Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Other Items

President Bush has accepted the recommendation of his senior civilian and military advisers to reduce the number of American troops in Iraq by 8,000 in the early months of next year.
The reduction will begin with a Marine Corps battalion set to leave this fall from Anbar Province, once the center of the antigovernment insurgency.

The above is from Thom Shanker's laughable "U.S. to Pull 8,000 Troops From Iraq Early in '09" in today's New York Times. It's not just lousy reporting, it's an indication that someone needs to get their ass back to high school civics. Before January ends, the next president will be sworn in. Bully Boy has not accepted anything regarding "the early months of next year." It's not his to accept. All he's done is decided no troop reductions while he's in the White House. The next president will decide whether there is a reduction or not. Bully Boy's made no decision about that and, in fact, cannot make any decision about that. Again, it's not just bad journalism, it's a complete lack of grasping the basics. Pay attention to the difference between Shanker's opening and Dan Eggen's "Iraq Troop Levels to Remain Steady Until After Bush Leaves Office" (Washington Post):

President Bush will announce today that the number of U.S. combat brigades in Iraq will remain steady until after he leaves office, deferring any further decisions about troop withdrawals to his successor, according to a copy of his speech released by the White House.

Grasp the difference?

Mark Tran doesn't but he writes for the Guardian of London and is excused for not grasping the American system. He does reveal that today's reports are based on today's speech which the White House released to the press last night.

Check out Pravda on the Hudson today to realize that we only cry "Off limits!" when it comes to some people's religion. Listen as Amy Goodman spews lies (she's corrected on one, no librarian was fired by Sarah Palin) and never feels the need to say, "Oops." Listen as they work over time -- these people who do not even know Sarah Palin -- that's she's this and she's that. While rushing to assure that Bully Boy's not really a fundamentalist. Yes, Democracy Now! wants you to believe Sarah Palin is scarier than the Bully Boy. It sure is amazing that the same program never felt the need to explore what it 'mean' that Barack was present for certain speeches (including anti-Semitic ones) feels the need to offer another standard for Palin. They're hypocrites and they never even realize how it looks to the outside world. They destroy their own potential audiences day after day. Pravda on the Hudson.

And repeating, these things do not just emerge in the MSM, they bubble up from the sewer. Which is why all the sewer rats gather to dish on Democracy Now! today.

In other news from the US presidential race, independent candidate Ralph Nader has picked up an endorsement, Jaclyn E.'s "Ralph Nader for President" (Teen Ink):


Choosing between the ­Republican and Democratic candidate would mean choosing the lesser of two evils. Instead, I prefer to align myself with a candidate who shares my views on stabilizing the economy, preventing war, and downsizing the government. This candidate is Ralph Nader.

Nader is the only presidential candidate who has experience running his own business. He has applicable knowledge of the economy and strives to distribute wealth equally. He was quoted on "Meet The Press" as saying: "There is a two-tier economy where the top 10 percent is doing quite well, the top one percent spectacularly. But the top one percent of the richest ­people in this country have financial wealth equal to the combined 95 percent of the American people. That's a very ­unhealthy inequality." In order to fix this, Nader proposes to repeal the Bush administration tax cuts and adjust the federal income tax. This shows that he is driven to help the average American survive the current ­economic slump.

Nader also wants to help America move past Congress's war-happy regime. He proposes a "draft from the top," meaning when an administration approves a war, the service-aged children of all members of that Congress and Cabinet will be the first to serve. This would ensure that elected officials think carefully before declaring war. Nader also supports pulling out of Iraq within six months and trying to negotiate with Iran. He wants to take our men and women in uniform out of Iraq and bring them home where they belong.

Jennifer Moore (WCPO) quotes Nader explaining, "Whether its affordable housing, public transit, solar renewable energy, you name it, how to produce good educational outcomes, universal health care. They're on the shelf." Nader was campaigning in Ohio yesterday.
Bonnie e-mails to remind me to note that Isaiah's The World Today Just Nuts "Barack Running Scared" went up Sunday. The e-mail address for this site is common_ills@yahoo.com.









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