Mind Vomit by the ikss ~ a journal
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Wednesday, Jun. 16, 2004ergh, the next generation
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�Once in his life, every man is entitled to fall madly in love with a gorgeous redhead�
-Lucille Ball
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Science without humanity,
Wealth without work,
Commerce without morality,
Politics without principles,
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--Gandhi
"We have not inherited the world from our forfathers -
We have borrowed it from our children."
--Kashmiri, proverb
~~~
I�m in a shitty mood today, folks.
I�m reaching my �fed up� point as far was work goes. The Little Big Man is finally back at work today, but of course I am trying to act as a buffer for him, so he doesn�t need to deal with too much bullshit (oh and let's not forget that he "may be" leaving early today and then taking a couple of days off so that he can move in to his new home). Our Credit Analyst, Kim, is in New York for the rest of the week which means lot of extra work for the ol� ikss. To top it off, the owner of this fair company for which I work is having me jump through hoops for one of our customers � one who so does not deserve the hoops I and others am continually jumping through. This means that I have been unable to devote time and energy to a couple of accounts who need and actually deserve my time and energy and whom I have already put off because of my extra work load lately. Of course, that doesn�t keep those customers from hounding me, along with everyone in my building.
To top things off, the Rad Pad Jr. isn�t ready yet! Actually, it�s �ready� but the lovely Miss Darla still has some furniture items in it. I knew that�s what was going on � I could see a huge armoire in the living room as I was walking to my garage the other day. I told John, �I�ll bet she needs someone to help her move that and that�s really what I�m waiting for.�
I received confirmation of this, this morning.
Ergh�
So as it looks right now, I won�t be able to actually move in until Saturday. This will have to be OK, but it irritates me as I was hoping to get everything I could move by myself all moved in and put away, bit-by-bit, over the next few evenings. (Move a box, unpack that box; repeat as needed.) That way, John and I would only have to move my furniture on Saturday and I could spend Sunday cleaning the Rad Pad. Now I�m actually going to have to box everything up and move it over all in one day, then spend however long it takes to unpack everything, clean it and put it away.
It all pisses me off, really. I know my actual move-in date isn�t until Saturday anyway, but the bottom line is that this woman has now had two months to move her shit out of that apartment and had she done so, I could get things done a hell of a lot more easily and more conveniently. And what�s convenient for the ikss is really what matters, right?
Anyway, in keeping with my unruly mood, following are some news items for your �enjoyment�.
Top News
Wednesday, June 16, 2004
9/11 Panel Disputes Iraq Link to Attacks
[Well�duh!]
WASHINGTON (AP) - Bluntly contradicting the Bush administration, the commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks reported Wednesday there was "no credible evidence" that Saddam Hussein had ties with al-Qaida.
In a chilling report that sketched the history of Osama bin Laden's network, the commission said his far-flung training camps were "apparently quite good." Terrorists-to-be were encouraged to "think creatively about ways to commit mass murder," it added.
As devastating as the Sept. 11 attacks were, the commission disclosed that an earlier, more ambitious plan called for hijacking 10 planes instead of four. The target list for such a strike ranged from coast to coast, including the CIA and FBI headquarters as well as unidentified nuclear plants, and tall buildings in California and Washington state.
Bin Laden made overtures to Saddam for assistance, the commission said, as he did with leaders in Sudan, Iran, Afghanistan and elsewhere in his drive to build an Islamic army.
While Saddam dispatched a senior Iraqi intelligence official to Sudan to meet with bin Laden in 1994, the commission said it had not turned up evidence of a "collaborative relationship."
The Bush administration has long claimed links between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaida, and cited them as one reason for last year's invasion of Iraq.
On Monday, Vice President Dick Cheney said in a speech that the Iraqi dictator "had long established ties with al-Qaida."
President Bush has said there is no evidence that Saddam was involved in the Sept. 11 attacks.
But critics have alleged the administration has left a contrary impression with the public. Last fall, Cheney referred to what he called a credible but unconfirmed intelligence report that Mohamed Atta, one of the Sept. 11 hijackers, had met at least once in Prague with a senior Iraqi intelligence official a few months before the attacks.
The panel report said that meeting never happened. . .
Fred Fielding, a Republican member of the commission, prodded witnesses on the relationship between al-Qaida and Saddam, noting a 1998 indictment of the terrorist leader that alleged ties.
U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald of Illinois said that while such claims were contained in the original indictment, they were dropped when later charges were filed. . .
With the commission's work winding down [The panel intends to issue a final report in July], testimony by lower-level officials lacked the drama of earlier appearances by national security adviser Condoleezza Rice, Attorney General John Ashcroft and others. . .
The Iraq connection long suggested by administration officials gained no currency in the report. . .
�Two senior bin Laden associates have adamantly denied that any ties existed between al-Qaida and Iraq," the report said.
Sept. 11 panel: On the Net
Text of the report is available here
Text of a second report is available here
~~~
Dear MoveOn member,
Last night, I got a chance to see a sneak preview of Michael Moore's new film Fahrenheit 9/11. It is an incredibly powerful movie that lays bare the cynicism and greed behind Bush's war policy. And the astonishing and revealing footage in it has the power to change the course of the 2004 election. (There's a full review below.)
Given how devastating the movie is to President Bush's carefully crafted facade, it's hardly surprising that right-wing groups who call Moore a "domestic enemy" are using censorship and intimidation tactics to try to get it pulled from theaters. That's why we've got to do everything we can to make the opening a huge success.
Today, we're asking MoveOn members to pledge to see the film on the opening night -- Friday, June 25th. (If you can't make it on Friday, pledging to go on Saturday or Sunday is fine, too). It'll be fun, of course -- you'll be watching the movie with lots of other MoveOn members. It'll also send an unmistakable message to the media and theater owners that the public is behind this movie.
To see the Fahrenheit 9/11 trailer and pledge to see the movie on the opening weekend, go here
Then please pass this message on to your friends, family, and co-workers.
Fahrenheit 9/11 isn't just the most powerful and complete indictment of the Bush administration that I've ever seen - it's one of the best movies I've ever seen. It's a knockout blow: a poignant, darkly funny film that deftly interweaves footage of the President, his allies, and the Americans his policies betrayed. As Fox News' reviewer put it, the movie "is a tribute to patriotism, to the American sense of duty - and at the same time an indictment of stupidity and avarice." (See this page for the full review.) Despite years of television coverage on Iraq and the war on terror, most of the movie consists of footage you'd never see on TV. There are heart-breaking interviews with troops in Iraq, chilling scenes of the civilian consequences of that war, and footage of Bush so candid and revealing that it's hard to imagine how Moore got his hands on it. In one unforgettable scene from the morning of September 11th, Bush blithely reads a children's book to a classroom of kids for seven long minutes after his chief of staff quietly informs him that the second plane has hit the World Trade Center and "we're under attack." The film is filled with this stuff, and it's hard to imagine seeing it and not being moved, shocked, and outraged.
Fahrenheit 9/11 opens with footage of Bush administration officials putting on their TV makeup. Paul Wolfowitz sticks his comb in his mouth, slathers it with spit, brushes it through his hair, and grins a toothy grin. Colin Powell eyes the camera nervously as a makeup artist dusts his face. And, moments before President Bush goes on TV to somberly announce the beginning of the Iraq war, we see him goofing around, making funny faces at the folks behind the camera.
These candid portraits encapsulate the genius of Moore's documentary. Compared to his other films, there's little pranking or moralizing. Moore basically stays out of the picture: he doesn't have to indict the Bush administration, because with powerful and indisputable video, Bush and the rest indict themselves.
As Moore unravels Bush's story, he joins it with the stories of the real Americans who have shouldered the burden of the post-9/11 war policy. In Flint, Michigan, we hear from a group of inner-city kids whose only option for education and a better life is to enlist in the Army - and then, in a scene that's both humorous and deeply creepy, join two Marine recruiters as they case a local mall for possible enlistees. We watch a California peace group that was infiltrated by the local police department under the Patriot Act. And, in the final heartbreaking scenes, we witness the pain of a mother who lost her son in Iraq.
In the hands of other directors, the content could easily feel exploitative. But Moore is grounded by a patriotism that rings through every frame of the film. Compassion and love of country give the film its striking authenticity: it's clear that what stings most about the President's behavior, for the subjects of the film, is Bush's betrayal of our country's soul.
Fahrenheit 9/11 is a film with the power to change hearts and minds. It's brilliant, funny, moving, and authentic. And together, we can make it a huge success.
Watch the trailer and pledge to see the film opening night
Sincerely,
--Eli Pariser
MoveOn PAC
Wednesday, June 16th
P.S. Fahrenheit 9/11 has already reaped widespread praise from critics. Here are just a few samples:
Roger Ebert, "Less is Moore in subdued, effective '9/11'," Chicago Sun Times, May 18, 2004 "Despite these dramatic moments, the most memorable footage for me involved President Bush on Sept. 11. [Ebert goes on to describe the scene.] The look on his face as he reads the book, knowing what he knows, is disquieting."
Mary Corliss, "A First Look at "Fahrenheit 9/11," Time Magazine Online, May 17, 2004 Corliss calls the film, "Moore�s own War on Error."
Frank Rich, "Beautiful Minds and Ugly Truths," International Herald Tribune, May 21, 2004 "'Fahrenheit 9/11' is not the movie Moore watchers, fans or foes, were expecting. (If it were, the foes would find it easier to ignore.)"
~~~
Tongass Forest Awaits Critical Decision As Bush Pushes Logging
One of the country's longest-running forest disputes has heated up again, with Congress scheduled to vote Thursday on whether or not to continue to allow taxpayer dollars to fund the Bush administration's plans to log in the Tongass National Forest.
The Tongass, which cover's Alaska's "panhandle" (where Juneau is located), is America's only rain forest -- home to eagles, bears, wolves, wild salmon, and other wildlife that have either disappeared or become scarce elsewhere in the nation. Logging in the Tongass has put America in a quandary: the U.S. had no moral standing to lecture other nations about logging old-growth forests while we were logging our only rainforest.
Prime old-growth timber in the Tongass has been protected since January 2001 under the Roadless Area Conservation Rule promulgated by former President Clinton. The rule protects 58.5 million acres of pristine land in National Forests across the country. But last December, President Bush carved out an exception for the Tongass, paving the way for clearcut logging of over 300,000 acres. Associated road building to support the logging would affect more than 2.5 million acres.
Adding insult to injury, America's taxpayers would subsidize logging in the Tongass. In 2002, despite being propped up by $36 million in taxpayer money, the Tongass could support only 195 logging jobs.
"The Tongass National Forest is the largest intact temperate rainforest in the world and it is the only National Forest without Roadless protections," Cindy Shogan, executive director of the Alaska Wilderness League told BushGreenwatch. "Why should America's taxpayers foot the bill to clearcut this national treasure?"
Sometime this week, the House of Representatives will vote on the Appropriations bill for the Interior Department. At that time, two Congressmen, Steve Chabot (R-OH) and Rob Andrews (D-NJ) will offer an amendment to block funding for new logging roads in the Tongass this year. By passing the Chabot/Andrews amendment, Congress would stop a wasteful federal subsidy while protecting America's last remaining rainforest at the same time.
###
TAKE ACTION
Contact your representative about Tongass National Forest through the Alaska Rainforest Campaign.
SOURCES:
[1] Alaska Wilderness League web site.
~~~
Word of the Day for Wednesday June 16, 2004
ancillary AN-suh-lair-ee, noun:
1. Subordinate; subsidiary.
2. Auxiliary; helping.
noun: Something that is subordinate to something else.
last / next
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