As violent crimes rise, law enforcement officials battle $1.1 billion funding cut

With murder and other violent crimes on the rise in many American cities, local law enforcement agencies and elected officials are battling to stave off $1.1 billion in federal funding cuts proposed by President Bush.....more

Scientist: Dolphins are stupid
Dolphins are not as clever as previously thought

Dolphins may have big brains, but a South African-based scientist says laboratory rats and even goldfish can outwit them.....more

Citizens 4, St. Pete Beach 0

St. Pete Beach joins a few other Florida communities where angry citizens are trying to take more power. They are early battlegrounds in a movement called "Hometown Democracy," which would create universal voter control in Florida. Hometown Democracy could reach the ballot as early as 2008.....more

The Loose Cannon of 9/11

And on July 22, 2004, the 9/11 Commission issued its final report on the terror attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Is it possible that two twentysomethings from "a small hippie town that time forgot" could undermine that entire effort with $8,000 and a laptop?.....more

The Spread of Right-Wing Extortion

A small town in Germany is currently trying to prevent neo-Nazis from buying a hotel in the town center. But is it just a ploy? The right-wingers stand accused of threatening to buy property only to profit from the resulting furor.....more

McCain Calls For Escalation In Iraq
Suggests Putting More Troops On The Ground

All along, we have not had enough troops on the ground to control the situation. Many, many people knew that, and it’s — we’re paying a very heavy price for it.....more

"When The Levees Broke" on tonight HBO 8pm

Bush still in Curveball Cuckooland

You know, I’ve heard this theory about, you know, everything was just fine until we arrived [in Iraq] and — you know, the stir-up-the-hornet’s- nest theory. It just doesn’t hold water, as far as I’m concerned. The terrorists attacked us and killed 3,000 of our citizens before we started the freedom agenda in the Middle East. They were …...more

Watch It Here

Reservists rally in Jerusalem as protests over war snowball

The campaign mounted by Israel Defense Forces reserve soldiers spread Monday as bereaved families joined them in demands for a national inquiry into the Lebanon war, and for the resignations of the prime minister and defense minister.....more

Cubby The Bear Killed In Pen By Big Shot Redneck

Troy Lee Gentry of the country singing duo Montgomery Gentry is Accused of killing tame bear. Authorities allege that Gentry purchased the bear from Greenly, a wildlife photographer and hunting guide, then killed it with a bow and arrow in an enclosed pen on Greenly's property in October 2004.....more

Watch him shooting other thing's ....here

Government fulfills few Katrina promises

The job of clearing debris left by the storm remains unfinished, and has been plagued by accusations of fraud and price gouging. Tens of thousands of families still live in trailers or mobile homes, with no indication of when or how they will be able to obtain permanent housing. Important decisions about rebuilding and improving flood defenses have been delayed. And little if anything has been done to ensure the welfare of the poor in a rebuilt New Orleans.....more

Zogby: Bush Job Approval—34%

The numbers continue to reflect erosion in the President’s political base – just 62% of Republicans give him positive marks for his job performance, while 38% give him negative marks. Even among weekly WalMart shoppers – a demographic group identified by Pollster John Zogby as a critical support group for Bush – just 45% now give him positive job marks, though his numbers among those shoppers have improved 10 points since early June. More than three out of four – 76% – of weekly WalMart shoppers voted for Bush over Democrat John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election.....more

In Nashville, Sounds of Political Uprising From the Left

“Something political will not get played on country radio unless it’s on the conservative side,” he added. “If you show both sides, it’s not good enough. It’s got to be just on the right.”.....more

Raul Castro goes public, says he has mobilized Cuba to repel U.S.

In his first public declaration as acting president, Raul Castro said he has mobilized tens of thousands reservists and militia to defend Cuba against a potential U.S. threat. "We could not rule out the risk of somebody going crazy, or even crazier, within the U.S. government," he said in an interview Friday in the Communist Party newspaper Granma.....more

How Washington Goaded Israel to Invade Lebanon

There is increasing evidence that Israel instigated a disastrous war on Lebanon largely at the behest of the United States. The Bush administration was set on crippling Hezbollah, the radical Shiite political movement that maintains a sizable block of seats in the Lebanese parliament....more

Letter from Asia: Koizumi's shrine visits cast pall over his legacy

The shrine visits, with their predictable controversy, are useful for manipulating fear of China, much like the infamous Willy Horton ad in the 1998 American presidential campaign aroused a reflexive fear of blacks in certain quarters and increased voter turnout of a critical Republican base.....more

Poll: Bush's legacy, Israel's victory, Jewish sympathy

The decisive factor in the Bush legacy will be war. The war against terror, the war in Iraq. And Bush is still convinced that history will be kind to him....more

In dark days, they love her even more

Katherine Harris diehards admire her for many things, but especially respect her fortitude under pressure.....more

"She has my heart," proclaimed Ruth Coberley, 53, of Kissimmee, clad in a red, white and blue Katherine Harris for U.S. Senate T-shirt.

"I love Katherine," said Mary Todd, 64, of the Villages retirement community. "She's a little Dynamo."

Six years ago, Harris was mocked on national TV during the bitter 2000 presidential recount in Florida for her unsparing use of makeup and what some considered her weak command of elections law.

Weak command of elections law? Ms. Kumar you are so kind. Try fixing the election.

In the Heart of America's Love Affair with Firepower

The Knob Creek machine gun shoot in Kentucky attracts thousands of neo-Nazis and other extremists. But the orgy of firepower helps everyone get along just fine.....more

Republicans Losing The 'Security Moms'

Married women with children, the "security moms" whose concerns about terrorism made them an essential part of Republican victories in 2002 and 2004, are taking flight from GOP politicians this year....more

The Anti-Anti-War Campaign

The country is now 60 percent against the war in Iraq. The anti-war left is not some crazy fringe group. It is the American mainstream. And it is not Lamont or MoveOn and DailyKos that are out of touch. It is the politicians and pundits in Washington who continue to kowtow to this incredibly destructive Administration.....more

Willie Nelson donates to Cindy Sheehan’s protest site

"Cindy called Willie Nelson and asked where we could get a bio-diesel fueled generator and Willie said he's got one on the way for us.".....more

Iraqi group uses Michael Moore film to mock Bush

At one point, the documentary cuts to a scene from Moore's 2004 award-winning film where he lobbies on the steps of the U.S. Congress in Washington. "After all, there are honest and influential guys in America and if Mr Moore can talk to you like that, so can I," the Rashedeen narrator says.....more

The Post Editorial Board

The profound constitutional crisis we face by virtue of a President who believes he has the power to act outside of the law and has been exercising that power aggressively and enthusiastically in numerous ways over five years....more

Howard Dean: I hate Republicans and everything they stand for

Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean said Wednesday that his frequent verbal volleys at the Republican Party aren't aimed at typical GOP voters like those in South Dakota....more

The Language of Ignorance

On a beautiful fall day, as I was hiking in the Cascade Mountains … the majesty and beauty of God’s creation overwhelmed my resistance. As I rounded a corner and saw a beautiful and unexpected frozen waterfall, hundreds of feet high, I knew the search was over. The next morning, I knelt in the dewy grass as the sun rose and surrendered to Jesus Christ.....more

Ramsey's killer looks like Ned Lamont

Is that who you want representing you, Connecticut?"....more

It’s Official: GOP Wants Lieberman Victory, Won’t Back Its Own Candidate The NRSC has confirmed that it’s backing Lieberman: “This morning, a source at the National Republican Senatorial Committee confirmed in a phone interview that the party will not help Schlesinger or any other potential Republican candidate in Connecticut, and it now favors a Lieberman victory in November.".....more

High-Res Executions and Bloody DVDs

Terrorists are becoming increasingly adept at producing high-quality videos. DVDs depicting bloody beheadings are now available at markets in Pakistan and Afghanistan. They're also on the Web.....more

Ditch US in terror war, say 80% of Britons

A majority of British people wants the Government to adopt an even more "aggressive" foreign policy to combat international terrorism, according to an opinion poll conducted after the arrests of 24 terrorism suspects last week. However - by a margin of more than five to one - the public wants Tony Blair to split from President George W Bush and either go it alone in the "war on terror", or work more closely with Europe.....more

Thank You, ACLU:
U.S. judge rules warantless wiretapping unconstitutional

"Plaintiffs have prevailed, and the public interest is clear, in this matter. It is the upholding of our Constitution," U.S. District Judge Anna Diggs Taylor wrote in her 43-page opinion....more

Majority of Americans Support Increased Surveillance, Poll Shows

Violence surges in Iraq's cities

A roadside bomb in Baghdad has killed at least eight people, while violence has broken out in Mosul and Basra.....more

Ann Coulter’s Beautiful Big Money Smear Machine

Ann Coulter was made in the 1990s, as was her right-wing blonde book-end Laura Ingraham, who recently clucked that journalists should get off of their hotel balconies and report the Iraq war; a war that is the deadliest conflict for journalists since WWII.....more

Bill Clinton slams Joe Lieberman

The former president described Lieberman's stand on the war as, "I want to attack Iraq whether or not they have weapons of mass destruction." "His position is the Bush-Cheney-Rumsfeld position....more

Better Saddam Than Dead

Better dead than Red. During the Cold War, that was the rallying cry of the diehard anti-communists, many of whom never had to face the choice. During those years, hundreds of millions of people—in the Soviet Union, in China and elsewhere—did not adhere to such an extreme slogan. They may not have fancied living in lands without freedoms, but they believed it was preferable to reside under repression than to die trying to topple tyranny.....more

The Bush Administration is acting as the muscle for Coke and Pepsi.

The two soft drink manufacturers are under fire in India after a recent report released by a respected environmental group revealed that the colas marketed in that country contain dangerous pesticides, sometimes at alarmingly high levels. (Coke and Pepsi have hotly disputed the conclusions.).....more

U.S. Torture and Abuse of Detainees

“No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”—The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 5 (1948)

Each day brings more information about the appalling abuses inflicted upon men and women held by the United States in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere around the world. U.S. forces have used interrogation techniques including hooding, stripping detainees naked, subjecting them to extremes of heat, cold, noise and light, and depriving them of sleep—in violation of the Geneva Conventions.....more

Torture Museum

Old Threats, New Fears

Government-induced hysteria thrives on public ignorance, which is why President Bush is so confident of turning the British bomb plot to his partisan purposes. Otherwise, how could he dare claim that his policies have made the nation safer?.....more

Why We Don't Know Our Enemy

Thinking about '08: Playing Pundit for Fun, No Profit

When Al Gore endorsed Howard Dean in 2004 right before Dean's campaign imploded, taking $40 million with it, everyone treated Gore as if he had gone even crazier--what with growing a beard, pointing out that Iraq was a mistake and George W. Bush was a liar. My thought was that Gore was positioning himself for 2008.....more

Republicanisms: War on Terror
1. An unconstitutional never-ending war on an abstract noun
2. Best thing that ever happened to the military-industrial complex
3. Cold War nostagia

From the "Dictionary of Republicanisms"

The new GOP talking point:
"Adapt to win."

Jon Stewart takes a look at the propaganda bug….Stay the course. Or is it?.....more