Welcome to The Now

When your country's leader starts thumping on his chest, proclaiming "I'm the President!" and talking about "the country's destiny," it's time to open up the Matrix:

BAGHDAD - A battle raged in west Baghdad on Thursday after residents rose up against al-Qaida and called for U.S. military help to end random gunfire that forced people to huddle indoors and threats that kept students from final exams, a member of the district council said. So we can get ready to leave now, right?

From AP ( via Yahoo ): MOSCOW - President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that tests of new Russian missiles were a response to the planned deployment of U.S. missile defense installations and other forces in Europe, suggesting Washington has triggered a new arms race. In a clear reference to the United States, he harshly criticized "imperialism" in global affairs and warned that Russia will strengthen its military potential to maintain a global strategic balance. "It wasn't us who initiated a new round of arms race," Putin said when asked about Russia's missile tests at a news conference after talks in the Kremlin with Greek President Karolos Papoulias. Putin described Tuesday's tests of a new ballistic missile capable of carrying multiple nuclear warheads and a new cruise missile as part of the Russian response to the planned deployment of new U.S. military bases and missile defense sites in ex-Soviet satellites in Central and Eastern Europe. Looks like o...

And here I thought humans were the only species that had FWB. But nope .

What NBA news would scare Cavs Fans (who want to hold on to LeBron James for dear life) yet excite Knick Fans (who'd sell their grandma for a marque player right about now)? Answer One would be: "James traded to New York." Answer Two would be: " Kobe says: 'Trade me .'" Cleveland better get on the ball an insure that LeBron has a sturdy, championship-caliber team around him or they'll see this same story in five years. UPDATE: Guess I spoke too soon on Kobe. Looks like we won't know his real intentions until for the next season starts (by then, we'll know what the 2007-2008 roster will look like).

DUBAI (Reuters) - The al Qaeda-led Islamic State in Iraq group claimed responsibility on Wednesday for the downing of a U.S. helicopter that killed two soldiers in the volatile eastern province of Diyala earlier this week.

Put you money where your mouth is, indeed. From Reuters (via MSNBC ): LONDON - A British artist has eaten chunks of a Corgi dog, the breed favored by Queen Elizabeth II, live on radio to protest against the royal family's treatment of animals. Mark McGowan, 37, said he ate "about three bites" of the dog meat, cooked with apples, onions and seasoning, to highlight what he called Prince Philip's mistreatment of a fox during a hunt by the Queen's husband in January.

Fred Kaplan on one of many of President Bush's guffaws at last week's press conference: It's also time to reassess what has been the Bush administration's strongest argument for staying the course—that if we fail in Iraq, " al - Qaida will be emboldened." The argument may be true. Then again, if we keep fighting to no avail in Iraq, al - Qaida might be emboldened as well—and, the longer this futile fight goes on, and the longer they can portray us as infidel occupiers, the more resentful warriors they can rally to their cause. By exaggerating both al - Qaida's significance and its omnipresence generally, President Bush is only helping fulfill his direst fears. At the start of a fight, there's some strategic sense in hyping the consequences of defeat: It galvanizes the troops, builds popular support, and discourages political critics from even talking about withdrawal. However, if it becomes clear that victory (especially victory as it was original...

Where are the so-called "Pro-Life" Crowd when this happens ? HUDSON OAKS, Texas - A relative found the bodies of a 23-year-old woman and her four small daughters hanging in a closet in their mobile home Tuesday morning, all of them dead but an 8-month-old, who was taken to a hospital, the sheriff said. Sadly, it been a bad decade for Texas parents: Texas has seen a disturbing number of child killings by mothers in recent years. Andrea Yates drowned her five children in the family's Houston bathtub in 2001. In 2003, Deanna Laney beat her two young sons to death with stones in East Texas, and Lisa Ann Diaz drowned her daughters in a Plano bathtub. Dena Schlosser fatally severed her 10-month-old daughter's arms with a kitchen knife in 2004. All four of those women were found innocent by reason of insanity. Yates initially was convicted of capital murder, but it was overturned on appeal. My question: where are the protests? The marches? The websites denouncing such action...

Real quick prediction : If the Cavaliers make it to the Finals, LeBron James will become bulletproof in the ref's eyes. Like MJ and Dwayne Wade before him. I have absolutely no scientific evidence to back this up; all I can say is that he's the biggest star left and as long as he at least looks fiery and competitive, his team will get into the Finals. Not to say he's better than Tim Duncan (he's not) but outside of San Antonio Duncan isn't considered a phenom. Of course if had went to Boston, he would have been considered the best center in the modern NBA (narrowly nudging Shaq). But if the Spurs think they're going to be knocking James on his ass and getting away with it, they will be in for a shock. Now if the Pistons make it instead, forget everything I said. :)

As Cindy Sheehan decides to step away , the administrator of Democratic Underground wants to make clear that any attacks on her from their site was not a reflection of the majority . I hope Ms. Sheehan comes back. I understand her frustration in the wake of the funding vote, especially considering that so many people expected the Democrats were going to do more to end this debacle known as "The Iraq War." But nothing comes easy or in the manner we envision it; usually it's something drastically different (not better or worse) or something of a mesh. I like to call it the "Wonder Years Principle."

The crack must be good in the Washington Post op-ed room/lounge, because Richard Cohen is high like a kite : Years ago, someone coined the term "neoliberal." I was never sure what it meant, and it has since fallen into disuse, but whatever the case, I'd like to revive (and mangle) the term and apply it -- brace yourself -- to George W. Bush. He's more liberal than you might think. See what happens during a three-day holiday with little going on and you need to make a deadline? Why, oh why did Mr. Cohen make such an accusation? But consider this: An overriding principle of conservatism is to limit the role and influence of the federal government. Nowhere is this truer than in education. For instance, there was a time when no group of Republicans could convene without passing a resolution calling for the abolition of the Education Department and turning the building -- I am extrapolating here -- into a museum of creationism. I don't think you can use the size of th...

Here's a simple reason for wanting the troops back until our government (which includes the White House, Congress and the US Military) can come up with a viable, intelligent, and realistic plan of attack in regards to terrorism: "The brave men and women overseas could be doing more valuable things back here at home." What is one of those things? How about raising their children to be productive members of society? Because otherwise, God only knows what could happen : CALUMET CITY, Ill. - A man beat his girlfriend’s 4-year-old son to death after she left the boy in his care while she was deployed to Iraq, police said. A judge denied bond on Saturday for Donell Parker, 23, who is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Cameron Smith. Parker was charged Friday, a day after the boy was found dead in his bed in a suburb south of Chicago. Judge Frank Castiglione said at Saturday’s bail hearing that Parker showed a “wanton disrespect for human life.” Prosecutors told t...

Bang Bang : Employees of Blackwater USA, a private security firm under contract to the State Department , opened fire on the streets of Baghdad twice in two days last week, and one of the incidents provoked a standoff between the security contractors and Iraqi forces, U.S. and Iraqi officials said. A Blackwater guard shot and killed an Iraqi driver Thursday near the Interior Ministry, according to three U.S. officials and one Iraqi official who were briefed on the incident but spoke on condition of anonymity because of a pending investigation. On Wednesday, a Blackwater-protected convoy was ambushed in downtown Baghdad, triggering a furious battle in which the security contractors, U.S. and Iraqi troops and AH-64 Apache attack helicopters were firing in a congested area. Blackwater confirmed that its employees were involved in two shootings but could neither confirm nor deny that there had been any casualties, according to a company official who declined to be identified because of t...

1. Season Finale Showdown : I was waiting to hear from others about LOST's season finale before I threw in my 2-cents. I'll probably post my thoughts on my MySpace blog instead. Suffice it to say that the LOST season finale was way better than either Heroes or Smallville. 2. Ya Gots to Chill : I know some people (namely those who bother to vote this past November who probably wouldn't have under normal circumstances) are pissed, but ya'll need to calm down. Believe me, as a Redskins fan I know what happens when people fly off the handle when one plan doesn't pan out they way they want. This is not the time for panic moves. But don't get me wrong; you have a right to be upset. Just channel it into something productive. 3. Extreme Lawn Care : A guy who shot a teen for being on his lawn gets a life sentence. 4. A De-Crowning : I'm not sure LaBron was fouled last night in the Pistons-Cavaliers Eastern Conference Game 2, and even if he was, such a call should...

Now that kos is back, he's wasting no time. Which is good. But this caught my eye : Apparently, the topic of bands "selling out" has become one of the hottest topics in the blogosphere. Really, I'm not quite sure why people care if their favorite bands make money. The calculation is easy -- the more money they make, the more likely they are to stay together making the music their fans love so much. If they've got to slave away in obscurity for some quixotic quest for "keeping it real", then chances are they won't be making that great music for long. Same goes for your favorite bloggers too, btw. First: what artist or group hasn't been accused of selling out? Second: is he referring to a particular genre (like modern rock) or any music group (pop, alt rock, heavy metal, rap hip-hop,R&B)? Because if it's the later, the "more money means the group stays together" theory doesn't hold water; R&B groups alone are infamous for ...

The guy who (helped) kicked former Iraq strategist and comb-licker Paul Wolfowitz out of the World Bank has some parting shots .

Hillary Clinton on rebuilding New Orleans : "What you do need is action, action supported by our federal government but driven right here in New Orleans and in the surrounding parishes by people who understand the reality on the ground, action that leads to real, measurable improvements, not six months from now, not a year from now, but right now." To bad for us the country is being run by timetable-phobic posers who'd rather look and sound good than actually doing something to clean up a natural disaster that's almost two years old .

Now that his insurance claim has been rejected, Republican Senate Minority Whip Trent Lott has decided to fight back .

Guess what's happened since Great Britain has allowed homosexuals to serve? Not a damn thing .

The Senate Majority Leader has special plans for the summer to prevent President Bush from making any more special recess appointments.

A story on how modern medcine could have saved Abraham Lincoln (among other famous dead people).

I wouldn't call a business "day care" if someone ends up dead : A day care worker was being held Saturday in the death of a 2-year-old boy who had his hands bound and his mouth covered with masking tape, police said. The boy, who had been on life support, died late Thursday, Officer Jason Willingham said. Vicki Leigh Chiles was being held without bail on a complaint of first-degree murder. She was the only worker at the facility at the time, looking after eight children ages 7 and younger, Willingham said. And people wonder why it's so hard to set up day care centers. People like this have no business being near children, let alone working at a job where they are required to look after them.

The early reviews show that Micahel's Moore's new film Sicko will be powerful , witty and emotional . But since that's only a fragment of information regarding the film, it's better to just go to his homepage to see what I'm talking about. If the Bush Adminsitration was trying to discredit this guy by investigating him, they did a terrible job. But then again, it's pretty much par for the course for this group, right?

Oliver Willis some VA gunshop just don't get it . daveawayfromhome reviews John Dean's book. Media Matters notes David Broder's puzzling inability to see anything clearly with those Beltway Insider shades. ThinkProgress: according to at least one conservative writer, Bush's " Plan B " if Iraq fails is to attack Iran and then replace Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki.

...or at the very least, completely contradict yourself .

Specifically, his role in trying to "persuade" a then bed-ridden Attorney General (John Ashcroft) to sign off on his warrantless wiretapping : IT DOESN'T much matter whether President Bush was the one who phoned Attorney General John D. Ashcroft's hospital room before the Wednesday Night Ambush in 2004. It matters enormously, however, whether the president was willing to have his White House aides try to strong-arm the gravely ill attorney general into overruling the Justice Department's legal views. It matters enormously whether the president, once that mission failed, was willing nonetheless to proceed with a program whose legality had been called into question by the Justice Department. That is why Mr. Bush's response to questions about the program yesterday was so inadequate. "I'm not going to talk about it," Mr. Bush told reporters at a news conference with departing British Prime Minister Tony Blair. "It's a very sensitive program....

Jay-Z and Alicia Keys were among the Hip-Hop celebrities being watched by the New York City Police Department during the 2004 Republican National Convention. Most of the celebrities had participated in a protest of the RNC. I guess Chris Rock was right after all:

You heard me : Someday, Howard David Ludwig's Firearm Owner's Identification Card will be stored in a box with his first pair of shoes and perhaps a lock of his baby hair. That's because the card was issued when Howard, nicknamed Bubba , was just 10 months old. It lists his height (2 feet, 3 inches) and weight (20 pounds) but doesn't note he's yet to learn how to walk. With some exceptions, FOID cards are required of any Illinois residents purchasing or possessing firearms or ammunition within the state. The card wasn't a mistake. Bubba's father, a columnist for The ( Tinley Park) Daily Southtown who is also named Howard Ludwig, paid the $5 fee and filled out the application. Not only does this expose a ridiculously loose gun policy, but a potential danger to the country's security. What's to stop the next Trench coat Mafia or homegrown terrorist from getting an FIOD card?

From ESPN's Page 2: 8 types of guys you don't want to play pickup hoops with.

Senators from both sides of the aisle have asked for 9-11 report that the inspector general issued. However: The CIA has spent more than 20 months weighing requests under the Freedom of Information Act for its internal investigation of the attacks but has yet to release any portion of it. The agency is the only federal office involved in counterterrorism operations that has not made at least a version of its internal 9/11 investigation public. A new piece of legislation may change things. It's been six damn years and this type of stonewalling crap has gotten tired.

Bill Simmons on the stupid NBA rule about leaving the bench : Let's say you're one of the best seven players on the Phoenix Suns. You love Nash -- he's your emotional leader, your meal ticket to the Finals, the ideal teammate and someone who makes you happy to play basketball every day for a living. He's killing himself to win a championship. His nose was split open in Game 1. His back bothers him to the point that he has to lie down on the sidelines during breaks. He's battling a real cheap-shot artist (Bruce Bowen) who's trying to shove and trip him on every play. But he keeps coming and coming, and eventually everyone follows suit. Just as things were falling apart in Game 4 and you were staring at the end of your season, he willed you back into the game and saved the day. Suddenly, he gets body-checked into a press table for no real reason on an especially cheap play. You're standing 20 feet away. Instinctively, you run a few steps toward the guy who did...

Looks like the US and Iran will finally get together . Personally, I've had enough with the saber-rattling.

Maryland is one step closer to having slots.

In light of his death , I wanted to make the following comments: to religious conservatives, he was a champion. To progressives of various faiths (or non-faiths), he was a hate-mongering fraud. The truth, as usual, is probably somewhere in the middle. There is no doubt that he was instrumental in Reagan's ascension to the presidency, as well as that of George W. Bush. However, blaming gay people and pro-choice advocates for causing 9-11 didn't exactly endure him to the mainstream. Despite his religious titles, he will be known publicly as more of a political figure. And in that regard, it won't be long until another figure takes his place.

From the AP, via Yahoo !: "President Bush's warrantless wiretapping program was so questionable that a top Justice Department official refused for a time to reauthorize it, sparking a standoff with top White House officials that culminated at the bedside of an ailing attorney general, a Senate panel was told Tuesday." Doesn't that sound like a scene from " Clear and Present Danger ?"

TPMuckraker on the useless Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board .

Namely, how to smear his outgoing co-workers .

James Dobson of Focus on the Family met with President Bush to talk about how Christian conservatives can help Bush with his Iraq message. On his radio show, Dobson decided to make his case: Later in his broadcast, during a discussion about Iran with author and self-proclaimed “prophecy expert” Joel Rosenberg, Dobson drew a parallel between current Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad and Adolf Hitler. “The world looked at Hitler and just didn't believe him and tried to appease him the way we're hearing in Washington today,” Dobson remarked. “ You know, the President seems to me does understand this, as I told you from that meeting I had with him the other day, but even there it feels like somebody ought to be standing up and saying, ‘We are being threatened and we are going to meet this with force -- whatever's necessary .’” Dobson continued, “Some of our listeners might not like that but I tell you, if we didn't stand up to Hitler, we'd be speaking German today....

In the midst of his John-Locke-like-comeback , Gilbert Arenas vows to be a better defensive player . Note to Gil: as long as you're making stops during the last four minutes of each quarter, you're be considered a defensive dynamo.

From Tom Toles of the Washington Post :

" On Sunday, nobody should even show up in this stadium, " said one fan who left in disgust. I watched that game last night: talk about having your soul ripped out. See the full story on ESPN.

The divorce rate has fallen to 1970 levels . However: Some experts say relationships are as unstable as ever — and divorces are down primarily because more couples live together without marrying. Other researchers have documented what they call “the divorce divide,” contending that divorce rates are indeed falling substantively among college-educated couples but not among less-affluent, less-educated couples. “Families with two earners with good jobs have seen an improvement in their standard of living, which leads to less tension at home and lower probability of divorce,” said Andrew Cherlin, a professor of public policy at Johns Hopkins University. America’s divorce rate began climbing in the late 1960s and skyrocketed during the ’70s and early ’80s, as virtually every state adopted no-fault divorce laws. The rate peaked at 5.3 divorces per 1,000 people in 1981. For me, the divorce rate has always been something I note whenever people talk about the proverbial "sanctity of marr...

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales came before the House today to testify on the US attorney firings. Even though many Republicans decided to ask different questions (many dealing only with their state/district) that had nothing to do with the hiring and firing of US attorneys, some House members stayed on track. Here's a sample: Keeping in mind that the House is more...exteme...then the Senate, things got testy at times. The thing that stood out to me was that Gonzales couldn't answer the very first question posed to him: "who made the list?" In fact, Gonzales couldn't answer (or remember) alot of things. Reminded me of a certain movie where the guy getting peppered with questions turned out to be, at best, relatively useless...

I think the title says it all: " Prison guards accused of forcing inmates to lick toilets ."

Random thoughts on tonight's episode: All I can say is "wow." Ben is either in tune with a supernatural force on the Island, or he is a certifiable, insane megalomaniac. According to the TVWoP crowd, there was someone in the chair . Spooky. I'm still not sure what convinced Ben to betray the Dharma group. Was it his cruddy father? The fact he felt that he didn't fit in? Did anyone else get a "Trench coat Mafia" feeling when he participated in the gassing? I think Jack's a jerk for not telling someone else about Juliet's/Ben's scheme. I mean, it's not like Rose or Sayid would've squealed, right? So I guess the big question is: who are the "Hostiles?" I'm also curious as to what Jack's "counterattack" plan is. If I'm not mistaken, they've lost alot of their weapons to the Others, and (including) Jack there's been a history of Losties aligning themselves with the so-called "enemy." Seriou...

Queen-E, at the toast : " I wonder whether I should start this toast by saying, 'When I was here in 1776.' " Bush: " Your Majesty, I can't top that one. " This was after Bush said Queen-E has been a ceremonial guest since 1776 (which he quickly changed to 1976). Remember, this is how Bush acts around allies .

After having a little time to reflect on the Wizard's regular and post-season, let me wrap up my pre-draft thoughts on who the team can afford to keep, and who could be shown the door. I've already set my list of who ranks where, and I started with those most valuable to the team. Now for those the team could do without. 50/50 PLAYERS : Etan Thomas is active and energetic, but not consistently productive. He's one of the few holdovers from the Michael Jordan Era, but that shouldn't be the reason he's expendable. No, the reason the team doesn't really need him is because he style of play doesn't fit the Princeton Offense. The PO requires a big man who can pass and make a 12-to-15-foot shot with regularity. That's just not Thomas. And that could be overlooked if not for the fact that he's only 6'10", which in even this center-lite League is problematic (especially in the post-season). His career stats are good for a backup but not a starter....

Despite not being a checklist conservative , Fred Thompson does his best to cater to the Republican base .

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Tell that to Walt Disney; because Hamas militants are using a Mickey Mouse look-alike (named Farfour) to promote an Islamic "New World Order." A sample: "You and I are laying the foundation for a world led by Islamists," Farfour squeaked on a recent episode of the show, which is titled, "Tomorrow's Pioneers." "We will return the Islamic community to its former greatness, and liberate Jerusalem, God willing, liberate Iraq, God willing, and liberate all the countries of the Muslims invaded by the murderers." Let's hope there aren't any cartoons in the works. UPDATE: It's been cancelled . The lesson is: don't screw around with Disney!

1. jurassicpork believes that the Chuck E. Cheese approach will work on President Bush's desire to stay in Iraq forever (i.e., until he leaves office). 2. daveawayfromhome dreams about the " good ol' days " when we actually had no problem making a sacrifice during wartime. Someday, TV and newspaper pundits will make as much sense as these guys...someday.

Oprah Winfrey is backing Barack Obama . She told Larry King: "I think that what he stands for, what he has proved that he can stand for, what he has shown was worth me going out on a limb for...and I haven't done it in the past because I haven't felt that anybody — I didn't know anybody well enough to be able to say, 'I believe in this person.' " So what's the "Oprah Effect?" According to Alex S. Jones, the director of the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard University: "If you see that she has a lot of fans who are not necessarily going to vote for Barack Obama, you have to calculate that she may take a commercial hit...Oprah is very credible. I would say that this endorsement is about as important of one as you could have right now." Considering that this is the woman who influences what the everywoman may want to read, and that she had a mimi-showdown with the beef industry, expect this new...

It's not easy being a child in a war zone : LONDON - The chance that an Iraqi child will live beyond age 5 has plummeted faster than anywhere else in the world since 1990, according to a report released Tuesday, which placed the country last in its child survival rankings. One in eight Iraqi children died of disease or violence before reaching their fifth birthday in 2005, according to the report by Save the Children, which said Iraq ranked last because it had made the least progress toward improving child survival rates. One more reason to end this mess as soon as possible.

What are the ten most commonly used passwords ? Well: password 123456 qwerty abc123 letmein monkey myspace1 password1 blink182 (whatever your name is) I'm surprised that "blink182" is so high (are they really that popular?). And "monkey?" I guess it's cause it's six characters. But those first three should be automatically banned from use.

Gen. Petraeus is worried : "We can never sink to the level of the enemy," Petraeus said by video link from Baghdad. "We have done that at times in theater and it has cost us enormously" — referring specifically to the torture and humiliation of prisoners at the Abu Ghraib facility west of Baghdad. Petraeus said he was drafting a memo that would closer examine issues of battlefield ethics and ways pre-empt possible problems, adding that he was "greatly concerned by the results" of a Pentagon report last week by a special mental health advisory team assessing forces serving in Iraq. "So the first step is that we've got... make sure that folks remember that that's a foundation for our moral compass... anything we do that violates that is done at considerable peril," he said. And the White House is warning : The White House warning came on a day when 25 people were killed near Ramadi in two suicide bombings police blamed on al Qaeda. They we...

While critics have all but slammed the movie, financially it has made history . The complaints are familiar with movies headed past the first sequel: too long, too many characters, not enough development, it's the same story in a different wrapper. But on the heals that LOST will finally define how long it will last , I know understand the hostility towards the Wall Crawler: nobody knows how many sequels will be made, and not knowing is disturbing to many critics. Some don't want to keep going to see the same franchise, others fear that the characters they know and admire will be eventually destroyed on film (ala "Batman and Robin") and would rather it die now while it's still "on stop" than to take the proverbial nose-dive. That being said, I think this review best captures what viewers can expect from the latest installment. Here's part of their conclusion: How to step into adulthood without being a jerk? That's just one of the questions Raimi...

Staring Superman, Batman and Spider-man (there are more with just Supes and Spidey, go check 'em out!).

That al-Qaida (or al-Qaeda if you prefer) tape I mentioned yesterday ? Well, FoxNews has already started spinning it's message.

1. Too Little, Too Late : From survivors to family members, people agree that college was the worst place for Seung Hui Cho to be. 2. A More Convincing Actor, By Far : If Fred Thompson and John McCain are so similar, why does Thompson get all the conservative love? 3. Someone Needs to Check the Polls : Is it really just the anti-war groups pushing the Democrats, or the majority of the American people. 4. Get Some Help, Man : The Utah Jazz win, and once again a T-Mac-lead team can't make it out of the first round of the NBA Playoffs. 5. Thou Shalt Not Snort : The Vatican hands down its very first drug conviction.

Usually that phrase ends with either "al-Qaida" or "Osama bin Laden." It's a phrase frequently used by Republicans who still support President Bush strategy in Iraq. The message is more or less, "the enemy says Iraq is central on the War On Terror, so we should subcribe to the same premise." Well, here are some other things al-Qaida has recently said : "This bill [the one Democrats passed that Bush said would give 'timetables for surrender'] will deprive us of the opportunity to destroy the American forces which we have caught in a historic trap ." " We ask Allah that they (U.S. troops) only get out of it after losing 200,000 to 300,000 killed , in order that we give the spillers of blood in Washington and Europe an unforgettable lesson." " Al-Qaida is not merely for the benefit of Muslims . That's why I want blacks in America, people of color, American Indians, Hispanics, and all the weak and oppressed in North and...

In a sense, he can't be helped; it's much easier to make your critics look like lapdogs than to do some actual research. Anyway, Media Matters has debunked his little "George Soros funds everyone who criticizes me" argument and now they delve into O'Reilly's reaction to the Indiana University study (which discribes O'Reilly as being frequently "derogatory").

You can get a gun pretty easy in this country, but have a license plate that says "MPEACHW?" Well, that's outright dangerous ( at least if you're in South Dakota ).

I agree with Logan Murphy of C&L: when racists and bigots go unchecked on the air-and-radiowaves , than candidates who aren't white men are eventually forced to acquire more sercurity.

From the WashPost : More than one-third of U.S. soldiers in Iraq surveyed by the Army said they believe torture should be allowed if it helps gather important information about insurgents, the Pentagon disclosed yesterday. Four in 10 said they approve of such illegal abuse if it would save the life of a fellow soldier. In addition, about two-thirds of Marines and half the Army troops surveyed said they would not report a team member for mistreating a civilian or for destroying civilian property unnecessarily. "Less than half of Soldiers and Marines believed that non-combatants should be treated with dignity and respect," the Army report stated. About 10 percent of the 1,767 troops in the official survey -- conducted in Iraq last fall -- reported that they had mistreated civilians in Iraq, such as kicking them or needlessly damaging their possessions. Army researchers "looked under every rock, and what they found was not always easy to look at," said S. Ward Cassc...

As the latest member from the Bush Administration leaves to "spend time with the family," J. D. Crouch has a warning of sorts for who think that the president may change his mind : Crouch, who has been President Bush's deputy national security adviser for more than two years, said the president never will be swayed by opposition to the war. Instead, Crouch said, Bush will use his resolve to help convince a broad section of Americans that it's important to be in Iraq. Two questions: what "broad section" will he be addressing, and how will he convince them?

Charles Krauthammer says the former CIA head George Tenet needs to adhere to acutal history and not his questionable recollection , and Eugene Robinson muses over Bush's latest ramblings .

From CNN : The Senate Judiciary Committee chairman issued a subpoena Wednesday to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in an attempt to get e-mails that President Bush's top political adviser sent regarding last year's firings of eight U.S. attorneys. Gonzales will have to appear before the committee if the Department of Justice does not respond to the subpoena for Karl Rove's e-mails by May 15. Justice Department Spokesman Dean Boyd said the department had received the subpoena and was reviewing it.

Anyone think that ESPN's Sports Guy will forgive New England Patriots QB Tom Brady for wearing a Yankees cap ? The Boston Herald sure noticed .

ThinkProgress has this post on the conservative effort to sabotage the new Hate Crimes Act where House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) says: I’ve got to tell you, I really don’t understand it. We’re going to put into place a federal law that says, not only will we punish you for the crime that you actually commit — the physical crime that you commit — but we’re also going to charge you with a crime that if we think that you were thinking bad things about this person before you committed a crime . I just — I just really don’t understand it. I’ve been opposed to this for a long time and I remain opposed to it. I mean, it’s a crime on what people were thinking when they were committing an act of violence. How do you walk into court and make a case for a crime because someone was thinking something bad . I just think it takes us down a path that is very scary. Yeah, that's kind of like starting a war with a country because you think they're bad, or because you think they have ...

US Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) gets a little help in his quest to impeach Vice President Dick Cheney. I can understand why Kucinich may think that getting rid of Cheney could help in dealing with Iraq (as well as help the Democrats and his own chances to be president), but without either more numbers or at least two heavy hitters (aka, prominent Democrats) his battle will eventually come off as self-serving as best and fruitless at worst.

This must be Bush's superhero alter ego ...or the result of being pressured by Congress to leave Iraq.

Let me be honest here: I'm not as much a fan of the Lakers as an organisation as I am of certain players (like Magic and Shaq) and their Yankees-like determination to remain not only relevant in the NBA, but dominant. So when I wrote my little old assessment on them , I thought what I said was obvious to everyone who follows the NBA regularly. I mean, Kobe Bryant and Phil Jackson aren't winning with a young team. My suggestion that they trade rosters with the Heat was a half-joke, but half-serious. So imagine my surprise to see Marc Stein talk as if nobody could have foreseen the Lakers losing as they did to the Suns, and then making some suggestions to help them out . Key quotes: ...The concern, if you want to fret, is Bryant's patience. He will be forever blamed for running Shaq off, even though Lakers owner Jerry Buss wanted to trade Shaq more than Kobe and had the biggest say in it, but arguing about that now only distracts from the pressing issue: How much longer can B...

Yesterday I made my case for keeping some key Wizards on the roster . In a nutshell: Washington can win 50 games with Gilbert Arenas , Caron Butler , Antwan Jamison , Darius Songaila and Antonio Daniels as their starting five. And for his hustle in the playoffs, I said Andre Blatche deserves another chance on the team. So now, allow me to assess the players on the bubble: guys who play (or lack thereof) may not have been as consistent as the ones above, or as impressive, but still deserve consideration. This group includes DeShawn Stevenson , Jarvis Hayes , Donell Taylor , Roger Mason and Michael Ruffin . Let me say this before I get started: I'm not calling for drastic changes here. As Mike Wise , Michael Wilbon and Thomas Boswell all hinted (in one way or another), blowing the team up isn't necessary. But some guys deserve more scrutiny than others. So why are these players on the bubble? Well... Stevenson was brought in for defense; specifically to fill the defensive vo...

Rep. John Shimkus (R-IL) tries to compare the conflict in Iraq to a baseball rivalry . Someone call Stephanie Miller and tell her we have another entry for "Really Bad Analogies."

Media Matters contributor Eric Boehlert has a tongue-in-cheek suggestion: Only because it would save time and make them more efficient, I think members of the Beltway press corps should consider starting up a new reporting pool, to duplicate the one currently in place for shadowing the president; the one that boasts a rotating cast of reporters who cover his every mundane move and then share the information. Except, instead of tailing the president at each public event, this new media pool would focus exclusively on the grooming habits of leading Democrats. As he notes , the obsession with something that's more an odd story than a scandal is creepy at best. You would think political news people (reporters, pundits and bloggers) would talk about the politics of political people, not their haircuts. You would think. But sadly we leave in a world of "infotainment" which makes it easier for them to act like SNL sketch comedians one day then become astute political reporters t...

I was wrong about Bush, he did have the balls to veto the Iraq Spending Bill on the aniversary of Mission Accomplished . Too bad some retired generals think he's failed the military : The President vetoed our troops and the American people. His stubborn commitment to a failed strategy in Iraq is incomprehensible. He committed our great military to a failed strategy in violation of basic principles of war. His failure to mobilize the nation to defeat world wide Islamic extremism is tragic. We deserve more from our commander-in-chief and his administration.-- Maj. Gen. John Batiste, USA, Ret. Bush can at least look forward to the fact that CNN senior Pentagon correspondent Jamie McIntyre said he couldn't sign the bill (whatever that means). But I guess the challenge between those who support the President and those who support the Democratically-controlled Congress is this: was this bill strictly a withdrawal bill ( as the WashPost suggests ) or was it a spending bill with string...

al-Qaeda seems to be fashioning a surge of there own .

As the DC Optimist puts it: " At least we aren't the Heat ." Amen. Yet, sadly, changes have to be made. Yesterday I broke down where I think every current player stands . today I'll start to explain why, but before I do that some quick notes: Now's not the time for wish lists. I'm not going to go crazy an suggest some trade for Kevin Garnett or anything like that. Keep that mess for the fantasy blogs and the NBA video games. Piggybacking to #1: I'm only talking about the current players, who should stay and who should go. If they have value to someone else, then by all means trade them. Now's not the time to pull punches. The grades I gave out for the starters , the bench and the rest will factor in, but just like in school where the final exam has more weight, I'm counting Playoff Performance alot more. This may mean that some players' grades may change (for better or for worse). No with that, let's get back to the program... ****** Yest...

While G. W. Bush jerks around , let us remember why today is so special in American-Iraq history: tons and tons of GOP talking points . P.S. He's in Tampa, Florida, because he didn't want to veto the bill he hates so much on the anniversary of his "Mission Accomplished" speech. Talk about cowardice. If he doesn't agree and wants the bill he asked for so badly, he should have just vetoed it as soon as possible. But that's what we get in the "Age of PR Politics".