I've been broadsided tonight.

I could come across this guy at any time in society; instead, we cross paths in challenging_god, of all places. I am utterly taken aback that people still think (and act?!) like this.

And I come across Ladies Against Feminism. That brightens my day.

And to top it all off, ytterbius reminds me of the abuse we don't (yet) get to see: ( Read more... )

(no subject)

Check out this post in ytterbius's journal. There's more to the Berg story than you think.

Yes, oh yes.

What Kerry Needs: The Estrogen Factor

Sherry is just a regular gal. Like most Americans, the married 30-something would rather watch "Survivor" on CBS than a bunch of talking heads discuss Washington politics over on CNN. And yet, she has a photo of John Edwards and his wife stuck on her refrigerator. Oh, except she's carefully grafted her own face onto Elizabeth Edwards' body.

Let's just say Sherry really, really likes John Edwards. And she's not alone.

John Edwards was the rare candidate who actually got more of his support from women than men in many of the Democratic primaries. He also got more of his money, in both dollar amounts and percentage, from contributors identified as homemakers or housewives. In fact, it's the women of North Carolina who put Edwards in the Senate – he owed his upset victory over incumbent Republican Senator Lauch Faircloth in 1998 to a whopping 16-point gender gap.

The secret of Edwards' estrogen appeal goes far beyond his pretty face.

(no subject)

Gangs used Internet to plan street fight

Yowch.

Why I no longer back Bush's war (Toronto Star)

With the creepy and shifty Donald Rumsfeld and the downright scary Paul Wolfowitz running the civilian command of the military, it's their way or the highway. It's become quite clear that Bush, both before and after the actual invasion, has tossed aside any advice that doesn't fully and completely support his own foregone conclusions.

The arrogance that seeps from the Bush White House is mind-numbing, and although most American polls show running Bush neck and neck with Democratic challenger John Kerry for this November's presidential election, I think that has a lot more to do with the anemic state of Kerry's campaign than it does with support for the incumbent. One of the many areas in which Bush has really lost my respect is with this ludicrous notion that if you're not behind the War in Iraq, you're soft on terrorism. The Deliverance extras living in Tennessee trailer parks may go for that one, but few others will.

(found via The Pro-War Press Breaks With Bush at the Washington Post)

No, we Americans don't torture

Report: C.I.A. has secret rules for al-Qaida

The interrogation tactics are intended to simulate torture, but officials told the New York Times that they are supposed to stop short of serious injury. Such authorized measures include hooding, roughing up, soaking with water, and depriving prisoners of food, light, and medications.

In one case, an alleged planner of the Sept. 11 attacks, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, was strapped down, pushed under water, and made to believe he would drown — a technique known as "water boarding," the paper said.

Counterterrorism officials reportedly said that the methods used by the C.I.A. are so harsh that the Federal Bureau of Investigation has warned its agents not to participate in the interrogations of high level detainees — the techniques employed by the C.I.A. would be prohibited in criminal cases, and could compromise F.B.I. agents in future cases.