Coathangers And Storage Space

The advertising in New York City has to be bold in order to catch our attention. Hokey 1950s crap just doesn't cut it here. Manhattan Mini-Storage has not disappointed us in the past....but this takes it to new levels. Kudos to bringing the debate over abortion rights front and center, or at least up on the wall.


Thanks to Eddie C from dKos for the shot.

LMFAO At Karl Rove

Oh Karl, how you make me laugh (and cry sometimes to because of your record of destroying our Constitution). The terrible attempt at dancing on the stage at the White House Correspondents Dinner was one thing, but the interview on Fox News (of all places) with Chris Wallace yesterday was just too much.

From RawStory:

"Why not appear under oath or at least allow a transcript?" asked Wallace.

"Because of the Constitution of the United States," replied Rove, citing the separation of powers and suggesting there would be a public outcry if either Congressional aides or Supreme Court clerks were called to testify by one of the other branches.

"The Constitution does not prevent you from speaking to me, so in fact I'll ask you some questions," responded Wallace. "Why did you push to fire some US Attorneys in the president's second term?"

"Nice try," Rove came back. "The president has prerogatives that stand up not only to Congress but also to you. ... What I advised the president is protected by that prerogative. Nice try, Chris." Rove then spelled out the doctrine of executive privilege, saying, "You don't understand you're being an agent of Congress when you ask me that question, but you are."

An agent of Congress? Caring about the Constitution? If I had more floor space here I'd be rolling on the ground with laughter. So I'll just chuckle and smirk instead. Karl cares as much about the Constitution as Hitler had fondness for the Jews. The "brain" pathetically tried to defend himself with executive privilege, but he forgets that the Congress represents the American people. Even though Wallace works at Fox News, I give him some credit for asking a tough question even if he couldn't get a good answer.

The thing is, Rove won't give him or Congress an answer because he knows he is guilty of oh so many crimes against our nation. He really isn't as bright as many people think he is, but there is enough intellect to know when not to fess up to your criminal conduct. Even a low-life like him can try to save his ass on national television.

Certain Plumbers You Just Have To Avoid

It is always best to get two or three estimates before getting something fixed when it comes to your home or office. It is just common sense. Of course as Voltaire said "Common sense isn't so common." So when the Pentagon wanted to buy a couple of washers, you would think they might want to get the price....but they didn't. Take a look at how expensive these little babies were.

From The Guardian:

Plumbers are notorious for excessive bills. But none has come even remotely close to matching an extravagant claim by a South Carolina firm: almost $1m (£500,000) for two metal washers worth 19c each.

Charlene Corley, 47, co-owner of the plumbing and electrical firm C&D Distributors, who supplied parts to the military, is awaiting sentence after pleading guilty yesterday to defrauding the Pentagon. She faces 20 years in jail.

The most expensive washers in history were part of $20.5m the company stole from the Pentagon over the last 10 years. The company shipped plumbing and electrical parts to US bases round the world, including Iraq and Afghanistan.

Where did the $999,999 go you ask? Charlene Corey bought cars, houses and a few other knick-knacks for around the house. She defrauded the government...but the government let her do it. They are complicit in this, or at least extremely negligent. Perhaps the accountant in the Pentagon could have looked at the bill and realized you can buy washers for less than the price of a phone call at a pay phone.

Ah the words of Voltaire, so true.

Calling Out Mitt Romney: Its Just Too Easy

This one is done "swift-scout" style, ah too easy, just too easy:

Edwards Versus The She-Devil

I would personally like to thank John Edwards for name-calling on Friday. I know it isn't usually appropriate or very becoming for an ex-Senator and Presidential candidate to call someone names, but for Ann Coulter, I make exceptions. Yes, we should ignore her...and I know I am doing the opposite by writing about her, but, we are talking about the she-devil here. Besides, the larger point is that we need to fight back against right-wingers like Ann. John Edwards did just that on Friday.

From RawStory:

Edwards, D-N.C., was railing against the right-wing media -- including Fox News and Rush Limbaugh -- when he reminded a crowd in Burlington, Iowa, that his wife stood up to Coulter in a public spat earlier this summer.

"We know these people. We know their game plan. They're going to attack us personally," Edwards said. "They attacked Elizabeth personally, because she stood up to that she-devil Ann Coulter. … I should not have name-called. But the truth is -- forget the names -- people like Ann Coulter, they engage in hateful language."

We need to fight back against these people, one by calling them who they are....and then blowing them away with our ideas and our overall message that there is something better out there than using hate and manipulation. Of course John was defending his wife, someone that should not be attacked in the way that Ann went after her. This type of shit is unacceptable, and we can not just roll over and take it the way Democrats did in 2000 and 2004 especially.

We must fight back directly....and then let the message win people over after minimizing miscreants like Ann Coulter.

Its Against The Law

I've been back in town for a few hours after an incredible weekend up in Mystic, CT (I highly recommend it for a weekend if you live nearby or are in the Northeast)......only to come back to reality and the news that encompasses it. One such story out of the multitude is that of Elvira Arellano. Elvira had been staying in a sanctuary in Chicago to stay out of the hands of Immigration and Customs Enforcement that wants to send her back to Mexico to carry out deportation orders. She came out to speak at a rally in Los Angeles, only to find herself being arrested and facing imminent deportation.

From The San Jose Mercury News:

Elvira Arellano, who arrived in Los Angeles on Saturday after leaving her sanctuary to campaign for immigration reform, was arrested around 1:30 p.m. outside Our Lady Queen of Angels Catholic Church where she had been speaking to reporters, said the Rev. Walter Coleman, pastor of Adalberto United Methodist, the Chicago church.

Arellano was "being processed for removal to Mexico based upon a deportation order originally issued by a federal immigration judge in 1997," U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said in a news release.

Immigration activists promised protests and vigils to support her.

"We are sad, but at the same time we are angry," said Javier Rodriguez, a Chicago immigration activist who worked with her. "How dare they arrest this woman?"

"How dare they" is right. Elvira has been fighting for rights, both for herself and many in similar situations. She came to this country over ten years ago to work for a better life. Many people out there think that her deportation is not only following the law, but justified because she had eluded authorities for so long.

Since she has principles, speaking out in Los Angeles was the right thing to do. There is so much to be done and if her voice can help, then Ms. Arellano will step up. Now her activism is going to lead to deportation, no matter how many vigils we hold. The problem is that the "law" is a regressive measure that impedes the way America truly works. So many people want to come here to better their lives as Elvira was once doing. Now she is going to have to pay a price.

Yet what about the people that hire her? What happens to them? Why do they get away with paying ultra-low wages to undocumented workers while the bosses get rich from lower bottom lines. It is time to address the real issues here. People need to put down their hate for others who look "different" from the average WASP. America was founded and brought to glory on the backs of immigrants. Yet somehow there are so many out there that forget that integral piece of our history.

The law is the law, but it needs to be changed, so we can continue to be the country we know and love.

Malkin And The Moustache Man

I would never, ever, never-ever call Fox News "fair and balanced," even I had a gun held to my head. I just wouldn't be able to live with myself. Though to their credit, they let one wacko Republican by the name of Geraldo Rivera counter certified wingnut Michelle Malkin for attacking him on one of their programs. Geraldo completely obliterates Malkin for the lunacy that comes out of her mouth. Maybe it was the shouting match between him and Bill O that lit some sort of fire under him. Of course in the end, I wouldn't want to touch either one of them with a ten foot pole.

Giuliani's Toxic Lies

Earlier this week Rudy made news when he claimed he spent as much time or more down at the World Trade Center than the rescue workers themselves. Obviously this riled anyone that cares about the firefighters and rescue teams more than they do about Giuliani and his ego (meaning the great majority of Americans). The heat got so bad that Rudy had to "clarify" his statements but he never answered how many hours he was down there. You want to take a guess at the real number?

From Your New Reality:

Rudy Guiliani (second from right) knew he had to protect his lungs from the toxic dust at Ground Zero. This is rare photo of Guiliani in a mask. He usually removed it for interviews and photographs.

Following up our recent report on wannabe Republican president, and former New York City Mayor, Rudy Guiliani's absurd claim that he was just like all those first responders and rescue workers, who clocked up many hundreds of hours in the toxic pit of 9/11's Ground Zero, a story in the New York Times reveals just how much time Guiliani actually spent on site.

The number of visits Guiliani made to Ground Zero between September 11 and December, 2001, is one-tenth of the number of visits he's previously claimed to have made.

Considering, also, that when Guiliani did visit the smoking ruins of the World Trade Centre he spent no more than 15 to 30 minutes at a time there, only increases the suspicion that Guiliani knew exactly how toxic the air was at the site, as did clearly the staff and security detail of the luminaries and world leaders he took there for tours.

Why am I not surprised? Rudy seems to be a run of the mill pathological liar. Usually these people do not amount to much since their lack of credibility keeps them down. Yet Rudy has skillfully alluded the adjective and replaced it with a blatantly false "America's Mayor" stamp. This qualifier needs to be quashed, and people should start calling him what he is, a liar that will go to any length to gain more power and feed that goddamn inflated ego of his.

We're Running Out Of Purple Hearts

With all the shouts and cries from the right that we are turning the corner (so 2004) and that things are getting better with the surge, it is hard to think good things about the occupation of Iraq when our military does not have enough purple hearts to send out to its veterans. Korean War Vet Nyles Reed was approved for his medal but only received a certificate and a letter that said he could buy his own. One might ask, why didn't he get it immediately after his injury? Well when you hear this story, you would think the military would want to jump to reward this dedicated soldier.

From The Houston Chronicle:

On the day he was injured, getting a medal was the last thing on his mind. Stationed close to the front lines at Panmunjom, where peace talks were under way, Reed "was a forward observer — the one that's up on the front line directing the artillery. I had to get to the observation point."

Reed jumped in a Jeep and had started out when a 76-millimeter shell "comes in and hits right below the Jeep in the mud. And when it went off, it blew the Jeep over and threw me into the windshield, where I busted my cheek — you can see the scar — and I was bleeding like a stuck pig."

"And I could see this battalion aid station, with Navy corpsmen. So this doc, this surgeon, sewed me up and he says, 'Do you want a Purple Heart?' That's when I said, 'I haven't got time! They're waiting for me up at the front lines,'" Reed recalled. He rushed back to duty.

About three years ago, Reed said, he started thinking that it would be nice to have the Purple Heart to pass on to his two sons or daughter, or to show to his eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

First of all, this is a smack in the face to any veteran to be asked to buy their own medal, especially one that was earned by being wounded in a conflict fought for their country. Secondly. how the hell could we have run out of medals?!? If the "surge" was going so well, we should have more control over Iraq and less casualties. Instead the medals are either being handed out quicker than they can be made, or the Pentagon was careless enough not to have more being put into production. Either way, it is a shame that Nyles Reed was made to pay for his medal. It is even more of a shame that the chaos in Iraq is to blame for this type of crap.

Oh and by the way, Mr. Reed spent $42 dollars plus tax at a surplus store for the purple heart. The army should refund him his money and his time spent going to get it.

Young Turks Recap The Week

From Karl Rove's departure and the mine safety fiasco to Dick Cheney's old video that shows he thought invading Iraq would be a complete disaster; its been a hell of a week.

Rally For Workers Rights: Sept 8th At WTC Site

Union leaders are ditching their plans to hold the regular labor day parade on 5th Avenue this year, and I couldn't be happier. Instead of a march, there will be a giant rally to address the concerns of the brave men and women who worked on the pile nearly six years ago. The air in the area damaged their lungs, killing some already while city, state and federal officials mostly turn a blind eye. People were outraged to see what Michael Moore brought to the screen with SiCKO and those were just a few of the victims. Now we want to see action, this is the beginning of it.

From 1010 WINS:

The parade, headed by the Central Labor Council, usually winds down Fifth Avenue and has about 50,000 participants. This year, the event will take place Sept. 8 at the World Trade Center site, "to address the chronic health impacts, ongoing monitoring, medical treatment and worker's compensation for first responders and other workers suffering from the long-term effects of 9/11,'' said Ed Ott, executive director of the New York City Central Labor Council.

Ott was left in charge after the former leader, Brian M. McLaughlin, was arrested on federal racketeering charges. The labor council is an umbrella group of unions.

Thousands of first responders who got sick after Sept. 11 now blame their health woes on exposure to the toxic fumes and dust at ground zero.

The terrible aftermath that has befallen these people still goes largely unnoticed. This event is one that will try to change things. If fifty thousand can march in a parade, I know that the citizens of New York can at least double that number at this rally. So take out your calendars and set aside a couple hours that Saturday to show your support for the workers at the World Trade Center disaster and for all workers across the nation and the world.

Manhattan Mini Storage + Bloody Coathangers = *&^%#$ @(*&

The NYC company Manhattan Mini-Storage created a huge controversy over their new ad. In the past they have used funny one-liners that skew to the Democratic side, such as "Your closets's so narrow, it makes Cheney look liberal." The latest ad takes on abortion and tells us exactly what will happen if pro-lifers get their way by eliminating a woman's right to choose.

From The NY Post:

The Manhatttan Mini Storage advertisement reads, "Your closet space is shrinking as fast as her right to choose," and is overset on a picture of a coathanger.

"These billboards, we think they're absolutely disgusting," said Kiera McCaffrey of the Catholic League told WCBS.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue also spoke out against the billboard.

(snip)

A spokesperson for Planned Parenthood of NYC told the New York Sun, "We think it's fabulous. We salute Manhattan Mini Storage for helping to make New Yorkers as aware as we are of the growing restrictions on reproductive freedom in this country."

Pro-lifers like Donahue obviously hate ads like these because it shows Americans the realities that would beset our nation without having the freedom of choice. It isn't a debate of whether abortions are bad. Aborting a baby is not like going to the amusement park. It is a serious decision that a woman needs to make about her body due to whatever circumstances are present. Do we really want to go back to the time when people used coat-hangers when there were no professional medical facilities? Obviously scumbags like Bill Donahue do....and by having billboards like those from Manhattan Mini-Storage, the national debate takes that aspect into account.