Got Any New Year's Resolutions?

Editorial: Reflections

Personally, I think that capital punishment lets the bad guys off easy and it sends the message that killing people is ok.

Many people are very happy that Saddam was executed. I expected that sentiment from the Iraqi people who had to endure hardship and death under his rule. We know that the sanctions against Iraq in the 90's hurt the Iraqi people more than it affected Saddam. So many people died as a result of the sanctions and Saddam's death camps. So many people died when the US shocked and awed Baghdad. As an American, I feel guilty for all the deaths attributed to this man. But American "christians" are just tickled at the outcome. Don't you sometimes wish that Jesus would come back and kick some ass? I know, I know, the "christians" would be the first ones to crucify him again.

Saddam was tried and hung for killing 148 people in 1982. It didn't seem to bother the US in 1983. See photo above.

The powers that be in the US have made sure that Saddam doesn't reveal just how far up his ass they were. Juan Cole has some insight on this.

I haven't been able to actually watch the hanging but it's here. I clicked to pause it because I have a problem watching people get killed. I'm a total weenie. So I read the comments instead. Disturbing.

PS. Our friend who's a reservist just came home for Christmas from his second tour of duty to meet his daughter who was born while he was away. He'll be going back on January 9th. He doesn't know where. Bush doesn't care. Condi doesn't care. She thinks it's all worth it. I don't want our friend to die, but then again, his type is also part of the problem. He looks at it as if it's a job that pays well with benefits. I am having a big problem with human beings lately.

PS. Found the Southpark version of Saddam's death on youtube.

'On Faith' -- A conversation on religion...

with Jon Meacham (believer) and Sally Quinn (Atheist).

"At The Washington Post and Newsweek, we believe the first step is conversation-intelligent, informed, eclectic, respectful conversation-among specialists and generalists who devote a good part of their lives to understanding and delineating religion's influence on the life of the world. The point of our new online religion feature is to provide a forum for such sane and spirited talk, drawing on a remarkable panel of distinguished figures from the academy, the faith traditions, and journalism."


THEIR QUESTION:
Atheism is enjoying a certain vogue right now. Why do you think that is? Can there be a productive conversation between believers and atheists, and if so over what kinds of issues?

What kind of question is that? First of all, I sure did not feel "in vogue" this Christmas and I really did not "enjoy" telling my entire family that I did not go to Christmas mass this year!

AND -- "productive conversation", from what I can gather from this website, is a given here. AND "issues" should be singular, as the only ISSUE up for discussion here is believer or nonbeliever.

The site does have some great commentary. Since this is my first visit here, I had best read more and stop nitpicking.

The "On Faith" panelists respond

I have only read these two so far.
God’s Enemies Are More Honest Than His Friends
by Sam Harris

No Atheists (Still) Need Apply
by Susan Jacoby

Add or Read Comments to this post here

Looks Pretty Old To Me

Photo by Blondesense.
January 1, 2005


Now for the geological agnostics
Good heavens, I can't believe this story is back in the news again. How Old is The Grand Canyon? For fear of offending flat earthers, the folks at the Grand Canyon National Park aren't allowed to speculate on the age of the Grand Canyon unless it's in the range of 6,000 years. Puhlease. What about NOT offending those who paid attention in science class and have working thought processes?

It's been 3 years since the story first took root. The Grand Canyon bookstore was forced to carry the book, "Grand Canyon: A Different View" which purports that the Canyon was created during the time of Noah. Naturally the people who work there were infuriated and demanded action. There was supposed to be a "high level" review but it seems that none was ever done. The issue is still a sore spot.

"I was well informed, but then I met the Lord and checked my brains at the door"
I blogged about this story 3 years ago. This is the quote from the Guardian by the man who wrote the book:

Mr Vail writes: "For years, as a Colorado river guide, I told people how the Grand Canyon was formed over the evolutionary timescale of millions of years. Then I met the Lord. Now I have a different view of the canyon, which according to a biblical timescale can't possibly be more than a few thousand years old."

Indeed. I met the Lord and now I'm blinded by stupidity.

Honestly, when I went to the GC in January 2005, I looked for that book and looked for signs that the national park was cowtowing to the fundies and I couldn't find it. If it was there, it was well hidden among the stacks of books about geology. I met no one who offered the so called "biblical" explanation of the canyon's formation and believe me, I was looking for it so I could blog it. Could my very well educated Noo Yawk axxent have given my indentity away and I was therefore briefed on the correct geology of the canyon by the ranger man in the big hat? I dunno. I was also gasping for air at the time and forgot to axe (ask).

This story could be overblown by eco-terrorists, but I still encourage those of you who visit the canyon and the surrounding areas to snoop around and see what the 'official' story is. See if you can find any park employees who are going along with the politically/fundamentally "correct" version rather than the scientific version. Let's "out" them. It's hurting my head. Since when is it politically incorrect to be correct?

What century is this?

help me

Executed

President Bush said in a statement issued from his ranch in Texas that bringing Saddam to justice "is an important milestone on Iraq's course to becoming a democracy that can govern, sustain and defend itself, and be an ally in the war on terror."

That's a loaded sentence. It may come back to bite him in the ass some day.

"Brought to justice." I can't get that out of my head.

Check out Dark Wraith's post on the execution.
What happens next?

Last Minute Gift Suggestions For Those Who Don't Care

You've been invited to some festivities this weekend, eh? You didn't really care that much about the host/hostess because you didn't buy them a present for the holidays. Show them how much you care with a USB Humping Dog (you had better be able to read Japanese).

Or how about a radioactive isotope for that backstabbing piece of shit who you thought was your friend? Polonium-210, which comes in a cute gift box, isn't enough to kill your cheating spouse, but it will sure scare the shit out him or her.

What about the Dick Cheney in your life? How about some seasoned bird shot? Shoot the birdie and it will be marinated by the time you put it on the dinner table. Mmmmm. Ammo with flavor. Throw in some Mullet Shampoo too.

The religious freak in your life deserves the Thomas Kinkade Faith Mountain Religious Christian Home Decor. It's a thingy that looks kind of like a Christmas tree but it's really the life of jesus from his humble beginnings to his grisly death in painstaking detail and it lights up too.

What about the alky in your life who likes to sneak booze into non-alcoholic events? Why not a faux beer belly (with a straw) or a wine rack for the lady?

That little underdeprived daughter of the host and hostess deserves Barbie and her incredible shitting doggie. Comes with toy poop and pooper scooper. Don't miss the Barbie toy kitty litter box or Barbie's Let's clean up the stable playset either.

We keep this catalog in the bathroom for fun reading, but just about anything from Archie McPhee is a way to tell those you "love" how much you care. Personally, I like the Swedish Ear Syringe but you may prefer the Avenging Narwhal Play Set for the little brat.

A Modest Farewell

There will be no "12 days of funeral pomposity" for President Gerald Ford. President Bush will not attend the weekend funereal festivities as he is still busy "deciding" at his Crawford Ranch. Bushie plans to pay his respects to the former president, who disagreed with Bushie's war, on Monday and speak at his funeral on Tuesday.

Does This Mean That We Won and Can Go Home Now?

The White House wants Saddam hung as early as this weekend. He is charged with killing 148 people who were planning to assassinate him back in 1982. The US will turn the dictator over to the Iraqi's on the day of his execution. Saddam's lawyer insists that it is forbidden by international conventions to hand over a prisoner of war to his adversary. His lawyer doesn't seem to understand who is in charge here. The bush administration "believes the trial was held in accordance with international and Iraqi laws." So who is going to argue with that? The Pope says that he condemns capital punishment because it's inconsistent with Roman Catholic teaching, as if that matters to anyone involved in this. Saddam was a bad, bad man and that is really all that matters to the blood thirsty.

Meanwhile bush topped both lists of an AP Poll.

He was voted the top villain of the year by a landslide beating by far Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein and voted top hero of the year by a tiny margin of fringe wingers.

Rebecca Solnit, End of the Year Review,........... 2026

The Age of Mammals
Looking Back on the First Quarter of the Twenty-First Century

2006 was a year just grim enough that a bit of perspective seemed a necessity. So Tomdispatch ordered up a little dose of the recent past from the distant future -- a trick not normally easy to accomplish, but just about nothing is beyond Rebecca Solnit, this site's resident historian of hope...........

THIS IS AN INCREDIBLE MUST READ

Ahh.....life is good

Enjoy!

I just love these year end summaries.

Most outrageous comments of 2006 at Media Matters

Best Inventions 2006 by Time Magazine

NPR Listeners Pick the Best CDs of 2006

“Best of 2006 List” by Amazon

Top Ten Myths about Iraq 2006 by Juan Cole

Top 25 Censored Stories of 2006 by Project Censored

Top Ten Stories of 2006 from National Geographic News

Top Ten Environmental Stories of 2006 from the Gristmill

Bush's worst lies of 2006 by Eleanor Clift

From Foley to Frey: The Year in U.S. Scandals from Alternet

I'll keep adding to the list. What else have you got?

Presidential News

Can you believe this was newsworthy?
Flash! President Bush Says He Reads Papers
That was the headline in a NYTimes article on the 25th.

Apparently Gerald Ford read the papers and strongly disagreed with Bush's war on Iraq. Sure. Now that comes out.

Yay. John Edwards threw his hat in the race. The blonde in me thinks that he will be soooo much easier on the eyes than the Chimp.

Be Very Afraid. Oy.

Have you been keeping up with the propaganda of the week and the ensuing war?

The NRA published a beautifully illustrated novella which points the finger at the real enemies of America: A rich Jewish Hungarian man, illegal immigrants including the dastardly Chinese, animal rights terrorists (women who don't shave their legs), the media, Democrats and so on.

Eclectics Anonymous summarizes the story nicely with links to the debate between Wonkette, Boing Boing, a DKos diarist and the PDF version of the novella concerning the reality of this magnificently concocted fear mongering by the NRA.

RIP Gerald Ford

Gerald Ford passed away at 93 years. I will remember him best for pardoning Nixon, for his wife Betty's women's rights activity and her alcoholism and drug addiction which led to the famous Betty Ford Center for Treatment of Chemical Dependency and for Chevy Chase' impression of him on Saturday Night Live.

The president had a sense of humor, however. Gerald Ford was the only president to open the show with "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night."

10 myths—and 10 Truths—About Atheism

(A Provisional Metaphysical Theory of Everything)

[As regards] those who seek the right path. When one of them rejects anything as false, he will be lifted towards a better symbol which is nearer to the truth and is not open to that objection; and if he is satisfied with it, he will be left where he is. When that better symbol is also rejected by him as false, he will be lifted to another rank, and if he is then satisfied with it, he will be left where he is.

Whenever a symbol of a given standard is rejected by him as false, he will be lifted to a higher rank, but when he rejects all the symbols as false and has the strength and gift to understand the truth, he will be made to know the truth and will be placed into the class of those who take the philosophers as their authorities.

If he is not yet satisfied with that and desires to acquire philosophical wisdom and has himself the strength and gift for it, he will be made to know it.

Via God...

NOW I am able to go back to these next two "Christmas Messages" and not want to SCREAM to the world WTF?!? because it just ain't worth getting my blood boiling anymore -- it's not good for me! I'm really glad I read those words above before I started writing this post -- (it's much shorter now!!)

Pope says: Worship God not technology
(out of respect, no comment -- a picture says a thou$sand words

A warning from the Archbishop of Canterbury
(no comment out of respect to my elders -- and an even BETTER pic!)

Now HERE'S something for you two gents to think about --Religion does more harm than good says poll and I have come to this conclusion also. After much soul searching over the past few years about whether or not I, as a mother, should be providing my kids a religious (church) experience, I can now say I made the right choice. I am now seeing the wonderful, happy lives that my three children are experiencing as a result of not belonging to a religion.

This piece by Sam Harris is very timely for us. 10 myths—and 10 Truths—About Atheism

The kids at school seem to be noticing that mine have been absent from CCD for a few years now. Quite a few comments have been made to them this past year about jerseycynic's family being atheists. Up until now, I've just told them to respond "yes, that's right; thank GOD I'm an atheist" and see if anybody gets it!
Now that they are older and able to communicate with their peers on a somewhat intelligent level now, I hope they are able to get these great points across. A lot of kids discuss their family's religious beliefs. It's about time my kids were able to discuss the real deal with friends who care to challenge their minds.

I thought these were great talking points:

Our relationships with those we love are meaningful now; they need not last forever to be made so.


There is no society in human history that ever suffered because its people became too reasonable.

historian Stephen Henry Roberts (1901-71) once said:
“I contend that we are both atheists. I just believe in one fewer god than you do. When you understand why you dismiss all the other possible gods, you will understand why I dismiss yours.”

Tell people you are intellectually honest.

"Pretending to know things one doesn’t know is a profound liability in science. And yet it is the life-blood of faith-based religion. One of the monumental ironies of religious discourse can be found in the frequency with which people of faith praise themselves for their humility, while claiming to know facts about cosmology, chemistry and biology that no scientist knows..."

"There is no question that some Christians have transformed their lives for the better by reading the Bible and praying to Jesus. What does this prove? It proves that certain disciplines of attention and codes of conduct can have a profound effect upon the human mind"

"From the atheist point of view, the world’s religions utterly trivialize the real beauty and immensity of the universe. One doesn’t have to accept anything on insufficient evidence to make such an observation..."


"In most cases, it seems that religion gives people bad reasons to behave well, when good reasons are actually available. Ask yourself, which is more moral, helping the poor out of concern for their suffering, or doing so because you think the creator of the universe wants you to do it, will reward you for doing it or will punish you for not doing it?"

"We do not get our morality from religion. We decide what is good in our good books by recourse to moral intuitions that are (at some level) hard-wired in us and that have been refined by thousands of years of thinking about the causes and possibilities of human happiness."

Whatever is good in scripture — like the golden rule — can be valued for its ethical wisdom without our believing that it was handed down to us by the creator of the universe.

Now Can We Call It Even...And Start Picking Up the Pieces

Sometimes I don't even have the words to express the pain and horror I feel when I gaze at the headlines. I thought I would feel better after the elections but knowing how much damage can still be done and how much evil and destruction we need to repair just to get us back to where we 'used' to be...well it gets a bit overwhelming.

The big headlines this morning is that we have officially lost more soldiers in the war than we did civillians in the 9/11 attacks. Of course little if anything has been said in the American papers about the Iraqi CIVILLIANS who have died. I think we're between a quarter and half a million dead at this point. There is a call for an influx of new soldiers, supposedly a temporary one, but others say to beware, it won't be temporary at all. And I'm sure they will need those extra troops to keep what little order is left when Saddam is hung by the kangaroo court. Now don't get me wrong, he is a evil, cruel man - one who caused a great deal of pain, hardship and death and perhaps he deserves death or a life sentence ( don't have the strength to get into the pros/cons of death sentences at the moment) But I would feel a LOT more confident if his lawyers had been permitted to defend him to the best of their abilities and not been banned from the courtroom on several occasions. Not to mention the murder of his original lawyer and judge.

Meanwhile, as we have read in the posts below, Islands are disappearing, climates are changing radically, extinction is coming at a rapid rate, and many insurance companies are dropping their policies on coastal homes from Texas all the way up the Eastern Seaboard.

And what is our government doing? Its going on vaction to 'rethink' (read- hide) its talking head points on the 'war on terror', it is hiring lawyers in anticipation of all the inquiries and probes that the Democrats can launch against them.

And then today, Boxing Day, the 2 year anniversary of the monster tsunami that killed so many started with another potential disaster, a true disaster and news that neither of the previous disasters are even close to being taken care of.

So, what are we going to do about this? Any suggestions outside of a large, large glass of Guiness with a chaser on the side?

What's the doggie thinking?

The president went back to Texas to "rethink" the course in Iraq in light of the death sentence that came down for Saddam Hussein who will be hung in 30 days.

As we know from previous news stories, the president will not address the nation as to the new course until January 23rd because the WH didn't want the war to compete with college football.

Why I'm glad Christmas comes only once a year:

It seems like every year I always get stuck sitting around the dinner table next to this same old geezer who is a prime example of self-imposed ignorance and stupidity. Remind you of at least one friend/relative you see once a year at Christmas time? Anyway, this year he outdid himself. When I asked him, "What do you think of the situation in Beirut"?, he replied,
"I t'ink Babe Rut' was da greatest baseball player dat ever lived".

What did you want for Christmas that you didn't get?

I wanted someone to throw their hat in the ring for the '08 election that wouldn't make me have to hold my nose when I vote.

And I still haven't gotten my pony.
---------

And on a happier note, what did you get that totally surprised you in a good way?

I got to see a whole lot of relatives that I hadn't seen in years and it was ok.

Our fascists suck.

BAGHDAD, Iraq - The U.S. military on Tuesday announced the deaths of six more American soldiers, pushing the U.S. military death toll since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003 to at least 2,978 — five more than the number killed in the Sept. 11 attacks in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania.

I'm not sure what this is supposed to mean, but to me it means that we doubled the amount of people killed on 9/11 plus we actually made terrorism worse, not to mention we practically obliterated Iraq for no good reason and Afghanistan is worse than ever. Heck of a job, bushie.

And how about this waste by the lousy fascists?

WASHINGTON - The tally for Hurricane Katrina waste could top $2 billion next year because half of the lucrative government contracts valued at $500,000 or greater for cleanup work are being awarded without little competition.

Federal investigators have already determined the Bush administration squandered $1 billion on fraudulent disaster aid to individuals after the 2005 storm. Now they are shifting their attention to the multimillion dollar contracts to politically connected firms that critics have long said are a prime area for abuse.

Can this administration do anything right?

And what is with this troop surge NOW? Why didn't they send in enough troops in the first place if they felt that they HAD to wage this war? The military should have recruited enough troops and have enough war gear ready BEFORE the US shocked and awed Iraq. Hell, even I figured that out 3 years ago. They are so useless. Some people try to tell me to this day how the war was so urgent. I didn't believe it then and I don't believe it now.

And bush is contemplating giving $10billion for a New Deal project in Iraq that would put Iraqi's to work? Get the hell outta here. Why doesn't the US just flush it down the toilet? And why do I get the feeling that somehow the US corporations will benefit the most from this exercise? And why aren't there any New Deal projects in the US at this time? feh, on all of them.

Poppa's Got A Brand New Bag

One good thing about the olden days: Radio stations and television variety shows didn't distinguish between musical genres so we all had a pretty good taste for all types of music unlike today where I am unfamiliar with a lot of popular music and lack an appreciation for it.

The clock radio went off on Christmas morning and the DJ's were talking about the passing of James Brown. What a great loss to the music world. I've enjoyed him and his music for most of my life.

Yesterday, I was picturing my family watching Ed Sullivan way back when and seeing the Godfather of Soul come into our living room and singing his brand of funky gospel blues called "soul" at the time and watching this skinny black man with his white man's hair, move his feet like nothing I had ever seen before. All those "Ow's" and "Ooh's"- no one did it like James.

This morning I found James Brown on You Tube from the Ed Sullivan Show in 1966. Enjoy. (Lots more where that came from.)

If we could just figure out a way to move Crawford, TX to the middle of the ocean...

For the first time, an inhabited island has disappeared beneath rising seas.

That's the headline. Here's a couple of quotes:
"The obliteration of Lohachara island, in India's part of the Sundarbans where the Ganges and the Brahmaputra rivers empty into the Bay of Bengal, marks the moment when one of the most apocalyptic predictions of environmentalists and climate scientists has started coming true."

"As the seas continue to swell, they will swallow whole island nations, from the Maldives to the Marshall Islands, inundate vast areas of countries from Bangladesh to Egypt, and submerge parts of scores of coastal cities."

The aptly named Independent has the rest and a hat tip to Chris at Americablog.

From Our Barn To Yours

The world today measures success in how much wealth we can acquire. The rich and famous are often placed on pedestals and admired by millions for their accomplishments. I tend to agree with Albert Einstein when he said, "A successful man is he who receives a great deal from his fellowmen, usually incomparably more than corresponds to his service to them. The value of a man, however, should be seen in what he gives and not what he is able to receive."

In your own search for success, I urge you to hear these words: "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." Theodore Roosevelt

Happy Holidays to each and every one of you!

O What a Difference a Key Change Makes

Here's a cute (and menacing) twist on Christmas Carols....

Check out a great video from PandaSmash.com... it's called "Evil Christmas Carols (Volume 1)"... click here to check it out.


Merry Xmas, Blessed Yule, Happy Hanukkah, Joyous Holidays to all

The Gift Outright

The land was ours before we were the land's.
She was our land more than a hundred years
Before we were her people. She was ours
In Massachusetts, in Virginia,
But we were England's, still colonials,
Possessing what we still were unpossessed by,
Possessed by what we now no more possessed.
Something we were withholding made us weak
Until we found out that it was ourselves
We were withholding from our land of living,
And forthwith found salvation in surrender.
Such as we were we gave ourselves outright
(The deed of gift was many deeds of war)
To the land vaguely realizing westward,
But still unstoried, artless, unenhanced,
Such as she was, such as she would become.

-- Robert Frost

Merry Christmas to all blond bloggers!

Some Holiday Time Wasters

Just milling about, waiting for relatives to show up or the baking to be done?

Here are a few time wasters to keep you busy and somewhat sane during the oft frantic and stressful holidays.

Write a Presidential Speech , Not quite a game but useful in the mall parking lot, then there is Rock, Paper, Saddam, Oh and don't forget to celebrate the FSM yule time feast day, 'holiday', - get we get a rAmen?

Once the relatives arrive you can get them a Psych eval via Dr. Seuss., also specifically for some of those relatives; hitman the online version. If you are like me and have to put up with one or two exteme bible literalist who claim that the Bible predicts everything, explain to them that so does Moby Dick and let the fun ensue. Your relatives a little cooler than that? Maybe old D&D players from way back? Try the 8bit version for old times sake.

Maybe mess around with some 'will they notice its not the real stuff' ads. Or make them a new year calendar with all those 'important' dates already on it. And to top off the night, a little Monty.


Hope everyone has a happy, safe and relaxing few days off with loved ones and a bit of peace.

Holiday Weekend Open House

Stop in, have a drink and leave a link.
Click for larger image of photo.

A Parable For Our Times - by Bill Moyers

In today's America, as it was in ancient Galilee, we must fight for a more equal society.

My Christmas wish:

I wish that ALL 'men of the cloth' (especially the RC priests) across this magnificent earth that we ALL inhabit would read this during their Sunday sermons.

The Christian story begins simply:

Scared Yet?

Some people are. So scared they don't even take vacation time they have coming. Courtesy of Patricia of Lone Tree who brought it to my attention, I offer an article entitled, "Are your vacation days numbered?" which contains such nuggets as:

"With the downsizing and companies being leaner in terms of the staffing, ... companies are trying to do more with less, and people are busier than ever,"

"On average, Americans will give up four vacation days this year, one more than last year."

"Experts say Americans are not fully taking advantage of their vacations because they are more insecure about their jobs. Some of them feel that if they take all their vacation, especially in large chunks, they will be looked upon negatively by their boss."

Final economic suggestion (for this post): Instead of buying a fancy-dancy can opener and presenting it to your loved one for Christmas, buy a couple of cases of Aldi's pork and beans and use your old opener to open the cans; then consume the contents right out of the can, preferably with a wooden spoon.

"Population Reduction" plan seems to be working:

"Iraq is "worth the investment" in American lives and dollars, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said yesterday."


Veterans Affairs secretary indicates support for military draft


Experts Predict Avian Flu Pandemic Could Kill 62 Million People


Pandemic Flu Similar to 1918 Would Kill 62 Million

Now this is a war on christmas

By night, they are tremendous and throbbing. By day, they lie strewn across suburban lawns like spent condoms and deflated egos.

It didn't take this article in the NY Times to tell me that inflatable christmas decorations are this year's landscape spoilers for lazy Long Islanders.

Is your neighborhood taken over by inflatable christmas decorations? And if so, what does this mean?

Another Friday, Another Excommunication

If you grew up Catholic, January 1st was a holy day of obligation (meaning if you didn't go to Mass, then it's a mortal sin and you will go to hell) because it was the Feast of the Circumcision. Looking back, it was kind of creepy, but then again, there were a lot of weird and paranormal holy days that were observed. If we giggled while the nuns explained a particular practice or observance, we were quickly admonished and warned of that special place in hell for Catholic boys and girls who asked questions. Our parents couldn't explain any of the weirdness to us, "Be quiet and put on your church clothes or we'll be late for mass." When I finally learned what a circumcision was, I paid attention at Mass that time, but the priest didn't talk about Jesus' foreskin at all. You weren't allowed to mention Jesus and penis in the same sentence when I was growing up.

I was over at Jesus' General and read his letter concerning the Holy Prepuce (Holy Foreskin) being stolen and it not being mentioned in the mass media for lo these past 23 years. It got me giggling like a Catholic school girl again. It seems that in 1983, the holy foreskin wasn't going to be available for devotion and procession that year because someone stole it out of the priests' closet. Some say that it was stolen by the Vatican because no one was supposed to use the words penis and Jesus in the same sentence. oops

As a matter of fact, in 1900, the Vatican supposedly decreed that if anyone were to write or speak of the holy foreskin, they would be excommunicated. So there you go. I guess I'm excommunicated again.

would you, Mr. President, volunteer for duty in Iraq?

Mr. Bush dodged the draft in his own class conscious, "the rules are for suckers" manner. It is true that former Lt. Governor Ben Barnes pulled strings to get Bush into the Texas Air National Guard. Barnes openly discussed what he had done for Bush and others who were well connected enough to avoid the draft. My hat is off to anyone who refused to go to that illegal war, but Bush didn't object to the war on moral or religious grounds. He supported the war, particularly if he didn't have to fight in it.

He had famously commented that he learned from the Vietnam War that politicians defer to the generals in the field. That presidents should listen to and respond to their generals. Politics shouldn't be a part of warfare.

No American president, as commander in chief, allows generals to run a war. (Isn't he the decider?) And evidently Bush isn't taking any advice from his own generals in Iraq. Two generals on the ground in Iraq would rather retire than accept an increase in troops in Iraq which they oppose. Some military officials have suggested that sending more troops into Iraq will cause harm to an already heavily stressed, all volunteer army.

But for heaven's sake, don't suggest a draft. The day after Bush suggested that he was considering sending more troops to Iraq, Bush's own Secretary of Veteran's Affairs Jim Nicholson commented that a draft would be good for America and then quickly backed away from his own statement, no doubt after a come to Jesus discussion with the White House, and said that he didn't support a draft.

If Bush was in his twenties again, would he volunteer for duty in Iraq?