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Tuesday, February 10, 2004
Well...A true Massillonian died yesterday of an apparent Heart Attack. Coach Studer will be greatly missed. No where will you find a man that was quite as intense and passionate as he was. It wasn't just football or lifting weights....it was everything. In other news...My boy won the Bud Shootout at Daytona this past weekend...w00t!!! I know I know...Dale JR. rightfully could/should have won it....But instead decided to push Jarrett around to victory. Thanks JR!!! It is also great b/c Mikutel had made a comment to the effect of...Is Jarrett gonna race the WheelChair this year? hehe...Sorry 'bout yo luck. I still have a Headache by the way. It's REALLY startin' to piss me off...RAWR!!!! Don't know too much else.
posted by
Paul at 10:31 AM
Wednesday, February 04, 2004
Everyone seems to be doing a list of this or a list of that. Someone...I think Slagle...did a music list....So I am going to start with that one first. I am going to make a list of 15 songs that are my favorite....or make me who I am ...or whatever the f*ck you want to call it. I am going to put the entire song on here so you can listen to it if you so wish. Unfortunately due to low webspace I am going to have to split the list into 2 parts. These songs are in no particular order:
1. Stone Temple Pilots - Interstate Love Song "LISTEN" I provided a live version of this song for you to enjoy. This song comes off STP's second album which is titled "Purple". This is not only one of my fave STP songs...But it is also my fave STP album. 2. DMX - Slippin' "LISTEN" Slippin' is off the "Flesh of my Flesh, Blood of my Blood" album....However the version I supplied for you is not the one you would hear if you were to listen to the album. It is censored on the album....even the explicit lyrics album. I do not understand why....Regardless I provided an uncensored version for your listening experience. VERY GOOD SONG!!! Like Forest Gump once said..."That's all I got to say about that" 3. Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name Of "LISTEN" This is off Rage's initial self titled debut. Again...I have not provided you with the studio version of this song. It is from a live performance at Woodstock '99. I must say it is one of the greatest non-conformist songs of all time. 4. The Rolling Stones - Paint It Black "LISTEN" This song comes off the album titled "Aftermath" which was released in the U.S. in July of 1966. Finally...I put a true studio version for you to hear!!! The song is excellent. If you are not tapping a foot or beating a table with your hand or at the very least bobbing your head by the end of the song....Please check your pulse because I think you are dead. 5. Country Joe McDonald - I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-To-Die Rag "LISTEN" This is a live version of the song from Woodstock....The original one!!! The studio version could be found on the album with the same title which was released in November of 1967. It is a great Anti-Vietnam song!!! **WARNING** Some may find it offensive. 6. Notorious BIG feat. P-Diddy & Busta Rhymes - Victory "LISTEN" Biggie SMALLS raps throughout most of the song. Puffy is limited to a few words here and there...and Busta does the Chorus. Sounds kinda boring...but it is a REALLY smooth track from top to bottom. Few can flow as naturally as Biggie did. 7. Ben Folds Five - Brick "LISTEN" The version listed here is a live performance from Saturday Night Live. The studio version would be on the album titled "Whatever And Ever Amen" which was released on 3/18/1997. It's basically just Ben and a piano....In all their glory!!! 8. Pearl Jam - Corduroy "LISTEN" This is an actual studio track which appeared on the album "Vitalogy" which was released in 1994. Many list "Ten" as their fave PJ album...but I consider "Vitalogy" as my favorite. Corduroy has a bit of everything in it. Highs...Lows...Screaming guitars...Fat bass-line. Oh...And it FUCKIN' rockz0rs my boxz0rs!!!
posted by
Paul at 5:53 PM
Thursday, January 15, 2004
I have neglected blogging for far too long. So here is a blog to get on track. The Holidays were good. Uneventful...but good. I was sick for nearly three weeks. I completely lost my voice and had Bronchitis and the Flu. Needless to say it suckz0red. One of my EX's little brother was recently killed in a car accident. He was only 17 at the time. It really is a shame. I know it is a bit cliched to say, "Oh he was a great kid." But he honest to Gawd was a great kid. It REALLY f*ckin' sucks that people who deserve to die....LIVE.....And people who deserve to live....DIE!!! And everyone wonders why I have no faith? Moving on. We played Musical Cubicles again at "THE COMPANY". I now have Oberlin-X sitting on one side of me and SlaterlinX on the other side....w00t!!! So my new game of the moment is The Sims'. I used to play it at TommyP's house for days at a time. Yes...I was addicted to it like a Whore is addicted to cock. But I decided I could handle The Sims' this time around and have done quite well at not overdosing on it. hehe. Anyway. I have added the majority of my friends to the game and gave them somewhat similar personalities as they have in real life. Here is a great screen shot. What we have going on here is Ol' Dirty is the guy in the wife beater and boxers passed out in my lawn. It is kinda funny because he came over to my house in the game and helped himself to drinks at my bar. He drank so much he passed out in my lawn. Now as you can see while he is passed out...and I am at work...A burglar comes into my crib and snakes my PC. Needless to say Ol' Dirty never did wake up and the thief got away with my stuff. Rawz0r!!! Oh...and that plate on my kitchen table with the flies around it....that's also Ol' Dirty's. He helped himself to my food and didn't bother to clean up after himself. What a lazy Bee-Yatch!!! hehe. OKay...I do not have anything else to say right now....And I really need to go outside in the blizzard and chief down a smoke. Take care everyone until next time.
posted by
Paul at 9:48 AM
Tuesday, December 23, 2003
Here.....Waste your employer's paper and print it off and hang it in your cubicle or work-place.
posted by
Paul at 10:15 AM
Friday, December 19, 2003
Here's stuff that everyone needs to read....Although I know none of you will because it has to do with Politics.
Produced by the Center for American Progress, 12/13/03
DRUG COVERAGE
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "The historic legislation the President signed will create a modern Medicare system, providing seniors with prescription drug benefits."
FACT: "The new law gives private insurers the authority to ration access to drugs funded by Medicare. Beneficiaries will have to choose a drug insurer without knowing exactly what drugs that insurer will cover. Premiums will be higher in areas with older or sicker seniors." - American Progress Fellow Jeanne Lambrew, 12/4/03
FACT: "The Congressional Budget Office projects that 2.7 million retirees are expected to lose the drug coverage they currently receive through their former because their employers will drop such coverage when the Medicare drug benefit becomes available." - Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 12/11/03
FACT: "[T]he insurance plan would provide little relief for about 3 million people with moderate assets and incomes near the poverty level and would cost seniors with drug expenses under $835 a year more than they currently spend." - Boston Globe, 11/18/03
FACT: "A substantial number of the 6.4 million low-income Medicare beneficiaries who also are eligible for Medicaid and currently receive prescription drug coverage through Medicaid would be made worse off under the Medicare conference agreement." - Center of Budget and Policy Priorities Report, 11/21/03
FACT: "The Congressional Budget Office estimates about 2.7 million seniors could lose benefits that may be more generous than those that will be offered under Medicare." -USA Today, 11/25/03
DRUG COSTS
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "Beneficiaries who lack coverage will cut their yearly drug costs roughly in half, in exchange for an approximately $35 monthly premium. The more than one-third of seniors with low incomes will be eligible for even greater drug savings, paying as little as $1 per prescription."
FACT: "[U]nder the new plan, seniors in the middle income quintile will pay an average of $1,650 a year in out-of-pocket expenses for prescription drugs in 2006. This figure is nearly 60 percent more than they paid in 2000, even after adjusting for inflation. Expenses are projected to continue to rise so that by 2013 middle-income seniors will be paying more than two and a half times as much for prescription drugs (adjusting for inflation) as they did in 2000." – Ctr. for Economic and Policy Research, 12/04/03
HEALTH SAVINGS ACCOUNTS
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "The historic Medicare legislation that the President signed included a provision establishing Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)...These HSAs will allow more Americans to save for health care needs, and will allow more small businesses to help workers secure health coverage."
FACT: The creation of "Health Care Savings Accounts" provides an "incentive to shift more costs to workers, who may be asked to 'match' their employer's contribution to a HSA with its high deductibles and high co-payments." Urban Institute economist Len Burman said HSAs will become "a boon to the healthy and wealthy and a bane" to older, sicker co-workers left to confront higher costs and premiums in traditional health plans. - Scripps Howard News, Scripps Howard, 12/3/03
FACT: According to major studies conducted in the past by RAND, the Urban Institute, and the American Academy of Actuaries, "premiums for comprehensive, employer-based coverage could more than double if such accounts became widespread." - CBPP, 11/18/03
ECONOMY
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "President Bush's economic leadership is producing positive results."
FACT: "More than 2.2 million jobs have been lost since Bush took office. Bush is still on pace to be the first President since Herbert Hoover to have a net job loss over his four year term." - BLS Data
FACT: In July 2003, the Counsel of Economic Advisors predicted that the President's latest round of tax cuts would produce 1,530,000 jobs would be created in the first five months. In fact, only 271,000 jobs were created over those five months for a cumulative shortfall of 1,259,000 jobs. - Economic Policy Institute
FACT: "Twenty five major American cities saw a 19% increase in the need for emergency food last year alone." - UK Guardian, 11/3/03
FACT: "New jobs created during the 2004-05 period are forecast to pay an average of $35,855, far lower than the $43,629 average pay of those jobs lost between 2001-03." - U.S. Conference of Mayors, 11/10/03
FACT: "Only 14% of CEOs are planning to increase the pace of hiring." - Business Council Poll, 10/9/03
FACT: Poverty levels have risen for the second straight year in a row – the first time in more than 13 years. - Economic Policy Institute
DEFICITS
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "Maintaining Fiscal Discipline: [The President has] continued to restrain spending."
FACT: The House recently passed a massive $373 billion spending bill, laden with pork-barrel spending and controversial provisions as far as the eye could see. "The size of the measure invites abuse. Spending set-asides for home-state projects have grown to extraordinary levels, filling scores of pages in the Congressional Record." President Bush issued a "personal appeal" to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) to "push the spending package through the Senate" without changes after the House passed the pork-laden bill." - AP, 12/8/03, 12/5/03, Wall Street Journal 12/3/08
FACT: "For the 2003 budget year, which ended Sept. 30, the government recorded a deficit of $374.8 billion, according to revised figures. In November alone, the deficit swelled to nearly $43 billion." - AP, 12/12/03
FACT: "Most observers familiar with the budget outlook, including the White House’s Office of Management and Budget, agree that deficits will become even larger after 2013." – American Progress Senior Economist Christian Weller, 12/12/03
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "91 million taxpayers received, on average, a tax cut of $1,126. Since the President took office, 109 million taxpayers have received, on average, a tax cut of $1,544. Without the fiscal measures implemented under President Bush, there would be as many as 2 million fewer jobs for American workers today."
FACT: 80% of taxpayers would receive less than $1,083, and half would receive $100 or less. The handful of millionaires who would get about $90,000 artificially inflates the average. - Citizens for Tax Justice, 5/22/03, CBPP, 5/28/03
FACT: 'The economic consulting firm Economy.com found that the tax cuts were responsible for only 13 percent of the growth last quarter – meaning that we still would have seen GDP growth of about 7 percent without the tax cut." – American Progress Fellow Gene Sperling, 12/11/03
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "23 million small business owners received tax cuts averaging $2,209."
FACT: "Nearly four out of every five tax filers (79%) with small business income would receive less than $2,209." Additionally, "52% of people with small business returns would get $500 or less." – Urban Inst.-Brookings Tax Policy Center, 1/21/03
'HEALTHY FORESTS'
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "As part of the President's Healthy Forests Initiative, he signed bipartisan legislation to improve forest health and reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires while upholding environmental laws, restoring our nation's forests, and preserving the forest economy."
FACT: The Congressional Research service reported that the "Health Forests" bill may actually increase the risk of fire. CRS expert Ross W. Corte said, "Timber harvesting removes the relatively large diameter wood that can be converted into wood products but leaves behind the small material, especially twigs and needles" that contributes to fires. - CRS report, 8/22/2000
FACT: In fact, the bill was sought by the timber industry "not because they wanted to remove brush and chaparral" which can cause forest fires but because it would "increase commercial logging with less environmental oversight." - CBS News, 12/3/03
POWER PLANT EMISSIONS
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "The Bush Administration proposed stringent new rules on power plant emissions."
FACT: "The Bush administration on Friday eased clean air rules to allow utilities, refineries and manufacturers to avoid having to install expensive new anti-pollution equipment when they modernize their plants." - CBS News, 11/22/02
FACT: "More than a dozen state attorneys general yesterday sought to block the federal government from implementing a rule change they argued would lead to more air pollution from the nation's power plants. Fourteen states, and a number of cities - including New York, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. - are seeking a court injunction to impede a measure by the Environmental Protection Agency before it goes into effect." - AP, 11/18/03
FACT: "The chief of the Environmental Protection Agency's civil enforcement office has resigned, complaining the White House is undermining anti-pollution efforts at power plants that violate clean air laws. Eric Schaeffer, a lawyer at the EPA for a dozen years dating from the first Bush administration, said in a letter to EPA Administrator Christie Whitman that the White House "seems determined to weaken the rules we are trying to enforce." - CBS News, 3/1/02
MERCURY EMISSIONS
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "The Bush Administration proposed stringent new rules which will result in dramatic reductions of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and mercury."
FACT: Two separate reports issued by the GAO and the Rockefeller Family Fund project and Council of State Governments stated that the Administration's relaxation of pollution rules for power plants would lead to reduced fines and pollution controls as well as 1.4 million tons more air pollution. - CBS News, 11/6/03
FACT: "The Administration is proposing to use a provision of the Clean Air Act never before used to regulate toxics and setting a level of reductions for mercury emissions far below what the Clean Air Act toxic provisions would require. Using the [traditional] provisions of the Clean Air Act would achieve at least a 90 percent reduction in mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants by 2008. The Administration’s proposals suggest only a 30% reduction, to the benefit of Coal-fired power plants and utilities." – Former EPA Administrator Carol Browner, 12/4/03
EDUCATION
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "Parents, teachers, and principals are seeing a positive difference in America's schools. The No Child Left Behind Act is raising standards for students and putting the focus on student achievement."
FACT: "The sweeping federal law left cash-strapped states battered and confused in 2003. More nationwide provisions will take effect in 2004, along with the threat of losing millions of dollars for states that don’t pass muster." - Stateline, 12/8/03
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "The Bush Administration is investing more money in elementary and secondary education than at any time in American history."
FACT: "President Bush proposed a budget that was $9.7 billion below the amount needed to fund his own No Child Left Behind Bill. The budget eliminates 45 education programs, and slashes another 18 programs by $1.4 billion. Specifically, he proposes to cut $400 million (40%) out of after-school programs, resulting in 485,000 children being thrown off these programs. He proposes to freeze teacher training grants, meaning a loss of opportunity for 30,000 teachers. And, during a recession, he has proposed a $307 million cut for vocational/technical education grants, and a freeze on Pell Grants." - House Appropriations Committee report, 3/10/03
CONSUMER PROTECTION
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "Enhancing Consumer Credit Protections. The President proposed and signed into law legislation to ensure citizens are treated fairly when they apply for credit. It also addresses the growing problem of identity theft by establishing a nationwide fraud alert system."
FACT: "In addition to previous votes that gutted state provisions to prevent financial institutions from sharing customers' information with others, the final version of the bill will roll back states' anti-identity-theft measures." – SF Chronicle, 11/22/03
FACT: The Administration proposed new regulations that "would shield national banks from state laws enacted to protect consumers from predatory lending." The regulations were criticized by NY AG Eliot Spitzer as preventing the states from prosecuting "nationally chartered financial services companies for charging outsized fees and interest rates to poor consumers who have bad credit." - Financial Times, 12/11/03
VETERANS
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "Honoring Our Commitment to Veterans: America owes veterans and those on the front lines of freedom a great debt of gratitude."
FACT: The Administration is pushing a cut of $1.5 billion in military housing/medical facility funding, despite the fact that UPI reports “hundreds of sick and wounded U.S. soldiers including many who served in the Iraq war are languishing in hot cement barracks here while they wait - sometimes for months - to see doctors." - Wash Post, 1/17/03, UPI, 10/17/03
FACT: “One million children living in military and veteran families are being denied child tax credit help" in President Bush’s tax cut. “More than 260,000 of these children have parents on active military duty." - Children’s Defense Fund, 6/6/03
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "President Bush was pleased to sign legislation that resolved the issue of concurrent receipt in a fair and responsible manner."
FACT: In the fiscal year 2003 defense authorization bill, Congress stipulated that veterans with disabilities would no longer have to give up part of the retirement pay they have earned. In other words, they would receive retired pay and disability pay concurrently. Bush threatened to veto the bill if it includes concurrent receipt. - Baltimore Sun, 12/1/02, Wash. Post, 10/7/02
AIDS
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "Leading the Fight Against HIV/AIDS: In his State of the Union Address, President Bush announced the Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief an historic 5-year, $15 billion effort to turn the tide of the AIDS pandemic. Only 4 months later, Congress passed legislation authorizing the Emergency Plan based on the President's proposal."
FACT: President Bush's budget introduced four days after his State of the Union "only sought $2 billion for the year" for AIDS - 33% less than the $3 billion needed to keep his $15-billion-over-5-year pledge. When the Senate voted to increase the President's budget, the White House "repeated its strong opposition to any funding beyond $2 billion." - LA Times, 10/31/03
FACT: "President Bush plans to ask Congress for relatively small funding increases to fight AIDS and poverty in the developing world, stepping back from his highly publicized pledge to spend huge sums to help fight them." - WSJ, 12/10/2003
INTERNATIONAL FINANCING
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "At the Madrid donors' conference, 73 countries and 20 international organizations joined together and pledged over $30 billion for Iraq."
FACT: "Six weeks after organizers of an international donors conference in Madrid said that more than $3 billion in grants had been pledged to help Iraq with immediate needs, a new World Bank tally verifies grants of only $685 million for 2004." - NY Times, 12/7/03
INTERNATIONAL MILITARY HELP
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "Our mission has broad support from the international community, including troops from 18 out of 25 current and future NATO countries."
FACT: While the U.S. has over 160,000 troops in Iraq, the next largest force contingent is Britain, with about 9,000 troops. Additionally, since President Bush asked for more military help in September, not one additional new international soldier has been sent to Iraq. - UK Guardian, 12/12/03
WMD
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "We are now learning the full truth about Saddam Hussein's regime: clear evidence of Saddam's illegal weapons program."
FACT: “A draft report on the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq provides no solid evidence that Iraq had such arms when the United States invaded the country in March." - Reuters, 9/15/03
FACT: “We have not uncovered evidence that Iraq undertook significant post-1998 steps to actually build nuclear weapons or produce fissile material...We have not yet been able to corroborate the existence of a mobile biological weapons production effort…Technical limitations would prevent any of these processes from being ideally suited to these trailers...Iraq did not have a large, ongoing, centrally controlled chemical weapons program after 1991… Iraq's large-scale capability to develop, produce, and fill new chemical weapon munitions was reduced - if not entirely destroyed - during Operations Desert Storm and Desert Fox, 13 years of UN sanctions and UN inspections." - Bush Administration Weapons Inspector David Kay, 10/2/03
SADDAM-ALQAEDA TIES
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "[We have found] previously undocumented ties to terror organizations."
FACT: The bipartisan September 11th commission report “undercuts Bush Administration claims before the war that Hussein had links to Al Qaeda." - LA Times, 7/19/03
FACT: "Since the fall of Baghdad, coalition forces have not brought to light any significant evidence demonstrating the bond between Iraq and Al Qaeda." - NY Times, 7/20/03
FACT: "Three former Bush Administration officials who worked on intelligence and national security issues said the prewar evidence tying Al Qaeda was tenuous, exaggerated and often at odds with the conclusions of key intelligence agencies." - National Journal, 8/9/03
MILITARY SUPPORT
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "America and more than 20 allied countries are working to help the Afghan people rebuild their war-torn nation. More than 15 million Afghan citizens have been freed from the brutal zealotry of the Taliban."
FACT: The U.N. delegation reported that "insecurity caused by terrorist activities, factional fights and drug related crime remain the major concern of Afghans today." Insecurity is especially a problem in the southern part of the country where "attacks against non-governmental organizations was contributing to the slowing of reconstruction." Throughout the nation "individuals and communities suffer from abuses of their basic rights by local commanders and factional leaders." The problems are exacerbated in many areas of the country "by terrorist attacks from suspected members of the Taliban and Al Qaeda." Also of serious concern: "Arbitrary control exercised by local commanders and factional armies [that] has resulted in heavy casualties." - UN Report, 11/11/03
FUNDING
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "The U.S. Congress passed the Afghanistan Freedom Support Act which authorizes $3.47 billion for Afghanistan over fiscal years 2003-2006."
FACT: While President Bush declared a "Marshall Plan for Afghanistan" in April 2002, the nation has "received only a fraction of the $10.2 billion" that the World Bank said was necessary over the first five years. - Senate Foreign Relations Committee Testimony, 10/16/03
TERRORIST FINANCING
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "The Treasury Department has frozen over $136 million from over 240 terrorist-related entities."
FACT: "Federal authorities do not have a clear understanding of how terrorists move their financial assets and are still struggling to prevent the flow of money to terror groups," according to a new report by the GAO to be released Sunday. - NY Times, 12/12/03
FIRST RESPONDERS
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "Helping State and Local First Responders: The President is continuing to give our nation's first responder and public health system the training and equipment to prepare, prevent and respond to any future terrorist attack."
FACT: "Emergency Responders are drastically underfunded and dangerously unprepared. The United States remains dangerously ill prepared to handle a catastrophic attack on American soil. On average, fire departments across the country have only enough radios to equip half the firefighters on a shift, and breathing apparatuses for only one-third. Police departments do not have the protective gear to safely secure a site following a WMD attack. Public health labs in most states still lack basic equipment and expertise to adequately respond to a chemical or biological attack. Most cities do not have the necessary equipment to determine what kind of hazardous materials emergency responders may be facing." - Council on Foreign Relations Report by former Sen. Warrren Rudman (R-NH), 7/29/03
FACT: "Despite a $2 billion federal investment, the nation's public health system is only marginally better prepared today to handle a bioterrorism attack or other health emergency than it was in 2001."- USA Today, 12/12/03
FACT: The federal program that added more than 100,000 cops to local police forces is being rolled back because local governments can't afford to keep many of the officers on the street. Law enforcement analysts say that the largest federally funded buildup of local police in U.S. history is being washed away by cutbacks." - USA Today, 12/2/03
FACT: "The White House is now saying that its spending plan does not provide enough money to protect against terrorist attacks on American soil. It concedes that domestic counterterrorism programs were shortchanged." - NY Times, 2/26/03
CYBER SECURITY
WHITE HOUSE CLAIM: "The President provided a framework for protecting our critical infrastructure by releasing for protecting our critical infrastructure by releasing the first-ever National Strategy for the Physical Protection of Critical Infrastructure and the National Cyberspace Security Division."
FACT: The annual cybersecurity report card is out, and "the Department of Homeland Security - the government's lead agency on matters of Internet security - led the list of seven federal agencies that earned an "F" grade for their own network security efforts in 2003." And "also earning an 'F' was the Justice Department, the agency charged with investigating and prosecuting many cases involving hacking and other forms of cybercrime." - Washington Post, 12/9/03
And here is yet another interesting Political based article:
Sunday, December 14th, 2003
We Finally Got Our Frankenstein... and He Was In a Spider Hole! -- by Michael Moore
Thank God Saddam is finally back in American hands! He must have really missed us. Man, he sure looked bad! But, at least he got a free dental exam today. That's something most Americans can't get.
America used to like Saddam. We LOVED Saddam. We funded him. We armed him. We helped him gas Iranian troops.
But then he screwed up. He invaded the dictatorship of Kuwait and, in doing so, did the worst thing imaginable -- he threatened an even BETTER friend of ours: the dictatorship of Saudi Arabia, and its vast oil reserves. The Bushes and the Saudi royal family were and are close business partners, and Saddam, back in 1990, committed a royal blunder by getting a little too close to their wealthy holdings. Things went downhill for Saddam from there.
But it wasn't always that way. Saddam was our good friend and ally. We supported his regime. It wasn’t the first time we had helped a murderer. We liked playing Dr. Frankenstein. We created a lot of monsters -- the Shah of Iran, Somoza of Nicaragua, Pinochet of Chile -- and then we expressed ignorance or shock when they ran amok and massacred people. We liked Saddam because he was willing to fight the Ayatollah. So we made sure that he got billions of dollars to purchase weapons. Weapons of mass destruction. That's right, he had them. We should know -- we gave them to him!
We allowed and encouraged American corporations to do business with Saddam in the 1980s. That's how he got chemical and biological agents so he could use them in chemical and biological weapons. Here's the list of some of the stuff we sent him (according to a 1994 U.S. Senate report):
* Bacillus Anthracis, cause of anthrax.
* Clostridium Botulinum, a source of botulinum toxin.
* Histoplasma Capsulatam, cause of a disease attacking lungs, brain, spinal cord, and heart.
* Brucella Melitensis, a bacteria that can damage major organs.
* Clostridium Perfringens, a highly toxic bacteria causing systemic illness.
* Clostridium tetani, a highly toxigenic substance.
And here are some of the American corporations who helped to prop Saddam up by doing business with him: AT&T, Bechtel, Caterpillar, Dow Chemical, Dupont, Kodak, Hewlett-Packard, and IBM (for a full list of companies and descriptions of how they helped Saddam, click here.
We were so cozy with dear old Saddam that we decided to feed him satellite images so he could locate where the Iranian troops were. We pretty much knew how he would use the information, and sure enough, as soon as we sent him the spy photos, he gassed those troops. And we kept quiet. Because he was our friend, and the Iranians were the "enemy." A year after he first gassed the Iranians, we reestablished full diplomatic relations with him!
Later he gassed his own people, the Kurds. You would think that would force us to disassociate ourselves from him. Congress tried to impose economic sanctions on Saddam, but the Reagan White House quickly rejected that idea -- they wouldn’t let anything derail their good buddy Saddam. We had a virtual love fest with this Frankenstein whom we (in part) created.
And, just like the mythical Frankenstein, Saddam eventually spun out of control. He would no longer do what he was told by his master. Saddam had to be caught. And now that he has been brought back from the wilderness, perhaps he will have something to say about his creators. Maybe we can learn something... interesting. Maybe Don Rumsfeld could smile and shake Saddam's hand again. Just like he did when he went to see him in 1983 (click here to see the photo).
Maybe we never would have been in the situation we're in if Rumsfeld, Bush, Sr., and company hadn't been so excited back in the 80s about their friendly monster in the desert.
Meanwhile, anybody know where the guy is who killed 3,000 people on 9/11? Our other Frankenstein?? Maybe he's in a mouse hole.
So many of our little monsters, so little time before the next election.
Stay strong, Democratic candidates. Quit sounding like a bunch of wusses. These bastards sent us to war on a lie, the killing will not stop, the Arab world hates us with a passion, and we will pay for this out of our pockets for years to come. Nothing that happened today (or in the past 9 months) has made us ONE BIT safer in our post-9/11 world. Saddam was never a threat to our national security.
Only our desire to play Dr. Frankenstein dooms us all.
Yours,
Michael Moore
mmflint@aol.com
www.michaelmoore.com
For a look back to the better times of our relationship with Saddam Hussein, see the following:
Patrick E. Tyler, "Officers say U.S. aided Iraq in war despite use of gas," New York Times, August 18, 2002.
"U.S. Chemical and Biological Warfare-Related Dual Use Exports to Iraq and their possible impact on health consequences of the Gulf War," 1994 Report by the Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.
William Blum's cover story in the April 1998 issue of The Progressive, "Anthrax for Export.”
Jim Crogan's April 25-May 1, 2003 report in the LA Weekly, "Made in the USA, Part III: The Dishonor Roll."
"Iraq: U.S. military items exported or transferred to Iraq in the 1980s," United States General Accounting Office, released February 7, 1994.
"U.S. had key role in Iraq buildup; trade in chemical arms allowed despite their use on Iranians and Kurds," Washington Post, December 30, 2002.
"Iraqgate: Saddam Hussein, U.S. policy and the prelude to the Persian Gulf War, 1980-1994," The National Security Archive, 2003
That should fill all of your Political needs for now. More later.
posted by
Paul at 1:07 PM
So I tested to see if Blogger was working for Shaun...So while I am here I figure I might as well blog. I haven't had too much to say...But that might be because I can't FREAKIN' talk. hehe. Yes. I went to the doctor and apparently I have Bronchitis. But I cannot talk either. Which REALLY sucks. I hate not being able to talk....And it really puts a burden on me trying to work when your job is Phone Customer Service. Oh well...Hopefully I can talk by Monday. It's getting to be that time of year again for FESTIVUS. You gotta love Seinfeld. I SO wish they would release it on DVD. I figure if Friends and the Soprano's can play on DVD...It's only a matter of time before Seinfeld can play too. I have fallen behind in the Cubicle Decorating Contest at "THE COMPANY"....But I am feeling better now so things will start to pick up in my decorating. Lauren's Cubicle...errr...I mean Shaun's is pretty nice. She...I mean he got these giant flourescent snowflakes from The Gap that are pretty kick-ass. I must say I am jealous. That just means I am going to have to play that trump card I have been holding back. MUWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
posted by
Paul at 10:51 AM
Wednesday, December 03, 2003
So I haven't blogged in quite some time. Here's a GREAT article. Management at "THE COMPANY" announced a cubicle decorating contest....and the winner gets a prize. I REALLY didn't want to participate in this event....But push has come to shove...And now I am being forced into this due to Shaun's OVERparticipation. All I am going to say is....MEET THE GRISWALD'S...Christmas Vacation here I come!!!!!
posted by
Paul at 12:37 PM
Wednesday, November 19, 2003
So I bring my "OFFICIAL" Ohio State Helmet into work and place it on my desk....And not 10 minutes go by before it gets snaked and hidden from me. RAWR! Of course I thought it was the obvious culprit in Mikutel....But it turns out Slaterlinx just pulled the ol' Okey-Doke on me and framed my boy Mikutel. ANYWAY....Have I said GO BUCKS!!! lately? I think we will be seeing ALOT of this come Saturday afternoon. Honestly I think if we can get our "O" to score 2 TD's the game is ours. The Buck's defense is just flat out FUNK-NASTY!!!! Chris Perry....Good luck trying to run on them. Woody would be proud of this team. Stout "D" and a vanilla "O". If this was my kid....I would have to be quite the proud parent. hehe...OKay...Enough OSU for now. I beat Call Of Duty last night. I was a bit disappointed in the ending. I mean it was good...Just not quite what I expected. Oh well....What can you do? I guess I will be moving over to the Multi-Player mode now. OKay...I must end this now as people keep calling "THE COMPANY" non-stop and I cannot devote the sufficient attention to blogging that is required. I might be back later today....if not I will write tomorrow.
posted by
Paul at 11:54 AM
Monday, November 17, 2003
What be up everybody? I had a pretty uneventful weekend. Against my better judgement I let Oberlin-X borrow my C.O.D. Disks. Maybe this time I will get them back sooner than the 3 years it took to get my WIN98 SE disk back. LOL! Somebody sent me this. I think it explains Mikutel's thought process while drinking QUITE well. hehe. I made my X-Mas Wish List and emailed it off to Satan Claus...errr....I mean Santa Claus. Here is a highlight of some of the things I asked Good Ol' Santa for: 1...2...& 3. Since I am on the topic of X-Mas....What the hell is wrong with poeple? It is not even Thanksgiving...and people are putting their X-Mas lights out. Not only that...Every store has there full X-Mas Display up already. C'Mon now. I love X-Mas as much as the next guy....But this is getting ridiculous!!! So here it is....Ohio State-Michigan Week. I am sure Mikutel will talk mad shit about his wack-ass Wolverines...And I will talk my Buckeye Smack...So be prepared. Here's a neat version of Hail to The Victors: GO STATE.......FUCK MICHIGAN
(SUNG TO THE TUNE OF "HAIL MICHIGAN")
HAIL TO OUR SLUT BAG MOTHERS
HAIL TO OUR DEAD BEAT FATHERS
HAIL HAIL TO MICHIGAN THE SCUM OF THE EARTH
HAIL TO OUR UNA BOMBERS
HAIL TO OUR SUICIDE DOCTORS
HAIL HAIL TO MICHIGAN THE SESS POOL OF THE WEST
It's kinda funny....But here is what Buckeye fans will be seeing ALOT of come Saturday.
posted by
Paul at 12:45 PM
Thursday, November 13, 2003
Keeping with the theme of tests....Here is another one for everyone to take. Slaterlinx happened to stumble upon it. Unfortunately....It appears I am doomed as I answered honestly and scored a 213. Oh well...Can I really go to Hell...Even if I do not believe in it? hehe. ANYWAY! I watched Malibu's Most Wanted finally last night. It was great....Ranks right up there with Old School. The wind is blowing outside like no freakin' other. I swear a cow flew by me while I was driving to work this morning. You gotta love the ignorance that calls in to talk to me at "THE COMPANY". They will call in and say a tree fell over and took out all their power lines....And yet they still are upset and wanting to know why they have no service. I just want to tell them to go outside and grab that one wire that is sparking...and hopefully that will fix ALL their problems. MUWAHAHAHA!!!!
posted by
Paul at 10:20 AM
Wednesday, November 12, 2003
Could someone please provide me with a Mikuteleese to English Translator so I can read Mikutel's last couple blogs?
posted by
Paul at 4:01 PM
Thank you "W"....How many more of our Soldiers must die in Iraq before you decide to end this horrible mess you have gotten our Great Country into? Here. Print these out and hang them everywhere. Why are our Troops still in Iraq? Honestly? What is the point now....EVER? Wake up people...OUr Boys are senselessly being murdered in the sand for no good apparent reason.
posted by
Paul at 3:41 PM
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