Imagine you are some guy who likes to go to a neighborhood bar every once in a while. You've been going there with your girlfriend for years. Its a pretty nice place, though a little on the grungy side. But your girlfriend likes it, and the beer is cheep. Anyway, one day the two of you are hanging out at the bar watching t.v. and drowning your sorrows. You hear some sort of commotion at the other end of the bar, and when you look over you see some new guy hassling a waitress. He's a snotty rich kid, one of those guys who thinks he's tougher than everyone else because no one has actually ever beaten the crap out of him. One of those guys who has always had everything handed to them and who is mean and spoiled as a result. You know the type. Anyway, he's berating the waitress about something and you think to yourself "what a prick," and then go back to watching t.v.

But then the guy comes over....

Dear Senator Kerry,

I have lived in Massachusetts for over twenty years, and during that time I have grown to deeply respect you as a leader. I supported you during your campaign for president. I donated what was, for me and my family, a substantial amount of money. I knocked on doors for you in Pennsylvania. Like many other people who read this website, I sacrificed time and money and personal resources for your campaign because I believed in what you represented. I believed in your message of strength and hope.

I know you have already done an extraordinary amount of work to help the Democrats win in 2006. I know that you have sacrificed a tremendous amount. And, now that we in the netroots are calling on you to do more, I encourage you to look at our pleas not as demands but as an opportunity. This is your moment, if you take it.

I know, I know, another Allen diary. But still, it seems to be all the rage at the moment... so I thought I'd share.

Here's a few more clues about Allen's views on race that I dug up.

I can handle the flame wars. I can handle the trolls, and I can handle the circular firing squad that periodically seems to march out to eradicate unpopular opinions. I can handle what I often consider crappy diaries making it on to the recommended list. Hell, I can even handle Armando's insults. Why? Because I love this place, and I love what we are doing here. But the unending, unrelenting, boring, stupid, repetitive snark is really starting to get to me. How many times to I have to hear the exact same jokes made in the exact same snotty tone? How many ironic, self-referential diaries and comments that don't actually say anything do we actually need in order to feel better about ourselves? I mean, I enjoy a good circle-jerk as much as the next guy... but come on. The snark is getting really, really old.

I'm drowning in the snark. It sucks.

So now its official. In addition to being a lying, racist, right-wing hack who will say just about anything to stir up some controversy, we now know for a fact that Ann Coulter is also a serial plagiarist. We've been complaining about Coulter's noxious mixture of venom and stupidity for what seems like an eternity, but now that we have some actual evidence that Copycat Coulter is a serial plagiarist we might just be able to do something about it. Now is the time if we want to stop her from spewing her venom.

And I've got a plan.

Glen Greenwald over at Unclaimed Territory linked yesterday to the new Cato Institute report on Bush's terrifying power grab. The report is scathing, detailed, and well-done. Plus, it comes from an honest-to-goodness right-wing think tank, albeit one in the libertarian rather than theocratic mold. You have to be a serious kool-aid drinker to dismiss this one.

Anyone who remotely cares about the constitution should read this report. Although I often find stuff produced by the Cato Institute somewhat repulsive, this one deserves to be circulated as widely as possible.

Update: There have been two excellent diaries on this already; see here and here. Given that the diaries recieved only a handful of comments, I'll follow bustacap's suggestion and leave this up.

I don't get freaked out about the state of American politics very easily. I have always believed that the basic structures of our society are strong, that the American people are fundamentally decent, and that we will be able to repair whatever damage Bush and his cronies do to the basic fabric of  our society. Yes, I find the war in Iraq profoundly disturbing, and yes, I worry about particular issues a lot - tax cuts, Arctic drilling, and on and on. But I've never really been one to think that this country is about to slip into la la land, and I haven't really taken talk of creeping facism all that seriously. I've generally been a member of the "it can't happen here" crowd.

But I just read the infamous Yoo memo, and I am now, officially, freaked out.

Because if I'm reading the situation right, they aren't just arguing that the President has the right to spy on whomever he wants - as awful as that would be in terms of the erosion of our civil liberties. They are actually arguing that the President has the right to unilaterally kill anyone, including American citizens, at anytime for undisclosed reasons.

Yikes.

There's going to be a conference this weekend at Princeton University on "Conservatism: Past, Present, and Future." Speakers include lots of members of the right-wing intelligentsia: Steven Hayward, Paul Weyrich, George Will, and William Bennett, among others. The keynote is being given by Twit-in-Chief himself, David Brooks.

Best of all, its free and open to the public. That means you can go, and, um, ask questions.

Here's the program.

Have fun - but don't do anything I wouldn't do.

Well, the Preznit gave a big speech today on immigration. This was, of course, part of his grand effort to try and swtich the debate away from Iraq, Fitzmas, and all that sort of stuff and reassert himself as Cowboy-in-Chief:

Not ready to throw in the towel and declare the boss a lame duck, the Bushies are hoping two issues can help firm up their base and perhaps make inroads with centrists who voted for Bush: the anticipated confirmation of Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito, and a plan to reinforce the border with Mexico to help stop illegal immigration.

This week Bush will begin to press the border security issue, while Alito's Senate confirmation hearings start early next year. Aides hope those issues will draw attention away from the war and leak probe.

Right. He'll be lucky if he doesn't shoot himself in the foot doing it.

Cross-posted at Politics and Letters.

So, apparently, emperor penguins are the new signifier of so-called traditional family values. Seriously. According to the New York Times, the Christian right has enthusiastically embraced the film "March of the Penguins" as an inspiring piece of entertainment that demonstrates the types of values we should all aspire to. As conservative radio host Michael Medved is quoted as saying, "March of the Penguins... is the motion picture this summer that most passionately affirms traditional norms like monogamy, sacrifice and child rearing." Who would have thought? Penguins rule!

The new ABC poll is devastating for the Republicans. Simply devastating. Just 25% of Americans think the White House is fully cooperating with the investigation, and 75% think this is a "serious" or "very serious" matter. The shameful effort to smear Wilson is apparently not doing them much good, and at this point the endless spin is probably more about keeping their own troops in line than it is about convincing the independents of anything. Less than half of Republicans think the White House is fully cooperating with the investigation. Less than half. This issue is toxic to the Republicans, and they know it. They may not have known it yesterday, but they do now. And this means that it is time to start wedging the Republican moderates until they break ranks and start turning on Rove out of fear for their own survival.

More on the flip.

(cross-posted at www.politicsandletters.com)

First off, let me be clear that I am a newbie around here. I've been reading posts for about six months now, but this is my first diary. During my time here I have developed a lot of respect for this site and for what kos and the other people managing it have acomplished. With that said, I find the apparant "purging" of some comments, and even some users, to be troubling. But not for the reasons you might suspect.

More on the flip.