Locomotive Mule

Tenn. County Officials Seek to Ban Gays

“We need to keep them out of here,” said Commissioner J.C. Fugate, who introduced the motion.

Bet this is a real nice place to live.

Rhea County, about 30 miles north of Chattanooga, is among the most conservative in Tennessee. It holds an annual festival commemorating the 1925 trial that convicted John T. Scopes on charges of teaching evolution, a verdict thrown out by the Tennessee Supreme Court on a technicality. The trial later became the subject of the play and movie, “Inherit the Wind.”

Newsflash: Evolution found to have halted in Tenn.
No evidence of change or deviation from the 1920’s mind set can be found in Rhea County, Tennesse.
“Nope. Nuthin’s changed here since my great grandpappy was mayor - and that’s the way it’s agonna stay.”, said County Commisioner J.C. Fugate as he climbed into his dusty Ford pickup with a “Bush BY GOD” bumper sticker.

In 2002, a federal judge ruled unconstitutional the Rhea County school board’s Bible Education Ministry, a class taught in the public schools by students from a Christian college.

I wonder if Catholics are welcomed to the Fourth of July barbeques.

Will the 2004 Election Be Called Off? Why Three Out of Four Experts Predict a Terrorist Attack by November

And, of course, what usurpation of democracy would be complete without Rush Limbaugh weighing in? “Do [the terrorists] bide their time and wait, or do they try to replicate their success in Spain here in America before our election?” Limbaugh asked, before revealing how “titans of industry,” and “international business people (who do not outsource, by the way)” were “very, very, very concerned” that one true party forever rule the Fatherland.

“They all were seeking from me reassurance that the White House was safe this year, that John Kerry would not win,” Limbaugh said. “Who do you think the terrorists would rather have in office in this country – socialists like those in Spain as personified by John Kerry and his friends in the Democratic Party, or George W. Bush?”

Saying that a pre-election terrorist attack is not a question of “if” but “when,” Limbaugh concluded that should anyone but Bush occupy the White House, the terrorists will have won.

I’ve really gotta stop reading this stuff.

Despite U.S. promise, soldiers in Iraq still buying their own body armor

Soldiers headed for Iraq are still buying their own body armor – and in many cases, their families are buying it for them – despite assurances from the military that the gear will be in hand before they’re in harm’s way.

And some would have the balls to call me “unpatriotic”.

“No one that I know of has been truly held accountable.”

“A president and his advisers, including his adviser for national security affairs, must be able to communicate freely and privately, without being compelled to reveal those communications to the legislative branch.” – George W. Bush

Can someone explain this to me? Why can’t an adviser communicate freely with the boss if that communication is honest and above board? If there are dark motives or nefarious secrets I can see where they would not want to share them, but if what they’re about is morally defensible and supported by facts and/or law, then what’s the issue?

Is this the ol’ “national secrets” thing again? After reading the infamous Aug. 6th PDB, I’m left wondering just how important these “secrets” are.

It could be argued that as these people work for us, we’re entitled to know what they’re doing and saying.

U.S. troops learn caution in Afghanistan

In recent weeks the United States has been beefing up its forces in Afghanistan, with 2,000 Marines being deployed to bolster the 11,000 troops already there.

The first of many more deplyments I’m sure.

As the weather warms and the snow melts, Taliban and al Qaeda fighters are becoming more active, with U.S. troops reporting an increase in firefights and rocket attacks on their bases.

I fear that the Afghanistan situation is going to become more a topic of news in the near future.

This Afghanistan adventure is, I suppose, justifiable. But it seems to be kind of forgotten behind the Iraq mess. We can’t let that happen. Vigilance is required.

Report from Fallujah

It’s very disturbing. The common thread that runs through virtually all reports eminating from Fallujah (other than the U.S. press that is).

American Snipers. Shooting ambulances. Bombs during a cease-fire. If we take these reports at face value, we’re left with the realization that 1) our government is lying to us and 2) our press is also lying to us.

That our government would lie is bad enough, but when the press lies to us we must assume that it has become nothing more than a propoganda organ of the “party” in charge.

Propoganda - organ - party. Thses are scary words when they come to mind describing the U.S.

A New Meaning for ‘Bully Pulpit’

Comparing Iraq and Vietnam

War Rhetoric’s Toll on Democracy

Nader tells youths to brace for draft

I heard on TV this morning that our generals in Iraq have asked for two more brigades (10,000 people) to “provide additional security”. That’ll take our deployment to 140,000 troops. Some of our National Guard troops have been over there for over a year already. Rotations are being canceled. Bonuses offered to NCOs to not retire. Can conscription be far behind?

Whispers abound. Nothing concrete, just whispers. Methinks that if we continue to enlarge our presence in Iraq, there may be no choice.

CBS/New York Times Poll Story: What Was Missed

There’s those bullets again. It must be a Republican thing.

The President’s job approval is rising. A majority of Americans, 51%, approve, while 42% disapprove, a net increase of 6 points from the 47% that approved and 44% that disapproved in the late February CBS News poll.

Completely ignoring the fact that Bush’s numbers are down nearly 20% from their peak.

The President now leads Kerry by 3 points among registered voters, 46% to 43%. This is a net increase of 4 points since mid-February, when Kerry led by a point.

Three points? THREE POINTS? Rove has gotta be shittin’ bricks right now. Three percentage points is well within any statistical margin - a 4 point rise or fall on either side is just noise. These guys know this and throw these numbers at us knowing that the vast majority of people think it’s relevant. Everbody loves a winner - especially when they have a FOUR point lead! If Bush wins again, he’ll take a -0.02% popular vote margin and again call it a mandate.

The President’s support is also more intense than Kerry’s. 76% of the President’s supporters say that there mind is made up, while just 70% of Kerry’s say the same.

More intense? Dogmatic and shrill is more like it. (And who proof reads this stuff? Spelling errors indicate sloppy work - sloppy.)

President Bush is viewed more favorably by Americans. 43% of Americans view the President favorably, an increase of 3 points since mid-February. 39% view him unfavorably and 17% have no opinion of him.

A majority of Americans now see Kerry as a man who only says what people want to hear. Just 33% say that Kerry says what he believes, while 57% say that he does not. On the other hand, a majority of Americans, 51%, see President Bush as a man who says what he believes.

I believed at one point that Clinton was wrong to so obviously react to polling numbers - wishy/washy it was. But I now realize that in a democracy this large, our leaders cannot blithely go on their merry way without checking in with their constituents. Yes we need strong leadership. Yes we need decisive action - sometimes. What we don’t need is a self righteous cowboy who thinks it’s “my way or no way”. If a President were elected with a 90% popular vote, I s’pose he could assume that whatever promises and plans were laid out in the campaign were just fine with the people - full speed ahead. But with such clear divisions in the electorate, any responsible leader would recognize the opposition and accord them accomodation (and respect).

Our representatives are just that: our representatives. They’re supposed to represent our beliefs and ideas, not necessarily their own. Hopefully we elect people that fundamentally agree with us but in lieu this, I’d expect them to vote in accordance with the majority of their constituents - not their own personal beliefs.

So spin on dudes, you’re 1) showing how tenuous your position is and 2) making your average Joe think. (Unintended consequences?)