http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=the-political-brain

The neuroimaging results, however, revealed that the part of the brain most associated with reasoning--the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex--was quiescent. Most active were the orbital frontal cortex, which is involved in the processing of emotions; the anterior cingulate, which is associated with conflict resolution; the posterior cingulate, which is concerned with making judgments about moral accountability; and--once subjects had arrived at a conclusion that made them emotionally comfortable--the ventral striatum, which is related to reward and pleasure.

"We did not see any increased activation of the parts of the brain normally engaged during reasoning," Westen is quoted as saying in an Emory University press release. "What we saw instead was a network of emotion circuits lighting up, including circuits hypothesized to be involved in regulating emotion, and circuits known to be involved in resolving conflicts." Interestingly, neural circuits engaged in rewarding selective behaviors were activated. "Essentially, it appears as if partisans twirl the cognitive kaleidoscope until they get the conclusions they want, and then they get massively reinforced for it, with the elimination of negative emotional states and activation of positive ones," Westen said.

In other words, as a person rationalizes away cognitive dissonance the pleasure centers of their brains are activated. It makes them happy to deceive themselves.

Can anyone honestly recall anyone ever talking about the USA as the or a "homeland" before 9/11?

Hell, why don't they go ahead and call it the Dept. of Vaterland Security?

"Is this not one of the defining characteristics of a fascist state?"

No, but it was a defining characteristic of Nazi legal theory.

Obama ... I don't know, he just seems trustworthy. The kinda guy that will look you in the eyes, shake your hand and you know you can count on his word. Now, that's not to say that he should be president because he wouldn't be dealing with other straight-shooters. No. He'd be going up against the Hitlers, Stalins, Ivan the Terribles, Neros, Caligulas, Jeffrey Dahmers, Son of Sams, Freddy Kreugers, Hannibal Lecters, Skeletors, Mum-Ras and John Hinderakers of the world

If Risen ends up in prison for this I'll be outside protesting.

If someone hasn't already mentioned it, the book also recounts a program that CIA had to get family members of Iraqi nuclear agents into the country to see if they could find anything out. They sent around 30 people in, and all of them reported back no nuclear program.

The CIA agents in charge of the program didn't even bother passing this info on given that they knew the White House was only interested in hearing confirming evidence.

Naah, you'll be in a "free speech zone"

Fuck that. I'll be arrested before I go into one of those Newspeak zones.

"That's why there has been so little contrast between the two parties on foreign policy and national security issues"

That and the requirement of getting corporations to give you lots of money to get elected, with defense contractors and military-industrial companies being big money givers.

Matt Taibbi at Rolling Stone has a good term for the Democrats: chicken doves.

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/18349197/the_chicken_doves

I could have done without the Neville Chamberlain analogy but the rest is pretty spot on.

Even beyond the war, the Democrats have repeatedly gone limp-dick every time the Bush administration so much as raises its voice. Most recently, twelve Democrats crossed the aisle to grant immunity to phone companies who participated in Bush's notorious wiretapping program. Before that, Democrats caved in and confirmed Mike Mukasey as attorney general after he kept his middle finger extended and refused to condemn waterboarding as torture. Democrats fattened by Wall Street also got cold feet about upsetting the country's gazillionaires, refusing to close a tax loophole that rewarded hedge-fund managers with a tax rate less than half that paid by ordinary citizens.

But the war is where they showed their real mettle. Before the 2006 elections, Democrats told us we could expect more specifics on their war plans after Election Day. Nearly two years have passed since then, and now they are once again telling us to wait until after an election to see real action to stop the war. In the meantime, of course, we're to remember that they're the good guys, the Republicans are the real enemy, and, well, go Hillary! Semper fi! Yay, team!

How much of this bullshit are we going to take? How long are we supposed to give the Reids and Pelosis and Hillarys of the world credit for wanting, deep down in their moldy hearts, to do the right thing?

Look, fuck your hearts, OK? Just get it done. Because if you don't, sooner or later this con is going to run dry. It may not be in '08, but it'll be soon. Even Americans can't be fooled forever.

"Because I had the flu yesterday and today, I have been subjected to far more television news than, under ordinary circumstances, I am able to bear. It never ceases to amaze how deeply confused and/or deeply dishonest reporters are about the topics they are assigned to cover."

No doubt you're now an expert in the life and times of Britney Spears. The gym I work out has a tv in my line of view that is always on CNN Headline Prime. I honestly cannot remember a day ever that there wasn't "news" about Britney Spears on.

Don't forget Arlen Specter vowing to get to the bottom of the NFL spying "scandal" because its "analogous" to the CIA destroying evidence of torture. He actually compared the friggin' Patriots spying on the Jets to the CIA destroying interrogation tapes.