IRAQ: ONE BIG FUCKED UP MESS

How bad are things over there?

We know there's a bloody insurgency causing mounting US casualties. We know about the abuses of Abu Ghraib. We know the invasion was founded on lies and the imperial ambitions of the neo-cons in the Bush administration. We know the war has taken advantage of raw and painful American emotion in the wake of 9/11. But now it's really starting to sound like Catch-22 or Paths of Glory. That is, beyond all reason.

From the AP via the Houston Chronicle:

Reserve unit defies order to deliver fuel in Iraq

The Army is investigating members of a Reserve unit in Iraq who refused to deliver a fuel shipment to a town north of Baghdad under conditions they considered unsafe, the Pentagon and relatives of the soldiers said Friday. Several soldiers called it a "suicide mission," relatives said.

About 18 members of the 343rd Quartermaster Company were detained at gunpoint for nearly two days after disobeying orders to drive trucks that they said had not been serviced and were not being escorted by armed vehicles to Taji, about 15 miles north of Baghdad, relatives said after speaking to some of the soldiers.

Jackie Butler of Jackson, Miss., the wife of Staff Sgt. Michael Butler, 44, said she was awakened about 5:30 or6 a.m. Thursday by a call from an officer from Iraq. He told her "that my husband was being retained for disobeying a direct order," Butler said, "and he went on to tell me that it was a bogus charge that they got against him and some of those soldiers over there, because what they were doing was sending them into a suicide mission, and they refused to go."

Click here for the rest.

Meanwhile, Bush and Kerry debate the best way to continue the war, and most people don't seem to have any problem with it. America is completely insane.

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Brain chip reads mind by tapping straight into neurons

This appears to be a legitimate article. From Nature.com courtesy of J. Orlin Grabbe:

A pill-sized brain chip has allowed a quadriplegic man to check e-mail and play computer games using his thoughts. The device can tap into a hundred neurons at a time, and is the most sophisticated such implant tested in humans so far.

And

In June 2004, surgeons implanted a device containing 100 electrodes into the motor cortex of a 24-year-old quadriplegic. The device, called the BrainGate, was developed by the company Cyberkinetics, based in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Each electrode taps into a neuron in the patient's brain.

The BrainGate allowed the patient to control a computer or television using his mind, even when doing other things at the same time. Researchers report for example that he could control his television while talking and moving his head.

Click here for the rest.

Of course, this really excites the fanboy in me--this is one of those crystal clear moments that I get every few years when I see science fiction becoming just plain old science. The ramifications for such technology are staggering: imagine the bionic limbs of The Six Million Dollar Man; imagine Doctor Octopus. On the other hand, one wonders what this might mean in the way of mind control. If people can now electronically manipulate objects with their brains, isn't the reverse possible? Could brains be electronically manipulated?

Kinda creepy, if you ask me.

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BANANA REPUBLICANS
Four from BuzzFlash

It appears as though the Republicans are trying, once again, to practice junta-democracy. That is, anti-democracy, and this time it's all over the place, instead of only in Florida.

From the London Guardian:

Milwaukee Extra Ballot Request Rejected

The mayor has requested more ballots for the Nov. 2 election, but the county executive has refused to provide them, citing concerns about voter fraud.

Mayor Tom Barrett complained that the 679,000 ballots the county agreed to print were less than the number prepared for elections in 2000 and 2002. He asked for almost 260,000 additional ballots, expecting a large turnout next month.

And

Barrett and Walker both hold nonpartisan offices, but Walker is a state co-chairman of President Bush's campaign, and Barrett is state co-chairman of Sen. John Kerry's campaign.

Click here for the rest.

Just to connect the dots a bit on this, high voter turnout tends to favor Democrats, but low voter turnout does the opposite. See what's at stake? On the whole, fewer ballots could very easily translate into fewer votes for Democrats.

From the Los Angeles Times:

GOP Consulting Firm Investigated for Voter Fraud Claims

Oregon's attorney general opened a criminal investigation Wednesday into allegations that Democratic voter registration forms were destroyed or discarded by a political consulting firm working for the Republican National Committee.

The allegations involve a voter registration drive conducted by Sproul & Associates, a Phoenix-based consulting organization that was hired by the RNC earlier this year and is headed up by the former executive director of the Arizona Republican Committee, Nathan Sproul.Sproul has become entangled in controversial allegations in at least three states where his company was conducting registration drives paid for by the RNC.

RNC officials acknowledged Wednesday that Sproul was paid to conduct the registrations.

Click here for the rest.

Three states. Voter registration fraud. Republican National Committee. Is this going on everywhere?

Meanwhile the situation in Nevada, where Sproul is already knee-deep in a similar scandal, gets worse. From the Daily Kos:

VOTER SUPPRESSION

On Friday, October 8, Dan Burdish, the former director of the Nevada Republican Party attempted to throw out the voting rights of 17,000 Clark County Citizens.

Dan Burdish admitted in the Las Vegas Review Journal he is "looking to take Democrats off the voter rolls." [Las Vegas Review Journal, 10/10/04]

The 17,000 votes the GOP is trying to throw away belong to people who have been categorized as "inactive voters".

Inactive voters still have the right to vote in Clark County. They have only been moved to that category because the Clark County Election Department's efforts to reach them by mail were unsuccessful. But, again, they still have the legal right to vote.

Click here for more.

And let's not forget Florida, the site of the election theft of 2000. From the Washington Post:

Groups Say That Blacks May Not Be Heard at Polls

Nearly a dozen African American ministers and civil rights leaders walked into the Duval County election office here, television cameras in tow, with a list of questions: How come there were not more early voting sites closer to black neighborhoods? How come so many blacks were not being allowed to redo incomplete voter registrations? Who was deciding all this?

Standing across the office counter under a banner that read "Partners in Democracy" was the man who made those decisions, election chief Dick Carlberg. Visibly angry, the Republican explained why he decided the way he had: "We call it the law."

Black leaders said the scene at the supervisor's office last week was reminiscent of a blocked schoolhouse door at the height of desegregation. They charge that GOP officials are deliberately using the law to keep black people off the rolls and hinder them from voting.

And

A Washington Post analysis found nearly three times the number of flagged Democratic registrations as Republican. Broken down by race, no group had more flagged registrations than blacks.

Click here for more.

Needless to say, African-Americans overwhelmingly vote Democratic. This is awful. On the whole, I'd say that the stage is now set for widespread chaos and rioting on election day. Calling in the UN to monitor elections is really not a bad idea at all; the US is looking more and more like a banana republic. Of course, the GOP would never allow the UN to monitor the election--it'd spoil all their fun.

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dos chicas ROCKS!
Little Fascist Panties

My old theater home in Houston is kicking ass and taking names. From the Houston Press:

How can Morgan and his dos chicas theater commune follow that, you ask? By offering up Little Fascist Panties.

Morgan's latest play, which opens this weekend at Helios, tells the story of Jenna (Tanya Fazal), who's been on the streets since she was 14. She's thrilled to be taken in by two seemingly caring strangers, lovers Lisle and Mia (played by Morgan and his wife, Anne Zimmerman). But Mia turns out to be a domineering, ruthless killer, who becomes all the more incensed when the transvestite Lisle is beaten by a john. Suddenly, Jenna's world becomes nightmarish, and she realizes that the couple's charity comes with a tremendous price.

"I try to keep [my plays] as funny as possible," says Morgan. Wait -- what? This all sounds about as funny as organized crime and spousal abuse. Ah, but Morgan has written comedies about those topics, too. (The latter is called Where's My Dinner, Bitch?) Wittingly or not, Morgan seems to be creating a genre. This is comedy at its darkest: His plays are self-indulgent orgies of everything heretical, misogynist and offensive. Call it avant-garde; call it sensationalist; whatever it is, don't bring your kids. Or your grandmother. Or a first date.

Click here for the rest.

Bob Morgan is truly maturing as a playwright. He's been working with offensive, edgy, bloody, sexual, David Lynchian humor for as long as I've known him, but something has happened to his work in the past couple of years: unlike Lynch, Bob is now infusing this style with coherent meaning. That is, Bob's sex and gore gags are no longer simply for cheap thrills and laughs; as his piles of theatrical body parts and child molestations grow ever higher, social and psychological commentary seamlessly inserts itself into the bloody mix. dos chicas' homespun plays are downright thought-provoking. Bob really is creating a new genre.

This is one of the few things about Houston that I miss. If you're there, don't miss out.

For a "capsule review" of the show by a different critic, click here and scroll down a bit.

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THE NEW FLORIDA BALLOT

Guaranteed to give the same results as before. Check it out.

Well, it made me laugh.

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CHRISTOPHER REEVE ON THE RELIGIOUS RIGHT

In the context of the stem cell debate, that is. From Reader's Digest courtesy of The Vast Left-Wing Conspiracy:

RD: How have political decisions slowed stem cell research?

Reeve: The religious right has had quite an influence on the debate. I don't think that's appropriate. When we're setting public policy, no one segment of society deserves the only seat at the table. That's the way it's set in the Constitution. So debate all we want, hear from everybody. And then allow our representatives to weigh the factors and make laws that are going to be ethically sound, moral, responsible, but not the result of undue pressure from any particular entity.

Way to go, Superman!

Click here for the rest; it's mostly an Oprah-style interview, but not so bad if you're into Reeve.

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US TROOPS COMMIT ATROCITIES IN IRAQ

From A Tiny Revolution courtesy of Eschaton, reporter Seymour Hersh relates a tale told to him by an American soldier in Iraq:

They were a couple weeks together, they knew each other. So orders came down from the generals in Baghdad, we want to clear the village, like in Samarra. And as he told the story, another platoon from his company came and executed all the guards, as his people were screaming, stop. And he said they just shot them one by one. He went nuts, and his soldiers went nuts. And he's hysterical. He's totally hysterical. And he went to the captain. He was a lieutenant, he went to the company captain. And the company captain said, "No, you don't understand. That's a kill. We got thirty-six insurgents."

You read those stories where the Americans, we take a city, we had a combat, a hundred and fifteen insurgents are killed. You read those stories. It's shades of Vietnam again, folks, body counts...

Click here for the rest.

Abu Ghraib was just a snapshot. This is fucking awful, and it's just going to get worse as the war continues. We've learned nothing.

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REPUBLICANS SUBVERT DEMOCRACY
Voter Registrations Possibly Trashed

From Las Vegas' KLAS-TV courtesy of Eschaton courtesy of the Daily Kos:

Employees of a private voter registration company allege that hundreds, perhaps thousands of voters who may think they are registered will be rudely surprised on election day. The company claims hundreds of registration forms were thrown in the trash.

Anyone who has recently registered or re-registered to vote outside a mall or grocery store or even government building may be affected.

The I-Team has obtained information about an alleged widespread pattern of potential registration fraud aimed at democrats. Thee focus of the story is a private registration company called Voters Outreach of America, AKA America Votes.

The out-of-state firm has been in Las Vegas for the past few months, registering voters. It employed up to 300 part-time workers and collected hundreds of registrations per day, but former employees of the company say that Voters Outreach of America only wanted Republican registrations.

And

Another source said the company has now moved on to Oregon where it is once again registering voters.

Click here for the rest.

Uh...I hear about this kind of crap and think to myself, "In a more civilized country this would be a good cause for civil war." I'm infuriated. How about you?

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HOUSTON ASTROS ADVANCE
TO NATIONAL LEAGUE FINALS

From the AP via the Houston Chronicle:

It took 43 years, but the Houston Astros are finally postseason winners.

Carlos Beltran hit two more homers and drove in five runs, while original Killer B's Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell chipped in during a five-run seventh inning that carried the Astros to a 12-3 rout of the Atlanta Braves today in the deciding Game 5 of their first-round NL playoff series.

The Astros snapped an 0-for-7 record of futility in the playoffs against their longtime nemesis. The Braves eliminated Houston in 1997, '99 and '01, but they couldn't escape their own postseason demons this time.

And

Bagwell and Biggio, who took much of the blame for Houston's futility, finally silenced their critics. Biggio was 8-of-20 (.400) with a homer and four RBIs in the series. Bagwell was 7-of-22 (.318) with two homers and five RBIs.

But no one was better than the newest B.

Beltran was 10-of-22 (.455) with four homers and eight RBIs in the five-game series.

The Astros underachieved much of the season. Phil Garner took over as manager at the All-Star break, and Houston had to win 36 of its last 46 games just to get the wild card.

Click here for the rest.

There's an irony in this for me. The last time the Astros were in the National League championship series was the fall of 1986: that was my first year away from home at college. Sadly, the Astros, despite an incredible pitching staff boasting Nolan Ryan, Joe Niekro, and Mike Scott, lost to the Mets that year, and I had to watch from Austin. This year, I'm away from home for my first year of grad school, and damn if it doesn't happen again! When I saw the score on the front page of the Houston Chronicle's website during the ninth inning, I desperately tried to tune in the game on AM radio, and I actually found something but there was so much interference and static, I gave up after a few minutes. No doubt the NLCS will be on national TV. It better be, damn it. Time for this lazy fan to buy some peanuts and popcorn.

Go Astros!

For Astros team history, click here. For an earlier Real Art post on the Astros and my on-and-off love affair with baseball in general, click here.

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THE DEATH OF SUPERMAN
Farewell Christopher Reeve

From the AP via the Houston Chronicle:

Superman actor Christopher Reeve, who turned personal tragedy into a public crusade and from his wheelchair became the nation's most recognizable spokesman for spinal cord research, has died. He was 52.

Reeve died Sunday of complications from an infection caused by a bedsore. He went into cardiac arrest Saturday, while at his Pound Ridge home, then fell into a coma and died Sunday at a hospital surrounded by his family, his publicist said.

And

Before the 1995 horse-riding accident that caused his paralysis, Reeve's athletic, 6-foot-4-inch frame and love of adventure made him a natural choice for the title role in the first Superman movie in 1978. He insisted on performing his own stunts.

"Look, I've flown, I've become evil, loved, stopped and turned the world backward, I've faced my peers, I've befriended children and small animals and I've rescued cats from trees," Reeve told the Los Angeles Times in 1983, just before the release of the third Superman movie. "What else is there left for Superman to do that hasn't been done?"

Though he owed his fame to it, Reeve made a concerted effort to, as he often put it, "escape the cape." He played an embittered, crippled Vietnam veteran in the 1980 Broadway play Fifth of July, a lovestruck time-traveler in the 1980 movie Somewhere in Time, and an aspiring playwright in the 1982 suspense thriller Deathtrap.

More recent films included John Carpenter's Village of the Damned, and the HBO movies Above Suspicion and In the Gloaming, which he directed. Among his other film credits are The Remains of the Day, The Aviator, and Morning Glory.

Click here for the rest.

Sometimes I wonder why my extreme left-wing views haven't turned me into one of those angry, drooling-at-the-mouth, communist America-haters. Of course, numerous influences throughout my life have kept my love for America strong, but Superman is, by far, among the biggest. Christopher Reeve's portrayal of the comic book character made an impact on me when I was a child that has lasted well into my adulthood.

From Superman the Movie:

LOIS Look. Just why are you in the in first place? I mean , why are you here? There must be a reason.

SUPERMAN I'm here to fight for truth justice, and the American way.

LOIS You'll wind up fighting almost every elected official in this country.

SUPERMAN I'm sure you don't really mean that, Lois.

In addition to his Superman work, Reeve was a damned fine actor in general. In Somewhere in Time, Reeve went toe-to-toe with Jane Seymour and Christopher Plummer and not only lived to tell about it, but also stole several scenes. He also worked well with Michael Caine in Deathtrap. Reeve has been an inspiration to me as an actor since I was a kid. I'm truly saddened by his passing.

Farewell, Christopher Reeve.





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ALL MATT DAY AT REAL ART

Once again, I've let the links my old buddy Matt has sent me pile up in the Real Art in box. That can only mean one thing: it's now time for another All Matt Day. So, without any further ado, let's get to it.

Item #7,510: DeLay is evil

From Reuters via Capitol Hill Blue:

Police officials from across the country on Wednesday warned that dangerous assault weapons will flood U.S. streets if the ban on those guns expires next week but Republican congressional leaders expressed no concerns about letting the restriction lapse.

"I think the will of the American people is consistent with letting it expire, and so it will expire," Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a Tennessee Republican, told reporters.

Asked why Congress wanted to legalize the military-style weapons again when public opinion polls found broad public support for keeping them illegal, House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, a Texas Republican said, "We don't do things by polls."

And

Several pro-ban lawmakers repeated their call for President Bush to speak out for the continued prohibition on these weapons. Bush in his 2000 campaign backed the ban but has not worked for its extension.

DeLay said, "If the president asked me, it'd still be no.. It will expire Monday, and that's that."

Click here for the rest.

Of course, this was a few weeks ago, and the assault weapons ban, unfortunately, is now history. I knew about this when it was happening about a month ago, but I didn't really know about DeLay's cavalier comments on the issue. He is truly a sleaze-bag. Thanks to Matt for giving me more reasons to despise him.

From SiliconValley.com:

Torch-bearing mob of fair-use advocates marches on Capitol

Is the House intellectual property subcommittee an RIAA subsidiary? Clearly it must be if it's truly approved The Piracy deterrence and Education Act (PDEA). Sewn together from pieces of anti-peer-to-peer legislation exhumed and reanimated by clever little entertainment cartel trolls, the PDEA is a Frankenstein's monster of copyright law. Among other things, the law would create the first criminal copyright penalties for those who haven't engaged in willful criminal conduct.

Click here for the rest.

Okay, I must admit that I've benefited from file-sharing in a way that the RIAA wouldn't at all like, and I must also admit that I believe they've got a point. However, I still buy CDs and, frankly, the aggressiveness with which they've gone after illegal file-sharers coupled with their endless stream of bland, lame offerings at exorbitant prices has motivated me to say the hell with my legal purchases; I'm going to download as much as I can, those bastards. That is, this is a much more complicated situation than the black and white portrayal of "theft" offered by the recording industry would suggest. The bottom line is that technology has rendered their business model moot. It's time for them to figure out something that has some sort of economic sense to it, rather than depending on Big Government to do all their dirty work.

Next, a New York Times review of a new anti-Bush documentary, Hijacking Catastrophe:

A Plan to Create a New World Order

They suggest that the real reason for the war with Iraq is a two-decade, three-administration, neo-conservative master plan to--well, let's let Norman Mailer say the words, as he does in the film. At the end of the cold war, he proposes, the Republicans saw a "golden opportunity, now that Russia is out of the way, to take over the world." Or as the author Chalmers Johnson says on camera, without irony, they wanted to create "a new Rome, beyond good and evil."

You don't hear phrases like "take over the world" often these days without a James Bond movie review attached, but "Hijacking Catastrophe: 9/11, Fear and the Selling of American Empire" makes a convincing case with simple methods: talking heads, newspaper articles, an authoritative narrator (Julian Bond) and the occasional chart on military spending or the national debt.

The voices speaking out are not all wild-eyed liberals. In addition to predictable administration critics like Mr. Mailer, Noam Chomsky and Daniel Ellsberg, they include Scott Ritter, a former United Nations weapons inspector in Iraq; Stan Goff, a retired Army Special Forces master sergeant; and Lt. Col. Karen Kwiatkowski (Air Force, retired), a former staff officer at the Pentagon. Their arguments appear to support the filmmakers' most serious accusations.

Click here for the rest.

This sounds like a pretty good film, even if the argument appears to be one I've been hearing for a couple of years now. It seems to me that the whole America-as-Rome point of view is totally obvious to anyone who is willing to look at the facts in an unbiased way. The problem is that Americans are extraordinarily biased: it seems virtually impossible to cut through the "America is a force for democracy and justice" belief drilled into children from their first day in public school. That is, the argument presented in this documentary is pretty difficult for most Americans to accept, despite is veracity. That's why we need more of this stuff.

Okay, that wraps it up for this latest installment of All Matt Day. I've actually got a few more links on hand that Matt sent me, so I'll probably be having another AMD soon.

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BUSH: RADIO CONTROLLED BY KARL ROVE?

From This Modern World:

Bush's bulge

No, I don't mean the sock he stuffed in that flight suit, but rather the odd boxy-shape under the back of his suit jacket during the first debate. (Also note the snaky cable-like shape that appears to run up to his neck).

If he had a transmitter of some sort, it would at least explain that strange moment in which he barked out, "Let me finish!"--even though he had time left on the clock and, well, no one had interrupted him. No one we could hear, at any rate.

Click here for the rest.

Of course, cheating in the presidential debates is among the least of Bush's misdeeds, but it's certainly worth mentioning. I wouldn't be surprised at all if this were true, either. For years now, countless Americans have firmly believed that W is just plain stupid. That he might need a wireless receiver to dictate his debate responses makes such a belief all the more credible. However, such a thought raises a very reasonable question: who the hell is really running the country?

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Faith-Based Economics

From CounterPunch courtesy of J. Orlin Grabbe:

The US economy has ceased to create jobs in tradable goods and services. The disastrous September payroll jobs data are a repeat of the monthly trend that has held for the nearly four years of the Bush administration.

Of September's 96,000 new jobs, 73% are accounted for by two categories: government jobs and temporary help! There were only 59,000 private sector jobs created in September, and 33,000 of those--56%--are temps!

Manufacturing lost another 18,000 jobs. More Americans are employed in accommodations and food services than as production workers.

It is easy to blame the Bush administration, but the real blame lies with outsourcing and offshore production. By locating production for US markets offshore, US firms can substitute much cheaper foreign labor for US labor to make the goods and services sold to Americans.

And

Despite all evidence to the contrary, "free market," "free-trade" economists continue to give assurances that Americans are prospering from outsourcing.

Click here for the rest.

For years now I've listened to conservatives justify the most draconian of economic policies with the mantra "helping business creates more jobs." Indeed, my conservative older brother once told me that "a rising tide raises all the boats." It has become increasingly clear these past few years that such thinking is total bullshit. Maximizing profits is not at all the same thing as the welfare of the country. Ultimately, responsible Americans must ask this question: what responsibility to the country do businesses have? There is only one answer with any sense of morality at all. Unfortunately, neither Democrats nor Republicans seem to come to the same conclusion that I have.

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ECONOMICS SATURDAY

From The Economist courtesy of J. Orlin Grabbe:

George Bush comes out worst in our poll of academic economists

WOULD John Kerry or George Bush do a better job stewarding America's economy? Judging by the polls, voters are not sure. Within the past couple of months both candidates have had narrow leads on the issue. Ask economics professors, however, and you get a clearer answer.

In an informal poll of 100 academics, conducted by The Economist, Mr Bush's policies win low marks. More than 70% of the 56 professors who responded to our survey rate Mr Bush's first-term economic policies as bad or very bad. Fewer than 20% give positive marks to Mr Bush's second-term economic agenda, and almost six out of ten disapproved. Mr Kerry hardly got rave reviews either, but his economic plan still fared better than the president's did.

Click here for more.

And from ZNet:

Still Not Getting By In Bush's America

While income has sunk for the poor, the middle strata have seen their wages stagnate over the same period. Meanwhile healthcare costs, housing, education, gas and oil, and food have soared.

This growing disparity is of special concern as the jobs picture has looked bleak in the last three years. In the first two years of the Bush presidency, 2.6 million jobs were lost, nearly doubling the unemployment rate. While the Bush administration points to recent jobs creation to build a case for its reelection bid, over 1.5 million jobs remain unaccounted for. The jobs that have been created, says economist Art Perlo, may not even cover the number of people who entered the work force for the first time in the same period. This is certainly the case in recent months with only 112,000 jobs in June and 32,000 new jobs in July. At least 140,000 new jobs need to be added "each month just to absorb new workers," Perlo says.

Further, according to economists, 60 percent of the jobs that have been created pay less than the national average in wages, the vast majority are in the low-paying service sector, few provide benefits such as health care coverage, and as many as 1/5 are temp jobs. Currently, the national average of weekly wages is at its lowest point since the official end of the Bush recession in late 2001.

Click here for the rest.

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THE SLEAZY WORLD OF REPUBLICAN
HOUSE MAJORITY LEADER TOM DELAY

From the Houston Chronicle:

DeLay rebuked again for ethics violations

For the second time in less than a week, the House ethics committee admonished Republican leader Tom DeLay late Wednesday for two more brushes with House rules.

The lawmaker from Sugar Land was cited for apparently linking political donations to legislation and for recruiting federal aviation officials to help search for Texas House members who fled Austin last year.

Action on a third allegation involving DeLay's political fund-raising practices was deferred until a criminal investigation under way in Austin runs its course.

And

In its report Wednesday, the ethics panel found that DeLay "created an appearance" of favoritism when he attended a Virginia golf outing in 2003 with executives from Westar Energy just days after they gave $25,000 to one of his political committees.

The committee also expressed "serious concerns" about DeLay's effort to get the Federal Aviation Administration to help locate Texas Democratic lawmakers who had fled the state in an effort to thwart Republican legislators from passing a DeLay-engineered redistricting plan.

Click here for the rest.

And again from the Houston Chronicle:

PAC memo links DeLay to fund-raiser

A newly obtained memo indicates U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay had personal involvement in directing some of the fund-raising activities of a political action committee that is under a grand jury investigation.

Three of DeLay's political associates have been indicted by a Travis County grand jury on charges of illegal fund raising involving Texans for a Republican Majority, TRMPAC. DeLay, who was a TRMPAC founder, has distanced himself from its operations.

A memo obtained by the Houston Chronicle on Wednesday indicates DeLay was more than a passive participant in TRMPAC fund-raising events.

Click here for the rest.

I smell smoke. And where there's smoke...

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The Bush Second Term Agenda: Marginalization of Opposition

From Rob Salkowitz at Emphasis Added:

However, Movement Conservative hostility to the whole idea of government is only partially explained by rational objections to government inefficiency. Since the 1930s, "big government" has provided substantial, well-paid jobs to millions of ordinary Americans. Government provided a system for educated, upwardly-mobile people, including first- and second-generation Americans, minorities, and people who took advantage of the GI Bill and the expansion of state and city universities in the 1940s and 50s to advance into the ranks of the middle class without indoctrinating them into the conformist authority structure of corporate life or the petty-bourgeoise provincialism of the small businessman. It also provided a socially-sanctioned institutional platform from which they could exercise the authority of technocracy over the privileged and powerful, who resented (as always) having to answer for their often anti-social actions.

In other words, "big government" was not only wrong for exercising power over private interests, but also for putting that power in the hands of the "wrong" people - uppity middle-class professionals, overwhelmingly ethnic, urban, liberal and Democratic. For Movement Conservatives, opposition to "big government" is as much sociological and political as it is ideological and economic.

Click here for the rest.

Simply put, opposition to "big government" is opposition to democracy. One can imagine that if the wealthy class had a stronger grip on the federal bureaucracy, there would be no need for the anti-government conservative ideology that has haunted the United States for over thirty years. Thoroughly serving the needs of the economic elite, "big government" would be propagandized as good for the country. I'm reminded of the immediate flip-flop conservatives make on the issue of "state's rights" (another conservative rhetorical strategy for weakening the federal government) when states do something they don't like, medicinal marijuana for instance. The point is, and Salkowitz makes this extremely clear in his essay, that Movement Conservatives consciously concoct phony arguments in order to amass power. Clearly, they've been extremely successful with this.

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U.S. report finds no evidence of Iraq WMD

As if these findings were actually news. From the AP via the Houston Chronicle:

Contradicting the main argument for a war that has cost more than 1,000 American lives, the top U.S. arms inspector reported today that he found no evidence that Iraq produced any weapons of mass destruction after 1991. The report also says Saddam Hussein's weapons capability weakened during a dozen years of U.N. sanctions before the U.S. invasion last year.

Contrary to prewar statements by President Bush and top administration officials, Saddam did not have chemical and biological stockpiles when the war began and his nuclear capabilities were deteriorating, not advancing, according to the report by Charles Duelfer, head of the Iraq Survey Group.

And

White House spokesman Scott McClellan said Tuesday that Saddam "had the intent and capability" to build weapons of mass destruction, and that he was "a gathering threat that needed to be taken seriously, that it was a matter of time before he was going to begin pursuing those weapons of mass destruction."

But before the war, the Bush administration cast Saddam as an immediate threat, not a gathering threat who would begin pursuing weapons in the future.

Click here for the rest.

What's amazing about this latest report is not so much the information it contains--this has been known for some time, before the invasion even. What's amazing is that report after report along these lines have been making the mainstream news since about six weeks after the invasion began and Americans are not rioting in the streets!!!! The Bush administration did not make a mistake: they did everything they could to concoct a justification that could be fed to the masses in order to do what they already wanted to do. They lied to get us into a war that only benefits certain corporations and wealthy individuals. Tens of thousands of individuals from numerous nations are now dead or maimed, and the carnage continues. And, my god, Kerry and Bush debate about the best way to continue the fighting!!!! And most Americans seem to think this is all okay. What's going on?

Sometimes I think everybody is insane.

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Uncle Sam Will Soon Want Your Kids

A Col. David Hackworth essay from Soldiers for the Truth courtesy of J. Orlin Grabbe:

Although Pentagon puff artists insist they’re making quota, recruiters are already saying it would be easier to find $100 bills on the sidewalk outside a homeless shelter than fill their enlistment quotas, even with the huge bonuses now being paid.

So the draft – which will include both boys and girls this time around – is a no-brainer in ‘05 and ‘06.

Oh sure, the Pentagon suits will fight it. Volunteers tend to go with the flow and seldom blow the whistle on military stupidity, flawed tactics and self-serving leadership. And draftees don’t hesitate to make waves and tell the truth. Not to mention influential citizens with draft-age kids who’ll soon be demanding an answer to the same type of hard question their moms and dads shouted during the Vietnam War: “Hey, hey, LBJ, how many kids did you kill today?”

Rumsfeld, in fact, has already kicked off the anti-draft campaign by denigrating the draftees who fought in Vietnam. The SecDef, who prefers sycophants who don’t ask questions, recently stated that Vietnam-era draftees added “No value, no advantage, really, to the United States armed services ... because ... it took an enormous amount of effort in terms of training, and then they were gone.”

Wrong once again. I led draftees for almost four years in Vietnam and for several years during the Korean War. If well-led, there are no finer soldiers. Ask the Nazis, the Japanese and the Reds in Korea and in Vietnam, where “no value” draftees cleaned their clocks in fight after fight.

Click here for the rest.

I'm of two minds about a draft. On the one hand, I buy into the concept that draftees can keep the military honest, and bring popular pressure down on the government to shorten or end useless conflict. On the other hand, I'm very much of the opinion that, as long as the government, and therefore the military, are controlled by wealthy corporate forces, there can be no "just war" fought by the United States. A draft, then, would be forcing America's youth to do the dirty work of the corporations, at taxpayers' expense.

Ultimately, my heart guides me on this. In the event of a draft, if any of the first year freshmen to whom I teach beginning acting at LSU ask me what they should do, I already know my answer: don't go. Don't die for no good reason. Don't kill for no good reason. Live your life; fight for something important. Save lives instead.

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Did anyone take note of John Kerry the neocon?

On occasion, some conservatives get it right. From a William Safire essay via the Houston Chronicle:

First, on war-fighting in Iraq: Hard-liners criticized the Bush decision this spring not to send U.S. troops in to crush Sunni resistance in the Baathist stronghold in Fallujah. Our forces wanted to fight to win but soft-liners in Washington worried about the effect of heavier civilian casualties on the hearts and minds of Iraqis, and of U.S. troop losses on Americans.

Last week in debate, John Kerry — until recently, the antiwar candidate too eager to galvanize dovish Democrats — suddenly reversed field, and came down on the side of the military hard-liners.

And

Next, to grand strategy: Kerry was asked by Jim Lehrer, "What is your position on the whole concept of pre-emptive war?" In the past, Kerry has given a safe never-say-never response, but last week he gave a Strangelovian answer: "The president always has the right and always has had the right for pre-emptive strike." He pledged never to cede "the right to pre-empt in any way necessary" to protect the United States.

Click here for the rest.

Let's get this straight: Kerry is not an anti-war candidate. Kerry, in fact, is a pro-war candidate. His views on the Iraq invasion differ from Bush's only in that he wants to internationalize the conflict, a tall order to fill. If Kerry wins, the wars will continue.

Of course, Kerry can't help this because he is a corporatist. At this point in history, America wages war to protect the international corporate system. If you support the currently existing corporate domination of economics and political power, then you must support war. Really, it's all just imperialism with a new face.

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

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ON THE OTHER HAND...
If Roe overturned, 30 states ready to ban abortion

From the AP via the Houston Chronicle:

Thirty states are poised to make abortion illegal within a year if the Supreme Court reversed its 1973 ruling establishing a woman's legal right to an abortion, an advocacy group said today.

The Center for Reproductive Rights said some states have old laws on the books that would be triggered by the overturning of the landmark Roe v. Wade decision. Others have language in their state constitutions or strongly anti-abortion legislatures that would act quickly if the federal protection for abortion was ended and the issue reverted to the states.

"The building blocks are already in place to recriminalize abortion," said Nancy Northup, the center's president.

The group's report comes less than a month before the presidential election, which those on both sides of the abortion issue say will be critical in determining the future of the Roe decision.

Currently, it is believed that five of the nine justices support abortion rights, but that balance could be tipped if President Bush, in a second term, nominates a new justice who reflects his anti-abortion views. Democratic contender John Kerry is a strong supporter of abortion rights.

Click here for the rest.

Despite all my problems with Kerry's militarism and corporatism, this is one issue on which he has impeccable credentials. A woman's ability to choose what happens to her body is a sacred right. Not only is this a bedrock principle undergirding virtually all of what we consider to be human rights for both men and women, control of one's own body, but America's traditional belief in equality is also at stake here. Women cannot exist in society on an equal footing with men unless they are able to determine the circumstances under which they bring or do not bring a child into the world. Without abortion rights, women's rights in general are severely threatened. When you get right down to it, a vote for Bush, or anybody else but Kerry at this point, is a vote for a patriarchal nation, a male-dominated America. Even if you think that abortion is killing, you have to understand that there are many more important concepts in play--ideally, unwanted pregnancies can be greatly lessened with aggressive sex education and much wider availability of birth control, but I'm not holding my breath waiting for the anti-abortion zealots to reach across the aisle to join such a crusade.

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Louisiana's gay marriage amendment tossed out

From the AP via the Houston Chronicle:

A state judge today threw out a Louisiana constitutional amendment banning gay marriage, less than three weeks after it was overwhelmingly approved by the voters.

District Judge William Morvant said the amendment was flawed as drawn up by the Legislature because it had more than one purpose: banning not only gay marriage but also civil unions.

The courts had rejected a similar argument before the Sept. 18 election, saying it was premature.

Michael Johnson, an attorney for supporters of the amendment, said he will appeal the ruling.

Click here for the rest.

In their zeal to make sure that homosexuals continue to be marginalized, it appears that the homophobic majority of my new state's voters have overreached themselves. That is, it is apparently against the Louisiana Constitution to intermingle in an amendment two separate issues, even though they are related. I'm happy for the T.K.O. on this, but I'm sure the anti-gay crowd, if this place is anything like Texas at all, will be back next spring with two amendments, instead of one. I guess that's the South for you. Down here they like their chicken fried and their gays unmarried. Or dead if you're Jimmy Swaggart.

Now, would somebody explain to me once again why gay people shouldn't marry each other? Oh yeah: it's a threat to the institution of marriage. Now that I think about it, all this talk of gay weddings is making me want to leave my wife.

Just kidding.

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TWO FROM THE NATION
The President's Character

First, an essay on the meaning of Dan Rather's 60 Minutes boo-boo:

Where Rather Was Right

If, as seems to be the case, the underlying point of the 60 Minutes II episode was accurate, then it's a sad comment on the rest of the press that they have relentlessly and repeatedly focused on what Dan got wrong and relatively ignored what Dan got right (namely, that pressure was put on Killian to "sugar coat" Bush's National Guard record, that Bush got into the Guard via favoritism, that he got paid for meetings he didn't attend, that he missed the physical he signed up for, and all the rest).

What Rather got right relates to yet another presidential narrative--the one having to do with the President's character. If indeed Bush skipped out on his National Guard obligations at the time, that does not speak well for his character then. And if he arranged to have this dereliction expunged from his file after he became President, that does not speak well for his character now. (It may also be a violation of the law.)

Click here for the rest.

Next, an interview with Princeton ethicist, Peter Singer:

The Ethics of George W. Bush

You've called George Bush an ethical "adolescent." What do you mean by that?

Lawrence Kohlberg argues that most people go through certain stages of moral development. Using his categories, and looking at some of the moral judgments Bush makes--not so much the substance of the judgments as the way in which he reaches his judgments--it seems to me that Bush is at a stage that is typical of adolescent boys. Most, though not all of them, later go on to a more reflective view of morality. Bush appears not to have done so.

Click here for the rest.

I studied some Kohlberg when I was getting certified to teach. I think that this might be the stage of moral development that Singer is talking about:

In the first stage of this level, people behave according to socially acceptable norms because they are told to do so by some authority figure (e.g., parent or teacher). This obedience is compelled by the threat or application of punishment. The second stage of this level is characterized by a view that right behavior means acting in one's own best interests.

At first, I thought that Singer might be referring to the "law and order" phase that comes some time after the "one's own best interests" phase. But, no. Bush really doesn't seem to give a damn about the law--it's all about helping out the wealthy class, his own people.

This Kohlberg stuff is pretty interesting, especially the thought that morality changes depending upon the perspective and experience of the person making a given moral decision. It's also pretty sad:

The third level of moral thinking is one that Kohlberg felt is not reached by the majority of adults. Its first stage (stage 5) is an understanding of social mutuality and a genuine interest in the welfare of others. The last stage (stage 6) is based on respect for universal principle and the demands of individual conscience.

(Emphasis mine.)

What this means is that most people never reach a level of moral understanding that I would consider to be enlightened. Really, this isn't rocket science either; I'm talking about what most people would recognize to be the moral principles espoused by Jesus Christ. People seem to have an intellectual understanding of higher morality, but just don't seem to be able to put their money where their mouths are. That is, their day to day behavior belies what they give lip service to.

Especially conservative fundamentalists. Like the President.

For more on Kohlberg's theory of moral development, click here.

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TWO FROM WORKING FOR CHANGE
Another Kickass Journalists Edition

From the New York Times' resident Princeton economist, Paul Krugman:

America's Lost Respect

Three years ago, the United States was both feared and respected: feared because of its military supremacy, respected because of its traditional commitment to democracy and the rule of law.

Since then, Iraq has demonstrated the limits of American military power, and has tied up much of that power in a grinding guerrilla war. This has emboldened regimes that pose a real threat. Three years ago, would North Korea have felt so free to trumpet its conversion of fuel rods into bombs?

But even more important is the loss of respect. After the official rationales for the Iraq war proved false, and after America failed to make good on its promise to foster democracy in either Afghanistan or Iraq - and, not least, after Abu Ghraib - the world no longer believes that we are the good guys.

Click here for the rest.

And from the investigative journalist who's so good he can't work in the US, Greg Palast, an analysis of the first Presidential debate:

Mr. Tall and Mr. Small

Here's what Mr. Tall said... in my dreams:

"Beginning in March 2001, your Administration began a series of meetings with oil company executives to map the conquest of Iraq and its oil, a plan Americans would pay for in blood. You originally called this scheme, 'Operation Iraqi Liberation' -- O.I.L. We don't appreciate your little joke, Mr. Small."

"One month after seizing Baghdad you fired General Jay Garner, the man you put in charge of Iraq, after he called for rapid elections in Najaf; after he refused to impose your plans to sell off Iraq's oil fields. In Najaf, citizens denied ballots turned to bullets. And then, as General Garner predicted, the seizure of Iraq's assets resulted in the type of war one expects -- when seeking to impose colonial control."

"Mr. Small, you claim we've given a thousand lives to bring democracy to the Mid-east. But so far, Mr. Small, your democracy comes down to a puppet prime minister we've installed in Iraq and a puppet government the Saudis have installed in Washington."

Click here for the rest.

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Democrats call for more inquiries against DeLay

Of course they do. But this is interesting; it turns out that DeLay has been admonished by the House Ethics Committe for a rules breach that I wasn't even following.

From the Houston Chronicle:

A public admonishment of Majority Leader Tom DeLay by the House ethics committee spurred Democrats to call for further investigations and liberal interest groups to question how much longer he can hold onto power.

In a rare reproach of a House leader, the committee issued a report late Thursday saying that the Sugar Land Republican had violated House rules by offering to trade a favor for a vote on a Medicare reform bill last fall.

But don't forget, Lizard King Tom DeLay has been admonished in the past, is surrounded by people under indictment, and is still in hot water because of some far more serious allegations:

The committee's sanction marked the third incident in nine days related to DeLay and alleged ethical breaches.

Last week, three of his top political aides were indicted in Austin on charges of illegal fund-raising. This week, a former aide and a political ally were subpoenaed to testify about questionable lobbying practices involving Indian tribes.

In 1999, the House ethics committee, formally known as the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, issued a letter privately admonishing DeLay for improperly pressuring trade groups to not hire Democrats. Two years earlier, DeLay was cautioned by the committee to not solicit political funds on federal property.

The committee also is considering whether to launch a separate investigation into a three-part complaint against DeLay filed by Rep. Chris Bell, a Houston Democrat.

Bell's complaint accuses DeLay of abuse of power, misuse of government resources against Democratic legislators in Texas and improperly raising campaign contributions.

"What we are beginning to see is a clear pattern of misconduct," Bell said.

Click here for the rest.

Oh, how I hope they nail him!

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MY LEFT SHOE '04

Guest Blogger Miles

The bad news: one of these douchebags is our next president

One of the perks of being in a Government AP class is that I now get extra credit for things I'd be doing anyway. My extra credit this week was, as you may have guessed, to watch the debate. As painful as it is sometimes to watch politicans wax poetic about the greatness of this country, I'll never pass up an opportunity watch Bush squirm. As expected, his body language, tone, and thought processes resembled more of a sixth grade student forced to read a book report he didn't do, as opposed to the leader of the free world defending his job security. Even more discouraging for Bush than his presentation was the content. One quip by the Chimp in Chief made me put down my pencil and just wonder if he really meant what he said. Kerry was talking about how unsafe our ports are, and how he plans to beef up security along the coastline, particularly Florida's (not suprised; it's the site of the venue and a key battleground state). Then, from Bush, this:

I don't think we want to get to how he's going to pay for all these promises.

It was at this point that I realized Bush really didn't care if the public knew his tax cuts were BS. He's expecting taxpayers to value the average of ten or so bucks a week over real Homeland Security. In my opinion, that quote alone is enough to sink him in both the foreign and domestic policy debates. Those damn tax-and-spend liberals... when will they learn? Of course, the media failed to take note of such a massive slip, and focused primarily on body language (because we all know that's so much more important than what they're thinking). In any case, even the media had to concede that Bush's position was an abject failure, and that Kerry clearly won.

Posted by Miles.

As for me, I didn't really watch, but I did peek a bit here and there, and the moment when Bush had the balls, after all the information that's come to light, to claim that Iraq attacked us on 9/11 was my favorite outrageous remark. Good thing Kerry jumped on it.

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TALES FROM GRADUATE SCHOOL:
Funky, Cool Acting Exercises from NYC

If you are a regular Real Art reader, you might have noticed that my commentary has slowed down a great deal lately. Obviously, the summer has ended, but this year things are different because I'm studying acting in grad school. I'm still managing to post links and excerpts regularly, and I'll try to keep doing that, but time for me has become more of a premium than it ever has before. One of the things taking up my time (actually it's only an hour a day, but it's worth a blog post) is some outside the classroom training I'm doing.

LSU's professional theater company, Swine Palace Productions, has brought in a funky, cool group from New York, the SITI Company, to help stage a production of Macbeth. I'm not in the show, but the first year MFA acting students have been invited to take part in actor training sessions that are being hosted by the good people from SITI. Actually, one of SITI's founding members, Leon Ingulsrud, Macbeth's director, is on LSU's faculty--he's the reason, I think, SITI is even here in the fist place.

After a couple of weeks of this training, I must admit that I'm blown away, an experience that seems to be happening to me less frequently as the years go by.

Each hour of training is broken in two: for the first half hour we study Suzuki; the second half hour we study the Viewpoints. It's difficult to explain what this is all about. Suffice it to say, the work is both liberating and enlightening. The Suzuki work deals with, well, just read this excerpt from Tadashi Suzuki's bio:

Not just one of the world's foremost theatre directors, Suzuki is an important theorist about performance. The Suzuki Method is a system of exercises, designed to be a realization of Suzuki's Philosophy. The cornerstone of this philosophy is a belief in the fact that human beings possess the ability to tap into the expressive power of animal energy, and that theatre, as a context for this expression, is socially and spiritually crucial in the present-day global situation.

For more of Suzuki's bio, click here.

Of course that's all very abstract and esoteric, but it's right on the mark inasmuch as what I feel like I'm getting out of it. However, for a more concrete description of Suzuki's Method, read this excerpt from the Cal State at San Marcos website:

The Suzuki Method of Actor Training develops the actor's inner physical sensibilities, builds the will, stamina and concentration. The workshop activities include a series of exercises centered around the use of the feet in relation to one's center. These exercises are designed to throw the body off center while maintaining a consistent level of energy and not swaying the upper body. The energy necessary to accomplish this task is considerable and constitutes a primary focus of this work. In the course of doing these exercises the body becomes more centered, and thus changes the manner in which the actor views his/herself within their body. This change is also related to how the actor views their work onstage. Issues such as engrained habits become more apparent as do strengths and weaknesses. By developing the body awareness of the corporal center, and a consistent level of energy, primary elements of the actor's awareness are heightened.

Click here for the rest.

So far, this stuff seems to be having some payoff: my ability to focus and concentrate seems to be increasing, which is odd, given that the work seems to consist mostly of strange walks and painful bodily contortions while maintaining good posture.

The Viewpoints work, taught to us by SITI member, Barney O'Hanlon, also deals with the body, but it's aim is more about developing the actor's aesthetic sense. From director Brian Jucha's site:

My memory of the development of Viewpoints theory is they were created as "The Six Viewpoints" by Mary Overlie in 1977 and taught to me by Wendell Beavers as: SPATIAL RELATIONSHIPS, SHAPE, GESTURE, KINESTHETIC RESPONSE, NARRATIVE (story) and REPETITION. Anne Bogart began to develop the theory for use in theater and replaced NARRATIVE with ARCHITECTURE in the belief that stories were inherent in theater. In 1993, Mary Overlie told me that these named six viewpoints I and many others had been working with for some fifteen years were incorrect and that the Viewpoints were conceived of and have always been SPACE, STORY, TIME, EMOTION, MOVEMENT, and SHAPE (with the mnemonic STEMSS). Meanwhile, around this same time, Anne Bogart in her work with the SITI Company was creating an extension of her understanding of the original six viewpoints to include three new concepts: TEMPO, DURATION and TOPOGRAPHY.

So, what does it all boil down to?

Viewpoints Theory is a set of definable and recognizable tools from which we can create work and have the vocabulary to discuss it. The concepts extend from the fact that there are two givens in any performance situation whether it be theater, dance, performance, film or video.

We have SPACE. We have TIME.

Jucha offers one actor's (humorous) summation of the Viewpoints:

"When in doubt:

1. make a diagonal

2. be someone's shadow

3. see a gesture someone's making onstage - repeat it - either simultaneously or in canon

4. find a pillar - use it

5. find a corner - use it ("corners are poetic")

6. stand "too" close or "too" far from the person you're talking to

7. walk purposefully from one side of the stage to the other

8. lie upside down on a staircase - works best if you don't have to speak

9. "GET OFF THE FLOOR!"

10. do something else unless Brian says "that's a keeper"

11. After the staging is set - JUSTIFY IT! (of course this is the most important of all)"

Click here for the rest of the article.

This list may have been offered as something of a joke, but it doesn't seem to be a bad description of many of the ideas that we're working with. What's really amazing to me about the Viewpoints training is that every day, we are creating art with our bodies, and I don't mean crap art. The exercises that are designed to heighten our aesthetic sense essentially amount to spontaneous, improvised human compositions in space. There was a point last week when we were all dashing about on an imagined grid to a soundtrack of minimalist music that I suddenly had the most profound feeling that I was in Mondrian's Broadway Boogie Woogie. As the training has progressed, these spontaneous dances have become more sophisticated, more creative; I've almost been moved to tears on at least one occasion while watching other students, so beautiful was their work.

Like I said, I'm blown away.

It is important to note that the Jucha article mentions SITI. Indeed, their artistic director, Anne Bogart, was apparently in on the Viewpoints from their very beginning. Likewise, Leon, and his wife, Akiko Aizawa, who are teaching us Suzuki, trained extensively with Tadashi Suzuki. The point is that this training is putting me in close proximity to the source of these disciplines, which makes this all the more exciting.

Maybe I'm just culturally deprived after six years of teaching in Baytown, but, exhausted as I am, I feel like I'm in heaven.

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