Solar Energy

by Ralph Nader, from nader.org

One of my favorite publications--one that you may never have heard about--is the /Co-op America Quarterly: Economic Actions for a Just Planet/. ...Co-op America attracts tens of thousands of members who peruse its National Green Pages to purchase what they need and to invest in responsible ways and support sustainable economic activities. (See www.coopamerica.org and www.greenpages.org).

Obviously, solar energy is high on its priority list. But has there ever been a longer, more proven, more diverse source of energy so continually neglected, ignored, distorted, suppressed or given lip service than the best, most permanent, most decentralized flow of energy on Earth?
.......

Ten years ago Japan's solar electricity output was less than half that of the U.S.A. Now Japan is looking to bigger export markets for solar and is 50 percent of their domestic electricity from solar power by 2030, giving new meaning to the "land of the rising sun."

Germany has sped ahead of the United States as well, creating last year alone 5000 new jobs and generating nearly $3 billion in revenue by expanding more solar power facilities than any other nation.

The American people and our country are being held back from solar power because we let the oil/gas barons set energy policy and limit our choices.

Sure, places like San Francisco and Chicago are showing activity, but until a couple of million Americans bear down on their Senators in the next month, Bush will sign this legislation with oil dripping from his pen and oil dollars spilling lustily into Republican campaign coffers. Do your part, the way Co-op America does.

click here for all of it

I went to Co-op America's website, its pretty good. I did one of the "take action" things where you give your name and address and email and you send this letter that they have typed for you to Exxon, asking them to invest in renewable energy. Its a good feeling. I encourage "taking action".

Racism, still a very real problem

So there's this "Old South White Pride meeting and exhibit" scheduled to happen in either Vidor or Jasper, Texas. And a few days a go an inter-racial couples' house in Vidor, Texas was set on fire and vandalized, "kkk" was spray-painted on the house along with "die" and some racial slurs.

Some may remember, Vidor is the town where that black guy was dragged to his death from a truck by three white guys back in the '90s or something.

I believe that the fire and the meeting are just some last spasms of a dieing breed: The American White Supremecist. Maybe once my generation takes over, this kind of stuff won't happen......yeah right, but here's hoping.

My band is playing a few shows in Winnie, Texas this summer, I've got an idea for those shows that includes burning a confederate flag. I want to see if that would be a big deal to anyone, try to weed out the racists and get them out in the open so they can be tarred-and-feathered or something.

Seriously, whats the deal with people with confederate flag shirts and bumper stickers and crap? My message to them: "You lost, get over it!"

Hearing the news: I can't keep a straight face

Watergate and medical marijuana have been topics in the news recently.

I'd love to comment on them, but its hard when they keep talking about this guy called "Deep Throat". I laugh every time someone says something about him! I can't pay attention to what they're talking about because the friggin' name distracts me! So no comment from me about this Deep Throat, Watergate thing.

When it comes the the medical marijuana topic, I find it quite hilarious when these stiff local news anchors say words like "dope", "weed", and "pot". I dunno why. Its even funnier than when the hispanic anchors all of a sudden pronounce spanish words perfectly after speaking with a straight American accent.

So all I've got to say about Deep Thoat and medical pot is "hahahahahah!".

An Idea for Senior year

I actually came up with this idea during my sophomore year, and I kinda forgot about it for a while. But I'm seriously considering doing it.

My idea is to wear the same clothes to school every day, giving myself a uniform. I'll have like 5 gray t-shirts with no logos or anything and 5 pairs of off-brand jeans.

The daily bland clothing would represent the public school system's design of turning students into corporate tools and cannon fodder; instead of scholars, artists, inventors, writers, or whatever we really want to become.

My uniform would also reflect the authoritarian-minded administrators of my particular school, Baytown Sterling, in that, the clothes are similar to what a prison uniform would be like.

I'm gonna buy the clothes from some place that isn't Wal-Mart, and thats gonna mean something too.

Meh, I'm probably not going to do it but I think its a cool idea.

Crazy-ass summer

Well its not that crazy but I've got a lot of crap on my mind.

My sister got married a few weeks ago, I and the other field officers in band taught the freshman how to march last week, I'm playing with the temporary Cici's Pizza All Star Band for the Bayou Bowl next week, my band is recording an album in a few weeks and we've got like five gigs so far this summer, I'm reading Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States, my parents started asking me about college and getting a job a few weeks ago, and I've got church camp and summer band at the end of the summer.

I didn't have internet all this past week, thats why I haven't posted

Reading Zinn

Here's a quote from Christopher Columbus that I found in the very beginnnig of Howard Zinn's A People's History of the United States:

They...brought us parrots and balls of cotton and spears and many other things, which they exchanged for the glass beads and hawks' bells. They willingly traded everything they owned...They were well-built, with good bodies and handsome features...They do not bear arms, and do not know them, for I showed them a sword, they took it by the edge and cut themselves out of ignorance. They have no iron. Their spears are made of cane...They would make fine servants...With fifty men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we want.

Yeah, that guy deserves to have a holiday named after him.

Latest post from Maddox

I hate Cameron Diaz
Just when you thought MTV couldn't get more annoying, they give Cameron Diaz her own show called "Trippin'"

and

At one point in the show they go to a village made of shit (literally, cow shit) and Diaz calls it "beautiful" and "inspiring." Yeah, just not beautiful and inspiring enough to give up any of the three mansions you own, right you disingenuous bitch?

and

Of course, having a show in which the hosts prattle on and on about conservation and environmental causes, it makes you wonder how they're able to do it without sounding like giant hypocrites as they fly around on helicopters and jets, all while using enough electricity to power a small city. Simply put: they can't, but that doesn't stop them from trying.

The way they try to avoid this nagging ideological contradiction is by stating: "Trippin' has offset all the pollution created from energy use in making the show, to ensure that it would not contribute to global warming." They supposedly do this by buying "clean air credits." Great idea assholes, so instead of owning up to your shitty ideals and not polluting, you pay someone else not to pollute. Maybe we should all try to pay someone off every time we want to do something that might inconvenience us. I was going to go on a diet, but it's too hard, so I'm going to pay someone else to diet for me. I was going to do a show about community service, but doing the actual work was too inconvenient, so I'm going to pay someone to do it for me. Eat shit you elitist morons.

click here for entirity

Yeah, he's crude, but he makes some of the best and clearest points you'll find in cyber space. I doubt the celebrities feel absolutely nothing for the poor of the world but Maddox hits it right on the head with this article. Why do some of the richest people in the world act like they care so much about unfortunate people, and do almost nothing accept tell us about it? Publicity, of course, but you'd think they'd realize the contradiction and not take risks like this. The fact that they don't proves Maddox's point even more: they simply want more money.

Four hours of Vets

I had history class for four class periods today. We were in the library, we had some special guest speakers. They were war vets from WWII to Iraq. There was some really really interesting stuff.

It was almost cliche, the World War II/Korea vets came in uniform and the Vietnam and Iraq vets didn't. I dunno if that has any significance or what but thats usually the way you see it on T.V.

The two World War II vets who also fought in Korea told us a lot about the strategies of both sides and basically went through the Korean War step by step. ONE OF THEM PULLED A PRANK ON US WITH A GRENADE. He had a firecracker hidden on top of this dead grenade and pulled the safety pin out and it popped! That was so cool.

The other one was asked what he thought about us dropping the Bomb on Hiroshema and Nagasaki and he said he thought it was a good idea because if we hadn't done that we would have had to invade Japan and "that would have been a bloodbath". You have to remember, most people who have fought in war think like this "Better them dead than us", because the military designs people to follow orders without question and to hate your enemy.

The first Vietnam vet, a draftee, had some amazing looking pictures that he took while he was in the war. He, along with the other 'Nam vet and one of the Korea vets, has a Purple Heart. He had some pretty interesting stories, but I'd rather not go into too much detail. To make a long story short, this guy almost cried a few times; the first person he killed "couldn't have been more than fourteen". And he said he was in many firefights, "...like on 'Platoon'".

The second Vietnam vet was insane. He said pretty much all of the curse words except the F-bomb, which is a pretty modern one anyway. This guy was a volunteer, not a draftee, he actually WENT BACK to serve ANOTHER TOUR. But the weirdest thing was, he said, "...you should never go to war,", and when someone said that Vietnam has been called "unneccessary" he said "Well you could say that about any war,". I just could not figure this guy out.

The Iraq veteran didn't see very much combat, but he had a REALLY close encounter with a mortor and was in one small firefight. This really hot chick asked him what he thought about Bush! I couldn't believe that, but I could definately believe the guys answer. Of course, he thinks Bush has been doing "a pretty good job" and, "thats who we voted for", and when asked about the absence of the WMD's, he of course played the Liberation card, and didn't seem to think it was that big of a deal that the primary reason we went to war was false.

So, uh, it was pretty interesting. They didn't really cram hatred into our brains or try to explain why their wars were right. I enjoyed hearing them. If that was one final attempt by out teacher to Republicanize his students, he failed. Good riddance.

Weezer's "Make Believe"

Advice: Buy it. If you don't like it, don't get rid of it. Listen to it again in ten years and see what you think. Weezer's music is like wine, it gets better with age.

track 1. Beverley Hills
This song has gotten some negative comments about the "rap vocals". Some go on to say something stupid like "Weezer needs to go back to the old days!". They fail to realize that "Beverley Hills" sounds incredibly similar to "El Scorcho", which is from the old days.
This song rocks.

2. Perfect Situation
The intro sounds kinda like something from the Green Album, which wasn't their best, but I like it. The melodies are really pop, but there's some parts of the chord progression that you don't hear too often that prove that Weezer is better.
This song's pretty good.

3. This is Such a Pity
WHOA! Synthesizers, huge chorus. This is the most '80's sounding song Weezer has ever written, I think its my favorite.
This song Rocks.

4. Hold Me
Maaaan, the chorus just soars like an eagle. I'll admit the verse and bridge are kinda lame but the chorus totally makes up for it and really makes it all work.
This song's gonna be a classic.

5. Peace
The melodies are similar to what people have been calling "emo" these days, but this is better than anything that Matchbook Romance or Hawthorne Heights could come up with (probably because those bands suck).
This song's good.

6. We Are All On Drugs
This one's kind of like the angry song of the album. "Drugs" doesn't just mean drugs, it stands for any destructive habit that someone might have. Good message in the song.
This songs alright.

7. The Damage in Your Heart
The best way to describe the way this song is "Maladroit meets Pinkerton". Ah, you're liking the sound of this one already. The chord progression is classic Weez, and its got similar harmonies to their old stuff.
This song rocks.

8. Pardon Me
This is the first appologetic song they've release since "Butterfly". I think the only reason this one wasn't the single is because Incubus had a single with the same title. This song is totally pop, but its a good Weezer kind of pop, really likeable.
This song's good.

9. My Best Friend
Wow. This song sounds like it should be on the soundtrack for Sheck or something. Well, the chorus is pretty cool, but gosh the verses are cheesey. The verses sixties happy party rock and it just sounds lame with the good recording quality of today.
This song's alright.

10. The Other Way
Yesssssssssss. MAN, the chorus is awesome, its like something George Harrison would have written. This one's going down in Weez history too.
This song rocks.

11. Freak Me Out
I think this is somewhat of a concept song. Its just really chill, no distortion, and the melodies are sweet like sugar. This is another new gem.
This song rocks.

12. Haunt you Everyday
The verse sounds like something from Abbey Road (thats a Beatles album, stupid). Don't get me started on the chorus. This song could have been on Pinkerton, seriously. Its got piano and a lot of background guitar riffs.
This song ROCKS.

Seriously, all we need now is a new Primus album and a Rage Against the Machine reunion and the musical magic of the 90's will be born again.

More B.S. from History Class

Guess what we did today? Thats right, we watched a video.

This video is called "In Memoriam". What the fuck is memoriam? Anyway, its about September 11th. The video itself is not what got me today, it was my idiot teacher.

The video got to the part where the people who were trapped in the towers were jumping off, it showed some still pictures of some people in mid-fall.

Then Idiot says, "See why we're fighting the terrorists right now?".

We sent troops to Afghanistan to find Osama bin Laden, not fight him, my teacher was obviously referring to the War on Iraq, which is not that same thing as the infamous "War on Terror".

REMEMBER WHO ATTACKED THE WORLD TRADE CENTER? TWAS NOT SADDAM HUSSEIN!

Once again he has made an attempt to turn the class into a bunch of "WE'RE FIGHTIN' FOR FREEDOM, BITCH!" Bushie nationalist militants like himself.

Next time this happens, I promise to mention the error in his lesson. He said something about conducting a debate, that should be a hoot.

My Special Superintendant

Sultis to request contract change
By Heather L. Nicholson Baytown Sun
Published May 11, 2005

Goose Creek superintendent Barbara Sultis is asking the school board to halt her automatic $10,0000 salary raise each year for the next three years. Instead, Sultis wants the board to review her performance each year and then decide on a salary increase.

click here for the whole thing, here's the last part:

When Sultis replaced former superintendent Jerry Roy, who served for seven-plus years, his salary was $151,400. Sultis’ starting salary was $150,000.

Since her appointment, Sultis has received the scheduled $10,000 raise each year. She currently makes $180,000. When the board agreed to keep the salary increase process, they based their decision on superintendent salaries in school districts like Deer Park and Galena Park.

Also, after consulting with the Texas Association of School Boards, they found the average superintendent salary increase is 6 percent. On top of her current salary, Sultis is allotted $360 for high-speed Internet in her home, $1,500 for her cell phone and $10,800 for her car allowance.


Good to know that while my parents were taking money out of my bank account to buy my birthday present their tax dollars we're helping good 'ol Barbara Sultis save time on the net.

The Future of Organized Labor

By Ralph Nader from nader.org

With U.S. union membership down to only 8% of the workers in the corporate sector - the lowest in 90 years - a clash of unions is underway within the AFL-CIO over the future direction of organized labor. The unions challenging the leadership of President John J. Sweeney - the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Teamsters UNITE and the Laborers - want more of member unions dues to the AFL-CIO returned for expanded organizing and want more mergers among the 76 existing national unions.

click here for the rest

So basically the unions aren't united. They're like the Democratic Party in 1968 with that huge riot outside the convention and all the disturbances and arguments inside, leading to Nixon's victory.

We need another Cesar Chavez or Harry Bridges or something. Will it be me? Could it be me?

If there was any time that we really needed bands like Rage Against the Machine and the Dead Kennedys to still be together, its now.

I think The Drafted's gonna have to start doing some demonstrations at our concerts...

Dems booted from N.C. church over politics

By Paul Nowell / Associated Press

WAYNESVILLE, N.C. - A pastor of a small Baptist church led an effort to kick out church members because they didn't support
President Bush, members said.

The nine members were voted out at a Monday meeting of the East Waynesville Baptist Church in this mountain town about 120 miles west of Charlotte. WLOS-TV in Asheville reported that 40 other members resigned in protest.

"It's all over politics," said Selma Morris, the church's treasurer. "We've never had a pastor like that before."

Pastor Chan Chandler had told the congregation before last year's presidential election that anyone who planned to vote for Democratic Sen.
John Kerry should either leave the church or repent, said Lorene Sutton, who said she and her husband were voted out of the church this week.

"He's the kind of pastor who says do it my way or get out," she said. "He's real negative all the time."

Morris said some church members left after Chandler made his ultimatum in October.
Chandler didn't return a message left by The Associated Press at his home Friday, and several calls to the church went unanswered. He told WLOS that the actions were not politically motivated.

North Carolina Democratic Party Chairman Jerry Meek sharply criticized the pastor Friday, saying Chandler jeopardized his church's tax-free status by openly supporting a candidate for president.

"If these reports are true, this minister is not only acting extremely inappropriately by injecting partisan politics into a house of worship, but he is also potentially breaking the law," Meek said.

This topic is a first for Shattered Soapbox. Few know this, but I actually go to church every Sunday.

Yeah, this guy in North Carlina is obviously out of his mind. I'm fortunate enough to actually have a liberal pastor at my church, and there haven't even been mass decreases in church membership. He's really quite popular with the church, mind you, he's never actually said, "I'm a liberal" or "I voted for Kerry" or "Bush is wrong", but everyone knows he's a lefty (I think).

He doesn't talk politics in church, as he shoudln't, but I've sensed some liberal messages in his sermons (which should be expected from any Christian sermon because Jesus was the biggest liberal of all time). The most political I've heard him speak was in a youth meeting where we were discussing war (in the Bible, not Iraq). He said, "No one wins a war."

Weird, huh? Its true, there IS a Religious Left, its just not being very loud as a whole. As for the Religious Right, its getting kinda scary.

Local Music Biz Politics

This has been on my mind for weeks now and I vented some of it on my band's myspace but I'm gonna basically repeat myself right now because I'm feeling it even more now.

Aright, I'm trying to book a bunch of summer shows for The Drafted. I've called/emailed six venues already, ONE of them has given us a show. I emailed Fuel, Walter's on Washington, club Ink, and Wired saying we wanted shows for July 1st, 8th, and 22nd, and I attached an mp3 and gave a link to hear us. NONE OF THEM RESPONDED. I called Fuel, noone answered. I called Walter's, the number is temporarily disabled; I called club Ink, the person was "not taking any calls at this time".

See, there's all these little "production companies" floating around out there now who book shows for bands. The thing is, they only book shows with bands that all play essentially the same style. So they're no help for The Drafted; NO ONE sounds like us. There's so many of these "production companies" that those are the only people that venues seem to be listening to anymore. And there's so many freaking local bands now that its hard enough to book a show anyway.

To sum it up: The Drafted has never been much of a show-playing band, and now its even harder to book shows, so now we're really screwed.

Army Misses Its Recruiting Goal Again

This is what I'm talking about.

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Army missed its recruiting goal in April, marking the third consecutive monthly shortfall. Col. Joseph Curtin, a spokesman for Army headquarters in the Pentagon, said Monday that as of April 30 the Army was on a course to achieve only 85 percent of its target for the full year.

But he said big gains are expected this summer, and the Army is cautiously optimistic it will overcome the current recruiting deficit and achieve its full-year target of 80,000 enlistees.

Opinion surveys have indicated that a growing number of young people and their parents are wary of the Army's recruiting pitch at a time when soldiers in Iraq are killed and wounded virtually every day.

Spring is typically one of the more difficult periods of the year for military recruiters.
Curtin said he did not have specific figures for April but that it fell short of the monthly goal of 6,600. In March the Army had hoped to sign up 6,800 recruits but fell 32 percent short. That was slightly worse than in February when a goal of 7,050 was missed by 27 percent.

Prior to missing the February target the Army had not fallen short of a monthly goal since May 2000.

The Army National Guard and Army Reserve have had even more trouble recruiting. In March the Army Reserve signed up barely half the 1,600 soldiers it sought. It has not met a monthly goal since December 2004, and for the period from October 2004 through March it met only 82 percent of its goal.

Is the opposition becoming stronger? Lets hope it takes less time for the majority of America to oppose the war than it did during Vietnam.

History Class: Protesting is bad

So today in history we watched this video about the late 60's early 70's. It showed the main protest/demonstrations/riots of the time. At the end of the video it showed part of an interview with a man who fought for the North Vietnamese Army. He said they used to watch footage of the anti-war protestors demonstrating against the war, he said, "...they gave us strength."

So now a class of about 30 has been told that anti-war protests help our enemies stay strong.

This is really shitty.

I don't see how one man can represent an entire army when he says something like that, I mean, how does that guy know that EVERY SINGLE North Vietnamese soldier saw the clips and gave a damn, or even saw the clips at all. Maybe his platoon had special privelages, who knows? But that little clip is all any Bushy would need to make them feel good about being pro-war, and any undecided person could be easily swayed by it. The intent of that interview was to argue the point of view that protesting against what your government does is treason.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure thats propoganda, and even if its not, it still shouldn't be used as an educational device.

But again, what do I know?

May Day

Today is May Day in Europe, which is their Labor Day, which is a day of reflecting on the sacrifices that workers have to go through every day and respecting that the workers matter.

In the States, today is LOYALTY DAY.

Think about that.

Why on earth would our government invent our Loyalty Day on the same exact day as Europe's Labor Day? Well, Loyalty Day has only been around since 2003, I wonder if it had anything to do with...

Happy Birthday Duke Ellington

"Take the A Train", "Satin Doll", thank you Duke.

Here's some quotes.

"A man is a god in ruins."

"Art is dangerous. It is one of the attractions: when it ceases to be dangerous you don't want it."

"By and large, jazz has always been like the kind of a man you wouldn't want your daughter to associate with."

"Critics have their purposes, and they're supposed to do what they do, but sometimes they get a little carried away with what they think someone should have done, rather than concerning themselves with what they did."

"It's like an act or murder; you play with intent to commit something."

"I don’t believe in categories of any kind, and when you speak of problems between blacks and whites in the U.S.A. you are referring to categories again."

"I’m a telephone freak, the greatest invention since peanut brittle."

Its also my birthday but I'm not that important.

Dubya on TV today

Oh Lord, Mr. President is talking downstairs right now on the idiot box. Its called a "presidential news conference". From a news conference one would expect to be informed and educated on issues, this conference does not do that.

This is an obvious attempt to boost approval ratings in a time of increasing questioning of George and his party's recent actions, just a little reminder that the guy we picked is tough as nails and don't take shit. People respect a man who don't take shit right?

Every answer George gives the reporters is basically, "I'm not sure, but (insert something that sounds retarded)".

He's gone on about how Social Security isn't going to last, but hasn't explained how he wants to fix it. All he has said is that it needs to be fixed, and that it's not getting done because the parties aren't agreeing. WHOA, thanks for clearing that up for us.

All he's doing is giving his opinions about the issues and explaining the importance of the issue, not what he plans to do about it, so how can they call this a news conference?

The only thing I got out of watching the conference was an update that the man still has not learned how to pronounce the word "nuclear".

Horay for being informed!!!!!

Rights Group: Abu Ghraib Abuses 'Tip of Iceberg'

By Ian Simpson / Reuters, courtesy of this site

BAGHDAD - A rights watchdog said on Wednesday the abuses at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison were just the "tip of the iceberg" of U.S. mistreatment of Muslim prisoners.

The abuses at Abu Ghraib are part of a larger pattern of U.S. rights violations of detainees in Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay and elsewhere, New York-based Human Rights Watch said.
Its summary of accusations of abuses came on the eve of the first anniversary of publication of photos showing humiliation and mistreatment of prisoners at the Iraqi jail.

"Abu Ghraib was only the tip of the iceberg," Reed Brody, special counsel for Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.

"It's now clear that abuse of detainees has happened all over -- from Afghanistan to Guantanamo Bay to a lot of third-country dungeons where the United States has sent prisoners. And probably quite a few other places we don't even know about."

the rest

Yeah, we're definately fighting for freedom.

I hope my cousin's not one of the soldiers who pull that shit.

Tearing down Democracy

By Ralph Nader

You would think that Bush-Cheney would be sensitive to avoiding the weakening of democracy in our country while going around the world with Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, hectoring other countries about their anti-democratic practices.

After all, the moral authority to admonish comes from the power of example. Instead brazen hypocrisy prevails. Bush and Cheney inherited past democratic institutions and practices, which they are tearing down in many directions.

and

But let's look at what Bush-Cheney is doing to democracy in the USA. First, these two authoritarians have centralized more power in the White House-Executive Branch at the expense of Congress, the courts and the states than previous Republican leaders would ever have done. From the Patriot Act to pursuing tort deform, from federalizing many class actions in federal courts (usurping the role of state courts) to the pre-emptive banking laws and regulations to the "Leave No Child Behind" takeover, these two pro-Vietnam war draft dodgers have generated a cascade of powers into the Oval Office.

more

What could I possibly add? Ralph's got a brain.

Happy Earth Day

Trees are awesome.

Oxygen is awesome.

Water is awesome.

Ice caps are awesome.

I honestly wouldn't have known it was Earth Day if I didn't have my little calendar. I saw it and thought, "Hey, thats kinda liberal," so I had to call attention to it.

But seriously, screw Big Oil. Yay Ralph Nader.

Hear Ye, Media!

By Ralph Nader, from nader.org

Question ‚ have you ever heard of Maurice Hilleman? If your answer is No or Who?, join about 99 percent of the American people. He passed away this month in Philadelphia at the age of 85. Here is what the front page New York Times article said about his medical career:

Dr. Maurice R. Hilleman developed vaccines for mumps, measles, chickenpox, pneumonia, meningitis and other diseases, saving tens of millions of lives...

Much of modern preventive medicine is based on Dr. Hilleman's work, though he never received the public recognition of Salk, Sabin or Pasteur. He is credited with having developed more human and animal vaccines than any other scientist, helping to extend human life expectancy and improving the economies of many countries.

The Times quotes Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health as saying: "The scientific quality and quantity of what he did was amazing...One can say without hyperbole that Maurice changed the world with his extraordinary contributions in so many disciplines: virology, epidemiology, immunology, cancer research and vaccinology."

(elipses)

There are many fascinating stories about this scientist. Yet almost no one knew about him, saw him on television, or read about him in newspapers or magazines. His anonymity, in comparison with Madonna, Michael Jackson, Jose Canseco, or an assortment of grade B actors, tells something about our society's and media's concepts of celebrity; much less of the heroic.

click here for all of it

(sorry I haven't posted in a while, my computer's been poop lately)
I learn more from Ralph Nader every time I read his stuff.

This is just one example of how knowledgeable Nader is.

Lets elect this guy next time, okay? He's been pretty doggon patient, lets give him a break in '08.

Protesters call for U.S. Pullout in Iraq

By TRACI CARL, Associated Press Writer

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Tens of thousands of supporters of a militant Shiite cleric filled central Baghdad's streets Saturday and demanded that American soldiers go home, marking the second anniversary of Baghdad's fall with shouts of "No, no to Satan!"

To the west of the capital, 5,000 protesters issue similar demands in the Sunni Triangle city of Ramadi, reflecting a growing impatience with the U.S.-led occupation and the slow pace of returning control to an infant Iraqi government.

The protest in Baghdad's famous Firdos Square was the largest anti-American demonstration since the U.S.-led invasion, but the turnout was far less than the 1 million called for by radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.

"I do not accept having occupation forces in my country," said protester Ali Feleih Hassan, 35. "No one accepts this. I want them out. They have been here for two years, and now they have to set a timetable for their withdrawal."

President Bush has said he will not pull troops out of Iraq until the security situation has improved.

click here for all of it

Hey Mr. Bush, have you ever thought that maybe YOU'RE the security situation? Those protesters weren't insurgents, those were the same Iraqis that tore down that big statue of Saddam a few years ago; lets take a hint.

Give the Iraqis the freedom they desire and deserve. Lets bring our troops home, its getting worse by the minute.

Tucson's largest school district place restrictions on military recruiters

Associated Press, courtesy of this site

New restrictions have been placed on military recruiters by Tucson's largest school district.
Recently, the Tucson Unified School District adopted new rules that restrict visits by military recruiters to once a month per school.

The district adopted the rules after parents complained that their children felt pressured by military recruiters who were showing up four times a week at Tucson High Magnet School.

"There were some real discrepancies in how our schools were dealing with recruiters," said Ross Sheard, who supervises 36 TUSD principals and worked on the new directive. "We wanted to standardize it and have it the same at every school."

Under federal law, military recruiters must receive the same access to high-school students as job or college recruiters.

Schools are also required to provide military recruiters with names, addresses and phone numbers of students, unless parents object in writing.


At first I thought "Right on!", but I now that I think about it more, I realize that I, myself, don't feel pressure when I see the recruiters at my school. They don't talk to you unless you talk to them. Its not like they're saying "HEY YOU BEST SIGN UP!!!!" just by sitting at a table outside the cafeteria.

Maybe I just take it personally because my own brother came to our school a few months ago as a Navy recruiter, but I think it would be more of a statement to let the recruiters come whenever they want and let the news report about how no one wants to enlist.

But hey, what do I know?

grease monkey duo

zin sift alagorie
trigger shift momentum plain
vizzer von vee hydroxide
and plastic grass sugar strain

hover so for due to time
pattern repeat pattern repeat
rosin mast shadow grizee
and some kinda radio thing

pleasure shift
dull objects
motor vehicle survey
others relate

grease monkey duo

Poll: Most in U.S. Oppose Nuclear Weapons

By WILL LESTER, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Most Americans surveyed in a poll say they do not think any country, including the United States, should have nuclear weapons. That sentiment is at odds with current efforts by some nations that are trying to develop the weapons and by terrorists seeking to add them to their arsenal.

The only use of an atomic bomb — by the United States against Japan at the end of World War II — provokes sharply different reactions, depending on the age of those asked. Young adults tend to disapprove, while older Americans tend to approve, an AP-Ipsos poll found.
Albert Kauzmann, a 57-year-old resident of Norcross, Ga., said using the bomb in 1945 "was the best way they had of ending" World War II.

Six in 10 people age 65 and older approve of the use of the atomic bomb at the end of World War II; the same percentage of respondents 18 to 29 disapprove.

Even though the Soviet Union is gone, the nuclear fears that fueled the Cold War have not gone away. A majority of people believe it is likely that terrorists or a country will use the weapons within five years.

Click here for the rest

Again, I say we should get rid of our supply of nukes. Having or not having them makes no difference anymore; lets do something different.

Marine Corps Mail

Yesterday I received a pamphlet in the mail from the Marine Corps. I threw it away, of course.

On the outside it said "Discover the person you're meant to become".

This made me laugh out loud. Last time I checked no one could tell me who I was meant to become. I remember being told that I could do whatever I set my mind to. The Marines think any random soon-to-be eighteen year old is just destined to become a Marine themselves.

This is why my band is called "The Drafted".

When the war was about to start, we knew there would be enormous pressure to join the military at some point, and that there may even be another draft, so we decided to have a political name and start writing political songs.

I know we, as middle class non-poor teenagers, will not have trouble getting into some form of college, and therefore would not be drafted; but the point is we, as young men, are seen as mere cannon fodder by the blood-thirsty Bush Administration, and we know it.

Also, with my brother in the Navy, a few people have already asked me "Are you going to join the service?". Some people have even asked WHEN I was joining the service! I always tell them I don't have plans for joining the military, and they just kind of brush it off, like, "Yeah, say that when you're a dirt poor twenty-something with a failed career attempt and a receding hairline still living with your parents who are about to retire."

I'll say this: I'm never going to join the military, no matter how poor, unsuccessful, heartbroken, or hopeless I am, because I know that every war since World War II has been, and will be, pointless and wrong.

I know good and well military musicians don't fight, and make very good money, but joining the military is like selling your soul. Its like getting married to someone who you KNOW is going to order you around, and you KNOW you have to obey them, or you'll get kicked out and won't be getting that fat check anymore.

In conclusion, screw you, Marine Corps.

Mitch Hedburg, R.I.P

From mitchhedberg.net

April 1, 2005
To All of Mitch’s Fans,
We are heartbroken to let you know that Mitch passed away on Wednesday, March 30, 2005. He dedicated his life to comedy and bringing joy to his fans. Mitch loved all of you.
We ask that you remember Mitch through his comedy - let him make you laugh, enjoy life and love one another.
The Hedberg Family

I don't understand why I heard about this first by word of mouth. If my friend Sam hadn't told me about it yesterday who knows when I would have found out.

I guess Mitch's career was just not long enough to be widely recognized as the brilliant comedian that he was.

If you've never heard Mitch's comedy, you really should. Mitch had a totally different style than any comedian I had ever heard before, its a shame he had to die so suddenly, after being in the business for only about four years.

Here's a bunch of Mitch jokes:

You know they call corn on the cob, corn on the cob, but that's how it comes out of the ground, man. They should call that corn, they should call every other version corn off the cob. It's not like if you cut off my arm you would call it Mitch. Then reattach it and call me Mitch-all-together...

I like swiss cheese. It's the only cheese you can draw with a pencil and identify.

I got an ant farm. Them fellas don't grow shit.

I went to the store to buy a candle-holder, but they were out. So I bought a cake.

I haven't slept for ten days, because that would be too long.

Last week I helped my friend stay put. It's a lot easier than helping someone move. I just went over to his house and made sure that he did not start to load shit into a truck.

I got my hair highlighted, because I felt some strands were more important than others.

I want to be a race car passenger: just a guy who bugs the driver. "Say man, can I turn on the radio? You should slow down. Why do we gotta keep going in circles? Can I put my feet out the window? Man, you really like Tide..."

I wrote a letter to my dad - I wrote, "I really enjoy being here," but I accidentally wrote rarely instead of really. But I still wanted to use it so I crossed it out and wrote, "I rarely drive steamboats, dad - there's a lot of shit you don't know about me. Quit trying to act like I'm a steamboat operator." This letter took a harsh turn right away...

...and then at the end of the letter I like to write "P.S. - this is what part of the alphabet would look like if Q and R were eliminated.

I got in an argument with a girlfriend inside of a tent. That's a bad place for an argument, because then I tried to walk out, and had to slam the flap. How are you supposed to express your anger in this situation? Zip it up real quick?

I type at 101 words a minute. But it's in my own language.

I think Bigfoot is blurry, that's the problem. It's not the photographer's fault. Bigfoot is blurry. And that's extra scary to me, because there's a large, out-of-focus monster roaming the countryside. Run. He's fuzzy. Get outta here.

I have an underwater camera just in case I crash my car into a river, and at the last minute I see a photo opportunity of a fish that I have never seen.

One time a guy handed me a picture of himself, and he said, "Here's a picture of me when I was younger." Every picture of you is of when you were younger. Here's a picture of me when I am older. You son of a bitch, how'd you pull that off? Let me see that camera...

Boxer wants deadline for Leaving Iraq; Senator says Iraqis can't rely forever on U.S. for security

By John Wildermuth / San Francisco Chronicle courtesy of michaelmoore.com

Sen. Barbara Boxer, back from a visit to Iraq, called on President Bush Tuesday to set a deadline for pulling U.S. troops out of that country and letting the Iraqis handle their own defense.

"If we do not set a date, the signals are very mixed,'' Boxer said in San Francisco. "People will just sit back and let us defend them.''

While U.S. military leaders were both concerned about the growing danger of a lengthy stay in Iraq and confident that the newly trained Iraqi military forces can handle the country's security, Iraqi officials she talked to had their doubts about when their troops would be ready, the California Democrat said.

With the current open-ended commitment of U.S. troops, there's a danger the Iraqis will become too dependent on the U.S. presence, she said.

"We need to lay out a plan, a goal, an expectation,'' Boxer said. "We have to tell the Iraqis, 'You have to take the second step now.' ''

Click here for all of it.

So I guess some senators have figured it out, but no one who's actually in charge are doing what they should be doing: getting us the hell out of there. There should at least be a cease-fire of sorts, something, anything foreshadowing Peace.

"Some say I'm a dreamer..."

My Friend Joe makes the front page of the LA Times

So I was talking to my brother, Travis, last week, and he tells me that our friend Joe was surfing the other day and this photographer from the LA Times was taking pictures of him.

Yesterday he sends me a photocopy of the paper.

It really is my friend: trumpeter and surf hobbyist, Joseph Motter.

It doesn't mention his name, its not even about him, it was just saying that this storm from Alaska was causing big surf. Knowing Joe only makes it funnier, click on his name above and visit his never-updated website.

March MADNESS!!!!!!!

Just to keep it clear, I don't really care about basketball.

I HAVE been watching a lot of it lately.

Anyways, I was just thinkin', you know, about professional/college sports. There's a lot of freakin' money going into that stuff. And I can't help but wonder, "What the hell is the point?". And then I realized the only reason sports teams exist: To make the fans go, "Wooooooooooooo!". Thats it. Their team wins, and they go, "Wooooooooooooo!".

Millions upon millions of dollars for "Woooooooo!".

I'm not saying its wrong. In fact, I don't think its wrong at all.

It just amazes me.

Officer had nude photos of suspet, report says

From the Houston Chronicle, courtesy of Realart

It began as the fairly routine arrest of a drunken-driving suspect on a Houston street. It quickly evolved into a maze of questions as investigators checked out reports that a Houston police officer had found nude photos of the driver stored in her cellular phone, downloaded them and later showed them around the courthouse.

Patrolman Christopher Green has been reassigned to desk duty pending the outcome of an internal investigation. His partner, George Miller, also has been reassigned while the department looks into reports that he called the DWI suspect's home to ask her out.

Click here for the rest.

I understand that there's cut-ups in every profession, but that just shouldn't be the case with police officers, or any emergency worker for that matter. That cop should have been fired.

More from history class

Yesterday we finished a video about the Korean War. It featured interviews with veterans who fought there.

At the end of the film the narrator asks "Was it all worth it?", and it goes back to each veteran giving their answer. Each one said something like "I do think it was worth it because if we didn't fight for democracy then our own democracy would be threatened."

So the video told us that the commies were out to get us.

Ok. It was a pretty old video, probably made before the fall of the Soviet Union, but it still applies to today's so-called "War on Terrorism". Its not the communists anymore, its the terrorists, and they're "OUT TO GET US! OH NO! KILL THEM TOWL-HEADED SUNZUBITCHES!!"

(I'll say this again: you can't fight a war on an -ism. I mean, you can't fight a WORD and you can never destroy an idea.)

First, lets think for a second. Why on earth would North Korea want to invade South Korea? Oh yeah! Korea was split in two after World War II! I dunno, maybe they just wanted their country back? Gee, how selfish is THAT, right? But no, we were just like, "Holy shit their trying to take over the fucking world!" And now we think that an international group of Muslim fundamentalists from various third world countries is going to overthrow the United States. And we go to war with Iraq because they MIGHT have nukes, which they didn't and don't.

I think we should learn from the mistakes of the Cold War. We must learn that you can't invade a country and change it into a democracy. Its NEVER been done, it CAN'T be done.

When the colonists felt oppressed by England, they built up their OWN resistance and fought for themselves (until the French saved their asses). The people living under oppressive governments today will fight back someday, on their own. We don't need to do it all for them. Our foreign policy should not involve explosives.

Has anyone at the Pentagon thought of this yet?

Bush? Peace Prize?

I don't know why I didn't hear about this until today, or technically yesterday, but I heard that George W. Bush, the guy who got us in to all this CRAP, is supposedtly a candidate to get the Nobel Peace Prize.

I saw this on the cover of TIME Magazine.

Three letters man, W T F.

Well, I guess it sorta makes sense, since Nobel himself invented DYNAMITE. But thats exactly why he started the Peace Prize thing; he felt guilty for being responsible for something so destructive that he wanted to reward people for promoting peace.

Bush does not promote peace, as far as I can tell. Starting a war is slightly the opposite. But I do remember something from George Orwell's 1984: "War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength". But that was the antagonist's sloagan, so...we're back to wondering why the crap Bush is up for the Peace Prize.

I guess we'll never know.

Idiot History Teacher

We're talking about the Cold War in history. My teacher said we pumped billions of dollars to western Europe to keep them from becoming communists. Then he said that was the main reason why he has a problem with the French.

Huh?

You have a problem with the French because we gave them billions of dollars in aid after World War II? Huh? Oh, it must have something to do with the War on Iraq. Ha. Yeah, I guess he overlooked the reason why we went to war and the reason France didn't. And he also overlooked that France is not the only country who is NOT helping us fight the war on Iraq. And he also overlooked that there really were no weapons of mass destruction, remember how we found that out recently?

And just this morning my neo-conservative friend Tim started to go off about how he wanted to "run that country into the ground"

Why the hell do people hate France so much? Spain isn't fighting. Germany isn't fighting. Russia isn't fighting. A hell of a lot of people aren't fighting and we pick the French to shit on.

Lets not forget that we wouldn't have won the Revolutionary War without France, remember the battle of Yorktown? Britain had us cornered at the coast and France sailed up just in time.

Sure we helped them out in World War II but that doesn't mean they automatically have to help us blow up Iraq, especially since we're obviously wrong.

Jeez.

Remembering all those arguments made 1,500 deaths ago

By Joseph L. Galloway / Knight Ridder courtesy of michaelmoore.com

WASHINGTON - Something about anniversaries prods us to pause and reflect on what's transpired in the intervening time. March 20 is the second anniversary of the invasion of Iraq, and it's a good time to consider what's happened since then.

Do you recall our civilian leadership's rationale for a pre-emptive war against Saddam Hussein? President George Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney and, yes, former Secretary of State Colin Powell told the world that the United States had no choice but to invade Iraq. They said Saddam was hiding chemical and biological weapons, and that his scientists would be able to produce a nuclear weapon in a few years.

Do you remember those who predicted that the operation would be financed in large part by sales of Iraqi oil? It would be cheap, easy and, oh yes, so swift that civilian leaders in the Pentagon ordered the military to plan to begin withdrawing from Iraq no later than the summer of 2003.

click here for all of it

Is this going to continue for 22 years like Vietnam? How long will it take them to realize what we've done?

Los Angeles

I was in L.A. the past four days. Two words: Friggin' Awesome. Part of the reason it was so fun was because we made it fun. Aaron, Rachael, Yoli, Katy, Kyle, Fulton, Tim, Stuart, KK, Hayley, James, all the band kids.

Friday:
flew to LA, gave thumbs up to Courtney, got tied up by Tim, Bowman, and Andrew with duct tape and stood me up by the window just in time for an entire squad of cheerleaders to walk by and see me. Took pictures. FRIGGIN' AWESOME.

Saturday:
Marched in a parade at Disneyland and played our marching show music in front of the castle, rode rides/was really loud and youthful everywhere we went, ate at the House of Blues.

Sunday:
Recording session at Disneyland. Rode rides/was really loud and youthful. That night we got Stuart to come up to our room thinking we were going to tie up Bowman, only to get duct taped by us and Bowman.

Monday:
Universal Studios. Rode rides, it was friggin' fun. Got the crap scared out of us at the Van Helsing thing, it was like a haunted house. We ate at Midieval Times and pissed off the Black and White Knight, calling him and all the other knights (except our Yellow Knight who seemed to enjoy our abuse of the other knights) "dingle berry"and "douche bag". We specifically called the Black and White Knight "oreo"and had our whole section chanting "oreo!" and he later told me and this dude named Marcus to shut up since he knew we started it. Friggin' Awesome.

Tuesday:
Tour of L.A. Stopped outside the Chinese Theatre and walked down whatever street its on, with all those stars on the sidewalk. And we checked out the celebrity handprints in the cement outside the theater. My hand fits right inside Dick Van Dyke's print. Then we drove down Sunset Strip and saw the hotel where John Belluche overdosed and the club where River Phoenix was killed. Then we turned onto Rodeo Drive, so naturally I put in Rage Against the Machine's Evil Empire and listened to "Down Rodeo". Saw a bunch of stores where you need reservations to shop in, saw Marilyn Monroe's house. Then we turned onto this other street and stopped at Guitar Center. Saw a drum head signed by D.H. Peligro of Dead Kennedys. There were rockstar handprints outside on the sidewalk like Ramones, Alice Cooper, AC/DC, the Yardbirds, the Ventures, Dick Dale, Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy, Ozzy, Carlos Santana, etc. My hand fit really well in Markey Ramone and Eric Clapton's hand. Then we flew back.

A little while ago:
I found out I'm number 72 in a class of 566 with a gpa of 4.257. I have done homework on about five occasions so far this school year. What does that say?

The New Death Penalty Ruling

So now kids under 18 can't get the death penalty.

I've never really decided whether the death penalty itself was a good thing or not. I think the main question we have to answer indefinately is whether "justice" is the same as, or should serve as, "revenge". If we can figure out if justice and revenge are the same thing, or if they relate to each other directly, then we'll know if the death penalty is right.

I wonder if murders committed by teens will rise due to this new ruling. Only time will tell...

How Safe Are We?

by Ralph Nader from nader.org

George W. Bush often says that the safety of all Americans is his highest priority. He doesn't mean advancing vigorously the implementation of laws he has sworn to enforce against occupational disease and trauma, traffic injuries, air pollution, medical malpractice and other unsafe conditions that are taking the lives of many tens of thousands of Americans annually. What he means is commanding the "war on terrorism."

So let's evaluate him at his narrowest definition of safety. First, it is clear that the budget of the Department of Homeland Security ‚ a huge amalgam of government agencies proud to defend their turf even after their consolidation ‚ is out of control.

There are no cost-benefit criteria in operation about how to spend the burgeoning monies Congress and Bush are throwing at this Department. One of its arms is the Transportation Security Agency. You know, the agency that makes you take your shoes off or pats you down at airports. Its money is flying around as well.

Back in 2002, the Office of Management and Budget's chief, Mitch Daniels, told us that his office essentially has no control over the ways Homeland Security spends its budget. He agreed, in a series of meetings with me and our economist, James Love, to file a notice in the Federal Register inviting public comments about the best ways to place the Department under a cost-benefit regime.

The comments were duly received and analyzed by OMB staff and the General Services Administration. But in June 2003, Mr. Daniels resigned his post to run for the Governorship of Indiana. He won. His successor, Josh Bolten, a White House political appointee, has shown no interest, thus far, in continuing his successor's mission.

Just calling any expenditure "homeland security" defers most members of Congress from exercising any real oversight. So dollars are easy to waste because the symbol is nearly untouchable. But Mr. Bolten, who does not return our calls or respond to letters requesting a meeting, is the man who is supposed to be in charge of a tough OMB seeking prudent uses of tax dollars (with the help of several little-noticed Government Acountability Office (GAO) reports).

Click here for all of it

TEA maneuver cuts number of failing campuses but may endanger federal funding

By Jason Spencer / Houston Chronicle

Faced with the prospect of tagging nearly half of the state's school districts with failing grades under the federal accountability system, Texas Education Commissioner Shirley Neeley instead changed the rules to reduce the number of failing schools sixfold.

The move, described by some as a direct challenge to the U.S. Department of Education's enforcement of the controversial No Child Left Behind Act, sets up a potential showdown between Neeley and the Bush administration.

National education observers said Neeley's move makes Texas the first state to outright refuse to follow the law's requirements.

Texas receives more than $1 billion in federal money tied to compliance with No Child Left Behind. Some of that money could be in jeopardy, depending on how federal officials react to Neeley's decision. The TEA released grades Friday.

"It sets up, obviously, a rather interesting situation between the U.S. Department of Education and the state of Texas and you could see administrative funding cuts due to noncompliance," said Scott Young, a senior policy analyst with the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Click here for all of it.

Suicides in Marine Corps Rise by 29%; Fast Pace of Operations Are Believed to Contribute

By Ann Scott Tyson / Washington Post

The Marine Corps suffered a 29 percent spike in suicides last year, reaching the highest number in at least a decade, with the demanding pace of military operations likely contributing to the deaths, the top-ranking U.S. Marine said yesterday.

Thirty-one Marines committed suicide in 2004, all of them enlisted men, not commissioned officers. The majority were younger than 25 and took their lives with gunshot wounds, according to Marine statistics. Another 83 Marines attempted suicide. There were 24 suicides in 2003, and there have not been more than 29 in any year in the last 10.

Although last year's suicide rate rose, it was still below the national average for a comparable civilian group, in keeping with an established pattern of suicide being lower in the U.S. military than in the civilian population.

Marine commanders say the rise in suicides continues a worrisome three-year trend that is likely linked to stress from the sharply increased pace of war-zone rotations. At the same time, they said the increase in suicides is not directly related to service in Iraq or Afghanistan; since 2001 24 percent of the suicides have been committed by Marines who have been deployed there, the statistics show.

click here for the rest

Didn't Hitler kill himself too?

Report Faults Bush Initiative on Education

By Sam Dillon / New York Times

Concluding a yearlong study on the effectiveness of President Bush's sweeping education law, No Child Left Behind, a bipartisan panel of lawmakers drawn from many states yesterday pronounced it a flawed, convoluted and unconstitutional education reform initiative that had usurped state and local control of public schools.

The report, based on hearings in six cities, praised the law's goal of ending the gap in scholastic achievement between white and minority students. But most of the 77-page report, which the Education Department rebutted yesterday, was devoted to a detailed inventory and discussion of its flaws.

It said the law's accountability system, which punishes schools whose students fail to improve steadily on standardized tests, undermined school improvement efforts already under way in many states and relied on the wrong indicators. The report said that the law's rules for educating disabled students conflicted with another federal law, and that it presented bureaucratic requirements that failed to recognize the tapestry of educational challenges faced by teachers in the nation's 15,000 school districts.

click here for the rest

Iran to Bush: Don't Meddle wit our Independence

From yahoo news

TEHRAN (Reuters) - President Bush (news - web sites) should be aware that the United States would pay a heavier price than Iran if it tried to encroach on the Islamic state's independence, President Mohammad Khatami (news - web sites) said Wednesday.

"America does not like an independent Iran, the question is how far they can (take away Iran's independence), and ... what price they would have to pay to achieve that end," he told a news conference after a weekly cabinet meeting.

Tehran and Washington, enemies since the 1979 Islamic revolution, have been engaged in a fierce war of words in recent weeks.

Bush has accused Iran's clerical leaders of sponsoring terrorism, trampling on human rights and secretly building nuclear arms, although he stressed during a visit to Germany on Wednesday that diplomatic efforts to resolve the differences were only just beginning.

Iran dismisses the U.S. charges as propaganda and accuses the United States of conducting arrogant and destructive policies in the Middle East in support of its ally, Israel.

"I believe that if he (Bush) has any sense he should know they can't (overturn Iran's independence), and if they can, the price they will pay is far heavier than we would," Khatami said.

Iranian officials consider regaining independence in foreign and domestic affairs as one of the most notable successes of the revolution which toppled the U.S.-backed shah.

Speaking in Brussels Tuesday, Bush said the idea he was preparing to bomb Iran was "ridiculous" but did not rule out the possibility of using military action in future.

"The difference in his comments this time was that he denied the military option with stress, although he said all options are on the table," Khatami said.

North Korea

Yeah, I'm kinda back. Sorry this is old news. This is from my website thedrafted.tk.

"Look at North Korea, braggin' and a boastin' 'bout their weapons of mass destruction. Thats just great, there's no doubt in our minds that the words they say are true, THEY GOT NUKES! NORTH KOREA NORTH KOREA! Now look at Iraq, we've got their country beat up for a so called reason. They are supposed to have big weapons, just like the one of the country forementioned..."-from "North Korea", by The Drafted

Kim Jung il has formally admitted that North Korea has a nuclear weapons program. He ain't negotiatin' either. So what should we do? A big ol' bunch of people down in Washington probably think we should tear 'em up. Here's my opinion:

Since they claim to have developed nukes from fear of U.S. aggression, we should get rid of our own.

It seems naive, but you really can't blame them for being affraid of us. George Bush is a freakin' moron and the world hates him. We're not helping ourselves by telling everyone they can't have nukes while we have more than anyone else, it only generates more hatred toward the U.S. Destroying our nuclear weapons will set a good example for other nuclear nations and would most likely have positive effects. If we use the destruction of our own nukes as a negotion tactic, we could save many more lives than if we took the war to Korea. Kim Jung il is not a new Hitler; Hitler laid out exactly what he was going to do in Mein Kampf, then pretended to negotiate with Britain and the Soviet Union. Kim Jung il says he developed the nuke program to protect North Korea from America and will not talk about destroying them. I think our first move should be to leave him the hell alone, giving him less reasons to want to use his weapons on us. North Korea...has no capability of doing what Germany did to cause World War II, so why waste our time on them? However, if he does try to invade South Korea or something, we SHOULD help stop him, since we're responsible for there being a North and South Korea in the first place (remember the Korean war?). But we should not use nuclear weapons on them or anyone else. We have plenty of non-nuclear weapons that will do just fine.

The Republicans: "Okay, Okay, FINE, we want to go to war with North Korea so we can LIBERATE its people from their horrible, insane, rutheless, opressive dictator. If you're against LIBERATIN' then you HATE FREEDOM!

Lemme give you an example of another country whose people are killed and grossly mistreated by their leaders besides pre-war Iraq and North Korea: Saudi Arabia. Now, why hasn't anyone talked about going to war with Saudi Arabia? Here's a hint, they have billions of dollars invested in our banks, if we piss them off they could put us into another depression. This shows that we only beat up on countries who don't help us economically, which shows that we're a huge bully, a bully with nukes, which scares the hell out of the rest of the world. Saudi Arabia likes us, in fact. The Bush family is actually quite close to the Saudi royal family. Being on the good side of an opressive dictatorship is something Bush is used to.

Besides, if we leave him alone and he nukes us anyway, we won't be around to regret it. I know that sounds awful, but sometimes awful is just what the truth is.