Morning BC.

Morning y'all.
I loved Robert Mitchum!

For all you Grateful Dead listeners(lovers). I just got back from Asheville (Stereoman's stomping ground....yes it was hot and muggy but awesome anyhow). We went to a Jerry Garcia birthday tribute concert and it was stunningly good.
Set list...Help is on the Way, Slipnot, Franklin Tower, Samson and Delilah, West LA Fadeaway, Queen Jane, Shakedown, Scarlot Begonia, Music Never Stops, Estimated Prophet, Drums(with the addition of a local), He's Gone, One More Saturday Night, Masterpiece (my request), and Terrapin Station.
Twas very good.

Thanks for the donut.

Olyve

Mornin' everyone!

You got donuts???

* The state of Nebraska is the last to use the electric chair...and they wonder why folks think they're backwards. Mississippi doesn't use the electric chair any more, for cry sakes.

* Maybe we could get a few hundred more copies of the Constitution, and glue 'em to the desk tops in the House and Senate.

* I've been to Hiroshima, and to Nagasaki, and I don't think I'll ever be quite the same. I wish the US had a museum similar to the ones in those two cities.

* Need a cheerful thought to close on...ok: Hurray for the Great Entertainers - Harry Houdini and the Grateful Dead!

Mornin', y'all - - just passin' through.

Good Morning. Bob, maybe you can fill us in. I hear that there is going to be a significant sky event on or about August 27th. Mars should appear very large and red.

What do you know?

Hope you all have a great day.

Steve, I'm getting tomatoes and okra from my "garden."

...reminder...better go water said plants.....

Who's got donuts?

I'll have an apple-fritter, please - and a glass of milk.

Good morning ladies: Kathy, Olyve, Mellow Julia, elsiejk

...and you too, Bob!

I ate a cheese bear claw (all of it) Saturday. Whoever invented philo (sp) dough was a genius.

Well time to walk off the weekend excesses........

Kathy

COINCIDENCE? I think NOT!


From the Church of Ineffable Stupidity:

a) IraqNam
160,000 or 1/3 of the automatice rifles and handguns provided to Iraq's army are gone. In the hands of insurgents. Many more bombs went off, killing dozens. More the 60 tortured, murdered bodies found in the streets.
The Maliki government is falling, making the key measure (political solution) of the surge impossible to reach.

But according to 7 out of 8 GOP candidates, the Surge is a success.
- - -

b) Judy Miller
From her own mouth and pen,

In other words, Judy admitted to being a stenographic White House Whore. No wonder we found ourselves in this mess - the journalists didn't even think that doing their original jobs was worth doing anymore.

Marcy Wheeler has written a brilliant book digging into the run up to the war, and how the Bush Administration has gamed the system in using journalists for propaganda entitled ANATOMY OF DECEIT. It is a quick, but worthwhile read. Highly recommended.
- - -

c) Afghanistan
as the death spiral of US efforts at rebuilding continues, one glimmer of hope exists. A market economy is growing stronger each day, especially outside of Kabul. The opium market is having a record year, with poppies blooming all over.

For those who can't or won't recall, the Taliban had banned poppy growing and had pretty much eradicated the opium exports. Now that they are fighting the western devil, sending opium abroad to the US and Europe just makes sense.
- - -

d) GOP Iowa-y caucus
Online polls found Ron Paul winning 4-1. Telephone Polls found Ron Paul winning 3.5-1. E-mails supported Ron Paul 6-1 over the next highest candidate. Phone in polls found heavy support for Ron Paul, with Giuliani, Thompson (F), Romney far behind.

So, who did the GOP announce as the winner of the GOP Caucus debate on Sunday?
Mitt Romney.

If you EVER think that this system is not gamed and pre-ordained, think again.
- - -

e) Condi Rice
her latest code word? "Transformational Diplomacy"
This supposedly describes her efforts to fix what was not broken, at least until she drove the Department into the ground, and close to 5 feet under. Her deft administrative touch, her warm, talented and effective leadership, and her knowledge and understanding of subtle global affairs have caused so much trouble and strife within the Department that she was forced to announce a push to "reinvigorate and modernize the State Department. . . ."


Translation: State is gonna do what King George wants, with me telling them what to do and how to do it.

So, how has this Transformational Diplomacy worked around the world?
i. South America - Cuba, Venezuela, are more popular than ever, and US efforts are being openly laughed at. More anti-American ism exists than since the 1950s.
ii. Central and North America - Canada looks south and shakes its head. Mexico is seething at US policies.
iii. Europe - A total failure. Only Poland stands tall with the US, and even there, many pols are arguing against following our lead.
iv. Russia - a new cold war is brewing, solely because of Condi's total ineptness and the stupidity of Bush's policies on missiles, trade, security and more.
v. China - they have grabbed the reins of Pacific Rim leadership. Condi is too busy to attend the meetings. Distrust of US policies has never been higher.
vi. Africa - the religious based policies promoted by Bush are a dismal failure. The experimentation by US drug companies on the youth of Africa has created a deep, and growing, hatred of all things US. Our failure to stop Darfur proves we are all talk, no action. Or no good action.
vii. Australasia - the people are nervous and dislike Team Bush.
viii. Belgium - AH, the success story. After a great number of beers, and lots of pot, Belgians secretly admit that they enjoy watching Condi Rice on TV. "She is much funnier than any of our domestic comedians these days. I can't believe how creative your Hollywood is. Imagine if she were actually in charge. Ha ha ha! You Americans! So funny!"