26 Comments - Larry Horse - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 9:11 am: One of the highlights of my summer was when one of my diaries got bumped up to the main page on Daily Kos. I don’t know if I can make it on the 22nd, but I will try. Also, Kos has said that he checks out CapitolFax. Read about it here: http://www.dailykos.com/comments/2005/11/9/152824/463/14#14 - Anon - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 9:50 am: This is the guy who says he has no sympathy for American contractors who die in Iraq and says “screw them.” Yeah, he is a prince of a guy. - Carl Nyberg - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 12:11 pm: Rich, if you don’t want me to kick around the punk ass cowardly Bush supporters, you should tell them to keep their comments on thread. I’m still keeping up on stuff in Proviso Township. The school district where Chris Welch is prez of the board fired someone this week and it smells of politics. Next week I get to go to court for the santions motion my lawyers have filed against Welch and James J. Roche. And I made the recommended diaries list twice on dKos. - The Broken Heart of Rogers Park - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 12:24 pm: My blog has spawned some spoof blogs over the last year and a couple of residents starting to blog on their block. Morose Hell Hole I Love Morse Avenue Howard Hell Hole Howard Watchers Farwell Hell Hole The Grand-daddy Morse Hell Hole Offical Propaganda Blog of the 49th Ward - insider - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 12:29 pm: Oh give me a break. First of all, the subject of that unfortunate post was mercenaries. Use of the innocuous sounding “contractors” is misleading. Second, he apologized for that statement shortly after making it. It used to be seen as a sign of good character when someone admitted a mistake and made amends. Now we live in a world where the president of the United States won’t admit a mistake–in fact, the exact opposite is true: he proudly trumpets that he broke the law 30 times, announces he will continue to break it, and expects to be thanked by a grateful nation. That’s a lot nuttier than anything Kos has ever said. That’s the end of American constitutional democracy. - Bill Baar - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 12:46 pm: I won’t forgive the “screw comment” on American’s slaughtered and then hung on display. Unfortunate post with apology doesn’t cut it with me. - Rich Miller - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 12:48 pm: He apologized. If you can’t forgive him, then that says more about you than him. - Anonymous - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 1:05 pm: He spews hateful rhetoric hourly. His apologies could never keep up with his venom. Glad all you liberals are stumbling all over yourselves to see the creep. - Anonymous Too - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 1:36 pm: Oh please Anonymous 1:05… any given thread on FreeRepublic.com has more acidic vitriol within five minutes than DailyKos has in a month, if ever. The “rhetoric” (and that’s a polite word for what gets written over there) on those right-wing-fantasy-based blogs relies on cherry-picked facts or out-n-out lies. Sorry, but the radical right-wing blogs pretty much have a near-monopoly on rhetorical venom. Is Kos somehow “hateful” in your opinion simply because you disagree with his opinions? Kos tells the sad truth about the state of today’s conservatives… using high-paid mercenaries to fight a war of our own making, selling public policy in exchange for tainted money from Abramoff and his cronies, on and on. As for this thread, if the right-wing can’t handle the truth that Kos and other Democratic bloggers tell (but the media can’t seem to find in all those press releases they get handed) then maybe they should stop lying about him and just take a break from the computer. - cermak_rd - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 2:21 pm: If you want to hear some vitriol spewed about “contractors” talk to some real military members. They hate them. The “contractors” tend to be abrasive, to cause problems with the natives, then expect the military (who earn like a tenth of what the “contractors” make) to bail them out when the natives rebel. And why should anyone have any sympathy for the “contractors”? They put themselves in that situation. And all for money. The military, on the other hand, is there for honor and country and certainly not the money! - The Inside Dope - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 2:37 pm: Umm…. am I off topic if I don’t argue the Kos/Mercenary controversy? At any rate, The Inside Dope is poised to cross the 50,000 visitor mark later today. Sure, Kos probably gets 14 times that on any given day, but hey, I’m pretty pumped about it. After struggling with the issue for many months, I began screening comments a few weeks ago, which though it was something I’d hoped to avoid, has worked out well and improved the tone of comments without taking anything away from the debate except perhaps some of the venom and rage. I’m pleased that since launching in mid February of last year, the site has averaged 188 unique visits per day and appears to be on course to make it to the one year mark intact. - grand old partisan - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 2:40 pm: Sorry to stray off topic, Rich….but there has been some pretty crazy stuff said here that I just can’t resist responding to: Anon 9:50 & Bill, I think Kos is a first rate jerk as well, but Rich is right, he did apologize. There is plenty of else he has said that we, as conservatives, can take issue with on a substantive basis….no need to dwell on a stupid remark he already recanted. Is anyone else scratching their heads and trying to figure out what the heck Carl is blathering about now? (no the Proviso stuff, although I couldn’t care less about that if I tried….but his inexplicable comments to Rich) Insider, give us all a break. The use of the nefarious sounding “broke the law” is a little misleading. Bush admitted to the actions that some (although certainly not all - even all Democrats) are alleging is an unlawful overreach of authority by the Executive….he certainly did not admit to breaking the law (similar – although not exactly the same – to someone admitting they fought off an attacker in self defense and you saying they admitted to assault). And since the President doesn’t think that the wire taps were a mistake, I don’t see why you should expect him to admit it as such just because you think they were. Anon 1:36 – you do realize that your post boils down to the “rhetorical” (to use a polite term) equivalent of “no he’s not….YOU ARE!”. I didn’t find that to be a very persuasive argument when I was in third grade, and I certainly don’t know. Icannot comprehend the amount of arrogance (or perhaps ignorance) it must take to say essentially say that all conservative blogs are “cherry-picked facts or out-n-out lies” (btw, is that your opinion simply because you disagree with their opinions) while the mighty Kos and his Democratic compatriots are the vanguards of “truth.” Where is the mention on Kos of all the money Democrats took from Abramoff’s cronies (by which I guess you mean clients?)….which would demonstrate that the ethics problems just might be a culture of corruption relating to power, not party? Guess he can’t handle the truth either, maybe. - insider - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 3:30 pm: It wouldn’t be fair to ask this, if there weren’t already copious examples of administration propaganda, but are you being paid to shill for the Bush administration, g.o.p.? In case you are, I’d ask for better talking points. Yours are weak. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 is clear: no domestic wiretapping unless a warrant is obtained, either before or within 72 hours after the start of wiretapping. Period. This is not optional. The president is required by the Constitution to “take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed.” He cannot pick and choose. Bush has admitted wiretapping without warrants. Here is his statement from Dec. 17: I authorized the National Security Agency, consistent with U.S. law and the Constitution, to intercept the international communications of people with known links to al Qaeda and related terrorist organizations. Regardless of his ASSERTION that his authorization was consistent with the law and Constitution, it was not. To repeat: he admitted ordering warrantless domestic wiretaps. FISA specifically forbids exactly that which he admits doing! I don’t know how it gets any clearer than this. Bush went on to say: The NSA’s activities under this authorization are thoroughly reviewed by the Justice Department and NSA’s top legal officials, including NSA’s general counsel and inspector general. Irrelevant! FISA set up a special court to oversee the program and issue warrants–the opinion of the in-house Bush Justice Dept. and NSA lawyers is meaningless in this case. He broke the law. Case closed. You can throw out whatever insane legal theories or lame excuses you want, but this issue will not go away, because it is this clear cut. Aren’t Republicans supposed to be tough on crime? And what about defending the principles of the Republic that form most of your party’s name? I guess it’s all ok if you’re a Republican. - Bill Baar - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 3:51 pm: Rich and others, My experience in negotiations is once the “screw you” comments been made, it’s hard to get the parties back to a fresh start no matter how sincere the apology. Virginity’s been lost if you want to think of it that way. If the terrorists had done this to “Tookie”, I’d still have a problem with it. Just the way I feel. I’m not going to write pages dumping on kos. - Bill Baar - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 4:15 pm: back on thread to keep Carl off me… Hugh Hewitt linked this post of mine on Rockefeller’s NSA spy letter. Gave me more hits then I’ve ever had. I had a lot of fun with Ted Kennedy’s editorial on the college get getting a visit from the FBI after checking out Mao’s little read book. A lot of blogs got caught with egg on their face with that one. I’ve been commenting a lot on Dan Kenndy’s blog, media nation. He’s a Journalism Prof out east and covers the way the press covers things. There has been good discussion there. - grand old partisan - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 4:45 pm: Insider….don’t take my word for it - let’s see what the former Associate Attorney General (or, to use your terms, in-house Clinton Justice Dept official) has to say about it: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0512210142dec21,0,3553632.story?coll=chi-newsopinioncommentary-hed “President Bush’s post- Sept. 11, 2001, authorization to the National Security Agency to carry out electronic surveillance into private phone calls and e-mails is consistent with court decisions and with the positions of the Justice Department under prior presidents.” Are you going to accuse Mr. Schmidt of being paid to shill for the Bush administration? Are these just weak GOP talking points? - insider - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 5:01 pm: I’m not taking your word for it, g.o.p., because you are wrong, as is John Schmidt. I don’t know what his motivation is, but I do know that I sincerely regret my vote for him in the 2002 primary over Lisa Madigan. Great job responding to my specific points, by the way. Not that I’m surprised to see a Republican cutting corners or wanting to change the subject. P.S. Try tinyurl.com next time, instead of posting long URLs that widen the page, making it harder for all to read. - grand old partisan - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 5:11 pm: Insider, is there any response I could have given to any of your specific points that you wouldn’t have dismissed as ‘weak GOP talking points’ or proof that I am on the RNC pay-roll? I wasn’t cutting corners by posting the Schmidt editorial. I admit that I am not well versed in federal law, so I decided to reference the opinions of someone who most certainly is…I don’t see why you would think less of me for that. And I was demonstrating that you don’t have to be a partisan Republican to defend the President’s action in this “scandal.” As for the long URL, I apologize for any inconvenience it caused you or anyone else. Thanks for the tip! - Carl Nyberg - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 5:22 pm: Time the *&$# out! You judgment impaired Bush supporters have blindly supported thousands of people being killed in Iraq to make the place more unstable–and more dangerous to U.S. intersts–than it was. And you’d anonymously pester Kos for bad-mouthing mercenaries!? You people are liars and cowards. You can’t face the truth that the Iraq War is FUBAR and that your dear leader has shredded the Constitution. You people are scum. - wmmeyer - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 6:05 pm: “which would demonstrate that the ethics problems just might be a culture of corruption relating to power, not party?” I agree that there is a culture of corruption in Washington, but your party controls both houses and the executive branch. Lets assume Abramoff is an equal opportunity scoundrel (which I don’t believe is the case), why hasn’t the republican party taken actions like the ones suggested in the post below (no lobbyists on the floor, restricting earmarks, etc.)? The reformers of 1994 are long gone and the current republican leadership is mired in scandal. It is difficult for me to excuse their behavior when they are the only people in a position to change the system. - grand old partisan - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 6:20 pm: yes, yes, Carl….we’re all liars, cowards and scum. You’ve made that point very clear before. A belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you too!! - poidog - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 7:07 pm: Carl. Take a chill pill and go back to stabbing your GWB doll with all the pins you can get your hands on. I dont think I’ve ever seen a blogger with more venom to spew than you. Try to “take it Ease” in 2006! - Anonymous Too - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 7:18 pm: GOP wrote: Where is the mention on Kos of all the money Democrats took from Abramoff’s cronies (by which I guess you mean clients?)….which would demonstrate that the ethics problems just might be a culture of corruption relating to power, not party? There’s plenty of mention of this specific issue at Daily Kos (if not by Markos himself) which I’ll link for you since you have apparently chosen not to do the actual work to find this yourself (btw, it’s easy to find — DKos has a search function). (And by cronies I meant just that: cronies. The politicians and conservative activists and other lobbyists who funneled money into sham charities, illegal gifts/dinners/trips/sporting events/etc and fraudulent casino ventures. His clients were clients, most of whom appear to have unfortunately been taken for suckers by an apparently unscrupulous businessperson/lobbyist.) In particular, most of the mention of this issue relates to the false equivalency which conservatives, including yourself, keep pushing and which, by extension, the media keeps picking up out of some attempt at “balance”. It’s obvious which party was benefitting the most from Abramoff when the list of Abramoff donations to GOP candidates and PACs runs into the hundreds and the money raised for BC04 totals several hundred thousand, not the mere 100,000 being reported (yet not one Democrat ever received a single penny directly from Abramoff, nor did KE04 receive the benefit of Abramoff’s fundraising prowess). Let’s see… some of Abramoff’s biggest clients that got suckered were Indian Tribes with (or wanting) casinos. Which party, by and large, actually has the interests of Native Americans at heart? Yep, the Dems. …So Indian Tribes who were clients of Abramoff’s (at his behest) gave donations to Dems as well as GOPs. Go figure. See, that’s what lobbyists do: advise their clients on which politicians to donate to (and how much to donate). It’s what the politicians do in response to those donations that matters and here clearly it was the GOP, over a period of more than a decade, which was being influenced and actually changing votes and policy based directly on those donations (some might say “bribed”, others use “influence peddling”). (BTW, the GOP is the party in power with all the marbles to decide whether or not to clean up government and politics. This is something conservatives usually neglect to mention). But I ask you this: how many Dems can you find that went to well of the House to decry casino owners after receiving “money from Abramoff’s cronies” and clients? Bob Ney did just that, and he’s a Republican, not a Democrat. How many House Speakers can you name that wrote letters to the Secretary of Interior asking for changes in Indian gaming? Well, Denny Hastert’s a Republican, and there hasn’t been a Dem Speaker in over a decade… Sorry, you’re the one displaying ignorance, and willful ignorance at that. Here’s that link to Daily Kos on the subject of Abramoff. You’ll find several mentions of Dems as well. Bill Baar also posted on the Sun Times story about Illinois politicians connected to Abramoff-related money over at Illinoize. Some thoughtful comments actually resulted, including some of the same points I’ve made here…. As for cherry-picking facts and spewing vitriolic malarchy… have you ever read FreeRepublic.com? - Carl Nyberg - Friday, Jan 6, 06 @ 10:39 pm: GOP, you are willing to acknowledge your own shortcomings, when will you be able to acknowledge “dear leaders”? - Southern Illinoisian - Monday, Jan 9, 06 @ 10:44 am: Carl, you really need treatment for your BDS. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Jan 10, 06 @ 6:54 am: On Thursday, President Bush signed into law a must-pass DoJ appropriations bill which contained a little gotcha for the internet. For decades, making anonymous abusive phone calls has been a federal crime, good for up to two years behind bars — and the term “abusive” has included threats, harassment, and the much weaker “intent to annoy.” Now, that telecommunications law has been extended to include the Internet, so when you post an anonymous troll to wind up your least-favorite blogger, you may break the law. http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=06/01/09/1520222 Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.