Bitter queen

Hoover Planned Mass Jailing in 1950 - New York Times: "A newly declassified document shows that J. Edgar Hoover, the longtime director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, had a plan to suspend habeas corpus and imprison some 12,000 Americans he suspected of disloyalty.

Hoover sent his plan to the White House on July 7, 1950, 12 days after the Korean War began. It envisioned putting suspect Americans in military prisons.

Hoover wanted President Harry S. Truman to proclaim the mass arrests necessary to “protect the country against treason, espionage and sabotage.” The F.B.I would “apprehend all individuals potentially dangerous” to national security, Hoover’s proposal said. The arrests would be carried out under “a master warrant attached to a list of names” provided by the bureau.

The names were part of an index that Hoover had been compiling for years."

WHAT WOULD GEORGE DO? - washingtonpost.com

WHAT WOULD GEORGE DO? - washingtonpost.com: "We have also strayed rather far from the world and wisdom of the founders in our current presidential-selection process. In our effort to replace the smoke-filled rooms of the old machine politics with a more democratic primary system, we have created a money-driven, media-dominated campaign culture that none of the founders would have been willing to tolerate. Indeed, they would have regarded anyone who succeeded in our modern-day electoral circus as a clown unworthy of the office. The degree of egomaniacal ambition required to negotiate the current campaign culture would strike all the most prominent founders, save perhaps Aaron Burr, as incompatible with the qualities of mind and heart essential for presidential leadership."

Hillary parrots Bush-Cheney

The new Eastern Europe

A young blonde Icelandic woman's recent experience visiting the US -- Signs of the Times News: "During the last twenty-four hours I have probably experienced the greatest humiliation to which I have ever been subjected. During these last twenty-four hours I have been handcuffed and chained, denied the chance to sleep, been without food and drink and been confined to a place without anyone knowing my whereabouts, imprisoned. Now I am beginning to try to understand all this, rest and review the events which began as innocently as possible."

Clinton-Bush duopoly

Consortiumnews.com: "As President, Clinton not only turned the other cheek in regard to “Passport-gate” but made sure that federal investigators averted their eyes from other scandals implicating former President Bush. Clinton presumably thought that his magnanimity could gain some reciprocity from Republicans when it came to his own scandals.

As Clinton was taking office in 1993, three important investigations were underway, all of which Clinton could have helped by ordering key documents declassified or giving other backing to the investigators.

***

If Bill Clinton is right – that his wife’s first act as President would be to ask him and George H.W. Bush to go on an around-the-world goodwill mission – Hillary Clinton is making it clear that she has no intention of holding George W. Bush accountable for any wrongdoing."

This is even legal?

E.P.A. Denies California Emission’s Waiver - New York Times: "The Bush administration said Wednesday night that it would deny California's bid to set stricter vehicle emissions standards than federal law required as part of the state's efforts to fight climate change."

States' rights indeed

Laurie David and Sheryl Crow: Karl Rove Gets Thrown Under the Stop Global Warming Bus - The Huffington Post

Laurie David and Sheryl Crow: Karl Rove Gets Thrown Under the Stop Global Warming Bus - The Huffington Post: "In his attempt to dismiss us, Mr. Rove turned to head toward his table, but as soon as he did so, Sheryl reached out to touch his arm. Karl swung around and spat, 'Don't touch me.' How hardened and removed from reality must a person be to refuse to be touched by Sheryl Crow? Unfazed, Sheryl abruptly responded, 'You can't speak to us like that, you work for us.' Karl then quipped, 'I don't work for you, I work for the American people.' To which Sheryl promptly reminded him, 'We are the American people.'"

Military Soft On Don't Ask, Don't Tell?, 60 Minutes: Is Military More Tolerant Of Gay Members In Wartime? - CBS News

Military Soft On Don't Ask, Don't Tell?, 60 Minutes: Is Military More Tolerant Of Gay Members In Wartime? - CBS News: "Discharges of gay soldiers have dropped dramatically since the Afghan and Iraq wars began, from 1,200 a year in 2001 to barely 600 now. With the military struggling to recruit and retain soldiers, gay soldiers claim that commanders are reluctant to discharge critical personnel in the middle of a war.

Stahl spoke with several gay former military members who say they were also out openly in their units, known to be gay by as many as a hundred other service members"

Clinton sleaze

THE NEW REPUBLIC | Blogs: "'I'm a known quantity,' she added at the press conference, at which she recieved the endorsement of Iowa Democratic Congressman Leonard Boswell. 'We need to nominate a candidate who can win.' This threw the media into a low-grade frenzy. Hillary smiled with the patience of a grandmother stuck babysitting bratty kids as reporters barraged her with breathless questions about whether Obama's drug history is the sort of surprise she's talking about and whether she thinks general-election voters might punish him for it.

But Hillary wasn't biting. 'I am only talking about myself,' she insisted, looking unusually resplendent in a dark suit with a red blouse and multicolored necklace. Nor would she bite when asked by MSNBC's David Shuster whether she would flatly declare that 'a candidate's indescretions as a teenager should not be an issue for voters.' After what I sensed was a moment of uncertainty she concluded, 'It's certainly not an issue in my campaign.'"

Bush spending on paper shredding

In 2000, the feds spent $452,807 to make unpleasant truths go away; by 2006, the "Cheney Effect" had bumped that number up to $2.9 million. And by halfway through 2007, the feds almost matched that number, with $2.7 million and counting. Pretty much says it all.

book notes

Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression by Mildred Armstrong Kalish

Awesome story about growing up in the 1930's in Iowa, including descriptions of the harsh winters in that decade, home remedies, frugality, and farm animals, strict morality and cuss words.

Romney stands firmly against giant gay flesh-eating rats

The Corner on National Review Online

The Corner on National Review Online: "If you think that our efforts against jihadist terrorism constitute World War Four (I don't), you will not want Ron Paul for president. (Jonah Goldberg's article 'The Tradition of Ron Paul' in the Dec. 17 issue of National Review is key reading in that context.) If you think there would be a whole world of difference between what Hillary Clinton would accomplish in the Rome-of-the-Borgias down there on the Potomac, by comparison with what Rudy, or Fred, or Mitt would accomplish, you won't be supporting Paul. If, however, you think that much of the underbrush that has grown up around our national institutions this past 40 years needs to by pulled up by the roots and burned, before it chokes the life out of our Republic, then Paul's your man."

Ron Paul interview

Faith vs. the Faithless - New York Times

Faith vs. the Faithless - New York Times: "The first casualty is the national community. Romney described a community yesterday. Observant Catholics, Baptists, Methodists, Jews and Muslims are inside that community. The nonobservant are not. There was not even a perfunctory sentence showing respect for the nonreligious. I’m assuming that Romney left that out in order to generate howls of outrage in the liberal press. The second casualty of the faith war is theology itself. In rallying the armies of faith against their supposed enemies, Romney waved away any theological distinctions among them with the brush of his hand. In this calculus, the faithful become a tribe, marked by ethnic pride, a shared sense of victimization and all the other markers of identity politics. In Romney’s account, faith ends up as wishy-washy as the most New Age-y secularism. In arguing that the faithful are brothers in a common struggle, Romney insisted that all religions share an equal devotion to all good things. Really? Then why not choose the one with the prettiest buildings?"

Paul Jenkins: Bill And Hillary's Experienced Lies - Politics on The Huffington Post

Paul Jenkins: Bill And Hillary's Experienced Lies - Politics on The Huffington Post: "She, tone-deaf as so often (did she not talk about one-night stands with her middle-aged rural audience this week?), went for her version of the jugular, Obama's musings as a 5-year-old. Her husband, a practiced liar, tried to get away with the biggest lie he could think of: that he had always opposed the war in Iraq. After the hundreds of polls, focus groups, and various analyses they and others have paid for, surely the Clintons know by now that their Achilles' heel is their unbearable prevarication. It goes to show how deeply embedded this deceptiveness is that these two smart, accomplished actors are simply unable to even pretend to be honest."

How to make your holiday travel plans without bumping into Larry Craig. Update: OMG at ORD! - By Bruce Reed - Slate Magazine

How to make your holiday travel plans without bumping into Larry Craig. Update: OMG at ORD! - By Bruce Reed - Slate Magazine: "For instance, at first glance, United's best deals from D.C. to Boise involve changing planes at O'Hare – which has no reported Craig sightings despite being the second busiest airport in the world. But look again: Saving a few hundred dollars doesn't sound like such a good deal when it means a layover that could stretch to three hours. Consider a lower-risk option – Delta through Salt Lake. Best bet: Give yourself some peace of mind this holiday season, and pay a little more for a shorter layover. Your luggage maynot make it, but no one will ever have to read about it in the Statesman"

More gay men describe sexual encounters with U.S. Sen. Craig | Eyepiece | Idaho Statesman

More gay men describe sexual encounters with U.S. Sen. Craig | Eyepiece | Idaho Statesman: "They are telling their stories now because they are offended by Craig's denials, including his famous statement, 'I am not gay, I never have been gay.' Those words, spoken on live national TV on Aug. 28, are now memorialized on a just-released-for-Christmas Talking Senator Larry Craig Action Figure."