Incendiary Advice

By now you've seen the picture of Bush storming away from a press conference in Asia, looking for all the world like a lost vignette from The Three Stooges fame. But it never hurts to show that pic again --




Atrios has a great sequence of the pics. Click the underlined text to view and insert your clever "Cut and Run" jokes.

What most amazes me aside from the obvious wonder of possible facial contortions is the fact Bush couldn't even handle a small question that implied he was being petulant. Implied, not stated. If it's not fully scripted, our pResident Chickenhawk sure can't handle questioning.

Speaking of those who can't take questions, Rumsfeld on This Week yesterday, when it was pointed out that only 700 Iraqi troops are fully trained, said something along these lines (paraphrase):

"They're taking over. Now twice as many Iraqi troops are being killed than coalition troops."

Comforted yet?

If not, have a laugh, instead:

Stephen Colbert's "The Colbert Report" is really stepping-up. Thanks to the magic of www.youtube.com, it's possible to review some of the best Colbert segments. This interview with a Republican Rep from Florida is a gem; the guy about flips his toupe when Stephen boomerangs back a few of his own selected quotes Click the underlined text to watch the video; you won't be sorry!

For more laughs -these of the painful variety, watch Puffy McMoonface Mclellan's press conference dodges. Time to rename him Baghdad Scotty Mclellan. I'd like to see Helen Thomas slap him silly. Just once.

New Orleans is running out of aid.
With the eyes of the world focused elsewhere, it's no longer chic to discuss the plight of the poor. Thankfully the Democrats stopped Congressional attempts to slash some of the programs most desperately needed by Katrina survivors. But we've the attention span of gnats and from all vantage points, the GOP looks poised to forget its promises to NOLA. Don't let them. Write your representatives. We're still a better country than that.

So much is going on that it's overwhelming, both in our private lives and in the larger picture. Hard to know what to write about first, and with adding a weekend job as of this week, time's at even more of a premium. But --if we don't care, who will?



On a personal note, we're working for a referral to an oncologist for further testing of my daughter's bone tumor. My confidence in the orthopaedic doctor has been shaken (too long and detailed to post about) and it's crucial we rule-out anything beyond a benign growth. She just can't go through months of not knowing, and having done it before myself, neither can I.

Finally, the new job: it's strictly weekends, for Nielsen Media Research, and involves introducing the public to new media in order to garner their views. Should be kind of fun, and will hopefully add a nice balance to running my company solo. However, I am worried about having enough time for other things, including this. So I put up the outdoor Christmas lights yesterday; if nothing else gets done, we'll still have a festive yard.