Articles for July 2006

“I’ll Stall ‘Em, You Think Of Something Quick !”

WH press secretary, when asked if Condi actually had a plan, any plan at all re the Israeli attacks:

MR. SNOW: Well, we’re going to have to wait. Look, the Secretary’s going to go, but she’s not even sure when. I think ? I’m going to kick the can down the road a little bit, Jim, because I think at this point, we do know, but ? it is a legitimate question to ask precisely what she wants to do and accomplish, and I think it’s probably better left to when they figure out when they’re going to do it, we’ll be in a better position to announce precisely what it is she wants to do.

So that’s all right then, everything’s under control. Nothing to see here. There is no spoon. Don’t worry, be happy. Crisis? What crisis?

[From Rich Lowry ( don’t worry, I sprayed the link with disinfectant first), via the basset -besotted TBogg. ]

Comment of The Day

Already? But I’m only on my first pot of of coffee.

But I can’t see anyone topping this brilliant suggestion from commenter MAJeff at Pandagon, on Bush’s very public alpha-male scent-marking of the German Chancellor at the G8 yesterday :

“… We should get Clark, Merkel, Bachelet and the other femail heads of state to pinch Shrubbie?s cheeks at every meeting.”

Oooh, I would so love to see that. Mind you I’d’ve suggested pinching somewhere a little more semsitive and tender – preferably with a viciously sharp twist added for good measure – but hey, it’s the humiliation that counts.

That Chimpy Score Card In Full

• Making false or misleading statements to lawfully authorized investigative officers and employees of the United States; CHECK
• Withholding relevant and material evidence or information from lawfully authorized investigative officers and employees of the United States; CHECK
• Approving, condoning, acquiescing in, and counseling witnesses with respect to the giving of false or misleading statements to lawfully authorized investigative officers and employees of the United States and false or misleading testimony in duly instituted judicial and congressional proceedings; CHECK
• Interfering or endeavoring to interfere with the conduct of investigations by the Department of Justice of the United States, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the office of Watergate Special Prosecution Force, and Congressional Committees; CHECK
• Approving, condoning, and acquiescing in, the surreptitious payment of substantial sums of money for the purpose of obtaining the silence or influencing the testimony of witnesses, potential witnesses or individuals who participated in such unlawful entry and other illegal activities; CHECK
• Endeavoring to misuse the Central Intelligence Agency, an agency of the United States;
• Disseminating information received from officers of the Department of Justice of the United States to subjects of investigations conducted by lawfully authorized investigative officers and employees of the United States, for the purpose of aiding and assisting such subjects in their attempts to avoid criminal liability; CHECK
• Making or causing to be made false or misleading public statements for the purpose of deceiving the people of the United States into believing that a thorough and complete investigation had been conducted with respect to allegations of misconduct on the part of personnel of the executive branch of the United States and personnel of the Committee for the Re-election of the President, and that there was no involvement of such personnel in such misconduct: CHECK
• or Endeavoring to cause prospective defendants, and individuals duly tried and convicted, to expect favoured treatment and consideration in return for their silence or false testimony, or rewarding individuals for their silence or false testimony. CHECK
  

Well, apart from the ‘Watergate’ bit, and there’s your clue: yes, these are the Articles of Impeachment of Richard Nixon. Why the hell is Bush still in office?

Now watch this drive!

How Hot Is It?

It’s so hot in my home town of Plymouth that the streets melted, and here’s the proof:

The photographer snapped a local woman who’d got out of her car and found her flip-flops’d melted into the street. Oh dear.

Global warming is bringing some unexpected challenges.

WH Smith Is Objectively Pro-Torture

Postman Patel reviews Craig Murray‘s book about US/UK collusion in torture in Uzbekistan and also discovers one of the UK’s largest retail media chains practicing censorsahip:

News also that W H Smith are ;

1. Not stocking the “Murder in Samarkand”

2. Are returning the copies ordered under Sale or Return.

3. Have instructed staff to refuse to take orders for the book.

Many readers will remember that Private Eye experienced the same problem in their early days when the Hornby family tried to suppress (with a massive lack of sucess) PE who used to dedicate their annuals “To W H Smith Without whom …”

Lord Patel does not suggest anbody goes into their nearest W H Smiths, collects a huge pile of books, has them rung through the till and then orders a copy of Craig Murray’s Book “Murder in Samarkand” and when they refuse to order it, to thank them politeley and walk away. That would be wrong as W H Smith are in a bad way financially. Totally wrong and must be discouraged.No Way.Instead order your copy from Amazon here.

Anyway the speed at which the pile disappeared in Preston it will be into a second print run soon

Interview with Craig Murray here, Craig Murray’s blog here.