So you think prostitution is demeaning to women? Well, why not do something about it? Make it legal! Then those who believe it is demeaning can avoid it; those who don't are free to engage in it if they so choose. No pimps, no slavery; everything is aboveboard this way and everyone is happy.

Wait, you're not happy that everyone is happy? Now we have a problem. Because at the bottom of this endless issue is the fact that some people wish to make their views the law and impose them on others. Whether Tina or anyone else thinks prostitution is wrong is irrelevant. If it's legal, individuals could decide for themselves. And that, I suspect, is what really has so many upset.

Legislating morality has a long and sad history of failure. The result ranges from Al Capone to Burqas. It is time we stopped engaging in this loathsome practice.

To con Democrats into abandoning a politically powerful position. Think about it. If you shared the Republican point of view and you perceive that Democrats really are making a political blunder, wouldn't you just sit back an watch with smug satisfaction? The fact that the Politico and other Republican sympathizers keep trying to warn Democrats that they are making a mistake indicates to me that Democrats are actually in a strong position.

According to a story in The Register, Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich. (we all know him by now, don't we?) attempted to sneak in telecom immunity by amending the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act. Says Hoekstra:

“This bill is intended to ensure the mental health of Americans; yet, no American’s health can be fully secured if they are under attack by a terrorist or facing the potential threat of terrorist attack”

What a hoot.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/03/13/telecoms_surveillance_immunity_bill/

but in those days working Americans were represented by strong trade unions. The influence of these unions has since been almost completely neutered by aggressive union busting on the part of the financial elites, with help from their friends, the Republicans (greatly assisted by the passivity or even active acquiescence of Democrats). Without powerful unions as a strong force opposing the well connected financial elites I have no confidence that anything really good will emerge from this crisis, regardless of who wins in November.

I've been waiting for Sen. Bullworth. I'll take Sen. Obama. When is the last time a politician has talked to us like adults? Wasn't that the complaint Jon Stewart articulated so well to Chris Hitchens? This is like a breath of fresh air.

Condoleezza Rice, among others, has continually made similar brain farts along the same lines as McCain's brain fart, specifically claiming that Iran was aiding and training the Taliban of Afghanistan, a Sunni Muslim organization (http://blog.wired.com/defense/2007/06/the_iran_taliba.html and http://foreignaffairs.house.gov/110/ric102407.htm, for example).

I think that a nation with a population of ~300 millions can find someone to be president who won't make brain farts or hire people who continually brain fart. Barak Obama has demonstrated that he is capable of speaking without making brain farts. Perhaps that is his best qualification, with this lot we have now farting all over the place.

Whether the Chinese think Tibet is part of China or not seems rather besides the point. What do the Tibetans think? That is what matters. And they do seem to be trying to say something about it now, no?

China has some real problems, not least of which is that its Chicago-school style of economics was imposed from above on an unwilling population, with most of the benefits going to its elites, and most of the ills (pollution, dangerous working conditions, etc.) afflicting the politically powerless general population. Nearly all of the new Chinese wealthy are Party members or their families. Of course the only way to accomplish this is through repression; thus repression and China's "economic miracle" are intimately linked, and must not be viewed as two independent factors. If China doesn't wish for the world to notice all this it ought not to have hosted such a high profile event.

And a crime, according to the precedents set at Nuremberg. Until these people come to this realization they will continue to believe that, yes, they were kinda sorta wrong this time, because Bush is an idiot and they didn't realize it, or whatever other excuse they can come up with, and that, done right, it is OK to go to war; and so we will do it again.

The Fletcher Memorial Home (Waters)

Take all your overgrown infants away somewhere
And build them a home, a little place of their own.
The Fletcher Memorial
Home for Incurable Tyrants and Kings.

And they can appear to themselves every day
On closed circuit T.V.
To make sure they're still real.
It's the only connection they feel.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome, Reagan and Haig,
Mr. Begin and friend, Mrs. Thatcher, and Paisly,
"Hello Maggie!"
Mr. Brezhnev and party.
"Scusi dov'è il bar?"
The ghost of McCarthy,
The memories of Nixon.
"Who's the bald chap?"
"Good-bye!"
And now, adding colour, a group of anonymous latin-
American meat packing glitterati.

Did they expect us to treat them with any respect?
They can polish their medals and sharpen their
Smiles, and amuse themselves playing games for awhile.
Boom boom, bang bang, lie down you're dead.

Safe in the permanent gaze of a cold glass eye
With their favorite toys
They'll be good girls and boys
In the Fletcher Memorial Home for colonial
Wasters of life and limb.

Is everyone in?
Are you having a nice time?
Now the final solution can be applied.