Baghdad security crackdown seems to be working

Countering the bad domestic news in the post below, this is good news from Iraq:

The rate of killings of US troops in Iraq has been on the decline, down by 60 percent, since the launch of the new security measures in Baghdad, according to statistics revealed by the Multi-National Force -Iraq Combined Press Information Centre.

Only 17 members of the US military in Iraq have been killed since February 14 till March 13, compared to 42 from January 13 to February 13; the rate was on the decline during the first month of the security crackdown, compared to a month before.

Two of the 17 soldiers died at US Baghdad camps of non-combat causes.

The remarkable decrease in killings among the US troops came at a time when more of these troops were deployed in the Iraqi capital, especially in districts previously regarded as extremely hazardous for them such as Al-Sadr City, Al-Azamiyah, and Al-Doura.

Meanwhile, US attacks on insurgent strongholds north of Baghdad curbed attacks against helicopters. Before the new security plan, many such craft were downed leaving 20 soldiers dead.

The US army in Iraq had earlier said that sectarian fighting and violence in Baghdad had dropped sharply, by about 80 percent, since the launch of the plan.

In the previous post, I asked if the Bush Administration had done anything domestically that was good.  I did NOT include non-domestic events because of this, the “surge.” It seems so far to be working.  Credit for that has to rest with the administration for saying yes to the plan...I guess.  It was basically forced upon them and they really had no choice - it was change or pull out in failure.  Still.  Credit for saying yes.

I’m glad to hear that things are slowly improving.  If only I didn’t have to go to a Kuwaiti news site to read about it…

Posted by JimK at 08:04 PM on March 14, 2007
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Categories: News,  Politics,  The Middle East,  The Fourth Estate,  War,  U.S. Military
Tags: military war iraq MSM

Yet another insular little blog “special”

Here we go again.

This weekend, join hosts Kirsten Powers and Michelle Malkin as FOX News takes you inside the most explosive blogs on the Web!

...

FOX News is blowing the lid off the blogosphere, Sunday, February 25 at 10:30 p.m. ET

Oh bull.  Fox will do no such thing.  This will be the same self-referential Pajamas Media-based circle jerk these things always are with maybe a mention of Kos, Firedoglake and either TPM or one of the other top lefty blogs.  There are what 10, maybe 20 million blogs?  Every time someone does a story, it’s on the exact same pool of 20 or 30 blogs.

Not one of these self-important blowhards cares at all about anything except raising their own profile so the next book deal or appearance fee or ad rate is bigger.

Posted by JimK at 07:37 PM on February 25, 2007
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Categories: The Blogosphere,  The Fourth Estate
Tags: blogosphere pajamas media

Dear Media, About your Anna Nicole Smith death orgy…

...When did this drug-addled complete mess of a human being become Saint Anna Nicole of Smithory?  I know she’s dead, but Jesus Christ, she was a walking disaster zone.  Everything she touched either died or turned to shit.  She has no skills whatsoever except showing her titties.  She used her body like it was an old Chevy, and the engine finally gave out.  That doesn’t make her a goddamned saint.

Yeah, I’m sure this makes me a horrible person.  I’m sure that I’m the one who is wrong here, not you vampires that are feeding off her corpse so you can raise ad rates.

Yours,

The Bad Guy

Posted by JimK at 09:24 PM on February 09, 2007
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Categories: Entertainment,  Celebridiots,  The Fourth Estate
Tags: Anna Nicole Smith

Ladies and Gentlemen, your Los Angeles Times

David A. Bell asks:

Was 9/11 really that bad?

I don’t have the words to explain how much pain I wish karma would inflict on David A. Bell.

Posted by JimK at 01:33 AM on January 30, 2007
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Categories: 9/11,  The Fourth Estate
Tags: media asinine journalism

The old grey mare, she ain’t even close to what she used to be part a billion

First, the assertion from “The Paper of Record.”

Under Republican control, Congress has exercised virtually no oversight of the administration’s misconduct of the war, and the new Democratic leadership is eager to hold extensive hearings.

Up next, Karl’s brief trip through a search engine.

A cursory look the schedules for a few Congressional committees and sub-committees shows that in the past 18 months to 2 years there were only these three days of hearings. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one. And this one

Oww.  That’s gotta sting.  Each one of those “this one” instances is a link to yet another hearing.  Oh, that liberal media.  How dumb, or blindly partisan, does one have to be to trust the New York Times anymore?

*UPDATE*

Before anyone chimes in with anything...it’s possible to believe that the current administration is generally awful and that the New York Times is pretty awful when it comes to bias.  The two beliefs are not mutually exclusive.

Posted by JimK at 04:58 PM on November 12, 2006
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Categories: News,  Politics,  The Fourth Estate,  War
Tags: politics media new york times

I can take you with one brain tied behind my back!

When people ask me why I can’t stand Rush Limbaugh, it’s not like I have a shortage of reasons to give.  It makes me wonder why the boated drug addict would give me such a pointed and concrete reason to hate him as a human being and a pundit.

“He is exaggerating the effects of the disease,” Limbaugh told listeners. “He’s moving all around and shaking and it’s purely an act. . . . This is really shameless of Michael J. Fox. Either he didn’t take his medication or he’s acting.”

When I first saw Michael J. Fox’s ad for Claire McCaskill, I was moved.  Moved because Marty McFly, Alex P. Keaton, someone I grew up watching and enjoying, was degenerating before my eyes long before his time should be up, and it’s sad.  Michael is a good actor, and he should have a few more decades to grow into an older, more dramatic actor.  We all know he’s got it in him.  He won’t get that chance and we won’t get the benefit of seeing it.

Then I read that he went off his meds to do the ad, and I was a little bit horrified.  I support stem cell research: I support EMBRYONIC stem cell research.  I fail to see how it glorifies God to keep these frozen embryos until they are past usable for conception, then destroy them.  I find the objections to embryonic stem cell research generally offensive as they are religious in nature, and I am very much in favor of eliminating religion from government.  Not society...government.  Note the difference.

But the idea of going off medication to try to tug on my heartstrings?  It smacks of blatant pandering and manipulation, and I didn’t appreciate it.  I thought it must be true, everyone was saying it.  Some bloggers had details about how it was the second time he’d done it, he was off them for a week, etc.

They were making it up.

“Anyone who knows the disease well would regard his movement as classic severe Parkinson’s disease,” said Elaine Richman, a neuroscientist in Baltimore who co-wrote “Parkinson’s Disease and the Family.” “Any other interpretation is misinformed.”

“Now people are telling me they have seen Michael J. Fox in interviews and he does appear the same way in the interviews as he does in this commercial,” Limbaugh said, according to a transcript on his Web site. “All right then, I stand corrected. . . . So I will bigly, hugely admit that I was wrong, and I will apologize to Michael J. Fox, if I am wrong in characterizing his behavior on this commercial as an act.”

“If?” No, asshole, you were wrong.  It’s certainly not the first time, either, you drug-addled idiot.  Cowboy up and say “I was wrong and I apologize.”

Let me ask Rush fans a question: How do you justify this man being a moral compass?  He routinely violates what Republicans allegedly hold dear as far as morals and ethics are concerned.  His private life has a direct bearing on this discussion, as he uses the private lives of everyone he talks about to judge them, so don’t give me any nonsense about how it shouldn’t matter.  It always matters.

Ethics are how you behave when no one else is looking, and Rush is a womanizing, cheating, divorcing drug addict when no one is looking.  He just happens to be good at radio.  Like all extremists, when faced with the notion that his primary angle of attack was a mistake, Limbaugh just shifts the goalposts and now he’s attacking Fox for allowing his disease to be exploited.  Oh, piss off, Rush.  Everyone who stumps for a politician allows something about themselves to be exploited, from their name to their life story to the influence they have.  Fox has Parkinson’s, and without a lot of research into all areas of science, we may never find a way to help future victims.

His life is set.  He knows that.  He knows there will be no miracle breakthrough that will result in his living a long, normal life and dying of old age at 90.  He’s putting himself, his face, his name and his shaking ass on the line so that in 20 or 40 years, some scientist might be able to figure it out and save someones child or grandchild from suffering like he suffers.

I’ll bet everything I will ever own that not a single one of the “moral compasses” - in government, the media or the blogosphere - who is condemning Fox or the idea of ESR would turn down the cure if they were afflicted with Parkinson’s and the cure came from ESR.

No one knows what type of stem cell research may result in moving science forward.  Anyone who says they know is quite simply lying or deluding themselves.  The best scientists in the world who specialize in this field still don’t know if cord blood or embryos or adult stem cells are the answer.  I find it horrifying that a man with the weak moral character of Rush, or worse, George Bush, are the “deciders” who get to determine public policy on this issue.

It all just serves to remind me that I’m disgusted with the Democrats, but I am so very, very wrong about being a Republican.  I’m not one of them either.  Politically, I’m an orphan.  Maybe Madonna will con my father into letting her adopt me.

*UPDATE*

Let me clarify a couple points.  One - I know Fox went off his meds when he testified in front of Congress.  He said so in his memoir Lucky Man.  No one, not Rush or anyone else, has any proof he did it this time.  His disease has progressed.  It’s been what, five years since he testified?

Second, I am not saying I like Claire McCaskill.  Quite the opposite, in fact.  I find her to be an idiot, if for no other reason that her statement that Bush left black folks to die on rooftops during Katrina because they were black.  She’s a moron, no two ways about it.  However, like so many things in life, two things can be true at the same time: She’s an idiot and so is Limbaugh.

Posted by JimK at 02:44 PM on October 25, 2006
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Categories: Entertainment,  Celebridiots,  News,  Politics,  The Fourth Estate
Tags: Michael J. Fox Rush Limbaugh

Dilbert solves the Taliban problem

If you don’t know, Dilber creator Scott Adams has a blog where he alternately tells weird stories and tries to come up with insane thought experiments.  Lately he’s been trying to solve the Middle East.  I think he may be on to something here.

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Have you noticed that there are two basic types of terrorists? There are the smart, educated ones with engineering and medical degrees, for example. And then there are the Taliban who are essentially monkeys with guns. I think we need different strategies for dealing with them.

Now before you go and accuse me of racial insensitivity, remember that the Taliban are my race (Caucasian). They are simply uneducated.

So what we should do is hire an actor to assume the role of the highest religious figure in the Taliban religious hierarchy. I call him the Grand Talipoobah. Then you take him on a tour around Afghanistan so everyone can see him and spread the world. You might need to hire a few thousand extras to act as his groupies, just to impress onlookers. We could use all of our Hollywood expertise to make the Grand Talipoobah seem authentic. He’ have an impressive back story about his humble origins and his rise to the highest level of Talipoobahdom. Ideally, he could learn some mind reading tricks from Penn and Teller just to wow the crowd. He might even predict the future, such as tomorrow’s weather, because even that would impress the Taliban.

Once the Grand Talipoobah has established himself as the ultimate religious authority, he can start issuing orders. For example, he can tell the Taliban to go kill the smart terrorists that are hiding in those caves.

You might think it would be hard to convince the Taliban that the Grand Talipoobah is their new religious authority. But consider that the Taliban are perhaps the world’s most gullible people. And you don’t need to win over every single Taliban. All you need is a simple majority because the majority will then kill the minority. Problem solved.

He finishes by saying that he can’t think of a reason that it wouldn’t work.  Let’s - for the purposes of this post - take it on faith that the plan will in fact work if implemented and kept a secret.  I’ll give you one reason why it is pre-destined to fail, Scott: the American Mainstream Media would never sit back and let it happen, no matter how much good it might do, how many lives it might save or how effective a plan it may or may not be.

None of that matters.  Every media outlet in the country will dig and dig and eventually find out everything about your actor, from his educational history to the exact length and girth of his “pork sword,” as it were.

I suspect that certain bloggers and Congresspersons of a certain political persuasion would take great joy in breaking the story as well.

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Posted by JimK at 12:07 PM on October 11, 2006
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Categories: News,  Politics,  The Middle East,  The Fourth Estate,  Things To Ponder
Tags: taliban afghanistan dilbert scott adams politics media

That’s a great question

The world (read: the media and the Democrats) are agog over the NIE document that purports that the war in Iraq has increased the global jihadist movement.  So what is the National Intelligence Estimate?  It’s a document that collates the intelligence of all the various agencies that track this sort of thing and attempts to present a unified picture of the current state of things.

Meaning it;s asembled by the exact same people that told us all that Saddam absolutely had WMDs and was weeks away from nuclear capability.  Knowing that, Bill at Daily pundit asks:

How come the NIE, CIA, NSA etc. are obviously wrong and can’t be trusted, and nobody should pay any attention to them, when they say Saddam had WMD, but this release is God’s Holy Writ?

Same way Bush can be a third-grader when it comes to intellect and yet he masterminded over a dozen major conspiracies since taking office.

Posted by JimK at 01:24 PM on October 06, 2006
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Categories: News,  Politics,  The Fourth Estate
Tags: NIE politics media

Army Meets Its Retention Goal

You often hear from the media (and coincidentally, the left) that the U.S. military is stretched thin and can’t staff the positions they need staffed.  Not exactly true.

Both the Army National Guard and the Army Reserve expect to meet their re-enlistment goals for this fiscal year, which are 34,875 and 17,712, respectively. Both totals are slightly higher than last year’s goals.

Granted, this is re-enlistment and not recruiting, but the recruitment picture is no less optimistic when you get past the political rhetoric.  Regardless of how you feel about the war, the fact - that is an important word, fact - the fact is that the military branches are meeting thier goals.

Another far-left/mainstream media meme shot down.  Look for headlines to never appear anywhere, ever.

Posted by JimK at 07:44 PM on September 01, 2006
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Categories: The Fourth Estate,  War,  U.S. Military
Tags: military war iraq media

RINO sightings for April 3, 2006

Some time ago, upon these great shores, a group of Republicans grew weary of the status quo.  No longer content to blindly accept that which was thrust upon them by their chosen political party, these brave men and women took upon themselves the mantle of the free thinker, broke with the tradition of being led by color of state and took up with the tradition of being led by strength of character, argument and logic.

These are their stories.

Or...well...some blog posts they wrote.  Which made me break out into various and assorted songs.  Bonus points if you can figure them all out!

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Oh the midnight, need a searchlight...Dan from Searchlight Crusade throws it up two-point style.  Point one: illegal immigration. Cheap labor is not always beneficial.  Point two: the near future for real estate.  Made me glad we own our home.

It’s not for you anyway, cuz this is for the Raza...Digger from Digger’s Realm digs into the immigration issue as well.  Are we really ready to say “Yeah, to hell with the laws, we need cheap lettuce?”

It’s a felony, so come on baby, What you gonna do...Eric at Classical Values is also on the immigration tip and asks if it’s smart to make 12 million felons in one fell swoop.  Probably not.  He also makes it clear that making 12 million new citizens isn’t the answer either.

Saved in the nick of time...At The World According to Nick, Nick rebuts the idea of white “privilege.” I’m white, when do I get to see some of it?  Oh yeah...Nick said it’s not there.  You mean I have to work hard?

Jane says...I’m done with Sergio...This is Jane from Armies of Liberation with an article on politics in Yemen and how the impossible is possible.  (Yes, I realize the song lyric has little to do with anything, but I simply can’t resist using it when her name is Jane.  Sue me.)

Me and you and a Connecticut Jew...think how much more fun that song would have been that way.  Anyhoo, Gary at Ex-Donkey Blog brings us Barack Obama endorsing Joe Lieberman for re-election.  At this point I think my fair state would re-elect Joe if he actually ate a Christian baby live on Newschannel 8 While Ann Nyberg mopped his chin with pages from the New Testament. 

My apologies to people of Christian and Jewish faiths there on that previous one.  It’s not an insult to you, I’m just sayin’, Ole Joe be popular and whatnot.

Moving on.

You’re a paranoid picture, you’re a photograph...if you’re a member of the “netroots.” Good Lord what a pretentious and inaccurate moniker. Mark Coffey also tackles the Obama/Lieberman friendship over at Decision ‘08 and posits that the KosKidz will turn on Barack faster than Jack Bauer could turn a Middle Eastern terrorist against his own beliefs.

Pictures came and broke your heart...Bloodspite is bemoaning the days of yore, pre-700 channels via satellite or cable and literally everything via the Internet.  I don’t think I agree, but I do understand the frustration sometimes.  What you have to do is work harder to be your own filter now, and parents of course must be a filter for their children.  More material and more access to that material means more work for the filters.  That’s progress for you I guess.

The corners is the hot spot, full of mad criminals...and Heartless Libertarian has a questionnaire for those mad criminals who would represent us in Congress.  Good questions, one every wannabe politician should have to answer.

Your own personal Jesus...Don Surber looks at why Bridgeport High School in Harrison County, West Virginia has had a reproduction of a painting of Jesus hanging in the school for more than 40 years.  Proponents say it’s secular.  Don asks “Do I want a Secular Jesus?”

Chinese Democracy...OK, I was going to make a Guns N’ Roses joke here, but you know what?  We’re going to see ACTUAL Chinese democracy before we see the GNR album called Chinese Democracy, so on to Cody’s post at legal redux about the latest Chinese affront to free expression.  Why is the PRC government so threatened by people who basically just want nothing more than to meditate and do good things for their fellow man?

You’re trapped now with spiritual law...or are you?  Dean Esmay urges research, understanding and learning who and what we are discussing when we say things like “Islam is___” or “Muslims believe that ____.” Probably not bad advice when talking about what is to most of us a completely foreign culture.

On the other hand.

Beneath the lies of this prophecy, there’s a world I have not recognized...Pigilito says modern Islam contravenes the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.  Seems fairly cut and dried.

You can close your eyes, I will take care of you...nice to hear from a loved one, but do we want Uncle Sam saying it?  Barry, aka “unpronounceable nickname that I see every day in my RSS reader”, goes two-for-two and says no and no.

Clock makes a fool of history, yesterday’s too long ago...Dave at Respectful Insolence (I wish my blog had half as cool a name!) is not pleased with the state of science in Arkansas classrooms.  I’ll never understand the willful ignoring of provable facts and data. Read the comments, it’s not just Arkansas either.

Spit in your eye, I will defy...John at Castle Argghhh! says easier said than done, armchair quarterbacks.  Lot of folks gave Jill Carroll a lot of grief for her pro-terrorist statements which of course we now know were made under threat.  I’d say a lot of things to literally save my neck.  What would you say to make sure you got to see your family again?

Someone to claim us, someone to follow, someone to shame us, some brave Apollo...The Unabrewer brings us tales of Oregon’s move to become Big Brother in a very real sense.  I guess speeding ticket revenue and ridiculous car taxes just ain’t good enough anymore.

A burning city on my left, And a golden one on my right...Scott offers juxtaposition of two crimes and the media portrayal thereof at Environmental Republican.  Why anyone expects responsibility from journalists anymore I don’t know, but I do.  I should know better by now.  He also offers up advice to the French.

Late addition - the Commisar forgot to actually send one in!  Fearless Leader is not infallible as previously believed.  Do not spread this information or your families will be...visited.

Two hot girls on a hot summer night, looking for love...Through the magic of Photoshop, the commisar brings us attractive versions of two Cindys.  Hot oil should be involved.  Is it wrong that I masturba Nevermind.  I didn’t say anything.  Move along.

No, wait, I’ll admit something truly pathetic.  I think I recognize the body he used for Cindy.  I’m pretty sure it’s G.I. Ho.  Kill me now.

I know you ain’t wearin’ nothin’ underneath that overcoat...As for me?  Well, you can check out my thoughts on Cynthia McKinney’s crazyeyes, or go lighter and make fun of Sharon Stone’s flapjacks (and her inherent craziness).  Larry thinks she’s off her rocker too.  Larry also threw in comments on John Titor (whackadoo!) and Prince Charles talking a little sense about Islam.  Larry did this long after the rest of the post was written, so Larry doesn’t get a lyrical intro because he sent his submission to someone else.  That Larry!  ;)

Thanks to all the RINOs for your submissions and for letting me host, and for everyone else, don’t forget to check out the RINO blogroll down there on the right.  Much good reading awaits.  If you’re so inclined, poke around the site and see if you don’t spot something you like.  Don’t forget to vote in the new poll just under the blogads.

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Posted by JimK at 12:25 PM on April 03, 2006
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Categories: Entertainment,  News,  International Events,  Politics,  Crime and Criminals,  The Middle East,  The Blogosphere,  The Fourth Estate,  War
Tags: RINO sightings blogs