still held on), RJ should be available much sooner than five days from now. I say bring him back tomorrow in Toronto and maybe bring him on Thursday against the Orioles this week. . . It's crunch time and the unthinkable (Yanks not making the playoffs) is a distinct possibility. . .

You can cover up your guts but when you cover up your nuts,
You're admitting that there must be something wrong,
Moses

Hilarious childlike note to Condi from Bush. . . This is great!

More On the Late Chief Justice

Interesting point about Rehnquist, written by the often disingenuous Dershowitz, but he's right on here:

As a law clerk, Rehnquist wrote a memorandum for Justice Jackson while the court was considering several school desegregation cases, including Brown v. Board of Education. Rehnquist’s memo, entitled “A Random Thought on the Segregation Cases,” defended the separate-but-equal doctrine embodied in the 1896 Supreme Court case of Plessy v. Ferguson. Rehnquist concluded the Plessy “was right and should be reaffirmed.” When questioned about the memos by the Senate Judiciary Committee in both 1971 and 1986, Rehnquist blamed his defense of segregation on the dead Justice, stating – under oath – that his memo was meant to reflect the views of Justice Jackson. But Justice Jackson voted in Brown, along with a unanimous Court, to strike down school segregation. According to historian Mark Tushnet, Justice Jackson’s longtime legal secretary called Rehnquist’s Senate testimony an attempt to “smear[] the reputation of a great justice.” Rehnquist later admitted to defending Plessy in arguments with fellow law clerks. He did not acknowledge that he committed perjury in front of the Judiciary Committee to get his job.

BTW, for a very interesting discussion of Rehnquist's legacy click here. There a great webcast from Duke Law School on there. I found Thomas Rowe's discussion of the Supreme Court's diminishing work load particularly interesting. Enjoy.

Never to be tried nor be a judge,
Moses

"It's the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen." -- Muhammad Ali

When the Saints go Marching Out. . .

I think the Saints situation is worth discussing. A good friend, and Mississippi native, wrote me today:

New Orleans has always been a football town. It isthe only sport that the city really gets excited about and everyone loves the Saints. New Orleans gotscrewed before when the Jazz left because the ownerjust wanted to move, in spite of good attendance,however, the fact is that New Orleans really caresabout football much more than basketball (as can beseen by the attendance problems that the the Hornetshave had since moving to the city).

The Saints and the City and the State have been negotiating over the stadium issue for a number ofyears (with one threat by the team to move to theMississippi Gulf Coast about 30 miles from NewOrleans). Earlier this year the Saints threatened tomove to San Antonio, Los Angeles, or Albequerque. Nowbecause of Katrina they are in San Antonio (theowner's hometown and base of operations for his cardealerships). I predict that they will not return.

I responded and continue to think:

You know at first I thought that for sure this would mean the end of New Orleans football, but I've read a bunch of articles now and I think the NFL is waaaaay too PC to allow them to leave New Orleans if it is possible for them to return this year or next.

Last year, I drifted down to New Orleans, where I was lucky to see a Chiefs game and an LSU Bama game. Many, many people I talked to thought the Saints weren't long for New Orleans. That may still be the case, however I would be surprised if the NFL used Katrina to move them permanently or even allowed that to be the perception. The Saints may be gone, BUT I don't think they've played their last game in the Big Easy. . .

I just can't picture them risk being perceived as taking advantage of this terrible situation where NO lays in ruins and is possibly bankrupt. Along these lines here's an interesting article on whether the Superdome was/is cursed.

Working for a while on a fishing boat,
Right outside of Delacroix,
Moses

Cracked magazine makes offer to FEMA director Brown. . . great stuff!

Mark Messier #11

Mark Messier announced his retirement today. Messier was my all time favorite hockey player and among my top ten favorite athletes of all time. He ranks second all time in points scored behind only his erstwhile teammate Wayne Gretzky (it's worth noting btw that although he won without Gretzky, The Great One never won without him). But numbers don't sum him up (although if you wanted them to, few compare), Messier's toughness, leadership and ability to almost everything on the ice is what defined him. In my opinion he ranks only behind the Great One's freakishly preternatural talents when it comes to all time greats in the sport.

Who can forget his Namath like prediction that the Rangers would win game 6 or his subsequent hat trick. Or how he did in NYC what hadn't been done in 54 years! As I heard someone say today he: passed, fought, led and won like no one else.

You'll be missed number 11!

We are the Champions my friend,
And we'll keep on fighting til the end,
Moses

When the Terrorists Win

The following article appeared in the news-leader.com of Springfield, Mo. Use the hyperlink or read the text below:

A PHS grad's post-9/11 life

Before Sept. 11, New Yorkers always donned masks of cool, superior indifference in the face of the crazy homeless guy on the corner and celebrities who walked by. We still do. But for me, what lies beneath that mask has changed.

In the days and weeks after 9/11, Manhattan felt like a small town. People were respectful, smiling, nodding, talking, helping one another. Our collective experience has made us more likely to pull together in a crisis. During the 2003 blackout, rather than the looting and chaos seen in the 1977 blackout, guys hopped off the sidewalks and started directing traffic.

It's comforting to know I can count on my fellow New Yorkers, strangers though they may be, in such situations. But something else happened to us after 9/11. When the lights went out in my office in August 2003, we were all relieved it was a blackout, nothing more sinister. Now, we fear the inevitable — a subway bombing, a dirty bomb, a chemical or biological attack.

For me, the catastrophe in New Orleans has only intensified that fear. It demonstrates how frightfully unprepared we are for the worst. My heartbeat quickens when I think that I would have no way to get off this island to get to my family, no way to save myself and my friends. It may sound melodramatic, but that anxiety is always there.

So, it's no longer surprising to see armed National Guard members in subway stations. But they are a constant reminder to all of us of the impending danger, and of the fact that 9/11 has forced us to learn to live with such paranoia, with such internalized fear.

A few days after the underground bombings in London in July, I felt what that fear had done to me. I was on a downtown train in the evening, and this weird, pale, greasy middle-aged guy would not stop glaring at me. He reminded me of Hannibal Lecter and normally would've creeped me out.

But I wasn't bothered. Why? Because —and I'm ashamed to admit this — he wasn't dark-skinned, he wasn't carrying a backpack, and I knew the passengers around would help me. I preferred sitting next to a psychotic cannibal than a young Arabic-looking man. And that's my post-9/11 paradox: I've learned to trust more, and fear more, all at the same time.

So sad that this racist purports to write for NYers. Perhaps sadder that such a poor writer and someone so out of touch with the zeitgeist so as not to understand the full import and offensiveness of her message, could actually make editor at Slate. . .

Someone's got it in for me,
they're planting stories in the press. . .
You're an idiot, babe,
It's a wonder that you still know how to breathe,
Moses

A Sad Aniversary: 9/11

It's incredible that it's been just one year shy of a half a decade since that dark day. I remember it like it was yesterday. When those horrible terrorists flew through the clear NY/DC/PA skies and changed the world. For my part I was actually on a flight myself from South Florida bound for LaGuardia Airport and I am often grateful that none of the planes involved originated in South Florida that day. After all the monsters did have some ties to the area.

I wonder now, still, four years later several things:


5. Why hasn't bin Laden been caught?

Despite his tough talk and empty promises about capturing bin Laden Bush has failed to even come close. Somehow a 6'6 Arab who needs dialysis has eluded Bush. Mind you Bush ranted and raved all about getting him in the wake of 9/11.

"The most important thing is for us to find Osama bin Laden. It is our number one priority and we will not rest until we find him."- G.W. Bush, 9/13/01

"I want justice...There's an old poster out West, as I recall, that said, 'Wanted: Dead or Alive,'"- G.W. Bush, 9/17/01, UPI

But later changed his tune:

"...Secondly, he is not escaping us. This is a guy, who, three months ago, was in control of a county [sic]. Now he's maybe in control of a cave. He's on the run. Listen, a while ago I said to the American people, our objective is more than bin Laden. But one of the things for certain is we're going to get him running and keep him running, and bring him to justice. And that's what's happening. He's on the run, if he's running at all. So we don't know whether he's in cave with the door shut, or a cave with the door open -- we just don't know...."- Bush, in remarks in a Press Availablity with the Press Travel Pool, The Prairie Chapel Ranch, Crawford TX, 12/28/01, as reported on official White House site

And finally, just a few months later, he gave up all together:

"I don't know where bin Laden is. I have no idea and really don't care. It's not that important. It's not our priority."- G.W. Bush, 3/13/02

"I am truly not that concerned about him."- G.W. Bush, responding to a question about bin Laden's whereabouts, 3/13/02 (The New American, 4/8/02

4. What did Iraq have to do with 9/11?

The answer is pretty much nothing. And to the extent that there were any links it certainly didn't justify what we did there. The truth is Bush USED 9/11 to justify what he wanted to anyway.

"He was thinking about invading Iraq in 1999," said author and journalist Mickey Herskowitz. "It was on his mind. He said to me: 'One of the keys to being seen as a great leader is to be seen as a commander-in-chief.' And he said, 'My father had all this political capital built up when he drove the Iraqis out of Kuwait and he wasted it.' He said, 'If I have a chance to invade·.if I had that much capital, I'm not going to waste it. I'm going to get everything passed that I want to get passed and I'm going to have a successful presidency." Herskowitz said that Bush expressed frustration at a lifetime as an underachiever in the shadow of an accomplished father. In aggressive military action, he saw the opportunity to emerge from his father's shadow. The moment, Herskowitz said, came in the wake of the September 11 attacks. "Suddenly, he's at 91 percent in the polls, and he'd barely crawled out of the bunker."
That President Bush and his advisers had Iraq on their minds long before weapons inspectors had finished their work - and long before alleged Iraqi ties with terrorists became a central rationale for war - has been raised elsewhere, including in a book based on recollections of former Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill. However, Herskowitz was in a unique position to hear Bush's unguarded and unfiltered views on Iraq, war and other matters - well before he became president.

Of course Bush declared "Mission Accomplished" in 2003 since then 1,800 Americans have been killed. Four years after 9/11 the terrorists are still killing Americans, this time even more tragically they are doing it with our help.

3. What have we learned?

Four years after 9/11 after the creation of the Department of Homeland Security, after Bush was re-elected largely on the strength of his ability to "protect" America we see just how pitifully prepared we are in the event of another attack with what just happened in New Orleans. As my fellow blogger puts it:

But what if this were a terrorist attack? What if instead of a massive hurricane - for which we had more than a few days warning, plus years of study of its likely effect on New Orleans - what if Al Qaeda bombed the levies that failed this week, with precisely the same flood resulting? With no warning?

I ask this because the Bush administration wants us to believe that we are prepared for the worst type of terrorism that could visit our shores, and the response to Katrina plainly reveals that we are not. Not by a long shot. Specifically, the FEDERAL response. If this were a terrorist attack, would Bush have said today that the response to date has been "unacceptable"? Surely, the response would have been just as "unacceptable", but I would imagine Bush would be a bit less willing to accept that in the aftermath of a terrorist attack.
If Bush really does recognize the shortcomings, and isn't just parroting some line cooked up for him so he looks compassionate, then he needs to ask the next, rather obvious, and harder questions about what this response says about our preparedness for the next terrorist attack. Bush should be very, very concerned. I know I am.

Indeed four years after 9/11 we're apparently no better prepared for disaster on a Federal level than we were then despite all of W's rhetoric to the contrary. This is extremely worrisome as terrorists still run rampant, indeed, it almost seems things are worse as we stare down more potential attacks.

2. Why were some of the terrorists, these supposedly pious -- indeed fanatatical -- Muslims drinking shortly before they gave their life.

This question has never been answered. While it's not clear if ringleader Atta was drinking, it's certain that some of the others were.

Atta traveled twice to Las Vegas on "surveillance flights" rehearsing how the 9/11 attacks would be carried out. Other hijackers traveled to Las Vegas at different times in the summer of 2001. Some reportedly drank alcohol, gambled, and paid strippers to perform lap dances for them. In the week before the attack, Atta was seen drinking juice and/or alcohol (there are conflicting reports from the bar manager on whether Atta was drunk or had drank only cranberry juice)and playing video games in a Hollywood, Florida sports bar "Shuckum's". His companion, al-Shehhi, and a third unidentified man reportedly drank heavily at the bar. In fact the owner of the bar almost called the police on them for arguing over the bar tab.

It's extremely strange that a devout Muslim would be drinking, and considering these guys knew that they would soon be meeting their maker, it's downright puzzling. I have never heard of this issue being looked into or explored. No articles, nothing. . . Strange. . .

1. How and why did it happen?

This question will probably never be answered. It still seems virtually impossible that less than two dozen men armed with box cutters could wreak that kind of havok. In short it was a brilliantly diabolical and perfectly executed. All this time later and even knowing how they went about it, you still wonder: How?!?

As to why it happened, we've heard a lot. We've heard resentment, we've heard troops in Mecca and we've heard just plain irrational hatred. The answer is likely a combination of these things and perhaps other a few other things that aren't mentioned as often. . .

Either way it's important for Americans to think deeply about these things. To try to prevent something like this from ever happening again. It's time for us to think about what America can do proactively, thoughtfully and non-violently.

This is a war unlike any we've fought before. It's a war of ideas. In some ways it's a PR war.

Unfortunately, since 9/11 in squandering the good will we had with the world in the wake of the tragedy we may have only made things worse. . .

I'm sick to death of seeing things,
From tight-lipped, condescending, mama's little chauvinists,
All I want is the truth,
Just gimme some truth now
Moses

NFL Week One Picks

Oak @ Pats = Pats (you'll have to trust me on this one but I had the Pats)

Jets @ KC = KC (trying to be objective here, but honestly I think that the Chiefs will pull it out with an improved defense, I am a bit concerned about the offense clicking but I faitehr in these guys they've been together forever now and have accomplished a lot)
Bears @Skins = Skins (I feel great about your Skins Saketh)
Titans @ Steelers = Pitt (Pete, I love your Stillers at home against Tenn)
TB @ Minn = Minny (I agonized over this one but I think Minny pulls it out)
Broncos @ Miami = Denver (Miami continues to struggle, I think Saban will work out but not right away)
Seattle @ Jags = Jags (another tight one)
Bengals @ Browns = Bengals (I say the improved Bengals win the "battle for Ohio")
NO @ Carolina = NO (I like underdog Saints here)
Texans @ Bills = Bills (I like the home underdog Bills here)
StL @ SF = StL (SF has no chance)
Dallas @ SD = SD (unfortunately SD will be tough this year, I love Schottenheimer, he really knows what he's doing)
Arizona @ NYG = Giants (Warner facing his former team for the first time here, it'll be a battle of the defenses but he won't be able to lead the Jints to enough points, Eli may have some magic)
GB @ Det = GB (even though Favre doesn't typically do well in Detroit)
Baltimore @ Colts = Colts (This might be THE year for the Colts fitting that it starts in their old home, it'll be close but Peyton will go off)

Philly @ Atlanta = Eagles (This'll be close too and a lot of fun to watch, but the Eagles will win it)

Theater Recommendation: SAVING THE GREEKS: ONE TRAGEDY AT A TIME.

For all you NYers. . .

Opened yesterday, Thursday September 8th, and playing through Sunday September 25th at The 14th St. Y Theatre.

For all the info please go to WWW.SAVINGTHEGREEKS.COM

Tickets are $10 Thursday the 8th and Friday the 9th.

For tickets go to Ticketcentral.com type in the show name or call (212) 279-4200.

Haven't seen the production yet, but I saw the reading and it was outstanding.

Having been some days in preparation;
A splendid time is guaranteed for all,
Moses

Check out Tom Friedman's article on Katrina. . . What I have found about Friedman is that when he is being intellectually honest he can have some seriously piercing insights and it's impressive. This is one such case. . .

Purple haze all in my brain,
Moses

Good bye little buddy. . .

"Bob Denver, whose portrayal of the bumbling first mate on the classic 1960s TV show "Gilligan's Island" made him an icon to generations of fans, has died at age 70, his agent said yesterday.
Denver, who survived a quadruple-bypass surgery earlier this year, died Friday in North Carolina as a result of cancer treatment, said his agent, Mike Eisenstadt.
Denver's 40-year run of international celebrity was the result of "Gilligan's Island," which ran a mere three years on CBS, from 1964 to 1967." For more go here. . .

A three hour tour,
Moses

From Andrew Sullivan:

"'The good news is - and it's hard for some to see it now - that out of this chaos is going to come a fantastic Gulf Coast, like it was before. Out of the rubbles of Trent Lott's house -- he's lost his entire house - there's going to be a fantastic house. And I'm looking forward to sitting on the porch.' (Laughter)." - president George W. Bush, today. Just think of that quote for a minute; and the laughter that followed. The poor and the black are dying, dead, drowned and desperate in New Orleans and elsewhere. But the president manages to talk about the future "fantastic" porch of a rich, powerful white man who only recently resigned his position because he regretted the failure of Strom Thurmond to hold back the tide of racial desegregation.

Nice Barbara. . .

Barbara Bush: evacuees doing very well (Filed: 07/09/2005)

George W Bush, who has been criticised for his slow response to the floods in the American south, faces another public relations hiccough.
His mother and former first lady, Barbara Bush, has suggested that "underprivileged" victims who were forced to flee their homes following Hurricane Katrina were "doing very well" out of the relocation.
She expressed a fear that many of those being cared for in neighbouring states such as Houston in Texas will want to stay after the floodwaters have receded.
"What I'm hearing, which is sort of scary, is they all want to stay in Texas," the president's mother said during a tour of evacuation centres.
She was accompanying her husband and former president George Snr as well as another ex-president Bill Clinton on a tour of the Astrodome complex. They were launching the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund.
She added the relocation is "working very well" for some of the poor people forced out of New Orleans.
"Everyone is so overwhelmed by the hospitality," she said during a radio interview with the American Public Media programme "Marketplace." "And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this is working very well for them."

And see an excellent editorial response here.

"After days of withering criticism from white and black Americans, from conservatives as well as liberals, from Republicans and Democrats, the president finally felt compelled to act, however feebly. (The chorus of criticism from nearly all quarters demanding that the president do something tells me that the nation as a whole is so much better than this administration.) Mr. Bush flew south on Friday and proved (as if more proof were needed) that he didn't get it. Instead of urgently focusing on the people who were stranded, hungry, sick and dying, he engaged in small talk, reminiscing at one point about the days when he used to party in New Orleans, and mentioning that Trent Lott had lost one of his houses but that it would be replaced with "a fantastic house - and I'm looking forward to sitting on the porch." Mr. Bush's performance last week will rank as one of the worst ever by a president during a dire national emergency. What we witnessed, as clearly as the overwhelming agony of the city of New Orleans, was the dangerous incompetence and the staggering indifference to human suffering of the president and his administration." --Bob Herbert

Andrew Sullivan's excellent take on the New Orleans debacle.

It's now apparent that Bush failed New Orleans and the country. No lesser of an authority than two former Presidents including his father have basically acknowledged it. I am now proceeding as if this is understood.

The Time has come,
To say fair's fair,
Moses

Red Sox Lose

The Red Sox who've seemingly been on an eternal roadtrip played a makeup game against the White Sox, that I would have LOVED to have attended in person. But alas, I couldn't so I watched most of it on TV, anyway, the Red Sox who were trailing 5-0 with two outs in the ninth got a 3 run HR before Kapler grounded out. How about this question: With Johnny Damon (who's what leading the league in hitting? or close anyway), Mueller (former batting champ) and Olerud (former batting champ -- I believe in both leagues too AND who's been hot lately hasn't he, I'm pretty sure he's hit come big HRs lately) all available WHY WAS FREAKING GABE KAPLER hitting?

I can't stand Gabe Kapler. I remember reading how awesome he was going to be in some muscle magazine. What a dud. Pathetic. LMAO. . .

Anyway, rock on Tito. Ya, maroon!

That's a free half game for the Yankees who send RJ out against the Tampons tomorrow. . .

It's a beautiful day,
Moses

Rehnquist

Alan Dershowitz's appearance on Hannity and Colmes was embarrassing. His ad hominem attack on Rehnquist was partisan, ill timed and over all it was classless. We've come to expect such behavior from media whore Dershowitz, consider:

Colmes: Is there a precedent for what will be known as the Rehnquist court? How would you characterize that court, and are there precedents historically for that? The Warren court was called activist a couple of decades earlier.

Dershowitz: He was much more activist. And I think the Rehnquist court was never the Rehnquist court. He moved more toward the center as he became chief justice and as he had Scalia and Thomas on his right flank and of course most of the rest of the court in the center or on his left flank. It--the decisions of Justice Rehnquist are not taught in law schools as great decisions. He'll be remembered primarily for his votes rather than for the content or quality of his decisions. And it's consistent throughout his life. He started his career by being a kind of Republican thug who pushed and shoved to keep African-American and Hispanic voters from voting.

Sean Hannity: All right--

The sad part is that, could Dershowitz actually control himself some of his more salient points would have come through. For example, this is absolutely true and is an excellent from the same interview but overshadowed by his histrionics:

He had written for 30 years that the equal protection clause only applies in racial matters--it doesn't apply to aliens, it doesn't apply to age, it doesn't apply even to women; it only applies to race, that the 14th Amendment was written--the equal protection clause was written to protect blacks. Then comes along Bush v. Gore, and he joins the decision striking down the Florida count on the ground that it denied equal protection for a chad to be counted differently in one district than another--something that totally violated everything he had written for the previous 25 years.

I reserve for Dershowitz one of the worst insults I have for an intellectuals: I wish you weren't on my side, because you embarrass me and don't do justice to my position. . . What a jerk. . .

RIP Rehnquist. Although, I disagreed with the majority of your jurisprudence, I believe that you always did what you thought was right and I appreciate the years of service you provided this country. Your sense of history and scholarship were both impressive.

Finally, in case you haven't guessed yet, we're in for some serious fireworks now. . .

Is this just another day,
this god forgotten place
first comes love and then comes pain,
let the games begin,
Moses


Dershowitz: He had a restrictive covenant in his own lease which precluded the sale to Jews.

Hannity: Let me go, uh--

Dershowitz: There were so many things in his background that were extremely right-wing.

I am becoming more and more convinced that this tragedy in New Orleans was as much breakdown at the federal level as anything else. Yet another failure in Bush's long line of failures.

Of course consevatives will deny this, just as they deny that anything is going wrong in Iraq. An untenable position at this point.

This situation, as some have suggested, is not comparable to 9/11 in the slightest and Guiliani's "leadership" would not have helped in the slightest. As tragic as 9/11 was it was essentially contained to a few miles in radius if that. And by the afternoon the situation was no longer an emergency -- not anyway in the same way New Orleans was -- and is as of this writing. To compare one of these tragedies to the other is not only disingenuous it is disrespectful. And if the subject matter on all levels weren't so serious it would be comical. The right wing arguments have become as pathetic as they are frustrating.

For an excellent take on this horrible situation check out New Orleans native Anne Rice's NY Times editorial which is effectively a big F- You to Bush and his cronies.

BTW, Condi was enjoying NYC at the time.

I ain't no Senator's son,
Moses

It's been a few days now since the carnage and it may be time to start asking questions about how this devastating tragedy occured. Early signs are not looking good for Bush. What many of us have been worried about appears to have come to fruition. . . Just abysmal. . .

Not Such a Public Enemy. . .

Last night while sturggling through a bit of insomnia I discovered a great website. Check out Ed Meeker's Take Me Out to The Ball Game. . . There some other great stuff there to like Ledbelly's Where Did You Sleep Last Night and Kansas Joe's When the Levee Breaks. . . Go visit that site the public domain is a great thing. . .

In the pines,
In the pines,
Where the sun don't ever shine,
Moses

A Few Things

The situation in New Orleans is just awful. I have no desire to politicize such a tragic and dire situation, but the response from the Bush administration has been disappointing. Spot on editorial in the NY Times about just that today. I'll just leave it at that for now.

Interesting new study reveals that not are probably related to chimps, but that we pretty much ARE chimps since we share 96% of our DNA with them. Sadly our more hirsute co-habitants of this Earth seem to be on their way out. . . We really should save them, it would be tragic on so many levels if we're looking at the last generation of these majestic beasts. That said, as much as I am an environmentalist I think some of these arguments about NOLA and and environment are not insensitive and poorly timed but also just completely disingenous AND I want nothing to do with chimps personally considering what they did to that poor guy a while back in California.

Why can't you do it?
Why can't you set your monkey free,
Moses