Liz "BabyDick" Cheney: Obama Not Bloodthirsty Enough
BabyDick has struck again, this time in criticizing Obama's response to the Israeli attack on a humanitarian flotilla--as well as the killing of an American citizen. Liz Cheney is basically arguing Obama must stand with Israel even when it kills…
The US Is Defending Not Just Its Closest Ally in Israeli Raid, but Also Approach to War
I think there's more to America's defense of Israel's attack on the Free Gaza flotilla than simply more blind support for Israel. By defending Israel's attack, members of the US elite are also defending a problematic legal stance--one that the…
Obama and JSOC Targeting People Not Included under AUMF
The WaPo has an important story today--apparently following up on the NYT's JUnc-WTF story from last week--describing the way Obama has expanded the scope of the use of special operations forces. Some key details are:
Obama has deployed JSOC…
Ed Koch Calls Jeremy Scahill a Terrorist Supporter for Defending Children
Onscreen, Ed Koch's stupidest statement in this interview was when he responded to Jeremy Scahill's question about how a goat or a horse or a children's toy would be used as rocket to hit Israel by saying only, "that's nonsense." Or maybe when…
The Impending Intelligence Games
After the Israelis attacked a flotilla carrying humanitarian aid the other night, and particularly after the US quietly stated it would wait to learn all the details of the attack, I knew the US and Israel would claim to have had intelligence…
If Ever You Doubted Water-Boarding KSM Was a Bad Decision...
George Bush is on the rubber chicken circuit in anticipation of the release of his book, A'm the Deciderer Decision Points. Which means he's now out in public defending two of his "greatest" decisions, side-by-side:
George Bush admitted yesterday…
NOAA Director Lubchenco Plays Dumb on Plumes
I"m not aware of any studies before this spill, to follow up on those plumes.
That's what NOAA Director Jane Lubchenco claimed a week ago in response to a question from Louisiana Congressman Bill Cassidy.
Elizabeth Birnbaum, who was fired…
UN Special Rapporteur Condemns America's Killer Drones
A senior United Nations official said on Wednesday that the growing use of armed drones by the United States to kill terrorism suspects is undermining global constraints on the use of military force. He warned that the American example will lead to a chaotic world as the new weapons technology inevitably spreads.
Dick Cheney's Wyoming's Face at MMS
Since we've been discussing the way that BP has adopted Dick Cheney's face for its Deepwater Horizon disaster, I thought I'd link to this article, noting how close the Mineral Management Service and Cheney's state of Wyoming are. (h/t POGO)
The…
The NY Times, Elena Kagan and Batson
Why is it that the New York Times is suddenly up in arms about racial selection and exclusion in Southern Juries, but has no similar lofty concerns about the same inferences about the putative next Supreme Court Justice, Elena Kagan?
Task Force Conclusion: "Many" Detainees Were Legally Detained
While I was away celebrating my 20th college reunion this weekend (thanks for filling in, bmaz), the WaPo liberated the Gitmo Review Task Force report. As the WaPo reported, the big takeaway is the government's admission that over 55% of those…
Holder Emphasizes 11 Dead When Discussing DOJ Investigation of BP Disaster
While it is not news that DOJ is conducting an investigation of the Deepwater Horizon disaster, Eric Holder's speech in New Orleans about the spill reiterated that DOJ is doing so. I'm most interested in the particular emphasis Holder placed…
The National Security Strategy
In this thread, a couple of us starting talking about word counts for the National Security Strategy. So I decided to put together a word map of the document for our fun and enlightenment. Click the image to enlarge it.
BP's LMRP: Claws, Craws, Saws and Jaws
The LMRP process continues on after the failure of every other action by BP. Meanwhile, the Obama DOJ acts like the eleven deaths on Deepwater Horizon never happened.
BP Adopts the Public Face of Dick Cheney
I mean that headline more metaphorically than literally. But I do find it really really telling--and really really bad taste--that BP just hired Cheney's former campaign press flack, Anne Womack-Kolton, to head its American media relations.
BP…
Cutting Social Security in the Name of National Security
As a number of people have observed, the National Security Strategy Obama released last week prioritizes the economic vitality of the US as one source of security. Much of this discussion places a predictable focus on trade, technology, and…
Apparently Missing Biblical Irony, Nuclear Power Israel Complains about Slingshot Attacks
As Siun reported earlier, last night some Israeli commandos attacked some humanitarian ships bringing supplies to Gaza. A number of civilians were killed.
Since then, the IDF has released a series of videos, captioned in English, apparently…
BP Criminal Liability Working Thread
The key to unlocking where we stand on this is understanding the exact relationship, and how clearly defined it is, between the parent company "BP Plc.", the Texas City criminal defendant entity "BP Products North America Inc." and the Alaska criminal defendant entity "BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc. Also, what exact names are on the permits and leases for the Macondo well project? How do all these fit together and can we pierce these alter egos and reasonably argue that the parent entity BP Plc. is legally, including criminally, liable for all?
Top Hat and Tails; BP Has Yet Another "Solution"
Now that this is an all oil all the time blog, the restless residents are clamoring for a new thread for the LMRP, the latest greatest bullshit moonshot BP is ginning up for the gullible media and public. You ask, we comply; this is a full…
The Last Days Of May Trash
Now that the Top Hat is back in BP style, I constantly think of this when I hear the term "Top Hat". Oh well, whatta ya gonna do? Beer Thirty, that's what!