Politics: J'accuse!

[Atticus Grinch]

An advisor for the administration who was prepping Rumsfeld for Clarke spin accidentally left his talking points at the local Starbucks Sunday morning. A helpful resident of DuPont Circle found them and handed them over to the Center for American Progress, which decided that they should be posted online. Thoughtfully, they redacted the hand-drawn map to Rumsfeld's house, in the interest of national security.

Courtesy Wonkette.

In the interest of non-partisanship, let me add that we all could have done without the CAP's snarky commentary. The handwriting translation is helpful though, which is nice.

ETA: I think this qualifies as the first leak from this administration, ever.

[Replaced_Texan]

Originally posted by Atticus Grinch
An advisor for the administration who was prepping Rumsfeld for Clarke spin accidentally left his talking points at the local Starbucks Sunday morning. A helpful resident of DuPont Circle found them and handed them over to the Center for American Progress, which decided that they should be posted online. Thoughtfully, they redacted the hand-drawn map to Rumsfeld's house, in the interest of national security.

Courtesy Wonkette.

In the interest of non-partisanship, let me add that we all could have done without the CAP's snarky commentary. The handwriting translation is helpful though, which is nice.

ETA: I think this qualifies as the first leak from this administration, ever.

Which has been plugged quickly. I can't access the papers. I get a "you are not authorized to view this page" message.

[sgtclub]

Originally posted by Greedy,Greedy,Greedy
I do not think Powell has succomb to this illusion, and I think that is in part because when you actually spend your life in the modern military you understand better the limits of military power.

Didn't Rummy also serve?

[sgtclub]

Originally posted by Replaced_Texan
Which has been plugged quickly. I can't access the papers. I get a "you are not authorized to view this page" message.

I had no problem. I told you they read these boards.

[Atticus Grinch]

Originally posted by Replaced_Texan
Which has been plugged quickly. I can't access the papers. I get a "you are not authorized to view this page" message.

Really? I get a PDF. Just tested it, and it's still a valid link.

[Shape Shifter]

Originally posted by Say_hello_for_me
A.) I actually do not have a different view, as I think this entire exercise has shown abhorrent aftermath planning.

Hello

Agreed. W is a man of integrity. He takes his campaign pledge of "no nation-building" very seriously. You will not find me in the "Bush lied" camp.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by Atticus Grinch
Really? I get a PDF. Just tested it, and it's still a valid link.

It worked for me earlier, but I got the same message that RT did just now.

[SlaveNoMore]

sgtclub
I had no problem. I told you they read these boards.

And I can still access them.

Once again, Club, Hank, Dr. Whoopie and I would like to thank you guys for breaking the law and allowing a dead guy to become Senator of Mizzou.

[sgtclub]

http://www.anncoulter.org/

On Sept. 11, 2001, when Bush had been in office for barely seven months, 3,000 Americans were murdered in a savage terrorist attack on U.S. soil by Muslim extremists.

Since then, Bush has won two wars against countries that harbored Muslim fanatics, captured Saddam Hussein, immobilized Osama bin Laden, destroyed al-Qaida's base, and begun to create the only functioning democracy in the Middle East other than Israel. Democrats opposed it all – except their phony support for war with Afghanistan, which they immediately complained about and said would be a Vietnam quagmire. And now they claim to be outraged that in the months before 9-11, Bush did not do everything Democrats opposed doing after 9-11.

What a surprise.

edited to fix tabs

[Hank Chinaski]

Originally posted by Atticus Grinch
An advisor for the administration who was prepping Rumsfeld for Clarke spin accidentally left his talking points at the local Starbucks Sunday morning.

If Howard Stern is right about the Bush admin's vindictiveness re. "enemies," we may see Justice resurrect the failed Berkley ban on corporate coffee.

[Greedy,Greedy,Greedy]

Originally posted by sgtclub
Didn't Rummy also serve?

He did. Navy aviator during peacetime (post-Korean war), retired with rank of Captain.

Not to disparage his military service in any way, but I don't think three years in your twenties as a junior officer during peacetime gives you quite the same insight into the use of military power and its limits as a career spanning several decades where you are responsible for the lives of many soldiers.

I have a lot of respect for the military opinions of career officers; it may come from the fact that my own father retired (pretty young, he had another career afterwards) as a senior level officer and I've spent time around some reasonably high level military officers. But you learn something wrestling with these problems over decades in many different environments, and that is why many of the top brass are much more conservative about the use of military power than the career politicians.

[dtb]

I got a firm-wide e-mail message today letting us know that our service men and women are lacking basic supplies, and frankly, it made me a little verklempt (which sort of surprises me, but I don't really know why). Anyway, I went out to the local Duane Reade and bought a bunch of stuff.

If anyone else in the area (midtown- NYC) would like to donate stuff, pm me, and we can arrange a secret drop-off (in keeping with the miltary motif).

Here's the message (redacted, a la The Starbucks Papers -- to protect my paper-thin anonymity):

• As you may be aware, a number of [our] employees are currently on active duty in the Middle East. We have heard from some of the service men and women that some of the everyday items that we all take for granted are not available to our soldiers. In response to this need, [we] will be collecting basic toiletries and non-perishable snacks and candy and shipping them directly to our employees in the Middle East who will arrange for distribution to the service men and women in their units. The details of our drive are as follows:
  
  WHEN: April 1 - April 16
  
  WHERE: [top secret location]
  
  WHAT:
  
  Toiletries: sun-block, lotion, tooth paste and tooth brushes, soap, antibacterial hand cleaner, lip balm, stick deodorant (no aerosol cans), disposable razors, shaving cream, liquid soap, body wash, facial and hand wipes, toilet paper
  
  Miscellaneous: AA batteries, black or green socks, inexpensive sun glasses, Ziploc bags, books and magazines (no religious or adult content), envelopes, telephone calling cards, pens, pencils, stationery.
  
  Food: cookies, candy, chips, beef jerky, hot chocolate packs, coffee packets, sweetened Kool Aid envelopes, tuna packets, crackers, juice boxes.
  
  
  Please do not donate alcoholic beverages or materials used to produce alcoholic beverages (i.e., distilling material, hops, malts, yeast, etc.), fruits, glass items, aerosol items, pork or pork by-products, materials depicting nude or seminude persons, cards, film, horror comics, donations containing religious materials contrary to the Islamic faith.
  
  Please show your support of our troops by making a donation. If you have any questions about the drive please call [Agent Orange], in Human Resources at xxxxxx.
  

[Tyrone Slothrop]

Originally posted by sgtclub, quoting the nutcase Coulter
Since then, Bush has won two wars against countries that harbored Muslim fanatics, captured Saddam Hussein, immobilized Osama bin Laden, destroyed al-Qaida's base, and begun to create the only functioning democracy in the Middle East other than Israel.

It's impressive to see so much crap in such a small space -- the op-ed equivalent of ten pounds of shit in a five-pound bag. Afghanistan harbored Muslim fanatics; Iraq did not. We captured Saddam Hussein, but it's anyone's guess where Osama bin Laden is. Who knows whether we've destroyed Al Qaeda's base? Smart people (smarter than Coulter) fear that it has reacted by decentralizing, which -- if so -- would make this impossible by definition. And Iraq is going to be a "functioning democracy" around the time Coulter wins the Nobel Prize for Literature.

Democrats opposed it all – except their phony support for war with Afghanistan, which they immediately complained about and said would be a Vietnam quagmire.

What a load of horseshit. It's a neat trick Coulter has of demonizing Democrats -- they either disagree openly or they're lying. (And I think the people tossing the word quagmire around were talking about Iraq.)

And now they claim to be outraged that in the months before 9-11, Bush did not do everything Democrats opposed doing after 9-11.

More horseshit. The outrage is that Bush sat on the Clinton programme for eight months until 9/11 diverted his attention from missile defense and planning the invasion of Iraq.

Reading Coulter is like a substitute for thinking.

[Replaced_Texan]

Originally posted by dtb
I got a firm-wide e-mail message today letting us know that our service men and women are lacking basic supplies, and frankly, it made me a little verklempt (which sort of surprises me, but I don't really know why). Anyway, I went out to the local Duane Reade and bought a bunch of stuff.

A colleague's daughter is a sergeant in the Army stationed in Kuwait, and she said that they are woefully undersupplied with tampons, maxipads and other feminine hygeine products. If you're going to make this kind of donation, add those items to the list. I'd also add condoms, because it doesn't sound like they've really thought through the whole reproductive system.

[Diane_Keaton]

Originally posted by Tyrone_Slothrop
(And I think the people tossing the word quagmire around were talking about Iraq.)

Not to be a Timmy, but it was tossed around in the Afghanistan context too. I think even the NYT.