Author: david

  • I do smell appeasement somewhere.

    Dick Cheney: Some in our own country claim retreat from Iraq would satisfy the appetite of the terrorists and get them to leave us alone. ———————————————— DKo: Some in our own country claim conquest of Iraq would satisfy the appetite of the Bush Administration and get them to leave the rest of the world alone.…

  • How Could I Have Missed the Joke?

    For those of a certain age. Republicans’ comments may hurt at polls, AP “One Republican senator [Burns, MT], described his house painter as a ‘little Guatemalan man.’ Another [Allen, VA], called an Indian man a ‘macaca,’ a type of monkey.” “[T]he comments by Burns and Allen have garnered heavy attention as their party is trying…

  • Two Red Herrings

    My Google news alerts have whispered to me that two Red Herrings are diverting the focus of media coverage these days. Since I seem to have been programmed from youth to pass on what I think I’ve learned, here’s my guesswork: Iran Sanctions. The solidity of the six-nation alliance confronting Iran is thought to rest…

  • The Office of The Suspector

    There has been speculation* that somewhere in the national security establishment there is an official known as The Suspector. When someone wants to wiretap conversations with an individual, they bring that person’s name to The Suspector, and ask, “Do you suspect this person of having terrorist connections?” The Suspector says, “Yes.” (After all, you are…

  • The Wiretaps. What was the judge so mad about?

    In the Reuters report on the ruling against warrantless wiretapping, warrants are not mentioned until the eighth paragraph. Court rules secret wiretaps violate rights, Reuters, 8/17/06 Absent the issue of warrants, what was the judge so mad about? She is quoted: The wiretaps “violated…civil rights,” “freedom of speech, protection against unreasonable searches, and a constitutional…

  • Two Countries Need to Be Put on the Spot

    “With hard-liners riding high in Tehran, there’s little chance of changing minds there. But the White House should still try, offering security guarantees in exchange for Iran’s giving up technology that could feed a nuclear weapons program.” NYT Editorial, “Still Spinning,” 8/14/06 Well, will the White House “still try, offering security guarantees”? Is the White…