With God on their side

And frankly, they can have him/her/them/it. While we may or may not be locked in a "Clash of Civilizations," it certainly isn't the Christian West vs Muslim East one that the right imagines it to be. It is the clash between the secular, logical, reality-based world and the fundamentalist, unreasoning, faith-driven supernaturalists. Personally, I'll take the scientific side - we don't know everything, but we can learn and at least we are willing to live and let live. The other side, eh, not so much.

The creationists sometimes try to pin the massacres, holocausts and pogroms of Hitler, Stalin and Pol Pot on atheism and their own misinterpretation of Darwin's theories as a justification of "survival of the fittest" -- when the real cause of these horrible events, and indeed most of the evil that men do, is the "true believerism" the notion that one is righteous that brooks no doubt, no reconsideration in the face of evidence that one's thesis is not airtight. It is that sort of inability to admit errors or tolerate dissent that leads to everything from the Iraq war to religiously driven fatal child abuse and deadly neglect.

And lest you think I am only picking on the Jesus-addled variety of superstitous dumbassery, consider this marvelous little episode and tell me blind belief in obvious chicanery does no harm.

(hat tips to Cat, the General, MJS, and David)

Mackay tries to slide one two through

Finally!! The long overdue Harper defence document suddenly pops up on the DND website. Surprizingly, it sort of crept up there after more than a month of Harperite Muskox calls announcing all kinds of things with no money to match.

Then, late last night, just before Parliament recesses, it makes an appearance.

Peter MacKay says he was merely providing more details on the government's defence strategy when his department quietly posted the price tag on its website late Thursday night.

The minister of defence, who was at an international conference in Halifax today, says the plan amounts to $490 billion in spending over 20 years.

The funding includes $20 billion for new aircraft, tanks and ships, in addition to $15 billion in transport planes, trucks and helicopters that had been purchased earlier.

The Canada First Defence Strategy was first introduced by Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Halifax last month amid claims that the funding was unclear and incorrect.

Let's see... either MacKay is playing loose with the truth or my sources are. I've been told this was ready to be announced some time ago but that any public announcement was a political decision and the CF was ordered not to post it.

My sources have no reason to lie. MacKay has a poor record with the truth. Not only that, when I first saw this announcement the date on the website was 18 June 2008. It's since changed to 20 June. But all that is irrelevant; we finally have the Defence Policy document that Harper promised to deliver within 6 months of taking office.

Depending on your point of view, $490 billion is either horrendously large or it isn't enough.
Further, the Canada First Defence Strategy reads as much like a political campaign instrument as it does a guide for the future employment, equipping and managing of Canada's armed services.

The 22-page document is sprinkled with all kinds of little rhetorical tidbits which do less to rationally explain the strategy and a lot to demonstrate Conservative penis envy.

From page 2 (Harper's message):

... Canada can return to the international stage as a credible and influential country, ready to do its part.

Typical of Harper, he ignores Canada's influence on the international stage as a trusted honest broker. To him the "international stage" is a military force - period. This blinkered view has reduced our influence as a nation since the only "part" he's willing to do is support Bush administration military fiascoes.

Page 4:

The infusion of long-term stable funding it provides will enable industry to reach for global excellence and to be better positioned to compete for defence contracts at home and abroad...

How does this reconcile with General Dynamics withdrawing its bid from the Frigate Life Extension Project because of lack of funding and the likelihood that GD is probably going to sue the Canadian government? Great start.

This strengthened military will translate into enhanced security for Canadians at home as well as a stronger voice for Canada on the world stage.

There's that "world stage" line again. Damn the Harperites put a lot of stock in that.

Something very strange appears on page 5. After describing natural disasters which occurred in Canada over the past decade in which the Canadian Forces provided an immediate response, the natural inclination of the Harperites floats up.

As Hurricane Katrina has shown in the United States, such disasters will continue to occur, often with devastating consequences, and the citizens affected will expect immediate responses.

Hurricane Katrina?! What would possess any Canadian government to use that as an example. Why refer to it at all? Unless that line was written by an American - an American unfamiliar with the effects of Hurricane Juan on Halifax.

Page 6: (Emphasis mine)

Canada Command was created in 2006 to provide a single operational authority for such domestic operations and will work closely with federal departments such as Public Safety Canada in responding to a natural disaster or a terrorist attack.

In short, that last emphasis was written for the pants-pissers. The said terrorist attack will be over before anyone responds.

On page 8 this line emerges: (Emphasis mine)

... the two nations’ armed forces [Canadian and US] will pursue their effective collaboration on operations in North America and abroad. To remain interoperable, we must ensure that key aspects of our equipment and doctrine are compatible.

Abroad? The Canadian Forces have always maintained a doctrine of being interoperable with NATO. This, however, will provide a convenient point at which a Canadian frigate can remain a part of an American naval strike group even if it's attacking, oh, say, Iran.

Page 9:

Providing international leadership is vital if Canada is to continue to be a credible player on the world stage.

Not to mention sending kids home in metal coffins. Funny how that "world stage" doesn't seem to include anything but expeditionary wars.

This will require the Canadian Forces to have the necessary capabilities to make a meaningful contribution across the full spectrum of international operations, from humanitarian assistance to stabilization operations to combat.

Agreed! All of that is completely accurate and rational. So why then, in the rest of that subject is nothing but combat mentioned? The only example provided is that of Afghanistan. Where are the peace enforcement and peacekeeping probabilities addressed?

They're not.

Perhaps most telling of all though is the numbers provided on page 12. New Major Fleet Replacements roll out at $20 billion for 17 new fixed-wing search and rescue aircraft, 15 new destroyers and frigates for the navy, 10 - 12 new maritime patrol aircraft, 65 next-generation fighter aircraft for the air force, and a mix of new combat vehicles and systems for the army.

Really?! Are they planning on having them built out of Lego blocks? New ships alone will exceed that entire figure. And the fine print tells an interesting story. The actual number is up to $45 billion higher than what is being shown. That makes the $490 billion bottom line closer to $535 billion. The attempt to state that "new" equipment would have a life beyond the 20-year capital equipment plan says nothing. Yes, if you buy it at the end of the program it will last, (hopefully), beyond the period of the program; and so will the extended costs.

There is another little item which, as a result of another development, becomes even more curious. From page 20:

... the Canada First Defence Strategy represents a significant investment in the country’s industry, knowledge and technology sectors that will yield sizeable dividends for every region of the country. This clear, long-term plan will give these sectors the opportunity to better position themselves to compete for defence contracts in Canada and in the global marketplace.

If that's the case, perhaps Peter MacKay can explain this.

Members of the U.S. Congress have been told the Canadian government plans to spend $114 million on new howitzers to contribute to the war on terror while parliamentarians at home have been kept in the dark over the deal.

[...]

Neither the Defence Department nor Public Works released details on the howitzer deal, but Congress was told Wednesday about the pending sale.

Under American government accountability rules, the U.S. Defense Security Co-operation Agency must tell Congress of upcoming sales of weaponry. That information is also made public.

The estimated cost is $114 million, according to the security co-operation agency.

[...]

U.S. firms in Mississippi and in Michigan will provide the equipment.

There are no offset agreements in place for the sale, which means that the U.S. companies aren't required to provide industrial benefits to Canadian firms.

Oh yes... it's confirmed. Explain MacKay.

And it still looks like an American had a hand in writing Harper's new defence strategy.

Dems Fold on FISA . . . .

Nicolle Belle, John Amato and the crew at Crooks and Liars have been warning about Hoyer's behind-the-scenes backstabbing on FISA.

Today the knife was twisted.


From Congressional Quarterly:

House Passes Overhaul of Electronic Surveillance Rules

The House Friday passed an overhaul of electronic surveillance rules stemming from a bipartisan compromise that left Democrats divided.

The legislation, which would almost certainly lead to the dismissal of lawsuits against telecommunications companies accused of aiding the Bush administration’s warrantless surveillance program, won the support of 105 Democrats and 188 Republicans to pass by a margin of 293-129.

Senators agreed to place the bill on the calendar for next week and could clear it as early as Monday, delivering to President Bush legislation that gives him much of what he wants but with some restrictions he hoped to avoid. He placed a priority on the lawsuits’ dismissal, and on getting executive branch authority to conduct warrantless surveillance of foreign targets, even when they are communicating with people in the United States.

House members who voted against the bill said its expansion of executive branch surveillance powers would gut Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure.

“This bill scares me to death,” said Rep. Barbara Lee , D-Calif.

Supporters, on the other hand, said it was an improvement over a Senate-passed, White House-backed bill, which contained less court and congressional oversight. Some conservative Democrats have been pressing House leaders to take up that legislation all year long, and House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer , D-Md., said this week their support for that bill forced Democratic negotiators into a reluctant compromise.

“It’s not a happy occasion, but it’s the work we have to do,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi , D-Calif. She said the debate on the legislation was “valuable for making the bill better if not good enough but certainly preferable to the alternative we have.”

Republicans, including Bush himself, praised the legislation.

That last line sums it up pretty well.

Remind me again why someone should vote for a democrat vs. a reguglican ? ? ? ?

(Cross-posted from Moved to Vancouver)

Perhaps the PCO simply mis-clicked

An old friend of mine would tell me that this little event, which occurred at 11:31 a.m. Ottawa time, contains a wealth of information.

So, for our friends in the Privy Council Office, let me make your search a little easier.

No, Sharon Smith's indiscretions won't go away. If she was willing to behave in a fashion which showed disrespect for her office at the municipal level, there's no telling what she'd do in a Parliament Hill office.

Go ahead. Run her as a candidate.

Jim Prentice is a liar...

And a coward.

You may duplicate those words as many times as you like. Sell them for profit if you feel like it. You may reproduce them without fear of a region-lock.

Now go to PSA and gather in the truth about Prentice's Made In Corporate America pending copyright legislation. Prentice's claim that private copying will, under his bill, be legal for the first time is outright false. And I have the receipts for storage media which contain the levy paid to the media companies for the privilege of storing my original work.

This is another of Harper's ministers who is "... just beginning to hit [his] stride in [his] portfolio."

I guess Maxime Bernier didn't quite hit his stride. He was too busy trying to refine his stroke.

For all you yacht lovers...

This might become a weekly feature. (OK. Not weekly.) (Click on pictures to enlarge)

This is a cute little gem and it can be yours for a cool $35 million. Considering it is one of the top 30 mega-yachts in the world, the price is an absolute bargain, (even if it needs a refit.) To build it new today would cost you at least $148 million.

Specifications, (for you purists), are impressive. Built in 1981, by Helsingoer Vaerft, Denmark this 2282 tonne, 269 foot, twin engine diesel yacht is powered by two 3000 horsepower MTUs, cruises at 18 knots and has a range of 7000 miles. It is all steel construction with a crew of 35. It has luxury accommodation for 28 guests including the owner's palatial master cabin.

Some of the other details, (for you style wonks), include several salons with multiple wide-screen televisions, pools, saunas, a helicopter pad, a gold and blue interior, an executive galley and gold plumbing fixtures. It is reported that the interior decoration is based on the Disney animated feature Aladdin.

And now for some of the features you won't normally find in a yacht, it sports bullet-proof windows, a missile launcher and secret passages leading to... (ready?).... a miniature escape submarine.

It all sounds so very James Bond, doesn't it?

Before you run down to the bank you should be aware that there are a few problems surrounding its current ownership. Sudeley Ltd., a Grand Caymans Islands company where the Ocean Breeze is registered, claims ownership. A French court in Nice, France, where the Ocean Breeze is berthed, isn't convinced however and has blocked the sale of the vessel.

You see, Ocean Breeze is its new, very peaceful-sounding name. It was formerly named Qadisiyah Saddam.

Right! This marvelous floating gin-palace was built for Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi government either wants it back or to be able to see documents transferring ownership - prior to Saddam's execution.

Lawyers for Sudeley are trying to show that the boat no longer belongs to the family of Saddam Hussein. They say the boat was passed on firstly to the King of Saudi Arabia and then to King Abdullah of Jordan.

The Nice tribunal, however, has said that no documents exist to prove the transfer of ownership.

The Iraqi state suspects members of Saddam Hussein's entourage of hiding behind the offshore firm in the hope of profiting from the sale.

In truth, Saddam never did use it. During the war with Iran he had it moved to the Red Sea port of Jedda and never returned to Iraq.

Qadisiyah Saddam was not Saddam's "big" yacht. That "honour" fell to Al Mansour, a 420 foot, 7400 tonne monster with an armour-plated bow to protect the staterooms that Saddam reserved for himself and his family.

Al Mansour was one of the Bush administration's shock and awe targets and witness reports suggest the US military attacked it with bombs and missiles 16 times before leaving the burned out hulk alone and still floating. It sank a few months later after Iraqis looted it.

And Saddam never even set foot on Al Mansour.

Clowncar terrorism - Update #2

in the ongoing trial of the Toronto 18, now the Paintball 11 :

Crown turns on own witness
Police mole accused of lying about so-called terrorist training camp
"In a stunning turn of events, a Crown prosecutor yesterday accused his star witness in the Toronto 18 terror case of fabricating some of the evidence about a so-called terrorist training camp."

The prosecutor accused the RCMP mole/informant of lying to protect the accused, because since being paid off for his info he has changed his story a couple of times.

Damn. Does this mean Canada will have to give back our membership in the DHS war on terra?Naw. The important thing is to make the bust so you can use it to ramp up the hugely profitable war on terra even more. In 2001, US planes dropped fliers all over Afghanistan offering a bounty to anyone who busted as al-Qaeda anyone who pissed them off, netting over 700 "terrorists" for Gitmo. So far only 6 of them have been charged so we're still way ahead of the fuck-up curve here.

Bit of a bummer for the Toronto Paintball 11 though, no?
After 750 days in jail to date, 3 of them have been in solitary for two years and 7 are refused bail.
Four teenagers, presumably the same ones who cowered in their tent when the leaders hid in the bushes and made wolf and bear noises, have been released.
Suggest next time the RCMP search for a more credible scenario - possibly involving terrorists who can make lion and tiger noises.

Cross-posted at Creekside

CBC, are you listening?

I was away and unfortunately missed this until this morning. It would seem "one of the most powerful leaders of the Christian Right in this country" *, Dr? Charles McVety may well have some explaining to do. Some of his so-called degrees, on surface examination, don't survive the litmus test.

Now, the heavy lifting on this has already been done by Yaya Canada, Bill Kinnon and toujoursdan, not to mention others, so I'm simply adding to the growing number of voices asking you folks with the TV cameras, microphones and investigative journalism tickets to crawl on over to Achievable Ends, read the whole thing and then present the question to Charles McVety.

Given that McVety is chummy with the current federal government and claims to have some influence in the Prime Minister's Office, it would be interesting to know if the brand of Christian moral bullshit that McVety is peddling is the work of a huckster.

Mind you, given the significant quantity of "Made In America" ideas floating around the Harper camps it may well be that the Harperites are quite accepting of pulpit-bashers possessing diplomas with perforated edges. It works south of the border.

* a line conferred on McVety by CBC's The Hour.

The 4th annual North American Forum - it's a very small world.

All you really need to know about the fourth annual North American Forum currently being held in Washington DC is that the phrases "North America" and "our continent" and particularly "our energy resources" outnumber any references to the individual countries involved by about ten to one.

According to its website, the North American Forum is "a community of Canadian, Mexican and American thought leaders, whose purpose is to advance a shared vision of North America."
It is chaired by former US Secretary of State George P. Shultz, former Alberta Premier Peter Lougheed, and former Mexican Secretary of Finance Pedro Aspe, who is listed along with ConservaLiberal John Manley as the author of the book "Building a North American Community", the published report of the 2005 Task Force on the Future of North America.
You remember the Task Force : one N.A. resource pact for oil, gas, and fresh water; one passport; one foreign policy; one set of environmental, health, and safety standards; one immigration policy; one security perimeter; a suggested feasibility study on one currency union; and the introduction of a North American brand.

Anyway, before we get to excerpts from the speeches of this year's "thought leaders", here's an 'it's a small small one-perimeter North American world' note :
In his opening preamble, US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte addresses a remark to US Secretary of State George Shultz :

"And I do remember vividly that when I was the Deputy National Security Advisor at the very end of the Reagan Administration, we went down together, I accompanied you, Mr. Secretary, to the inauguration of Carlos Salinas de Gortari as President, not knowing at the time that I would, soon thereafter, become Ambassador and have the opportunity to work so closely with Carla Hills and others, Pedro Aspe, Andres Rosenthal, on the construction of the North American Free Trade Agreement."

But Hills, Aspe, and Rosenthal didn't just work together on NAFTA; they were also contributing members of the Task Force on the Future of North America report, aka "Building a North American Community". Carla A. Hills was also Vice Chair of the Council on Foreign Relations at the time, and it was CFR and the Canadian Council of Chief Executives who commissioned the Task Force.At the end of his speech, Negroponte takes questions from the floor : one comes from Carla Hills, another from Rosenthal.

Ok, on to the "thought leaders"!

US Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates :"We cannot achieve resilience or reach our full potential without security. This is tremendously important, given the kind of threats the North American continent faces at the dawn of the 21st century."
Gates praised Canada for its steadfast contribution to the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan and the new Canada-U.S. Civil Assistance Plan which will enable Canada and U.S. militaries to support the armed forces of the other country during a civil emergency.
"The role of Afghanistan in the 9/11 attacks reminds us that this is no hypothetical scenario. We fight there now and in other distant lands to prevent another attack here at home.

"US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte :"The North American community has made our peoples richer, our countries safer, and our region more competitive. There is much left to do to ease our citizens’ anxieties, but we must make clear that in a world that rewards integration and openness, the surest path to greater prosperity, security, and sovereignty is the North American partnership."

U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman :"North America is critical to determining the path forward for global energy development, delivery and consumption.
In many ways, our collective success in shaping that future in a productive way will depend on our ability to come together and expand our regional cooperation in order to encourage the sustained investment in all energy resources - and in our energy infrastructure - that must occur on our shared continent.
We will become more reliant on safe and emissions-free nuclear power.
That is why President Bush has put such a priority on working with our partners in North America to establish reliable, productive, and cooperative mechanisms to improve our continent's energy security.
Experts from each of our three nations continue to work on a projection of North American supply and demand for oil and gas, electricity, and coal, as well as continental import and exports.
Just last week we hosted with the State Department this year's U.S.-Canada Energy Consultative Meetings at which our two nations discussed strengthened cooperation in areas including oil sands, natural gas pipelines, carbon capture and storage, and nuclear power.

Let me just mention that, in regard to nuclear power, it is estimated that Canada has about 10 percent of the world's uranium reserves. Access to this vital supply will be indispensable to meeting increased demand for nuclear fuel on this continent.
We also will continue to work with Canada on developing and building our shared energy infrastructure - and let me say here that the United States government remains strongly committed to expediting the siting, permitting and construction of the pipelines that will help North America take advantage of our own natural resources."


Gosh, is that old "North American brand" idea coming across clearly enough here?
Pathetic really, isn't it? Not two new ideas to rub together since their Task Force.

One last note : Remember all those newspaper articles a short while back from professional Canada slagger Michael Hart? I had forgotten until I looked up the names of the members of the Task Force that he was one of them. The book is available online here.

Happy 9th Annversary

Medical Advancements . . . .

Compliments of my friend Tyler:

An Israeli doctor says "Medicine in my country is so advanced that we can take a kidney out of one man, put it in another, and have him looking for work in six weeks."

A German doctor says "That is nothing. We can take a lung out of one person, put it in another, and have him looking for work in four weeks."

A Russian doctor says "In my country, medicine is so advanced that we can take half a heart out of one person, put it in another, and have them both looking for work in two weeks."


The Texas doctor, not to be outdone, says "You guys are way behind. We recently took a man with no brains out of Texas, put him in the White House for eight years, and now half the country is looking for work."

Clowncar terrorism update

CBC : An RCMP informant who infiltrated an alleged homegrown militant group has acknowledged the person now on trial had little or no knowledge of the group's plans.

Having recently converted from Hinduism to Islam, the accused was eager to learn. So Shaikh [the RCMP informant] told him the camp was a religious retreat where he would learn about the faith and also test physical skills, as laid out in the Koran.

G&M : While the Crown contends the camp was intended as terrorist training, Mr. Shaikh readily agreed the recruits were told they were going to a religious camp.
"That was the cover story," Mr. Shaikh said.
"They weren't told anything about attacking Parliament?" Mr. Chernovsky asked.
"That's correct,” Mr. Shaikh said.

He said the campers could have viewed wearing fatigues, playing paintball or pretending to be Muslim fighters in Chechnya as a game of cowboys and Indians or cops and robbers, he added.
At one point, he said, the leaders hid in the bushes and made wolf and bear noises.
"They sat in the tent terrified," court heard of the other campers. "They ended up huddled, shivering in the tent."

This is the testimony of the prosecution's star witness.
The case so far : Getting the accused to join what they were told was a religious retreat and then prosecuting them for not doing something that they didn't know anything about.

16 lakes to be "reclassified" as toxic dump sites

CBC : 16 Canadian lakes are slated to be officially but quietly "reclassified" as toxic dump sites for mines. The lakes include prime wilderness fishing lakes from B.C. to Newfoundland.

Environmentalists say the process amounts to a "hidden subsidy" to mining companies, allowing them to get around laws against the destruction of fish habitat.

Under the Fisheries Act, it's illegal to put harmful substances into fish-bearing waters. But, under a little-known subsection known as Schedule Two of the mining effluent regulations, federal bureaucrats can redefine lakes as "tailings impoundment areas."
That means mining companies don't need to build containment ponds for toxic mine tailings.

Catherine Coumans, spokeswoman for the environmental group Mining Watch : "Something that used to be a lake — or a river, in fact, they can use rivers — by being put on this section two of this regulation is no longer a river or a lake," she said. "It's a tailings impoundment area. It's a waste disposal site. It's an industrial waste dump."

Steve Robertson, exploration manager for Imperial Metals : "This is a project that can bring a lot of good jobs, long-term jobs, well-paying jobs ..."

When was the public review process that okayed subverting the Fisheries Act to allow public lands to be used as toxic dump sites for private interests?

And I'll bet you're not at all surprised to learn that Sacred Headwaters is on that list.

Cross-posted at Creekside

I'm Voting Republican . . . .

Enjoy, and make sure you watch it all the way through the credits.




Just about says it all, eh ? ? ? ?

(Cross-posted from Moved to Vancouver)

The Company We Keep

"American soldiers herded the detainees into holding pens of razor-sharp concertina wire, the kind that's used to corral livestock.

The guards kicked, kneed and punched many of the men until they collapsed in pain. U.S. troops shackled and dragged other detainees to small isolation rooms, then hung them by their wrists from chains dangling from the wire mesh ceiling.

Former guards and detainees whom McClatchy interviewed said Bagram was a center of systematic brutality for at least 20 months, starting in late 2001. Yet the soldiers responsible have escaped serious punishment."

snip

"The Bush administration refuses to release full records of detainee treatment in the war on terrorism, and no senior Bush administration official would agree to an on-the-record interview to discuss McClatchy's findings." - Has a familiar ring doesn't it?

snip

"The head of U.S. forces in Afghanistan when prisoners were being abused at Bagram, then-Lt. Gen. Dan K. McNeill, declined an interview request. McNeill was later made the commander of all NATO forces in Afghanistan, a post he held until recently."

It is said that people are judged by the company they keep and the company they keep away from.

This is the company Harper's Canada keeps.

How do you like it so far?

Unsolicited and Unrequested Endorsement

As of this Tuesday evening I am off to the cottage in Ontario for a month.

This time we find ourselves in the position of having to rent a car for the month as last summer we sold the old '92 Ford Escort we had been keeping in Ontario.

So I did some web ferreting and found a little company called Affordable Car Rental in Brampton.

A York University economics student owns and runs the joint.

For the month we are at the cottage a new or one year old model Hyundai Accent is going to cost us less than $800.00 to rent. Should that prove to small for us when we arrive and try to fit everything in we will take a Toyota Corolla for less than $900.00.

Unlimited mileage on either. Free airport pick up and drop off.

After all the ferreting I did I can say that this is better than anything else I found.

I'll let you know how it all worked out when I'm back.

That is all. See you in mid July.

Good Grief . . . .

Per Reuters this morning:

Bush contemplates writing his memoir
Sun Jun 15, 2008


LONDON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush, scrutinized in books by former colleagues including a blistering critique by his ex-spokesman, is considering writing a memoir of his own.

Bush has been silent on former spokesman Scott McClellan's book, which said the White House shaded the truth and conducted a propaganda campaign to make its case to invade Iraq and topple Saddam Hussein in 2003.

Asked if he planned to pen his own book after leaving office in January, Bush said it was a possibility.

"I'm going to think about that, yes -- writing a book," Bush said in an interview with Britain's Observer newspaper published on Sunday.

Can't you just hear the jokes spinning around in people's minds already?

The late night comedians are going to have a field day with this one . . . .

(Cross-posted from Moved to Vancouver)

Sometimes Google boggles

Dana's view seems to have attracted a lot of attention.

Gone again. Should I fall behind...

Will this never end?



I'm off to the wilds again. Back in a few days.

Deposing a Monsanto chemist

Things get a little out of hand.



H/T Lindsay.