On CCS and Sociopaths: Briefly noted...
* Off to CCS, second round of drawing sessions. More timed lessons, more drawing, more fun!
* Todd McFarlane once again defies all rational behavior, continuing to traffic in characters and properties that are not his, never were his, and which he never, ever had a hand in.
From LYING IN THE GUTTERS:
"Todd McFarlane's "Man Of Miracles" toy. That's right, ignore the logo, that's "Man of Miracles". A leather jacket can hide many a sin...."
Not this sin. Check it out atTodd's latest crime.
* The creepiest aspect of yesterday's Senate hearings concerning Bush's illegal wiretapping program -- and there were plenty of creepy elements -- was the acceptance that this illusory "War on Terror" (it's an undeclared war on a decentralized nonentity defined by a military tactic rather than any definable borders) is a new Cold War.
Of course, the New Cold War is a Hot War, beginning as it did with the 9/11 catastrophe and escalating with US forces hammering "Shock and Awe" into the unprovoking Iraqi capital -- but the Pentagon, various news stories from last week confirm, is changing its already Orwellian vocabulary: "The War on Terror" is now being referred to in the Pentagon as "The Long War."
Specifically, during yesterday's questioning of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, one Senator's (I don't recall who) reference to this war possibly lasting forty years -- as long as The Cold War -- was not only unquestioned, it became the new 'reality' of the rest of the hearings.
That this went down with such ease is really, really disturbing.
And, as expected, the spiralling costs of this war are once again off the proposed Federal budget. This shell game (pun intended) will break us, quite literally.
Maybe Bush really is the AntiChrist...
* One other quick observation: Gonzales was not only a cool cookie throughout: he demonstrated the ability to openly lie without skipping a heartbeat.
When confronted directly about his answer under oath (unlike yesterday; no oath was sworn in the troubling opening minutes of the session) during his confirmation hearings about a hypothetical questions about the President and illegal wiretapping, Gonzales was nonplussed. He emphatically asserted that was a hypothetical, and that the President has broken no law: hence, there is no discrepancy. Typical of this Administration, the unswerving belief that "they" are "right" in all they do asserts itself with sociopathic vigor.
Make no mistake: this is classic clinical sociopathic behavior. Sociopaths believe they are right in all that they do. They see no inherent conflict between their beliefs and their actions, however deviant from societal norms or (most relevent here) the law.
That it's characteristic of this entire current Administration, from Bush to Cheney, Rumsfeld to Rice, Gonzales to whomever, continues to terrify. "The War on Terror" begins at home in more ways than one.
Also characteristic of this Administration, Gonzales proferred 9/11 throughout, at every possible turn, with shameless causality. Of course, none of this is even momentarily convincing in light of all we've learned over the past four years about what preceded and followed 9/11, and in the context of the most recent revelations over the Federal response to Hurricane Katrina (from Homeland Security's report to the President 48 hours before Katrina hit the coast predicting breached levees, devastating flooding and massive loss of life, to the FEMA fuckups across the board: reportedly "hundreds of available trucks, boats, planes and federal officers... unused in serach and rescue efforts immediately after Hurricane Katrina hit because FEMA failed to give them missions... [and FEMA calling] off its search and rescue operations in Louisiana three days after the Aug. 29 storm because of security issues...," per Lara Jakes Jordan's Associate Press article of January 30, 2006; there's more, much more). What a spectacle.
Bottom line, it still comes down to "trust us."
No fucking way, ever again.
(That said, Republican Senator Arlen Specter concluded the session with an appropriately pointed exchange with Gonzales -- clearly, Specter is clear on the issues, however much he is engaged with the prevailing partisan dualism.)
* The White House rollout of the proposed Federal budget had one corker: "These are not cuts to Medicaid... and last year's Medicare... these are growth reductions..."
* Criswell predicts (maybe he was psychically 'seeing' where Dick Cheney's official hidey-hole is?):
"I Predict... the District of Columbia within the next fifteen years will cease to exist as the capital of the United States. The seat of government will be moved to Wichita, Kansas, in the caverns beneath the city and the surrounding counties of Wichita."
* Off to CCS, second round of drawing sessions. More timed lessons, more drawing, more fun!
* Todd McFarlane once again defies all rational behavior, continuing to traffic in characters and properties that are not his, never were his, and which he never, ever had a hand in.
From LYING IN THE GUTTERS:
"Todd McFarlane's "Man Of Miracles" toy. That's right, ignore the logo, that's "Man of Miracles". A leather jacket can hide many a sin...."
Not this sin. Check it out at
* The creepiest aspect of yesterday's Senate hearings concerning Bush's illegal wiretapping program -- and there were plenty of creepy elements -- was the acceptance that this illusory "War on Terror" (it's an undeclared war on a decentralized nonentity defined by a military tactic rather than any definable borders) is a new Cold War.
Of course, the New Cold War is a Hot War, beginning as it did with the 9/11 catastrophe and escalating with US forces hammering "Shock and Awe" into the unprovoking Iraqi capital -- but the Pentagon, various news stories from last week confirm, is changing its already Orwellian vocabulary: "The War on Terror" is now being referred to in the Pentagon as "The Long War."
Specifically, during yesterday's questioning of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, one Senator's (I don't recall who) reference to this war possibly lasting forty years -- as long as The Cold War -- was not only unquestioned, it became the new 'reality' of the rest of the hearings.
That this went down with such ease is really, really disturbing.
And, as expected, the spiralling costs of this war are once again off the proposed Federal budget. This shell game (pun intended) will break us, quite literally.
Maybe Bush really is the AntiChrist...
* One other quick observation: Gonzales was not only a cool cookie throughout: he demonstrated the ability to openly lie without skipping a heartbeat.
When confronted directly about his answer under oath (unlike yesterday; no oath was sworn in the troubling opening minutes of the session) during his confirmation hearings about a hypothetical questions about the President and illegal wiretapping, Gonzales was nonplussed. He emphatically asserted that was a hypothetical, and that the President has broken no law: hence, there is no discrepancy. Typical of this Administration, the unswerving belief that "they" are "right" in all they do asserts itself with sociopathic vigor.
Make no mistake: this is classic clinical sociopathic behavior. Sociopaths believe they are right in all that they do. They see no inherent conflict between their beliefs and their actions, however deviant from societal norms or (most relevent here) the law.
That it's characteristic of this entire current Administration, from Bush to Cheney, Rumsfeld to Rice, Gonzales to whomever, continues to terrify. "The War on Terror" begins at home in more ways than one.
Also characteristic of this Administration, Gonzales proferred 9/11 throughout, at every possible turn, with shameless causality. Of course, none of this is even momentarily convincing in light of all we've learned over the past four years about what preceded and followed 9/11, and in the context of the most recent revelations over the Federal response to Hurricane Katrina (from Homeland Security's report to the President 48 hours before Katrina hit the coast predicting breached levees, devastating flooding and massive loss of life, to the FEMA fuckups across the board: reportedly "hundreds of available trucks, boats, planes and federal officers... unused in serach and rescue efforts immediately after Hurricane Katrina hit because FEMA failed to give them missions... [and FEMA calling] off its search and rescue operations in Louisiana three days after the Aug. 29 storm because of security issues...," per Lara Jakes Jordan's Associate Press article of January 30, 2006; there's more, much more). What a spectacle.
Bottom line, it still comes down to "trust us."
No fucking way, ever again.
(That said, Republican Senator Arlen Specter concluded the session with an appropriately pointed exchange with Gonzales -- clearly, Specter is clear on the issues, however much he is engaged with the prevailing partisan dualism.)
* The White House rollout of the proposed Federal budget had one corker: "These are not cuts to Medicaid... and last year's Medicare... these are growth reductions..."
* Criswell predicts (maybe he was psychically 'seeing' where Dick Cheney's official hidey-hole is?):
"I Predict... the District of Columbia within the next fifteen years will cease to exist as the capital of the United States. The seat of government will be moved to Wichita, Kansas, in the caverns beneath the city and the surrounding counties of Wichita."
posted by SRBissette at
10:02 AM
4 Comments:
Steve, apparently you and a lot of people missed the reference Gonzalez made to past Presidents who have used electronic surveillance... including Lincoln and Washington! The website Crooks And Liars has a short videoclip; it's hilarious.
I like the blog, btw - I miss the old Devilman's Chophouse forum.
Todd Frye
Harrogate TN
What if Todd McF produced a Wartgomery Mont statue?!? I would get such a BONER! I might faint.
HEARINGS on the wiretapping??? Man, I AM on vacation!
See my blog. Can't upload a pic (today, Tuesday, 5:00 pm-ish). I have often wondered if blogger bit off more than they could chew - if they could truly support endless blogs by everybody and his brother times ten. This whole internet thing is kinda like magic to me. As I have explained it to me friend Jim R when he whines about the national debt: "Don't worry about the money to pay off that debt. It's just like all the memory being used for the internet! It all comes out of a magic frog's ass!"
I know for a fact that both Lincoln and Washington used their wooden micro processors (George's were in his teeth) to download tea and slaves, to post child porn and to create Criswell.
These chips were constructed of the finest virginia pine, with oak inserts. Much of the internet was steam powered in those days, but we can be sure they used all these resources to listen in to all of us. It's a president's right, you know, to keep tabs on everything we all do. Say. Think.
It is a sad state when Arlen Spector becomes the good guy. I remember being glued to the scandulous hearings of the supreme court rapist judge, Thomas, when young Arlen was as evil as they come. He seems to have mellowed since turning grey and going bald, looking like a cancer victem now.
The Daily show is still the best source for Truth, Justice and the American way.
Hey, Todd (and all) -- I was just writing off the top of my head; Gonzales said so much alarming, balmy, and outrageous shit during his day of hearings (including constant scolding about the news and hearings concerning the wiretapping essentially aiding terrorists) -- and what he didn't say was even more unsettling (his skirting questions about the opening of US First Class mail; constant insistence on using the phrasing "this program," logically implying there are others) -- that I couldn't possibly touch on everything. Yes, those Washington/Lincoln/etc. references were hilarious, but again, what he didn't say (the Supreme Court ruling against Truman's actions, and of course -- ahem -- Richard Nixon's legacy) was as remarkable as what he did say.
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