Iraqi Politics is tha Bomb, Getting Stormy in Louisiana

Paul Krugman
David Brooks
Dana Milbank
Gregory Levey


"It was to have been a cure for what ales us." - Dana Milbank

“Keep your government hands off my Medicare.” - anonymous

Some really good opinions in the links above, I had to read the Jerusalem Post to find out about Gregory Levey's article in Newsweek about naming George W Bush as the new envoy to Israel, a clever idea. Dana Milbank has all of the beer puns over the meeting yesterday between Gates, Biden, Crowley, and Obama. I was impressed with James Crowley's press conference afterwards, where he described the meeting as two people who agreed to disagree and move on. As Chris Matthews on MSNBC commented, he handled the press better than most politicians he's seen, and maybe there is a future in politics for Mr Crowley. He certainly is articulate and has poise in front of the cameras, I ended up liking him a lot.

On to more gruesome news, of course it happened in Iraq. A lot of the bombings of civilians have to do with politics, and this most recent bombing attack was coordinated against the followers of Moktada al Sadr, from the NY Times: "Bombs exploded near five Shiite mosques around Baghdad within 45 minutes on Friday as worshipers attended prayer services, killing at least 29 people in what appeared to be a coordinated attack against followers of the anti-American cleric Moktada al-Sadr, Iraqi officials and a Sadr aide said.

The bombs, which the police said were hidden just outside the mosques, tore through the Friday calm in five predominantly Shiite working-class neighborhoods, three of them on the east side of the city, one in the south and one in the north. A total of 136 people were reported wounded in the attacks, all of which took place between 12:45 p.m. and 1:30 p.m., according an official from the Interior Ministry who spoke under customary condition of anonymity.

Officials said that highest death toll was outside the Shuroofi mosque in the north, in the district of Shaab. Once controlled by a militia loyal to Mr. Sadr, the mosque had in recent years been taken over by the national police, so Sadr loyalists pray outside in the street. Initial reports indicated that 23 people died in the attack and 107 were wounded." This bombing was probably in retribution for the bomb yesterday that went off in a Sunni political office. It is such a horrible way to jockey for position, but I think that the Iraqi politicians have become so used to using methods like this that they have lost the value of human life and any remaining grains of respect has been blown away on the wind. It will continue after we have gone, only these horrible incidents will be reported less and less as our attention shifts elsewhere.

More heartbreaking news out of Burma. The trial of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is over and the verdict was supposed to have been read today: "a new date of Aug. 11 had been set for the reading of the verdict, which could send Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi to jail for five years. Most foreign reporters are barred from entering Myanmar. Mrs. Aung San Suu Kyi, 64, is charged with violating the terms of the house arrest under which she has been held for 14 of the past 20 years. She has been held in prison since her arrest May 14." Like I said before, this whole thing has been fabricated to keep her away from the next fake election that will be held soon. If you thought Iran's election was rigged, watch this one... Now they will kep her out of sight, where she will waste away until she dies. Her last comments were to some observing diplomats during the trial: "Speaking to diplomats who were permitted to attend the final session of the case on Tuesday, she said, “I’m afraid the verdict will be painfully obvious.”

Back in Louisiana, where our government experimented with ethnic cleansing after Hurricane Katrina, the political scene is beginning to resemble Iraq. The porn star Stormy Daniels, who has been thinking of running against Republican David Vitter, was arrested on a domestic violence charge, and her advisor's car was blown up. Politico has the story from Mr Welsh: “I’m not going to point fingers right away, but it definitely looks weird. Everyone who has looked at it and talked to me about it basically said, ‘Man, someone is trying to send you a message.’ It’s straight out of ‘Scarface’ or ‘Casino.’ Even more bizarre: If this is Daniels-related, she hasn’t declared a political party yet — or that she’s running. But as Welsh says: “Election season is heating up early!”

From the weekly vice comes the incident of domestic abuse: "According to Tampa Police, Clifford’s father-in-law had been at the house earlier that day doing laundry. When Stephanie arrived at home, she was angered by the way it had been done.
After opening her mail, she reportedly discovered that her husband, Michael Mosny, hadn’t paid a bill as she reportedly instructing him to. As a result, her bank account was frozen.

Investigators say Clifford admitted to throwing a potted plant at the kitchen sink, pushing folded blankets on the floor, knocking candles off of the coffee table, and throwing their wedding album - but she denies assaulting her husband intentionally. She reportedly told investigators she was attempting to grab the car keys from her husband when she "may have" struck him in the process. Clifford was booked into the Hillsborough County Jail on charges of battery/domestic violence. She was released after posting a $1,000 bond. "

Her opponent, David Vitter was named in the DC Madame expose, and he has confessed to using prostitutes. Some of the prostitutes reported that he likes to wear diapers and enjoys pee. What a wonderfully sordid mess this has become...

On a more upbeat note, negotiations have begun again in Honduras, and Mel Zelaya may actually come back, if certain concessions are met. They have not been made public. So, his camping days may soon be over, and they can all sit down together and have a beer...

late night jokes:

"Yesterday, of course, on Fox News commentator Glenn Beck said that he believes President Obama is a racist. Well, to be fair, every time you watch Glenn Beck, it does get a little easier to hate white people." --Conan O'Brien

"Of course, President Obama has invited Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates and the policeman who arrested him to the White House. Reportedly, Obama is going to serve them Budweiser. And in the spirit of racial harmony, Budweiser is changing its nickname from the 'King of Beers' to the 'Martin Luther King of Beers.'" --Conan O'Brien

"Yesterday at the White House, President Obama took part in an online Q & A session with a group of senior citizens. The most common question the seniors asked Obama was, 'What have you done with Eisenhower?'" --Conan O'Brien

"Big kegger at the White House tomorrow. Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. will be there and Sergeant James Crowley will be there, coming over for beer. It's going to be a crazy night. There will be karaoke with Tim Geithner." --David Letterman

"I believe it's the first White House kegger, really, since the Bush twins lived there." --David Letterman

"And you know who else is going to be there? Dick Cheney, former Vice President Dick 'Kaboom' Cheney will be there. He's going to go down to his old dudgeon and play the organ." --David Letterman

"Everyone's in kegger spirits. And how can you not be? Hillary Clinton, by the way, is in kegger spirit. She's going to be serving snacks in a skimpy pantsuit." --David Letterman

"They were talking to Hillary about it and she is still interested in running for president. She said running for president is not on her radar, not on her radar. Yeah, but she's still got Bill on LoJack." --David Letterman

"Former Governor Sarah Palin, she's rumored to be interested in a new career as a talk radio host. It's a four-hour show but she'll be gone after two. So, that's -- she says it's part of her deal." --Jimmy Fallon

"Of course, you have to remember, radio host is now the most powerful position in the Republican Party. 'The Morning Drive' on WQU-Betcha. Should be exciting." --Jimmy Fallon

"Finally, tomorrow, President Obama has his big beer summit with Professor Henry Louis Gates and Sergeant James Crowley. Yeah, that's a great idea. In my experience, the best way to settle an argument between guys from Boston, just add alcohol." --Jimmy Fallon