Month: November 2006

On This Date – November 30

Jon Ponder
  • 1992 – Senator Robert Packwood, R-Ore., facing an Ethics Committee investigation of sexual harassment allegations, entered an alcohol-treatment facility. [Xoom.it]
  • 1936 – Birth of Abbie Hoffman, American activist (died 1989) [Wiki]
  • 1931 – G. Gordon Liddy was born on this date. He is a radio talk show host now but served time for his part in the Watergate scandal that brought down Pres. Richard Nixon. [NYT]
  • 1900 – Death of Oscar Wilde, Irish writer (b. 1854), not long after serving prison time for the crime of being gay. [Wiki]

Bush Team Tries Rovian ‘Spin & Smear’ Tactics with Maliki

Jon Ponder

The Bush team tried some of their patented political tricks on the international stage this week, but their run of luck appears to have played out, no matter what stage they are on.

As the president headed to Jordan for a summit meeting with King Abdullah and Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki, the Bush team leaked a memo written by National Security Adivsor Stephen Hadley in which he was critical of Maliki to the New York Times:

[The] reality on the streets of Baghdad suggests Maliki is either ignorant of what is going on, misrepresenting his intentions, or that his capabilities are not yet sufficient to turn his good intentions into action.

Maliki was already in trouble at home with the head of a Shia faction who threatened to pull his followers out of the Iraqi parliament, which could cause the government to collapse.

While it’s possible that the leak to the New York Times was intended to give Maliki cover back home, his reaction to it seems to indicate that he was offended by it. He canceled an appearance at a state dinner with Bush and the king last night.

Maliki finally met with Bush this morning and at a news conference afterwards, the body language between them was not good.

Heading to Mecca for Hajj? Better Get Your Shots

Buck Banks

Holy vaccinations: If you are of the Muslim persuasion and plan to join a couple million fellow believers for the Hajj in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, between Dec. 29, 2006, and Jan. 3, 2007, better make sure you have your vaccination records up to date. When it comes to the potential of the annual gathering of Allah’s faithful to serve as a giant petri dish for the world’s most popular diseases, the Saudis don’t mess around. Sounds like a good place to get really sick:

The congregation of so many people from different parts of the world in unavoidably overcrowded conditions within a confined area for a short period of time presents many public health challenges. The combination of physical exertion, overcrowding and any pre-existing health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, chronic chest conditions, renal and liver disease favour local and possibly international spread of communicable diseases, including meningococcal infections, influenza, tuberculosis and gastrointestinal infections.

This year’s vaccination requirements and advice have been issued by the Saudi Ministry of Hajj for the most serious communicable disease risks:

Meningococcal meningitis
All Hajj pilgrims are now required to submit proof of vaccination with the quadrivalent vaccine against meningococcal meningitis types A, C and W135Y as part of the Hajj visa application to Saudi Arabia. This should be recorded in a vaccination book showing the traveler’s full name.

Chemoprophylaxis against meningococcal infection will also be given to all people arriving in Saudi Arabia from countries in the African meningitis belt.

Polio
All travelers to Saudi Arabia are advised to ensure their polio vaccination is up to date. Travelers whose last dose of polio was more than ten years ago should receive a booster, using the trivalent tetanus, diphtheria and polio vaccine.

The WHO considers the following countries to be polio-affected (as of Oct. 4, 2006): Afghanistan, Angola, Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Namibia, Nepal, Sudan, Yemen.

Hepatitis B
Hepatitis B virus is found in body fluids and can be transmitted either through skin breakages or by close sexual contact. Transmission through the skin may occur through the use of contaminated medical, dental, or other instruments; all pilgrims should consider hepatitis B vaccine. One of the rites of Hajj is for men to have their head shaved. Although the Saudi authorities provide licensed barbers who use a new blade for each pilgrim, other barbers may not conform to such standards. Shaving with a previously used blade could carry a risk of hepatitis B and other bloodborne infections, and so communal use of a razor or blade to shave each other should be avoided. Pilgrims should consider taking with them a disposable razor for this purpose. This will also help to protect against hepatitis C virus infection.

Influenza
Recent studies have shown a high incidence of influenza infections during the Hajj, and so it would seem prudent to regard all Hajj pilgrims as at risk. The Ministry of Health of Saudi Arabia recommends that pilgrims be vaccinated against influenza before arrival, particularly those with pre-existing conditions (e.g., the elderly, people with chronic chest or heart diseases, or those with cardiac, hepatic or renal failure).

Vectorborne diseases
Yellow fever
All travelers arriving from countries endemic for yellow fever must present a valid yellow fever vaccination certificate in accordance with the International Health Regulations. In the absence of such a certificate, the person will be vaccinated upon arrival and placed under strict surveillance for six days from the day of vaccination or the last date of potential exposure to infection, whichever is earlier.

Saudi authorities also require that aircraft and other means of transportation arriving from areas infected with yellow fever are requested to submit a certificate indicating disinfection in accordance with international health regulations.

Malaria
Malaria is not normally present in Medina or Mecca, but is a risk in other areas of Saudi Arabia including the southwestern region and rural areas of the western region. Pilgrims may also plan further travel before or after Hajj to countries in Asia and Africa, and should seek advice about malaria prevention. Pilgrims are advised to practice insect bite avoidance measures that also protects against other vectorborne diseases.

Helluva way to get to heaven ….

Quote du Jour

Buck Banks

Democracy, I do not conceive that ever God did ordain it as a fit government either for church or commonwealth. If the people be governors, who will be governed? As for monarchy and aristocracy, they are both of them clearly approved and directed in Scripture, yet so as referreth the sovereignty to Himself, and setteth theocracy in both, as the best form of government in the commonwealth as well as in the church.

— John Cotton (1584-1652), Puritan minister, American colonizer

Lou Dobbs Creates a Political Wave

Jon Ponder

The Bush era has changed Lou Dobbs. Early in the administration, the host of “Lou Dobbs Tonight,” CNN’s daily financial news show, once described himself on the air as a conservative and a supporter of the president.

Now he’s using the bully pulpit of his anchor desk to crusade against Bush policies, especially on illegal immigration and the unbridling of corporatism by the government, and has become the de facto spokesman for a rising centrist populist movement.

His fans are generally moderates from both parties, who call themselves “Lou Dobbs Democrats” or “Lou Dobbs Republicans,” respectively. Like Dobbs, they are upset with Republicans’ incompetence and corruption but are less than sanguine about the odds that Democrats will fix the hard problems.

These voters in the agitated middle helped throw the bums out in 2006, and they could play a significant role in the 2008 elections, especially if a third-party candidate emerges who campaigns on their issues.

The shape of the movement so far is secular and libertarian on social issues, which could bode well for liberal causes like choice and gay rights. But Dobbs’ populism sees illegal immigration as a dangerous threat to our security and financial stability. It also puts a low priority on the social welfare of the immigrants, which is a position liberals don’t generally share.

If you want to know more Dobbs and his views, there are three new articles up:

• “Mad As Hell: Lou Dobbs’s populist crusade” –The New Yorker
• “The Lou Dobbs Factor” —New York
• “Lou Dobbs Turns on the CEOs” —Mother Jones
• “The Secret Life of Lou Dobbs” —The American

(Via Jossip)

NC-08: Kissell Concedes

Jon Ponder

Populist Democratic candidate Larry Kissell has conceded his race for the 8th District congressional seat held by textile heir Rep. Robin Hayes:

“The fight for the future of this district is too important to postpone another day. That’s why I’m running for Congress in 2008 starting right now,” Kissell said in a statement. “After today’s recounts, I offer U.S. Rep. Hayes a belated congratulation for his victory now that the votes have been counted.”

Kissell conceded even though only five of the ten counties in the district had completed the hand recount requested by the Democrat. The rest were to conduct the hand recounts on Thursday.

Kissell trailed Hayes by just 329 votes out of 121,523 cast following a machine recount last week. He gained only two votes Wednesday during the first phase of the hand recount, during which election officials manually recount votes in a sample of precincts covering 3 percent of the votes cast in the race.

Rep. Hayes has a record of voting for trade deals that have moved textile jobs from his district overseas — despite the fact that his family built a fortune in the textile industry in the region a century ago.

Iraq Study Group Recommends Cutting and Running

Trish

This should be interesting.

The independent, bipartisan panel studying U.S. policy in Iraq has unanimously agreed to a report that will call for a gradual pullback of American combat troops in Iraq but stops short of setting a firm timetable for withdrawal, The New York Times reported on Wednesday.

But Brave Bushie said we’d never, ever do that. Remember? His is not the party of “cut and run.” His is also not the party that matters anymore.

Still, it will be interesting to see how Rove et al frame this. After all, you’re either with them or against them.

Christian Right: GOP and Wal-Mart Have Forsaken God

Jon Ponder

This almost makes me want to shop at Wal-Mart:

Some Christian conservative groups say both Wal-Mart and the Republican Party have “forsaken God.” And just as the GOP took a hit in the elections earlier this month, the groups say the retail giant’s lower-than-expected November sales figures are the wages of that sin.

Why are sales below estimates? “It is for the same reason things went south for the Republican Party this past election cycle,” read a statement by the Rev. Flip Benham and Pat McEwan, with Operation Save America and Operation Save Wal-Mart. “Wal-Mart has forsaken God and it has forsaken the people who love Him.”

The groups led protesters on Nov. 24 to picket the “gates of hell” — that is, Wal-Mart stores around the country. They say Wal-Mart, like the GOP, has strayed from its founding principles, set by founder Sam Walton, citing Wal-Mart’s dispensing of “Plan B” contraception and the fact that the retailer is a corporate member of the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce.

Webb Gives Bush a Slap in the Face, Not a Pat on the Back

Trish

Many Congressional Democrats spent the days right after the election victory in Washington pulling their punches with the recently “thumped” president. Not Sen. James Webb (D-Va.), who stuck to the subject.

Webb has my admiration for his restraint. Most of us would have been unable to keep from saying, “He’s in Iraq, you moron. How the hell do you think he is?”

At a recent White House reception for freshman members of Congress, Virginia’s newest senator tried to avoid President Bush. Democrat James Webb declined to stand in a presidential receiving line or to have his picture taken with the man he had often criticized on the stump this fall. But it wasn’t long before Bush found him.

“How’s your boy?” Bush asked, referring to Webb’s son, a Marine serving in Iraq.

“I’d like to get them out of Iraq, Mr. President,” Webb responded, echoing a campaign theme.

“That’s not what I asked you,” Bush said. “How’s your boy?”

“That’s between me and my boy, Mr. President,” Webb said coldly, ending the conversation on the State Floor of the East Wing of the White House.

Webb has my admiration for his restraint. Most of us would have been unable to keep from saying, “He’s in Iraq, you moron. How the hell do you think he is?”

“I’m not particularly interested in having a picture of me and George W. Bush on my wall,” Webb said in an interview yesterday in which he confirmed the exchange between him and Bush. “No offense to the institution of the presidency, and I’m certainly looking forward to working with him and his administration. [But] leaders do some symbolic things to try to convey who they are and what the message is.”

…The White House declined to discuss the encounter. “As a general matter, we do not comment on private receptions hosted by the president at the White House,” said White House spokeswoman Dana M. Perino.

Yeah, sure they don’t. Not to mention it’s just one more example of how profoundly her boss doesn’t get it.

Did Bush really think Webb would gush over him for remembering that Webb’s son is doing what Bush himself was too weak and selfish to do when it was his turn? The man’s son is in Iraq. If Bush really expected his question to be met with, “He’s great, and thanks for asking. How are the twins?” then he’s even dumber than I thought. And that can’t be possible.

Miami is to Third World as Tancredo is to Ass

Buck Banks

Second World wannabes: Okay, so in a lot of ways Miami is like a Third World country. I mean, we have lots of undocumented workers, illegal immigrants from all over the world, high crime, high unemployment, we’re in a housing construction bust, cops are shooting civilians, there’s poops in the bay and on the beach, and traffic is horrendous. But I’m allowed to say that because I live here. I’m allowed to drive a car with a bumper sticker that refers to my city as a banana republic.

But Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo can’t, not on mine and Gov. Jeb Bush’s watch, no sirree Bob — or Tom.

Here’s what happened, according to the Miami Herald:

Tancredo, who has championed building a fence along the border with Mexico, pointed to Miami as an example of what could happen to the United States if immigration policies are not tightened. He said of Miami in an interview with a conservative on-line news site, “You would never know you’re in the United States of America. You would certainly say you’re in a Third World country.”

How do you reason with a guy whose supporters make Genghis Khan look like Gandhi?

Gov. Jeb was quick to come to our defense:

”The bottom line is Miami is a wonderful city filled with diversity and heritage that we choose to celebrate, not insult,” Bush said in the letter addressed to Tancredo’s Washington office. “Miami has been my home for years and I am looking forward to returning there in January.”

Of course, Jeb’s not. Returning to Miami in January, that is. No, he just bought a million-dollar condo in Coral Gables, which technically is near Miami, though legally a sovereign city unto itself, without virtually any Third Worldliness about it at all.

I, on the other hand, live in the City of Miami, and therefore I can call Miami Third World because I have seen the chickens running in the streets and I’ve also seen them lying in the road, hapless victims of a Santeria ritual intended to give Tio Santos good luck on his traffic court hearing.

But even I cannot top Ana Menendez, star columnist for the Herald whose column on Tancredo’s “naivete,” as Jeb so boldly characterized it, appeared today in the same edition as the article on Tancredo’s name-calling. She asks the age-old question that we here at Pensito Review pose at least several times an hour:

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