But if you don’t think it was waged on behalf of oil or empire, then one reason for our involvement was an attempt to do some good — rid the world of a really bad guy and make life better for Iraqis and others in the region. This “liberal” intent may have left Dick Cheney cold and found Don Rumsfeld indifferent, but it appealed to Bush and it showed in his rhetoric and body language.

This is too depressing for words. Cohen thinks that Bush sincerely cares about helping “make life better for the Iraqi people.” And how does he know this? Is it from watching Bush’s actions? No! It’s from watching his “rhetoric and body language!” Wow, that’s some hard-hitting skeptical journalism right there!

...

Contrast it to the position of the so-called foreign policy realists, exemplified by the first President Bush and his trusted foreign policy sidekick, Brent Scowcroft. It was their decision — cold realism at its best — to end the Persian Gulf War with Saddam Hussein still in power and not to intervene when Hussein later decimated rebellious Shiites in the south. Realistic? Sure. But also sickening.

Bu-bu-but… th… g… holy crap. Richard. You just told us what a disaster the Iraq war was. And now you find the fact that Bush I and Scowcroft wisely decided against plunging us into this national nightmare to be “sickening?” Oh. My. God. Fly me to another country. Fly me to another planet. I refuse to accept that I’m the same species as the people who write for the Post’s editorial page.

Sadly, No! » Fire Richard Cohen

If you are bored with what Hollywood is producing, give this a try (if you haven't already....I am a bit behind the curve). Anyway, I found this movie to be creepy in a way that a cheesy horror flick will never compare. It also includes some physics nerdery, which is always a good thing. It will definitely keep your attention, because you will be working to figure everything out the entire time. Unfortunately, at the end, you will probably still be mind-boggled. But thats the fun part

[Ohh yeah! I watched this with someone... Mike or James I guess. Pretty rad, and quite confusing indeed. Very worthwhile.

Primer (film) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

in Brisbane I end up meeting and greeting some record label people, who are pleasant enough, and one of them is a sales guy, so I say "Why is this [Year Zero being priced much higher than other new releases] the case?" He goes "Because your packaging is a lot more expensive". I know how much the packaging costs -- it costs me, not them, it costs me 83 cents more to have a CD with the colour-changing ink on it. I'm taking the hit on that, not them. So I said "Well, it doesn't cost $10 more". "Ah, well, you're right, it doesn't. Basically it's because we know you've got a core audience that's gonna buy whatever we put out, so we can charge more for that. It's the pop stuff we have to discount to get people to buy it. True fans will pay whatever". And I just said "That's the most insulting thing I've heard. I've garnered a core audience that you feel it's OK to rip off? F--- you'. That's also why you don't see any label people here, 'cos I said 'F--- you people. Stay out of my f---ing show. If you wanna come, pay the ticket like anyone else. F--- you guys". They're thieves. I don't blame people for stealing music if this is the kind of s--- that they pull off.

Straight talk from Trent. And I actually am now sorry that I paid full price for Year Zero. I want to support artists, so I buy from iTunes and i buy new release CD's for stuff I care about enough. This fucking sales guy makes me sick. I understand the free market well enough to know that the price for a good will be what the market will bear, and established artists tip that up. What pisses me off is that the balance ISN'T SUPPORTING THE ARTIST. I'll pay Trent Reznor more for his music than I'll pay someone I've only heard one track of and might sorta, kinda like. Of course I will. But I want to pay Trent, not these fucking self-congratulating suits without an ounce of integrity. Fuck them indeed.

Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails | Herald Sun

Iran is secretly forging ties with al-Qaida elements and Sunni Arab militias in Iraq in preparation for a summer showdown with coalition forces intended to tip a wavering US Congress into voting for full military withdrawal, US officials say.

"Iran is fighting a proxy war in Iraq and it's a very dangerous course for them to be following. They are already committing daily acts of war against US and British forces," a senior US official in Baghdad warned. "They [Iran] are behind a lot of high-profile attacks meant to undermine US will and British will, such as the rocket attacks on Basra palace and the Green Zone [in Baghdad]. The attacks are directed by the Revolutionary Guard who are connected right to the top [of the Iranian government]."
...
US officials now say they have firm evidence that Tehran has switched tack as it senses a chance of victory in Iraq. In a parallel development, they say they also have proof that Iran has reversed its previous policy in Afghanistan and is now supporting and supplying the Taliban's campaign against US, British and other Nato forces.

[Well, there you have it. Welcome to perpetual war. Fuck fuck fuck. -k]

Iran's secret plan for summer offensive

UPDATE: The latest from the Dems: Sure, this time we caved, but next time boy that President Bush better watch out.

Maryland Democrat [Steny Hoyer] said the next step for his party will be to insist on tougher language in the 2008 military spending bill to be debated this summer.

Uh huh. Whatever.

Sorry, but that's exactly what it is - a blank check. More from CNN. In my view, they blustered and they blinked. Yeah, it's nice that the Dems attached the minimum wage, and I'm happy about that, but that's not really the point is it? We're in a war that is destroying our country. $7.25 an hour isn't going to fix that. It's also not why the Democrats were elected.

UGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!

Why fucking bother, guys? Seriously. I'm so disillusioned right now.

CNN: Dems to give Bush blank check on Iraq - AMERICAblog: A great nation deserves the truth

Today I would like to share with you a speech made in 1841 by Thomas Babbington Macaulay, a brilliant philosopher, critic and historian who was himself a great enemy of historical parochialism. The speech is on the topic of copyright, and the theories set forth became the basis of copyright policies in the English speaking world for well over a hundred years. These theories now popularly superceded by theories of natural rights to intellectual property.

It's incredible how little the debate on copyright has changed in 165 years.

Gold star to both Macaulay and the poster for making this available (in 2002, I'll note). Read it in it's entirety. In particular I was struck by the section on Milton's granddaughter...

Thus, then, stands the case. It is good that authors should be remunerated; and the least exceptionable way of remunerating them is by a monopoly. Yet monopoly is an evil. For the sake of the good we must submit to the evil; but the evil ought not to last a day longer than is necessary for the purpose of securing the good.

...

Considered as a reward to [the author, Samuel Johnson], the difference between a twenty years' and sixty years' term of posthumous copyright would have been nothing or next to nothing. But is the difference nothing to us? I can buy Rasselas for sixpence; I might have had to give five shillings [60 pence, per the footnotes -k] for it. I can buy the Dictionary, the entire genuine Dictionary, for two guineas, perhaps for less; I might have had to give five or six guineas for it. Do I grudge this to a man like Dr Johnson? Not at all. Show me that the prospect of this boon roused him to any vigorous effort, or sustained his spirits under depressing circumstances, and I am quite willing to pay the price of such an object, heavy as that price is. But what I do complain of is that my circumstances are to be worse, and Johnson's none the better; that I am to give five pounds for what to him was not worth a farthing.

kuro5hin.org || technology and culture, from the trenches

sounds good to me.

Group Offers a Simple Fix for Alternative Minimum Tax - New York Times

a couple of moments after I learned of the entirely timely death of Jerry Falwell, I wondered to myself what would become of those poor souls sure to suffer most in the wake of such a staggering loss.

I'm speaking of course of the media, which for more than three decades had been complicit in elevating Falwell from Otherwise-Run-of-the-Mill-Sociopath to Influential-Spokesperson-Whose-Opinion-Deserves-Consideration.

...

If you have a working television and an IQ above that of a ferret, you know that I'm not exaggerating one bit about the media's seemingly incurable obsession with allowing only the most fanatical agitators to speak for the masses when it comes time to debate so-called "controversial" issues on the airwaves.

...

The fact is, whether a topic is being legitimately and rationally debated matters little; what matters is that batshit-crazy makes for great TV.

This article, about both gun control and the media, is germane to my recent arguments but state more eloquently and comprehensively... it deserves a star of some color.

Deus Ex Malcontent: Automatics for the People

"Basic fairness demands that religious beliefs deserve a chance to be heard," he said during his 26-minute speech. "It is wrong to single out those who believe in God for discrimination. Yet, today, it is impossible to miss the discrimination against religious believers."

As I predicted.

Of course, my distaste for Jerry Falwell must be evidence for my hatred of all religious people.

Assholes. Somehow knowing it was coming doesn't make me feel one bit better.

Gingrich says Falwell's followers are victims of the discrimination they promote against others - AMERICAblog: A great nation deserves the truth

The proposal is to force frontline public sector workers to report people they merely think might one day commit a violent offence. This speculation will then be collated by a national agency and shared amongst a range of bodies such as local authorites and the police.

Yikes @ England.

Atu XVIII - UK Politics and Civil Liberties Blog