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Buzz, perspectives, insight and news from AlterNet

Washington Post Editorial Board Peddles 'U.S. Knows Best' Position on Iraq
Posted by Steve Benen, The Carpetbagger Report on July 23, 2008 at 4:59 PM.

The editorial board of the Washington Post continues to be a mysterious group, making strange arguments that are detached from the paper's own reporting. Indeed, the gap between the quality of the WaPo's news division and editorial division is greater than at any major newspaper in the country.

The Post's unwavering editorial support for the war in Iraq has been well-established, but today, the WaPo outdoes itself with an editorial that seems to reject reality altogether.

The initial media coverage of Barack Obama's visit to Iraq suggested that the Democratic candidate found agreement with his plan to withdraw all U.S. combat forces on a 16-month timetable. So it seems worthwhile to point out that, by Mr. Obama's own account, neither U.S. commanders nor Iraq's principal political leaders actually support his strategy.

Over the last several days, we've learned that both the democratically-elected prime minister and the spokesperson for the Iraqi government support Obama's withdrawal timeline of 2010. Maliki, in fact, did so, by name, without prompting. But the Post still doesn't believe Iraq's principal political leaders are on board with Obama's policy.

And why does the WaPo editorial board continue to deny what is plainly true?

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Looking Back: Rumsfeld Praised Mass Murderers Over PM Maliki
Posted by Jonathan Schwarz, A Tiny Revolution on July 23, 2008 at 4:11 PM.

There's no question Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has recently been giving the White House and John McCain heartburn. On Saturday in an interview with Der Spiegel he essentially endorsed Obama's plan to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq. Then did it again today, right after speaking with Obama in Baghdad:

After talks with Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on Monday, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki reaffirmed that Iraq wants U.S. combat troops to withdraw from Iraq by the end of 2010, a few months later than Obama had proposed.

So it's worth looking back at the Bush administration's private views of Maliki, as stated by Donald Rumsfeld back in 2006.

For the recent New York Time story on the close government ties of TV military analysts, the paper pried loose tons of internal Pentagon records never meant to see the light of day. Buried in the pile was a recording of Rumsfeld having lunch with many of the Pentagon's analysts in December, 2006 just before he was replaced by Robert Gates. (The large .wav file is available here.)

One section of the recording goes like this:

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Mukasey Asks Congress to Legitimize the "War on Terror"
Posted by Digby, Hullabaloo on July 23, 2008 at 3:03 PM.

Congress should explicitly declare a state of armed conflict with al Qaeda to make clear the United States can detain suspected members as long as the war on terrorism lasts, U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey said on Monday.

Mukasey urged Congress to make the declaration in a package of legislative proposals to establish a legal process for terrorism suspects held at Guantanamo, in response to a Supreme Court ruling last month that detainees had a constitutional right to challenge their detention.

"Any legislation should acknowledge again and explicitly that this nation remains engaged in an armed conflict with al Qaeda, the Taliban and associated organizations, who have already proclaimed themselves at war with us," Mukasey said in a speech to the American Enterprise Institute.

As I wrote yesterday, this is nothing but a transparent attempt to get bipartisan buy in, before the election, to the Global War on Terror. They need to keep the torture, rendition and concentration camp regime under wraps and ensure that a larger ongoing war narrative, which favor conservatives no matter who runs the government, remains firmly in place.

It would be a political mistake of epic proportions for the Democrats to agree to anything like this, setting the table for possible decades of being pressured and intimidated into supporting wars and military interventions against the best interests of the country and the world -- not to mention their own political interests. It is not a winner for liberals to help the conservatives pursue their imperial goals. There's no political need for this, so if they do it, one can only assume it's because they actually support the Orwellian concept of endless war.

We've been here before, during the Cold War, which was a real existential threat, at least in the beginning. It's unbelievably foolhardy to do it again.

Russ Feingold, Robert Byrd to Bush: You Have no Authority
Posted by Russ Feingold, AlterNet on July 23, 2008 at 2:12 PM.

The President
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20500

Dear President Bush,

The United States is participating in a Ministerial meeting of the World Trade organization (WTO) this week in Geneva, Switzerland. We understand that the purpose of this summit is to finalize an agreement on certain outstanding issues related to the WTO Doha Round.

The announcement of this WTO Ministerial was surprising to us. Typically high-level negotiations only occur when all parties have authority to make a deal. Yet, the U.S. Constitution grants Congress exclusive authority "to regulate commerce with foreign Nations" and to "lay and collect Taxes [and] Duties."

As you know, for decades U.S. presidents have obtained delegations of this congressional trade authority under what is commonly known as Fast Track. However, your delegation of Fast Track Trade Promotion Authority terminated on June 30, 2007. Congress has refused to provide you with further authority -- either more Fast Track or any other form of trade authority -- nor is there any prospect of that occurring before the end of your term. Indeed, it is likely that in the future the Fast Track process will be replaced altogether with a trade negotiation and approval mechanism that better reflects Congress's constitutional role regarding trade policy.

Therefore we are interested in understanding what USTR Schwab or other U.S. trade officials are representing to other countries' officials regarding their capacity to make binding commitments at this Ministerial on behalf of the U.S. Congress.

We are eager to ensure that if U.S. trade negotiators participate in the current WTO ministerial, they represent U.S. positions that comport with the sort of WTO agreement that could obtain support in the U.S. Congress.

Sincerely,
Russell D. Feingold
United States Senator

Robert C. Byrd
United States Senator

Bob Novak Plows into Pedestrian on K Street, Attempts to Flee the Scene
Posted by Lindsay Beyerstein, Majikthise on July 23, 2008 at 1:22 PM.

Journalist Robert Novak plowed into a pedestrian on K Street this morning. Novak said he didn't realize he'd hit the 60-year-old man, but an eyewitness told ABC News that the victim was "splayed on the windshield" of Novak's black corvette and that there was no way that Novak could have failed to realize he'd struck the man. A bicyclist caught up with Novak about a block away from the crash and informed him that he'd just hit someone.

Watch the video. Novak was cited for failure to yield the right of way. I hope they gave him a breathalyser test. He's slurring his words pretty badly, two hours after the accident. Novak starts talking about 55 seconds into the clip, below. At about 1:22, Novak becomes almost unintelligible when the reporters ask him how his victim is doing.

Hate-Speech Connoisseur Michael Savage Goes After Autism; Gets Pulled From Mississippi Airwaves
Posted by Steven D., Booman Tribune on July 23, 2008 at 12:21 PM.

What does it take to get a racist, liberal hating eliminationist, right wing talk show by Michael Savage canceled in Mississippi? Well, you might think that "nothing" Michael Savage could say would get his program removed from the air there. But you would be wrong. Apparently all it took was for him to call autism a "fraud" and a "racket."

The Super Talk Mississippi radio network has canceled The Savage Nation because of comments syndicated host Michael Savage made about autistic children last week.

Steve Davenport, president and CEO of Super Talk's parent company Telesouth Communications, confirmed The Savage Nation had been dropped from the network's lineup as of Monday.

"It was just horrible what he said," Davenport said Monday.

"When you talk about people in politics, business people, that's one thing. But when you talk about defenseless children, that's another."

Savage, a controversial conservative commentator, said during the July 16 broadcast of his show that autism is a "fraud, a racket ...

"I'll tell you what autism is. In 99 percent of the cases, it's a brat who hasn't been told to cut the act out. That's what autism is.

Read the rest of the post on the flip side »

Feminist Porn: Sex, Consent, and Getting Off
Posted by KaeLyn, Feministe on July 23, 2008 at 11:14 AM.

Warning: May not be safe for work ... unless you are like me and work at Planned Parenthood. :) The links at the end of the article are definitely not work-safe and may contain adult content to be viewed only by people over the age of 18.

Feminism has a love/hate relationship with sex. The "Feminist Sex Wars" rage on and not just between second and third-wavers. I once spent an evening at a hole-in-the-wall strip club with a 20-something friend fiercely debating her anti-pornography/anti-prostitution position. We spent half an hour of that night talking with a dancer, a young single mom and the only woman-of-color on the floor. She said it was better than working at a grocery store; she made more money and didn't have to pay for day care. How could I blame her? It was niave and classist for us to engage her in this conversation, but I was in college and didn't know how stupid I was being. This also happened to be the night I bought my first vibrator, with that same friend, at a sleazy adult store in Syracuse, NY. Long story short is that I became passionate about the rights of sex workers and people that work in the sex/adult industry and began a more intelligent and articulate study of why I felt so compelled to defend pornography, prostitution, women's sexual pleasure, and my own sexual desires.

In the 60's and 70's, Andrea Dworkin led a brilliant fight to expose and illuminate rape culture and end violence against women. Her analysis of the gender binary, pornography, and theories of penetrative sex as a patriarchal act is at the titillating center of a lively and necessary conversation in the feminist community. I also believe the work of Dworkin and her peers has contributed to the division of lesbian and heterosexual feminists, persecution and demoralization of sex work and sex workers, exclusion of transfolk from feminist spaces, and a whole lot of personal feminist guilt. But I gotta' give kudos to Dworkin for putting rape culture on the map and, there are many awesome, inspiring, fabulous feminist leaders I admire who also happen to be card-carrying members of the anti-prostitution camp including Gloria Steinem and Robin Morgan.

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"Banned" Bush Video Emerges: Blames Recession on His Drunken Wall Street Cronies
Posted by Greg Mitchell, Huffington Post on July 23, 2008 at 10:28 AM.

An ABC-TV outlet in Houston, and now the Houston Chronicle, have posted a video taken at a political fundraiser for Pete Olson, featuring George W. Bush last week -- capturing some embarrassing/revealing moments after, he noted, he had asked cameras to be turned off.

The first moments form the July 18 event find him speaking almost incoherently in admitting, for once, that his friends in big business had screwed up: "There's no question about it. Wall Street got drunk -- that's one of the reasons I asked you to turn off the TV cameras -- it got drunk and now it's got a hangover. The question is how long will it sober up and not try to do all these fancy financial instruments."

Then, making light of the foreclosure crisis, he said: "And then we got a housing issue ... not in Houston, and evidently not in Dallas, because Laura's over there trying to buy a house. [great laughter] I like Crawford but unfortunately after eight years of sacrifice, I am apparently no longer the decision maker."

(Catch the video on the flip side.)

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McCain, Despite Deep Flaws, Has a Chance... Thank Nixon
Posted by Steve M., No More Mister Nice Blog on July 23, 2008 at 9:00 AM.

Reading the blogosphere these days, I get the feeling that a lot of people think the election is over. Obama's withdrawal plans have been seconded by Maliki; he's being cheered by GIs in Iraq; McCain looks old and tired and cranky. Here's Michael Crowley of The New Republic:

...I can hardly believe how badly John McCain is getting routed in the television-imagery game. As Obama saunters through the Middle East, looking cool and relaxed, McCain has been holding events where he looks stiff, uncomfortable, and, in his bracing claim today that Obama would lose a war to win an election, sounding bitter to the point of nasty. (McCain flashed another bizarre forced smile after his scathing shot at Obama tonight, but it didn't prevent him from coming across as whiny and petulant.)...

And look, there's Obama in a helicopter with General Petraeus while McCain sits in a golf cart with Poppy Bush! McCain has really lousy optics these days, right?

And yet:

For the first time since shortly after clinching the Democratic nomination, we now have Barack Obama as less than a 60 percent favorite to win the election. Our simulations presently project Obama to win the election 58.4 percent of the time, with McCain winning the remaining 41.6 percent.

The main culprit for the decline are the new numbers out of Ohio, where Rasmussen shows John McCain jumping into a 10-point lead.... Obama's numbers had declined among Democrats, Republicans, and independents alike....

There is also new polling out from American Research Group, which has Florida and New Hampshire moving in John McCain's direction. In Florida, Obama now trails by 2 after having led by 5 points, and in New Hampshire, he leads by 2 after having led by 12....

And Gallup still sees a close race -- Obama's up by 3.

What's going on here?

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One in Four Americans Compare Their Workplace to a Dictatorship
Posted by Meg White, BuzzFlash on July 23, 2008 at 8:23 AM.

According to a Workplace Democracy Association/Zogby Interactive survey, 25 percent of Americans compares their workplace to a dictatorship. In the most comprehensive study of the phenomenon to date, the poll also found that adopting more egalitarian processes might be the solution.

"Companies that want to boost employee engagement levels must adopt democratic and innovative practices in the way the entire company is managed," said Workplace Democracy Association President Asher Adelman. "Executives should be sharing information with all employees about the company's ongoing performance and goals, and employees should be empowered with greater discretion and decision-making abilities."

According to Zogby, "The survey also found that less than half of working Americans -- 46% -- said their workplace promotes creative or inventive ideas, while barely half -- 51% -- said their co-workers often feel motivated or are mostly motivated at work."

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James Dobson Has Second Thoughts About 'Forsaking' McCain
Posted by TBogg, Firedoglake on July 23, 2008 at 4:57 AM.

James Dobson, proud owner of a  weiner and beater of weiner dogs, is having second thoughts about marginalizing himself this political season:

Conservative Christian leader James Dobson has softened his stance against Republican presidential hopeful John McCain, saying he could reverse his position and endorse the Arizona senator despite serious misgivings.

"I never thought I would hear myself saying this," Dobson said in a radio broadcast to air Monday. "... While I am not endorsing Senator John McCain, the possibility is there that I might."

Oooooo. We are all shivering with antici.....pation, you big tease.

Read the rest of the post on the flip side »

Almost Perfect Wingnuttery: Global Warming's the Ultimate Liberal Conspiracy
Posted by PZ Myers, Pharyngula on July 23, 2008 at 4:10 AM.

How about a little extreme right wing paranoia to compliment your day?

Global warming is the perfect excuse to do what the Left always wanted to do -- to destroy faith (Christianity), the family and freedom. There is no area of our lives that will not be invaded through taxation, control, regulation or obliteration to save the earth.

Read the whole thing -- global warming is the conspiracy that ties together abortion, taxes, communism, and our hatred of little children. If only it had mentioned evolution, it would have been perfect.

Also, it's from a Canadian. It's reassuring to see that the US doesn't have a monopoly on loons. To be fair, though, the replies from other Canadians are scathing.

Offshoring, Downsizing, Rightsizing: Job Losses Hitting Women Hard
Posted by Todd Tucker, Eyes on Trade on July 22, 2008 at 6:34 PM.

Offshoring, downsizing, rightsizing ... mention these words, and the image that pops in most people's heads is a hefty Midwestern man grumbling about his economic problems and then voting Republican.

But Lou Uchitelle has a piece today entitled "Women Are Now Equal as Victims of Poor Economy" that shows this view to be fatally flawed:

After moving into virtually every occupation, women are being afflicted on a large scale by the same troubles as men: downturns, layoffs, outsourcing, stagnant wages or the discouraging prospect of an outright pay cut ...

Hard times in manufacturing certainly sidelined Tootie Samson of Baxter, Iowa. Nine months after she lost her job on a factory assembly line, Ms. Samson, 48, is still not working. She could be. Jobs that pay $8 or $9 an hour are easy enough to land, she says. But like the men with whom she worked at the Maytag washing machine factory, now closed, near her home, she resists going back to work at less than half her old wage ...

The Joint Economic Committee study cites the growing statistical evidence that women are leaving the work force "on par with men," and the potentially disastrous consequences for families.

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MoveOn.org, ColorOfChange.org and NAS to Protest FOX's Racism in NYC
Posted by AlterNet Staff, AlterNet on July 22, 2008 at 5:00 PM.

Editor's Note: We just got this press release from our friends at MoveOn.org. If you're in New York, see you there.

Hip hop star Nas will join members of ColorOfChange.org & MoveOn.org on Wednesday to deliver 620,127 petition signatures demanding that FOX end its pattern of racist attacks against Black Americans including presidential candidate Barack Obama and his wife Michelle. The group will make the delivery at 2:00pm on Wednesday, July 23rd at FOX in Manhattan.

Over the last several weeks, FOX has had a string of incidents that many believe are a veiled attempt to prey on racism and intolerance and cast the Obamas as "outsiders": an on-screen graphic referred to Mrs. Obama as "Obama's baby mama," a pundit "confused" Obama with Osama and then joked they should both be assassinated, and an anchor called a loving fist bump between Barack and Michelle a "terrorist fist jab." In February, Bill O'Reilly talked about calling a "lynching party" to deal with Michelle.

The signatures were gathered online over the last month by ColorOfChange.org, a 450,000-member grassroots organization that focuses on issues of importance to the Black community. MoveOn.org and the Brave New Foundation also gathered signatures for the petition. In 2007, the groups led a successful campaign to stop the Congressional Black Caucus Institute from hosting a presidential debate on FOX. The debate was cancelled after major presidential candidates declined to attend.

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A Laughing Liberally Look at Netroots Nation
Posted by Katie Halper, KatieHalper.com on July 22, 2008 at 3:53 PM.

(Written in satire. A literal translation for the tonally impaired is available upon request.)

This weekend I went to Austin, Texas, to attend the third annual Netroots [Aryan] Nation, the convention formerly known as Yearly Kos and recently called a "Klan gathering" by Bill O'Reilly.

I agree with O'Reilly that "including the Nazis and the Klan... there is not a more hateful group in the country than the Daily Kos People." I too hate this hateful conference, which encourages democracy, open politics, participatory democracy, grass roots organizing and other Nazi-ish thing. But I attend each year, under the guise of a Laughing Liberally comic and Living Liberally leader, in order to counter the lies of the liberal media, who receive their talking points and marching orders directly from Subcomandante Markos [Moulitsas].

I go because somebody needs to document the atrocities that are ignored by the appeasement era press and distorted by the Netroots deniers. I go to show the world the truth. I go to say Never Again.

So, here are some of the things you won't hear from the liberal media about the four-day gathering of over 2,000 progressive bloggers, journalists, politicians and activists.

1. The netroots are so vicious that Obama was forced to flee to the relative safety of Afghanistan.

2. The netroots are reconsidering their position on FISA. Although they were disappointed with Obama's vote and his absence from the conference, they have now realized that thanks to the new FISA law, Obama could hear everything they said.

3. The surprise guest was no surpirse. Everyone knew the surprise guest would be Al Gore. Duh! He is the inventor of the series of tubes known as the internets.

4. Al Gore proved global warming is real, beyond the shadow of a doubt. I'll admit it, I was a skeptic about global warming. But that was before I saw Al Gore speak live. Because what An Inconvenient Truth doesn't capture, is Gore's presence, energy, and sweat. After watching Gore sweat in an air-conditioned convention hall, it is impossible not to believe in global warming.

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