Katrina & Leadership

4:08 pm EST August 31st, 2005 | Politics | 123 Comments

The result of Hurricane Katrina is unlike anything America’s ever seen. We’ve seen a major American city essentially wiped out with casualties on a biblical level.

Where is our president, and where the hell has he been?

 

Black People Loot, White People Look

1:08 pm EST August 31st, 2005 | News | 1 Comment

So says the liberal associated press.

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“Making Progress”

1:08 pm EST August 31st, 2005 | News | 9 Comments

Hey, at least it isn’t Barbara or Jenna, right?
US forces in Iraq suffered more combat deaths in August than any month this year

U.S. forces in Iraq suffered at least 74 combat deaths in August — more than in any month since last November and the third-highest total for any month of the war, according to Pentagon figures.

The total number of U.S. military deaths in August, including those deemed non-hostile, was at least 83, according to figures available Wednesday. That was the highest since 107 in January, when there was an extraordinary 53 accidental deaths for the month, including 30 Marines and a sailor who died in a Jan. 26 helicopter crash.

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He Up And Disappeared

12:08 am EST August 31st, 2005 | News | 13 Comments

Bush Error 404. It’s amazing how quickly some of us end our vacations when it gets too hot.

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Reality Invalidates Conservative Ideology

3:08 pm EST August 30th, 2005 | Politics | 26 Comments

Conservative groupthink dictates that to privatize is to be divine. Since the election of Reagan, we’ve seen a steady drumbeat to privatize everything on earth – from our schools to the armed forces and beyond, in the world of the Republicans privatization is next to godliness.

Except, reality declares otherwise.

Let’s look at two recent examples. John Thune ran his senatorial campaign on the platform that Tom Daschle was more liberal than average South Dakotans, and that his close ties to the White House would allow Ellsworth Air Force Base to stay open. When the base closing recommendations came out and Ellsworth was on the chopping block, it became clear that Thune would be DOA if the closing came to pass. Now that Ellsworth will remain open, it’s more than a bit humorous that the savior of John Thune’s political career will be a massive influx of government money into the biggest area of taxpayer funded spending in the entire federal government.

The other example is the current relief efforts involved in Misssissippi and Louisiana. Both states voted overwhelmingly for President Bush (60% and 57% respectively), an apparently strong endorsement of the conservative movement. But the savior of Mississippi and Lousiana will not be some privatized entity, some benevolent source of private funding. When Mississippi and Lousiana recover – and they will – they will have the much derided federal government to thank. It will be money from the federal government, along with disaster relief from federal agencies like FEMA and the National Guard that will aid these states and bring them back to glory.

And that’s how it should be.

 

Dean Invokes, FDR & Truman

2:08 pm EST August 30th, 2005 | Democrats | 3 Comments

Sometimes I think the chairman is reading this site

“Democratic Presidents Roosevelt and Truman led America to victory in World War II because they laid out a clear plan for success to the American people, America’s allies and America’s troops. President Bush has failed to put together a plan, so despite the bravery and sacrifice of our troops, we are not making the progress that we should be in Iraq. The troops, our allies and the American people deserve better leadership from our Commander in Chief. In fact, President Truman made this very clear: the buck stops at the Oval Office. Who knows where the buck stops in the Bush White House?”

 

Starts With A Spark

1:08 pm EST August 30th, 2005 | News | 19 Comments

Jorgey reminds us about the importance of Emmit Till in America’s history.

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Discovering The Network

10:08 am EST August 30th, 2005 | Uncategorized | Comments Off

Max finds the work of Horowitz’s kook crew somewhat incomplete.

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Katrina: Good Thoughts for New Orleans

2:08 pm EST August 28th, 2005 | Uncategorized | 30 Comments

This thing looks a nightmare come to life.

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Democrats Abandoning Their Patriotism

1:08 pm EST August 28th, 2005 | Politics | 5 Comments

As a proud Democrat it hurts to say, but Frank Rich’s conclusion is right.

Among Washington’s Democrats, the only one with a clue seems to be Russell Feingold, the Wisconsin senator who this month proposed setting a “target date” (as opposed to a deadline) for getting out. Mr. Feingold also made the crucial observation that “the president has presented us with a false choice”: either “stay the course” or “cut and run.” That false choice, in which Mr. Bush pretends that the only alternative to his reckless conduct of the war is Ms. Sheehan’s equally apocalyptic retreat, is used to snuff out any legitimate debate. There are in fact plenty of other choices echoing about, from variations on Mr. Feingold’s timetable theme to buying off the Sunni insurgents.

But don’t expect any of Mr. Feingold’s peers to join him or Mr. Hagel in fashioning an exit strategy that might work. If there’s a moment that could stand for the Democrats’ irrelevance it came on July 14, the day Americans woke up to learn of the suicide bomber in Baghdad who killed as many as 27 people, nearly all of them children gathered around American troops. In Washington that day, the presumptive presidential candidate Hillary Clinton held a press conference vowing to protect American children from the fantasy violence of video games.

The Democrats are hoping that if they do nothing, they might inherit the earth as the Bush administration goes down the tubes. Whatever the dubious merits of this Kerryesque course as a political strategy, as a moral strategy it’s unpatriotic. The earth may not be worth inheriting if Iraq continues to sabotage America’s ability to take on Iran and North Korea, let alone Al Qaeda.

You don’t have to be in the majority to exhbit leadership qualities, and when it comes to Iraq, the Democratic party just hasn’t led at all.

 

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