unabashed partisan zealot

Crooked crooks and their crookery

The Hammer Gets Hit, Hard;

DeLay's iron-fist ruling style was said to be an integral part of the GOP's successes. Unprecedented party loyalty, powerful connections to big business and lobbyists on K Street, fundraising prowess and backing from the White House and Senate leadership reinforced the perception that DeLay and his cronies were untouchable. Lawmakers who didn't vote with the leadership were thrown off committees. Those who didn't meet annual fundraising requirements were blocked from ascending the party ladder. Lobbyists who didn't identify as Republicans were told to take their business elsewhere. The arrogance of power now seems to have come full circle, with DeLay and Frist as prime examples.

Ah yes, the world over, politicians are the same. Dodgy characters.

The building threat of Karma

New Iraqi abuse investigation opened;

"In a way it was sport," the sergeant said. "One day [another sergeant] shows up and tells a PUC to grab a pole. He told him to bend over and broke the guy's leg with a mini-Louisville Slugger, a metal bat."

The soldier said anything short of death was acceptable. "As long as no PUCs came up dead, it happened," he said. "We kept it to broken arms and legs."

Just a little bit of stress relief. Blowing off some steam. HRW, what a bunch of whingers.

Another loss of Aussie 'prestige'

Hicks lawyer confident on British claim

During a chat about the Ashes cricket series with his Pentagon lawyer Michael Mori, Hicks revealed his mother was British and had never taken out Australian citizenship.

A law change in 2002 entitled him to register as a British national.

Major Mori has since lodged an application on behalf of Mr Hicks for dual British-Australian citizenship.

The British Government refused to allow any of its nine inmates at Guantanamo Bay to be tried by a military commission because it said the trials failed to uphold basic standards of international justice.

It successfully demanded the repatriation of its citizens and all were set free.

This is some great news, despite it representing another 'win' for the UK.

This morning on ABC radio, in trying to justify the authoritarian laws his government are proposing, Howard went on for great length about how he was working hard to protect Australian Citizens from attack.

When questioned about Hicks having to go to the Brits for protection he clammed up and said he didn't want to discuss it.

Yeah, you should be embarrassed. Little twerp.

Lock Howard up for 2 weeks without charge, I reckon. Thinking that he is doing his best to protect Australians certainly fills me with terror.

If he makes it to the UK, I hope somebody tells Hicks not to run for a train.

True freedom

Via Juan Cole;

There are flyers in public areas of Baghdad warning people not to gather in large numbers because they will thereby become targets. I am trying to get a copy of the flyer.

No gathering in large groups? In my part of the world, the government had to legislate and wheel out the cops to achieve this.

And again...

Insurgents begin attacks west of Baghdad;

A suicide car bomber attacked a US convoy near Abu Ghraib prison west of Baghdad, destroying three vehicles, and insurgents shelled the notorious lockup with seven mortar rounds, police said.

In the same area, insurgents fired rocket-propelled grenades at a second US convoy, damaging three armoured vehicles, said police Lt. Alaa Hussein.

The US military issued no immediate casualty reports in any of the incidents.

Snap!

Bush nephew arrested in Texas;

Austin, Texas: John Ellis Bush, the youngest son of Florida Governor Jeb Bush, was arrested early today and charged with public intoxication and resisting arrest.

Bush, 21, nephew of President George Bush, was arrested by the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission at 2.30am yesterday on a corner of a bar district, said sheriff's spokesman Roger Wade.

Don't you love it when you read stuff in the papers which confirms your views?

Poor bastard. Little chance of this fella's f*ck-ups slipping by unnoticed. Then again, I'm certain he's previously used his Dad's and Uncle's name for his own benefit.

Simon says...

Ozone hole nears record size;

The seasonal ozone hole over Antarctica has widened to a near-record size, at approximately 27 million square km, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said today.

Despite the statistic, WMO ozone expert Dr Geir Braathen did not expect the record measurement of 28 million square km, which was reached in 2003, to be broken.

The hole in the ozone layer? That is so late 20th Century. What about the hole in the ho-zone?

Scott no money

Back from France.

[crowd cheers]

So!

French are ok by me. Though they probably smoked a little too much, which only bothered me when it was in a cramped and crowded restaurant.

My second visit, last time was in '96.

Scored some nice waves. Attended a wedding in a garden. Gave my older Step-Sister away to a super decent Norwegian chap. Drank 'gnac with my Dad 'til 4 in the morn.

Life ain't so bad.

Unless you reside in one of the places I visited in my last overseas jaunt, New Orleans.

How the f*ck can such an 'advanced' and wealthy country be so negligent in caring for its' folk?

Yeah, take a toilet break, Dubya. Its hard work.