drat fink
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park avenue west
oh yeah, *cough* and a new football stadium.
a poor excuse for a link
have to throw up the obligatory link to the latest clay shirkey article which explains both why im poor and unpopular.
but i sure know how to link.
just three easy steps to...
"The plan is in three stages: first, US-led military rule; second, a transitional phase with an American military governor ruling alongside a civilian leader appointed by (or at least acceptable to) the international community; and, finally, handover to a regime sympathetic to and nurtured by Washington."
takes one to know one
"Of course the people don't want war. But after all, it's the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it's always a simple matter to drag the people along whether it's a democracy, a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism, and exposing the country to greater danger."
-Herman Goering at the Nuremberg trials
change up
"Internally, economics and demographics have conspired to put added pressure on Riyadh in the direction of reform. The Islamic kingdom is facing a barrage of unprecedented problems, as its population has doubled in 20 years to 23 million, even though income from oil has remained flat, with no prospects for sustained growth. In terms of material infrastructure, per capita investment has been halved in the past decade, leading to a bottoming out of basic social services. Unemployment among the young has risen sharply. The royal family may recognize that as these popular frustrations grow, they will need to be channeled through more accommodating political mechanisms."
sand storm
"WASHINGTON, Feb. 8 — Saudi Arabia's leaders have made far-reaching decisions to prepare for an era of military disengagement from the United States, to enact what Saudi officials call the first significant democratic reforms at home, and to rein in the conservative clergy that has shared power in the kingdom."
in EFFect
"John Perry Barlow, the man who popularized the term 'cyberspace', discusses the Total Information Awareness project, online activism, file sharing, and the prospect of a digital counterculture."
there is a supermarket on the sun
"The Powell is sent in order to carry the water."
scandal du jour
the center for public integrity has received a confidential report out of the justice department outlining a proposal for new executive powers that would decrease liberties in the name of anti-terrorism.
bill moyers interviews the head of cpi.
not a factor
had to post a link to this ridiculous exchange between o'reilly and the son of a 9/11 victim who is anti-war. o'reilly is an uber-blowhard and a member of a subspecies distantly related to humanity (more oily than a coelacanth) but he pulls in viewers so occasionally we must acknowledge his existence.