Deja ... ?

If America has a brain left, we'll all call for complete and total hand-tying on these war mongers if they even LOOK at Iran funny.

Ok, so that made me really laugh. Courtesy of Hoffmania!

Is It Science Or Is It Memorex?

Wikipedia has come of age. The online user-created encyclopedia is now influential enough that the federal government feels the need to doctor it up.

In late August, someone with an IP address that originated from the National Institutes of Health drastically edited the Wikipedia entry for the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which operates within NIH. Wikipedia determined the edit to be vandalism and automatically changed the definition back to the original. On Sept. 18, the NIH vandal returned, according to a history of the site's edits posted by Wikipedia. This time, the definition was gradually changed, presumably to avoid the vandalism detector.

NIDA spokeswoman Dorie Hightower confirmed that her agency was behind the editing. She said in an e-mail that the definition was changed "to reflect the science."

A little more than science-reflecting was done to the site. Gone first was the "Controversial research" section that included comments critical of NIDA. Next went the section on the NIDA- sponsored program that grows marijuana for research and medical purposes. The next slice of the federal editor's knife left all outside references on the cutting-room floor, replaced with links to government Web sites.

Then the battle began. Over the next few weeks, Wikipedia users challenged the site's neutrality and took out the more egregious propaganda. Each time, the NIH editor would return. The fight left the article in tatters. Folks wondering what NIDA does now get four basic, non-controversial sentences followed by 10 links to federal Web sites. And at the bottom of the page is a plea from Wikipedia: "This article about a medical organization or association is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it."

I've always known the Wikipedia site was edited by "users," and as such, took their information with a grain of salt. But this is just ridiculous! More evidence of this administration's constant rewriting and watering down of science. Shaking my head.

John Mica's Boo Hooing Because He Wasn't Given A Seat Up Front

A Florida Republican, who is the ranking minority member of the Transportation Committee in the House of Representatives, stormed out of a meeting last week, leading other Republican members with him. An article today in Roll Call reports that he was angry because he was not seated properly during an orientation session.

And you actually thought adults were running the country?

It May Have Been Rigged, But They Will Swear It Didn't Affect The Outcome

CLEVELAND — Two election workers were convicted Wednesday of rigging a recount of the 2004 presidential election to avoid a more thorough review in Ohio's most populous county.

The article, however, goes on to state that "no one" has indicated or said that the actions of the workers above threw the election to Bush. Yeah. Right.

I wish I could remember where I left my foil hat.

Nancy and Condi

Wow. What a contrast in looks. One is evil through and through, the other bright and happy. Hmmmm.

H/T to C&L.

We didnt start the fire by Billy Joel

1949) Harry Truman, Doris Day, Red China, Johnnie Ray
South Pacific, Walter Winchell, Joe DiMaggio

(1950) Joe McCarthy, Richard Nixon, Studebaker, television
North Korea, South Korea, Marilyn Monroe

(1951) Rosenbergs, H-bomb, Sugar Ray, Panmunjom
Brando, "The King and I" and "The Catcher in the Rye"

1952) Eisenhower, vaccine, England's got a new queen
Marciano, Liberace, Santayana goodbye

(1953) Joseph Stalin, Malenkov, Nasser aand Prokofiev
Rockefeller, Campanella, Communist Bloc

(1954) Roy Cohn, Juan Peron, Toscanini, dacron
Dien Bien Phu falls, "Rock Around the Clock"

(1955) Einstein, James Dean, Brooklyn's got a winning team
Davy Crockett, Peter Pan, Elvis Presley, Disneyland

(1956) Bardot, Budapest, Alabama, Krushchev
Princess Grace, "Peyton Place", trouble in the Suez

(1957) Little Rock, Pasternak, Mickey Mantle, Kerouac
Sputnik, Chou En-Lai, "Bridge on the River Kwai"

And so on, and so on, and so on.

Nice History Making In Football

Brent Smith/Reuters

Congrats to the Colts for taking down the Pats, who stole the game from my Chargers last week. I'm taking the Colts for a 2007 Bowl win.

First time in the history of American football, two black coaches will appear in the Super Bowl.

Music That Sends Chills Down My Spine

What we found in a nutshell is when people experience chills, there was a huge range of activity all over the brain. It lit up like a Christmas tree.

Music seems to activate pleasure networks that are typically activated by food, water and sex. Why would music have the same effects on the brain as biological experiences integral to survival?

Now I understand my desire to hang out, after I die, with the musicians and singers of the universe rather than the esteemed intellectuals. No disrespect to the smart set, for I do get a keen high from great dialogue. But music, that goes straight to the heart, and apparently, to more parts of the brain than originally believed.

Gives new meaning to the phrase "sends chills down my spine."

Setting Our Sights On Attacking Iran

A little tidbit from Frank Rich at the NYT, courtesy of Raw Story:

Cheney was honest, at least, when he said that the White House's Iraq policy would remain "full speed ahead!" no matter what happened on Nov. 7. Now it is our patriotic duty -- politicians, the press and the public alike -- to apply the brakes. Our failure to check the administration when it rushed into Iraq in 2003 will look even more shameful to history if we roll over again for a reboot in 2007. For all the belated Washington scrutiny of the war since the election, and for all the heralded (if so far symbolic) congressional efforts to challenge it, too much lip service is still being paid to the deceptive PR strategies used by the administration to sell its reckless policies. This time we must do what too few did the first time: call the White House on its lies. Lies should not be confused with euphemisms like "incompetence" and "denial."

I am amazed that this group has not deviated from their past lies with respect to the lead up to attacking Iran vis-a-vis Iraq. If they weren't so serious, and the consequences so dire, I'd be laughing my butt off (LMBO).

You know damn well this country, or Israel, alone or in tandem, will attack Iran this year. That is a given. What is not a given is what, exactly, will Congress and the American people do about it. Will impeachment talk actually become a reality?

When our young become angry, change will most certainly come.

I know it is a Sunday and news is perhaps a tad on the slow side, so I'll take this post by Glenn Greenwald with a little grain of salt.

It's rather ironic (and almost certainly not coincidental) that neoconservatives love, more than anything else, to strut around spewing tough-guy Churchill warrior rhetoric and to sermonize on the virtues of self-reliance -- and are characterized in their political views by a total lack of empathy for the plight of others - even though they have chosen extremely coddled, privileged lives feeding off the accomplishments and directives of their mothers and fathers. And quite significantly, the political Leader they found to represent their belief system, to personify their contrived warrior pose, and to implement their radical agenda -- George W. Bush -- is the most extreme version of that coddled and father-dependent personality one can find.

I see the point, but I don't believe this is an exclusive province of the neoconservative segment of society. There was a statistic I read recently (when I can find the link, I'll post it) that indicated an enormous shift in the trend of adults who still live off the largesse of their parents. It also stated there was an increase in the number of adults who also decide to live off the government at a certain age (mid-50's) after being laid off or lost their job in some fashion or another, rather than attempt to get a new job, more than likely at a lower pay than they were used to, and most certainly with little to no benefits.

We're in a time where the majority of people refuse to take responsibility for most everything about their lives. There's been an overall change that is not confined by a generation gap, of where responsibility lies everywhere else but at one's own feet. There is tremendous apathy toward anything global, and major disinterest in most things local. Lack of accomplishments are rationalized by many as society being against whatever their particular failure to act was. There is a great disconnect with individuals and their responsibility to those around them.

Education is the only avenue out of this banal belief, but I am discouraged by this country's educational system. Colleges, once the bastion of creative thought and new ideas, are being hampered by conservatives who believe in control of, rather than diversity of expression. The power to disseminate "opinion" as "news" is controlled such that outright factually incorrect ideas are made homogeneous, and any cry of "foul play" is labeled radical, fanatical and out of step with mainstream "thought."

I am encouraged, however, by the netroots and the ability to interact on the college level via the internet. When radicalism is encouraged, the push against the complacent prevalent attitudes results.

Radical:
1. of or going to the root or origin; fundamental: a radical
difference.
2. thoroughgoing or extreme, esp. as regards change from accepted or traditional forms: a radical change in the policy of a company.
3. favoring drastic political, economic, or social reforms: radical ideas; radical and anarchistic ideologues.
4. forming a basis or foundation.
5. existing inherently in a thing or person: radical defects of character.

When our young become angry, change will most certainly come.

China's Got Some "Splaining" To Do

Not that I am advocating violence, or anything. But, given that this administration is gearing up to attack, yet again, a soverign nation, one that actually holds elections regularly, a nation that has no nuclear weapons and has not attacked us, one has to wonder why China goes completely unchecked.

The U.S. government has asked China to clarify its intentions following the successful test of an anti-satellite weapon last week, that was reported this week by the publication Aviation Week and Space Technology. The State Department has also expressed concern about the space debris that resulted from the missile hit on an old Chinese satellite, saying it could endanger people in space and on the ground. VOA's Al Pessin reports from the Pentagon.

A senior State Department official says the United States wants China to explain why it developed an anti-satellite weapon, calling the move "inconsistent with the constructive relationship" on the use of space agreed to by the two countries' presidents.

"...playing politics while our people were dying."

NEW YORK (AP) -- Party politics played a role in decisions over whether to take federal control of Louisiana and other areas affected by Hurricane Katrina, former FEMA director Michael Brown said Friday.

Some in the White House suggested only Louisiana should be federalized because it was run by a Democrat, Gov. Kathleen Blanco, Brown told a group of graduate students at a lecture on politics and emergency management at Metropolitan College of New York.

Brown said he had recommended to President Bush that all 90,000 square miles along the Gulf Coast affected by the hurricane be federalized, making the federal government in charge of all agencies responding to the disaster.

"Unbeknownst to me, certain people in the White House were thinking we had to federalize Louisiana because she's a white, female Democratic governor and we have a chance to rub her nose in it," he said.

Brown declined to say who in the White House had argued for only taking control of Louisiana, but said that he'd later learned of the situation through Blanco's office and from other officials on the federal level.

Blanco reacted sharply on hearing what Brown had said.

"This is exactly what we were living but could not bring ourselves to believe. Karl Rove was playing politics while our people were dying," Blanco said through a spokeswoman, referring to President Bush's top political strategist. "The federal effort was delayed, and now the public knows why. It's disgusting."

Of course, it's disgusting. Everything this administration does is disgusting. I keep waiting for the mass revolt against them, although I do view the 2006 mid-term takeover as the symbolic "shot over the bow."

I wrote several pieces concerning this administration's handling of rescue and aid efforts during the Hurricane Katrina crisis, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here. It devastated me, and still does when I think about it. Much like how the events of 9/11 still make me cry.

In my lifetime, I have never read about, lived through or seen such a dispicable and corrupt American government as the one that has ruled this country for the last six years.

I will never forget. Don't ever forget.

Mama Cass Elliot - Dream A Little Dream Of Me

Cass and Denny, singing in harmony tonight.

Mamas and the Papas on Hullabaloo

RIP, Denny.

Sending off love and prayers for a successful surgery and speedy recovery to Jane Hamsher of Firedoglake.

Same Lies, Different Country

Much like the administration's pre-war claims about Saddam's alleged ties to al-Qaida and purported nuclear weapons program, the claims about the bombing of the Shiite mosque in Samarra ignore inconvenient facts and highlight questionable but politically useful assumptions.

Now, why doesn't that surprise me?

I Want My Mapo

Man, I remember this commercial. In the mornings, on during the Capt. Kangaroo show.

The Reflections - Just Like Romeo & Juliet


Funny, I still run into guys from Jersey that still look like this.

Lunatics Everywhere

Which historical lunatic are you?

Have you ever obliterated a village, close relatives, or Siberia?

Ha ha ha. H/T to Obsidian Wings.

Due Process Not Support Of Criminals

I mean, think about the protections we see in the Bill of Rights — probable cause, right to a jury, right to counsel, right to confront, due process, indictment requirement. These protections aren’t in place because people love criminals. They’re in place to generate information and, by doing so, to ensure that the prosecution is proper. In economic-speak, they raise the costs of prosecution, which helps ensure that people are less likely to prosecute on a whim.

Excellent point.

Iraq ... Iran ... Deja Vu

“That’s the way he sees the world,” Russert explained. “His rationale, he believes, for going into Iraq still was one that was sound.”

MSNBC’s Chris Matthews then interjected, “And it could be the rationale for going into Iran at some point.”

Russert paused for a few seconds before responding, “It’s going to be very interesting to watch that issue and we have to cover it very, very carefully and very exhaustively.”

Well, that would be a first.

Amen. H/T to Digby.

More Nose Thumbing By Bush & Co.

The more serious threat to the White House would be a Democratic attempt to restrict funds for more troops. Bush aides said that current funds are enough to get started, and they are counting on the notion that it will take two months until the supplemental appropriation bill providing more war funds comes to a vote. By then, they said, extra troops will be on the ground and it will be too late for Congress to stop them. And they hope for signs of progress that would let them argue that the plan is working.

This is our foreign policy in action? Knowing that the majority of the American people don't want an escalation, and knowing that Congress is hot on its heels to prevent an escalation, Bush & Co. hope to get the troops on the ground first, so that the American people and their congressional representatives' proverbial hands will be tied?

I can only shake my head and wonder just when this country will stand up and say they are mad as hell and not going to take it any more.

A Lawyer's Choice?

The senior Pentagon official in charge of military detainees suspected of terrorism said in an interview this week that he was dismayed that lawyers at many of the nation’s top firms were representing prisoners at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, and that the firms’ corporate clients should consider ending their business ties.

[snip]

He said, “I think, quite honestly, when corporate C.E.O.’s see that those firms are representing the very terrorists who hit their bottom line back in 2001, those C.E.O.’s are going to make those law firms choose between representing terrorists or representing reputable firms, and I think that is going to have major play in the next few weeks. And we want to watch that play out.”

Amazing. Simply, amazing. If there was ever any doubt that this administration's number one priority are their corporate base (not their conservative base), this attempt at extortion should make it pretty obvious.

It's all about the rights of the businesses, not the individuals. And, golly, gosh darn, if the damn lawyers don't know they're supposed to only represent the corporations, then fire the lot. Sheesh. Lawyers fighting for individual rights? No way, Jose! The only good client is a corporate client.

Condi, Condi, Condi ... You KNOW Better

Once again, consider exactly what Boxer said:

“Now, the issue is who pays the price. Who pays the price? I’m not going to pay a personal price. My kids are too old and my grandchild is too young. You’re not going to pay a particular price, as I understand it, with an immediate family. So who pays the price? The American military and their families. And I just want to bring us back to that fact.”

During the hearing, Rice began to respond about her personal losses, saying, “I can never do anything to replace any of those lost men and women in uniform, or the diplomats, some of whom…” Boxer cut her off. “Madam Secretary, please, I know you feel terrible about it. That’s not the point. I was making the case as to who pays the price for your decisions.”

This wasn’t about Rice’s personal life. Rice knows it, Tony Snow knows it, anyone who actually bothers to read and/or listen to what was said knows it.

But desperate times call for desperate cynicism and dishonesty. I wish I could say I’m surprised.

'Nuff said.

I'm On Peter Jackson's Side

"Not that I don't think Peter is a good filmmaker and that he hasn't contributed significantly to filmography and made three very good movies. And I don't even expect him to say 'thank you' for having me make it happen and having New Line make it happen," continued Shaye, who was an executive producer on the trilogy. "But to think that I, as a functionary in a company that has been around for a long time, but is now owned by a very big conglomerate, would care one bit about trying to cheat the guy...he's either had very poor counsel or is completely misinformed."

Emphasis MINE (as to anyone being "completely misnformed"). Now, when was the last time you actually swallowed your owm vomit?

Kopp Not Kopping A Good Feel

Oh, he’ll be convicted. I’m just wondering why he’s got no attorney. If he’s ineligible for a federal public defender for some reason, aren’t there anti-abortion groups willing to fund his defense?

My question, as well.

Good post over at Feministe, re anti-abortionist James Kopp, murderer of Dr. Barnett Slepian.

"That's a kind assessment in the English language, if a put-down in an English pub."

Then again, you don't have Beckham fatigue, which might just be one reason you're getting Beckham.

You're also getting a soccer midfielder, and those of you who already realized that already know what kind of soccer midfielder you're getting.

The rest of you might notice this Beckham hubbub and think you're getting, oh, Ronaldinho.

You're not.

You're getting neither the best player in the world nor the former best player in the world. You're not getting the best English player. You're getting a fine 31-year-old who has spent much of the Real Madrid season seated in wane after 94 international appearances for England and 1990s stardom for Manchester United. You're getting a player who can kick the ball ingeniously but often can't beat somebody to the ball to kick it, a maestro when the ball sits still but not so much when the ball moves.

If you'll look carefully — and you might not, even — you'll notice that in soccer the ball moves more than it sits. If you'll look even more carefully, you'll notice that, still, if a dead ball struck from a free kick or corner kick curves wickedly and travels, say, into that big net at the end of the pitch — sorry, field — they count it as a goal.

Sometimes, it's the only goal all day, thus invaluable.

As you see, you're getting a player of debated merits on European chat boards, yet you're getting somebody who'll rate as a good Major League Soccer player.

That's a kind assessment in the English language, if a put-down in an English pub.

In the omniscient pre-game conversations in English pubs, when people speak of Major League Soccer, they . . .

Well, they don't speak of the MLS.

Ha ha ha. As a former fan of the Los Angeles Kings since they've been owned by AEG, the same owner of most of MLS (which is far more the passion of its owner, Anschutz Entertainment Group, which pretty much started up the MSL and still owns most of the teams). MLS is not really a "league" of sorts that one would relate to in sports. It's more like a condominium association playground, where the owner "owns" everything, but let's the residents play, without really having to pay any expenses for the sport.

Also, although I've yet to confirm it, but I believe it to be very true, that this $250 million is mostly in contractual endorsements, because MSL has a $2.1 million team salary cap.

And, really, in America, who cares about the Spice Girls, especially POSH?

More Pissing In The Wind

I feel for the Iraqis, don't get me wrong --- but I can't help but believe that sending billions more into "reconstruction" at this point is akin to flushing it down the toilet. In fact, what I'm hearing today is that they plan to put the money into the hands of commanders on the ground to "hire" Iraqis --- which sounds to me as if we are going to start directly funding various sides in the civil war who will spend the money on arms and bombs to kill Americans and each other.

My sentiments as well. In fact, what it appears to me is that we actually had to bribe the Iraqi officials through this "relief" money, so that they will, in turn, hold their noses and say they want more American soldiers on Iraqi soil. Anyone insane enough to believe, in light of all the reports the past couple of years, that giving money directly to those on the ground (Iraqi OR American) is anything other than pissing in the wind, needs to be surgically seperated from the kool aid dispenser.

A Little Bit Unnerving

Of course, there's always the possibility that he really was upset at the sight of a former head of state essentially being lynched by his people. You can certainly understand why he'd find that a little bit unnerving.

Spot on, digby. One can only hope.

Go Cal, Go Cal, Go Cal

As Barry Bonds stalks Hank Aaron all summer, like Rambo on Bambi's trail, Ripken is positioned to steal the stage: the accidental antidote, the hero by happenstance. In '95, after the sewage spill of a canceled World Series, baseball needed a stench-free symbol of dependability, a hometown boy who understood responsibility and an adult who grasped that players simply were custodians of a game owned by its fans.

The sport got all those things, as the Orioles shortstop broke Lou Gehrig's record for consecutive games played. Now history is seeking him out again. The steroid-soaked stage is set. Baseball's need for a man with a simple sense of honor is profoundly obvious. Cue Cal. Now we realize that all those years when it never crossed Cal's mind to skip even a single game, something else never crossed his mind either -- cheating. Now, his 431 home runs look larger as the totals of others seem smaller. And we know why Cal never hit a ball 475 feet in his life. "I don't think my numbers are deflated because some other numbers may be inflated," Ripken told me last week.

Just as Mark McGwire brought more unwelcome headlines to the sport yesterday -- by receiving a dismal 23.5 percent of the Hall vote -- Ripken's election immediately helped the cleanup process. There to aid him was Tony Gwynn, the eight-time batting champ who led the league in smiles for 20 straight years.

I'm such a baseball freak, although I abandoned the sport after 1994, when the season was canceled, no World Series played, and I had quite a few tickets that were never used in my possession. I had Dodger season tickets for a number of years from the mid 1980's until 1994. I briefly broke out of my boycott in 1998-2000 when I purchased a mini plan with a friend, but stopped after 2000. A diehard, born into the blue of Chavez Ravine, circa Brooklyn, I also followed the San Diego Padres because I lived there during the late 1970's to early 1980's, and witnessed that fabulous team that went to the World Series in 1984. Kudos to Tony Gwynn, one of the most dedicated Padres players I have ever seen.

Now, on to Cal .. the Iron Man! I remember vividly the day he broke the record, and on ESPN, no less, when he took his run around the stadium to acknowledge the fans, the most famous "silence" in the broadcast booth occurred. I recall it was lengthy ... especially by television standards. I teared up, for sure.

Congrats, Cal, for making it on the first ballot, and clearing the top three!

"... take some hard knocks to your sensitive parts and cope with it ..."

Oh, Joe, Joe, Joe. First day at school and you’re already shooting spitballs back and forth with your commenters. This does not bode well for your future in blogging. That activity rapidly becomes the verbal equivalent of playing Whack-a-Mole.

Respectfully, sir, this is not a realm for thin-skinned, pampered
“star” columnists like yourself. People will be leaping upon your every word with blood in their eyes and murder in their hearts.

You’re either going to have to learn to take some hard knocks to your sensitive parts and cope with it or you’re going to need to find a new hobby. I don’t think you quite understand the world you are stepping into. It’s like you’re walking into the lion cage at the zoo wearing a suit made entirely of pork chops.

Good luck. We’ll be watching. My guess is that you’ll be shutting down your ‘comments’ feature before the end of the month.

Sincerely,T. Rex, Esq.

Great, great post, re blogging. Read more here at Firedoglake. I'm liking this TRex guy more with each new post.

And isn't it more of those blogs that shut off comments? I'm not aware of any liberal blogs that censor comments. I have personal experience of having been blocked from commenting when not putting anything in the comment that was foulmouthed, dirty or name calling.

Shame On You

Bipartisan Kumbaaya

The press had had to extract assurances that the Democrats wouldn't impeach the president, for crying out loud. Bipartisan kumbaaya was clearly not on the agenda.

Duh. Time for the marshmellows. Where's my guitar?

2007, Week One

First week of 2007 in the books.

I've been getting up ridiculously early because the daughter and grandson are off to school earlier this session. I'm reading blogs at 6:00 a.m. and there is still the stuff posted from the p.m. signoff. Sigh.

With the early to rise, comes the early to bed part, so the blogging has been light. This time shift is only for the next five weeks, though.

It's interesting to note all the brouha over the 110 Congress. I note the Republicans' mass flip-flopping, and the deep denial by some causes me to scratch my head a bit.

Bush's plan to surge the troop numbers, coupled with the newly leaked information about the private sell off of oil in Iraq to the big Oil Dudes, raises an eyebrow here and there.

Let's see what week two brings us.

Oh Lookie, I Got A Map

To the Muslims in the light green portion of the map we seem to be siding with the Muslims in the dark green portion --- while at the same time making them hate us too. Excellent plan. Winning those hearts and minds one snuff film at a time.

Pretty graphic, either way you "look" at it. HT to digby.

Ho Hum, Another Stone In Bush's Mile

After the apparent "milestone" of Saddam's death, The Gadflyer has a list of 16 other "milestones" in the Mile Stone We Call Iraq.

Less than two months ago, when Saddam was found guilty, Bush called the verdict "a milestone in the Iraqi people's efforts to replace the rule of a tyrant with the rule of law."

On June 8:

Bush said the killing of Zarqawi was a severe blow to al Qaeda and offered a chance for the Iraqi government to "turn the tide" in the struggle against the insurgency.

On May 22, after Iraq's new cabinet was formed:

"The main reason I've come today is to talk to you about a watershed event that took place this weekend in Iraq. . . . We have now reached a turning point in the struggle between freedom and terror."

And on May 4, after Iraq's factions agreed on a new Prime Minister:

"This new government represents a turning point in Iraq, a new chapter in our engagement there, and an opportunity for progress."

May 1, after Condi returned from Baghdad, where she congratulated then-Prime Minister-designate Maliki:

"We believe this is a turning point for the Iraqi citizens, and it's a new chapter in our partnership."

April 23:

"The formation of this government is an important milestone toward our victory in Iraq."

Dec. 15, 2005, a few days before Parliamentary elections:

"And there's a lot of joy as far as I'm concerned in seeing the Iraqi people accomplish this major milestone in the march to democracy."

Dec. 12, 2005:

"There's still a lot of difficult work to be done in Iraq, but thanks to the courage of the Iraqi people, the year 2005 will be recorded as a turning point in the history of Iraq, the history of the Middle East, and the history of freedom.

Oct. 16, 2005, after Iraq adopted its new Constitution:

"So, again, I congratulate the Iraqi people. I thank you for meeting this milestone."

June 28, 2005:

"When the history of this period is written, the liberation of Afghanistan and the liberation of Iraq will be remembered as great turning points in the story of freedom."

April 12, 2005:

"The establishment of a free Iraq at the heart of the Middle East will be a crushing defeat to the forces of tyranny and terror, and a watershed event in the global democratic revolution."

Jan. 29, 2005, before the first Parliamentary elections:

"Tomorrow the world will witness a turning point in the history of Iraq, a milestone in the advance of freedom, and a crucial advance in the war on terror."

June 18, 2004:

"A turning point will come in less than two weeks. On June the 30th, full sovereignty will be transferred to the interim government. The Coalition Provisional Authority will cease to exist."

March 19, 2004, on the first anniversary of the invasion:

"Today, as Iraqis join the free peoples of the world, we mark a turning point for the Middle East and a crucial advance for human liberty."

July 23, 2003, after the formation of an interim government:

"Now that we have reached this important milestone, I urge the nations of the world to contribute, militarily and financially, towards fulfilling Security Council Resolution 1483's vision of a free and secure Iraq."

Copyright © Joshua Holland. Material presented on The Gadflyer is the opinion of the respective author and not that of The Gadflyer, the web host or any other entity.