Frank Rich Nails It

In Sunday's New York Time columnist Frank Rich really sums up the lesson about George W. Bush we all should learn from hurricane Katrina. Since I got it a little early I thought I would post it.

Hurricane Katrina, which is likely to endure in the American psyche as long as L. Frank Baum's mythic tornado in The Wizard of Oz, has similarly unmasked George W. Bush.

The worst storm in our history proved perfect for exposing this president because in one big blast it illuminated all his failings: the rampant cronyism, the empty sloganeering of "compassionate conservatism," the lack of concern for the "underprivileged" his mother condescended to at the Astrodome, the reckless lack of planning for all government operations except tax cuts, the use of spin and photo-ops to camouflage failure and to substitute for action.

RED GHOULS!

Republican Senators seek wealthy corpses in disaster zones so they may use it as example of the need to repeal the estate tax (true story)

Federal troops aren't the only ones looking for bodies on the Gulf Coast. On Sept. 9, Alabama Senator Jeff Sessions called his old law professor Harold Apolinsky, co-author of Sessions' legislation repealing the federal estate tax, which was encountering sudden resistance on the Hill. Sessions had an idea to revitalize their cause, which he left on Apolinsky's voice mail: "[Arizona Sen.] Jon Kyl and I were talking about the estate tax. If we knew anybody that owned a business that lost life in the storm, that would be something we could push back with."

Difficult task because so few people qualified for the tax cut

It's been hard. Only a tiny percentage of people are affected by the estate tax—in 2001 only 534 Alabamans were subject to it.

PROST! Oktoberfest begins

Bush rejects tax increase on wealthy to pay for recovery

REVENGE OF THE REDS!
Republicans will seek more program cuts for the needy to find money to rebuild U.S. Gulf Coast .

"We got to maintain economic growth, and therefore we should not raise taxes"
President George W. Bush 9/16/05

"Asshole" (video)

Progress in Iraq.. It's the coffee stupid!

Another deadly day in Iraq but Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice see progress. She tells a skeptical Bill O'Reilly what she means. (video)

Bill O'Reilly: The truth of the matter is our correspondents at Fox News can't go out for a cup of coffee in Baghdad.

Condoleeza Rice: Bill, that's tough. It's tough. But what - would they have wanted to have gone out for a cup of coffee when Saddam Hussein was in power?

Bush Fishes for Compliments in New Orleans

In the Bush speech Thursday night the President attempted to repair damage to his poll numbers following the lackluster Hurricane Katrina response by promising "urban homesteading" and tens of billions of dollars to the region. Many Republicans condemned his plans to spend so much money while many Democrats simply don't believe anything the President says.

WazzaDem

For the Reds:
A conservative blog take a humorous look at the "Left Wing Media Bias" they find everywhere - even at the Houston Astodome.

thanks to RKG

FOLLOW UP: Bush Bathroom Note

Photographer Answers Criticism!

Yes, the note is real. And yes, the president really wrote it. "“It was shot at a pretty good distance",” Rick Wilking tells Gelf. "“I had no idea what was on the paper. "Until, that is, the editors at Reuters enlarged it. "“I was just as surprised as you".

DIEBOLD INSIDER SPEAKS!

Says maker of controversial voting machine
KNEW machines could be remotely manipulated.
Ignored warnings that there was no available patch.

Super Cyber Marriage?

Talks are underway for a possible merger between Microsoft and America On Line. This is being speculated on because both companies are desperately seeking ways to fight off growing powerhouses Yahoo! and Google. One of the first changes possible is the combining of Microsoft Instant message with AIM.

May I use the restroom please?

Photographers capture a note written by President Bush to Condi Rice at the United Nations Wednesday. We always knew he delegated important decisions to others but who could have imagined? Once given permission to use the facilities we reckon either Karl Rove or Dick Cheney would help him once inside the bathroom.

Will the Ayes Have it?

The Boy in the Bubble

There is a revealing article in the upcoming edition of Newsweek which describes the how and why of President Bushs' inaction during the early stages of the disaster in the Gulf. (That's the Gulf of Mexico not the Persian Gulf.) This story is based on information provided by close associates of the White House inner circle. In a nutshell these insiders tell of a White House run by a president who chooses to remain ignorant of the world around him and annoyed at anyone who tries to break into his bubble. Perhaps the blissful feeling of ignorance he requires is a replacement of the buzz Bush so craved as a younger man. Unfortunately the hangover for binge will effect the nation at large. George W. Bush's head may no longer hurt in the morning when he wakes up but the rest of us feel sick everyday from it.

Among the reasons given for the pitiful Katrina response:

The President doesn't like to cut short his vacations

It's a standing joke among the president's top aides: who gets to deliver the bad news? Warm and hearty in public, Bush can be cold and snappish in private, and aides sometimes cringe before the displeasure of the president of the United States, or, as he is known in West Wing jargon, POTUS. The bad news on this early morning, Tuesday, Aug. 30, some 24 hours after Hurricane Katrina had ripped through New Orleans, was that the president would have to cut short his five-week vacation by a couple of days and return to Washington.

The President suurounds himself with "Yes-Men"

But it is not clear what President Bush does read or watch, aside from the occasional biography and an hour or two of ESPN here and there. Bush can be petulant about dissent; he equates disagreement with disloyalty.

The President doesn't watch the news

The reality, say several aides who did not wish to be quoted because it might displease the president, did not really sink in until Thursday night. Some White House staffers were watching the evening news and thought the president needed to see the horrific reports coming out of New Orleans. Counselor Bartlett made up a DVD of the newscasts so Bush could see them in their entirety as he flew down to the Gulf Coast.

The Great Samaritan

Mikki Lanclos, of New York City, saw the devastation of hurricane Katrina and started a clothes drive. Through her hard work and determination she has managed to surpass anyone's expectation. Read how one persons compassion became a cause everyone wanted in on. All that was needed for someone to take the lead. Mikki Lancos is that person and is 'The Great Samaritan'.

Welcome to the blog

Great to see you here. MQAblog will be setting up shop here for a while . You do not have to change anything about the way you visit my site. I am shifting to this format because I can update much more quickly and from any computer with the internet. I will also spend some of the extra time developing a new on line project. So keep visiting and look for my new web site The Meek Voice soon.