Santorum Signs Gay Rights Pledge - Hell Freezes Over

Rick " Mad Dog" Santorum (R-PA) signed a pro-gay rights pledge today affirming that his office does not discriminate in hiring on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. As the lake of fire fizzled under the advancing sheets of ice, Satan mused, "Well I guess we all knew this day would come, I just hope global warming will have an effect down here."

On a serious note, it is amazing that Santorum so willing signed the document that assures a basic right his state denies. One has to wonder if he intends to really stick by this statement or is he just doing it to get the advocates off his back so he can really discriminate against gays. Remember this is the same Rick Santorum that compared homosexuality to incest, bigamy and adultery.

Bush Seeks Military Courts For Any Offense He Sees Fit

In a move that is suspiciously open-ended, the White House is floating a bill to include more than just international terrorists in its special military courts. The bill as envisioned lets the Attorney General decide what offenses would fall under this rule, basically short circuit the due process on any case they see fit.

This smacks of another attempt to grab absolute power, something the Bush administration seems determined to do. Comparisons to Nazis, though politically charged, are certainly in order. Bush continues to try to assert his authority as a dictator and the rubber stamp congress continues to let him do it. Write your congressperson and tell them to start doing their job!

Evolution Might Survive Kansas Board Of Education

So the state which contains the oximoronic cities such as Liberal, Kansas may have actually moved into the 21st century. Moderates are once again in the majority on the Kansas State Board of Education. This victory in the elections may translate into a more serious curriculum for Kansas students who are now taught the laughable myth of Intelligent Design as though it were real science.

For the sake of the country and our future, I sincerely hope the change happens. Faith driven zealots pushing fake science such as "Intelligent Design" are trying to move our country toward a theocratic society. Take a look at past Christian theocracies. They have never turned out for the good. Theocracies in general become authoritarian repressive states and our founding fathers sought to escape their grip, not create another.

Time for real education and teaching critical thinking.

Mel Gibson Booted From Holocaust Mini-Series

ABC television came to it’s senses and pulled the mini-series on the Holocaust from anti-Semite director Mel Gibson’s production company. They say his arrest and rant about the "f&*king Jews" had nothing to do with it, but you have to believe that the thousands of blogs like this one who picked up the hypocrisy of the project were the real cause. In Hollywood, they hate to be seen as stupid.

Additionally the project seemed really far-fetched, seeing as how Gibson is a devout Catholic and has a father who is a holocaust denier. Go figure.

Latest Bug In Electronic Voting Machines Makes Election Rigging A Snap

Diebold voting machines apparently have a switch that can make them operate in a completely different manner than intended. The hidden switch allows anyone with a screwdriver to tamper with the machines and potentially rig an election circumventing any procedures examined in the certification process for the machines. In other words, any geek with a pocket protector can rig the election.

This should put the nail in the coffin of electronic voting, but only if enough Americans refuse to be led down the path of crooked elections that the GOP and legislators are leading us.

Again, what is wrong with paper ballots and scanners? They are reliable and can provide an accurate paper trail for a recount. Enough election tampering by these folks, call or write your congressperson and alert them to this latest in a series of flaws in the Diebold machines.

Anti-Semitic Director To Film Holocaust Mini-Series

Mel "Mad Max" Gibson, notably arrested while driving under the influence of alcohol, will still helm the upcoming mini-series about the Holocaust. Strange that the man who screamed "the Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world", during his arrest and who directed the "Passion of the Christ" a largely anti-Semitic account of Jesus’ last hours would take on this project. Apparently ABC TV sees no problem with the dichotomy and is plugging ahead with the show.

So to all those right-wing pundits who claim that the Jews run the media...what gives? Would Jews hire this drunk to do such a project? I gotta think not.

Bush Submits New Bill Giving Him Police State Powers

Welcome to the real police state! Bush Administration officials are floating a new bill to give the government authority to throw anyone suspected of terrorist activity in jail without trial indefinitely. No courts, no trial, no rights, no constitution. Sounds like fiction but it is REAL.

This is an attempt to sidestep the Supreme Court ruling about fair trials for detainees, and it should be very alarming to every American. This is real police state stuff right out of the old Soviet Union and has to be stopped. Write, call and alert your sleeping Congressperson that this is afoot and demand that it be stopped.

Coal Industry Tries To Smear Global Warming Science

No surprise that the Coal fired Electrical Power industry has tried its durndest to discredit the scientific proof of global warming. In a leaked memo the Intermountain Rural Electric Association asserts that Global Warming is a myth and quotes among other questionable sources, Russian Scientists" as it’s proof.

Could those be the same Russian Scientists that had Psychic Weapons during the cold war?

OK, that was a cheap shot, but it’s the same kind of fog facts that the coal folks are trying to propagate. The science on Global Warming is pretty conclusive and only those with vested interests in CO2 emissions seem to think otherwise. Enough of this, it’s time to start doing something to reduce the CO2 before it’s too late.

Amateur Hour At The CIA

Imagine you are trying to do something in secret, say travel throughout Europe kidnapping suspected terrorists. First rule of thumb would be not to use frequent flyer programs that track your movements, and equally important would be not using a cell phone, which would give away your location.

Guess what? Not if you work for the CIA. Agents used their frequent flyer program to gain points from their travels and it allowed the Italian government to track them back to the CIA. That little piece of info got 25 CIA agents arrested in Italy. That’s a-some spicy meatball!

This confirms for me that the CIA under Porter Goss became amateur hour for spies. Makes me wish George Tenent was back.

GOP Family Values Include Public Sex?

Apparently Republican "Family Values" start at home. Hopefully his son won’t replicate the sins of the father. Republican Senator Norm Coleman’s father was arrested for having sex in public outside a pizzeria in St. Paul, Minnesota. He was engaging in an unspecified sex act with 38 year-old Patrizia Marie Schrag. Norm Coleman, Sr. the Senator’s 81 year old father was a constant companion during his campaign against the late Paul Wellstone.

"Family Values" was a recurring theme in his campaign for Senate, so it is fitting that this information be made public, besides it just supports my premise that Heterosexuals are dangerous sex-crazed predators, even at 81!

Yet Another Pedophile Heterosexual Teacher

Yet another case of a dangerous heterosexual being allowed to teach our children. A high school teacher in Minnesota hid a camera in his bathroom and videotaped his daughter’s friends when they visited and took showers. The camera was discovered when his wife was channel surfing and came across a live feed from the couple’s bathroom. Later police discovered child pornography in his possession.

Again wen will people learn not to allow predatory heterosexuals to teach children. Heterosexuals have a proven record of child molestation and abuse far higher than the Gay or lesbian population.

I guess people just never learn.

Pentagon Squanders Another $11 Billion On Usless Jet

$11 Billion isn’t chump change, unless you are the Department of Defense. They are squandering that amount on the F-22 Stealth Fighter. The warplane was designed in 1985 to fight a Soviet jet that was never built. It’s good to know that the US is still fighting the cold war, especially when the alleged "war on terror" is going so well for us in Iraq.

Irony aside, the think tank that recommended the fighter, the Institute for Defense Analysis is conveniently headed by Dennis Blair, a member of the board of the company building the plane. This is another outrageously egregious move by the Bush lead cronies to line their pockets at the expense of not only taxpayers but the lives of soldiers who could use the body armor that money could provide.

Department of Defense Spamming Blogs

In a move that would make Joseph Goebbels proud the US propaganda machine has churned out its latest idea, attack blogs. Department of Defense is feeding fake comments to blogs across the Internet, spaming them with "happy talk" about the great job the US is doing in Iraq.

CENTCOM is actively adding links to their site and cluttering up the discourse with their fake messages. Time to turn on the filters and keep this kind of spam off your blog.

American Bar Association - Bush Undermining Constitution

The American Bar Association, you have no doubt heard of them, has stated in a bipartisan report that President Bush is undermining the Constitution. They were referring to his "signing statements" that were designed to give Bush a de facto line item veto over any provision of a bill he decides he does not want to obey. In other countries, this is called dictatorship, but here with out rubber stamp Congress it’s business as usual.

The report should stand as a powerful statement that Bush has blatantly disregarded his oath of office and is seeking to destroy the Constitution. That would be an impeachable offense if there ever were one. Now if Congress will wake from their lobbyist-funded slumber and take action we could save our country before it’s too late.

American Bar Association Report - Bush Undermining Constitution

The American Bar Association, you have no doubt heard of them, has stated in a bipartisan report that President Bush is undermining the Constitution. They were referring to his "signing statements" that were designed to give Bush a de facto line item veto over any provision of a bill he decides he does not want to obey. In other countries, this is called dictatorship, but here with out rubber stamp Congress it’s business as usual.

The report should stand as a powerful statement that Bush has blatantly disregarded his oath of office and is seeking to destroy the Constitution. That would be an impeachable offense if there ever were one. Now if Congress will wake from their lobbyist-funded slumber and take action we could save our country before it’s too late.

"Christian" Products – Cashing In On God

A story in the Los Angeles Times gives insight into the growing market segment for Christian Products. With everything from "Virtuous Woman" perfume to Gospel Golf Balls, the International Christian Retail Show has everything you need to buy to be "Christian".

In today’s, bottom line society it is no wonder that faith is being merchandised like a NFL team. People today don’t want to think about their faith; they just want to get it in instant form complete with bumper sticker slogans. To me, this is really a revealing aspect of what some people call Christianity.

Forgive me if I draw comparisons to the moneychangers in the Temple, but the huge multi-million dollar Christian Products Industry seems a bit blasphemous. The sale of "Scripture Candy" with bible verses printed on the wrapper cheapens the Word into a Joe Bazooka gimmick. Low cut tight fitting T-shirts for girls with catchy Jesus slogans would seem to send a mixed message at best.

Where does it lead? Well the problem with the current Christian phenomenon is summed up well by Political Scientist Alan Wolfe who sees the Christian merchandising trend as a way for believers to "create a parallel universe, one that allows Christians to withdraw from the world instead of engaging it as Christ commanded."

Maybe I am a little more cynical. I see it as a way for marketers to cash in on yet another fad. I suspect if there was a sudden upsurge in interest in the teachings of Buddha, they would be selling "Inner Peace" mood rings instead of crosses.

Having a few things around to remind you of the message of Christ is not a bad thing, but turning that message into he latest version of a Pet Rock seems less than faithful to Jesus’ teachings.

Senate Leaves All Children Behind

In a stunning move coinciding with President Bush speaking at the NAACP, the Senate Appropriations Committee froze funds for the popular and effective Project Head Start . Additionally, the No Child Left Behind funding which was scheduled for $25 billion received only half that ammount.

What can I say? This is so ridiculous a move it defies comment. My only thought is that this is part of what would appear to be a systematic gutting of public education in America by the Neo-cons.

Why? Well my guess is so that rich people can send their kids to private schools on voucher money and the rest of the common rabble will receive what amounts to “Bantu Education”. That infamous system was set up by the former South African regime to assure a class of semi-educated laborers who would know just enough to do their job without questioning authority.

Ok, so it does not defy comment.

Bush Sexually Harasses German Leader

In a move that could be construed as sexual harassment in the workplace, President Bush showed his lack of tack and diplomatic savvy by giving German Chancellor Merkle an uninvited shoulder rub. Though this kind of activity may seem harmless, it sends a clear message to other countries. The United States considers you under our care. When you’re tired from all that diplomatic work, we can sooth you. Far from a comforting message it tells other leaders and countries the patriarchic attitude President Bush has toward them. He is "daddy" and they are in effect "children".

That is not the kind of message that builds coalitions or confidence in our leadership and attitude toward other countries. The patriarchal attitude is one that permeated US foreign policy for decades and pretty much ended after the Spanish American War. It is an attitude born of the old European colonial days where white people brought "civilization" to the "lesser races." It is the same attitude that the current administration has and demonstrates so well in the Middle East. And we wonder why other countries hate us?

Ann Coulter Threatens NYT With Fake Anthrax - Why No Arrest?

I guess that if you are a neo-con wacko like Ann Coulter you can do just about anything in this country. Last time I checked, sending stuff through the mail that was designed to appear like Anthrax was just about as illegal as sending the real thing. Ann "widow bashing" Coulter now claims responsibility for sending the NYT an envelope of white powder which caused a bit of a panic for the paper and law enforcement. Coulter has made statements in the past that would get any other us Citizen locked up for terroristic threats, but since she is the darling of the neo-cons, no dice for Ann.

Enough of this crap! Coulter is not just a loose cannon; she is encouraging the wack-jobs that listen to her to commit criminal acts. Where is the Justice Department or Homeland Security? Arrest her and do a little interrogation to find out what she really knows. Of course that would be futile, since she is full of hot air.

Smokey Joe Barton Tells A Pack Of Lies Again

Once again Smokey Joe, the man with so many ties to the pollution industries presents the Congress with a pack of lies in the form of a "report" that supposedly discredits global warming. In reality it is a document compiled by a statistician whose work has not been peer-reviewed and has been previously discredited.

Joe Barton (R-TX) believes in Bush’s doctrine of, "you gotta keep repeating things over and over again… to catapult the propaganda". It’s time to catapult these Bozo’s out of Washington.

One has to wonder what they think they can do by continuing to lie to the American people. I guess they don’t live in the same reality and feel that global warming can be avoided with enough power and money. Or maybe they are planning a long space voyage to another world where they can pollute and destroy for another few thousand years.