Election 2004

God Speaks to Florida Voters!

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Hey, if this map is accurate it is a clear message! (click Through the link)
Update (9/23): Reader K Welch notes that Snopes has done a bit of debunking on this one. And, of course, those of you who paid any attention to Frances will remember that it was extremely large, with an eye 50-85 miles in diameter and a total breadth of some 250-300 miles, so the narrow line on the map is a bit misleading.
However, if those narrow lines are a true representation of the path of the center of each hurricanes eye, then can the map be considered accurate?

Questions

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PZ Myers asks a couple reasonable questions.
First, concerning dangerous weapons and airport security:

So now we let the underpaid, unqualified, uneducated people who get hired to man security checkpoints have the discretion to throw people in jail because they carry some unspecified item they think might be dangerous?
While these folks should be extra cautious this incident is just stupid.
Second, on fact checking for those who want heads to roll at CBS:
What�s their position on the responsibilities and obligations of a commander-in-chief who freely peddles bogus tales of mobile biowarfare facilities, nuclear weapons programs, imported radioactive materials from Africa, flying drones filled with nerve gas, and horrific stories of widespread Weapons of Mass Destruction that are going to be used to Blow America Up?
Yep, perhaps heads should roll at CBS and, since the media, congress and much of the blogosphere won’t hold the executive branch to a similar level of scrutiny, come November the US voters should, perhaps, jsut fire the current executive branch office holders.

Shining a Light on CBS and Fox

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Well, it is always better that congress spends time and resources on hearings rather than making sound bites about and voting on legislation though both hearings and legislation are wastes of citizens resources.
Yet, I suppose, Hugh Hewitt’s proposal for congressional hearings concerning Fox News would be entertaining:

Hearings now, immediately, would signal broadcasters and news executives everywhere that partisan maneuverings under the guise of news gathering–especially those that occur late in an election season–would be subject to close Congressional scrutiny.
And, as he says, the First Amendment will forstall “Sanctions against rotten, agenda-driven journalism…”
Apparently, right and left wing talk radio including folks like Rush, Medved, and Savage are not news gatherers or I’d expect Hewitt to include them in his hearings as well. And, if these folks are not news gatherers shouldn’t they exhibit some truth in labeling? You know, non-ficton or pulp fiction, or, maybe, fantasy?
Whoops, Hewitt was talking about hearings on the CBS memo screw up.
If much less power were vested in the executive, legislative and, yes, the judicial branches of US government this issue would be a drop of rain in the ocean. It is long past time to start slicing back.
Update: I see that Walter was tackling this Hewitt hearing idea yesterday and the day before.
Update (9/17): Rick Peitz notes in the comments that Rush does “…does occassionally specify that his program is for entertainment purposes..”

A Few Questions for the Candidates

This entry was posted in bush Capitalism Constitution Democracy Election 2004 Federal Government kerry Libertarianism on by

Here is Roxanne’s opening:

Dear John Kerry and George “W standing for Women is a lot like Putin standing for Democracy” Bush:
I no longer give a shit about your Vietnam-era exploits. It doesn’t matter to me if you were once a drunk-driving, cocaine-tooting mama’s boy or if you were an effete BMOC.
More importantly, though, go read her questions for the candidates.
You may not agree 100% with the positions implied by the questions but this is the level at which any meaningful campaign should be occurring. That it isn’t confirms more firmly my belief that the whole mess needs to be redone.

Forgeries or Not Forgeries

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I haven’t said much about the Killian memos and won’t be saying much more. Primarily because I don’t think it makes much difference whether the memos are real or fake.
The only reason that even mention them now is this Matthew Yglesias post:

Assuming they are forgeries, we can conclude the following:
  • George W. Bush pulled strings to avoid combat service in Vietnam by entering the Texas Air National Guard, failed to complete his service in a rigorous manner and has lied about it repeatedly for years.

  • CBS News, like the United States of America, is run by some kind of idiots.

  • Other Texans, less fortunate than Dubya, died so that he could avoid service in a war he supported.
If they are real, remove the middle item regarding CBS News. The rest remain the same.
Update (9/14): Drudge reports that Killian’s secretary says:
I typed memos that had this information in them, but I did not type these memos.
If this holds up, then see all three points above.