From HuffPo: 25,000 U.S. troops dead or injured since war began... O.I.L. Do you know why Ari Fleischer had to stop calling the invasion of Iraq, "Operation Iraqi Liberation" (Oil)? Because it was too close to the truth; Bush was embarrassed that it spelled OIL. Hence the war slogan was changed to Operation Iraqi Freedom. Got this tidbit from Cenk and Jilly, THE YOUNG TURKS, on Air America this morning.
Did anyone see the brilliant Robert Dreyfuss on Hannity & Colmes last night? Last time he was on with Sean Hannity during the Israel-Lebanon strikes, Hannity said, "If I hear the word 'proportional' one more time I'm going to punch myself.' So Dreyfuss very dryly says, "Proportional." And Hannity just sat there; he didn't punch himself darn it. Another false Republican promise. But it was a hilarious moment. Dreyfuss is an Iraq strategist, investigative reporter for Rolling Stone, The Nation, Mother Jones — and good friend of mine. He also had a cover story in THE NATION last week. check out his latest article at http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2006/12/13/bush_v_the_two_majorities.php
THE ULTIMATE ANTIDEPRESSANT: helping others. Angelina Jolie said that until she found "her purpose", in being a mother and helping others — she was depressed, nihilistic, suicidal — as many of us are until we transcend our ego-centered selfishness and really look around at the world. As pain is the touchstone of all spiritual progress, we grow from our tragedies.
Again, kudos to Jolie for her compassion, her humanitarian work -- and for using the gifts God gave her. This is a spiritual-progressive blog, and after this week I want to get back to our true moral values: loving our neighbor as ourself peaceful solutions to conflict, and understanding our enemy. Or in the case of George Bush, SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL. On that note I have to say that I'm beginning to think Bush is a planted spy for Al Quaeda or the Taliban. He had plastic surgery and his Muslim name was changed from Al-Bushawi. He has got to be on their side because every move he makes empowers the enemy and enhances their cause. Definition of a narcissist or Neo-Con: Someone who is so full of self-loathing, he projects all of his self-hatred onto others. No one can live up to his perfectionistic standards because he is so unaccepting of himself — and his flaws. Ted Haggart, Newt Gingrich, Dick Cheney, Sean Hannity, Ann Coulter and Mark Foley come to mind, among many others.
The extreme right-wingers are the poor souls who need to be deprogrammed. They need a new view of liberals and a healing view of their fellow man. Of course you can’t propagandize someone who doesn’t want to be swayed or lied to. Neo-Republicans have been willing participants in a brainwashing, and this is because Bush and his hatemongers feeds their bigotry, anger and fear of their fellow man. It's a form of "getting high" by indulging in self-righteous anger.
The remarkable thing is that if we really love our neighbor as ourselves: we do unto others as we do unto ourselves. We hate others when we hate ourselves. We are tolerant toward others when we tolerate ourselves. We forgive others when we forgive ourselves. We are prone to sacrifice others when we are ready to sacrifice ourselves.
– Eric Hoffer
CAN WE TRUST THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA?
Los Angeles Times
WASHINGTON — After toppling the long-dominant Republicans in a hard-fought election, the Democratic Party's incoming congressional leaders have immediately found themselves in another difficult struggle — with their own supporters...
My letter to the editor regarding the above article
This article provides a perfect example for showing you why Americans no longer trust newspapers, one of the main reasons your circulation is declining.
First, you create controversy where there is none. Very few people, if any, in the Democratic base are demanding immediate action on anything other than what the Party promised in the campaign--raising the minimum wage, affordable health care, bringing accountability to Congress and the administration, and so on. We will lobby for other issues, but we're not demanding that Party leaders to shoot themselves in the foot the way overeager Republicans did just after 1994.
Second, you have an amazingly poor understanding of politics. I rolled on the floor laughing when I read your assertion that "Conservatives, though splintered over Iraq, immigration and other issues, had succeeded in keeping power since 1994 in part by forging a coalition built on compromise and shared goals — a practice that Democrats have yet to perfect."
How anyone who's lived in this country for the last twelve years could believe that Republicans built their coalition on anything other than lies, hate, fear, and corruption has just not been paying attention. There was no compromise in the Republican coalition. The leadership used blackmail, fear, bribery and coercion to force their members of Congress to do what the leadership wanted. And that led to some of the most god-awful legislation ever passed in this country. I sincerely hope the Democrats never "perfect" that kind of "compromise".
Carolyn Kay MakeThemAccountable.com
