Uncle Osama to the Republican Rescue... 
- posted by The MooCow @ 3:45 PM 0 comments

 
BOO!
:=8D

Don't ferget u can always e-mail the MooCow with cowments at MooCowMoo@aol.com!!!

Well, guess who'se ugly face has re-emerged to influence the '04 election - Osama bin Laden, of course! Yes, our favorite Saudi rowdy is one tacky terrorist - and now that the Wacky Iraqi is in jail, Baby Bush and Uncle Dickie can turn their attention towards his capture. At least, that's what they want you to think. See, the latest bin Laden video is clearly a reminder: stay afraid. The Republicans and their fear/war machine can't control an apathetic, brain-dead, Walmart-slurping populace unless its too afraid to go out and blow forty bucks filling up their gas-guzzling SUVs. Small surprise that the ultimate political bugga-boo has returned, just in time to influence people from voting for Kerry. Oh, it will generate some conversation, like the missing 377 tons of high explosives that mysteriously walked away because we didn't have enough troops on the ground to properly guard it, or the 50+ dead American-trained Iraqi troops that died because they weren't properly supported, or the ever-growing list of abductees, including 12 Nepalese hostages kidnapped and murdered - no, who would want to discuss that? Here's part of the AP story:

President Bush held a video-conference call with national security adviser Condoleezza Rice and the heads of the CIA, FBI and departments of Justice and Homeland Security. White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the president directed them to make sure any necessary action is taken with regard to the tape.
McClellan did not say what steps were being taken or contemplated. He played down the possibility of the administration raising the threat advisory level, currently at ''yellow,'' or elevated, for most of the country. He did rule out Bush curtailing his campaign schedule to deal with the new video message.
The presidential candidates responded with reflexive gestures of unity to the sight of America's deadly foe on video, but those were swallowed up in the lunge for advantage in the campaign's closing days.
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., campaigning for Bush in Connecticut, predicted Saturday that the bin Laden message would give the president a boost in the campaign's closing days by focusing attention on terrorism.
''I think the undecideds are going to go into the ballot booth and vote on who they believe can protect them the best,'' McCain said, maintaining that the answer would be Bush.
Mike McCurry, an adviser to Kerry, said the campaign has no way of knowing what kind of effect the tape might have on the election: ''We'll know on Tuesday.''
McCurry also rejected the idea that Kerry was using the tape for political ends, disputing Republican criticism and saying, ''It's hard to imagine how they could make that charge since he's the one that referenced the tape in his vicious attack on Senator Kerry last night.'' After a day in Florida, Kerry flew to Wisconsin to resume campaigning in Midwestern battlegrounds, where he and Bush spent much of the week. Iowa and Ohio were also on the Massachusetts senator's plate Saturday; Bush was stumping in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota before capping the night in Orlando, Fla.
Intelligence officials continued to analyze the bin Laden tape, which they believe is genuine and had been made recently. The campaigns pored over the implications for their scripted weekend finales, and both candidates rushed to TV cameras to respond.
''Let me make this very clear,'' Bush said in Toledo, Ohio. ''Americans will not be intimidated or influenced by an enemy of our country. I'm sure Senator Kerry agrees with this.''
Kerry, in Florida, echoed that ''we are absolutely united in our determination to hunt down and destroy Osama bin Laden and the terrorists.'' He went on: ''They are barbarians, and I will stop at absolutely nothing to hunt down, capture or kill the terrorists wherever they are, whatever it takes, period.''
But separately he returned to his argument that U.S. forces could have run down bin Laden in the Tora Bora mountains of Afghanistan in late 2001 if they had gone after him on the ground. He blamed Bush anew for the decision to let Afghan forces lead that chase.

Sorry, it all seems a bit too scripted for me, a bit too convenient that the 1 thing that Baby Bush needed to boost his sagging campaign would happen just 3 days before the election. Either this whole story is being generated from inside, or bin Laden really does want to keep Bush in office, and thereby cowtinue to use Bush's ugly mug as a rallying point for future terrorists. EIther way, this will no doubt be bin Laden's second successful terrorist strike in 4 years.

:=8/



- posted by The MooCow @ 3:22 PM 0 comments

 
:=8D

Don't ferget u can always e-mail the MooCow with cowments at MooCowMoo@aol.com!!!

That wiley MooCow has a copy of the March-April 2001 Audubon magazine, the one which a group of environmentalists, scientists, and distinguished authors each came up with a problem which they hoped (oh so naively) our illustrious president would address during the first four years of his regime. Let' s check out that list of distinguished guests and their issues, and see which (if any) the Bush administration has solved, or even attempted to solve.

1. Martha Marks, President of Republicans for Environmental Protection (now there's a small lobby...):

President Bush must lead America away from fossile fuels to a bright future built on renewable, clean energy. As long as we insist on drilling, digging, and burning fossil fuels, the American people will always be fighting a rear-guard defense of our air and water; the global climate; and our national parks, wilderness areas, wildlife refuges, coastlines, and other beloved places. The technology and economics are right for this transformation today. Only the political barriers remain to be cleared away.

Well, those barriers not only remain in place, but our boy Georgie has all but cemented them firmly to the spot. Not only has George Bush Jr. attacked our national parks, wildlife refuges, and other pristine "beloved" areas with oil drilling permits, he has continued to keep our hands firmly chained to the caprices of foreign despots (read: the Saudis) who keep us jumping through hoops for the priveledge of wasting money on their oil. Why? Well, because as he and his cronies are from Big Oil families, the Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, etc families all get a nice, tidy chunk of change as middlemen between the oil thugs and the general public. That's one cow they will keep milking until the well reuns dry, and beyond. Cow many moore wars will this administration start to keep the cash flowing into their pockets? Time can only tell...

2. Ralph Nader, Consumer Advocate and Green Party candidate (no longer):

The single most consequential mission that President Bush can undertake is to lead the world in solar energy research and use. Solar energy can eventually replace replace nuclear power, coal, oil, and gas. it would reduce the risk of geopolitical struggle and diminish global warming, ozone depletion, air and water pollution, and dependence on distant suppliers controlled by cartels and conglomerates. The main obstacle to achieving a solar world is opposition by the fossile fuel and atomic energy interests. They lobby Washington for subsidies, which create an uneven playing field.

Poor Ralphie; no wonder you got booted from the Green Party platform. Did you really think that Georgie Jr, he from one of the largest families on the side of the fossil fuel and atomic energy lobbies that wreck our country with their filthy money and endless pockets, was going to bite the hooked claw that fed him and his clan? Not bloody likely, my friend. As for solar power running the country, we'll see the Second Coming first, at least while Bush and his cronies fatten themselves on the oily, filthy lucre lining their pockets, care of Daddy Bush, his CEO flunkies, and those rascally Saudis (who devour quite a huge chunk of change themselves in their role as drug...err... oil pusher to the US).

3. Edward O. Wilson, Biologist, author, and conservationist:

(The President should) take the moral high ground. The world's natural economy is crumbling, imperiling the market economy. The US can and should show the way in the global conservation movement. We need an international summit on forests, aimed at a protocol that matches the caliber of those on ozone depletion and climate change. At home, you (the President) should work with Congress to gather all forested Federal land into the National Park system - or at least direct that all of it be administered by the same guidelines. Recreation, hunting, and fishing account for about 75% of the national forests' contribution to the gross domestic product; only 10% comes from mining and timber extraction.

Of course, once the smell of money hits the air, who do you think this administration sided with when it came to protecting our national forests? Why the mining and timber extraction lobbies, of course, they who may only accownt for 10% towards our GNP from our national forests, who who moost assuredly make larger lobbying pay-offs and campaign donations than does anyone representing the moore wholesome, profitable (but not bribe-inducing) enviro-friendly lobbiests - I'm guessing they would be the National Audubon Society, the Sierra Club, and udder such "leftist, reactionary" groups. Besides, our National Park system is in a shables at the mooment, thanks to the homicidal cuts gaspoed into their budgets, thanks to our old friend Georgie, the "green president". How much will the Bush family pocket when George's oil cronies get to drill in the Alaskan wilderness preserve? Perhaps the S.S. Condaleza Rice will become the next Exxon Valdeze...

4. Donella Meadows, Columnist and Director of the Sustainability Institute, Dartmouth College:
The single most necessary step for the environment is thoroughgoing campaign reform. As long as the government can be bought, those who benefit from environmental destruction will ablways be able to outbid those who fight for environmental protection. Construction, real estate, and other interests will strangle funding and implementation of the Endangered Species Act. Logging, mining, grazing, and off-road vehicle companies will fight the protection and restoration of our national lands. Oil, coal, and car companies will block real climate-protecting energy policy. The chemical and manufacturing lobbies will continue to write air and water laws. For real democracy, we need strict spending caps, so there's a level playing field for all candidates.

While you sit there, America, waiting to see the Second Coming long before solar power becomes going concern, you might as well add Campaign Finance Reform to the list of those entities not likely to happoen soon. It's like asking a glutton to give up his free lunch. Never gonna happen, folks. Especially now, since this goverment has been bought by the very same industries Ms. Meadows rails against - the MooCow has said it before, and he'll say it again: the Bush administration is the single moost corrupt administration ever to assume control of this country, and just where do you think Bush and his cronies got theit money and power from? Not the nice, green environmental pixies. It moost be said, cowever, that Ms Meadows at least does recognize the futility of her request of the Bush administration through her second part of her article: People who have come to office through our present corrupt system (Georgie??) can hardly be expected to fix that system on the basis of "suggestions" from people like me. They need very strong pressure, ultimately from the voters. The only way I can see to organize such pressure is for all the public-interest organizations - from the Audubon Society to the Children's Defense Fund to the League of Women Voters to the American Red Cross - to band together and insist on it. To quote James Goldman, author of The Lion in Winter, from the same text: "The day those stout hearts band together will be the day when pigs fly". Got pork in the tree tops yet? Nope? Because of the appalling state of leadership in the Democratic party, you know, the ones who are supposed to be the environmentally- responsible ones, there never has, and moost likely never will be, such an unprecedented consolidation of liberal power. Why? Because the Democrats have learned that the only way to cowpete with the Republicans is by sucking in vast quantities of special interest moolah - and once you become beholden to them there is no going back, unless you happen to be independently wealthy (like the Heinz family riches??). It's like asking people to give back all the millions of handguns, machine guns, and assault rifles - closing the barn door is moot once the cows have all bolted.

Drat, only 3 days left until the election - have to leave this cow pie out half-baked. Sorry, kids there was mooore, but I don't have the time to finish. You get the idea, though...:=8/

- posted by The MooCow @ 1:25 AM 0 comments

 

Family Bonds 
- posted by The MooCow @ 12:46 AM 0 comments

 

It sure is... :=8/ 
- posted by The MooCow @ 12:36 AM 0 comments

 
Who is the Flip-Flopper?
:=8D

Don't ferget u can always e-mail the MooCow with cowments at MooCowMoo@aol.com!!!

Lifted verbatum from the American Progress Action Fund:



From the beginning, George W. Bush has made his own credibility a central issue. On 10/11/00, then-Gov. Bush said: "I think credibility is important.It is going to be important for the president to be credible with Congress, important for the president to be credible with foreign nations." But President Bush's serial flip-flopping raises serious questions about whether Congress and foreign leaders can rely on what he says.

1. Social Security Surplus

BUSH PLEDGES NOT TO TOUCH SOCIAL SECURITY SURPLUS... "We're going to keep the promise of Social Security and keep the government from raiding the Social Security surplus." [President Bush, 3/3/01]

...BUSH SPENDS SOCIAL SECURITY SURPLUS The New York Times reported that "the president's new budget uses Social Security surpluses to pay for other programs every year through 2013, ultimately diverting more than $1.4 trillion in Social Security funds to other purposes." [The New York Times, 2/6/02]

2. Patient's Right to Sue

GOVERNOR BUSH VETOES PATIENTS' RIGHT TO SUE... "Despite his campaign rhetoric in favor of a patients' bill of rights, Bush fought such a bill tooth and nail as Texas governor, vetoing a bill coauthored by Republican state Rep. John Smithee in 1995. He... constantly opposed a patient's right to sue an HMO over coverage denied that resulted in adverse health effects." [Salon, 2/7/01]

...CANDIDATE BUSH PRAISES TEXAS PATIENTS' RIGHT TO SUE... "We're one of the first states that said you can sue an HMO for denying you proper coverage... It's time for our nation to come together and do what's right for the people. And I think this is right for the people. You know, I support a national patients' bill of rights, Mr. Vice President. And I want all people covered. I don't want the law to supersede good law like we've got in Texas." [Governor Bush, 10/17/00]

...PRESIDENT BUSH'S ADMINISTRATION ARGUES AGAINST RIGHT TO SUE "To let two Texas consumers, Juan Davila and Ruby R. Calad, sue their managed-care companies for wrongful denials of medical benefits ‘would be to completely undermine' federal law regulating employee benefits, Assistant Solicitor General James A. Feldman said at oral argument March 23. Moreover, the administration's brief attacked the policy rationale for Texas's law, which is similar to statutes on the books in nine other states." [Washington Post, 4/5/04]

3. Tobacco Buyout

BUSH SUPPORTS CURRENT TOBACCO FARMERS' QUOTA SYSTEM... "They've got the quota system in place -- the allotment system -- and I don't think that needs to be changed." [President Bush, 5/04]

...BUSH ADMINISTRATION WILL SUPPORT FEDERAL BUYOUT OF TOBACCO QUOTAS "The administration is open to a buyout." [White House spokeswoman Jeanie Mamo, 6/18/04]

4. North Korea

BUSH WILL NOT OFFER NUCLEAR NORTH KOREA INCENTIVES TO DISARM... "We developed a bold approach under which, if the North addressed our long-standing concerns, the United States was prepared to take important steps that would have significantly improved the lives of the North Korean people. Now that North Korea's covert nuclear weapons program has come to light, we are unable to pursue this approach." [President's Statement, 11/15/02]

...BUSH ADMINISTRATION OFFERS NORTH KOREA INCENTIVES TO DISARM"Well, we will work to take steps to ease their political and economic isolation. So there would be -- what you would see would be some provisional or temporary proposals that would only lead to lasting benefit after North Korea dismantles its nuclear programs. So there would be some provisional or temporary efforts of that nature." [White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan, 6/23/04]

5. Abortion

BUSH SUPPORTS A WOMAN'S RIGHT TO CHOOSE... "Bush said he...favors leaving up to a woman and her doctor the abortion question." [The Nation, 6/15/00, quoting the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, 5/78]

...BUSH OPPOSES A WOMAN'S RIGHT TO CHOOSE "I am pro-life." [Governor Bush, 10/3/00]

6. OPEC

BUSH PROMISES TO FORCE OPEC TO LOWER PRICES... "What I think the president ought to do [when gas prices spike] is he ought to get on the phone with the OPEC cartel and say we expect you to open your spigots...And the president of the United States must jawbone OPEC members to lower the price." [President Bush, 1/26/00]

...BUSH REFUSES TO LOBBY OPEC LEADERS With gas prices soaring in the United States at the beginning of 2004, the Miami Herald reported the president refused to "personally lobby oil cartel leaders to change their minds." [Miami Herald, 4/1/04]

7. Iraq Funding

BUSH SPOKESMAN DENIES NEED FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR THE REST OF 2004... "We do not anticipate requesting supplemental funding for '04" [White House Budget Director Joshua Bolton, 2/2/04]

...BUSH REQUESTS ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR IRAQ FOR 2004 "I am requesting that Congress establish a $25 billion contingency reserve fund for the coming fiscal year to meet all commitments to our troops." [President Bush, Statement by President, 5/5/04]

8. Condoleeza Rice Testimony

BUSH SPOKESMAN SAYS RICE WON'T TESTIFY AS 'A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE'... "Again, this is not her personal preference; this goes back to a matter of principle. There is a separation of powers issue involved here. Historically, White House staffers do not testify before legislative bodies. So it's a matter of principle, not a matter of preference." [White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan, 3/9/04]

...BUSH ORDERS RICE TO TESTIFY: "Today I have informed the Commission on Terrorist Attacks Against the United States that my National Security Advisor, Dr. Condoleezza Rice, will provide public testimony." [President Bush, 3/30/04]

9. Science

BUSH PLEDGES TO ISSUE REGULATIONS BASED ON SCIENCE..."I think we ought to have high standards set by agencies that rely upon science, not by what may feel good or what sounds good." [then-Governor George W. Bush, 1/15/00]

...BUSH ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS IGNORE SCIENCE "60 leading scientists—including Nobel laureates, leading medical experts, former federal agency directors and university chairs and presidents—issued a statement calling for regulatory and legislative action to restore scientific integrity to federal policymaking. According to the scientists, the Bush administration has, among other abuses, suppressed and distorted scientific analysis from federal agencies, and taken actions that have undermined the quality of scientific advisory panels." [Union of Concerned Scientists, 2/18/04]

10. Ahmed Chalabi

BUSH INVITES CHALABI TO STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS...President Bush also met with Chalabi during his brief trip to Iraq last Thanksgiving [White House Documents 1/20/04, 11/27/03]

...BUSH MILITARY ASSISTS IN RAID OF CHALABI'S HOUSE "U.S. soldiers raided the home of America's one-time ally Ahmad Chalabi on Thursday and seized documents and computers." [Washington Post, 5/20/04]

11. Department of Homeland Security

BUSH OPPOSES THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY..."So, creating a Cabinet office doesn't solve the problem. You still will have agencies within the federal government that have to be coordinated. So the answer is that creating a Cabinet post doesn't solve anything." [White House spokesman Ari Fleischer, 3/19/02]

...BUSH SUPPORTS THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY "So tonight, I ask the Congress to join me in creating a single, permanent department with an overriding and urgent mission: securing the homeland of America and protecting the American people." [President Bush, Address to the Nation, 6/6/02]

12. Weapons of Mass Destruction

BUSH SAYS WE FOUND THE WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION..."We found the weapons of mass destruction. We found biological laboratories...for those who say we haven't found the banned manufacturing devices or banned weapons, they're wrong, we found them." [President Bush, Interview in Poland, 5/29/03]

...BUSH SAYS WE HAVEN'T FOUND WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION "David Kay has found the capacity to produce weapons.And when David Kay goes in and says we haven't found stockpiles yet, and there's theories as to where the weapons went. They could have been destroyed during the war. Saddam and his henchmen could have destroyed them as we entered into Iraq. They could be hidden. They could have been transported to another country, and we'll find out." [President Bush, Meet the Press, 2/7/04]

13. Free Trade

BUSH SUPPORTS FREE TRADE... "I believe strongly that if we promote trade, and when we promote trade, it will help workers on both sides of this issue." [President Bush in Peru, 3/23/02]

...BUSH SUPPORTS RESTRICTIONS ON TRADE "In a decision largely driven by his political advisers, President Bush set aside his free-trade principles last year and imposed heavy tariffs on imported steel to help out struggling mills in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, two states crucial for his reelection." [Washington Post, 9/19/03]

14. Osama Bin Laden

BUSH WANTS OSAMA DEAD OR ALIVE... "I want justice. And there's an old poster out West, I recall, that says, 'Wanted: Dead or Alive.'" [President Bush, on Osama Bin Laden, 09/17/01]

...BUSH DOESN'T CARE ABOUT OSAMA "I don't know where he is.You know, I just don't spend that much time on him... I truly am not that concerned about him."[President Bush, Press Conference, 3/13/02]

15. The Environment

BUSH SUPPORTS MANDATORY CAPS ON CARBON DIOXIDE... "[If elected], Governor Bush will work to...establish mandatory reduction targets for emissions of four main pollutants: sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, mercury and carbon dioxide." [Bush Environmental Plan, 9/29/00]

...BUSH OPPOSES MANDATORY CAPS ON CARBON DIOXIDE "I do not believe, however, that the government should impose on power plants mandatory emissions reductions for carbon dioxide, which is not a 'pollutant' under the Clean Air Act." [President Bush, Letter to Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE), 3/13/03]

16. WMD Commission

BUSH RESISTS AN OUTSIDE INVESTIGATION ON WMD INTELLIGENCE FAILURE... "The White House immediately turned aside the calls from Kay and many Democrats for an immediate outside investigation, seeking to head off any new wide-ranging election-year inquiry that might go beyond reports already being assembled by congressional committees and the Central Intelligence Agency." [NY Times, 1/29/04]

...BUSH SUPPORTS AN OUTSIDE INVESTIGATION ON WMD INTELLIGENCE FAILURE "Today, by executive order, I am creating an independent commission, chaired by Governor and former Senator Chuck Robb, Judge Laurence Silberman, to look at American intelligence capabilities, especially our intelligence about weapons of mass destruction." [President Bush, 2/6/04]

17. Creation of the 9/11 Commission

BUSH OPPOSES CREATION OF INDEPENDENT 9/11 COMMISSION... "President Bush took a few minutes during his trip to Europe Thursday to voice his opposition to establishing a special commission to probe how the government dealt with terror warnings before Sept. 11." [CBS News, 5/23/02]

...BUSH SUPPORTS CREATION OF INDEPENDENT 9/11 COMMISSION "President Bush said today he now supports establishing an independent commission to investigate the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks." [ABC News, 09/20/02]

18. Time Extension for 9/11 Commission

BUSH OPPOSES TIME EXTENSION FOR 9/11 COMMISSION... "President Bush and House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) have decided to oppose granting more time to an independent commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks." [Washington Post, 1/19/04]

...BUSH SUPPORTS TIME EXTENSION FOR 9/11 COMMISSION "The White House announced Wednesday its support for a request from the commission investigating the September 11, 2001 attacks for more time to complete its work." [CNN, 2/4/04]

19. One Hour Limit for 9/11 Commission Testimony

BUSH LIMITS TESTIMONY IN FRONT OF 9/11 COMMISSION TO ONE HOUR... "President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have placed strict limits on the private interviews they will grant to the federal commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks, saying that they will meet only with the panel's top two officials and that Mr. Bush will submit to only a single hour of questioning, commission members said Wednesday." [NY Times, 2/26/04]

...BUSH SETS NO TIMELIMIT FOR TESTIMONY "The president's going to answer all of the questions they want to raise. Nobody's watching the clock." [White House spokesman Scott McClellan, 3/10/04]

20. Gay Marriage

BUSH SAYS GAY MARRIAGE IS A STATE ISSUE... "The state can do what they want to do. Don't try to trap me in this state's issue like you're trying to get me into." [Gov. George W. Bush on Gay Marriage, Larry King Live, 2/15/00]

...BUSH SUPPORTS CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT BANNING GAY MARRIAGE "Today I call upon the Congress to promptly pass, and to send to the states for ratification, an amendment to our Constitution defining and protecting marriage as a union of man and woman as husband and wife." [President Bush, 2/24/04]

21. Nation Building

BUSH OPPOSES NATION BUILDING... "If we don't stop extending our troops all around the world in nation-building missions, then we're going to have a serious problem coming down the road." [Gov. George W. Bush, 10/3/00]

...BUSH SUPPORTS NATION BUILDING "We will be changing the regime of Iraq, for the good of the Iraqi people." [President Bush, 3/6/03]

22. Saddam/al Qaeda Link

BUSH SAYS IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DISTINGUISH BETWEEEN AL QAEDA AND SADDAM... "You can't distinguish between al Qaeda and Saddam when you talk about the war on terror." [President Bush, 9/25/02]

...BUSH SAYS SADDAM HAD NO ROLE IN AL QAEDA PLOT "We've had no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved in Sept. 11." [President Bush, 9/17/03]

23. U.N. Resolution

BUSH VOWS TO HAVE A UN VOTE NO MATTER WHAT... "No matter what the whip count is, we're calling for the vote. We want to see people stand up and say what their opinion is about Saddam Hussein and the utility of the United Nations Security Council. And so, you bet. It's time for people to show their cards, to let the world know where they stand when it comes to Saddam." [President Bush 3/6/03]

...BUSH WITHDRAWS REQUEST FOR VOTE "At a National Security Council meeting convened at the White House at 8:55 a.m., Bush finalized the decision to withdraw the resolution from consideration and prepared to deliver an address to the nation that had already been written." [Washington Post, 3/18/03]

24. Involvement in the Palestinian Conflict

BUSH OPPOSES SUMMITS... "Well, we've tried summits in the past, as you may remember. It wasn't all that long ago where a summit was called and nothing happened, and as a result we had significant intifada in the area." [President Bush, 04/05/02]

...BUSH SUPPORTS SUMMITS "If a meeting advances progress toward two states living side by side in peace, I will strongly consider such a meeting. I'm committed to working toward peace in the Middle East." [President Bush, 5/23/03]

25. Campaign Finance

BUSH OPPOSES MCCAIN-FEINGOLD... "George W. Bush opposes McCain-Feingold...as an infringement on free expression." [Washington Post, 3/28/2000]

...BUSH SIGNS MCCAIN-FEINGOLD INTO LAW "[T]his bill improves the current system of financing for Federal campaigns, and therefore I have signed it into law." [President Bush, at the McCain-Feingold signing ceremony, 03/27/02]

26. 527s

Bush opposes restrictions on 527s: "I also have reservations about the constitutionality of the broad ban on issue advertising [in McCain Feingold], which restrains the speech of a wide variety of groups on issues of public import." [President Bush, 3/27/02]

…Bush says 527s bad for system: "I don't think we ought to have 527s. I can't be more plain about it…I think they're bad for the system. That's why I signed the bill, McCain-Feingold." [President Bush, 8/23/04]

27. Medical Records

Bush says medical records must remain private: "I believe that we must protect…the right of every American to have confidence that his or her personal medical records will remain private." [President Bush, 4/12/01]

…Bush says patients' histories are not confidntial: The Justice Department…asserts that patients "no longer possess a reasonable expectation that their histories will remain completely confidential." [BusinessWeek, 4/30/04]

28. Timelines For Dictators

Bush sets timeline for Saddam: "If Iraq does not accept the terms within a week of passage or fails to disclose required information within 30 days, the resolution authorizes 'all necessary means' to force compliance--in other words, a military attack." [LA Times, 10/3/02]

…Bush says he's against timelines: "I don't think you give timelines to dictators." [President Bush, 8/27/04]

29. The Great Lakes

Bush wants to divert great lakes: "Even though experts say 'diverting any water from the Great Lakes region sets a bad precedent' Bush 'said he wants to talk to Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chrétien about piping water to parched states in the west and southwest.'– [AP, 7/19/01]
Bush says he'll never divert Great Lakes: "We've got to use our resources wisely, like water. It starts with keeping the Great Lakes water in the Great Lakes Basin...My position is clear: We're never going to allow diversion of Great Lakes water." [President Bush, 8/16/04]

30. Winning The War On Terror

Bush claims he can win the war on terror: "One of the interesting things people ask me, now that we're asking questions, is, can you ever win the war on terror? Of course, you can." [President Bush, 4/13/04]

…Bush says war on terror is unwinnable: "I don't think you can win [the war on terror]." [President Bush, 8/30/04]

…Bush says he will win the war on terror: "Make no mistake about it, we are winning and we will win [the war on terror]." [President Bush, 8/31/04]

We should just go ahead and call him the Great Spatula... :=8/


- posted by The MooCow @ 7:18 AM 0 comments

 

Well Someone's Gonna Be Happy... 
- posted by The MooCow @ 6:28 PM 0 comments

 
Sneaking in Legislation Through the Back Door... :=8(
Don't ferget u can always e-mail the MooCow with cowments at MooCowMoo@aol.com!!!

Well, Baby Bush is at it again. While America is busy arguing over who will become the next leader of the free world, Bush and his cronies have quietly slipped in a new tax bill that amounts to the single largest tax give-away in our country's history - and you know we the people are not getting any of it. Here's the story from USA Today (Thanks John!):

With no fanfare, President Bush on Friday signed the most sweeping rewrite of corporate tax law in nearly two decades, showering $136 billion in new tax breaks on businesses, farmers and other groups.
The election-year measure was described by supporters as critically necessary to aid beleaguered manufacturers who have suffered 2.7 million lost jobs over the past four years.
But opponents charged that the tax package had grown into a massive giveaway that will add to the complexity of the tax system and end up rewarding multinational companies that move jobs overseas.
The original purpose for the legislation was to repeal a $5 billion annual tax break provided to American exporters that was ruled illegal by the Geneva-based World Trade Organization. Repeal of the tax break was needed to lift retaliatory tariffs that are now being imposed on more than 1,600 American manufactured products and farm goods exported to Europe.
The bill replaces the $49.2 billion export tax break with $136 billion in new tax breaks over the next decade for a wide array of groups from farmers, fishermen and bow and arrow hunters to some of America's largest corporations.
The legislation also includes a $10.1 billion buyout of quotas held by tobacco farmers. However, a Senate provision that would have coupled this buyout with regulation of tobacco by the Food and Drug Administration was dropped by the conference committee that ironed out differences between the two chambers.

Well, there really aren't a whole lot of farmers left in America these days; there are even less bow-and-arrow hunters. Cowever, there are a lot of corporate dollars pumped into the Bush/Cheney regime, so we're kinda guessing this is where Baby Bush and the RNC butters its bread. :=8P
Notice too the huge buy-out for Big Tobacco, and how they were able to successfully lobby against any irritating government regulations. Yet an-udder Republican special interest with hands in the President's pockets.
Yessireee, Pork is king in the Land of the Free and the Home of the CEO.
:=8/




- posted by The MooCow @ 6:12 PM 0 comments

 

Please let us come home... 
- posted by The MooCow @ 4:22 PM 0 comments

 
Soldiers Mootiny in Iraq?? :=8.
:=8D

Don't ferget u can always e-mail the MooCow with cowments at MooCowMoo@aol.com!!!

Uh-oh. The situation in Iraq cowtinues to degenerate. Now, our own reservists, who have borne the brunt of the hazardous occupation duties, are clearly getting tired of the whole mess. When ordered to deliver fuel in a clearly dangerous mission, 19 reservists, who felt out-gunned, driving around in poorly-armoured, broken-down vehicles, disobeyed orders and were arrested. Here is the Washinton Post report:

Reservists Refuse Iraq Mission
Army Probing Up to 19 Members of Supply Platoon
WASHINGTON (Oct. 16) - Relatives of soldiers who refused to deliver supplies in Iraq say the troops considered the mission too dangerous, in part because their vehicles were in poor shape.
The Army is investigating up to 19 reservist members of a platoon that is part of the 343rd Quartermaster Company, based in Rock Hill, S.C. The unit delivers food, water and fuel on trucks in combat zones.
Convoys in Iraq are frequently subject to ambushes and roadside bombings.
Some of the troops' safety concerns were being addressed, military officials said. But a coalition spokesman in Baghdad said ''a small number of the soldiers involved chose to express their concerns in an inappropriate manner, causing a temporary breakdown in discipline.''
The coalition said in a statement Saturday that the troops are ''not being guarded or detained. They are being interviewed. They're taking statements.''
But the relatives said they were told the soldiers had been confined. Teresa Hill of Dothan, Ala., who said her daughter, Amber McClenny, was among in the platoon, received a phone message from her early Thursday morning saying they had been detained by U.S. military authorities.
''This is a real, real, big emergency,'' McClenny said in her message. ''I need you to contact someone. I mean, raise pure hell.''
McClenny said in her message that her platoon had refused to go on a fuel-hauling convoy to Taji, north of Baghdad. ''We had broken down trucks, non-armored vehicles and, um, we were carrying contaminated fuel. They are holding us against our will. We are now prisoners,'' she said.
''She told me (Amber) was being held in a tent with armed guards,'' said Hill, who spoke with her daughter Friday afternoon after her release. Her daughter said they are facing punishment ranging from a reprimand to a charge of mutiny.
The incident was first reported Friday by The Clarion-Ledger newspaper in Jackson, Miss. Family members told the newspaper that several platoon members had been confined.
The supply route the soldiers were to have used, is among the most dangerous in Iraq. The military calls it ''Main Supply Route Tampa.'' Many soldiers have been wounded there by roadside bombs and rifle and rocket-propelled grenade fire.
A commanding general has ordered the unit to undergo a ''safety-maintenance stand down,'' during which it will conduct no further missions as the unit's vehicles are inspected, the military said.
On Wednesday, 19 members of the platoon did not show up for a scheduled 7 a.m. meeting in Tallil, in southeastern Iraq, to prepare for the fuel convoy's departure a few hours later, the military statement said.
''An initial report indicated that some of the 19 soldiers (not all) refused to participate in the convoy as directed,'' the statement said.
The mission was ultimately carried out by other soldiers from the 343rd, which has at least 120 soldiers, the military said. Staff Sgt. Christopher Stokes, a 37-year-old chemical engineer from Charlotte, N.C., went to Iraq with the 343rd but had to come home because of an injury. He said reservists were given inferior equipment and tensions in the company had been building since they were deployed in February.
''It wasn't really safe,'' he said. ''The vehicles are not all that up to par anyway. The armor that they have is homemade. It's not really armor. It's like little steel rails.''
A whole unit refusing to go on a mission in a war zone would be a significant breach of military discipline. The military statement said the incident ''isolated'' and called the 343rd an experienced unit that performed honorable service in nine months in Iraq.
U.S. military officials said the commanding general of the 13th Corps Support Command., Brig. Gen. James E. Chambers, had appointed his deputy, Col. Darrell Roll, to investigate. An investigative team under Roll is in Tallil, questioning soldiers about the incident, the military said.
''Preliminary findings indicate that there were several contributing factors that led to the late convoy incident and alleged refusal to participate by some soldiers,'' the military said. ''It would be inappropriate to discuss those factors while the investigation continues.''

Need any further proof that our military is stretched thin, that our soldiers are dying in an unpopular, needless conflict over oil and money? How long before a whole batallion has had enough? Baby Bush and his cronies have no idea cow to extricate our country from this pointless quagmire, and many moore American citizens will die in a ditch by the roadside in Iraq as a result. So, next time you hear someone mindlessly mutter "Freedom is on the march", tell 'em no, its dying in a ditch because it has no armor, inadequate supplies, low moral, and it wants to come home where it belongs.

:=8/


- posted by The MooCow @ 4:06 PM 0 comments

 

Time to Go!!! 
- posted by The MooCow @ 4:02 PM 0 comments

 
Latest Poll Weeds Bush! ;=8)
:=8D

Don't ferget u can always e-mail the MooCow with cowments at MooCowMoo@aol.com!!!

Apparently, moost of the rest of the world would like to see Baby Bush pulled up by his stinking roots. A new poll cowducted by Global Research inc. in 35 countries shows that an overwhelming majority of world citizens would prefer Kerry over Bush as President. Here is the BBC report:

World 'wants Kerry as president'

A new poll in 35 countries suggests that people around the world would prefer Democratic challenger John Kerry as US president over George W Bush.
Global research company GlobeScan Inc and the University of Maryland found clear leads for Mr Kerry among those polled in 30 of the countries.
Only Filipino, Polish and Nigerian respondents clearly backed Mr Bush.
Most said Mr Bush's foreign policy had made them feel worse about the US since his election in 2000.
Meanwhile, a new survey of American and European public attitudes also suggested there had been a dramatic leap in the latter's criticism of US foreign policy.
More than three-quarters of Europeans surveyed in 10 countries by the German Marshall Fund of the US said they disapproved of President Bush's international actions, 20% more than two years ago. "Only one in five want to see Bush re-elected," said Steven Kull, the director of Maryland's Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA).
"Though he is not as well known, Kerry would win handily if the people of the world were to elect the US president."
Mr Kerry scored best in traditional US allies, such as Canada and Western European countries.
The highest margin was in Norway, where 74% of respondents backed Mr Kerry compared with just 7% for Mr Bush. The strongest negative views about US foreign policy appeared to come from Germany, where 83% said their view of the US had got worse.
Respondents in all the Latin American countries polled, including neighbours Mexico, also went for the Democrat, with the biggest majority - 57% to 14% - in Brazil.
The picture was more mixed in Asia. Only respondents in the Philippines clearly backed Mr Bush, but there was an almost even divide in India and Thailand. Organizers of the poll attributed the Philippine result to US aid to a military campaign against Islamist rebels in the south of the country.


- posted by The MooCow @ 3:48 PM 2 comments

 

Mmmmmm....beer.... ;=8) 
- posted by The MooCow @ 9:35 PM 0 comments

 
B to the E???? :=8/
:=8D

Don't ferget u can always e-mail the MooCow with cowments at MooCowMoo@aol.com!!!

In mooore alcohole-related news, Budweiser has decided to name its new caffine and ginsing-added beer B to the E, or B(E).

Has the world gone comepletely insane? Are now even the fat, rich, bald white guys who run conservative flagship corporate entities gettin' jiggy wit it?? Have we truely gone, as a culture, from demeaning and exploiting the black man to now wishing to emulate him cowpletely, even the ones with poor grammar?? Is the sky falling in, folks??? Here's the sad story:

Anheuser-Busch's 'B(E)' Takes Beer to a New Level

ST. LOUIS, Oct. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- B-to-the-E (B(E)), Budweiser's newest entry in a long line of innovative beers by Anheuser-Busch, is a distinctive new product for contemporary adults who are looking for the latest beverage to keep up with their highly social and fast-paced lifestyles. As the industry leader, Anheuser-Busch is the first major brewer to infuse beer with caffeine, guarana and ginseng. Well balanced with select hops and aromas of blackberry, raspberry and cherry, B(E) will offer a lightly sweet and tart taste -- a great mixture of beer and new flavors for adults to enjoy when out with friends at a club or at a bar after work with colleagues.
Brewed at Anheuser-Busch's Houston brewery, B(E) will be packaged in a sleek, slim-line 10-ounce can with stylish graphics. Pending formal government approval, B(E) will be launched in multiple phases throughout the year in markets across the country.
"Contemporary adults thirst for variety and what's new, and our B-to-the-E delivers a beverage that is true to their lifestyles and range of drinking occasions," said Pat McGauley, senior director of New Products and High End Brands, Anheuser-Busch, Inc. "Our new B-to-the-E provides caffeine, guarana, and ginseng in a great-tasting beer."
B(E) will be priced slightly higher than Budweiser and marketed through local print advertising, point-of-sale materials, bar and club promotions and online programs. B(E) will contain 6.6 percent alcohol by volume.
"We created a great new drink that's outside the boundaries of the taste adults would expect from a traditional beer," said Nathaniel Davis, brewmaster, Anheuser-Busch, Inc. "With B-to-the-E, we've come up with a beer that has a taste with a 'wow' factor at the finish."

So, what we got here is a Malt Liquor masquerading as a beer - either way, it should be drunk out of a paper bag (thanks Gary!). Please...

:=8/

- posted by The MooCow @ 9:23 PM 0 comments

 

At Least the beer isn't watered down... :=8/ 
- posted by The MooCow @ 9:58 PM 0 comments

 
Tried AAA Lately?? :=8/
:=8D

Don't ferget u can always e-mail the MooCow with cowments at MooCowMoo@aol.com!!!

Then there's this story which grabbed my attention...

NASHVILLE, TN (AP) -- One connoisseur says he's sure Jack Daniels "is spinning in his grave." That follows word that the famous "sippin' whiskey" has lowered the alcohol content of its Old Number Seven Black Label. The whiskey now registers 80 proof, rather than 86 proof. A change that's leaving many drinkers feeling betrayed. Modern Drunkard magazine editor Frank Kelly Rich says the company cannot get away with messing with a legend. An online petition asking the company to switch back has gathered about 700 signatures.

OK. Bad enough we have ego-massaging magazines for Oprah and Martha Stewart. Modern Drunkard?? Do we have too many magazines in this country or what? What's next, Pedophiles Today, Crack Ho's Illustrated, Tea-Bagging Monthly??

:=8/

I want a Modern Drunkard tee shirt... ;=8)



- posted by The MooCow @ 9:42 PM 0 comments

 

Super Snuggler!!! :=8D 
- posted by The MooCow @ 9:39 PM 0 comments

 
Snugglebunny!!! :=8D
Don't ferget u can always e-mail the MooCow with cowments at MooCowMoo@aol.com!!!

Belated Happy Birthday to Kate Winslet, one of the snuggliest of snugglebunnies in the MooCow's Snugglebunny Brigade. We're all hoping to see her winsome beauty on the silver screen again very soon!

;=8)

- posted by The MooCow @ 9:36 PM 0 comments

 

Janet Leigh 
- posted by The MooCow @ 9:20 PM 0 comments

 
Janet Leigh Dies :=8(
:=8D

Don't ferget u can always e-mail the MooCow with cowments at MooCowMoo@aol.com!!!

Yet an-udder star of yesteryear has passed away, this time no one less than Janet Leigh. Besides siring Jamie Leigh Curtis, Janet Leigh starred in such great films as Psycho, Touch of Evil, The Mancurian Candidate, and The Vikings (ok, I had to put in 1 classic stinker). Here is the AP report:

'Psycho' Actress Janet Leigh Dies at 77
By JOHN ROGERS, AP

NEW YORK (Oct. 4) - Janet Leigh, the wholesome beauty whose shocking murder in the classic Alfred Hitchcock thriller ''Psycho'' was credited with making generations of film fans think twice about stepping into a motel room shower, has died. She was 77.

The actress' husband, Robert Brandt, and her daughters, actresses Kelly Curtis and Jamie Lee Curtis, were at their mother's side when she died Sunday at her Beverly Hills home, said Heidi Schaeffer, a spokeswoman for Jamie Lee Curtis.
''She died peacefully at home,'' Schaeffer told The Associated Press on Monday.
Lee had suffered from vasculitis, an inflammation of the blood vessels, for the past year.
The stunning blonde enjoyed a long and distinguished career, appearing in such films as the 1962 political thriller ''The Manchurian Candidate'' and in Orson Welles' 1958 film noir classic ''Touch of Evil.''
But she gained her most lasting fame in ''Psycho'' as the embezzling office worker who is stabbed to death in the shower by cross-dressing madman Anthony Perkins. The role earned her an Oscar nomination as best supporting actress.

Born Jeanette Helen Morrison in Merced, Calif., on July 6, 1927, she was a college student when retired star Norma Shearer saw her photograph at a ski resort. Shearer recommended the teenager to talent agent Lew Wasserman, who negotiated a contract at MGM for $50 a week.
Dubbed Janet Leigh, she starred in 1947 at 19 in her first movie, ''The Romance of Rosy Ridge'' opposite Van Johnson. Her salary rose to $150 a week. She became one of the busiest stars at MGM, appearing in six movies in 1949.
Among her films: ''Act of Violence'' (with Van Heflin), ''Little Women,'' ''Holiday Affair'' (Robert Mitchum), ''Strictly Dishonorable'' (Ezio Pinza), ''The Naked Spur'' (James Stewart), ''Living It Up'' (Martin and Lewis), ''Jet Pilot'' (John Wayne), ''Bye Bye Birdie'' (Dick Van Dyke), ''Safari'' (Victor Mature).

Bye Bye, Janet, you left us a great and lasting legacy of film work. We'll see you on the udder side.

:=8)

- posted by The MooCow @ 6:43 PM 0 comments