The Time Has Come . . .

My dear readers:

The Bushwick Papers has made the jump over to TypePad. We're still working out the bugs and exploring all the bells and whistles but TBP is excited about the change. Please check it out at the New & Improved Bushwick Papers.

Adios Blog*Spot.

UPJ Protest March

Well yesterday, waking slowly in a Gin induced haze (my girlfriend & I went to our friend's wedding the evening before) we geared up to meet our fellow protest crew at the designated meeting spot at Columbus Circle. Our group about 16 strong then headed to the UPJ march entry point on 7th Ave. and 14th St. From there we rotted in the sun for about an hour and a half until the march actually commenced. [Note: As I'm stilling having technical difficulties, I cannot (yet) post pictures but check out callalillie for her great photos of the march.] The crowds were teeming with people of all sizes, ages, races, and dispositions. Many were in costume, some were socialists, some were radicals, but perhaps the fair majority were just regular folks, like me, who wanted to visibly express their indignation with the policies of the Bush Administration. It was a long day — though I confess we only marched from 14th Street to 34th Street. That portion of the march took just under 4 hours! Our small group (now only 7 strong) had the march truncated since (a) we were all tired, hungover, and sunburned; (b) the march was temporarily halted because someone set their Green Dragon float on fire; and (c) we were hungry and wanted a beer. We all escaped via subway to an Irish Pub to discuss politics and the march. We agreed that despite the few idiots in the crowd, it was very peaceful and a great event. Since this was my first large-scale rally/protest I was hoping for some meaningful insight into the event. Frankly, I came away with the notion that we live in a truly divided land. Sure, I live in the bastion of liberalism (that has become the unwitting host for the RNC), which was pretty much reflected in the varying agendas of the marchers. However, there are still millions (perhaps half the country) that are for Bush and the Neo-cons. The few counter-protesters that I saw were a rather timid bunch. But in the next few days as the convention gets into full swing, I look forward to the rhetoric, lies, and propaganda coming out of the convention and Fox News. I still think there must be some bridge of issues to reach out across the aisle and work with the Republicans. But for now, from what I witnessed yesterday, that bridge may be a bridge too far.

What's the Matter with the New York Times?

Listening to Air America Radio this morning discussing the interview of George W. Bush by the NY Times I listened in disbelief. Then I read the interview and saw that the opening line was that Bush

[D]id not believe Senator John Kerry lied about his war record, but he declined to condemn the television commercial paid for by a veterans group alleging that Mr. Kerry came by his war medals dishonestly.

As if we aren't already tired of this (discredited) story. But then, in the 5th paragraph of the article — for the first time ever

Mr. Bush also acknowledged for the first time that he made a "miscalculation of what the conditions would be'' in postwar Iraq. But he insisted that the 17-month-long insurgency that has upended the administration's plans for the country was the unintended by-product of a "swift victory'' against Saddam Hussein's military, which fled and then disappeared into the cities, enabling them to mount a rebellion against the American forces far faster than Mr. Bush and his aides had anticipated.

How come this revelation didn't make the headline?? Boy those NY Times editors sure got the heads up their asses. Don't want to piss the President (or Karl Rove) off otherwise they'll stop talking to us. Ummm. Hmmmm. Let's see how many interviews has the Times done with Bush. Zero?? Could the Times be anymore cut off? Nice job fellas.

Navy Records Support John Kerry's Story

I haven't weighed in on this debate at TBP, but this report by MSNBC Online indicates that U.S. Navy records appear to support Kerry's version of the circumstances in which he won his military awards. I find it hard to believe that any of the committed voters at this point will be swayed away from their already made up decision of who to cast a ballot for. The great "uncommitted middle" surely can't be that stupid either and believe the crap that the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth (sic) are dispelling. Can they??

R.N.C. Protest

With so much going on in the next few days in anticipation of the Republican National Convention in N.Y.C., it will be very interesting to see what transpires at these events. I really hope all the events will be peaceful, meaningful expressions. Sadly, I'm sure there will be the ignorant cells of "anarchists" who's acts of destruction will steal away the litany of legitimate messages that will be on display throughout the next week. My friends and I will be attending the United for Peace and Justice March on Sunday. I plan on taking many photos and describing what I see, here on The Bushwick Papers. If you are planning to protest sometime this week, a great legal resource for preparation is the National Lawyers Guild. There are links to all sorts of information including what your rights are and things to bring with you if you protest.

For the record, I am not protesting the act of the Republican Convention in it self. My beef is many faceted. Primarily, I am appalled that the Republican leaders have chosen N.Y.C. as the site for this year's Convention in order to shroud themselves in the afterglow of 9-11. While they have scaled back all the original proposed events (including Bush visiting Ground Zero before he accepts the nomination), the fact that they are still holding it here is too close for my taste. Moreover, I am protesting the hypocrisy ("the economy is strong") of the Administration (e.g., Bush claiming that he's a "uniter, not a divider") and degradation of our civil rights and the deplorable state of American foreign policy. 4 more years would be intolerable. Anyway, that's my abridged reason for protesting. I close with a quote that will be bandied about frequently in the following days:

Bill of Rights

Amendment I

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Iraq Bound

My brother is shipping out tomorrow morning for Iraq. As I have noted in other posts, he is a 2nd Lt. in the U.S. Marine Corps based with the 1st Marine Division out of Camp Pendleton, San Diego, California. We spoke last night, just for a little bit since he still had a lot of loose ends to tie up. He's a man of few words, but he did acknowledge that he's both excited and scared about what he'll experience over there. My understanding is that he'll only be there for 7 to 8 months — which is fine by my family. He'll be attached to an HQ company as the logistics officer for his battalion. I hope that means he'll not be exposed to too much enemy contact. My brother is rather apolitical and joined up for mostly for the adventure, camaraderie, and to be part of something bigger than himself. I hope he finds what he's looking for. May he (as well as the rest of our troops) get home safe and soon.

Blogger Hell

Ever since that damn new Blogger NavBar appeared, I have been having a horrendous time trying to repair the style problems it has caused with my template (see above). I have tried 1000 things using CSS and HTML all to no avail. The solution is likely something so simple and stupid. Grrrrrrrrr. Sadly my programming skills are pretty low.

Motor Vehicle Inspection — State Operated Scam

The great misfortune that was the beginning of my weekend, was that I decided to get my scrappy 'lil shitbox of a car inspected at the thieving gas station/repair shop near home. The problem was that I had let the old inspection expire, so I was a bit desperate. I figured I'd zip on over to the garage early Friday morning, drop off the car (why I need to drop the car off is beyond me when the process takes about 15 minutes) grab breakfast, rot for an hour, come back, pay the fee ($37 in New York), retrieve the car and be off to work in Connecticut. But that was not to be.

I (well, my car) failed the NY State inspection. It turns out the problem was with my front pipe: it was rusted out and leaking exhaust. But I passed every other part of the inspection. OK. So, I'll just get the front pipe replaced? Right? Wrong. You see because I just had to buy a Daewoo, the front pipe is part of an entire one piece exhaust/anti-pollution system that has to be replaced together. I had my Dad do a little research for me — to get a new unit it could cost upwards of $750! But, my Daewoo is only worth about $1000. Oh well, F*ck you, pay me! The oh so kind garage man (Gunay), smiling at the news of my failure (I guess his kids are going to college after all!) called around to find out which parts dealer has the obscure Daewoo part. Turns out that Gunay was useless. He never got back to me with an estimate of repairs (I had since gone home to figure out what to do and call in "sick" to work). Moreover, he couldn't do the job nor could he fix it so that I could pass the inspection (75% of the time the car sits in a garage; it's my station vehicle). So after having a nice sandwich of ham cappy and provelone, I called the local Meineke Car Care Centers. What a shady outfit. I told the mechanic (Alex) my problem and what I wanted to do. "Sure, sure we can help, bring her down," said Alex. In Brooklyn along 4th Avenue every other shop is an auto repair or auto related store (or chop shop). Alex puts my Daewoo on the lift, and I can see the damage. So miniscule it was. Alex explains that the exhaust system is "a very expensive one" because of the "flex pipes" (Damn Daewoo engineers!), perhaps around $500/$600. "Look, I just want this to pass the inspection, I'm gonna blow the car up in a year." Alex replied "Well, we can take out the front flex pipe and weld in a new one for $190." "$190?" "Yeah, $190." Hmm, I thought, doing the quick cost/benefit analysis one usually does in these on-the-spot moments. "Do it," I said. And that was it. For about $10 a minute, Alex fixed the problem, and the car passed its inspection when I went back to Gunay (though he charged me an additional $20 to do the re-inspection. Gunay explained, to my outrage, that he "made no money on the deal since he didn't do the repairs." Whatever, state-licensed scam man. Net net, I got off cheap. For about $260 (and only 1 missed day of work) I got my car inspected, fixed (it runs quieter now), and have learned a few lessons:

First, when you are poor (relatively speaking), you get screwed more often than the jet-set class. With the built-in obsolesence of most products, second-hand means second-rate; you might save in the initial purchase, but in the long run, you'll pay out your blow hole. Second, the NYS Inspection System has established a cottage industry of state sanctioned con-artistry. The inspection stations run your motor vehicle through this sophisticated, expensive system to insure a vehicle is deemed "safe" and compliance with federal pollution regulations. (Gee, I though all cars manufactured or imported already have to comply with safety standards?!) When you fail, which many older cars inevitably do, the repair shop/inspection station gets to run up a repair bill ($75/hour for labor alone) that could bankrupt a small nation. Moreover, every 12 months motor vehicles have to go through this procedure. What a crock-of-sh*t. Finally, I learned that in order to comply with the law, I had to break it. Sure, according the the rules I was supposed to get a new exhaust system — even though my car didn't truly need a new one. So in order to pass the inspection, while not having to forego rent, I was forced to pull a shim-sham. I can't wait until next year.

Al Qaeda & the Madrid Bombings

A few days ago I finally got around to reading a recent New Yorker article on the Madrid Commuter Train Bombings. I commend it to all; it's a facinating piece and it'll scare the crap out of you.

Professor Bush on Sovereign Tribes

Since my move I haven't had reliable or regular internet service (Damn Verizon!), thus explaining the lack of posts. Tonight I hope to be up and running.

In the meantime, the NY Times reports that George W. Bush is heading out west to campaign. However, they note that Bush Leaves Behind Giggling Democrats as He Hits Trail. In the article there is a link to an audio of W answering a journalist's question on what he thinks about Native American tribal sovereignty in the 21st century (clearly a big issue in many of the states he'll be visiting this week). The answer is priceless.

Great Collection of Iraq Maps

I stumbled upon a great collection of maps of all types for Iraq.

U-Brawl

Let the record reflect, my moving experience did not go well. At all. I'll be detailing this saga tomorrow.

ADDENDUM, Aug. 3, 2004.

Carting one's sh*t from one abode to another is never fun. This is especially so in New York City where parking in front of your building is always a nightmare and the expense of renting a moving truck is sky high. To top it off, this move (leaving Chelsea to go to Park Slope) makes my 11th move (not counting college). Not to mention the countless times I assisted others in their moving endeavors. I generally have not had problems with the truck rental companies. Although each time I did rent from them, there was always a livid customer in the store shouting with the manager over some mess up. This was now my time for pain. Recognizing that my move will coincide with the end of the month, I booked my 14' U-Haul truck about a month in advance. I confirmed the pick up and time (Sat., July 31st, 8 AM) a week in advance. I even called 24 hours before to re-confirm. I even got to the location early 7:25 AM. I did what I was supposed to do. What is inexplicable to me is how they still screw you anyway. The "they" being U-Haul. At the U-Haul Center of Chelsea I entered Dante's Inferno. Despite all my assurances that the truck would be available for me at my reservation time, U-Haul branch manager, Sandy Singh, informed me that my reservation was for 3:30 PM that afternoon "Because that's what the computer says!" Attempting to inform her that "no, I have an 8 AM reservation" I began to feel all eyes in the place on me (there were about 30 people on line waiting for their trucks). Sandy Singh then blasted me to go away and come back at 3:30 PM. We went back and forth but to no avail. I felt so powerless. She simply yelled "NEXT!" and I was history. There was another woman in the place who also had the same dilemma. According to my sister-in-law not only has this happened to her before, but it happens all the time with U-Haul. It must be a pattern and practice of over-booking reservations and then randomly bumping people. Jeez! What the hell was I going to do? I had my brother (coming in from Connecticut) and my roommate and girlfriend were all coming to help me that morning. They (as was I) were expecting to be done at 3:30 PM. I called the 1-800 number to find out what happened to my reservation. Apparently, I was told, someone at the 23rd Street Branch changed my reservation from 8 AM to 3:30 PM. The operator could tell me who. So I went back into see Sandy Singh and tell her this new revelation. We got into another screaming match with her denying that anyone changed the reservation. I felt like choking her, which is eventually why I left. It was 8:05 AM. Meanwhile, I had to sit and rot for 6 hours until, my unscheduled reservation time. The day was already getting long. It was also, to date, the hottest, most humid day of the Summer. Other fun: my car was towed by the NYC Traffic Violations Bureau. I had to pay $185 to retrieve it (and I got a $65 ticket). When I eventually moved, we didn't finish until almost 9 PM. It cost me $125 + $31 in gas. Miserable. I plan on writing to U-Haul to try and get some money back. In the meantime, take my advice, if you gotta move on your own, DON"T USE U-HAUL.

Moving Day! T-minus 1 day . . .

Tomorrow I'm moving (back) to Brooklyn. So the posts will be sparse for a few days. I really can't wait to move in the humidity. It'll be so much fun.

The Best I've Ever Seen (or Heard)

Last night at the Democratic National Convention, Illinois State Senator Barack Obama addressed the crowd of delegates and the nation in support of John Kerry & John Edwards. It was amazing; truly one of the finest political orations I have ever seen or heard. Read the speech and see for yourself — this is a man who will be going places.

Text of Barack Obama's Remarks to the Democratic National Convention, courtesy of the NY Times.

New Ideas, Fresh Blood and the Democratic Party

This article in the Washington Post, SEIU Chief Says the Democrats Lack Fresh Ideas, I believe cuts straight to the core of, unfortunately, one of the many problems with my political party today (e.g., DNC Chairman Terry McAuliffe needs to go). I commend this article to you. The party structure is, in many respects, antiquated and sclerotic — a throwback to the 19th Century. Many of the planks in the party's 2004 platform are gussied-up versions of old favorites. Not that many of them are not worthwhile; they are. But I echo the sentiments of Andrew Stern, President of the SEIU:

[T]he party and its longtime ally, the labor movement, are "in deep crisis," devoid of new ideas and working with archaic structures. . . . Stern argued that Kerry's election might stifle needed reform within the party and the labor movement. He said he still believes that Kerry overall would make a better president than President Bush, and his union has poured huge resources into that effort. But he contends that Kerry's election would have the effect of slowing the "evolution" of the dialogue within the party.

I disagree with what must be the logical follow on to Stern's argument: that the Republicans could furnish needed reform in the economy and within big labor (and perhaps in a mini-revolution within the Democratic party should they lose this November). Stern does acknowledge that Kerry is the better candidate, however you can tell that his heart is not into him (after all the SEIU did endorse Howard Dean before his implosion earlier this year).

Stern is essentially advocating that the Democrats as an organization and institution are incapable of true robust and imaginative change. This, I reluctantly embrace. Many in the party are supporting Kerry since he represents the best chance of beating Bush. And this is the nexus of the problem. Democrats are not so much as voting for John Kerry as they are voting against George W. Bush. We as Democrats need to ask ourselves if we will be committed to growth and change once we recapture the White House. Or will we just go about our business of repairing the damage that W and the neocon's have wrought over the last 4 years? We really need to do both.

DNC Convention 2004

The 2004 Democratic National Convention begins today in Boston (Damn Red Sox!). By all accounts John Kerry's acceptance speech on the last day will be very important as he sets out why American's should vote for him and not merely against George W. Bush. It's should be a very interesting week with all the analysis, speeches, commentary, and politics. In particular, I am very excited about tomorrow night's keynote address by Barack Obama. He's a bright star candidate for U.S. Senate in Illinois. He's running for retiring Sen. Peter Fitzgerald's (R) seat — so a victory by Obama will give the Democrats a gain in the Senate. I heard Obama yesterday on Meet the Press and was thoroughly impressed (I was introduced to Barack Obama in a great story in The New Yorker awhile back). Candidates like Obama give me hope that the future of this nation's political life isn't so bleak.

Isn't this rich!

The NY Times has reported that the GOP is now spinning the 9-11 Commision's soon-to-be-released report on pre-attack intelligence. The essence is that the report covers 8 years of the Clinton Administration and 8 months of the Bush Administration. Therefore since A=B and B=C, it must be that A=C. By gum! How do they do it!? They take credit for the robust actions and successes by the Clinton-built military but they deflect and punt criticism of the intelligence community back to the endemic problems that have long been a part of that agency since Allen Dulles sparred with J. Edgar Hoover. Moore to the point, those jackasses at 1600 Pennsylvania and the O.E.O.B. are the ones that practically ordered that the Bush intelligence community find justifications for their ill-advised and unpopular war in Iraq and for not heeding Richard Clark's (and others) warnings that bin Laden was planning an attack on U.S. soil. Gimme a break! November 9th can't come soon enough.

The Fourth Estate

My feelings for the press have always been a mixed bag.  A free and independent press is vital in the service of democracy.  However, in our contemporary Western society, global corporate media giants have a definite agenda, which they exercise with ever more subtlety (and in some cases overtly).  This is why I shudder at the suggestion that the U.S. press is beginning to slowly push stories of violence in Iraq into the background.  Josh Marshall in his blog Talking Points Memo links to a Washington Post story by Jim Hoagland, which also mentions the beginning of the boredom of the American Press with Iraq.  The kicker is that this boredom is related to the upcoming Presidential elections:  the Bush administration's tarnished image; 9-11 Commission and Senate Intelligence Committee Reports decrying connections of Iraq to al Qaeda; No WMDs found, lost American (and Iraqi civilian) lives; Osama bin Laden (and Co.) still at-large &#8212 the list could go on.  The "free and independent press," for the most part, has been reluctant to criticize this Administration for fear (rightly so) of being frozen out of White House access, thus affecting the media-giants' bottom line (a no-no in any corporate enterprise).    I read a half-dozen or so new papers on-line just to get a basic, non-biased idea of the "facts."  I turn to many non-traditional sources (blogs) for news and analysis as well.  I have friends that are going to be journalists and I also know a few practicing journalists.  I have a lot of respect for the profession in general.  But my esteem has long been eroding. 
 
I really wish some journalists (clearly not the Fox News/NY Post  hacks), who believe they have a public duty (and maintain professional integrity), would show some frickin' stones.  Make sure the public doesn't loose sight of what is going on in the Middle East and in Washington, DC and resist the corporate editorializing and influence by the White House Press Shop.  Keep this news on the front pages.  Challenge us.  That's what I want as a citizen and consumer of mass media. 

Out of Touch

Give me a break. W and his campaign cohorts are "blasting" John Kerry for comments made by Hollywood Actors during a fund-raiser last week. Essentially, Bush is stating at his rallies that Kerry is not in touch with the people of America. Now, if I recall correctly, until John Kerry started breaking records in terms of raising cash for the Democrats, Bush was raking in the dough while courting his industrial billionaires and corporate elites. Recently I saw the Michael Moore film Fahrenheit 9/11 with my Dad, while visiting him in Arizona. In it Moore shows a scene where W addressing the audience of wealthy men and women, all dressed in black tie and evening gowns, states (paraphrase): "Some people call you the elite, I call you my base." Ok, so tell me, how does the son of a very wealthy former President, who was born with a silver spoon up his ass, relate to the regular guy? He really doesn't. But the rhetoric of the GOP and their well-financed spin (propaganda) machines are able to convince Joe Six-pack that Bush is looking out for them. Sadly, a lot of these deluded men and women are going to wake up one day and realize they've been bamboozled ( Hey where's my tax break? Whoops, sorry you only get one if you're a millionaire. But thanks for your vote, here's a lolly.) The Democrats need to get off their duffs and start CAMPAIGNING on real issues — foreign policy, health care, and economic justice. You gotta love Bush's hypocrisy.

Height of shamelessness.

An innocent story from today's Wash. Post described one of the most alarming political contemplations I have ever heard of: Lawmaker Doubts U.S. Warnings of Possible Attack to Stop Elections. I cannot believe the audacity of this Administration. The mere fact they are contemplating an election postponement in the event of a terrorist attack "on or near" election day has me wondering how nervous they are about the Democratic ticket. True, if an attack occurred on election day, my guess is that many folks would simply stay home. In other words voter turn out would be even lower than it normally is. On the other hand, people in a fit of patriotism might fly in the face of a terrorist, threatening their civic right as a citizen in a free society to cast a ballot, and vote in large numbers. In fact a pre-election attack could actually assist Bush and Co. In any case, I don't like any talk of moving or postponing the election. We've never in American history had to do this before and I do not believe that any circumstances that exist today warrant such discussion, save an alien invasion.

Cannon's Pub

Yesterday, I read in the NY Times that one of my favorite haunts from grad school Cannon's Pub will be closing its doors this week, possibly for good. The demise of yet another old school neighborhood bar to make way for something modern breaks my heart. An old bar is like a time machine, where conceivably you could be sitting on the same barstool that your grandfather or great uncle sat long ago. The conversations over time are usually about the same things: sports, politics, the neighborhood, the economy, and women. The old places are great, especially where the old timers and the young hang out together, each adding their own unique view and class to the joint. When I lived at West End Avenue and 103rd Street, Cannon's was one of the favorite watering holes. I was bummed when I found out a few years back that they razed the old brick-front entrance and replaced it with a yuppie glass facade; the sunlight killing the hidden, smokey world of afternoon booze hounds. Since I returned to NYC I have only made it up there once or twice, and I'm not sure I'll be able to have one last drink before Thursday's closing. I think I prefer to remember the place the last time I was there with a few friends — liquor permeating the air, uproarious, and full of Columbia students and locals — and everyone having a good time.

New Home, New Roomate.

Well, it's official. This afternoon my significant other and I signed a lease for our first home together. Our abode will be located in South Park Slope, technically Windsor Terrace. It's a really nice 1 BR in an older building that looks out onto Prospect Park. The best part is my girlfriend's parents are a bit old fashioned and conservative and would flip out if they knew Ms. E and I were living together. So we'll be living a 'lil white lie for a while. Oh well, at least the search for a new home is over and the fun that is moving can commence.

Vegas!

This will be my final post for a few days as I'm going to be in the great state of Nevada. Specifically, I will be in Las Vegas attending my law school buddy's bachelor party. It should be a hoot. On the way back, I'll be visiting my lovely parents in Arizona. There will be lots of golf, food, poker, and booze. Have a great July 4th, and don't forget to reflect a little on what the holiday is supposed to represent: the independence of the United States from Great Britain via the Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776. Read it again (as I try to do every July 4th) and think about the ideas that were represented in the document. However imperfect the messengers might have been (white, slaveowners, merchants, lawyers and bankers), I believe that they knew that someday their successors would right the wrongs that they couldn't resolve in their day and move the course of the nation toward a more perfect union. Undoubtedly, we still have a long way to go, but do reflect on how far we have come already. Peace.


Virus Update: Well, thanks to one kind soul, I was given some advice on how to clean my damn computer. However, since I use McAfee Anti-Virus, the advice turned out to be not as useful. I was able to do some follow-on research and have begun to fight back. I spent about 2+ hours last night downloading and installing a Microsoft Security Patch which should eliminate some of my shit box PC's vulnerabilities. I have also been able to ID the virus — Exploit-MhtRedir.gen.

Virus

Ok. Fine. I'll admit that I happened to look upon a website that I shouldn't have. But talk about unintended consequences. My crappy Dell Inspiron 7000 laptop (circa 1998) is now infected with a virus of the "hijacker" variant. Each time I reboot and open up MS Internet Explorer my previous home page (BBC News) has been replaced by some awful smut page that is chock-filled with viruses, ready to self-execute their malignant code. No doubt about it: I fu*ked up. So, now is the hard part (and the real reason for my post, public atonement notwithstanding) — fixing the problem.

This particular bug is a real nasty one, much to my dismay. I have followed much of the advice of the online virus gurus: scanned with my MacAfee Anti Virus, downloaded and scanned Ad-aware and Spybot S&D, searched for files with the root .ja, .hta, and deleted all my .tmp files. I was then coaxed into looking at my PC's registry. But what the hell do I know about that? Still I can't get rid of that 'lil prick. I have already spent a week of countless hours trying to debug. One of the advice sites informs me that there could be upwards of 50 files with the evil code embedded in it! This is such a time suck that I am seriously considering throwing my lap top out off my 13-story balcony.

I feel like the guilty 15 year old that got caught with his pecker in his hand. They all tell you, don't look at porn online, you'll get infected. N'ah! What do they know, I thought. Well, it happened to me. With some lessons in life, you have to pay for them again and again. I will tell you though (since I'm the obsessive, persistent type) when I get the source code for this virus, I'm gonna figure out some way to seek revenge on the websites and the genius fu*k who wrote it, anyway I can.

Meanwhile, I have to go back to the salt mines and fix my damn PC. Next time I'm getting a Mac.

Best laid plans . . .

Well, we were supposed to explore East Williamsburg (i.e. Bushwick) this weekend, since Ms. E and I have about 8 weeks to find an new joint-abode, however that was not to be. We went to see the Brooklyn Cyclones instead. Ah but fear not, armed with Craig's List, a cellphone, a few weeks, and some ingenuity, I feel confident in our quest.

By the way, don't you just love how real estate brokers try to make a neighborhood sound cool by creating a new nom-de-hood for the area? For example, "East Williamsburg" is really Bushwick, but since no one would want to actually live in Bushwick, the genius brokers spread the hip Williamsburg name like a dollop of mayo eastward. And voila we have a new trendy area. I've seen it done with NoLita, TriBeCa, and others.

In other news: Iraqi Sovereignty was returned today, ahead of the scheduled June 30th transfer date. I am curious as to whether this event will precipitate more violence or the acts of terror will slowly subside. The U.S. still retains nominal control through the employment of some 130,000 troops remaining on station. Sadly, they will remain a target for young turk terrorists hoping to earn their stripes by killing Americans. Time will tell, but I'm not holding my breath.

If it looks like sh*t, smells like sh*t, it probably is sh*t.

An article in today's NY Times, The Intelligence: Iraqis, Seeking Foes of Saudis, Contacted bin Laden, File Says seems a little suspect.

To sum it up, apparently, there is this "document" that was "apparently" drafted by Sadaam's Iraqi Intelligence Service that describes the organization's contacts with the burgeoning al Qaeda (before it became a global terrorist network) in Sudan around 1992�. The funny thing is, this report was obtained, after the fall of Saddam, by the Iraqi National Congress — Achmed Chalabi's illustrious Iraqi-exile organization that was the darling child of the neocons who engineered the current invasion and occupation. Quoting the article "some of the intelligence provided by the group is now wholly discredited, although officials have called some of the documents it helped to obtain useful." Was this report one of them? Did this report fool our intelligence folks? The article continues: "The task force concluded that the document 'appeared authentic,' and that it 'corroborates and expands on previous reporting' about contacts between Iraqi intelligence and Mr. bin Laden in Sudan, according to the task force's analysis."

Despite the findings of the 9/11 Commission that there were no significant ties between Iraq and al Qaeda with respect to the terrorist attacks in the U.S., the Administration has been on a campaign to maintain that there were. Perhaps this report is part of their campaign. Without sounding conspiratorial, I truly wonder about the placement of this report in the hands of the media, especially considering the source. Criminal Lawyers when attempting to enter something into evidence must establish a "chain of custody" to verify the authenticity of an object or document. Any break in that chain creates the inference that the object or document has been tampered with and thus creates doubt. Bottom line is someone in the now discredited INC could have given his administration cronies something with meat to chew on to help create the case justifying the war. You fill in the blanks.

And what if this report is real? [and it's not!] Well, so what? The time frame of these contacts is the early 1990s. According to the article they were fomented via the Sudanese government (no friend of ours) and resulted in at least one verified meeting in 1995. No other document has been uncovered, that I am aware of, which establishes that further meetings, collaboration, funding, or action between Iraq and al Qaeda occurred.

Mark my words, including this report, as the November elections near, there will slowly emerge more "documentation" from dubious sources attempting to establish ties between Iraq and 9/11. Heck, even Dick Cheney foretold this when he declared that he probably saw more intelligence on this than the Commission did. I for one can't wait. At the end of the day, it's all bullsh*t!

Arab News

Part of my morning ritual once I settle into the office is to read the news. Following Chomsky's advice I don't merely rely on 1 source of news but several sources and then make up my mind. For fun, I also read editorials, OP-EDs, and of course blogs. Scanning the globe, I came across this article from Arab News entitled The Question Should Be: Why We Hate Them? Arab News is an English-language daily published on-line and in hard copy in Saudi Arabia. I do not know if the publisher is connected to the al Saud family or is a quasi-governmental institution. All I do know is that I can read articles written or prepared by people living in the Middle East who are not screened by the western media corporations. In all likelihood, however, these articles are biased in their own way. Nevertheless, while I do not completely agree in toto with the author of the above mentioned article, he raises some interesting points about the cultural differences between the west and the (middle) east. Moreover he nicely highlights some of the knee-jerk bigotry displayed (in quote form) by many in government and in the media with respect to Islam after 9/11.

Make no mistake, what the 9/11 hijackers did was an audacious act of cold-hearted malice — the making of a political statement through the murder and destruction of thousands of innocent people. Yet, I maintain that in order to contend with such stirring indifference and disregard for life, we as western people need to understand the predicate sources of the searing hatred of those who would be inspired to action. We need to understand the politics, history, religion (mainstream and fringe), and governments of the developing world and our own heritage as well. As Bob Marley sang in Judge Not: "Before you point your finger, be sure your hands are clean."

Idiocy

Do you want to have a peek into the lunacy and sheer incompetence of George W. Bush's Pentagon Officials? This morning the NY Times reported that Wolfowitz Testifies Pentagon Misjudged the Strength of Iraqi Insurgency. Specifically:

Mr. Wolfowitz said Pentagon planners had not counted on the ability of a guerrilla-style resistance to form, operate and grow after the capture of Saddam Hussein and the arrest or killing of his top advisers.

If you want to say what might have been underestimated, I think there was probably too great a willingness to believe that once we got the 55 people on the blacklist, the rest of those killers would stop fighting,' Mr. Wolfowitz said.

How stupid could they really be? Did they truly think that a defeated Iraq would act the exact same way the Japanese did in late 1945? This is the Middle East we are talking about. Over 500 years of pent up humiliation by the West is inspiring thousands of unemployed, disenfranchised, religiously educated young men to attack anything (and anyone) associated with U.S. "imperial" power. The idea that this ill-advised foray was going to be a cakewalk should never have even been a consideration. This is particularly biting for me since it appears my younger brother, who is in the Marines, will be getting deployed to Iraq sometime at the end of this summer. It's not as if Rummy son or Wolfie's daughter is in harms way.

ADDENDUM: In a book review by the NY Times Douglas Jehl writes of a new book by a C.I.A. Officer who says U.S. is losing fight against terror. Bottom line, as my loyal reader(s) know, this is the crux of my personal opposition to the war in Iraq at present.

In the book, the author denounced the American invasion of Iraq as "an avaricious, premeditated unprovoked war against a foe who posed no immediate threat," and said it would fuel the anti-American sentiments on which Mr. bin Laden and his followers draw. "There is nothing that bin Laden could have hoped for more than the American invasion and occupation of Iraq," he writes.

Apartment Quest: Long Island City

So last Saturday my girlfriend and I decided to explore Long Island City and see what the neighborhood is like. Over the course of our online apartment search, we had been seeing many advertisements for lofts and apartments in LIC. First off, it was a royal pain in the ass to get out there because of subway re-routing due to construction. By the time me made our 3d transfer to the G line, we made our way to Long Island City/Court Square Station. In the middle of nowhere. Steel wool was blowing across the street like tumbleweed. Locals with gold-capped teeth in El Camino's were slowing down to eyeball us while we ate our Good Humor Ice Cream snacks. Anyway, we walked for miles through industrial wasteland and housing projects never quite finding the cool and hip (and safe) neighborhoods we were led to believe existed. My feeling is that we just were misinformed about where the nicest parts to live are. To be fair, many areas we saw would be a sketchy walk home at night. I liked the grit though. In the final analysis, Ms. E is "done" with LIC, however I'm still going to give it one more shot. This time I'll do research. Next weekend: Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Summer Reading

As we've officially begun summer, TBP editorial board (bored?) decided that today's post will be dedicated to our (my) reading list for the season.

In a few days, I will be obtaining a copy of Bill Clinton's autobiography My Life. Even though it is almost 1,000 pages, it will be my first book on the list. I have been purposely avoiding any reviews of the book as well as his "60 Minutes" appearance since they'll disclose the best parts.

Next, I am planning to read Professor Cass Sunstein's short book entitled Why Societies Need Dissent.

After reading this primer, I thought it would be great to read about two of history's greatest dissenters. For this I turn to a biography by Richard Marius: Martin Luther: The Christian Between God and Death. Finally I'll conclude my study with: An Autobiography: The Story of My Experiments With Truth by M.K. Gandhi.

I figure this reading list should carry me all the way to autumn, at the very least.

Pork for Pigs

This news really pissed me off: House Rejects Anti-Terror Cash for Cities. Terrorists are not going to blow up Cheyenne, Wyoming or Bangor, Maine or Tuscaloosa, Alabama. They are going to hit New York City (again), San Francisco, Seattle, Houston, Miami, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Norfolk — large urban centers or medium sized cities with significant military infrastructure. At most, the rural vulnerabilities that exist are remote nuclear or other power-generation sites, hydro-electric dams, etc. The over-represented rural states in Congress chronically pull tax revenue from the wealthier urban centers and pump it into their own one-horse towns and small cities to curry favor with the local folk. Meanwhile, America's largest cities(the same places that the denizens of suburbia and exurbia visit in ever increasing numbers) are becoming ill funded, per capita, with regard to emergency preparedness. Even more astounding is that more often then not, the post-9/11 counter-terrorism funds requested and delivered by Congress to the rural states are being misappropriated by the local agencies to pay for salary increases and nonessential equipment purchases. This 'lil tid-bit I learned from an article by Charles Peters several months ago in the Washington Monthly. Below is an update on this farce:

"As of April 2004, about 85% of the preparedness grants distributed from the 2003 budget had not been utilized," Christopher Cox, the chairman of the House Select Committee on Homeland Security, told reporter John McCaslin of The Washington Times. Some of the money that has been spent has gone for ridiculous purposes--like buying a small Maryland fire department a $350,000 custom-made fireboat or purchasing a new office security system for prosecutors in Prince George's County, Md.--that we pointed out in "Tilting" in January. The committee also found that the money is not being distributed with due regard to the relative risk faced by the recipient states and communities, and that the federal guidelines on how the money is to be spent are inadequate.

"The formula for distributing homeland security money gives a disproportionate amount to less populated places," reports Time's Amanda Ripley. New York has received $24.77 per person while Wyoming got $61.27, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. At least we have the comfort of knowing that Dick Cheney can feel safe when he goes home.

The news is no better at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which was incorporated into the Homeland Security empire. The Post's Al Kamen has come up with a survey of FEMA employees. Asked if FEMA is better since the merger, one respondent said yes, 16 said there had been no change, and 67 said "poorer." Asked if they would move to another agency if they could, 18 said they would stay put, 14 weren't sure, and 51 said yes. This is the same agency that under Clinton appointee James Lee Witt was one of the government's success stories in the 90s. What about the Bush administration leadership? Two recipients said "excellent," eight said "good," 28 said "fair," and 33 said "poor."

Look at the fact that the key Congressional leaders are from rural areas: Tom Delay (suburban Texas), Denny Hastert (rural Illinois), and Bill Frist (Tennessee). Even the Senate Democrat Minority Leader, Tom Daschle is from South Dakota. Not much help there. This problem actually transcends party lines but is reinforced through policy dictates from the White House to support the rural South and West. (Lest we forget that W is a faux rural citizen of Texas, despite being born and raised in wealthy a Connecticut suburb).

Politics is supposed to end at the nation's shores, but when it comes to homeland security (and its ample funding) politics begins at the city limits. Perhaps it'll take another domestic terrorist attack to rectify these fiscal inequities. But having studied the ways of Congress, I doubt it.

The Most Unpleasant Season

I was planning on describing my commute yesterday, as it was one of the worst ones ever, and I needed to vent a little. However, I have decided to begin the chronicle of a task, which as a life long New Yorker many can relate to. That task is searching for a new HQ. It seems like I move every year and each time the experience (and cost) gets worse and worse. Let me just state my bias out front: I absolutely detest real estate brokers/agents. I consider them the lowest down-right filth on Earth. Their lecherous quest "for the sale" leads them to showing you some dank filth pit that's not fit for a rat to live in all so that you can then turn around and hand them a check for $2500 (or 10% of annual rent). They pretend to want to help you find a home but if you're too discriminating they'll ignore you. What they want is for you to be desperate to move out of you old digs so that you have no choice but to take their crap that they dish out. They add nothing of value to the process. Nothing. So as it is searching and moving season, I figured you all might like to read about my sufferings. A good dose of schadenfreude.

Here's the plot: My girlfriend and I are planning on moving in together sometime in August. We're looking for 1BR/2BR in Brooklyn (the Heights, Cobble Hill, Boerum Hill, Carroll Gardens, DUMBO (yeah right!), & MetroTech) or in Long Island City, Queens. Let the quest and the pain commence!

The Little Professor

Here's an interesting if not bizarre story in the NY Times. The article reports on a guy who has been serving time for commandeering NYC subway trains. He suffers from "a social disorder similar to autism, known as Asperger's syndrome."

The disorder is also called "the little professor syndrome." Its sufferers often become obsessed with specific topics, talking endlessly about them with stunning expertise; they have problems socializing, make inappropriate comments and avoid eye contact. Obsession with trains and train trivia is common among sufferers of Asperger's.

Just when I thought there was nothing new to learn about today, the 'lil professor comes along!

Montauk Point

When I was a child my family vacation each summer consisted of loading up my brothers into my parent's Chevy Blazer and heading out to the end of Long Island — to Montauk Point. Usually, my Dad would hope that there would be motel vacancies out there since he never made reservations ahead of time. My guess was that since my Dad was a Chef, he could never be sure when the manager at the country club, where he worked, would give him time off. But I suspect that my Dad just liked the disorder of trying to find a random place to stay for a few days. Consequently, we stayed in quite a few dumps. The most infamous being the motel my brothers and I dubbed "Wave Crust" since it's business name of "Wave Crest" didn't fit the squalid accommodations. Despite the room treachery, we always had a good time out there.

This past weekend, I took my girlfriend to the vacationland of my childhood. Unlike my father, I booked a reservation ahead of time. We stayed at the Atlantic Terrace. We dubbed the place the "Atlantic Terrorist." It seems that Montauk is not "Hamptons lite" but a blue-collar cousin, which is fine by me but at $105 a night, I want a little comfort. Anyway our closet-sized room with cinder block walls afforded us a nice institutional look when we passed out from our 3 hours drive from Brooklyn. To appreciate that the ramshackle experiences of my childhood vacations were still alive and well I'll list some of the calamities/indignities of our little respite:

Small damp motel room

Shit rings in the toilet

No bath towels

Screaming, clomping kids up stairs

Blaring T.V. next door at 6:30 a.m.

Thundering banging water pipes of the shower upstairs

Shards o' glass in my fajitas from Dan's Cafe

Rude manager implying that I put the shards o' glass in the fajitas

Idiot fellow tourists pretending to know more than the lighthouse tour guide

Hot tub out of order

Soda Machines out of order

Bratty kids interfering in our mini-golf competition

Inhuman odors

To be sure, we had a great time. All I can say is, thank the Lord for Beer and Hard Lemonade. It's nice to see though that Montauk has indeed retained its charm and class from when I was a kid.

Ray Charles

This is an outstanding obituary by one of my favorite columnist/author Stanley Crouch on the passing of an American musical icon.

Mini Vay-Kay

I went to Yankee Stadium today to watch the boys wreck havoc on the Colorado Rockies (10 to 4). Playing hookie has a kid was fun, but no where near as fun as when you're an adult and are supposed to be at work. In any case, I'm going away this weekend to Montauk Point. See you on Monday.

Shameless

Every once in a while I check out George W. Bush's re-election website to see what's going on with the Bush/Cheney campaign. Talk about shameless cloaking. Bush/Cheney are trying to ride President Reagan's legacy (by way of his demise) towards renewed interest in their campaign and, more the likely, a post-mortem rise in their polling numbers. What a crock! Clearly, they will go to every end to win in November. Sadly, very little of the Gipper can be applied to W.'s persona and "work."

Secular Humanism

One of the things that I love is learning something new, something that before that moment of discovery, I never even heard of it. This morning while reading Josh Marshall's Talking Points Memo, I came across a term for a group that I never heard of before: secular humanists. Marshall's article mentioned, among other things, various voting blocs of the Democrat Party and this was one of the groups. Now his point wasn't to discuss secular humanists per se but I was struck with the inevitable: who the hell are they? Well thanks to the internet, Google to be precise, I was able to find the answer to my query. Secular Humanism

is a way of thinking and living that aims to bring out the best in people so that all people can have the best in life. Secular humanists reject supernatural and authoritarian beliefs. They affirm that we must take responsibility for our own lives and the communities and world in which we live. Secular humanism emphasizes reason and scientific inquiry, individual freedom and responsibility, human values and compassion, and the need for tolerance and cooperation.

This definition was obtained from the website for the Council for Secular Humanism. Who knew. Just when you think you know every voting bloc and population subgroup, another one spontaneously appears. Well, at least appears to my knowledge.

Esquire

Yesterday, I was sworn in as an "attorney and counselor-at-law" in lower Manhattan. For those not involved in the legal field, this milestone represents the culmination of a long and bureaucratic process comprised of exams, applications, fees, interviews and paperwork. Ever since I was a little kid (well, at least 14) I wanted to become an attorney. I don't feel any different today, in fact my career is only just beginning. Frankly, very little of what you learn in law school prepares you for the practice of law. In any event, I look forward to celebrating this weekend with a few libations.

"If you touch my sister again, I'll kill ya!"

Rheingold Beer is returning to Brooklyn. Well, actually, it has been served for quite some time in recent history, but I think, it was being brewed upstate NY. The gist of the news is that from here on out, Rheingold will be brewed in Fort Greene. Along with Brooklyn Brewery, the brewer of Brooklyn Lager, Brooklyn (i.e. NYC) will have two homegrown beers. I wish this was a photoblog 'cause I'd post a picture of a nice frothy stein! Anyway, this leads me to the title quote of the post. In Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather, there's one of my favorite scenes where Sonny Corleone beats his brother-in-law Carlo to a bloody pulp because Carlo is constantly abusing Sonny's sister Connie. In the background of this classic scene is an old time Rheingold truck. Welcome home Rheingold!

The Cost of Things

This morning I heard that the cost of milk was rising. Along with the rising cost of oil (this morning I spied my local gas station's price for a gallon of unleaded is now $2.29) I know I am getting screwed. A recent article in Crain's noted that New Yorkers are shouldering a greater share of the rise in prices compared to that of our fellow citizens. When I hear this, and recall that NY is a "donor state" (a state that gives more to the federal fisc than is returned in terms of benefits) my blood begins to boil. It's not as if my salary is also rising. This is an age-old complaint: how come I have to pay more for goods and services that are only getting worse in terms of quality? Why do New Yorker's continually get spanked in their wallets while the tooth-less wonders from the South and West don't pay their fair share? How can anyone continue to live in, as my roommate calls Manhattan, "the Kingdom"? Well, lower the drawbridge, I might have to leave this place before I get sent to debtor's prison.

The Smiths

Having been rather busy with all sorts of crap, I've been catching up all week on last weekends Sunday Times. I was surprised to find an article about the former lead vocalist and lyricist of my favorite band when I was in high school — The Smiths. It's funny that I still get transported back to 1986 or 1987 whenever I hear one of their songs. Sadly, I was only turned on to The Smiths right before they broke up in 1987 so I never saw them in concert, a great regret of my youth. Still, I eagerly purchased all their CDs (when CDs were first coming out) and listened to them on the radio — WDRE 92.7 FM.

As a side note, WDRE was originally WLIR, which then became WDRE. About 5 years ago, WDRE faded to black and WLIR re-emerged at 92.7 FM. Recently this year, WLIR stopped broadcasting on 92.7 and now can be found on 107.1 FM. Follow this link for a quick history on this vicious circle.

Back to the story, I stayed loyal to Morrissey after he went out on his own and in 1988 was pleased that he was still popular on the radio: Top 100 of 1988. But, I began to miss the collective genius that was The Smiths. Songwriter/guitarist Johnny Marr is a musical genius and I don't mean that lightly. Combined with Morrissey's poetic lyrics all rich with melancholy and pain, all so perfect for my callow teen-aged depression and angst. I was angry and I had to get out. The world of Huntington, N.Y. is awfully small when your 17. As I got older and gained perspective, I emerged a lot less angry. Likely, any morose feelings I had were the result of hormones raging in my blood stream. In any case, my fondness for the band remains and is a nice way to stay in touch with my younger self. I know you can't go home again, but visiting through song, makes a nice little visit.

Indignant Travelers

Ever notice that, from whatever perspective or role that you stand in, everyone else is "the asshole"? When I'm driving in my car, pedestrians, cyclists, and other drivers are my nemesis and I deride them all equally as assholes. When, two minutes later after I park, and transform into a pedestrian, every vehicle (i.e. driver) careening through the crosswalk with its blinking "do-not-walk" hand, is the ultimate prick.

Another thing many of us do is get annoyed or angry at our fellow commuters for the very "social infraction" that we ourselves do as well. For example, today I spied two hulking men who stood in the door-way of the GCT/TS Shuttle, forming their own "doors" with their body mass. This frequently happens since the train car is packed to the gills and no one will move all the way to the center of the car. Thus, all the bodies are congregating near the doors like globs of cholesterol. Well, just as the conductor was about to close the real doors, this small woman, muttering obscenities under her breath ("fuckin' people better move outta my way!") plowed though the big guys blocking the door and pushed her way into the car. The two men glowered down at her with the sharpest daggers in their eyes I've seen in a while. The funny thing is that both the little lady and the hulking men thought they were being affronted and that the other person was the asshole. I cannot count the times that I have been either the hulking door man or the angry lady with the same attitude — sometimes even within the same day or hour! I guess this human behavior stems from the psychological notion (I'll call it the "Ptolemy Effect") that people view themselves as the center of the universe and everyone and everything else should revolve around them. Perhaps this is why Miss Manners or Emily Post came along; to remind us that we don't live in this world by ourselves and we should treat others as we ourselves would like to be treated. In the meantime, get the fuck outta my way, schmuck!

"How did our oil get under their sand?"

Driving the final leg of my daily commute, I spotted the above quote from a bumper sticker. It made me laugh because I know that there are those out there that actually believe this question. In terms of framing the issues, I noticed that my local gas station was selling petrol for $2.19 a gallon. When I began to drive again (it had been almost 16 years since I last owned a car having lived in NYC & Washington DC that whole time) I began to become a keen observer of gasoline prices. Back in Nov. '03, when I got the fuel efficient shit-box that I drive, I was buying gas at $1.89 a gallon. It then went up to $1.94 in December '03 and held there until about 6 weeks ago. It them jumped to $1.99 for about two weeks. It then went to $2.04 for a week, then to $2.09 for a week and now it rests at $2.19. To be sure it will climb very soon. Experts anticipate that through the summer the price will rise again. Meanwhile Oil Companies are recording record profits and have been for many months. Perhaps we in the U.S. are still paying too little for oil and petroleum products. We drive gas-guzzling SUVs and use oil with impunity. The Bush administration refuses to establish a comprehensive energy policy that will help the U.S. become energy independent as well as source-diverse. Hell, if we didn't have such a reliance on cheap oil, would we really be in the Middle East at all (notwithstanding the Israeli/Palestinian Conflict)?

Helping Frickin' Hand

For the record, I have been negligent in my postings since work has ramped up recently. I will try to be more diligent this week (I hope!).

My brother and sister-in-law asked me to help them move out of the City this past weekend, and I, as loving brother, complied. Boy did that suck. Actually, it wasn't too bad, save for the casualty of a sunburnt head and a sore back. It is one of the many unpleasantries of life, moving your crap from point A to point B and being asked to help someone move their crap from point A to point B. I figured the frequency of being asked would decrease proportionately to my (and my friends) getting older each year. But at 33, it's still going strong. Indeed, I'll be moving out of Chelsea and back to my beloved Brooklyn (just like Kotter) this August. The best part is that my move has to be coordinated with the Republican National Committee (RNC). I kid you not. You see, my current abode is a block away from Madison Square Garden and this late August MSG will become the epicenter of "neocon-dom" lunacy for the 2004 Republican National Convention. This entails major street closings, etc. for security. The last thing these guys will allow is a Ryder moving truck to be parked all day near the Garden. So now, as if the RNC doesn't already make my life difficult, I will have to move out sooner than planned to avoid the bullshit. Maybe, Tom Delay will lend me a hand and lift a few boxes for me? You hear that Tommy? Free lunch and beer is included. Whatta you say?

Firing Donald Rumsfeld

Weighing in on the topic, I think that the NY Times is correct in its analysis that Bush's future as a President is intertwined on the success or failure of Don Rumsfeld as SECDEF. (See NYT: President Backs His Defense Chief in Show of Unity) For his arrogance, for his inability to reach out to the troops, for his career-long quest for power, it's time for Rummy to go. The problem is, unless the release of the additional photos from Abu Gharib cause further outcry and fuel the current pressure on the Administration to "clean house," Rummy is here to stay. So, the solution is rather quite simple. Since Bush will not get rid of Donny, the way to do it is fire the boss — vote against Bush this November.

Sleepwalking

I feel as if I am sleepwalking this morning. Usually, I feel this way on Mondays since I am re-adjusting to the regular weekday wake up time. It was funny though because on my morning commute I physically felt as if I was floating through the subway station, onto the train, then off the train, etc. I don't think a sound was uttered from my voice from 6:40 a.m. until about 9:20 a.m. when I arrived at the office. As sure as God makes little green apples, I'll wager that there are millions of people who go through every day like this. Depressing. I need caffine.

Personal Day

Today, I decided that I didn't want to go to work. So, I took a personal day. A friend of mine once said, never waste a sick day on being sick. Very true. So with the entire day to myself, and some errands to do, off I go.

Times Square/GCT Shuttle Sucks

Let us rant a little: This train and the way it operates, blows chunks. It is always over crowded during rush hour and does not operate in a "passenger friendly" mode. There are 4 tracks for this 4-car wonder, yet, at most only three are ever in operation at any one time. Quite often all the trains are in either GCT or TS at the same time. The trains appear to operate on some type of a schedule, which would explain why it sits there waiting even though the cars are teeming with angry and impatient standing-room-only passengers. The MTA should close the doors and go as soon as the train fills up. They would make more trips during rush hours to ease the congestion say from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. and from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. In the other hours they could run according to their jackass schedule. This is not rocket science — the shuttle has only two stops and it can't cost that much to operate. In its current state, the shuttle is the worst part of my crappy commute each day from Chelsea to Stamford, CT., and back. Fuck you MTA and fuck you shuttle!

Occupation

I was thinking about the occupation this morning and it occurred to me that perhaps the only successful occupation (or post-war reconstruction) "project" the United States ever took on was accomplished with the assistance of allies. So let's look at Germany circa 1945�. The U.S. was one of four major allies occupying that nation: France, Britain, and the Soviet Union all had spheres of influence or "sectors" of occupation. Now, I appreciate that this set up did plant the seed corn for the Cold War, East & West Germany, the Berlin War, and the Iron Curtain. However, at least in West Germany, where the "liberal democracies" held sway, a democratic Germany rose from the ashes. By no means did the U.S. accomplish this feat alone. To be sure, we were the major partner in this endeavor (think Berlin Airlift), nevertheless, the U.S. acted in concert with our allies. The occupation of Japan may be harder to prove since I have only begun to delve into this hypothesis. I have always been fascinated with the Pacific Theater of WWII, primarily because of its focus on maritime forces (i.e., Navy and Marine Corps for you non-military types) and because the U.S. went at it against Japan primarily alone. We did have some nominal allies (no disrespect to the Australians, New Zealanders, Chinese, or the British garrison in India (plus let's not forget the unsung resistance movements on the hundreds of Japanese occupied islands). As the war was drawing to a close and Germany surrendered, the Soviets began minor offense action in Manchuria in order to gain a seat at the table. In any case the fact remains that the U.S. never invaded Japan. So the occupation, borne largely by the U.S. alone, was no where near as holistic as what we are witnessing in Iraq today. That said, we still had the overwhelming support of our allies (compare to Afghanistan post-9/11). I am sure some idiots will point to the Banana Wars of the early-20th century or Granada. But the fact remains that without the support of an international force or the United Nations (Korean Peninsula early 1950s), our occupations have had spotty results at best. Something to think about for you unilateralists out there.

Law School Rankings & Brooklyn Law School (Final Part)

From the around the time that I started my legal education in the late summer of 2000 until I graduated almost 1 year ago in 2003, I was constantly aware of student apathy and the abysmal student life on "campus" at Brooklyn Law School. I put "campus" in quotes because except for a shallow courtyard in front of 250 Joralemon, BLS has no campus, per se, since the entire school consists of two buildings. So much could be written about this topic that it's difficult to know where to begin. Let's assume for argument, that student life at BLS sucks. So what has the administration done to address it? With the exception of the (now) annual "class day" celebration (which was actually devised to honor BLS's first class from 1901) where free food, games, and BLS Painter's Caps (Oh boy!) are distributed there's little to speak of, save the hoped cure all — the new dormitory.

So what are the sources of apathy and piss-poor student life. Well, let no one be mistaken: law school is a long, lonely and arduous endeavor. This alone creates stress, anger, and depression. My guess is there are few things other than frequent beer blasts or free counseling services that the Administration could do. BLS's problems, in more than one regard, stem from its second class status in the shadows of the legal titans across the East River: Columbia Law School and NYU Law School. When it comes to job searches, practically only the top 15% of the BLS class will graduate with a job offer in hand. Whereas, even the dregs of NYU & Columbia will likely have a job offer. BLS's career Services Office generally caters to the "lucky 15%." The remaining 85%-ers are on their own. This causes enormous stress among the students at BLS. Most students are not naive enough to think that the career office will simply secure a job offer for the student with no effort. However, the career office fails to effectively cultivate BLS alumni who are located through out the U.S.A. and establish meaningful connections. Generally, these folks are former 85%-ers who are embittered and thus generally want to have nothing to do with the school. Career planning at BLS is too passive and haphazardly done.

The bottom line is that most of the student body is at BLS because the big dogs in Manhattan or elsewhere didn't admit them. BLS's proximity to the NYC legal community is perhaps it's biggest draw. Making students feel that the school is their own and the Administration is there to serve them (and not the other way around) is paramount to lifting BLS out of the doldrums. I received an outstanding legal education at BLS, and even made some good friends. But the real question is, would I want my own children to go though the experience I did? The answer is not likely. I'll make sure they do damn well on their LSATs and enroll where they won't feel like their sitting in the upper deck.

Bluegrass in GCT

I know, I know. I still owe a final post on Brooklyn Law School, but I had to, again, briefly discuss something off topic.

This morning as I was ambling through the crowd departing from the Times Square/GCT Shuttle, I noticed something that I thought was funny. Many New Yorkers know of the MTA's Music Under New York program, which in effect, legitimizing the performers and musicians that earn part of their living (tin cup in hand) by playing for the hordes of commuters in the NYC Subway System. Well, today there was a Kentucky Bluegrass Band playing some fevered romp, more appropriately suited for Bourbon County that for Midtown East. What was funny is that I was watching well manicured business women, angry suits, and business-casually dressed New Yorkers sprinting to catch the TS bound shuttle seemingly in step with the bluegrass. Talk about a mixed metaphor. I wish I was a filmmaker, it would've been a priceless moment caught on celluloid.

I am compelled to temporarily move off topic for a moment because I've just read something that is incredibly fascinating. In today's N.Y. Times there is an article about the recently freed Japanese hostages from Iraq. Highlighting the idea that each person is not only part of the global community, but also is a part and product of their own culture (including biases, superstitions, and senses of morality and duty). Apparently, the 5 Japanese hostages, once freed by their captives, were not welcomed home with open arms by their fellow countrymen, but shunned and chastised. The Japanese Government has even gone so far as to charge the returning hostages the $6000 for the flight home. I was very concerned when these people were first taken captive and threatened with being burned alive. And I was elated when they were released. To my American mind, I figured they would be regaled as brave volunteers performing good work in a dangerous place. But such is not the case. As modern and sophisticated as the mainstream Japanese society is today, the ancient and perplexing (to a westerner) mores and customs still run deep in their cultural psyche. I have long been interested in Japanese history especially the modern era (Meiji Restoration 1850s/1860s) through WWII. What I find particularly intriguing is the blending of the ancient and the modern in Japanese society and in the quest for advancement how the old feudal ways often rear their head during that struggle.

Law School Rankings & Brooklyn Law School (Part II)

In today's Law.com about the U.S. News and World Report Law School Rankings Dean Joan Wexler is quoted discussing the veracity of the ranks. I do recall that last year when BLS was in the top 10 for 1 category (clinical programs) how that fact was trumpeted all around the BLS community. As per my previous post, the two problems that the Administration should focus on to improve the school is: (1) affiliation with a university; (2) student life. I'll discuss student life tomorrow.

1. Affiliation with a University. This is probably the hardest objective to accomplish, since it is like an M&A deal, and could likely cost millions of dollars. However, I believe it is the single most important factor that keeps BLS in the middle of the pack. BLS does not have a chapter of Order of the Coif, which is the National Honor Society for Law Students. If you read biographies of lawyers, judges, and politicians who were lawyers, those who went to well received law schools (and excelled academically) are usually members of this honor society. BLS doesn't have a chapter, because it wouldn't qualify for a chapter. According the institutional application to start a Coif chapter, among other criteria (which BLS already exceeds or complies with) the school should have a university affiliation. The application states:

University Affiliation. A law school should be a functioning part of a university. It is in a university setting that a law school is most likely to encourage scholarship in its students and faculty. If a law school if not a part of the university or is situated apart from its parent, it must make the arrangements necessary to bring to its students and faculty the advantages that would normally flow to it from being a part of a university. These advantages include library resources relating to other disciplines and the involvement of faculty from other disciplines in its teaching and scholarship.

Now, this is merely the belief of the folks at the Coif. However, I believe there is some merit to this. After all, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law which used to rank rather low is now ranked higher than BLS. I believe (no bias here, honest!) that BLS has superior faculty, more robust academic centers, more competitive student body, etc. But since Cardozo is part of Yeshiva University they have access to more resources and thus will be able to provide a richer learning environment for the law student. And yes, Cardozo has a chapter of Order of the Coif. My solution is to approach the New School University, which has both supurb undergraduate and graduate programs — and more importantly lacks a law school — about creating a merger. Usually, law schools are cash cows for Universities and I'm sure the Trustees at the New School University would be very interested in this. So that's my proposal to the BLS Trustees to improve BLS well into the next century. In my final post of this troika tomorrow, I'll discuss the near-term solution to lifting BLS from the rankings doldrums: student life.

Law School Rankings & Brooklyn Law School

U.S. News and World Report recently came out with their America's Best Graduate Schools 2005: Top Law Schools rank list. This annual rating of the nation's law schools is always controversial. I will not rehash the arguments on the pros and cons of the rankings. However, I have decided to comment about my alma mater Brooklyn Law School ("BLS"). For the 2004 rankings BLS is ranked number 67 in the "Top 100" List. I do not recall what number BLS was last year, but suffice it to say, it was in the neighborhood of the mid-fifties. Bottom line is the school slipped. There are a million reasons this might have happened. And while movement plus or minus a few places is not significant itself, large movement, to me, signifies a problem. Having gone to BLS not to long ago, I have some ideas and theories of how the school could fare better in the hyper- competitive market that is NYC Law Schools.

It is my understanding that the BLS Administration is attaching its hopes for improved rankings and dynamic student bodies to the construction of a new residence hall that could accommodate all students that need housing. You see, for years students had to by and large fend for themselves for housing in Brooklyn Heights since the few residence halls that BLS had could not accommodate all the students. I for one had to search high and low for affordable housing, commuting from my parents former house out in Long Island until I found my spacious studio in MetroTech.

Truth be told, the dormitory is not going to do it. While the academic program I received at BLS is competitive to Columbia or NYU (all of my professors were either Ivy League or top-20 law school educated or leaders in their field, sometimes both) there are two problems that the Administration need address: (1) affiliation with a university; (2) student life. I'll address each in turn in the next post.

K.I.A.

It breaks my heart each day that I read about our fallen troops in Iraq. I feel many of them are dying in the pursuit of a lie. Then there is the other side of me where I think that, though initially mistaken, we are there now and cannot abandon the task at hand. Too much is at stake in terms of our international credibility, the renewed war against al Queda (who have been seemingly streaming into Iraq), and the obligation to rebuild Iraq. My brother is in the Marine Corps awaiting deployment overseas. Each day that goes by without a detailed and sincere plan to deal with the occupation and effectively respond to the attacks, I fear for my brother and all our brave service people over there. When I think about the troops, like my brother, from what he tells me, many of them are a political and are just doing a job they love. They are bonded to each other and fight to protect their fellow troops, often in inspiring ways.

George Bush will likely have to send more troops over to Iraq, which I think will actually save more lives in the long run. In the meantime, my thoughts and prayers go out to all the families that have lost someone or who are worried about their loved ones overseas.

N.Y.C.'s Bravest

Note to TBP reader(s): It's been a few days since I have had a free (or a stolen) moment to post. I have also noticed that for the last several weeks, practically all of my posts have been foreign affairs/national security related. Those issues come easy to me since I have always been passionate about them. However, in keeping with the theme of this Blog, I will try to even out the posts and comment on local — N.Y.C. — issues.

This article in NY Newsday regarding Mayor Bloomberg's message to NYC Firemen to check their behavior, provoked several thoughts.

Recall the days, weeks, and months after the 9/11 attacks where the NYPD and the FDNY were heralded (rightly so) for their service, sacrifice, and heroic deeds. Interestingly, there were practically no (reported) incidents of outrageous behavior (by firemen) or over-zealous shootings (by policemen). In light of this, I seem to remember a controversy over allegedly looted Gap jeans found in a rubble-covered fire truck at the WTC site (for a contrary view see WTC Living History Project Group Response). But I digress.

In any case, Bloomberg's message strikes me as curious. My grandfather was a fireman (and actually a Fire Chief) in a suburban volunteer fire company during the late 1960s and early 1970s. I recall going with him to the fire house to look at and sit in the ladder and pumper trucks. For a little boy, this was the greatest thing in the world. I also recall going with both my grandfather and grandmother to the firemen's family pic-nic where many of the firemen would be getting soaked on the ample supply of beer there. True, us kids were getting sugar high for the gallons of soda we drank and piles of candy we consumed, but that is another story for another time. I have also had friends who were members of several fire departments or girlfriends who dated firemen. From what I observed and heard, these guys can drink. Now that's ok. They work real hard and put their necks on the line for us each day for no money (in the case of volunteers) or for (decent) blue-collar wages for the professionals. But, boy does the alcohol flow. In fact, I know of a fire department on Long Island where they have a bar and kegs on tap up on the second floor of the firehouse. For that matter, off-duty NYPD officers imbibe with the best of them too. Frankly, this is not really a big secret either. My guess is that, for at least the firemen, part of the allure of joining a fire company is the camaraderie and esprit de corps that comes with the boozing and carousing while off-duty. In many ways it is like a fraternity. And with any fraternity, there will be problems when personalities, competition, and liquor mix. So what's with the Mayor's statement? The FDNY aren't children! Do something about it Mr. Mayor. Perhaps the City or the Mayor's Office should consider studying the drinking issue in detail and figure out a meaningful approach to it (mandatory private counseling??). Then again, maybe firemen and policemen will have to tackle the issue themselves and embrace personal responsibility by remaining forever vigilant against the dangers of alcohol abuse.

A queen, some kings, and many pawns

There's a lot going on today, so just a few points.

A Queen: Condi Rice testifies before the 9/11 Commission. Let's see if any "new" non-politicised light is shed on the attack. I doubt it.

Some Kings: Home opener for the New York Yankees.

Many Pawns: It looks as if many of the troops in Iraq that were scheduled to rotate home will have to remain on station a bit longer.

It's the occupation, stupid!

A little more than a year ago, when Geo. W. Bush finally gave the order to begin the Neo-con's long awaited crusade, I felt a bit anxious at what this war would mean for the U.S. in the years to come. After all, the Babyboomer Neo-cons (most who had never served a day of their lives in uniform) were satisfying their current desires and ambitions, by borrowing blood and treasure from their succeeding generation — my generation. The mess that they have created and its long reaching effects will not have to be paid by them. Oh no, just like the tax cuts, the Medicare "reform" act, and social security neglect, the Neo-con's foreign policy aims will remain a debt for Generations X & Y (and beyond) to pay for. In my heart of hearts, I fervently believe that Bush, Cheney, Condi, Wolfie & Rummy thought the active combat would go better than expected and the Iraqi people, in their warm embrace, would welcome us with open arms, thus making the occupation a walk in the park. The conventional wisdom is that not only did they not have extensive plans for the post-war period in Iraq but what plans were made, the Administration didn't even heed them. Well, there were no WMDs, Saddam wound up in a spider-hole, and the Bush administration scrambled to create a connection between terrorism and Iraq. Then there was the announcement of the June 30th transfer of sovereignty; the escape clause that will (they believe) save Bush's re-election campaign. Yet with the weekly attacks in the "Sunni Triangle" and now a new front opening in Shi'ite dominated south and a mounting body count, I am convinced that this, Mr. Bush's war, will go down in American history as a second Vietnam. And many years from now, my grandchildren will ask me, what was it all for?

Well, well, well . . .

Condi Rice has been stressing as of late, to all who will listen, that the Administration was very concerned about global terrorism before 9/11. To paraphrase a line from William Shakespeare's Macbeth: "I think she doth protest too much". To wit this article from today's Washington Post regarding a policy address that Dr. Rice was to deliver coincidently on September 11, 2001. The speech, which was to be a major foreign policy unveiling, stressed the Bush Administration's real pet project — national missile defense. Iraq and Saddam's supposed WMD program fits nicely into this national security rubric, but there is very little room for terrorism. And that's the same position that the Administration took, as articulated in Dr. Rice's missive, according to the Post. So Dr. Rice, to quote Gaylord Focker (as played by Ben Stiller) in Meet the Parents: "Can you deal with that!?"

Air America Radio Debuts

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Tell Me Again Mr. Bush: How is the Occupation Going??

Read this news report of the latest carnage in Falluja, Iraq where 5 Marines & 4 civilian contractors have been killed.

Then read this surprising opinion piece by Pat Buchanan entitled "No End to War". Surprising in the sense that, while not a departure from Mr. Buchanan's embrace of isolationism, this piece nevertheless sounds in criticism of the Bush Administration's orchestration of the wars on terror and in Iraq, as well as the neo-con hijacking of responsible and "conservative" foreign policy.

Spain to double its forces in Afghanistan

As reported in Salon.com Spain's outgoing government, in consultation with the in-coming regime, has decided to double its Afghanistan troop level to 250 sometime this summer. Almost two and one-half years after 9-11, the U.S. and its allies in Afghanistan should have gone into that Central Asian nation in greater numbers since Bin Laden & co. still remains at large. As if this campaign wasn't difficult already, George Bush created a diversion by invading Iraq. Recently the U.S. has committed an additional 2,000 Marines to Afghanistan. Meanwhile our proxy army (Pakistan) is claiming minor victories in its recent assault in the tribal areas of its border region. I have maintained that Afghanistan was the center of gravity that was essential in defeating al Queda which would have been weakened severely if its political, spiritual, and financial leaders were vanquished. Instead, we slapped them around a bit while Bin Laden and his lieutenants roamed in the mountains freely and al Queda cells continued to attack global targets.

Thomas Friedman of the NY Times weighs in on the issue of the Spanish Elections and terrorism. My earlier post regarding this same issue sounded closer to Friedman's view than that of Paul Krugman. To the point, the 3-11 bombings in Madrid have exposed the bifurcation the war on terror and the war in Iraq. As much as George W. Bush and his posse have tried to cement the two together, the centrifugal forces of reality and global terrorism have conspired to separate them. This week much of the new focus has been on the serious blow dealt to Bush & Co. over the testimony rendered at the 9-11 Commission. Especial by former terrorism czar Richard A. Clark. I have and still maintain that, for me, the real travesty is not which Administration is to blame for 9-11 but how this administration has squandered the global good will and national inertia to fight al Queda by wasting lives, money, and political capital over the war in Iraq. Especially since this war was predicated on a lie (i.e. WMD).

The newsmagazine television program 60 Minutes last night interviewed Bush's former terrorism chief, Richard A. Clark, where he soundly criticized the Administration's war on terror and the bogus link between Iraq and al Queda. The NY Times also published an article challenging Bush's Handling of the Terror Threat. While I wasn't surprised, I cannot believe the depths to which Condelezza Rice, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, Dick Cheney, and the "W" himself sought a 9/11 connection to Iraq so that they could justify going to war in Iraq. Moreover, this calculated foray into Iraq served to weaken the U.S. in its counter-terrorism program. The Center for American Progress researched a 9/11 time line that demonstrates Bush's move away from concern with al Queda. These reports collectively are a must see for those who will be voting this November.

You can be sure that the Bush machine will hammer down on Clark for his disclosure. Hopefully he will be able to better withstand the counter-assault (See NSA Condelezza Rice's Op-Ed "9/11: For The Record" in the Washington Post) than former Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill. For example see this swipe on O'Neill by Bush's attack dogs.

P.O.S.

I was only going to post once today since I'm real busy at work, but I couldn't resist making a comment on this crap floated by one of Bush's minions. Donald Rumsfeld today writes about why we were right in going to war in Iraq. You have to hand it to this guy, no rhetorical technique is beneath him in order to justify the war including, lo and behold, the lie. Here's a quote:

[T]he world gave Saddam Hussein every opportunity to avoid war. He was being held to a simple standard: live up to your agreement at the end of the 1991 Persian Gulf war; disarm and prove you have done so. Instead of disarming . . . Saddam Hussein chose deception and defiance.

Repeatedly, he rejected those resolutions and he systematically deceived United Nations inspectors about his weapons and his intent. The world knew his record: he used chemical weapons against Iran and his own citizens; he invaded Iran and Kuwait; he launched ballistic missiles at Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain; and his troops repeatedly fired on American and British aircraft patrolling the no-flight zones.

Recognizing the threat, in September 2002 President Bush went to the United Nations, which gave Iraq still another "final opportunity" to disarm and to prove it had done so. The next month the president went to Congress, which voted to support the use of force if Iraq did not.

And, when Saddam Hussein passed up that final opportunity, he was given a last chance to avoid war: 48 hours to leave the country. Only then, after every peaceful option had been exhausted, did the president and our coalition partners order the liberation of Iraq.

This is sheer brilliance (in a morally corrupt sort of way). Not once does he mention the WMD ("weapons of mass destruction") that were the impetus for going to war in the first place. Hello, Donny! Did you just forget about all of your remarks prior to the invasion?? Justifying a war post hoc doesn't sew confidence amongst our allies and fear amongst our foes. Conjuring up memories of past glories in Europe and the Pacific does not erase the fact that this administration has lied to the American people and the world. Invoking the memory of your departed classmate who fought and died in Korea doesn't ameliorate the 560-odd Americans who have to date died for your Neo-con crusade to line the pockets of Halliburton. As my good friend likes to say, this opinion piece is a P.O.S. — a piece of shit.