Out of Position: Where Will the ‘Antiwar’ Vote Go?

On Monday evening, as the returns from the Iowa Presidential Caucuses flooded in via CNN, C-SPAN, and other like outlets, it became all too clear to the casual viewer what the ramifications were. That Howard Dean, so-called “antiwar” candidate, had played himself. That MoveOn.Org made very little impact in the heartland; Senators Kerry and Edwards, … Continue reading “Out of Position: Where Will the ‘Antiwar’ Vote Go?”

Move On, Already: Bush as Hitler Falls Flat

Dave Lindorff, writing in CounterPunch, accuses the Republican National Committee of “play[ing] the Hitler card” with its recent denunciation of two amateur commercials, posted briefly on the MoveOn.Org website, that compared the sitting President to Adolf Hitler. Lindorff’s position – predictably enough, in the hyperbolic realm CP occupies – is that the “shrill attacks” levied … Continue reading “Move On, Already: Bush as Hitler Falls Flat”

James Baker: The Last Hope for America

It’s been years, it seems, since I’ve had anything positive to say about US foreign policy. Whether it’s the jackass mathematicians and careful parsers of phrase in the Pentagon, or the mannequin posing as Secretary of State, the whole operation has proven to be all-too-effective fodder for the socialists protesting US wars overseas. It’s almost … Continue reading “James Baker: The Last Hope for America”

Technical Knockout

On the cold, blustery weekend after Thanksgiving 2003, north Florida AM radio firebrand and political activist Andy “Down to Business” Johnson made a rare appearance on the cable news circuit. The venue was Fox News’ “From the Heartland”, hosted by former Congressman John Kasich [R-OH]. Kasich brought together outspoken Iraqi war opponent Johnson and syndicated … Continue reading “Technical Knockout”

Pawns Amidst the Palms

Bush Versus Bush in 2004? A fraternal fracas brewing in Florida as proxies of the Governor and the President vie to succeed retiring Senator Bob Graham. Jeb backs Katherine Harris, but the White House [allegedly] demurs: “There’s no way the White House will let her run. There’s just no way the president’s going to stand … Continue reading “Pawns Amidst the Palms”

A Tale of Two Americas

Unsurprisingly, the mainstream media’s coverage of upwards of 30,000 people marching in Miami in protest against the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) decontextualizes the act of protest itself. To the average person watching Wolf Blitzer hem and haw over the footage of baton-wielding police regulating an unpredictable crowd, the protests mean very little. … Continue reading “A Tale of Two Americas”

Jessica Lynch, Hot Property

So this is what happens when we send women to war. Larry Flynt, also-ran candidate for California’s Governorship and publisher of artsy photos, isn’t going to run nude photos of Private Lynch after all. Flynt claimed to have bought the photos last month from the men [note the plural here] who purportedly participated in the … Continue reading “Jessica Lynch, Hot Property”

Just a Good Ol’ Boy

Former Vermont Governor Howard Dean is a master of timing. His appearance in Jacksonville, Florida on election day 2003 served several purposes. It signaled very clearly to the incumbent president that Dean, the putative frontrunner for next year’s Democratic presidential nomination, believes that Florida is in play in 2004 and that the Bush team can’t … Continue reading “Just a Good Ol’ Boy”

Everyday Is Halloween

Happy Halloween. I type this knowing that I don’t have a costume for tonight. But that doesn’t matter so much. After all, in the United States every day is an occasion for costuming and obscuring the truth behind the public fictions. Costuming of a sort allowed Washington to frame its invasion of Iraq as “liberation” … Continue reading “Everyday Is Halloween”