"The burqa is not a religious sign, it's a sign of subservience, a sign of debasement—I want to say it solemnly," he said. "It will not be welcome on the territory of the French Republic."- Nicolas Sarkozy

Someone needs to take a chill pill. What's next, banning thong bikinis on the Riviera?

BAGHDAD — At least 24 Iraqis were killed and 78 were wounded Monday in the latest wave of violence sweeping the country, Iraqi police said.

The attacks, which were concentrated in Baghdad, came just days before the June 30 deadline for U.S. combat forces to finish withdrawing from major Iraqi cities. The attacks raise questions about the readiness of Iraqi security forces and their ability to control the recently unstable security situation.

Here's one from two days ago:

A suicide truck bomb detonated in front of al Resool Mosque in Taza district, southwest Kirkuk at 12.30 Saturday. The tremendous explosion killed at least 67 people, injuring more than 200 others and destroying 30 houses.

Maybe because they are so ubiquitous no one here in America cares anymore, or certainly no one who reports the news on the TeeVee. But if this was happening in Iran there would be front page headlines screaming about the violence and the usual suspects questioning President Obama's failure to do something about it. I guess everyone in the news biz has "moved on" but for the Iraqi people Bush's Folly continues to be the gift that keeps killing them.

Just remember, there is little Obama or the international news media can do to change the course of events in Iran. But back in 2002-2003, there was a lot that our news media, our renowned journalists and institutions, could have been doing to expose the lies of the Bush administration. But they didn't.

Instead, they acted like a bunch of glorified publicity agents, warmongers and cheerleaders. They were so effective (Yes, I'm looking at you, Mr. New York Times for enabling and publishing Judy Miller's creative fictions) that Bush and Blair didn't even have to resort to Plan B: a false flag operation to provoke Saddam into making the first move. No surprise then, that they have abandoned the plight of the Iraqi people. It's merely an old reality show that's run its course, and the ratings in the have been slipping. Much more fun to cover the new conflagration. As they say in the business, That's Infotainment!

I'm sorry, People of Iraq. The powers that be in this country don't think your suffering matters anymore. Not that they ever did.

Update [2009-6-22 19:22:36 by Steven D]: Also posted in Orange. Some folks over there don't consider this a valid topic for discussion. Any help you can give me would be appreciated.

The fiance of Neda Agha-Soltan, the young woman whose violent death during clashes in Tehran on Saturday was recorded on video and uploaded to the internet, has described the events leading up to her shooting in an interview for BBC Persian TV.

She had been sitting with her music teacher in a car, stuck in traffic, when she decided to get out because of the heat. "She got out of the car for just for a few minutes [and] that's when she was shot dead," said Caspian Makan. Mr Makan quoted eyewitnesses as saying she appeared to have been targeted deliberately by "paramilitaries in civilian clothing". He added that officials had prevented mourners holding a memorial service at a mosque on Monday.

"The authorities are aware that everybody in Iran and throughout the whole world knows about her story," he told the BBC. "They were afraid that lots of people could turn up."

Adding insult to injury...

What's fascinating is that they seem to be surprised that their base isn't more fired up.

“She doesn’t have the punch out there in terms of fundraising and recruiting, I think — at least so far,” said Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), who most likely will be elected as the No. 4 Republican in Senate leadership this week.

So, even a bit of hot rhetoric didn't result in a big cash infusion. With no cash and no point in alienating Latino voters, the GOP is going to mail-in their opposition to this appointment.

Despite signs that the recession gripping the nation's economy may be easing, the unemployment rate is projected to continue rising for another year before topping out in double digits, a prospect that threatens to slow growth, increase poverty and further complicate the Obama administration's message of optimism about the economic outlook. [...]

Analysts say the high levels of joblessness would be accompanied by increases in child poverty, strained government budgets, and black and Latino unemployment rates approaching 20 percent.

"I find it unfathomable that people are not horrified about what is going to happen," said Lawrence Mishel, president of the Economic Policy Institute. "I regard all this talk about how the recession is maybe going to end, all the talk about deficits and inflation, to be the equivalent of telling Americans, 'You are just going to have to tough it out.' But we're looking at persistent unemployment that is going to be extraordinarily damaging to many communities. There is a ton of pain in the pipeline."

Maybe we need more tax cuts? More de-regulation and privatization? Cut more wasteful government spending? Yeah. That's the ticket! How did that work out in California, by the way? Oh. Never mind.

LOS ANGELES — There are not a multitude of ways to close a $24 billion state budget gap, but in California, the answer is probably going to come down to who gets hurt the most. [...]

In response, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger threatened to allow the government to come to a “grinding halt,” rather than authorize more borrowing to cover shortfalls, and proposed $16 billion in cuts. Those cuts would largely be carried out through the state’s programs for the poor: the Healthy Family Program, the health insurance program that covers more than 900,000 children; the main welfare program, known as CalWorks, which provides temporary financial assistance to poor families; and Cal Grants, a college financial aid program.

Mr. Schwarzenegger also seeks $750 million in cuts to prisons, the slashing of the budgets for state parks and other agencies and a 5 percent pay cut for state workers. And he has proposed a plan to borrow $2 billion from local governments, which has enraged local leaders.

Speaking of California, if you hold any of their debt you may soon become the equivalent of a junk bond investor which isn't a good thing:

California, tied with Louisiana for the lowest credit rating among the states, now is in more danger of claiming rock-bottom all for itself.

Moody’s Investors Service today warned that it might downgrade California’s general obligation bond rating, currently A1, because of the state’s "significant budgetary shortfall, impending liquidity crisis, and lack of legislative solutions." [...]

As I noted in this earlier post on the muni market, the issue with California isn’t that the state won’t make good on its debts. It’s required to do so by the state Constitution.

But if the rating is cut, and investors demand higher yields on new bonds the state issues, older bonds issued at lower yields could fall in value, giving investors a paper loss.

Thank God I don't own any Californicated Debt issues. And I don't have a job, being disabled, so I don't have to worry about finding one. Still, if anyone knows a rich person looking to adopt an heir to inherit his or her fortune, please drop me a line. I'd make a great prodigal son.

To be serious for a moment, however, the problem we face can't be solved by tax cuts for billionaires or spending cuts that cut out the heart of what government does and does well. First off, the Bush economic program and California are Exhibits 1 and 1A on the non-beneficial effects of supply side economics. Two, when it comes to spending cuts at the Federal level you have to look at the Defense budget or Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security benefits if you really want to get serious. And that just isn't going to happen, as you and I well know. No, the problem so far has been the political will by Democrats to pass a stimulus package large enough to really stimulate job creation.

Governments should stick to spending programmes worth hundreds of billions of dollars to reignite growth because their economies are still weak in spite of signs that the worst of the crisis may be past, a World Bank official said.

World Bank Chief Economist Justin Lin said in an interview he was concerned about rising borrowing costs due to growing sovereign debt offerings and a weak external financing conditions for the emerging economies of Europe and Central Asia.

Democrats are still intimidated by the outcries in the media and by Republicans about the national debt (concerns never heard when Bush was running massive budget busting deficits). You want an example? I give you the very same Washington Post story I quoted above.

[W]ith polls showing increasing public opposition to government spending and with no significant constituency mobilized to push for more government investment in jobs, the political prospects for any further stimulus legislation seem slim. Meanwhile, the continued rise in unemployment is creating an opening for Republican critics, who have criticized the level of spending Obama has pursued to try to fix the economy.

The media gives more airtime to whiny Republicans complaining about too much spending and not enough tax cuts, than it ever gave to Democrats during the Bush years. It's like the media is in a time warp. Democrats won the 2008 election resoundinly, but all I see on my TV are the same GOP pundits, neoliberal free marketeers and Republican politicians that ran this country off a cliff when they held the reins of power. And far too many Democratic politicians are weak in the knees, afraid of the mythical power of the conservative movement to sway popular opinion.

We need bold action from the people we elected to deal with this continuing economic collapse (and yes, with unemployment still rising it's still a collapse, folks.) We need leaders who recognize that half-hearted Keynesian measures are insufficient to end the ongoing economic crisis which is spreading so much misery around the globe. Countries that recognize this fact will recover. Those that do not? Their economies will continue to languish and their people suffer.

The current responses of the governments across the globe on the global recession fully recognizes the Keynesian view that markets do not have any automatic mechanism to self correct and that government intervention is necessary to revive the economy. We hope the famous New Keynesian economists such as Paul Krugman, Joseph Stieglitz and Greg Mankiw are behind Obama’s stimulus package and advocate for more stimulus than less. The biggest fear at present is not that the stimulus is too big but that is it too little and hence many not be effective. If the multiplier effect fails to raise the current level of spending beyond the $2 trillion gap in the US consumer demand at present, the Obama stimulus plan may not rescue the US economy from the current recession soon.

Among the emerging economies, China has already begun a massive government spending programmes to compensate for the sharp decline in aggregate demand due to the contraction in global demand for the country’s export. Keynesian aggregate demand management has once again become a critical policy instrument for both developed and developing economies.

If you read Mousavi's latest statement, you will see that he goes to great lengths to emphasize that he and his supporters have absolutely no intention of taking the Islamic out of the Islamic Republic. In fact, quite to the contrary, Mousavi argues that it is more Islamic to treat the voters with respect than it is to make up fake election returns. And that is all fine and dandy. But, the truth is that the Mousavi supporters are in the streets chanting 'death to the dictator.' And the dictator, in this example, is the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ali Khamenei. The situation has morphed, whether Mousavi likes it or not, into a revolutionary situation.

Now, it's true that Mousavi's supporters represent a broad and deep swath of Iranian society and that most of them probably are motivated less by the idea of upsetting the Iranian Constitution than by the idea of abiding by it. Moreover, most of them probably think that it is more consistent with Islamic principles to count the votes than to disregard them. But, the actions of the Iranian government have undermined their credibility. At the very minimum, the protesters want the Supreme Leader replaced (they are calling for his death, after all). And, since the principles of the reform movement heavily implicate the entire system of the Mullahocracy, it seems plain that they don't just want to swap out one Mullah for another. They want a truer form of representative democracy that is not subject to the vetoes of the clerics.

They would argue that such a republic was more Islamic than the one they currently have. But, I would argue that it isn't the adherence to Islamic principles that makes Iran's Republic Islamic, but the control granted to the clerics that makes it so.

It's a semantic argument, in part. But, give Iran a true Republic, and I won't care whether someone wants to debate its Islamic credentials.

COLWICH - "Chase survived in part because hundreds of people prayed to Father Emil Kapaun to intercede on his behalf. It was absolutely a miracle."

People in Colwich like to touch Chase Kear's arm or his shoulder with their fingers. Or they hug him. "Miracle Man," they say. "Let me touch the miracle." With anybody else in Colwich, this would be just talk. But it's not just talk to the Vatican.

Prompted in part by what the Kear family has said publicly, and partly by a preliminary investigation begun by the Catholic Diocese of Wichita, a Vatican investigator named Andrea Ambrosi will arrive from Italy in Wichita on Friday.

He will investigate on behalf of the church in Rome whether 20-year-old Chase Kear's survival qualifies as a miracle; whether he survived a severe head injury last year in part because his family and hundreds of friends successfully prayed thousands of prayers to the soul of Father Emil Kapaun, a U.S. Army chaplain from Pilsen, Kan., who died a hero in the Korean War.

And now the rest of the story:

A young man in Kansas had a traumatic event in his life. Here's a simple outline of what happened.

Chase Kear has a serious accident, fracturing his skull.
↓

Bystanders call for emergency medical help on their phones.
↓

Doctors arrive in a helicopter.
↓

Doctors administer emergency care.
↓

Helicopter arrives at hospital; doctors take him into surgery.
↓

Surgeons remove portion of his skull to protect his brain from swelling.
↓

Kear is treated with antibiotics to prevent infections.
↓

Swelling reduces, doctors restore Kear's skull.
↓

Kear survives, is rehabilited, and seems to be making a full recovery.

Clearly it was the prayers to a long dead Catholic Chaplain which saved Chase. To believe otherwise would be proof you are a godless, atheistic, socialistic Marxist. Or a Muslim. Like Obama.

Hat tip to Pz Meyers.

Foolish criticism. Normally I'd have a sarcastic remark to make here, considering some of the foolish criticism George has been part and parcel to in the past, but not today. Thanks for being a grown-up, George. At least for one day.

Staff at Goldman Sachs staff can look forward to the biggest bonus payouts in the firm's 140-year history after a spectacular first half of the year, sparking concern that the big investment banks which survived the credit crunch will derail financial regulation reforms.

A lack of competition and a surge in revenues from trading foreign currency, bonds and fixed-income products has sent profits at Goldman Sachs soaring, according to insiders at the firm.

Staff in London were briefed last week on the banking and securities company's prospects and told they could look forward to bumper bonuses if, as predicted, it completed its most profitable year ever. Figures next month detailing the firm's second-quarter earnings are expected to show a further jump in profits. Warren Buffett, who bought $5bn of the company's shares in January, has already made a $1bn gain on his investment.

Maybe this will trickle down? Yes?

Q: Any ppl who voted for POTUS unhappy w/image of him getting frozen custard as today's events unfolded in Iran? Or bogus right wing meme?

It's hard to believe that he thinks this is a legitimate question and that any Obama voters expect him to forego sweets until Iran's election is resolved and there is peace on earth.

Does he need fifty twitter responses telling him it's not an issue before he believes it?

It's not like Obama is too busy eating frozen custard to be aware that a major city is drowning. He made a statement on events in Iran.

Iran is the prototypical crossroads, and it's territory has been fought over for all of recorded history. Its trade routes are famous and its ports are strategic. It's rich with oil and gas, and borders Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan (all of which are of particular interest to the United States). It also borders Turkey, Armenia, Azerbaijan, the Caspian Sea, and Turkmenistan. All of that is important. But, even more important, is Iran's role as a threat to Israel.

When Israel invaded Lebanon in 1982, Iran began a long and complicated relationship with the people there. They exported Revolutionary Guards who mobilized the local Shi'a community and created what is now known as Hizbollah. Throughout the 1980's the Iranians waged a proxy war with American intelligence services during Lebanon's darkest days. Throughout the 1990's, Hizbollah bled Israel dry before finally forcing their almost complete withdrawal. It is not important that we place the appropriate amount of blame on each side of the scale. What's important is that Israel has come to see Iran's sponsorship of Hizbollah as a major threat to their security. In 2006, Israel launched a second invasion of Lebanon to try to destroy Hizbollah's ability to menace them. Israel failed.

This failure badly damaged the Israeli psyche, as they had never before been defeated in war. It made the Israelis feel more insecure and, thus, less willing to make concessions according to the Road Map or any other previous agreements. Meanwhile, a major split opened up between the Palestinians who support Fatah and the Palestinians who support Hamas. Hamas, which enjoys some support from Iran, won parliamentary elections in Palestine and subsequently took control of the Gaza Strip. From there, they began bombarding Israeli towns with rudimentary rockets. The rockets caused little damage and few fatalities, but the Israelis inability to stop them made them feel even more insecure and less inclined to make concessions.

The combination of the defeat in Lebanon and the ceaseless bombardment from Gaza, convinced the Israelis that peace was impossible so long as Iran was financing these efforts at resistance. Seeing Iran as belligerent and provocative, Israel also became extremely fearful of Iran's efforts to enrich uranium, and began pressuring the United States to effect a regime change there before Iran mastered the nuclear fuel-cycle that can be converted for use in weapons.

It's unclear just how much of a legitimate threat Iran poses to Israel. No doubt, their money and expertise is put to use killing Israelis. But it's a big leap to thinking that Iran would confront them directly with their military or with nuclear weapons through proxy. It's important to keep the facts straight about Iran's capabilities and intentions, but it's more important to deal with the plain fact that Iran makes Israel extremely nervous and provides them with an excuse not to restart the peace process. It has not helped, at all, that President Ahmadinejad has a proclivity for inflammatory Holocaust-denying sabre-rattling.

Every bit of this is of intense interest to the United States. The peace process is at the top, but Iran is important for our policies in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Caspian Basin, for oil and gas, and for the shipping lanes though the Persian Gulf. Even our policies towards Russia and China are heavily implicated.

The simplest way of looking at this is that on every piece of policy concern, we would prefer to have the reformists in Iran prevail. Musavi ran on a less belligerent foreign policy, and a possible opening to the West. That would have been nice, but we're dealing with bigger fish now. An Iran that rids itself not only of Ahmadinejad, but the Mullahocracy, and that is willing to keep its nuclear program contained for energy purposes, is an Iran that the United States can deal with. It's an Iran that no longer is trying to expand their revolutionary agenda throughout the Middle East, and one that no longer provides an excuse for Israel to postpone peace negotiations.

I understand that many people have sympathy for anyone who menaces Israel, and sees this as a defeat for those that resist the Israeli occupation. The fact of the matter is that the United States wants a peace agreement. Anything that stands in the way of that is not in our interests. For that reason, we should hope that the Reformers prevail.

We should not be under any illusions that a popularly elected Iranian government is going to abandon nuclear science or be pro-Israeli. But, we know that the status quo is an endless cycle of violence.

We don't want or need to be enemies of Iran. We will always have our differences, but we can work them out if we get the right conditions. Those conditions are taking shape on the streets of Tehran, right now.

Yet, in spite of our interests in a Reformation in Iran, we should not step on the scales. The only really beneficial change will be a wholly indigenous one.