tdog

Jim Henley gives us his take on the highjacking of Armistice Day by the forces of militarism and war-mongering, thereby investing the Newspeak holiday of “Veterans Day” with a creepy vibe that’s exactly the opposite of what was originally intended for the holiday. TD Sister sends us this Grey Lady piece on the legal, financial and other troubles encountered by a former coal baron trying to take on one of the most evil corporate empires in America (and as you know, that’s saying something). And in perhaps his greatest act of contempt yet for the City of which he is...

Marcy Wheeler gives us this report on events in a D.C. federal court before U.S. District Judge John Bates re: ACLU’s “next friend” suit viz Emmanuel Goldstein Anwar al-Awlaki, an American citizen targeted for death because he’s an extremely conveninet poster child for pushing the envelope he’s a bad man and evil incarnate should be wiped off the planet the President says so. Marcy notes that even the Government’s usual shamelessness on matters like this seems less enthusiastic, as “state secrets” was offered to the Court as “only a last resort”… and otherwise, more transparent lies were offered as a...

Amongst formerly trapped Chilean miner Edison Pena demonstrating the power of the human spirit, Subway sandwich shops’ pitchman “Jared” cheapening the whole thing by his commercial presence (fortunately, most media refused to cover him), and the usual world class super-elite runners (sadly, the world record holder and many people’s “greatest marathoner ever” Haile Gebrselassie announced his retirement after dropping out in the 16th mile; his countryman, Ethiopia’s Gebre Gebremariam won the men’s race and Kenya’s Edna Kiplagat won the women’s race, with American Shalane Flanagan taking second in her marathon distance debut), not to mention numerous other celebrities and 43,000...

It was pointed out to me by the young ‘un, and confirmed by Mrs. TD, that in Orwell’s 1984, the all-encompassing state used the mechanism of a state lottery as one of its numerous means to keep the proles in line; the lottery was extremely popular amongst the proles. State lotteries as of the 1940’s (when Orwell wrote 1984) were not all the rage as they are now; but as in so many things… Orwell was prophetic. It was once suggested to me in blog comments that 1984 was not intended as a manual. Well, whether or not it was...

Here we are, one day after Halloween, on “All Hallows Day” in some places, a/k/a “Day of the Dead” in others. Given that I’m down to no more than a few dozen of you (if that) who are still likely to be reading this, there’s no real reason to sugar-coat here. And so, it seems, many Americans have figured that out… Based on polls like this, we can apparently conclude that 75% of those surveyed believe things suck right now (although the bizarrely American pollyannish streak has 58% believing things will be just fine in a year)… we can expect...

I know I’m supposed to be scared s***less about today’s official thing-I’m-supposed-to-be-incredibly-afraid-of, be it incompetent would-be terrorists trying to blow up their underpants on airplanes, or blow up Times Square, or mailing explosive packages from Yemen… to synagogues in Chicago. Thing is… I’ve seen this movie… the last-minute-before-the-election “surprise” of some kind of “terror thing.” The Bush Administration used it beautifully, and Republicans magically got elected. The Obama Administration, it seems, appears to be using it for the identical purpose (that would be getting Republicans elected in this mid-term election). Naturally, without any “evidence” besides its own say-so (and we’re...

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton… actress Jaclyn Smith… game show host Pat Sajak (all three born on this date in 1947, btw)… the late Jackie “Uncle Fester” Coogan, Leon “Party Animal” Trotsky (at least according to some calendars), gospel singer Mahalia Jackson… oh, and “Family Guy” progenitor and voice-guy Seth McFarlane… one of whose characters, Brian, is in fact, a talking dog… and of course… to your talking dog, who, despite his preposterous stamina, at two score and eight, can nonetheless no longer deny his chronological status as “late forties” (nor, of course, as “middle aged.”)

What else can you say about the Obama Administration’s sudden willingness to play “Let’s Make a Deal” with respect to the poster child for show trials Kangaroo Courts military commission trials, when it reached a plea deal with Canadian national and juvenile defendant Omar Khad. Pursuant to the deal, at least what is being reported (since, once again, it seems, details like “the sentence” are evidently not to be shared with the public… “state secrets” you know) is that Khadr would serve up to an additional year at GTMO before being transferred to the custody of Canada, where he will...

Another day, another massive document dump by Wikileaks, this one concerning the Iraq war, and numerous allegations of torture possibly mean treatment by American troops and mercenaries contractors. Supposedly, the latest document release shows numerous incidents, including assaults, rape and murders, as well as more garden variety torture mean treatment, of Iraqi prisoners in American custody from 2004 through 2009. Of course, the United States doesn’t torture, so we might as well just stop there, and call it a day. You know, you go to war with the men and materiel you have, not those you wish you might have…...