Wow...

The Birmingham News, yesterday, published an 8 page spread of never-before-seen civil rights era photos that chronicle the civil rights struggle in Alabama. The negatives were found by a photography intern who was searching a supply closet for a lens. They'd been hidden in plain sight, in the closet, for decades.

The photos that were published in the Birmingham news as well as hundreds more that didn't make it into the spread, the full story behind the spread and interviews with photographers, civil rights leaders, people who appear in the photos, etc, can be seen online at: http://www.al.com/unseen



Thanks to Hooloovoo for sending me the link.

Anger Management

Have you ever been so angry about a topic you couldn't discuss it or blog on it or coax the humor, however miniscule and deeply buried it might be, from the topic?

That, dear reader, is why I've been remiss in discussing the ports/Dubai issue, here.

There is simply no vitriolic spew venomous enough to express the intensity & depth of my anger and, while I subscribe to the philosophy that there is humor in all things, I am too blinded by my rage to find that needle in this putrid haystack, yet.

My muse is dumbstruck and instead of whispering quips and songs and poetry and ideas in my ear, faster than I can hope to record them, she fuels the fires of my rage by looping a collection of soundbytes ... George W. Bush repeatedly mentioning the deaths of our fellow countrymen at the hands of terrorists on 9/11, Bush's oft-repeated campaign promises not to cede national security to foreign powers and, finally, to one honest soundbyte from the post-SOTU damage-control spin: "He didn't mean it literally."

• U.A.E. is one of only three nations to have recognized the Taliban as a legitimate government.
  
• The Taliban, not Saddam's government, harbored bin Laden and Al Queda.
  
• The Dubai company in whom we're being forced to entrust our national security, via our ports, is owned not by stock holders in the company nor by independent businessmen, but by the government of U.A.E.
  

Technically, Bush isn't "ceding" our national security to a foreign power. He's not even selling it to a foreign power. He's giving it to them and paying them to take it... paying them with our (the working class's) hard earned tax dollars and, thanks to Bush's runaway deficit spending, the hard earned tax dollars of multiple generations of our progeny.

Congress is outraged -- not just on my side of the political aisle, but across most of the political spectrum. I had begun to doubt whether there was any real patriotism left on the other side of the aisle. Discovering that there is still some genuine love for this nation among my right-wing countrymen has been the only bright spot, for me, in this whole thing. But, even with a non-partisan, truly patriotic effort in Congress to protect our ports and our nation, Bush has promised to do the one thing that NOTHING, so far, has been important enough to him for him to even consider -- override the Congress with a veto.

With this veto promise, Bush has proven that his decision to hand our national security over to the U.A.E. is the single most important goal he's set in the entirety of his Presidency, to date.

We've lost our jobs to foreigners. We've given up our rights and freedoms so that people in foreign lands may enjoy them, instead. We've drenched foreign sands with the blood of our children. We're so heavily in debt to foreign powers that they own more of our country than we do. Now, we're handing our national security over to the U.A.E. government and we're supposed to accept it because we're part of the global economy.

We were never part of the global economy. We were the sacrifice to its master -- led willingly and blindly, on false promises of eternal financial salvation, to the altars of Greed where we were laid bare and bled to death by its high priests.

(Not) In Other News....

George W. Bush, from a campaign speech delivered October 2, 2004 in Cuyahoga Falls, OH:

Senator Kerry's approach to foreign policy would give foreign governments veto power over national security decisions.

But, that's exactly what Bush was already doing and continues to do, with his fiscal policies.

Thanks to tax cuts for the wealthy, elimination of the surplus, runaway deficit spending and job losses in the working class, foreign interests hold the lien to America.

Our lienholders include (but are not by any means limited to) Japan, China and OPEC. Yes, OPEC. That they hold the existing liens cedes a great amount of power over both our domestic and our foreign policies to these outside powers -- that we continue to seek additional loans from these powers makes us beholden to them.

If you watched the news, yesterday, you probably know that Cheney shot a guy in the face and that Entwistle returned from England to face charges of murdering his wife and infant daughter.

BUT... if you watched C-span, yesterday afternoon, you learned that in the 2007 budget, we will pay more interest on the national debt, most of which will go to foreign banks, not back into the American economy, than we'll be spending on homeland security, education and our veterans, combined -- and not just a little more, a LOT more. Further, we will NOT be paying down the principal on the existing debt.

Had you watched this presentation, you would also have learned that, if we did not have to allocate such a huge portion of our budget to paying the interest on these debts, the same money could instead provide approximately one million dollars per day to each and every Congressional district in the United States, for the entire year.

American children, seniors and veterens are among those who will be affected by deep domestic spending cuts in our 2007 budget -- because we must, instead, send our tax dollars to Japan, China, OPEC, etc.

...And next year, the interest payments that will have to be allocated for in the 2008 budget will only be higher and the percentage of the budget that will be available to allocate for American interests will only be lower, because we are going to continue to borrow even more from foreign interests.

Meanwhile, the wealthiest Americans, those who do the least amount of work to earn their incomes, will be getting yet another tax cut, placing an even greater portion of this debt squarely on the shoulders of the working class -- who already have little or no remaining disposable income thanks to rising costs for basic necessities such as fuel, utilities, food, health care, home/car/health insurance, etc.

THIS is what you should be hearing about on the news. THIS is what's really important. THIS isn't funny.

Guess What Else Is Less Than 1/10" In Diameter

Cheney will finally break his silence regarding the non-incident that left Harry Whittington (aka "The guy Dick Cheney shot in the face") in almost completely unharmed condition in an ICU trauma ward.

Mr. Cheney, in a stunning display of courage, has agreed to pop out of his hidey-hole to sit down for an exclusive Fox "News" interview, today. The interview will take place at 2:pm and Fox has promised to milk excerpts to death for ratings leading up to the official airing, scheduled for 6:pm.

Unlike a full press interview, where we might expect the Veep to be subjected to such irrelevant, troop-disparaging, America-hating, National-security-jeopardizing, unanswerable hypothetical questions as "Why did you wait so long to go public?" or "Are you implying that you, personally, administered medical care to Mr. Whittington for a full 18 hours?," or "You waited HOW long to inform even the President?!" we can trust the bastions of non-partisan, America-loving fairness, balance and truth at Fox "News" to stick to the important and tough questions on the minds of Americans. Questions like... "What can we do to help ensure that you receive a medal or some other prestigious honor for selflessly leaping into action to save Harry's life, letting your quarry get away?" or "Why did Harry spoil your shot?"

What Condition His Condition Is In.

From an AP story on the condition of Harry Whittington (aka The guy Dick Cheney shot in the face.)

Asked whether the pellet could move farther into his heart and become fatal, hospital officials said that was a hypothetical question they could not answer.

Whoa... major case of deja vu! Hypothetical... can't answer... That sounds sooo familiar. *shiver* OH! Wait a minute! Of course it does -- how could I forget the Gonzalez confir... *gulp*

HOLY CRAP!!!

R.I.P. Harry

(Heart) Breaking News

Harry Whittington (aka The guy Dick Cheney shot in the face,) is back in ICU, having suffered complications from the shooting peppering incident.

It seems a birdshot pellet has somehow managed to lodge in his heart and cause a mild heart attack, despite barely breaking the skin and the extent of damage being a speckling of raised red spots that resemble chicken pox. Doctors are reportig that Mr. Whittington will have to remain in the hospital for at least another seven days and that his condition will be monitored closely.

White House officials, meanwhile, are having fun with the shooting, getting off some good-natured ribs at the Veep's expense.

***Live Blogging Mode Engaged***

THIS JUST IN, AS I WAS TYPING!!!

CNN has just downgraded the lodging of that pellet in Mr. Whittington's heart and the resulting mild heart attack, as was reported by one of Whittington's doctors, on CNN, just moments ago, to the pellet merely "brushing up against" Whittington's heart and causing some "complications."

Melhi Ink would like to wish CNN God-speed in their ongoing efforts to cure Mr. Whittington by supper time.

See Dick? See Harry? See Dick shoot Harry in the face?

Another of my predictions came true! Yesterday, Harry Whittington (aka "The guy Cheney shot in the face,") was still Cheney's friend and I described him as Cheney's "(probably now former)" friend. Today, the press has officially downgraded Mr. Whittington from Cheney's friend to "Republican contributer."

Spooky, isn't it?

Nothing has been going right for the Bush administration, lately. They just can't seem to catch a break. And now, Cheney has to go and shoot some old guy in the face.

I'm so glad this shooting was just an accident and not a cleverly orchestrated plot to distract our attention away from all the really important stuff that's going on. Because, if it was, I'd have to swallow my Democrat pride and give props where they're due by saying, "WOW -- way to take one for the team, Harry!! Abramoff and Libby could sure learn a thing or two from you!"

Be vewy, vewy quiet... I'm hunting wah-yuhs!

Ok, so apparantly Harry Whittington (aka, the guy Dick Cheney shot in the face, Saturday,) wasn't so terribly injured by the shotgun blast to his face and chest. According to CNN, it left him with some little red spots that look like chicken pox.

So, if it resulted in barely a flesh wound, what the heck put the guy in the ICU trauma ward for more than 24 hours?

Was Cheney field-dressing him before paramedics arrived?!

"It's a bird, it's a... Oops!"

Cheney accidentally shot his 78 year old (probably now former) friend in the face and chest while Quayle quail hunting, yesterday.

Oops.

Harry Whittington (aka, the guy Cheney shot, yesterday,) is said to be in stable condition in the ICU trauma ward.

But rest easy, dear reader. You see, Cheney didn't put a bullet into the guy, he just peppered him. Whew! Now, isn't that better than what you were picturing when you first heard that he'd shot someone? You bet it is!

Even CNN, clearly the most evil America-hating news channel on the planet, is assuring us that it was more similar to pelting him with a bunch of B.B.s than actually shooting him.

Apparantly, this was such a non-shooting-like shooting that even CNN can't find anything in it to blow out of proportion with their liberal bias to fulfill their devious mission of damaging Cheney! If even they are cutting the veep some slack, we can be sure that this whole thing was not at all similar to Cheney mistaking his long-time pal for a wee little bird and putting the geezer in Intensive Care by pumping him full of buckshot!!

It's just an amusing, harmless oopsie we'll all be laughing about -- after Mr. Whittington gets out of ICU.

I don't know about you, but I can hardly wait to hear all about how Cheney was both the hero and victim in this whole "A funny thing happened while I was out quail hunting..." story.

To Colbert Is Human... (unless it's only half human!)

Stephen Colbert, formerly of The Daily Show With Jon Stewart and currently of The Colbert Report provides us, the Colbert Nation, with our minimum daily recommended allowance of truth.

Or does he?

Week after week, we've tuned in to Stephen's Threat Down segment to arm ourselves with the knowledge that bears are the biggest threat facing America, today. By now, most of us are well equipped and prepared to deal with the bear-orist threats that hang over us like a pall. ...a huge, snarling, sharp toothed, razor clawed pall.

Well, Mr. Colbert, it turns out you're only half right! As we learned from The State Of The Union Address, the biggest threat facing Americans, today, is not bears, but roving bands of genetically engineered man-bear hybrid monsters!

Since man-bears are likely to be smarter than the average bear, this is no ordinary boo-boo. Oh, no.

While these demon man-bear sleeper cells have been preparing to come out of hybernation to topple our democracy and feast on our flesh, we haven't prepared for them, at all. If they came out of their cave-condos, today, we'd be at their mercy -- human picnic baskets!

For the sake of our nation... nay, our very species... I hope Stephen corrects this rare Colbert-or in his next installment of the Threat Down. The public must be warned!