Ninja's Dojo

Just awful.

2007-08-29T16:23:00.000-04:00

The more I listened the more familiar the twists, the more disturbing the reality, the more embarassed at my own incredulity.

Sign the petition. Your conscience demands it. And make this a campaign issue. It will trump whatever bullshit divise issue gets cooked up.

wicked cool

2007-08-09T14:09:00.000-04:00

It's been a while, so you know what brought me back here has to be good. This guy, realtablist, builds up quite the production all in real time with the assistance of Abel Live 5.2. The video below is set 2. Impressive.

This is set 1. Go check out the promo videos 1, 2 & 3.

Next time you're in Antwerpen, Belgium, try and stop in for a show.

youtube superstar

2007-05-22T18:30:00.001-04:00

I don't have as much surfing time as I did even a year ago, but I just stumbled (thank you Johnny Nash "I can see clearly now") onto a youtube channel (who knew?) that is killer. Vinyljunkie1960 is posting stuff so far up my alley I think it might be in my backyard.

ouch, bad metaphor.

2007-05-22T17:41:00.000-04:00

Amon 'The Chameleon' Tobin

2007-04-12T16:36:00.000-04:00

This guy is so hard to pin down, I had to start previewing albums before I would buy them despite the fact I think he is a genius.

Well, he's got a new album, 'Foley Room', about to drop, and guess what? He is such a genius he knew that he is so all over the place that he should help with the previewing part of his musical experience. Of course, the flash site is top-notch, so go enjoy.

New Kicks

2007-02-10T11:14:00.000-05:00

A while back I used to enjoy the trancy laid back grooves with the haunting female vocals of the Sneaker Pimps. Well, I just found a new pair of shoes I like : ROYKSOPP. Funny thing is, their music has been just under the surface of my life experience for a few years now. "Poor Leno" was featured on EA Sports snowboarding game SSX. It provided a focused but chilled soundtrack for carving ridiculous lines on a virtual mountain.

More recently, I've been caught singing "Remind Me", the track featured in the GEICO caveman spot set on an airport moving sidewalk. This particular song doesn't feature a female vocalist, but bare with me.

'What Else Is There' is what made the Sneaker Pimps connection for me. Check it out on Seeqpod.com/music - the best of the web, imnsho.

I'm still learning about this band, but finding the GEICO track has made this sunny Saturday morning complete.

And if you like a little classic MJ with your 21st century down tempo click here.

Fly Fishing Kayak

2007-01-18T10:56:00.000-05:00

...that transforms from slender craft to stable platform. This is one of those "why didn't I think of that" products that make so much sense it's hard to understand why it took so long to be made.

Foreign Exchange

2006-12-19T11:03:00.000-05:00

No, not that Foreign Exchange. I'm on an intellectual avenue today.

Saturday morning, I caught the broadcast of Foreign Exchange with Fareed Zakaria. The website is hosts past shows, so go check it out.

I have to admit I was not familiar with Fareed, but he was recently a guest on The Daily Show and shared a disturbingly frank opinion of Bush that unfortunately shouldn't be all that surprising given his "legacy" as president. Go watch parts 1 & 2 now.

"News" or De Beers PR release

2006-12-11T18:17:00.000-05:00

By Jeff Koinange
CNN

ORAPA, Botswana (CNN) -- The world's largest open-pit diamond mine is as big as 52 football fields and more than 20 stories deep.

From top to bottom, it's a winding road of perfectly terraced steps making it look like a giant hand has taken a slice out of the earth. Huge tractors and bulldozers busily tear into the earth's crust while equally huge trucks haul the rich earth out of the crater.

The soil is taken to a facility where it is crushed and washed and crushed again until diamonds finally reveal themselves.

The diamond business and the country of Botswana are booming. Since the discovery of diamonds in 1967, it has been nearly 40 years of constant growth for this model of democracy in Africa. Botswana boasts one of the highest per capita incomes on the continent, more than $4,000. The income is 10 times the per capita income when Botswana gained its independence from Britain in 1966, according to Botswana officials.

"Our former leaders were visionaries," said Education Minister Jacob Dicky Nkate. "They insisted that after the discovery of diamonds, every single Batswana be entitled to a free education from first grade to a doctorate degree free of charge. How many democracies can boast that achievement?"

Education isn't the only service that is free. Health care, a growing concern in Botswana, is also paid for by the government. Lifetime supplies of anti-retrovirals for AIDS sufferers are a novelty in Africa and vital in a nation where experts estimate that two out of every three people are infected with the HIV virus.

But if it wasn't for diamonds, Botswana -- which is landlocked in southern Africa -- would still be just a cattle outpost in the bush, Nkate said. That would be a difficult life in a country that is about the size of Texas and has only about 10 square kilometers of irrigated land.

In a deal that may have seemed a little unfair in 1969, the government of Botswana signed a 50-50 deal with De Beers, the global diamond giant, to explore and mine all of the country's diamonds. As a result, the nation's economy has quadrupled in the last four decades and it boasts the highest standard of living on the continent.

The joint venture, Debswana, boasts annual profits in the billions of dollars and has made diamonds Botswana's single largest source of foreign exchange, accounting for more than 75 percent of the country's GDP.

Diamonds are Botswana's 'nerve center'
Botswana draws much of its income from the sacks and sacks of diamonds mined from the Orapa Mine in the country's northeast to the Botswana Diamond Valuing Company sorting facility in the capital Gaberone.

In the sorting facility, 10 floors are filled with tables laden with diamonds of every shape and size that will be sorted, graded and certified before being shipped to the De Beers diamond center in London, England.

"This is the nerve center of Botswana's diamond industry," said production manager Mike Moremong, who has worked here since the company started in 1978. "We're lucky to have a population that understands that all diamonds that are mined here are for the people and not for a few individuals."

Moremong and others don't want to cite examples of African nations where diamond profits end up in the pockets of the privileged few. In Botswana, everything is shared equally.

Employees sift through millions of dollars worth of diamonds with minimum security presence. There are closed-circuit cameras but everyone goes about their business as though they were sifting coffee beans and not precious stones.

"Trust is key here," Moremong continued. "Without trust, our economy would crumble and our country would be another failed African state."

Moremong said he is proud that none of Botswana's diamonds can be classified as conflict or blood diamonds.

"Every diamond that comes out of the ground in Botswana can be traced from the mines until it gets to De Beers in London," he said.

The country's attorney general, Athaliah Molokomme, said the diamond deal has been Botswana's best friend.

"De Beers has been good to us and this private public partnership has proved to be a win-win situation," she says, adding that she would not seek any changes if the deal were to be renegotiated.

Botswana, which has never experienced war or civil strife since its independence, is the exception rather than the rule in Africa at least when it comes to stable governments and again, the education minister insists, it's because of foresight.

"It all boils down to leadership," Nkate said. "Leadership and education. Without these two, nothing can be achieved when it comes to a country's growth and development."

The preceding is in no way, shape, or form in response to a recent film.

So long, Kofi

2006-12-11T17:59:00.000-05:00

Kofi Annan farewell speech

As Harry Truman said 'We all have to recognize, no matter how great our strength, that we must deny ourselves the license to do always as we please.' States need to play by the rules toward each other as well as toward their own citizens.

When power, especially military force, is used, the world will consider it legitimate only when convinced that it is being used for the right purpose, for broadly shared aims, in accordance with broadly accepted norms.

No community anywhere suffers from too much rule of law; many do suffer from too little and the international community is among them..This we must change.

...

The high-sounding doctrines like 'responsibility to protect' will remain pure rhetoric unless and until those with the power to intervene effectively -- by exerting political, economic or, in the last resort, military muscle -- are prepared to take the lead.

...

You Americans can make a crucial occurrence to many millions of poor people if you are prepared to save the Doha round of trade negotiations... You can do that by putting your broader national interest above some powerful sectional lobbies while challenging Europe and the large developing countries to do the same.

...

You Americans did so much, in the last century to build an effective
multilateral system with the United Nations at its heart. Do you need it less today, and does it need you less, than 60 years ago?

For all his faults, it is tough to criticize his vision of the bigger picture.

Seeq, and ye shall

2006-12-08T10:07:00.000-05:00

Alright, alright, I know I've been slacking with the musical content. That might be changing in the near future if my other blogging pursuit frustrates me much more. But enough about the Leafs blowing leads in the third period.

This morning, my inbox greeted me with an email from someone at Seeqpod, a groovy site new to me. To use a high tech term, Seeq "crawls" the interweb for music. I'm not sure what that means, but it seems to work.

A band I've been meaning to highlight for months now is Mute Math (myspace/wiki). If you dig Sting's voice and vocal stylings, you'll immediately develop a soft spot for this band.

(ok, this is when you are supposed to go search 'mute math' at seeqpod....I'm waiting. ok, add the tunes to the playlist, and press play. You listening? cool.)

Check this presser description: The four piece (originating from New Orleans) has scattered influences that are apparent without being obvious, and touch on everything from DJ Shadow styled beats (HELLO!!!), moments of beauty and grandeur a la Bjork, and vocals that pay legitimate homage to Police-era Sting. When asked about this vast expanse of musical territory that we are asked to find them dwelling within, Meany (vocals/keys) replied, "I blame it on the past forty years of music." They act on the idea that their magic is to be found in the mixture of countless thoughts. Their live show thrives on this random energy too involving homemade instruments, live sampling, a junked-out keytar, and enough dizzying energy to make the hardest cynics wet their pants.

And for anyone who knows me, this chaotic harmony of musical tastes has been my personal philosophy on tunes ever since I figured out being a music snob was lame. I haven't heard the entire album, but its on my 'must get' list. It should be on yours too.

a kindred spirit

2006-11-27T18:15:00.000-05:00

www.thegearjunkie.com/

I guess the non-fly fishing segment of the population is figuring out load distribution and its biomechanic advantages; i.e. less wear and tear.

This might be a great solution to taking more pictures of the fish I catch...I swear, I really do catch fish. Though maybe this is all that is needed.

Brilliant!

2006-11-11T11:04:00.000-05:00

[via]

iVue clear case

2006-11-06T15:41:00.000-05:00

I like it.
[via]

All it takes is a little push

2006-10-25T16:44:00.000-04:00

Well, I've been pretty inactive on this blog for a while now. Shame on me. My apologies to all of my fan. What sparked this return to the dojo? I was surfing over at one of my favorites, glidemagazine.com, and again their commentary on The Raconteurs didn't ring true with me. They have a quick review of the 09/26/06 show at the Roseland that goes as follows:

These Raconteurs have a story to tell: they are one of the most exciting, tightest bands playing today. And put on one of the best shows of the year.

Sounds like a good show. And it was. But "tightest" would be about the last adjective I'd assigned to their drug-fueled over-fills and off-timed coordination. But that is part of their charm, and comes part and parcel with Jack White. But reading blurbs like this make me question my level of trust in glide. Their download section is still pretty cool, though.

But more on the show. I could've left after the first song, as they opened with what a buddy would call "my jam", 'Intimate Secretary'. The distorted fade-in lended itself beautifully to start the show. The break beat intro ain't too shabby, and then the power guitar.....mmmm.....followed by the snare fill. Delectable.

The drummer was amazing. I had no idea going in that I'd leave impressed by the dude on the kit. His play was energetic, and at some points actually took over the sound. I'm a percussion junkie, so I loved it. The nerdy spectacled bassist played another 'in the family' role for Jack White, as he was referred to as "Little Jack" as in little brother, the entire evening.

Brendan opened some eyes, as most fans are via the White Stripes. He lends an essential folky melodic integrity to the mixture, which I sense is lost on more than a few White-heads. Oh well. You gotta learn to live, and live and learn.

Jack was awesome, though I was disappointed with the ultra fast strum part on 'Steady As She Goes.' But it was great to see the guy wail from much closer than when I saw him at Cyclone stadium.

I'll have some new music stuff up some time this week.

I missed a month?! Crap!!!

2006-10-03T12:26:00.000-04:00

First month I haven't managed to procrastinate and find something to post here. Huh? Maybe wearing a suit everyday does make you work more.

Well, the above is not entirely accurate. I've had several music items I've been meaning to post since the temperature was 90+ with the humidity to match. I'll get to those this week. Hopefully.

But I found this bag over at uncrate, and immediately wanted it. See, I'm a gear freak. It is sort of like a sneaker collector, of which I am an amateur, but I get bored with that. I like daypacks, internal frame packs, messenger/DJ bags, flyfishing packs/vests, you name it, if it can haul shit, I want one. And with a name like BodyNinja Bag, I crave one. The diapers are on hold for now, but eventually, I'll be ahead of the game.

word of the day

2006-08-15T17:46:00.000-04:00

hyphy [haɪfiː]

Enough with the learnin'...listen to 'Enuff', new from DJ Shadow off of "The Outsider"

"BEST TRACKS: THIS TIME, 3 FREAKS, SEEIN THANGS, BACKSTAGE GIRL."

Ahead of the crate

2006-08-15T12:14:00.000-04:00

Well, I read uncrate regularly and was surprised to see them highlight Tom Petty's new choons nearly two months after it was featured here. That type of thing always makes this independent blogger feel cooler than usual. And since they've got a contest running for some hip-ass sneaks, I figured I'd enter.

Altered Oceans

2006-08-01T14:01:00.000-04:00

Someone very special to me forwarded this five part series on something that should be very important to all of us: the health of the world's oceans. Consider the massive role the oceans play in the planet's weather, or the food-chain of human and other anuimal populations. And to top it all off, the oceans are only going to get bigger and have more influence on the planet.

Check it out. And if you don't care, at the very least watch more nature documentaries that take you beyond your apartment/commute/office universe. That should help you find a clue.

CRTC guidelines dictate...

2006-07-28T17:30:00.000-04:00

"In The Morning" by Junior Boys. The breakdown about three minutes in is what really impressed.

even pitchpork likes it. (they've got an mp3 as well)

[via] hook: "The Canadian-based duo have emerged with a pop statement that is one of the most anticipated albums of the year...a work that exhibits a confident mix of focus, clarity and ambition. Junior Boys manage to tease soul and longing out of their machines in a way that few have dared try..."

if you missed the CRTC joke

Sample List

2006-07-28T16:00:00.000-04:00

"Distant Memory" by Dday One, a self-proclaimed samplist, of needlework records.

Interesting interview - Wishes he had invented the iPod. ELP(classic rock, not EL-P) is a favorite band.

Free Megamix courtesy needlework.

obligatory myspace link

[via] hook: "Within a month of the completion of the album Dday had Cut Chemist emailing him to request a copy"

This ain't Barbaro

2006-07-28T15:59:00.000-04:00

"A Lot to Say" by Glue of Fat Beats records

Check out the new album ( and the free megamix) out 09/19/2006 'Catch As You Can'

[via] hook: "four separate nationwide tours opening up for artists such as Atmosphere, Jurassic 5 & Aesop Rock"

"Arabs look to U.S. for diplomatic solution"

2006-07-17T22:14:00.000-04:00

Forgive my attempt at political humor, but this whole episode of "violence" should be avoidable, and yet is so in the cards, it bugs the crap out of me. People getting bombed on. That fact really shouldn't be overlooked, despite the wonders of military technology. The following is a sarcastic conversation I had with and at, more 'at' I guess, a CNN article of the above title.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and U.N. Ambassador John Bolton have said the United States does not believe the time is right for a cease-fire.

The time is right to fight! Right?!

The U.S. position is that a cease-fire is a temporary halt to the hostilities, and what everyone wants is a solution that eliminates the threat posed by Hezbollah.

A ha! The bait and switch!

Privately, senior U.S. officials said they don't expect the fighting to stop until Israel has sufficiently demobilized Hezbollah.

And you can take that to the bank, cowboy!

The Arab League -- plus, in separate statements, Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia -- put the onus on Hezbollah for igniting the violence.

Can you say dead horse scape goat?

But now Arab diplomats are afraid this is being used as justification for the continued Israeli operations in Lebanon.

Using a convenient phenomena to further one's end, you say? That's a good one. Go on.

The longer the operations go on, diplomats say, it will be increasingly difficult for Arab leaders to put the blame on Hezbollah, because ongoing violence will fuel anti-Israeli public opinion in their countries.

Put the blame. And by 'put' what do you mean?

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit and Intelligence Minister Omar Suleiman are in Washington and plan to meet with Rice and other U.S. officials Tuesday. European and Arab countries are making a big push for deeper U.S. engagement -- specifically a tougher stand with Israel.

A tougher stand with Israel? Have you been paying attention?

While they understand the United States has asked Israel to be selective in targeting infrastructure and to strive to protect civilians, Arab officials said the pictures airing on news channels indicate this is not happening, and the United States is seen as giving Israel a green light.

And this surprises you how?

Better late than never....

2006-07-11T18:53:00.000-04:00

I've got some good stuff today: Sebastien Tellier. The track I was sent is "La Ritournelle" (The Old Story) off of his second album Politics, originally released in 2004, and re-issued IN 2005 due to high demand by recordmakers. And it is still tough to find 'round these parts. Global village say what?

Be patient with the track, as you would with any building rhythmic sound. The arrangement reminds me of Moby, with whom J.S. Tellier once toured. The classic strings set the mood. The climax is around the midway point, but worth the wait. And for those of you scared of the French language, the lyrics are in anglais.

Something to look out for is 'Electroma', the first feature film to be directed by Daft Punk, and which features Tellier on the soundtrack. That teaser is a slowly pulsing wave of sound and light. Groovy. I dug their music videos back in the day so I can't wait to see the film, due out in 2007.

Hold the phone... I just went to myspace and clicked on ‘Fantino’ and immediately recognized it from the compilation album ‘Source Material’, of "Musique pour un Enfant-Jouet" by Rob fame. Tellier's effort was one of the slower tracks, and admittedly it didn't make it to my personal 'hits' list on the album, but it was a grower.

So after that initial introduction, and reading about his substantial touring history, I happen upon this;

His label Record Makers had the intuition that he had arrived at an artistic peak as a live musician. So a studio was booked, and in one day, an acoustic session of all his repertoire was recorded together with pianist Simon Dalmais. The result is Sessions (launch Sessions) (2006)- an amazing album, intimate and essential. His songs are exempt from any arrangements outside of piano & guitar, and appear to be a collection of classics, in the tradition of the most gifted singers / songwriters.

and I'm sold.

Oh yeah, recordmakers also sent a remix by Jim Noir. Eanie Meany Miney GOL! (For those that get the spanish soccer reference, I wanted to add that I really liked the down-tempo ___-hop they were using for the Jose+10 t.v. ad. before they switched to what I would consider to be a more US sports fan demographic friendly pop/rock in Joir. Wankers) He can be found on Barsuk, who signed him this past May.

"Tell Me What To Do" is a beach blanket bouncer. I'm also digging "My Patch" and "Me You I'm Your"

You're confident, but not really sure

2006-06-22T10:47:00.000-04:00

"Saving Grace" off the soon to be released 'Highway Companion' [via]

I heard this last night on the way home from work after the DJ was gushing about the Petty show the night before at MSG. It got cranked up to 11 before it was over. It's amazing how uncomplicated good rock can be sometimes.

4 Djs with way too much time

2006-06-21T17:38:00.000-04:00

Check out this sick display of turntablism, where they create the entire melody with notes taken from different pieces of vinyl.

[via => via]

Spidey, DocOc is back

2006-06-14T17:49:00.000-04:00

Dr. Octagon - Aliens (Cassettes Won't Listen Remix) off of "The Return Of..."

[via]

Let me make this simple for you

2006-06-14T14:27:00.000-04:00

First off, I think glide is as fine a emusiczine as you'll find. What, with classic free mp3 downloads, an ear to the ground for new music, and solid reviews. Usually solid reviews. Shane Handler's take on the Raconteurs' 'Broken Boy Soliders' is as off as I've noticed from glide. Below is a sample of what stuck out;

But more than Jack White and friends, the Raconteurs seems to be a coming out party for Benson, as White deflates himself to a sideman. Is Jack dumping Meg for Brendan?

break

White’s unmistakable garage blues chord fury is stapled throughout...the title track meanders in the psychedelic primal scream of earlier White Stripes records, which in fact we’ve heard just about enough of recently

break

The albums’ strongest moment are Benson’s “Hands” and “Together,”

break

Broken Boy Soldiers fails to deliver any type of kick-start to the ears, or heart for that matter

First, are you folks such White fan-boy/girl(s) and so heart-broken by Jack stepping back from, let's be honest, super-ego-inflation via being a one-person show (my impression of the White Stripes live is of a brother wanking on stage while his sister keeps time, which is way cool for a stadium rock venue, but still...), that you consider this effort to be deflating himself? Sounds to me like you don't give enough credit to Benson. And just because you've over-listened to the White Stripes doesn't take anything away from Jack's trademark sound. To top it off, the best song on the album, 'Intimate Secretary', isn't even mentioned, and its the music that is faulted for not providing a kick-start? Tough to do when the listeners' ear needs a jump-start.

My recommendation is to listen to it again.

and speaking of Solaar

2006-05-25T15:01:00.000-04:00

ParisDJs.com - check out the podcasted mixes - 'A History of Double Bass in Music vol.1' [mp3]

Next Blog >> find of the day

2006-05-24T18:25:00.000-04:00

HaikuYeah

quick fave :

waiting to say
oh fuck;
me

which isn't even a haiku, but whatever.

joie de vivre

2006-05-23T18:50:00.000-04:00

It is amazing what a random email asking you to listen to a track or two will do to your listening vim. More on that later, but I'm stuck at work late and came across this cinematic track "Que Sera" by Wax Tailor, a product of the French Hip Hop scene, which I am somewhat partial to because of Solaar and Cam.

So much for Convenience

2006-05-23T10:51:00.000-04:00

"Because of the complexity of the problem, environmental skepticism was once tenable. No longer. It is time to flip from skepticism to activism.”

Go see the movie. Go read the book. Learn something.

And maybe sell your stupidly big SUV.

[related]

9 months later...and it was worth it

2006-05-17T11:14:00.000-04:00

Back in September Brendan Benson and The White Stripes were in Brooklyn and collaborating on an album. Said album was purchased yesterday, and it is was worth the incubation period.

Early front-runner for favorite song - "Intimate Secretary"

UPDATE - The album cover features one of the anonymous band members, not sure if he is bass or kit, looking like a Hanson brother.

2006-05-16T20:19:00.000-04:00

[via]

2006-05-16T14:49:00.000-04:00

Let me start by saying I rarely, if ever, click on blogads. I probably should more often in order to support blogs I like, but I don't. Well, this is a short story of clicking on an ad on a blog that I frequent.

I read the preface of the advertized book and I am now curious. Not because the author's thesis is unique, but because it reminds me of my own spiritual journey that I abandoned due to frustration; I am one of those 'spiritual' people who doesn't like 'religion'.

His original premise is what struck me at first;

Religion never satisfied me, and often infuriated me...I thought of myself first and foremost as a human being...I would be progressing intellectually and spiritually only by understanding what was universally right and natural in life, why these things were right and natural, and how to live accordingly.

Having studied a wee bit of philosophy, the moral absolutes (i.e. universally right and natural) are a problem, but I won't let that de-rail his argument.

His next premise is the kicker.

Understanding that the idea of God signified absolute unity, I concluded that anyone advocating unquestioning loyalty to a restrictive group such as a faith, ethnicity, or nation was in fact promoting the fall of humanity by advancing its division...religions were never intended to support the search for an expansive God and are actually antithetical to it. Probing further, I discovered that human beings aspired to know God long before religions were established, suggesting that the real worship of God could outlive the forms of worship currently in existence. Simultaneously, I found an unholy trinity of political, economic, and religious forces fostering and perpetuating massive greed, poverty, and ignorance.

And with the way the Vatican is attacking the most recent alternate version of events the Vatican claims ownership to, it is hard to argue with the negative effects of organized religion.

His goal is a bit hippy-ideal, but heart-warming nonetheless, and we all could use that once in a while.

It is my hope that by encouraging an inner search for God based on timeless techniques beneficial to spiritual freedom, this book contributes to a broadening of perspectives around the world, culminating in the eventual unification of humanity.

Velvel, the Misfit

2006-05-08T13:35:00.000-04:00

I was watching CN8 on Sunday a.m. this past weekend, and the Dean of the Massachusetts School of Law, Lawrence Velvel, author of 'Misfits in America', hosted a program dissecting gasoline prices and the various forces at work. Not surprisingly the conventional cries of "It is supply and demand, stupid" were shown to be false. (Last week on the 'The Daily Show' Jon Stewart knelt before the altar of the WSJ and one of its editors(?) who trotted out the ECON 101 storyline. I was disappointed Stewart wasn't more prepared to refute her argument/explanations.) And sadly, quite the opposite was posited as true; that America is in fact flush with supply.

So when you hear about tax rebates and halting ethanol tariffs and other such poppycock, know that the solution is well within our means. Too bad the oil companies have politicians, the mass media, and commodity markets in their back pocket.

Fact: Energy futures' markets were created by energy companies in the early 1990s because they recognized the opportunity to make tremendous amounts of money.

Cut and Run? You Bet.

2006-05-05T13:06:00.000-04:00

By Lt. Gen. William E. Odom

Why America must get out of Iraq now.

Withdraw immediately or stay the present course? That is the key question about the war in Iraq today. American public opinion is now decidedly against the war. From liberal New England, where citizens pass town-hall resolutions calling for withdrawal, to the conservative South and West, where more than half of “red state” citizens oppose the war, Americans want out. That sentiment is understandable.

The prewar dream of a liberal Iraqi democracy friendly to the United States is no longer credible. No Iraqi leader with enough power and legitimacy to control the country will be pro-American. Still, U.S. President George W. Bush says the United States must stay the course. Why? Let’s consider his administration’s most popular arguments for not leaving Iraq.

If we leave, there will be a civil war.
In reality, a civil war in Iraq began just weeks after U.S. forces toppled Saddam. Any close observer could see that then; today, only the blind deny it. Even President Bush, who is normally impervious to uncomfortable facts, recently admitted that Iraq has peered into the abyss of civil war. He ought to look a little closer. Iraqis are fighting Iraqis. Insurgents have killed far more Iraqis than Americans. That’s civil war.

Withdrawal will encourage the terrorists.
True, but that is the price we are doomed to pay. Our continued occupation of Iraq also encourages the killers—precisely because our invasion made Iraq safe for them. Our occupation also left the surviving Baathists with one choice: Surrender, or ally with al Qaeda. They chose the latter. Staying the course will not change this fact. Pulling out will most likely result in Sunni groups’ turning against al Qaeda and its sympathizers, driving them out of Iraq entirely.

Before U.S. forces stand down, Iraqi security forces must stand up.
The problem in Iraq is not military competency; it is political consolidation. Iraq has a large officer corps with plenty of combat experience from the Iran-Iraq war. Moktada al-Sadr’s Shiite militia fights well today without U.S. advisors, as do Kurdish pesh merga units. The problem is loyalty. To whom can officers and troops afford to give their loyalty? The political camps in Iraq are still shifting. So every Iraqi soldier and officer today risks choosing the wrong side. As a result, most choose to retain as much latitude as possible to switch allegiances. All the U.S. military trainers in the world cannot remove that reality. But political consolidation will. It should by now be clear that political power can only be established via Iraqi guns and civil war, not through elections or U.S. colonialism by ventriloquism.

Setting a withdrawal deadline will damage the morale of U.S. troops.
Hiding behind the argument of troop morale shows no willingness to accept the responsibilities of command. The truth is, most wars would stop early if soldiers had the choice of whether or not to continue. This is certainly true in Iraq, where a withdrawal is likely to raise morale among U.S. forces. A recent Zogby poll suggests that most U.S. troops would welcome an early withdrawal deadline. But the strategic question of how to extract the United States from the Iraq disaster is not a matter to be decided by soldiers. Carl von Clausewitz spoke of two kinds of courage: first, bravery in the face of mortal danger; second, the willingness to accept personal responsibility for command decisions. The former is expected of the troops. The latter must be demanded of high-level commanders, including the president.

Withdrawal would undermine U.S. credibility in the world.
Were the United States a middling power, this case might hold some water. But for the world’s only superpower, it’s patently phony. A rapid reversal of our present course in Iraq would improve U.S. credibility around the world. The same argument was made against withdrawal from Vietnam. It was proved wrong then and it would be proved wrong today. Since Sept. 11, 2001, the world’s opinion of the United States has plummeted, with the largest short-term drop in American history. The United States now garners as much international esteem as Russia. Withdrawing and admitting our mistake would reverse this trend. Very few countries have that kind of corrective capacity. I served as a military attaché in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow during Richard Nixon’s Watergate crisis. When Nixon resigned, several Soviet officials who had previously expressed disdain for the United States told me they were astonished. One diplomat said, “Only your country is powerful enough to do this. It would destroy my country.”

Two facts, however painful, must be recognized, or we will remain perilously confused in Iraq. First, invading Iraq was not in the interests of the United States. It was in the interests of Iran and al Qaeda. For Iran, it avenged a grudge against Saddam for his invasion of the country in 1980. For al Qaeda, it made it easier to kill Americans. Second, the war has paralyzed the United States in the world diplomatically and strategically. Although relations with Europe show signs of marginal improvement, the trans-Atlantic alliance still may not survive the war. Only with a rapid withdrawal from Iraq will Washington regain diplomatic and military mobility. Tied down like Gulliver in the sands of Mesopotamia, we simply cannot attract the diplomatic and military cooperation necessary to win the real battle against terror. Getting out of Iraq is the precondition for any improvement.

In fact, getting out now may be our only chance to set things right in Iraq. For starters, if we withdraw, European politicians would be more likely to cooperate with us in a strategy for stabilizing the greater Middle East. Following a withdrawal, all the countries bordering Iraq would likely respond favorably to an offer to help stabilize the situation. The most important of these would be Iran. It dislikes al Qaeda as much as we do. It wants regional stability as much as we do. It wants to produce more oil and gas and sell it. If its leaders really want nuclear weapons, we cannot stop them. But we can engage them.

None of these prospects is possible unless we stop moving deeper into the “big sandy” of Iraq. America must withdraw now.

Lt. Gen. William E. Odom (Ret.) is senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and professor at Yale University. He was director of the National Security Agency from 1985 to 1988.

St.Elsewhere's Fire

2006-05-01T16:12:00.002-04:00

"sometimes it sounds like hip-hop soul, sometimes it reminds you of golden oldies, and sometimes it sounds like current indie rock with a little more flare. There's just not very much music out there that can actually make you feel cooler just listening to it. But this album does."

Done, and done!

2006-03-22T11:05:00.000-05:00

Cut Chemist free samples

"The Garden"

"Storm"

2006-02-24T11:23:00.000-05:00

Sweet Jebus

Last Iraq Exit - Mosque Bombing?

2006-02-23T11:00:00.000-05:00

I just had a scary thought. The bombing of a revered Shiite mosque and the subsequent reprisal killings of about 100 Sunnis might be the best news the Bush administration has heard in years. If things get bad and get bad quickly, the civil war could be used as a convenient excuse to leave the country, as "our prescence is no longer capable of establishing and maintaining order" or some such policyese.

And the news might be too good. This is purely speculative, but would the U.S. bomb a mosque to incite sectarian violence in order to establish an exit strategy? I wouldn't put it past the CIA, that's for sure.

I hope I'm wrong.

2006-02-08T09:31:00.000-05:00

paper throw

Cartoon Debate

2006-02-06T17:51:00.000-05:00

As well as being a small masterpiece of inarticulacy and self-abnegation, the statement from the State Department about this week's international Muslim pogrom against the free press was also accidentally accurate.

"Anti-Muslim images are as unacceptable as anti-Semitic images, as anti-Christian images, or any other religious belief."

Thus the hapless Sean McCormack, reading painfully slowly from what was reported as a prepared government statement. How appalling for the country of the First Amendment to be represented by such an administration. What does he mean "unacceptable"? That it should be forbidden? And how abysmal that a "spokesman" cannot distinguish between criticism of a belief system and slander against a people. However, the illiterate McCormack is right in unintentionally comparing racist libels to religious faith. Many people have pointed out that the Arab and Muslim press is replete with anti-Jewish caricature, often of the most lurid and hateful kind. In one way the comparison is hopelessly inexact. These foul items mostly appear in countries where the state decides what is published or broadcast. However, when Muslims republish the Protocols of the Elders of Zion or perpetuate the story of Jewish blood-sacrifice at Passover, they are recycling the fantasies of the Russian Orthodox Christian secret police (in the first instance) and of centuries of Roman Catholic and Lutheran propaganda (in the second). And, when an Israeli politician refers to Palestinians as snakes or pigs or monkeys, it is near to a certainty that he will be a rabbi (most usually Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, the leader of the disgraceful Shas party) and will cite Talmudic authority for his racism. For most of human history, religion and bigotry have been two sides of the same coin, and it still shows.

Therefore there is a strong case for saying that the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, and those who have reprinted its efforts out of solidarity, are affirming the right to criticize not merely Islam but religion in general. And the Bush administration has no business at all expressing an opinion on that. If it is to say anything, it is constitutionally obliged to uphold the right and no more. You can be sure that the relevant European newspapers have also printed their share of cartoons making fun of nuns and popes and messianic Israeli settlers, and taunting child-raping priests. There was a time when this would not have been possible. But those taboos have been broken.

Which is what taboos are for. Islam makes very large claims for itself. In its art, there is a prejudice against representing the human form at all. The prohibition on picturing the prophet—who was only another male mammal—is apparently absolute. So is the prohibition on pork or alcohol or, in some Muslim societies, music or dancing. Very well then, let a good Muslim abstain rigorously from all these. But if he claims the right to make me abstain as well, he offers the clearest possible warning and proof of an aggressive intent. This current uneasy coexistence is only an interlude, he seems to say. For the moment, all I can do is claim to possess absolute truth and demand absolute immunity from criticism. But in the future, you will do what I say and you will do it on pain of death.

I refuse to be spoken to in that tone of voice, which as it happens I chance to find "offensive." ( By the way, hasn't the word "offensive" become really offensive lately?) The innate human revulsion against desecration is much older than any monotheism: Its most powerful expression is in the Antigone of Sophocles. It belongs to civilization. I am not asking for the right to slaughter a pig in a synagogue or mosque or to relieve myself on a "holy" book. But I will not be told I can't eat pork, and I will not respect those who burn books on a regular basis. I, too, have strong convictions and beliefs and value the Enlightenment above any priesthood or any sacred fetish-object. It is revolting to me to breathe the same air as wafts from the exhalations of the madrasahs, or the reeking fumes of the suicide-murderers, or the sermons of Billy Graham and Joseph Ratzinger. But these same principles of mine also prevent me from wreaking random violence on the nearest church, or kidnapping a Muslim at random and holding him hostage, or violating diplomatic immunity by attacking the embassy or the envoys of even the most despotic Islamic state, or making a moronic spectacle of myself threatening blood and fire to faraway individuals who may have hurt my feelings. The babyish rumor-fueled tantrums that erupt all the time, especially in the Islamic world, show yet again that faith belongs to the spoiled and selfish childhood of our species.

As it happens, the cartoons themselves are not very brilliant, or very mordant, either. But if Muslims do not want their alleged prophet identified with barbaric acts or adolescent fantasies, they should say publicly that random murder for virgins is not in their religion. And here one runs up against a curious reluctance. … In fact, Sunni Muslim leaders can't even seem to condemn the blowing-up of Shiite mosques and funeral processions, which even I would describe as sacrilege. Of course there are many millions of Muslims who do worry about this, and another reason for condemning the idiots at Foggy Bottom is their assumption, dangerous in many ways, that the first lynch mob on the scene is actually the genuine voice of the people. There's an insult to Islam, if you like.

The question of "offensiveness" is easy to decide. First: Suppose that we all agreed to comport ourselves in order to avoid offending the believers? How could we ever be sure that we had taken enough precautions? On Saturday, I appeared on CNN, which was so terrified of reprisal that it "pixilated" the very cartoons that its viewers needed to see. And this ignoble fear in Atlanta, Ga., arose because of an illustration in a small Scandinavian newspaper of which nobody had ever heard before! Is it not clear, then, that those who are determined to be "offended" will discover a provocation somewhere? We cannot possibly adjust enough to please the fanatics, and it is degrading to make the attempt.

Second (and important enough to be insisted upon): Can the discussion be carried on without the threat of violence, or the automatic resort to it? When Salman Rushdie published The Satanic Verses in 1988, he did so in the hope of forwarding a discussion that was already opening in the Muslim world, between extreme Quranic literalists and those who hoped that the text could be interpreted. We know what his own reward was, and we sometimes forget that the fatwa was directed not just against him but against "all those involved in its publication," which led to the murder of the book's Japanese translator and the near-deaths of another translator and one publisher. I went on Crossfire at one point, to debate some spokesman for outraged faith, and said that we on our side would happily debate the propriety of using holy writ for literary and artistic purposes. But that we would not exchange a word until the person on the other side of the podium had put away his gun. (The menacing Muslim bigmouth on the other side refused to forswear state-sponsored suborning of assassination, and was of course backed up by the Catholic bigot Pat Buchanan.) The same point holds for international relations: There can be no negotiation under duress or under the threat of blackmail and assassination. And civil society means that free expression trumps the emotions of anyone to whom free expression might be inconvenient. It is depressing to have to restate these obvious precepts, and it is positively outrageous that the administration should have discarded them at the very first sign of a fight.

--By Christopher Hitchens

2006-02-06T14:01:00.000-05:00

iPod Charger and Transmitter [via]

2006-02-02T13:32:00.000-05:00

Ninja Tunes founder on the evils of iTunes

2006-02-01T19:04:00.000-05:00

Empire Beats by DJ Spider (don't be scared, he won't bite you, though I can't be entirely sure knowing nothing of his work beyond this song.)

[via]

2006-02-01T16:11:00.000-05:00

Eruption images of Augustine volcano in Alaska.

2006-01-23T17:23:00.000-05:00

Thighs Wide Movies 2005 in all its glory

[via]

2006-01-23T10:47:00.000-05:00

After a career of note in the NHL as one of the league's most under-rated netminders, I have now decided to share my astute knowlege of hockey and what teams are great and what teams are not. Oh yeah, and Dion Phaneuf's amazing no-backswing slapshot!

2006-01-21T00:08:00.000-05:00

The Drake - For those who fish

2006-01-20T11:54:00.000-05:00

No need to upgrade to a video capable 5th generation iPod. Not if you have the iSee 360i from Advanced Technology Office.

you can plug any analog source in the back and record video files through the iSee. As with other PMPs, you can then watch your movies on the iSee screen or play them back at 640x480 on any TV. So basically what you’re doing is using the iPod for disk storage of the digital video captured by this doohickey

[via]

2006-01-19T12:40:00.000-05:00

That's one big jelly fish. Too bad there isn't just one.

And congratulations to the Vatican on avoiding becoming a laughing stock in the next century.

2006-01-17T16:50:00.000-05:00

He may have been the ultimate icon of 1950s conformity and postwar complacency, but Dwight D. Eisenhower was an iconoclast, visionary, and the Cassandra of the New World Order. Upon departing his presidency, Eisenhower issued a stern, cogent warning about the burgeoning "military industrial complex," foretelling with ominous clarity the state of the world in 2004 with its incestuous entanglement of political, corporate, and Defense Department interests.

Last night on the Daily Show, Stewart invited filmaker Eugene Jarecki onto the program to plug his award-winning 'Why We Fight'(buy here), a film I think any voting citizen should watch. I'm not sure, but I imagine it was spawned by the recent book of the same name, by William J. Bennett.

Sidenote - this is not a remake of the series of seven films of WWII propaganda

Respect the architect, as I begin to build...

2006-01-12T17:48:00.000-05:00

"Check the Blueprints" (DJ King Most remix)

"The Cycle Repeats" (remix)

by kero one out on plug

2006-01-11T11:14:00.000-05:00

Raking Leafs is where I'll be tending the to the Leafs. A greenhouse, or garden if you will.

2006-01-10T15:47:00.000-05:00

Of course my iPod can pick up FM radio...right after Stern went to satellite.

2006-01-10T14:59:00.000-05:00

Jesus

2006-01-10T13:01:00.000-05:00

Ok, I think I've reached my breaking point. Toronto Maple Leafs bloggers either suck, are too infrequent with their posts, or simply don't exist. This will not stand. I know there are folks out there, including myself, who want a player by player analysis, atleast at the mid-way point of the season, maybe even quarterly. Game recaps would be nice as well. Every game, that is. The Leafs are changing, and with it, so to should their online prescence change, and I want to be part of it. But not here. This place is for me.

Must plan and prepare. (smells smoke)

2006-01-09T14:02:00.000-05:00

Karma is a bitch

2006-01-09T11:53:00.000-05:00

Ok, I've been searching online hockey resources high and low for a mention of one of the hottest goal scorers of the past month, and not a word. Since I've got him on both my fantasy squads, I might as well tell the world. Michel Ouellet is a goal scorer.

Brought up from the Baby(March of the)Penguins by Therrien when he took over the reins, Michel has 10 goals and 16 points in ten games since 12/16/05, with 12 points on the powerplay. Only Iyla and Cheechoo have more goals in the last 30 days. That is more than Svatos, Prucha, Cammalleri, Crosby, Hossa, Gaborik, Sullivan, Lehtinen, Jokinen...I could go on.

2006-01-09T00:52:00.000-05:00

2006 Dodge Challenger Concept (more pics here)

I think designers over at Dodge like the FOOSE look.

More pics of North American International Auto Show

2006-01-09T00:40:00.000-05:00

Lamborghini Miura Concept 01/08/06

2006-01-09T00:39:00.000-05:00

2006-01-07T16:48:00.000-05:00

Aquatic Sessions

"Rebel Rebel"

Sunshine and Puppies...Beeyotch!

2006-01-06T11:36:00.000-05:00

This is War

2006-01-06T11:09:00.000-05:00

DJ Jazzy Jeff

Check out Kerri Chandler "Brooklyn" & Pauly Yams "Only Money" in the multimedia section

2006-01-05T23:31:00.000-05:00

Live Chat with Eric Staal

Hip to be Waived

2006-01-04T17:21:00.000-05:00

Alexander "Life Alert" Mogilny placed on waivers by Lou "Mr. Nice Guy" Lamoriello to free up cap space. I guess after one game with Elias back and playing quite well, he thinks his team has a chance to make the dance this year. I wonder what other moves Shifty Lou has in store?

When Ferguson let Almo walk, I feared the most skilled player Quinn had ever coached would come back to bite the Leafs where they didn't need it. I'm not confident he'll be picked up by any other team, given his ailing hip, but I be relieved until he clears.

2006-01-03T23:01:00.000-05:00

Van Hoy Snap Lock 2

[via]

2006-01-03T11:56:00.000-05:00

MAGlite LED conversion

2006-01-03T10:58:00.000-05:00

Apparently PuckUpdate hasn't had the pleasure of watching a Leafs' game with Glenn Healy reporting from between the benches on Rogers Sportsnet. He picks up on the chatter, the mood, the coaching changes, basically the subtleties of the game. Healy can be grating at times, but like most ex-goalies, he can read the game extremely well.

2006-01-03T10:50:00.000-05:00

NLL is the new NHL

I wonder if I get Philly games?

2005-12-30T13:58:00.000-05:00

Statsblog

2005-12-30T11:31:00.000-05:00

Pony Up! "He taught me everything. Go hard. Don't look back. Do whatever you can to win." Thanks Joe.

Brian McCabe may be putting up the points but, man, is he a stupid hockey player. He's all yours Leaf-fans, I don't want him anywhere near an AGH sweater.

Thanks for noticing, but we'll keep him. His teammates continue to bail him out, so its ok for now.

2005-12-29T15:17:00.000-05:00

Bed, Bath and....Beyond!

2005-12-28T21:32:00.000-05:00

So, will it be the Canucks or the Avalanche who trade for a goalie? Auld ain't the answer as Vancouver's home dominance has gone bye bye. Bertuzzi at center is an interesting attempt by Crawford to shake things up, but it isn't addressing the problem. Budaj and Aebischer can't stop enough pucks to support the third most productive offense, and the third-stringer just got sent back down. We're almost at 40 games. Time to pull the trigger.

UPDATE 12/29/05 - Damn, I'm good. But not this good.

2005-12-28T21:29:00.000-05:00

2005-12-27T23:57:00.000-05:00

Ouch!

2005-12-27T17:18:00.000-05:00

Tasca Springfield Falcons Spoofcast

2005-12-27T14:51:00.000-05:00

Yet another example of Maple Leaf mismanagement, not to mention the Blackhawks, Steve Sullivan is the epitome of what I think a hockey player should be.

"There was really nothing I could do except maybe flatten his tires,'' he said with a smile. "But that way I couldn't get to the rink either.''

Ruthless, but isn't dumb about it.

2005-12-22T18:53:00.000-05:00

But I thought God created humans like 300 years ago? This has to be a fake.

2005-12-22T18:47:00.000-05:00

How evil does Pope Benedict XVI look in this lovely photo op?

2005-12-22T18:45:00.000-05:00

A rainbow trout fished out of Holmes Lake in Lincoln, Neb., on Dec. 17, 2005

2005-12-22T18:32:00.000-05:00

Dead Man's Chest

2005-12-22T16:26:00.000-05:00

newgrounds.com

2005-12-21T14:20:00.000-05:00

"Yeah, it makes you look like you’re ready to give oral to a humpback whale, but..."

2005-12-21T12:40:00.000-05:00

As a follow-up on the eaves-dropping scandal, one of the members of the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court set up to approve surveillance has resigned in protest.

2005-12-21T12:37:00.000-05:00

Confused shark attacks boat for 15 minutes, or was it just hungry?

2005-12-21T12:04:00.000-05:00

"They hate us because of our freedom -- our meat-eating, fur-wearing freedom."

2005-12-20T18:53:00.000-05:00

I think I just found what I'm going to use my itunes gift card on 'Based on a True Story' by Fat Freedy's Drop

2005-12-20T16:27:00.000-05:00

Western Democracy is reaping what it has sown...

Señor Morales has pledged to nationalise the country’s huge gas reserves and call a constituent assembly to write a new constitution that will reflect the indigenous majority.

Señor Morales built his campaign on a promise to break the power of the European elite that has run Bolivia since independence from Spain in 1825 and which is seen by many as having ransacked the

He has also promised to ally Bolivia with other regional left-wing leaders such as Presidents Chávez of Venezuela and Castro of Cuba. Señor Chávez was one of the first to telephone to congratulate Señor Morales, whose victory continues Latin America’s shift to the Left.

Señor Morales, who used to lead a coca-growers’ union, has promised to legalise the cultivation of coca, the primary ingredient in cocaine

I imagine this is a setback for the futile war on drugs...especially when it is one of the few crops the third world has that has a market whose comeptition isn't subsidized.

[via]

2005-12-20T16:23:00.000-05:00

What is especially perplexing about this story is that the 1978 law set up a special court to approve eavesdropping in hours, even minutes, if necessary. In fact, the law allows the government to eavesdrop on its own, then retroactively justify it to the court, essentially obtaining a warrant after the fact. Since 1979, the FISA court has approved tens of thousands of eavesdropping requests and rejected only four. There was no indication the existing system was slow—as the president seemed to claim in his press conference—or in any way required extra-constitutional action.

...Bush summoned Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger and executive editor Bill Keller to the Oval Office in a futile attempt to talk them out of running the story.

[via]

2005-12-20T12:24:00.000-05:00

Ok, I can't stop listening to the four Clap Your Hands, Say Yeah songs I was given for the past two days. Their influences are obvious, but are nothing I would consider favorites of mine. That said, I might have to redefine who my favorites are as I grow older and find myself singing along to the radio to songs I thought were dorky.

The vocal stylings are really what appeals to me. He isn't afraid to put a strong artistic form on lyrics that are really...not all that special. Tres cool.

Way to go Nick Stern! These guys are the real deal.

Highly Recommended.

2005-12-19T22:39:00.000-05:00

2005-12-19T19:54:00.000-05:00

Does the Center Ice package provide any Turin coverage? It better, especially when it can pick up the CBC feed.

Biron is 'the man' now!

2005-12-19T17:45:00.000-05:00

Since I consider the Buffalo Sabres to be the only team with multiple viable options at the goaltending position this NHL season, I've been mulling the trade possibilities over; who do they move, and where does he go? This is primarily about part one of the problem.

Mr.HockeyBlog himself, along with several commenters, sees Biron being the one to move out of the snow belt. I found this surprising given Tom's meticulous attention to value of a player relative to salary, return on investment and the rest of what comes along with the new CBA. But conventional hockey wisdom seems to agree that the Sabres should trade away the player they have developed over several years in order to clear cap space and give Miller his chance. But I don't see it that way.

With Miller, the Sabres can trade away a starting goaltender to a cap-strapped team, i.e. a wealthy and play-off hungry team, and presumably raid the kitchen cabinet in return, all the while retaining the services of Marty Biron. I would assume SabreRattling has thought about this situation a tad more than I have (especially since I have to ponder whether Belfour should take a rest and see if Tellqvist can handle the weight of Leaf Nation), and he and his wife have arrived at a similar conclusion; Biron is the man now.

2005-12-19T17:02:00.000-05:00

For all of Cheney's cheerleading about how well things are going, those carrying the real guns recognize that they will not soon be coming home from a country where their "replacements" are carrying imaginary guns.

...It should come as no surprise that the troops Cheney encountered appeared to have been as frustrated with the illusion as Jack Murtha. After all, Murtha, the old soldier who earned a chest full of medals in Vietnam, is one of them. Cheney, the guy who got five deferments to avoid serving in Vietnam, is not.

[via]

2005-12-15T13:57:00.000-05:00

Developing countries, forced to liberalize by developed countries, have always been told that liberalization will deliver gains ... It is not too late for developed countries to swallow their own medicine

That is why it is called Free Trade.

The World Bank added its voice to the indignation expressed by least-developed countries over their treatment at the World Trade Organization (WTO) meeting, saying there had been much talk about development but too little action.

"In the three days the meetings have taken so far, the rich countries have transferred more than $2 billion to their farmers in various forms of support," World Bank Vice President Danny Leipziger said in a statement.

"In the same period, the 300 million poorest people in Africa have earned less than $1 billion between them."

Bravo World Bank! In a capitalist global economy, the biggest capitalists of all can't protect their workforces with economic socialism.

The 25-nation EU says Washington must first indicate how it plans to reform its food aid system, arguing that -- because the aid is in kind rather than cash -- it amounts to as great a subsidy for U.S. farmers as European export subsidies.

The United States parried pressure from African countries to end its cotton subsidies, which they say are devastating their economies, saying that it could not take such a step without a move from the EU to open further its farm markets.

And the haves play games with people's lives.

Prospect Pogge Progressing

2005-12-15T11:26:00.000-05:00

The above is not a misprint. The Leafs actually have prospects with potential, particularly Pogge (pronounced POH-gey) who is to start the WJC in net for Canada.

That Pogge is even part of this elite group speaks of his progress, as he was a little known Western Hockey League goalie when the Leafs selected him. This season, Pogge has been arguably the best goalie in junior hockey and is leading the WHL in every goaltending category with a 22-5-0 record, a 1.53 goals-against average and a .928 save percentage to go with six shutouts.

Selected 90th overall in 2004 with the Leafs' first pick(ouch), he may be facing the Leafs' first rounder of 2005 Tuukka Rask, the standout Finnish goalie.

Later Eddie. It's been real.

2005-12-14T20:21:00.000-05:00

In the words of the ever-eloquent Alan Linquist "...I have to call bullshit. Bullshit! There, it's been called."

Potential computer users in the developing world will not want a basic $100 hand-cranked laptop due to be rolled out to millions, chip-maker Intel Corp. chairman Craig Barrett said on Friday

At $100, fuck the developing world, I want one.