March 18, 2003
So it's come to this.
"Diplomacy" no longer means negotiation with your enemies, it means twisting the arms of your allies.
"Putting your cards on the table" means only doing so if you know you've got a Royal Flush, and the other players have 3 of a kind.
"Patriotism" means that no matter what, you keep your lips closed while the world falls apart around you.
"War" doesn't mean an armed conflict between two parties, but a massacre by an aggressor with at least 40 times the firepower.
Even if we win this thing in 72 hours and every one of our troops returns home safely, it's still a travesty and a debacle. The price to the U.N., NATO, and every other international alliance we've ever fostered over the last 50 years is uncalculable. Maybe France and Germany will come back on board, but they'll be very leery of jumping on board in future engagements, even if we have way more justification than this splendid little war.
eric 9:22 PM
The coalition of the willing has been outed, and here's the list:
Afghanistan, Albania, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, El Salvador, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Hungary, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, the Netherlands, Nicaragua, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and Uzbekistan.
Impressive, no? Well, when you consider there are maybe 200 countries in the world, it's kinda like your side lost, 170-30, give or take. But that's just the raw numbers, and numbers always lie.
Like so:
How many of those countries are providing troops?
2. U.K. and Australia.
How many of those countries have a majority of their population supporting the war?
Uh, I can't find any. Where's Israel anyway? Don't they support this thing? Maybe they're pretending they're Switzerland, minus the cheese and the bank accounts. In other words, neutral.
Makes me proud to be an earthling, I'll say.
eric 8:19 PM
March 14, 2003
We can support the troops without supporting the war.
How?
Here are a couple of causes. (I'm sure there are many many more.)
The Uniting Through Reading program "helps keep parents and children connected while separated during long deployments, through the medium of reading aloud on videotape."
And the Red Cross is sponsoring a program to help support the families of servicemen and servicewomen.
"From distributing Red Cross comfort kits, to collecting items for goodie bags to be shipped overseas, to giving Beanie Babies to children of deployed service personnel, Red Cross chapters nationwide have developed innovative methods to meet the unique needs of an uncertain time."
And one of the biggest ways to "support the troops" is through supporting veterans. The late Paul Wellstone was not the biggest fan of this war (or any war), but he always always always found ways to contribute to veteran's causes.
eric 8:41 PM
March 13, 2003
I'm glad he's got his kid back. I can't imagine what he's gone through. But does anybody else out there think that Elizabeth Smart's father is one creepy dude?
eric 9:17 PM
March 10, 2003
Senate Punching Bag
Check for the transcript of Crossfire tonight (3/10/03) when Carville dismisses a U.S. Senator as if he's a bad waiter at the local Olive Garden. Of course, it was Senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma, who our good friend Bartcop describes as "religiously insane," and "the biggest asshole in the senate with Helms retiring."
Carville even gives Inhofe the chance to ask him a question, and all Inhofe can come up with is a campaign speech about tax revenues during the Reagan years.
Pathetic.
eric 8:16 PM
Book 'em, Dano!
Are librarians doing enough to oppose the Patriot Act?
David Price said, emphatically, no!
eric 8:02 PM
March 07, 2003
United States v. the American Library Association.
The name of this case alone should give everyone pause, if not the heebie-jeebies.
Here's a good article from Slate.
eric 10:14 PM
March 06, 2003
Darwinism, according to Colorado Springs
Aren't these supposed to be the best and brightest of our military recruits?
Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., accused the academy's top commanders of mishandling rape allegations and said they should be removed. But a spokesman for Air Force Secretary James G. Roche and Chief of Staff Gen. John P. Jumper issued a statement refusing to blame the academy's top brass.
"We believe this regrettable situation has resulted from a climate at the academy that has evolved over time," Lt. Col. Chester Curtis said. "We will not make a scapegoat of anyone nor offer pre-emptive judgments on any issue, but will ensure justice is served on all levels."
"Evolved over time"? If this is evolution, give me creationism.
eric 10:47 PM
March 04, 2003
Once Bitten, Twice Shy
Screen Actors Guild releases a statement preemptively raising the spectre of McCarthyist blacklisting.
Is it over the top? Maybe.
Who cares. Good for them.
eric 9:10 PM
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