COLLECTIVE MADNESS


“Soft despotism is a term coined by Alexis de Tocqueville describing the state into which a country overrun by "a network of small complicated rules" might degrade. Soft despotism is different from despotism (also called 'hard despotism') in the sense that it is not obvious to the people."

Friday, May 23, 2008

James Earl Obama


Beware of Big-Eared Democrats who use the word "shameful".


From the beginning, I have been convinced that Obama is an empty suit. His orgasmic influence over the increasingly ridiculous MSM will come to haunt the Democrats. Better yet, Obama reminds me of Jimmy Carter.

Obama is rapidly sliding down the messiah pole. A delicious thought.

______________☂_______________

Obama's Metastatic Gaffe

By Charles Krauthammer WaPo
Friday, May 23, 2008

When the House of Representatives takes up arms against $4 gas by voting 324-84 to sue OPEC, you know that election-year discourse has entered the realm of the surreal. Another unmistakable sign is when a presidential candidate makes a gaffe, then, realizing it is too egregious to take back without suffering humiliation, decides to make it a centerpiece of his foreign policy.

Before the Democratic debate of July 23, Barack Obama had never expounded upon the wisdom of meeting, without precondition, with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Bashar al-Assad, Hugo Chávez, Kim Jong Il or the Castro brothers. But in that debate, he was asked about doing exactly that. Unprepared, he said sure -- then got fancy, declaring the Bush administration's refusal to do so not just "ridiculous" but "a disgrace."

After that, there was no going back. So he doubled down. What started as a gaffe became policy. By now, it has become doctrine. Yet it remains today what it was on the day he blurted it out: an absurdity.

Should the president ever meet with enemies? Sometimes, but only after minimal American objectives -- i.e., preconditions -- have been met. The Shanghai communique was largely written long before Richard Nixon ever touched down in China. Yet Obama thinks Nixon to China confirms the wisdom of his willingness to undertake a worldwide freshman-year tyrants tour.

Most of the time you don't negotiate with enemy leaders because there is nothing to negotiate. Does Obama imagine that North Korea, Iran, Syria, Cuba and Venezuela are insufficiently informed about American requirements for improved relations?

There are always contacts through back channels or intermediaries. Iran, for example, has engaged in five years of talks with our closest European allies and the International Atomic Energy Agency, to say nothing of the hundreds of official U.S. statements outlining exactly what we would give them in return for suspending uranium enrichment.

Obama pretends that while he is for such "engagement," the cowboy Republicans oppose it. Another absurdity. No one is debating the need for contacts. The debate is over the stupidity of elevating rogue states and their tyrants, easing their isolation, and increasing their leverage by granting them unconditional meetings with the president of the world's superpower.

Obama cited Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman as presidents who met with enemies. Does he know no history? Neither Roosevelt nor Truman ever met with any of the leaders of the Axis powers. Obama must be referring to the pictures he's seen of Roosevelt and Stalin at Yalta, and Truman and Stalin at Potsdam. Does he not know that at that time Stalin was a wartime ally?

During the subsequent Cold War, Truman never met with Stalin. Nor Mao. Nor Kim Il Sung. Truman was no fool.

Obama cites John Kennedy meeting Nikita Khrushchev as another example of what he wants to emulate. Really? That Vienna summit of a young, inexperienced, untested American president was disastrous, emboldening Khrushchev to push Kennedy on Berlin -- and then nearly fatally in Cuba, leading almost directly to the Cuban missile crisis. Is that the precedent Obama aspires to follow?

A meeting with Ahmadinejad would not just strengthen and vindicate him at home, it would instantly and powerfully ease the mullahs' isolation, inviting other world leaders to follow. And with that would come a flood of commercial contracts, oil deals, diplomatic agreements -- undermining the very sanctions and isolation that Obama says he would employ against Iran.

As every seasoned diplomat knows, the danger of a summit is that it creates enormous pressure for results. And results require mutual concessions. That is why conditions and concessions are worked out in advance, not on the scene.

What concessions does Obama imagine Ahmadinejad will make to him on Iran's nuclear program? And what new concessions will Obama offer? To abandon Lebanon? To recognize Hamas? Or perhaps to squeeze Israel?

Having lashed himself to the ridiculous, unprecedented promise of unconditional presidential negotiations -- and then having compounded the problem by elevating it to a principle -- Obama keeps trying to explain. On Sunday, he declared in Pendleton, Ore., that by Soviet standards Iran and others "don't pose a serious threat to us." (On the contrary. Islamic Iran is dangerously apocalyptic. Soviet Russia was not.) The next day in Billings, Mont.: "I've made it clear for years that the threat from Iran is grave."

That's the very next day, mind you. Such rhetorical flailing has done more than create an intellectual mess. It has given rise to a new political phenomenon: the metastatic gaffe. The one begets another, begets another, begets . . .




103 comments:

  1. Obama mentioned the word "thermostat" in a recent speech. I suppose next he's going to give fireside chats about malaise in the White House while wearing a sweater.

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  2. Big Polluters Will Be Fined
    The Bay Area air-quality district passes groundbreaking rules to penalize businesses that expel high levels of carbon dioxide.

    "Someone needs to take a first step, and we're running out of time, when you look at the bay rising 3 feet by 2100 and the devastating effects of climate change," said San Mateo County Supervisor Jerry Hill, the air district chairman.
    "This is a more expensive proposition if we do nothing."

    The 15-1 vote by the Bay Area Air Quality Management District sets the stage for 2,500 companies and agencies - from supermarkets to gas stations to power plants - to pay 4.4 cents for every metric ton of carbon dioxide they expel, beginning July 1. The top 10 companies combined would pay more than $820,000. The fee for a large share of businesses would be less than $1.

    ---
    Health and social services advocates see the fee-based approach as more immediate and direct at a time when weather patterns seem more volatile and detrimental.
    One (hot)*air expert* pointed to an 18-day stretch in the summer of 2006, when heat-related emergency room visits jumped from a typical 350 to more than 2,500.

    "These sort of heat episodes will continue to happen in the context of climate change and global warming," said Shankar Prasad, 'a fellow with the Coalition for Clean Air.
    The air quality board's vote
    "is the first step in the right direction. It's a precedent-setting step, a monumental decision."

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  3. (Good that the Bay Area air-quality district can prevent the Bay from rising 3 feet by fining "polluters")

    If a local entity can have such monumental global effects at such a small cost, future possibilities are unlimited.

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  4. Duece

    You're getting down right "good" with your visual aids. I wish I had the bullseye-ass pic as a bumper sticker...

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  5. WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States should increase diplomatic and economic pressure on Iran to counter its rising influence, while retaining possible military action as a "last resort," a top U.S. military officer said Thursday.

    Gen. David Petraeus, President Bush's nominee to oversee military operations in the Middle East and Central Asia, told the Senate that current international pressure on Iran already appears to be "affecting the Iranian energy market and may convince Tehran to focus on longer-term, less malign interests."

    Petraeus, currently the U.S. commander in Iraq, appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee for a confirmation hearing on his nomination to become head of U.S. Central Command.

    "We should make every effort to engage by use of the whole of government, developing further leverage rather than simply targeting discrete threats," Petraeus said in written answers to advance questions from the committee.

    "At the same time, we should retain, as a last resort, the possibility of a range of military actions to counter Iran's activities," he said.

    The Bush administration has long said it retains a military option on the table as it presses Iran on its nuclear program. Tehran says its nuclear program is for producing energy, but Western powers say Iran is seeking to develop a nuclear weapon.

    Washington also accuses Tehran of supplying Iraqi Shi'ite militants with weapons and training for attacks on U.S. forces.

    "Our efforts in regard to Iran must involve generating international cooperation and building regional consensus to counter malign Iranian influence and destabilizing activities, while also striving to promote more constructive engagement, if that is possible," Petraeus said.

    Central Command, known as Centcom, is responsible for U.S. military interests involving 27 countries including Iran, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Lebanon. (Reporting by David Morgan; Editing by Frances Kerry)




    CSA Gen Casey has convinced in-coming US CMDR in Iraq, Odierno, to pay a visit here shortly. And I expect more such "exchange visits" in the near future.

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  6. "Gen. David Petraeus, President Bush's nominee to oversee military operations in the Middle East and Central Asia, told the Senate that current international pressure on Iran already appears to be "affecting the Iranian energy market and may convince Tehran to focus on longer-term, less malign interests."

    ...It is comforting to hear that Iran's energy market is affected. A quick scan on SUV prices and bids on ebay indicates that pressures on US markets should assist in our focus on longer-term, less malign interests.

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  8. Foreign Policy blog:

    Wed, 05/21/2008 - 4:56pm

    It seems worth pointing out that three major negotiation stories broke in the Middle East and South Asia today. Israel and Syria, technically at war since 1967, are holding historic peace talks in Turkey that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert described as a "national obligation." The Lebanese government negotiated a compromise with Hezbollah, ending 18 months of violence and political deadlock. And Pakistan's government defied the U.S. by agreeing to withdraw from Taliban-controlled territory in exchange for security guarantees.

    Of course, whether these agreements will hold up is another question. They also raise troubling questions about the increasing ability of terrorist groups to win concessions from governments. However, it's interesting to note that while American politicians debate the idea of negotiating with hostile regimes and religious extremists as if it were some abstract concept in an international relations seminar, the U.S.'s allies in the region are already doing it on their own.

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  9. And.

    This has been making the rounds:

    Powerful Iraqi cleric flirting with Shiite militant message

    By HAMZA HENDAWI and QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA – 20 hours ago

    BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq's most influential Shiite cleric has been quietly issuing religious edicts declaring that armed resistance against U.S.-led foreign troops is permissible — a potentially significant shift by a key supporter of the Washington-backed government in Baghdad.

    The edicts, or fatwas, by Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani suggest he seeks to sharpen his long-held opposition to American troops and counter the populist appeal of his main rivals, firebrand Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and his Mahdi Army militia.

    But — unlike al-Sadr's anti-American broadsides — the Iranian-born al-Sistani has displayed extreme caution with anything that could imperil the Shiite-dominated government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

    The two met Thursday at the elderly cleric's base in the city of Najaf south of Baghdad.

    So far, al-Sistani's fatwas have been limited to a handful of people. They also were issued verbally and in private — rather than a blanket proclamation to the general Shiite population — according to three prominent Shiite officials in regular contact with al-Sistani as well as two followers who received the edicts in Najaf.

    All spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject.

    Al-Sistani — who is believed to be 79 or 80 — has not been seen in public since a brief appearance in August 2004, shortly after returning from London for medical treatment for an unspecified heart condition. But his mix of religious authority and political clout makes him more powerful than any of Iraq's elected leaders.

    [...]

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  10. Maliki in Najaf. From arablinks:

    [...]

    the Maliki government is in the process of trying to announce the inauguration of a new phase in Iraqi development: Following supposed improvements in security, and in the political process, the theme now is that while the government continues to focus on these two themes, it is time to inaugurate the new phase, which will be characterized by Iraq using its financial clout to attract foreign corporations to carry out the tasks connected with economic development.

    And the key point is that the promise of this brave new world of foreign investment is being rolled out against a background of continuing reliance on foreign military power in the country. A "bold vision", you might say.

    There is a lot that could be said about the AP yesterday that said:

    Iraq's most influential Shiite cleric has been quietly issuing religious edicts declaring that armed resistance against U.S.-led foreign troops is permissible — a potentially significant shift by a key supporter of the Washington-backed government in Baghdad....So far, al-Sistani's fatwas have been limited to a handful of people. They also were issued verbally and in private — rather than a blanket proclamation to the general Shiite population — according to three prominent Shiite officials in regular contact with al-Sistani as well as two followers who received the edicts in Najaf.

    Most likely the "edicts" themselves were not that controversial, having apparently been issued to members of his protective agency and thus not outside of his own circle. The news is in the touting of them by AP and their sources. And the disclosures were made to an English-language news agency, not to an Arabic-language one, suggesting the message, it that is what this is, is to the Americans.

    And that is where the context comes in. Maliki, with his speech on the new era of foreign investment, and then his implication at the same time that Sistani agrees with continued foreign military involvement, was very boldly outlining a vision for the future of Iraq that went beyond anything that had been made public up to then, and obviously it was a vision not acceptable to the Ayatollah. Or, some would say, to any decent Iraqi for that matter. And I think that is the point of all of this: Not that the Ayatollah is against the occupation, something everyone already knew, but rather that Maliki and his American sponsors have for some reason made a point of touting a foreign-investment-first policy, against a background of foreign military involvement, that they would have been better off continuing to keep under wraps. (And probably, if you had to come up with a reason for rolling out the foreign-investment-first policy at this particular time, the answer would be that this was seen as necessary in order to foster an atmosphere of "investor confidence").




    Good for Maliki.

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  11. elijah: is Maxine Waters on the short list for U.S. Secretary of Energy?

    Maxine Waters is on the Clinton side of the ledger. I suppose she's on Hillary's short list for something, but then again I also have a short list for various ministers after I become Queen of the World. Barack Obama is the kind of guy who will abolish Homeland Security in favor of a new cabinet position, Secretary of Energy Independence.

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  12. suppose next he's going to give fireside chats

    Can't do that--think of the carbon in the smoke.

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  13. Clinton Campaign in Talks With Obama About VP Slot, CNN Says

    By Chris Dolmetsch

    May 23 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign is in formal talks with Senator Barack Obama's campaign about becoming his vice presidential running mate, CNN reported, without citing anyone specific.

    The two Democratic campaigns are talking about ways for Clinton, from New York, to drop her bid for president that may include joining the Illinois senator's ticket, CNN reported. Talks are in a ``very preliminary'' stage and are described as ``difficult,'' the network said.

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  14. If Billary wins big in Puerto Rico she may end up winning the popular vote however it's counted. Which is really hilarious when you think about it, and the dems, and Florida, and Bush.

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  15. Picking up on Elijah and what I think he is talking about, Maxine Waters threatens to nationalize the oil industry. There is no end to the amount of damaqe these people are capable of doing to the country.

    Congresswoman threatens to nationalize oil industry
    Maxine Waters warns Shell president in House committee hearing.

    In a grilling of oil executives by a House panel yesterday, Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., threatened to nationalize the industry if it didn't do something about the rising prices at the pump.

    A report by Fox News, captured in a clip posted on YouTube.com, showed Waters challenging the president of Shell Oil, John Hofmeister, to guarantee the prices consumers pay will go down if the oil companies are allowed to drill wherever they want off of U.S. shores.



    Hofmeister replied: "I can guarantee to the American people, because of the inaction of the United States Congress, ever-increasing prices unless the demand comes down. And the $5 will look like a very low price in the years to come if we are prohibited from finding new reserves, new opportunities to increase supplies."

    Waters responded, in part, "And guess what this liberal would be all about. This liberal will be about socializing … uh, um. …"

    The congresswoman paused to collect her thoughts.

    "Would be about, basically, taking over, and the government running all of your companies. …"

    The oil executives responded, according to Fox News, by saying they've seen this before, in Hugo Chavez's Venezuela.

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  16. You know, I never was much of a survivalist, a 'the machines are gonna fail' type of guy, but I'm really beginning to think, if this crew gets in there, given the state of the world, a fellow really ought to start thinking about a withdrawal from 'society' plan, perhaps in tandem with a few trusted others. I remember the gas lines and occasional gunfire at gas lines the last time around, which was just a little blimp compared to what may come. How in the world are the democrats going to solve the energy problems after withdrawing from the middle east and putting all these burdens they have done on our own industries? At most they have eight years. Our nuclear reactor here in Idaho won't even be up and running in that amount of time. Rat, you best hand on to that retreat you've got out there in the outback, I'd advise.

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  17. Think practically, think apocalyptically.

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  19. It was those morons who had the bright idea of stopping the nuclear industry, substituting coal to heat the atmosphere. It was those morons who have banned exploration and drilling everywhete. It was those morons who have been using the Endangered Species Act to frustrate. It was those morons....yep, nationalize the oil industry, let Maxine Waters lead the way, by lending her expertise to the efforts out there in the oil fields. G-Almighty. I'm buying me some fuel tanks. Remember Joseph in Egypt. Seven, no eight, lean years folks. I had a dream.

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  20. It's a French company going to build our reactor here, if it gets built. Using technology we orininally came up with.

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  21. Tonto Basin, that one is in the Trust, bob.
    Ash Fork, the dry camp on 20 acres, is still available to the public.

    The villagers are more clannish in the Basin than up on the high plains south of the Grand Canyon.

    Lots of retired military around Tonto Basin. Good lake, free flowing water, most of the year.
    Shallow wells produce.

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  22. You'll be ok. I can make out here.

    When I was farming I had a big underground gas/diesel fuel set-up. 5,000 gallons. When the property was split up, I had to take them out. Now there are more rules and regs for underground tanks, mostly foolishness. As Dr. Bill says, the oil came from the ground in the first place. Anyway, I'm thinking about my options for an independent fuel supply again. Back in the Carter days, the USDA sent us all a big booklet about how to set up a fuel making plant on the farm. No one ever used it around here then, though a couple have tried now. It works, but is a lot of hassle.

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  23. Bobal: Can't do that--think of the carbon in the smoke.

    It's carbon neutral, bobal. You know that 99.9% of a tree's mass comes from the CO2 it breathes in the air. That's how I get all the dirt I use to level out my yard, from compost.

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  24. Bobal: If Billary wins big in Puerto Rico she may end up winning the popular vote however it's counted. Which is really hilarious when you think about it, and the dems, and Florida, and Bush.

    Dr. Rachel Maddow sez:

    After the primary calendar has ended, Clinton's campaign can only justify or explain her staying in the race if she makes the case that the Democratic Party still has not chosen a nominee conclusively. Clinton needs an argument that the game should go into extra innings. Overtime. Bonus round. Detention. Whatever. Clinton has now found that argument -- she says she will not stop campaigning until the issue of the Florida and Michigan delegates is settled to her satisfaction.

    The Florida/Michigan issue get settled, of course, by the Democrats' Rules and Bylaws Committee... unless of course that committee's decision gets appealed to the Credentials Committee... unless of course that decision, too, gets appealed... to the floor of the convention.

    Do you see where this is going? If there is an open, unresolved procedural issue involving the Florida and Michigan delegations, Senator Clinton will be able to cite that as her justification for staying in the race until the convention even though she is not ahead in the nomination contest at the end of the primary calendar.

    If she can ensure that the Florida and Michigan issue stays unresolved until the convention (and by appealing it every step of the way, I don't see how that can be avoided), then Clinton stays in the race until the convention. Staying in until the convention buys her three more months of campaign time, three more months to make her case to the party and the country, three more months for some potential political unfortunateness to befall Senator Obama.

    And it keeps the race for the Democratic nomination open, at least theoretically, for Senator Clinton to win instead of Senator Obama.

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  25. And that, consequently, ensures Grampy McCainiac gets in there. That's why I've switched to McCain. I want to root for the winner.

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  26. A principled, ethical decision on your part, reflecting deeply held values.:)

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  27. Save Jupiter From Solar System Warming, Act Now

    Astronomy Picture of the Day.

    Jupiter is in deep do-do.

    Nationalize the oil companies! Ban auto exhuast!

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  28. According to Kevin Drum, Joe Biden is angling for Sec State. Stands to reason, I guess.

    Wes Clark was certainly angling for it with Hillary.

    Is anyone angling for SecDef? I think not. Gates'll keep that job for another year, if he wants it.

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  29. I wish I was out angling for cutthroat trout.
    Later.

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  30. Who wants to be McCain's SecState?

    By way of answer: Who's been doing comparable foreign policy pieces for him?

    The answer is obvious, but I can't quite picture it happening. In fact, I really can't picture it happening.

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  31. Notice how the Obamites shut down Sharpton who was threatening to shut down NYC.

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  32. That whole thing did just kind of evaporate, didn't it?

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  33. Deuce: Notice how the Obamites shut down Sharpton who was threatening to shut down NYC.

    Al Sharpton grew quiet when Obama mentioned he was on the short list for VP, along with Jeremiah Wright, William Ayers, and Louis Farrakhan.

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  34. Sharpton does seem skilled at controlled, focused indignation and outrage.

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  35. The problem with Bush preconditions is that he puts the cart before the horse. Cave to US and then we'll talk...riiiight.

    From the tail end of Barry Crimmins post today:

    "The Dems are anything but blameless in all this .... however, on the heels of Bush and Cheney the GOP is finally going to pay for the two Republican oilmen who built a pipeline that runs from the Treasury to their cronies' private vaults.

    With W and the Head Dick leaving us with war, recession and gas upwards of $5 per gallon, Republican John McCain is about as easy to sell as a gently-used Humvee dealership.

    If this keeps up -- and it will -- the Straight Talk Express will be out of gas on an exit ramp by early September.

    If you take from Americans at the pump, they'll give it right back to you at the polls.

    All of the agonizing over Obama's fitness for office will come down to one question:

    Is he Republican?

    No.

    Then he's perfect!

    But he'll only remain perfect if he deals with the Energy Catastrophe (We are long past "crisis.")

    You know what wastes a lot of energy?

    Militarism.

    Do you have any idea how much oil it takes to keep the biggest military in the world on the road to nowhere in Iraq?

    Pretty soon only soldiers who can kick in gas money will be allowed to rotate back to the States.

    People who said 'No Blood for Oil," got it backwards.

    We got No Oil for Blood.

    But at least George W. Bush has done all he can to guarantee that Memorial Day remains a viable holiday for generations to come.

    OK, it's time for me to stop consuming energy at this computer and start expending some out in the yard."

    http://www.barrycrimmins.com/

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  37. Bobby Kennedy got his in June, says Hillary, vowing to stay in race, hint hint wink wink. Anything can happen you know...See Dasterdly, Uncouth Video Here

    Ah, Ash....now bitching about not stealing the oil...

    What a wonderful world it will be.

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  38. Al Giordano:

    The endorsement by US Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-California) of Obama today sends an extremely firm message to the Clinton campaign, and not only because he was, until today, a Clinton superdelegate.

    The Field has learned that Cardoza is the first of a group of at least 40 Clinton delegates, many of them from California, that through talking among themselves came to a joint decision that all of them would vote for Obama at the convention. They have informed Senator Clinton that it’s time to unite around Obama, and that they will be coming out, one or two at a time, and announcing their switch between now and the convention if Senator Clinton doesn’t do the same.

    Cardoza is one of the leaders of this effort (which includes not only superdelegates, but here’s something that should set off some paranoia in Camp Clinton: there are pledged Clinton delegates in “The Cardoza 40,” too). One Field Hand reports that during a recent Cardoza fundraising event in California the effort was discussed openly in front of other Democrats. Cardoza’s announcement, today, sent the message that the effort is serious and for real.

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  39. Wolves Out of Control

    AP--The Idaho Fish and Game Commission set a wolf hunting quota Thursday that could half the state's wold population in less than a year.

    Commissioners approved rules allowing hunters to take upt to 428 wolves this fall, 100 more than the recommended quota from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. If hunters are able to meet the quota, it would reduce the wolf population o 2005 levels, or just more than 500 animals.

    At the end of 2007, there were believed to be about 750 to 800 wolves in the state, but that number is projected to grow to about 1,000 after pups born this spring are added to the total. The quota was increased beyond the department's recommendation because wolf numbers are robust and commissioners think they have an obligation to respond to hunters worried about deer and elk herds that are declining in some areas, (acutally all over--bob), like the upper Clearwater Basin.

    Even if the quota is met, the state would still have five times the number of wolves required by the federal covernment for delisting.

    Some of us tried to tell them in the beginning that wolves really like to eat things, like elk. Another moronic program by the enviros.

    Shoot, shovel, and shut up.

    They're killing the elk herds.

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  40. That sounds bad, Trish. Clinton thumped Obama in California.

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  41. Latest news letter from Idaho Energy Complex Here

    These nice nuclear power folks send us a news letter periodically to keep us informed as to what is going on.

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  42. Glancing over Obama's Latin America speech just delivered in Miami, I have a sinking feeeling.

    The pertinent question has always been: How much is electioneering and how much is real?

    Giordano links to a piece he himself wrote before the speech that, the two taken together, is anxiety-inducing.

    Deteriorating political/diplomatic relationship, indeed.

    Hate to be gloomy, but Democrats seem pretty determined, one way or another, to give this government, and along with it this people, the finger in 09.

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  43. If you don't encourage passage of the trade agreement from the Oval Office - and if you simultaneously natter on about US-Venezuelan diplomacy...

    Well, fuck.

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  44. Fuck, Indeed!

    (Hillary, being more pro-active than re-active, suggests assasination.)

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  45. (Hillary, being more pro-active than re-active, suggests assasination.)

    Fri May 23, 06:32:00 PM EDT

    Golly, I missed that one. Must've been a real barn burner.

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  46. Hillary; "You know, Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June."

    Geraldine Ferraro: "Whattaya wan me to do, hurt the man?"

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  47. That Cummins reads like, so 2004. The Chimpy BushHitler and Darth Evil thing or whatever. Whatever.

    19 billion barrels of oil and 231 cubic feet of natural gas in the US we can't touch thanks to Cummins and crew. If Chimpy was the oil barron they claim, that domestic supply would have been sucked dry by now.

    ...

    Hope the Brother will be wearing some body armor and avoid any trips to Ft. Marcy Park.

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  48. Clinton Cites RFK Assassination
    Candidate quickly apologizes after noting the June 1968 date of Robert Kennedy's killing as a reason to remain in the race.

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  49. I was going to post a long interior ulterior monologue of Hillary thinking to herself about B. Kennedy, but then I remembered deuces' warnings about such stuff, and echelon, and thought better of it. Would have been funny though.

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  50. Where's James Earl Ray when she needs him?

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  51. "Obama mentioned the word "thermostat" in a recent speech.
    I suppose next he's going to give fireside chats about malaise in the White House while wearing a sweater.
    "
    ---
    Hillary thinks that means he can solve Global Warming by assuming room temperature.

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  52. I had one about Flight 93 passengers heroically donating their gps's, to save the country, but I thought better of it.

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  53. A close psychoanalytic reading of her statement might reveal a desperation, and evil intent, regardless of her apology.

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  54. Barack had better think clearly about that saying concerning-

    Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.
    Sun-tzu
    Chinese general & military strategist (~400 BC)--

    Should he really consider her for VP?

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  55. From he who has more computor power, more is expected:)

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  56. "I regret that if my referencing that moment of trauma for our entire nation and in particular the Kennedy family was in any way offensive. I certainly had no intention of that whatsoever," the former first lady said.

    "The Kennedys have been much on my mind the last days because of Senator Kennedy," she added, referring to Sen. Edward M. Kennedy's recent diagnosis of a brain tumor.
    She then suggested a conciliatory meeting on Chappaquiddick, with Barry spending some of the increasingly scarce remaining quality time with Ted on the ride out.

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  57. Judging a person's character:

    Meanwhile, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., a staunch Clinton supporter, said Friday that she believes that if Obama becomes the nominee he should select Clinton as his running mate.

    "I think as this race has emerged each one of them has garnered a different constituency and different states, and therefore when you put the two of them together it forms, I believe, the strongest ticket," she told The Associated Press in a phone interview.

    "Women feel very strongly about Hillary and African-Americans feel very strongly about Barack, and the election results show that, and the young versus old, the higher educated versus the working person. ... All these things are sort of separated out into one or the other so there is a logic in combining the two constituencies."

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  58. Myself, I feel very strongly about fellow nativists.

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  59. "The Kennedys have been much on my mind the last days because of Senator Kennedy," she added.

    The state of mind she's in, I'm surprised that didn't come out, "The last days of Kennedy have been much on my mind."

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  60. Swedish/American farmers and the Nez Perce being left out in the cold as usual.

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  61. 07-18-01 - Return of the Nativist?

    Remember that nativism has another meaning, though. In anthropology, it means a “social movement that proclaims the return to power of the natives of a colonized area and the resurgence of native culture, along with the decline of the colonizers.”

    Who would the colonizers be these days? Well, if you’ve been reading VDARE for any length of time, you might have heard the word reconquista. The Southwest is particularly vulnerable, although during Presidente Fox’s recent visit, I was surprised to read that there are more than a million Mexicans living in the Chicago area.
    Some of them have started acting like colonizers, too.

    The Democrats seem to like this, for electoral reasons. They liked it in the nineteenth century too, when, as the Columbia Encyclopedia puts it, “Roman Catholic immigrants … were welcomed by the Democrats”, particularly in the “Eastern cities” where they “especially had concentrated.”
    I want to repeat, for the benefit of anyone who came in late, that the reason for reading history is that no one ever does anything in politics for the first time. Just about everything that can be done has been done before.
    And guess what; if you let them, they’ll do it again.

    Housewife jailed for advocating Official English

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  62. The district court jury agreed with the judge that Barton's words were "fighting words" - not free speech - and convicted her of the misdemeanor.
    ---
    [1] Note there is no suggestion that Ms. Barton (female! middle-aged!! accompanied by her daughter and mother!!!) actually attacked or even threatened to attack anyone.

    [2] In fact, amazingly, everyone agrees that any potential violence would come from the Hispanics. The advocates of Ms. Barton's conviction actually assert this:

    "John Roy Castillo, former director of the Michigan Department of Civil Rights and the Detroit Human Rights Department [whatever that is], said Barton's comment not only was offensive, it likely could have sparked a fight.... "I'm nonviolent, but I might have confronted her and who knows the personality of that person," said Castillo, who is of Mexican descent."

    In other words, because today's immigrants come from a violent political culture with no tradition of free speech, an American must go to jail.

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  63. Blacks are provoking Hispanic violence with their offensive skin tone.

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  64. The housewife was sent to jail for 45 days, but released four days later after her attorney worked out an unusual deal: The jury verdict would be vacated and she would plead guilty and be freed - as long as she dropped all appeal rights...

    (Nevertheless, Ms. Barton is now appealing. The full story is currently available at http://mu.mlive.com/news/index.ssf?/
    news/stories/20000812mfighti055.frm)

    Well good for Ms. Barton.

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  65. "The Fall of Toledo was the beginning of the end of Islam's sojourn in Europe. Toledo was the first domino.....From the surrender of Toledo to Alfonso the Brave on the morning of May 25, 1085, to the evacuation from Granada of the last amir on Spanish soil on January 2, 1492, it' a run of 407 years."

    from "God's Crucible" by David Lewis

    This Sunday let us all remember the Fall of Toledo.

    (Damned Europeans are morons for letting them back in)

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  66. Who could head the Nativist Ticket, and avoid having one of these traitorous morons become POTUS?

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  67. Bobal: Hillary; "You know, Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June."

    Geraldine Ferraro: "Whattaya wan me to do, hurt the man?"


    She's cold, but not that cold. She's not asking someone to kill Barack Obama, but she says she is staying in the race in the off chance that someone does.

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  68. If it happens, she's got a lot of 'splainin' to do.

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  69. in the off chance

    :)

    Et tu, T?

    Ya'll speak in code.

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  70. I was just saying, in the off chance, someone bumps Barry like Bobby, I'll be here for ya.

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  71. "Tom Tancredo"
    ---
    I was asking for someone who could win.
    Laura Ingraham '08!

    ...she speaks impeccable Spanish and has a Guatemalan daughter.

    She could pull the old say one thing in one tongue, another in another.

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  72. It will be more than NYC that gets shut down.

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  73. Maxine Waters want to "Take Over" Oil Industry

    Put her in the rest home along with Robert Byrd.

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  74. The Bumper Sticker I'm looking for:

    Ethanol is Cheaper than Blood!

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  75. Ethanol is cheaper than Blood, but Waters is cheaper than Ethanol.

    We'll all 'own' Chevron then, like we do the national parks!
    ---

    As we approached the town of Dachau, there were signs directing us to the camp (a huge McDonald's sign is also a good landmark).

    The winner is--Ronald McDonald. What a world.

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  76. Jim Henley. Funny.

    May 23, 2008
    Master Blaster

    Clearly Hillary Clinton was not calling for the assassination of Barack Obama, as all the haters are trying to claim. She doesn’t consider Obama an "inspirational leader" like RFK, but as a particularly melanin-rich George McGovern, the pipe-dream left-wing candidate doomed to spectacular general-election failure. If anything, she sees herself as RFK, the insurgent candidate on the cusp of a Summer of Triumph. So the inescapable conclusion is that Hillary Clinton was actually subtly calling for the assassination of Hillary Clinton. That’s right, Loyal Readers - the insidious virus of Clinton Derangement Syndrome has now claimed its greatest victim: Hillary Clinton. And in a sprawling, violent country like this, there is a real risk some deranged person - such as Hillary Clinton - will taker her up on it.

    Of course, even if Hillary does the full Budd Dwyer, No Quarter and Make Them Accountable will still hold out for the Risen Hillary to get an absolute majority at the convention, once the rules committee seats the delegates from Pompeii and Krakatoa, as it must to avoid disenfranchising those voters.

    Posted by Jim Henley @ 10:31 pm, Filed under: Main

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  77. It wouldn't matter anyway as the convention Isn't Going To Happen in this space/time continuum.

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  78. Bill Clinton Makes Case for Hillary as Veep

    (2008-05-23) — Former President Bill Clinton, faithful to his wife to the end, today made the case that putting her on the ticket as vice president “would accomplish what Democrats have dreamed of for years.”

    “Black racists and white racists would, of course, refuse to vote for Obama-Hillary,” said Mr. Clinton. “Elitists will snub Hillary and blue-collar union workers will thumb their noses at Obama. Bitter, man-hating women will reject him and misogynists will spurn her. Social Security dependents will abandon Barack and, as usual, young radicals will merely intend to vote. Essentially, that covers the full range of registered Democrats.”

    The former president said the Obama-Hillary pairing “would balance the ticket in way that keeps virtually every Democrat at home on election day, thus de-legitimizing the process, which we all know is corrupt anyway.”

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  79. A Time to Kill Compassionate Conservatism

    These are some of the core beliefs that make conservatism as glorious an ideal as fallen man can conceive.

    If the ideal seems yet afar off, it's not a failure of Conservatism. It's a failure of courage, and a lack of vision. Conservative politicians, and we who support and elect them have wavered, and sometimes collapsed in the face of the vigorous onslaught of liberalism.

    It's time to kill compassionate conservatism, and to call Conservatives to rise up and live out the true meaning of our creed.

    Under this banner we march boldly forward, with freedom as our object and compassion as the legacy of our rediscovered liberty.

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  80. Dear Barry:

    I love my wife, but frankly sometimes "Michelle" doesn't have the greatest social graces. I am a VP at a large industrial corporation and in line for a major promotion, so last weekend I invited the CEO and his wife to our house for dinner and cocktails. I was worried that Michelle might cause a scene, so before hand I reminded her over and over again how important it was that she make a good impression. When they showed up at the house, right after introductions, my CEO said, "you must be very proud of your husband." So Michelle says, "and you must be very embarrassed it took you stupid assholes four years to offer us a promotion."

    And that was just the first uncomfortable silence. When Maria (our housemaid) was serving the salad course, she accidentally dropped a plate and Michelle started screaming at her. Then she looked at my boss and said, "sorry, it's impossible to hire anybody but idiots on the lousy $400,000 salary you cheap bastards pay us." Throughout dinner Michelle continued hectoring my boss about how screwed up my company is, and too obsessed with profits, and how she and I were going to fix all that, and why everyone probably should all drop out of the corporate world and become artists. To top it all off, during dessert she brought out her black velvet paintings of Che Guevara.

    Anyway, this week at work my CEO hasn't returned any of my emails or phone messages. What should I do to get back on the career ladder?

    Mortified in Lake Forest

    Dear Mortified:
    First off, you need to stop treating "Michelle" as a liability. In fact, thanks to a little thing called the Americans With Disabilities Act, she could be your "ace in the hole"! Fire off an email to your CEO announcing that "Michelle" is diagnosed with Tourette's Syndrome, and if you get passed over for the promotion he will be looking down the barrel of a fat federal civil rights lawsuit. After you move up to that corner office, you can say thanks to "Michelle" by appointing her head of the corporate diversity outreach department.

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  81. More tips from America's premier relationship expert:

    Dear Barry:

    I try to get along with the people in my neighborhood, but sometimes it can be difficult. Take for example my neighbor "Mahmoud." Last weekend while I was seeding my lawn, he drove back and forth slowly in front of my house "flipping the bird" from his minivan, which is painted with pictures of bloody corpses and mushroom clouds and "welcome 12th Imam." Normally I wouldn't have given it a second thought (I get "fingered" by a lot of the neighbors), but lately I've noticed he has been working on some kind of secret project in his garage with really stinky chemicals. Also, I've been getting these constant annoying 3 AM phone calls threatening to kill my kids.

    Frankly, I'm sort of worried about the situation, but even the neighbors I get along with tell me I shouldn't jump to conclusions, and not to make a big deal of it. I don't want to make waves, but I also don't want to end up like the Goldbergs who had their house burned down last week. Am I being too much of a "worry wart"? Please help!

    Concerned in Northbrook

    Dear Concerned:

    Misunderstanding and mistrust is a two-way street, and it's important to ask yourself: what did I do to create this situation? Without thinking, sometimes the things we do can understandably trigger homicidal rage in our friends and neighbors. Put the shoe on the other foot -- how would you like it if you had a neighbor who was always showing you up with his big gas-guzzling SUV and manicured hedges?

    Before things escalate further, you should take the initiative and invite Mahmoud over for coffee and chit chat. No preconditions, and maybe you could bring a pie from Bakers Square. While he is enjoying a delicious slice of Boston Cream, let Mahmoud know that you understand his feelings, and you will do whatever it takes to repair your tattered reputation in the neighborhood. As a show of good faith, why not offer him a few bags of fertilizer and fuel for his lawn mower?

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  82. More tips from America's premier relationship expert:-- gave me a good laugh to go to bed on.

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  83. Salt Water Croc Bests Shark Down Under--Battle of the Titans

    If I reincarnate to a lower level, being a salt water croc might not be so bad.

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  84. Dear Barry,

    I've been married to the same wonderful man -- Let's call him "Jeremiah" -- for 20 years. He's a great provider and we live in a beautiful home. He dotes on me and treats me like a queen; even after twenty years he still brings me little gifts and opens doors for me. Best yet, our sex life is fantastic! Jeremiah enjoys spicing things up with role-play, such as "Adolf and Eva," and we host weekly swinger get-togethers for like-minded couples. I know it probably must sound kind of kinky, but trust me - it keeps things interesting in "the boudoir."

    That's whDear Barry:ere the trouble comes in. Lately it's been hard for Jeremiah to step out of his bedroom character, even when we have company over. For example, the other night I was hosting bunco night for the neighborhood girls and Jeremiah came goose-stepping into the rec room in his black leather swastika thong and riding crop, screaming "Ein Volk, Ein Reich, Ein Fuhrer!!"

    Frankly, it was somewhat embarrassing. I've asked Jeremiah to "tone it down" and save the Nuremberg speeches for the privacy of swinger's night, but he refuses. Also, I think he may be clinically insane. I'm worried that if word gets out it may hurt our chances of getting membership in the country club. What should I do?

    Confused in Hyde Park

    Dear Confused:

    Remember the old saying, "dance with the one who brung ya." Despite his kinks Jeremiah got you where you are today, and it's important for you to remain loyal to him until you're absolutely certain he has become a real liability for your country club application. If so, encourage Jeremiah to strip down to his thong and rant about Jews at the next country club cocktail party. Then you can feign heartbreak, and run crying for the bathroom. This will earn you the sympathy of the club admissions committee, and they will probably offer you an individual membership for your "courage." Jeremiah won't mind because he's obviously more into his Fuhrer fantasy than improving his golf swing. And trust me -- the make-up sex you have later will be unbelievable!

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  85. Colombian Drug Cartels Destroying Rain Forest

    With the help of drug users in Europe, the USA, and elsewhere.

    It's possible to get sick of humanity.

    Doug, you're keeping me up with those posts:)

    nite

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  86. Herb Alpert and Louis Armstrong Sing "Mame" Together

    "A very rare clip from another clip. Taken from the 1974 TJB Muppets show, this clip warmed a special place in my heart. I hope you will enjoy it, too.

    P.S. I had the once in a lifetime opportunity to see Herb and Lani play at Blues Alley in Georgetown Washington DC 12 May 2008. The show was absolutely spectacular. After all these years, they both still have it: the skills and the love. Truly a remarkable show. Herb and Lani, thanks to all of the wonderful years of warming our hearts with your great art work. You both are truly blessed as well as I was at your show."
    ---
    Wife's friend just got back from St Louis, where they attended daughters college graduation.
    Went to a nightclub, happened to be the nite of a once a month gig by CHUCK BERRY!
    ...they were pleased!
    (80 years old)

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  87. I typed this last night but sat on it.

    Bangin' my drum.

    Obama is going to reinstate the Special Envoy to the Americas. And donuts to dollars, that envoy will be Bill Richardson. Notorious down in these parts as a fellow traveler with the "nut job" next door. (Whose quotation marks are those, hm?)

    Amb. Brownfield will be leaving and the next guy will certainly come with a *different* POV and set of marching orders.

    What we have down here now is just about the best of all worlds - with a very, very rare combination of political, diplomatic, and military talent on both sides. In the rising success story of a sole continental ally. It's the singularity. There are people who would sell their mothers to get down here now.

    Obama is going to shit all over it.

    Once Colombia's cut adrift, there ain't nothin' else for us in South America. THIS was it. The Colombians will turn to the Europeans and the Chinese - the latter of which especially have no need for direct government involvement. The latter of which are already all over Brazil. (Which Obama can only talk about in terms of sustainable development and energy, which they can't sell to us.)

    I don't think Obama's an empty suit. I agree with what-is that he's a believer.

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  88. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  89. Less and less difference nowadays - just depends on when the programming catches on.

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