Jawa Philatelia

Have you collected your MPJ stamps yet??

Lightsaber salute: Sharp as a Marble and Jeff Jarvis

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Rodney Alexander Switches Parties

Rodney Alexander has long been a little pet peeve of mine. During the 2002 campaign he ran a series of television spots that were so obtuse that none of my students could identify to which party he belonged. This ad has become a staple in my introductory American National Governmnet course as a way to show how politicians use symbols that can be interpretted in a variety of ways.

My favorite part of the ad? The fade out shot of Rodney Alexander walking through a field with what is allegedly his family. His 'wife' is clearly 20 years younger than him and his 'children' are toddlers. Throw in some oblique references about 'protecting our children and our senior citizens' and you have an A+ thirty second political ad that tells you absolutely nothing about the candidate.

For once I am inclined to agree with David Anderson that Mr. Alexander is 'self serving'. However, calling a politician self-serving is like calling an In-n-Out Burger Double-Double 'tasty'. It's definitional. Also, I predict Mr. Alexander wins handily and remains in office indefinitely. He switched because his district is increasingly becoming Republican.

Lightsaber salute: Kevin Aylward

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They've Got THE FUNNY

Surfing using bloglines is definitely the way to go. The problem with using it is that you get to read so much stuff in so little time. Nay, TOO MUCH stuff. Hence, how to share with your good readers the most important news of the day? And by important, I mean funny.

Warning: Do not drink milk while reading.

-Bill left out the ever important jawa slur. Look it up and then you'll see why my blog ought to offend you.
-Speaking of racial slurs.
-Iowahawk, finally, takes off the gloves and makes Kerry's Vietnam record his bitch.
-Gordon becomes William F. Buckley's bitch in his exclusive interview with the erudite and double-lizzle conservative.
-Ted Rall, makes John Kerry his bitch. (can't remember where I picked up link)
-Ace has some advice for PP, bi-yatches!

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Jews Attacked at Auschwitz

Via the Omniscient Allah this JPOST story:

While on a tour of the museum at the Auschwitz death camp in Poland on Sunday, a group of around 50 Jewish university students from Israel, the U.S. and Poland were verbally attacked by a three-member gang of French male tourists.

Evidently incited by the presence of an Israeli flag wrapped around the shoulders of Tamar Schuri, an Israeli student from Ben Gurion University, the first assailant ran at the group while its members were being guided through a model gas chamber and crematoria and began swearing and hurling anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli insults.

"He told us to go back to Israel and said that we were stupid and should be ashamed to walk around with an Israeli flag," testifies Maya Ober, a 21-year-old Polish student at the Academy of Fine Arts in Poznan and member of the Polish Union of Jewish Students (PUSZ), which organized the 16-day summer learning program along with the World Union of Jewish Students (WUJS).

After the initial altercation, a second assailant
grabbed Ober by the arm. "One of the guys held me by the arm and wouldn't let go," says Ober, who lost several members of her family at Auschwitz. "I was afraid. I couldn't move and I didn't know what he was going to do.

"I was shocked. Although I have met anti-Semitism many times, I never expected to meet it at Auschwitz, where so many of my relatives were killed," she says she spoke to the assailants in French and that in addition to being "brutish and vulgar," their sentiments "made absolutely no sense."

Weinbaum, who has been to Poland more than 30 times on educational tours, says he never before saw anything like what happened, happen. "It was simply shocking," he says. "In some way, I felt that these men were satisfied to visit Auschwitz. This was another reminder that in Western Europe there is sympathy for dead Jews; it's just the live ones that they cannot tolerate."

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Kerry's Main Swiftboat Defender Served With Him Less Than a Week!

Captain Ed has been following this one pretty closely and pretty much demolishes Kerry's rejoinders to the Swifties. NZ Bear thinks the Swiftie campaign would be the undoing of the Kerry candidacy--this was BEFORE NZ Bear knew about this. Novak knocks one out of the park:

O'Neill told me that these former sailors served with Kerry no more than five weeks. Jim Rassmann, now part of the Kerry presidential campaign, was a Special Forces lieutenant spending a few days with Kerry when he fell or was knocked off the swift boat while under fire and was fished out of the Mekong River by the future candidate.

Wait a second, let me get this straight, the main defender of Kerry's 'band of brothers', the man who viciously attacks the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth for not serving on John Kerry's boat, only served with him for a couple of days!!!!!!!! Are you kidding me? All the reports I had ever seen about this man was that John Kerry had saved his life--not that they only served together a couple of days.

This is a totally devestating revelation to me and completely undermines the Kerry camp's assertions.

Shamelessly linked at the Beltway Traffic Jam.

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Kerry's 'Secret Plan' Revealed...sort of

John Kerry laid out his heretofore 'Secret Plan for Bringing Home the Troops' in an op-ed in USA Today. James Joyner does a first-rate job of deconstructing the plan, as does McQ. My thoughts run along similar lines, but I wanted to add a few sentiments:

• Lead NATO to make the security of Iraq one of its global missions and to deploy a significant portion of the force needed to secure and win the peace there. NATO participation will open the door to greater international involvement from non-NATO countries.

I love this one. File this under the Personality Theory of International Relations. Kerry is an absolute idiot. He believes the reason NATO isn't more involved is because George W. Bush (or his administration) doesn't have the leadership capacity to get NATO on board. McQ, rightly, notes that most NATO countries are already on board and James sarcastically asks if this is the same NATO with Germany and France in it? Also, is this the same NATO that is fudging out of it's commitments in Afghanistan--a war that NATO supported (link via Right on Red):

[there is] confusion and delay [over] Nato's provision of extra troops it promised to bolster security for the landmark presidential elections due on 9 October.... there has still been no announcement of when they [the fresh NATO troops] are coming. Meanwhile, the security situation has deteriorated, with mounting attacks on election workers registering voters.

What Kerry is really saying is that Germany and France would cooperate, if only a different President was in office. This theory of international relations completely overlooks the notion of national interest---that nations act in certain ways because it is in their interest to do so. So why would a Kerry administration somehow change the national interests of France and Germany? This is a naive theory of how the world works...and dangerous!!

• Internationalize the reconstruction efforts in Iraq to end the continuing perception of a U.S. occupation and help coordinate the rebuilding.

Since we have already done this, and continue to do so, this is a non-sequitor. This is the I will do what Bush is doing, but since I'm not Bush I will do it better theory of public administration. John Kerry must believe he has super-human powers. It's like saying a new coach could bring more wins over the last one, however the new coach will use the same playbook. Again, file this under a theory in which personality is the driving force behind public policy. Same policy + different administration = success. Again, naive and dangerous.

• Launch a massive and accelerated training effort to build Iraqi security forces that can provide real security for the Iraqi people, including a major role for NATO. This is not a task for America alone; we must join as a partner with other nations.

Again, somehow NATO would get more involved if only there was a different administration. Utterly stupid. Also, if Kerry wants more training to be given to the new Iraqi forces, why the hell isn't he in the Senate authoring a Bill that would fund this project of his--if it is something different than what the administration is already doing? Oops, I forgot, Kerry is too busy to try to get his 'new' not-really-a-plan-plan going in the Senate. How many Bills has Kerry voted on this year, anyway?

• Plan for Iraq's future by working with our allies to forgive Iraq's multibillion-dollar debt and involve our allies in the development of a new Iraqi constitution and the political arrangements needed to protect minority rights. At the same time, we should convene a regional conference with Iraq's neighbors to secure a pledge of respect for Iraq's borders and non-interference in Iraq's national affairs.

Err....again, what is new about this? Kerry's plan is to impose his will on the Saudis or the Kuwaitis, both of which have said they will not forgive Iraq's debt. How about France? Does he know something about France that I don't? Somehow France will be forgive Iraq's debt--the same France that loaned Iraq money, even during the embargo, so that Iraq could buy French goods prohibited them under US law!!!!!!!!!!!!

People, Kerry is more dangerous than I thought. His is a classic example of an ego run amuck. He believes that his personality can somehow change the course of history and the interest of nations. This is not a 'realistic plan' as he claims. It is sheer fantasy.

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John Kerry Named First Metrosexual President

As long as I'm thinking about Senator Kerry, his colleague Senator Pundit found an interesting article in the Toronto Sun.

Two questions: 1) Aren't Canadians gay by definition, and hence people who read Canadian papers metrosexuals themselves? 2) Why stop at metrosexual, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say Kerry is all the way gay. I yield the floor.

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Orwell Alert: John Kerry

Methinks Texas Native is on to something here.

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Right-Wing Media Alert!

According to Atrios, that is:

There's something we used to hear a lot -- that incumbents with under 50% approval ratings are in deep deep trouble. We haven't heard it much since Bush dropped below 50.

In national polls, Kerry is almost always ahead. In electoral vote analysis, Kerry has consistently been ahead.

In another year, the press would be (rather unfairly) writing Bush's epitaph and painting him as an inevitable loser. I'm not suggesting that's the appropriate way to cover this (or any) campaign, but they do seem to be doing a pretty good job of not mentioning the obvious -- right now, Kerry's ahead, and that isn't good news for that other guy.

Kerry is ahead???? I hadn't heard that one before!! Thanks for your amazing insight.

Moron.

Is he watching the same 'media' I am watching? Because if he is, then perhaps he can explain how just about every story covering the campaign brings up the fact that Kerry is ahead?

Oh, more on that right wing media from Captain Ed.

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'Worst Recovery Ever' III

Is the Kerry camp stupid or a bunch of liars? From the Business Times

George Miller, chairman of the Democratic Policy Committee, said: “We’ve had nearly four years of failed economic policy that has led to declining wages, rising costs and the worst job record since Herbert Hoover.”

I also heard John Edwards repeat the same 'worst job record since Herbert Hoover' mantra on CNN last night. But is it true? Since this is an empirically verifiable statement, let's see.

Not satisfied with disproving it here, here, or here, I set off to crunch a few numbers again.

First, why do they use Herbert Hoover as a baseline? Obviously, it is because that name is associated with the Great Depression. However, the Department of Labor Statistics did not even begin to keep unemployment numbers until the Truman administration. Of course, FDR definitely left office with less unemployment than what he inherited....then again, he died at the height of WWII---the lowest unemployment period (estimated) our country has EVER gone through!

Laying that aside, let's look at the numbers. All numbers were gathered from the official Bureau of Labor Statistics website.

The following graph represents the difference in official unemployment between the month a Presidential term began, and the month it ended (Jan-Jan). Needles to say, George W. Bush's numbers are not complete--and with the economy still producing new net jobs, his performance will improve.

George W. Bush does not have the 'worst job record since Herbert Hoover'. His father left office just as a recession was ending. Both of Nixon's terms were characterized by wild swings in the economy, with his second term (completed by Ford) in worse shape than the present recovery. In fact, even with the disappointing job numbers just released, le't remember that we still had a month of net gains. Even if that slow rate of growth were to continue (presuming the job numbers are accurate), Bush's job record should exceed that of Nixon I and Eisenhower II by end of this Presidential term. Let's lay this to rest. Please.

When the Democrats repeat the falsehood that this is the 'worst recovery since the Great Depression' or whatever variation they are using this week of that sentiment, remember that it is wrong. And by wrong I mean a lie.

I hate to use that word. Democrats fling it around so much these days that it has become utterly devoid of it's true meaning. When you and I disagree over whether Iraq posed a threat to our national security, this is a difference of opinion. It is an empirically unverifiable statement to say the 'Iraq posed a danger' or that 'Iraq didn't pose a dangger'. Why? Because danger is a subjective term. Some people swim with Great Whites, others won't go in the water at all. Difference of opinion over what is a danger.

But job numbers--those are matters of public record. Job numbers are empirically verifiable. The Kerry camp is simply not telling the truth.

Now, I know what Democrats might say. Even if this isn't the worst recovery ever, it is still pretty bad. Losing jobs on your watch isn't something to be proud of. And they are right, it isn't something to be proud of. But neither is it something to necessarily be ashamed of.

You see, what the President does has very little affect on the economy. Sure it can help or hinder, but in only marginal ways and only over a very long period of time. The economy moves up and down. Politicians can only hope that the business cycle times nicely with the election cycle. Sometimes it does. Sometimes it doesn't.

It just so happens that Bush came into office at the beginning of a recession, and we are just now pulling out of it. In one way Howard Dean is right-- it is all about the timing.

Let me leave you with this graph that I nabbed from a NY Times op-ed and a quote from George Schultz, the author of that piece.

Source: NY Times

"When you look at the record, a quick summary is this: President Clinton inherited prosperity; President Clinton bequeathed recession."

QED

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Except Rick James

Bill brought me the bad news.

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Secret Intelligence Intercepted

Via our vast army of paid informants, the following memo was intercepted. Please do not distribute this unecessarily.

__________________________________________________________________
****TOP SECRET****
**FOR YOUR EYES ONLY**

FROM: Oliver Willis, CPRF (NKVD Station Chief, Boca Raton Consulate)
TO: Politburo, CPUSA
CC: Kos, Atrios, Drum, Marshall, Jesse Taylor
BCC: AS (aka, The Mole)

RE: Trotskyite Infiltrator & Other Surveillance Matters

Comrades,
Fraternal socialist greetings!

In response to your Aug. 1 memo on Comrade Commissar's suspiciously decadent activity, a number of NKVD agents were asssigned to monitor his suburban NY safe-house. As a result, our agents have gathered the following information. His Trotskyite and Bukharinite activities are listed in chronological order.

Aug. 2: Comrade Commissar failed to meet contact from 'Operation Mayhem' thus thwarting our best opportunity to intervene in the reelection of Criminal Reactionary Bush. As a result, three years as a sleeper agent in the targetted building have gone to waste.

Aug. 4: Published photos making agent 'Manchurian Candidate' look foolish.

Aug. 4: Publicly confessed that earlier meme on Party approved line that widow of War Criminal Reagan supports sleeper agent was actually challenge to loyal Party member Tex.

Aug. 5: Publicly denounces Secretary General of CPUSA with bourgoise rant.

Aug. 6: Contrary to tenants of objective Scientific Socialism, confesses adherence to tenants of opiate of the masses.

Comrades, other evidence has been found that Comrade Commissar has been subverted by decadent capitalist influences. Our recent secret raid of his personal belongings reveals tendencies towards bourgoise tastes and Trotskyite notions.

However, in light of Comrade Commissar's past loyal service to Party, it is the hope of the NKVD that he can be salvaged. Further, in the expert opinion of NKVD psychological profiler J. Bradford DeLong, Comrade Commissar shows all the underlying tendencies of being susceptible to reeducation.

Action Recommendation: Reeducation camp, two-weeks minimum.

Your Fraternal Socialist Brother,
Olliver Willis

PS-
RE: Surveillance Update Querry

The following reactionaries have been under surveillance, as per CPUSA Pollitburo request for CPRF-NKVD resource exchange:

Gordon-conspiring to enlist the help of arch-reactionary Glenn Reynolds for benefit of unknown capitalist blogger
Matthew Yglesias-former CIA operative (undercover)
Simon-advice contrary to fellow-travellers in feminist movement
Johnny Walker-anti-minitruth activist
Ace-supports capitalism and anti-proletariat tendencies
James Joyner-counter MiniTru memes on operation 'Rodent CPR'
Dean Esmay-attempts to reveal operation 'Manchurian Candidate'
Kevin Aylward-revealing secret plan for US infiltration of NKVD operatives
Dan Drezner-working to make CIA more effective against NKVD operations
Captain Ed-aware of operation 'Secret Plan'
BRD-reveals secret of operation 'Value-Menu'
Pixy Misa-outting operation 'Bronze Star'
Chris Cross-meme contrary to MinTru standards
Spoons-use of bourgoise word 'retarded'
Michelle Catalano-reveals Oliver Willis' (me) true identity!
Dr. Stotch-decadent alcohol abuse
Allah-revealing operative "Manchurian Candidate's" Freudian slip
Senator Pundit-bourgoise potty humor

PSS-From the above leaks it is apparent that a mole has penetrated the innermost circle of the CPUSA Politburo. We recommend an immediate collaboration between CPUSA and CPRF resources to find said mole.

__________________________________________________________________

Note to Commissar: Do you believe me now? Watch your back.

I'll try to hack into your server and take over for awhile at the Politburo Diktat if they get to you first.

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Searching Bobby Fischer's Citizenship

Bobby Fischer has officially declared his intent to renounce his US citizenship. I hope that trip to see the Yugo factory was worth it. To make this a fair trade, though, I say we get Kasparov and the choice of two draft picks.

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Kerry: War Criminal, Animal Killer (Updated)

Via Drudge:

A veterans group seeking to deeply discredit Democrat John Kerry's military service will charge in the new bombshell book UNFIT FOR COMMAND:

"Kerry earned his Silver Star by killing a lone, fleeing, teenage Viet Cong in a loincloth."

"And if Kerry's superiors had known the truth at the time, they would never have recommended him for the medal."

The book also claims to detail how Kerry personally ordered the slaughter of small animals at a small hamlet along the Song Bo De River.

I guess he just lost PETA's endorsement.

Was his incredible feat of saving a hamster motivated out of guilt? (from Jane, in comments)

UPDATE: James Joyner responds to Drudge's story by saying that the allegations are a bit over the top and says that the people in the group behind the book Unfit for Command are increasingly sounding "like lunatics." I disagree.

I haven't read the book yet, but the excerpts that Drudge quotes don't sound anything at all like lunacy. In fact, the only lunacy I find here is the way Drudge sensationalizes elements of the story. For instance, the headline at Drudge (a few minutes ago):

VETS CHARGE: KERRY KILLED FLEEING TEEN; LIED FOR MEDAL

Which makes it sound as if the book charges Kerry with killing some poor kid as he ran away. In fact, the book simply says that Kerry killed a young Viet Cong soldier, who was fleeing a raid. So, I lay the blame on Drudge, not John O'Neil or the other veterans out to expose John Kerry's 'war hero' image for the fraud that it is.

Since I no longer watch TV (except Rick James) I hadn't seen the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth advertisement until moments ago. The ad is posted at Human Events and can be viewed online. I find nothing offensive about it. Nothing at all. If JFK is going to travel around with a troupe of Vets lauding his heroism, this is par for the course.

UPDATE II: Beldar agrees, and has some first-hand knowlege.

UPDATE III: QandO has chapter 3 of Unfit for Command available if you want to check it out. It's title? The Purple Heart Hunter.

UPDATE IV: Glenn (I make $13k a month in Blogads) Reynolds notes that Kerry is threatening to sue over the advertisement. Commissar offers an out-of-court settlement

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Zombie Reagan Endorses Bush

Just say no to Worcester sauce!

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Kos Practices Censorship, Commissar Gulag Watch Begins

Commissar has a first rate rant today. Check it out. Apparantly, Tavarisch Kos practices censorship at his site, which the Commissar opposes.

My inside contacts at the CPRF are not at all pleased. My sources say that the Commissar may be in for an extensive vacation at an exclusive 'Re-education Resort' on Lake Baikal.

More on the Commissar gulag watch as it develops.......

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Manufacturing Dissent

When talking to lefties about media bias, their number one argument seems to be that "Yes, the reporters may be liberal, but the corporations. It's the corporations man." In essence, this is Chomsky's argument in Manufacturing Consent. Now, would any lefty--any at all--argue that Fox News had a left-wing bias?

Via M. H. King, I learn that the President of News Corp. (parent company of Fox News) is a Kerry supporter:

According to the Kerry for President campaign, News Corp. President and chief operating officer Peter Chernin has endorsed the Democratic presidential candidate.

What is so interesting about this news, to me, are its implications on the media bias debate.

On the one hand, you have conservatives who argue that anchorman (e.g., Dan Rather) inject their bias into the reporting process. On the other hand, you have liberals who argue that corporate executives inject a conservative bias into the reporting process (most notably by weeding out stories they don't like in the editing process).

In my mind, this is solid evidence that higher-ups have very little to do with the content of everyday news delivery. In fact, most editorial decisions are made at a low-level. If any bias is injected into the news, most likely it comes from the personal world-view of individual reporters.

Take that Chomsky!

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Feds Nab 2 Terrorists in Methodist Church Raid

Sorry, messed up the headline. I meant the other Religion of Peace. From Fox News. Terrorist suspects attempted to fund a man they thought was out to buy shoulder-held rocket launcher--in fact, he was a G-Man. The fact that the financial transactions were made on the good ship Abscam, should have tipped them off to the sting.

Michelle Malkin on the suspicious timing of the sting.

As always, Jeff Quinton, the Command Post, and Blogs of War are on the case for updates.

UPDATE: Jeff Quinton reports the who the intended target was. Holy Schneike!

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Wars of Necessity

Matthew Yglesias makes a profound point:

Near as I can tell, the United States has fought one war of necessity -- the second world war. Since the country wouldn't have existed without the Revolution, you can add that in. Beyond that, the US has fought for a variety of more-or-less abstract principles and more-or-less concrete material interests (often mixed together as in the Civil War), but never for its survival as a nation or in response to direct aggression.

What, exactly, is meant by 'War of Necessity' anyway? For example, can anyone really argue that the actions taken by the Jefferson administration against the North African city-states were 'necessary' for the survival of the country? Was that not a 'war-of-choice' and not of 'necessity?

Unless we define choice and necessity in some way that the definitions only fits on partisan grounds. For instance, the war in Iraq was one of 'choice' because Bush chose to go there, even though it was not 'necessary'. Or, the war in the Balkaans was 'necessary' because Clinton had to go there and therefore did not have any real 'choice'. See how this works?

UPDATE: Chris Cross has a great take on this. Exactly what I was thinking!

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Moussaoui Calls His Mother

Yup, I'm sure that was what it was. This just in from fellow munuvian M.H. King:

WMAL Radio Washington is reporting this afternoon that the man known as the "20th hijacker," Zacharias Moussoui, was allowed access to a cell phone by a jail guard in the facility where he is being held in Alexandria, VA.

Or maybe he was calling one of those 'for entertainment purposes only' numbers? It does get awful lonely in those max-security doo-dads.

Linking to JQ's Update site too.

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