The Hamster

News
WP. U.S. Warns Of Al Qaeda Threat This Summer; Agents in Country Said To Be Planning Attack
NYT. Abuse of Captives More Widespread, Says Army Survey
Miami Herald. Hispanics to carry clout at polls, group predicts
AP. Poll finds Arizonans split on Bush's job performance
AP. Bush edges Kerry in 'regular guy' poll
AP. Court Backs Oregon's Assisted Suicide Law
ABC. Anger Rising: Americans Increasingly Frustrated With Bush Iraq Policy
AP. 2nd death-penalty trial set for Muhammad
NYT. The Law: Who Would Try Civilians of U.S.? No One in Iraq
NYT. California Supreme Court Considers Gay Marriage Licenses
USAT. White House abuse memo criticized
USAT. Poll: Gas prices hurting summer vacation plans
USAT. AARP: Drug prices soaring
CNN. Database predicts July 21 for Kerry VP announcement
WP. U.N. Closes In on Choice To Lead Iraq
WP. General Is Said To Have Urged Use of Dogs
WP. Kerry Weighs Delaying Nomination

Commentary
E.J. Dionne, Jr. Avoiding another Florida fiasco: Lessons of 2000 -- and ways we can repair the system
DeWayne Wickham. Cosby isn't alone in asking blacks to own up to problems
Thomas Schaller. Democrats Grab Latino Votes: Could it be the difference in November?
P.J. Crowley. Staying - and Failing - the Course
Mary Lynn F. Jones. Un-American Activities: Republicans pouncing on Nancy Pelosi for "endangering" our troops should look in the mirror.
Matthew Yglesias. He Told You So; Howard Dean was written off last December when he said that Saddam Hussein's capture "has not made America safer." Ahem …
Daniel Forbes. What's the Big Idea? Liberalism's leading lights convene in New York to talk message

Posted by Eric at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)

DCCC Launches "DTripTV.com"

The website, http://www.dtriptv.com/, will aim to "entertain, inspire, and mobilize concerned Americans" with issuetainment stuff, such as this week's feature, 'Republican Survivor,' starring George W., Dick Cheney, John Ashcroft, Tom DeLay, Katherine Harris and Ann Coulter.

Posted by Eric at 08:58 PM | Comments (6)

DCCC Launches "DTripTV.com"

The website, http://www.dtriptv.com/, will aim to "entertain, inspire, and mobilize concerned Americans" with issuetainment stuff, such as this week's feature, 'Republican Survivor,' starring George W., Dick Cheney, John Ashcroft, Tom DeLay, Katherine Harris and Ann Coulter.

Posted by Eric at 08:58 PM | Comments (1)

3 More Marines Die in Iraq

AP:

Three U.S. Marines were killed in action Wednesday west of the Iraqi capital, the U.S. military said.

A statement from the command said the deaths occurred in Anbar province "while conducting security and stability operations." No further details were released due to security, the statement added.

Anbar province extends from the western suburbs of Baghdad and extends to the borders with Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. It includes such restive insurgency centers as Fallujah, Ramadi and Qaim.

Posted by Eric at 08:37 PM | Comments (1)

3 More Marines Die in Iraq

AP:

Three U.S. Marines were killed in action Wednesday west of the Iraqi capital, the U.S. military said.

A statement from the command said the deaths occurred in Anbar province "while conducting security and stability operations." No further details were released due to security, the statement added.

Anbar province extends from the western suburbs of Baghdad and extends to the borders with Syria, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. It includes such restive insurgency centers as Fallujah, Ramadi and Qaim.

Posted by Eric at 08:37 PM | Comments (0)

The-Hamster.com Cited in David Brock's Book

Thanks to David Brock for using the-hamster.com as a reference in his new book, The Republican Noise Machine : Right-Wing Media and How It Corrupts Democracy. I've gone through several chapters of it, and the book does not disappoint.

The reference was a poll FoxNews.com had on its website. This was the poll question and answers, which I cut and paste onto the website in October of 2002 (all the way back then, yes):

Babs Babbling? Barbra Streisand has urged Dems to 'go on the offensive' against the Iraq war. What do you think? Options: "She should shut up -- what does she know?" or "She's exercising her freedom of speech."

Fair and balanced polling indeed. Oh, and yeah, 85% said she should shut up.

EDIT: Brock also cited something from the old "The Hamster" site in which I noted that Bill O'Reilly lied during a call-in session on CSPAN at the 2003 Book Expo in Los Angeles. During the live chat, a caller claimed that O'Reilly made a comparison of the Koran to Mein Kampf. O'Reilly responded:

No, you can’t finish. Because once you lie, you’re out of the box. That’s the No Spin Zone. Get it? You can’t say on national television, even if it is C-SPAN, ‘You compared the Koran to Mein Kampf.’ That’s a lie, all right? So you’re out of the box.

However, on The O'Reilly Factor for July 10, 2002, O'Reilly had this exchange with Dr. Robert Kirkpatrick (ENGLISH PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA-CHAPEL HILL):

O'REILLY: I wouldn't read the book. And I'll tell you why I wouldn't have read "Mein Kampf" either. If I were going to UNC in 1941, and you, professor, said, Read "Mein Kampf," I would have said, Hey, professor, with all due respect, shove it. I ain't reading it.

For more on how the Right-Wing media lies, pick up: The Republican Noise Machine : Right-Wing Media and How It Corrupts Democracy.

Posted by Eric at 05:05 PM | Comments (24)

The-Hamster.com Cited in David Brock's Book

Thanks to David Brock for using the-hamster.com as a reference in his new book, The Republican Noise Machine : Right-Wing Media and How It Corrupts Democracy. I've gone through several chapters of it, and the book does not disappoint.

The reference was a poll FoxNews.com had on its website. This was the poll question and answers, which I cut and paste onto the website in October of 2002 (all the way back then, yes):

Babs Babbling? Barbra Streisand has urged Dems to 'go on the offensive' against the Iraq war. What do you think? Options: "She should shut up -- what does she know?" or "She's exercising her freedom of speech."

Fair and balanced polling indeed. Oh, and yeah, 85% said she should shut up.

EDIT: Brock also cited something from the old "The Hamster" site in which I noted that Bill O'Reilly lied during a call-in session on CSPAN at the 2003 Book Expo in Los Angeles. During the live chat, a caller claimed that O'Reilly made a comparison of the Koran to Mein Kampf. O'Reilly responded:

No, you can’t finish. Because once you lie, you’re out of the box. That’s the No Spin Zone. Get it? You can’t say on national television, even if it is C-SPAN, ‘You compared the Koran to Mein Kampf.’ That’s a lie, all right? So you’re out of the box.

However, on The O'Reilly Factor for July 10, 2002, O'Reilly had this exchange with Dr. Robert Kirkpatrick (ENGLISH PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA-CHAPEL HILL):

O'REILLY: I wouldn't read the book. And I'll tell you why I wouldn't have read "Mein Kampf" either. If I were going to UNC in 1941, and you, professor, said, Read "Mein Kampf," I would have said, Hey, professor, with all due respect, shove it. I ain't reading it.

For more on how the Right-Wing media lies, pick up: The Republican Noise Machine : Right-Wing Media and How It Corrupts Democracy.

Posted by Eric at 05:05 PM | Comments (5)

Your Bill for the War: $4,000

According to an estimate from Doug Henwood, as reported by Sean Gonsalves, that's your share:

Henwood pegs the military costs in Iraq to date at about $143 billion, with the tab rising $4 billion to $5 billion a month.

Reconstruction has cost about $20 billion so far, with another $50 billion to $100 billion still needed, Henwood reports.

"If the occupation goes on for three years, which is what the military pundits say is likely, the total bill could come to $362 billion. Add to that an estimated 0.5 percent knocked off GDP growth because of high oil prices, and that's another $50 billion," he says.

Add it all up, and the bill comes to nearly $4,000 per household, not including interest. "I wonder how people would react if they got a bill from Washington for that amount," he said.

Posted by Eric at 02:02 PM | Comments (33)

Your Bill for the War: $4,000

According to an estimate from Doug Henwood, as reported by Sean Gonsalves, that's your share:

Henwood pegs the military costs in Iraq to date at about $143 billion, with the tab rising $4 billion to $5 billion a month.

Reconstruction has cost about $20 billion so far, with another $50 billion to $100 billion still needed, Henwood reports.

"If the occupation goes on for three years, which is what the military pundits say is likely, the total bill could come to $362 billion. Add to that an estimated 0.5 percent knocked off GDP growth because of high oil prices, and that's another $50 billion," he says.

Add it all up, and the bill comes to nearly $4,000 per household, not including interest. "I wonder how people would react if they got a bill from Washington for that amount," he said.

Posted by Eric at 02:02 PM | Comments (9)

Kerry Double Digit Lead in California

According to the 'Field Poll' in the San Fran Chron. Interestingly enough, Nader doesn't get much support in the state:

President Bush lags behind Democrat John Kerry by 12 points in California, and is now down by more than 2-1 among the state's independent voters -- the critical bloc which may decide the election, a new Field Poll shows.

In a head-to-head matchup, Kerry batters Bush in California 51 percent to 39 percent, with independent Ralph Nader getting 4 percent of the vote and 6 percent undecided, the poll shows. Without Nader in the mix, Kerry's lead over Bush grows -- 55 percent to 40 percent -- with 5 percent undecided.

Posted by Eric at 01:56 PM | Comments (1)

Kerry Double Digit Lead in California

According to the 'Field Poll' in the San Fran Chron. Interestingly enough, Nader doesn't get much support in the state:

President Bush lags behind Democrat John Kerry by 12 points in California, and is now down by more than 2-1 among the state's independent voters -- the critical bloc which may decide the election, a new Field Poll shows.

In a head-to-head matchup, Kerry batters Bush in California 51 percent to 39 percent, with independent Ralph Nader getting 4 percent of the vote and 6 percent undecided, the poll shows. Without Nader in the mix, Kerry's lead over Bush grows -- 55 percent to 40 percent -- with 5 percent undecided.

Posted by Eric at 01:56 PM | Comments (0)

Questions, Smestions

Yeah, it'd be nice to know the answer to these questions:

How long will our troops be in Iraq?

Who will be in charge of the new Iraqi government after June 30?

What kind of control will the new Iraqi government have over U.S. military forces?

How much will our continuing commitment in Iraq cost American taxpayers?

On CNN, Madeleine Albright had similar concerns about the ambiguity and lack of answers from Bush.

First of all, there's still no guarantee that the Iraqi people will accept whatever interim government -- the sovereignty that we are going to turn over something to somebody -- but we're not clear yet what is what.

The other question is whether the security will really be adequate because [these are] the same points that were made before: the Americans will train the Iraqis. How long will that take?

Will there be help, in terms of the reconstruction of Iraq? Where will it come from? Who will do it? We have to let contracts [go] to somebody other than American companies.

Will there, in fact, be international assistance, generally, on providing a multi-national force? And will these elections really take place?

Posted by Eric at 03:49 AM | Comments (22)

Questions, Smestions

Yeah, it'd be nice to know the answer to these questions:

How long will our troops be in Iraq?

Who will be in charge of the new Iraqi government after June 30?

What kind of control will the new Iraqi government have over U.S. military forces?

How much will our continuing commitment in Iraq cost American taxpayers?

On CNN, Madeleine Albright had similar concerns about the ambiguity and lack of answers from Bush.

First of all, there's still no guarantee that the Iraqi people will accept whatever interim government -- the sovereignty that we are going to turn over something to somebody -- but we're not clear yet what is what.

The other question is whether the security will really be adequate because [these are] the same points that were made before: the Americans will train the Iraqis. How long will that take?

Will there be help, in terms of the reconstruction of Iraq? Where will it come from? Who will do it? We have to let contracts [go] to somebody other than American companies.

Will there, in fact, be international assistance, generally, on providing a multi-national force? And will these elections really take place?

Posted by Eric at 03:49 AM | Comments (6)

Herseth Continues Lead in SD

According to a Zogby poll, as reported in the Rapid City Journal, Stephanie Herseth maintains her lead:

Herseth leads Diedrich 52 percent to 41 percent, according to a poll of 503 likely voters conducted May 19 and 20 by Zogby International of Utica, N.Y., for South Dakota media outlets, including the Rapid City Journal. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percent.

Seven percent remain undecided ... Herseth spokesman Russ Levsen said the poll shows that Diedrich's substantial early gains have been harder to come by in recent weeks. Diedrich rose from about 30 percent support in February, when he was largely unknown, to 41 percent in this poll. Levsen said it is much tougher for candidates to close a gap from 40 percent to get the more than 50 percent needed for victory.

"I think this race has settled in. There are very few undecideds. People are where they are, and Stephanie is enjoying solid support," Levsen said. "I think it also drives home that after some negative attacks from Larry Diedrich, South Dakotans appreciate her positive approach on the issues."

Also in South Dakota, Tom Daschle has taken his lead and doubled it.

Posted by Eric at 03:10 AM | Comments (43)

Herseth Continues Lead in SD

According to a Zogby poll, as reported in the Rapid City Journal, Stephanie Herseth maintains her lead:

Herseth leads Diedrich 52 percent to 41 percent, according to a poll of 503 likely voters conducted May 19 and 20 by Zogby International of Utica, N.Y., for South Dakota media outlets, including the Rapid City Journal. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percent.

Seven percent remain undecided ... Herseth spokesman Russ Levsen said the poll shows that Diedrich's substantial early gains have been harder to come by in recent weeks. Diedrich rose from about 30 percent support in February, when he was largely unknown, to 41 percent in this poll. Levsen said it is much tougher for candidates to close a gap from 40 percent to get the more than 50 percent needed for victory.

"I think this race has settled in. There are very few undecideds. People are where they are, and Stephanie is enjoying solid support," Levsen said. "I think it also drives home that after some negative attacks from Larry Diedrich, South Dakotans appreciate her positive approach on the issues."

Also in South Dakota, Tom Daschle has taken his lead and doubled it.

Posted by Eric at 03:10 AM | Comments (7)

Lying Liar: Ben Shapiro

Ben Shapiro: lying liar. Link via ConWebWatch, The Daily Bruin of UCLA points out numerous problems with Ben Shapiro's new book, "Brainwashed: How Universities Indoctrinate America's Youth."

So how does Shapiro react to the numerous mistakes and problems?

Shapiro rescheduled Monday an in-person meeting that was supposed to take place that morning and asked to be interviewed by phone instead. Shapiro canceled the phone interview after being presented with the errors through e-mail and would only comment in a statement by e-mail.

"I stand behind the facts in my book, and behind the major point of my book: The overwhelming majority of professors are leftists, and their leftism enters the classroom," he wrote.

After canceling his interview, he did not return calls and messages left to his home and cell phone but responded in a later e-mail that he would not be able to talk for "the next several weeks."

He wrote that he is busy with the publicity campaign for his book, which in an interview last week he said would launch today.

Posted by Eric at 01:54 AM | Comments (226)

Lying Liar: Ben Shapiro

Ben Shapiro: lying liar. Link via ConWebWatch, The Daily Bruin of UCLA points out numerous problems with Ben Shapiro's new book, "Brainwashed: How Universities Indoctrinate America's Youth."

So how does Shapiro react to the numerous mistakes and problems?

Shapiro rescheduled Monday an in-person meeting that was supposed to take place that morning and asked to be interviewed by phone instead. Shapiro canceled the phone interview after being presented with the errors through e-mail and would only comment in a statement by e-mail.

"I stand behind the facts in my book, and behind the major point of my book: The overwhelming majority of professors are leftists, and their leftism enters the classroom," he wrote.

After canceling his interview, he did not return calls and messages left to his home and cell phone but responded in a later e-mail that he would not be able to talk for "the next several weeks."

He wrote that he is busy with the publicity campaign for his book, which in an interview last week he said would launch today.

Posted by Eric at 01:54 AM | Comments (11)

Hamster Numbers: Murder and the Death Penalty

Quoted from the Western Prison Project:

Number of murders and non-negligent manslaughters in 1999: 15,530

Number of persons sentenced to death in 1999: 282

Number of executions, 1999: 98

Number of people removed in 1999 from death row by dismissal of indictment, reversal of judgment, commutation, re-sentencing, order of new trial or death: 122

Ratio of death sentences to murders, 1999: 1 to 55

Ratio of executions to murders, 1999: 1 to 158

Posted by Eric at 01:36 AM | Comments (29)

Hamster Numbers: Murder and the Death Penalty

Quoted from the Western Prison Project:

Number of murders and non-negligent manslaughters in 1999: 15,530

Number of persons sentenced to death in 1999: 282

Number of executions, 1999: 98

Number of people removed in 1999 from death row by dismissal of indictment, reversal of judgment, commutation, re-sentencing, order of new trial or death: 122

Ratio of death sentences to murders, 1999: 1 to 55

Ratio of executions to murders, 1999: 1 to 158

Posted by Eric at 01:36 AM | Comments (3)

Late Night TV Guests of Interest

Letterman
Fr 5/28: Bob Woodward
Mo 5/31: Chris Rock

Leno
Mo 6/7: Tim Russert

Conan
Th 5/27: Sen. John McCain

Daily Show
We 5/26: Sen. John McCain (R)
Th 5/27: Bill Kristol (R)

Mo 5/31: Sen. John McCain (R)
Tu 6/1: David Cross
We 6/2: Thomas Friedman
Th 6/3: Mario Cuomo

Coutesy of Sue Trowbridge.

Posted by Eric at 01:15 AM | Comments (19)

Late Night TV Guests of Interest

Letterman
Fr 5/28: Bob Woodward
Mo 5/31: Chris Rock

Leno
Mo 6/7: Tim Russert

Conan
Th 5/27: Sen. John McCain

Daily Show
We 5/26: Sen. John McCain (R)
Th 5/27: Bill Kristol (R)

Mo 5/31: Sen. John McCain (R)
Tu 6/1: David Cross
We 6/2: Thomas Friedman
Th 6/3: Mario Cuomo

Coutesy of Sue Trowbridge.

Posted by Eric at 01:15 AM | Comments (2)

Iraq War Taking Down Australian Politician

George W, Tony Blair and Spain's Popular Party aren't the only ones feeling the wrath of voters as a result of the poor situation in Iraq: "A backlash against the US-led Iraq war is damaging Australian Prime Minister John Howard's re-election chances in a ballot expected within months." From Reuters:

Howard, a close US ally who sent 2,000 military personnel to the US-led invasion last March, said his government had been damaged by the negative publicity out of Iraq such as photographs of US troops abusing Iraqi prisoners.

But he said his conservative government's foreign policy would not be influenced by a swing in opinion polls after an ACNielsen poll showed 63 percent of Australians now believed the war in Iraq was unjustified, up from 51 percent in September last year ... Despite a positive response to the government's big-spending budget two weeks ago, an ACNielsen poll published on yesterday found support for Howard's Liberal-National Party coalition had slipped to 39 percent from 42 percent a month ago.

Posted by Eric at 12:55 AM | Comments (7)

Iraq War Taking Down Australian Politician

George W, Tony Blair and Spain's Popular Party aren't the only ones feeling the wrath of voters as a result of the poor situation in Iraq: "A backlash against the US-led Iraq war is damaging Australian Prime Minister John Howard's re-election chances in a ballot expected within months." From Reuters:

Howard, a close US ally who sent 2,000 military personnel to the US-led invasion last March, said his government had been damaged by the negative publicity out of Iraq such as photographs of US troops abusing Iraqi prisoners.

But he said his conservative government's foreign policy would not be influenced by a swing in opinion polls after an ACNielsen poll showed 63 percent of Australians now believed the war in Iraq was unjustified, up from 51 percent in September last year ... Despite a positive response to the government's big-spending budget two weeks ago, an ACNielsen poll published on yesterday found support for Howard's Liberal-National Party coalition had slipped to 39 percent from 42 percent a month ago.

Posted by Eric at 12:55 AM | Comments (0)

Over 63,000 in 24 Hours Sign Diebold Petition

In 24 hours, over 63,000 people have signed Gov. Howard Dean's petition for fair elections by having a paper trail for every electronic vote in the Diebold system.

"We must act now to ensure that our voting systems produce accurate and verifiable results. Some states are planning to use machines that will not allow voters to verify their choices. This means that any flaws in the machine or software will never be caught -- and no recount will be possible."

Join the call at Democracy for America.

Posted by Eric at 12:43 AM | Comments (26)

Over 63,000 in 24 Hours Sign Diebold Petition

In 24 hours, over 63,000 people have signed Gov. Howard Dean's petition for fair elections by having a paper trail for every electronic vote in the Diebold system.

"We must act now to ensure that our voting systems produce accurate and verifiable results. Some states are planning to use machines that will not allow voters to verify their choices. This means that any flaws in the machine or software will never be caught -- and no recount will be possible."

Join the call at Democracy for America.

Posted by Eric at 12:43 AM | Comments (3)

May 25, 2004

Tuesday