Putin on the Ritz

Swamp wisdom
It seems that a lot of President Putin's enemies end up dead in horrible ways.

The most recent mysterious death was a former KGB spy who defected to the U.K. All of the sudden, heavens to Betsy, he died of a bizarre poison (possibly thallium). This is the latest in a long series of "my goodness that's an unusual way to die" murders over the last several years.

Great article about this in "The Economist"
http://thechronicleherald.ca/NovaScotian/543423.html

I love modern Russia: All the evil of the old Soviet Union, but without all the rhetoric about workers and social justice.

'Nam for dummies

President Bush went to Vietnam, and of course had to answer questions about Iraq.

From the Chicago Tribune:
“Asked what lessons the war in Vietnam offered for the war in Iraq, Bush's response suggested a need for patience and determination—a nod toward the U.S. decision to abandon Vietnam after a protracted and unsuccessful war there.’We'll succeed unless we quit,’ Bush said.”

Faith in our ability to win by determination is not remarkable.

What I find remarkable is going to a country we fought, and saying that the lesson of that war is that we would have kicked their ass if only we had stayed.

And as long as we are on Vietnam, did I miss something? Did they change the history books when I was off having a beer and watching Family Guy?

I could have sworn that the lesson of Vietnam was that you can not defeat a guerilla army with conventional forces if the guerillas have the support of the population. I could have sworn that the lesson of Vietnam is that the U.S. was arrogant and failed to understand why THEY were fighting, and so we could not defeat them. I could sworn that the lesson of Vietnam was that American troops are most effective when they have a clear and honest reason to fight (witness WWII vs. Vietnam).

Or maybe the real lesson of Vietnam is that Henry Kissinger can give VERY bad advice.

Lazarus Lott

The number two man in the Senate Minority now is our old dear friend from Mississippi, Trent Lott.

What in the name of Dwight David Eisenhower is going on here?

Contrary to a lot of the “liberal media’s” more recent coverage, this guy didn’t just make a little gaffe, like John Kerry, what he said at that dinosaur’s (Stromus-crackersaurus) birthday party was horrible.

Here is the quote:

"I want to say this about my state: When Strom Thurmond ran for president, we voted for him. We're proud of it. And if the rest of the country had followed our lead, we wouldn't have had all these problems over all these years, either,"

Lott claimed that he was just trying to flatter an old man and friend.

Phooey!

Supporting Strom’s run in 1948 is nothing to be proud of. Strom ran because he was so incensed that Truman desegregated the armed forces. It was a run on an Aparthied platform.

The sad fact of the matter is that conservatives, and Southerners in particular, have a lot to be ashamed of in regard to the state of race relations. Those who are in both those categories have, thanks to people like Strom, the taint of being a racist until proven otherwise.

Not only is this a fact of life, in my humble opinion it’s not totally unfair.

The fact is that there is a whole lot of racism in America, and it is particularly bad in places like Mississippi. Trent Lott knows this as well as anybody. I would suspect that Mr. Lott benefits from this legacy of racism in elections.

Trent Lott is no David Duke, but I think the birthday incident is much closer to a little peak into the casual racism of the South than it was an innocent remark of flattery. Furthermore, the GOP’s forgiving him for saying this is the sort of thing that has pushed the Black vote 92% to the Democrats.

America has yet to heal from the wounds of slaver. Hurricane Katrina showed just how badly divided the races are today. I would also point out that Jesse Helms’ memoirs unapologetically voice an opinion that the South should have been allowed to deal with civil rights in their own way in their own time.

There are still a lot of people in the South that feel EXACTLY the way Trent Lott says he doesn’t really feel.

Trent Lott is not evil, but given the race situation of today in the GOP and America at large, he is a terrible face to give to the government. His election by his peers speaks volumes about where the hearts of his party colleagues lies.

So long, Rummy

Editor’s note: The author of this blog has been absolutely out of his mind with stress due to the recent elections. The author’s patron was re-elected by nearly 20 pts. Also, the author wants to congratulate the Great state of Pennsylvania for dumping Sen. Santorum.
The rats have begun to turn on each-other.
"Don Rumsfeld has been a superb leader during a time of change," Bush said Wednesday. "Yet he also appreciates the value of bringing in a fresh perspective during a critical period in this war."
I suppose it is only a co-incidence that this happens the day after a Democratic orgy of electoral success.
Rummy resigned, but that is Washington code for fired. The irony is that if Rummy had gotten himself resigned before the election rather than after it may have saved a few GOP hides.
I firmly believe that the failures of the administration are as much style as substance.
All presidents make mistakes, but none have refused to learn any lessons from them. Bush refuses to adjust policy to fit reality. Furthermore, he refuses to make heads roll when monumental mistakes are made.
BOLD PREDICTION: Rummy will win a Presidential Medal of Honor. Actually, that is pretty obvious.
George Tenet got a medal, Brownie got to resign and also get paid as a FEMA consultant, Condi got promoted… and the list goes on.
Rumsfeld was the most important member of the inner circle, and he is gone.
Part of this is a bone thrown to Speaker Pelosi and part of it is an attempt to deflect criticism about being unwavering in the face of reality. But I think there is a little part of it that is W turning on the person who has done the most to destroy him. The Iraq War has been a catastrophe. It has wiped out most of his agenda, and his hope for a legacy beyond the War.
This makes the “resignation” timing so significant. It feels like the closest the President can come to admitting any sort of mistake. It is the closest he can come to holding himself accountable. The real test is whether or not the administration can make a serious change of policy in Iraq, or if this is only cosmetic. After all, Powell turned out to be mostly eye-candy for moderates.
Let’s hope that the new secretary turns out to be a NEW secretary, because the President is right on one point: The stakes in Iraq are too high to get it wrong.