from Aurgasm:
Justin Timberlake vs. Corey Hart - I Wear My SexyBack at Night (Cheekyboy Edit)
and the scary thing is...its kinda cool, in a completely cheesy kinda way
September 2006 Archives
As a nation, we continue down a road of insignificance. Yesterday the House of Representatives passed HR 6166. This resolution allows the following things: (from the sidebar of this CNN Article)
- Requires that a defendant being tried by military commission have access to any evidence given to a jury.
- Drops a section of the administration's previous proposal that stated an existing ban on cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment satisfies the nation's obligations under the Geneva Conventions.
- Prohibits "grave breaches" of the Geneva Conventions. Defines grave breaches as acts such as torture, rape, biological experiments and cruel and inhuman treatment.
- Notes the president has the authority to interpret "the meaning and application" of the Geneva Conventions.
- Allows hearsay evidence.
- Allows coerced testimony if the statement was acquired before a 2005 ban on cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment and a judge finds it to be reliable. Bans coerced statements taken after the 2005 ban went into effect if it violates constitutional definitions of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.
- Bars individuals from protesting violations of Geneva Conventions standards in court.
(Bullet points from the Associated Press)
We are flaunting years of international agreements. We are damaging America's reputation with the rest of the world. We are endangering our soldiers in future conflicts. And for a country that is supposably "Christian," we are not acting like it. We will not be able to undo this legislation. Even if the Democrats try to change it after the mid-term elections, they will not have enough votes to over rule a Presidential veto. Plus 34 Democrats voted for this resolution (names and states represented below the cut). More than likely the Senate will pass this as well today and Bush will quickly sign it into law.
Why doesn't American care? What can we do? Are we going to see a theocratic American in my lifetime? These are my fears. Its almost as if some of the "Christian right" are trying to speed along the rapture.
US Senator Russ Feingold's statement In Opposition to the Military Commissions Act
US Senator John Kerry speaks out as well as reported on The Democratic Daily.
US Senator Hillary Clinton speaks as reported on Crooks and Liars.
US Senator Barak Obama speaks as reported on Eschaton.
Update: The Bill passes the Senate 65-34.
On Monday's edition of Countdown, Keith Olbermann chimes in with another Special Comment. The subject of this comment, Fox News interview of former President Bill Clinton. [View Transcript (video is also available on the MSNBC site)] I'll quote a highlight below:
Bill Clinton did what almost none of us have done in five years.
He has spoken the truth about 9/11, and the current presidential administration.
"At least I tried," he said of his own efforts to capture or kill Osama bin Laden. "That's the difference in me and some, including all of the right-wingers who are attacking me now. They had eight months to try; they did not try. I tried."
Thus in his supposed emeritus years has Mr. Clinton taken forceful and triumphant action for honesty, and for us; action as vital and as courageous as any of his presidency; action as startling and as liberating, as any, by any one, in these last five long years.
The Bush Administration did not try to get Osama bin Laden before 9/11.
The Bush Administration ignored all the evidence gathered by its predecessors.
The Bush Administration did not understand the Daily Briefing entitled "Bin Laden Determined To Strike in U.S."
The Bush Administration did not try.
Moreover, for the last five years one month and two weeks, the current administration, and in particular the President, has been given the greatest "pass" for incompetence and malfeasance in American history!
President Roosevelt was rightly blamed for ignoring the warning signs--some of them, 17 years old--before Pearl Harbor.
President Hoover was correctly blamed for--if not the Great Depression itself--then the disastrous economic steps he took in the immediate aftermath of the Stock Market Crash.
Even President Lincoln assumed some measure of responsibility for the Civil War--though talk of Southern secession had begun as early as 1832.
But not this president.
For me this is a scary thing. The current administration seems to have no concept of humility. As a country we have a huge responsibility to act as true leaders in the world. We have done that in the past. We are not doing it anymore. If unchecked, we are heading to an authoritarian style of government. Slowly our supposed "freedoms" are being whittled away in the name of "security." But are we safer from the actions of the current administration? I would say in fact that we are moving further away from a world were some sort of peace is possible. A place where instead of dividing, we as a world would be coming together.
For my review of Part 1 of The Seven Storey Mountain click here.
Parts 2 & 3 of The Seven Storey Mountain were much more enjoyable for me. And as a result, I got a lot more out of these sections of the book. I think in the end I had the expectation of the later Merton who was much more open to non-Catholics. The harshness of the young Merton (and Father Louis) was a little unsettling for me.
The things that stuck most for me in this section were nuggets of wisdom about discernment and vocation. Merton's journey from conversion to the monastery was fascinating for me as well. My reading of this book has been timely for me. This was of course a purposeful reading on my part. With the hiatus of my path to seminary it has been a time to rediscover aspects of my faith. My faith hasn't been something I've questioned, however I have let it coast somewhat recently. Its time for me to get my hands a little dirty with my spiritual life again.
I'm going to take a weekend retreat at Our Lady of Guadalupe Trappist Abbey next month. I'm really looking forward to this time to really focus on my faith life. There are also a few sections of The Seven Storey Mountain that I plan to meditate over the next month or so. I'll probably post on a few of those later on this blog.
television (a haiku)
our windowed world
brought to us on cable news
safely packaged
more windows & doorways from one deep breath
Was able to check out DJ Krush last night at Holocene. The show was great (as expected). If you haven't heard him definitely go to his webpage and listen to the background music. Of course, going out on a work night makes for a very tired morning the next day, but it was totally worth it. I'd go again tonight if he was spinning in town again tonight...even as dirt tired as I am already.
So I figured out why Typekey wasn't working on my site this morning. So if any of ya'll have tried logging in, in the past, you shouldn't have any problems now (and I'll be able to add you as a trusted commenter.)
I knew a little about this back in 2004 when it first came up, on Crooks and Lairs today there is a piece about the IRS investigation of All Saint's Episcopal Church in Pasadena, CA. Why Doesn't the IRS Investigate James Dobson? Basically a former rector of the parish delivered an anti-war sermon a couple of days before the 2004 elections. Not long after that the IRS came knocking threating to revoke the parish's tax exempt status. The reason: The Rev. George Regas' sermon was seen as "endorsing or campaigning against a candidate in an election."
So why isn't organizations like James Dobson's Focus on the Family being threatened with revocation of tax-exempt status? Many of the "christian right" groups are activively campaigning for and against candidates. Yet few of these groups are being investigated for violations of the tax code.
from MadHaiku:
Two more years...
a new flick about
the bush administration:
jackass number two
All I've got to say is wow...cuz really could you think of two more asinine things than another jackass movie and the bush administration.
I liked Keith Olbermann when he was a sportscenter anchor on espn. I like him more now that he is working in news outside of the sports world. Now granted I don't have msnbc, so I'm basing this comment on a few clips i've seen in the last few weeks on the crooks and liars blog.
On Sept. 11th, on his show "Countdown," Olbermann talks about President Bush's legacy 5 years after the Sept. 11th attacks. Here is the link to the entry on crooks and liars: 9/11 Special Comment [Click through to view the video files].
In Monday's Special Comment on Countdown, Olbermann talks about the President's "justification" of the methods used in the "war" on terror. [The President owes the country an apology] It amazes me that more of the country isn't deeply ashamed of this administration. It amazes me that the people of this country are still seemingly silent. Maybe in November the mid-term elections will show that the "silent majority" really is fed up with Bush. But what does it solve if we just get the Democrats back in control of Congress? The administration seems to ignore the will of Congress now, and Republicans are in charge.
We like to call ourselves a "Christian" nation (especially the conservatives). But are we truely living the gospel message? Are we caring for the sick, the poor, our elders? I don't see it. Heck, we don't even do it for our own citizens, much less the global world that we want to lead by example. We as a nation are falling short in our stewardship of the global community. We need to be building up communities, even if they believe differently, instead of tearing them down.
