Forget the troops. We need a new approach as a people, coming from the people of the US, bypassing this corrupt and disintegrating administration.  We need grassroots power focused on creating the social change that bullets and bombs and white phosphorus cannot ever create.

Iraqis expected the US occupation to result in restored electricity and water, rebuilt infrastructure, and return to a bustling life where work could be found, markets worked, fields cultivated, and their oil production restarted for the benefit of their people, not 13 US oil companies.

While organizing another Boston Tea Party or march on the mall would be fun, let's move on to really mucking things up with offers to help and fix thing in Iraq, like Iraqis sort of were hoping we'd do.

While we are seeing on several domestic fronts some successes, there are foreign developments that will cause more fear, uncertainty and doubt, especially regarding Iran.  It is as if there's a search for a cause for war on the part of US and Iran, and now we have this story--a top Iranian general kidnapped by Israel or defected?  

ABCNews reports this:

Israel Puts Embassies on Security Alert Following Reports It Kidnapped Iranian

The ArmyTimes is reporting layoffs of case workers who handle advocacy and needs of the severely wounded and their families.  Supporting the troops is apparently hitting hard up against DoD cost cutting measures.  I suspect Congressional approval wasn't involved in this decision.

http://www.armytimes.com/...

But if a soldier is severely wounded, there's another set of killers on the loose ready to take advantage of weakened health - super germs:

http://www.wired.com/...

To refine Pogo, we have met the enemy and he is within our guts.

Here's one way to frame this fall's GOP multiple failings and lapses at their big issue -- security: they've gone AWOL, dereliction of duty, or worse.

AWOL - Absent without leave

Where was W when North Korea developed nuclear bomb? AWOL. Oops.  Didn't see that one coming.  We're busy fending off terrorists--see never touched ya! (forget the anthrax thing)...er, well, spying on Americans is a heck of a big job.

Where was W when Katrina destroyed New Orleans?  AWOL.  Heckovajob Brownie screwed it up.  Didn't monitor those Americans close enough...oops, a bunch went down the drain, rebuilding gentrified houses--a few, formaldehyde gas filled trailers for the poor survivors.

Where is W on catching Osama?  Even when Rumsfield claimed he knew where in Pakistan Osama was last January, nothing done.  Not important now.  AWOL.

I was inspired by the recent words of Howard Dean but more so by the spirit shown.  It's time to move beyond the  technical concerns of framing and pull out the torches.  The Dems are on the attack and it's time to join in the hunt.  See an exposed yellow elephant flank and bite down.

We can expose the moral bankruptness of the party of personal responsibility by outdoing them on the patriotism angle where they are especially vulnerable -- cronyism, self-protectiveness, and their avoidance of accountability.  Something which is almost too easy to paint on those whom a presidential might pardon.

When the president, whose own military career seems a collection of ciphers, gets around to looking at the list of people he's going to need to absolve and pardon, it's going to be huge.  Their freedom from prosecution will be important to the president since they were loyal to him.  That's where I want the DNC to stand up and call for this president to do more for this nation, to offer those pardoned instead an opportunity to loyally and honorably help ensure America's freedoms are better defended as their price of freedom and immunity.

One wonders about the timing of this AP article entitled "Bin Laden - Moussaoui Not Linked to 9/11".  We had our trial, found him guilty, imprisoned him for life.  And now Bin Laden basically says, we got the wrong terrorist.

He had no connection at all with Sept. 11," the speaker, claiming to be bin Laden, said in the tape posted on the Internet.

"I am the one in charge of the 19 brothers and I never assigned brother Zacarias to be with them in that mission," he said, referring to the 19 hijackers.

Yesterday, while leaving the mass, our august Supreme Court judge, who arguably has one of the most serious jobs in this nation, responds to a reporter's inquiry regarding how he maintains impartiality regarding religion by flipping hmi 'the bird', the middle finger gesturing a most insolent pornographic swear, at a member of the press seeking a quotable quote, and is caught in the act by a Church reporter for The Pilot... [Updated to correct Scalia's status.]

Was just robo-called at 2:30pm today and got a "58 second" message from Dr. Dobson's Focus on the Family - Wisconsin chapter urging immediate action on matter of high importance, the definition of marriage in Wisconsin.

The man's voice was urging  message recipients to call Democratic Senator Wirch at 888-769-4724 and express their displeasure that the opportunity to vote on an referendum for a state amendment defining marriage as being between one man and woman  is being held up by the Senator.

State Senator Wirch probably could use a few Kos-generated calls supporting his actions.  This state does have some pretty strong language in the constitution and state laws regarding sexual and racial discrimination.  Employers don't discriminate against gays as a result. And this probably irks the funderpants off fundies.

As recently reported on Brad Blog, Arnold attempted to vote but found he was recorded as already having voted.

http://www.bradblog.com/...

He was politely offered a provisional ballot.

Brad's headlines read:

The United Methodist Church, which the President claims to be a member of (home church is Highland Park, Texas), has issued it's official teaching regarding withdrawal from Iraq:

Board of Church and Society calls for withdrawal from Iraq

See below for link to article in The Nation which ends on this note:

Two AmericaBlog posts considered together create a very indictable picture of our Pentagon, and perhaps the need for holy water and crosses:

Torture Scandal: Pentagon Has Two Choices

NY Times covers "gore for porn" scandal

Two amazing Pentagon stories about legal investigations are released on one day. One worthy of investigation, the other determined within hours to not be. How do they do it!?

Finally, after this string of bad (PR-wise) FDA news, the FDA does something to bust the trend.  

This wonderful FDA news -- for men:  
Breast implants, with suspicious history, finally approved!  (For women)

http://www.commondreams.org/news2005/0922-02.htm

So you can made to look ripe enough, through miracles of elective surgery, for those slow motion Bay-Watch movies while women are waiting for other FDA health decisions.  But read the above article for just how safe those implants really are.  Potential trophy wives considering their life-expectancy might recalculate their cost/benefit ratios.

Hmmm...one might argue that these Biggie McBoob implants are really only there to please men.  

More below...

People expected thousands, maybe upwards of 10,000 dead.  The mortuaries have just been told to expect 40,000 bodies.

http://www.t-g.com/story/1116806.html

"DMort is telling us to expect up to 40,000 bodies," Dan Buckner said, quoting officials with the Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team, a volunteer arm of Homeland Security.

Wonkette pass on a story about Rove handing a reporter a Tylenol PM...'sleepy' isn't the subtext folks.

http://www.wonkette.com/politics/dc/wh-pool-report-you-are-getting-verrrrry-sleeeepy-112844.php

It looks innocuous enough, a partner, Stewart A. Baker from Steptoe and Johnson law firm Stewart A. Baker is nominated to help Chertoff as an Assistant Secretary for Policy at the Homeland Security Department in a major reorganization:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/07/20050713-8.html

He's got long set of credentials and represents many of the ISP (Internet Service Provider) corporations.  But he's very much a big corporate and big government side policy wonk.

Rememeber the Clipper chip, key escrow rules?  He has long history of supporting opposition to individual citizens having the capability of encrypting their own computer files and rights of privacy. Click on URL below the fold:

The Energy Department is trying to figure out the extent of a falsification problem, admitted by a USGS employee. The focus is on questionable data regarding computer modeling of water infiltration and climate at Yucca's site, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

Do we have to add this as well to other concerns about how the government seems bent on manipulating science and interpretation for its own ends?

Reporters to Meet with White House on Credentialing

White House Correspondents Association debates how to police their ranks.

A snippet from near the end of the article:

Hutcheson said he was hesitant to start barring reporters from the White House unfairly. "My overarching view is that we should be advocates for getting people in the briefing room, not keep them out," he said. "But [the briefings] are an opportunity to get information, not make political statements."

As for Guckert, Hutcheson said Talon News' link to a political party definitely "calls into question his legitimacy as a journalist." But he also argued that reports that Guckert had helped set up several sex Web sites should have no bearing on his access to the president.

"Too much is being made out of it," Hutcheson said. "You should take out the porn connection. That has nothing to do with anything. Playboy has naked women, but they have done some damn good journalism. It is the journalistic endeavor that should be looked at."

Yes it's true, John Stewart ('Anchor' for The Daily Show) joins the likes of Evan Bayh, Steven Bing, Tina Frey (SNL writer), Harold Icke, Barack Obama, Eliot Spizer, and other Democratic leaders as one the ten most dangerous liberals Freepers should beware of for 2005.  

Although the list oddly omitted figures like Soros and Brock (as another Freeper noted) or Hillary or Boxer or Feingold....