Deferred Gagging

LONDON (Reuters) - The word "fail" should be banned from use in British classrooms and replaced with the phrase "deferred success" to avoid demoralizing pupils, a group of teachers has proposed. Members of the Professional Association of Teachers (PAT) argue that telling pupils they have failed can put them off learning for life. A spokesman for the group said it wanted to avoid labeling children. "We recognize that children do not necessarily achieve success first time," he said. "But I recognize that we can't just strike a word from the dictionary," he said.
The PAT said it would debate the proposal at a conference next week.

John Roberts, The Man Who Would Be Bushed

different takes on this most holy jurist:
http://media.pfaw.org/roberts.pdf

a history of his political donations:
http://mpetrelis.blogspot.com/2005_07_19_mpetrelis_archive.html#112181755570419005

this one's biased:
http://www.independentjudiciary.com/resources/docs/John_Roberts_Report.pdf

roberts has his say on different legal matters. it's the one in which he states that violence against women should be left to the states, because it's (i assume he means the violence) is different in different states that i begin to wonder about him:
http://www.independentjudiciary.com/resources/docs/John_Roberts_Report.pdf

a very good bio:
http://courtinginfluence.net/nominee.php?nominee_id=55

http://www.now.org/issues/legislat/nominees/roberts.html

Beam Me Up, Scottie!

scott mcClellan makes it through another day of having actual reporters inside the white house press briefing room.

Plop It On The Table, Man

yo, dubya, you said before that you would fire anyone who leaked classified info. you were "very concerned" about a leaker (so much so that you said the word "leaker" 6 times in three sentences in one interview). now you say they'll only be fired if they committed a crime. so, who's word will you take concerning that little parse? either karl rove leaked info or he didn't. hiding behind "rove never said her name" (when the truth is he said she was the wife of joe wilson and worked for the CIA) isn't going to wash in the long run. why not just admit rove fucked up and let him go? he would probably be more effective on the outside now that he got you your second term. any number of conservative law firms and corporations will hire him on the spot and still do business with you and the Big Checkbook.
your ratings are a bear in the woods. you know that, right? a big growler.
you seem to have only two choices right about now. you can continue to plop the line about "waiting until all the evidence is in" (and how many times has that one turned out to be an alamo?), "that depends on what the definition of 'is' is" or "the president was out of the loop" as long as you like. but the longer you insist on these things the less likely we will be to believe it. you're fair caught.
or you as scissors can make peace with rock. give this to us and we as a whole will paper it over. i won't personally, because i know of so many other things you and your handlers have done these past 5 years (oh god, three more?!?) and will continue to try to expose.
as a whole, though: plop it on the table, man.


President Bush qualified his pledge to dismiss any White House official found to have leaked the name of a CIA operative, saying Monday that "if someone committed a crime" he would be fired.

Get Your War ON

by the way (in case i haven't mentioned it before) there is a very funny, caustic, stick-in-your-eye, bush-is-an-asshole-along-with-all-of-his-buddies cartoon strip that can be seen nowhere else (especially not in the mainstream press). i encourage all to visit it, read it, laugh and/or weep and/or send love/hate mail and/or curse/scream with joy:
http://www.mnftiu.cc/mnftiu.cc/war.html

Seymour Hersh Writes Again

The January 30th election in Iraq was publicly perceived as a political triumph for George W. Bush and a vindication of his decision to overturn the regime of Saddam Hussein. More than eight million Iraqis defied the threats of the insurgency and came out to vote for provincial councils and a national assembly. Many of them spent hours waiting patiently in line, knowing that they were risking their lives. Images of smiling Iraqis waving purple index fingers, signifying that they had voted, were transmitted around the world. Even some of the President’s harshest critics acknowledged that he might have been right: democracy, as he defined it, could take hold in the Middle East. The fact that very few Sunnis, who were dominant under Saddam Hussein, chose to vote was seen within the Administration as a temporary setback.

It's All In How You Say It

What's paris-ian for "fuck you"?

These Songs Can Turn You Gay (guess i'm over the sandra tragedy)

read the following from the Weekly World News and let me know if you think they forgot any songs.

PSYCHOLOGISTS nationwide are reporting a disturbing trend among new, formerly heterosexual, patients -- they heard specific songs that apparently turned them gay. And the more times they hear these songs, the gayer they become. The tunes mentioned most frequently as being responsible for such gay brainwashing include:
YMCA, In the Navy, or Macho Man -- The Village People
I'm Coming Out --DianaRoss
ConstantCraving -- k.d. lang
Outside -- George Michael
Over the Rainbow -- Judy Garland
I'm Too Sexy -- Right Said Fred
I Will Survive -- Gloria Gaynor
Saturday Night Fever -- and anything else by the Bee Gees
Dancing Queen -- Abba
It's Raining Men -- The Weather Girls
Supermodel -- RuPaul
Believe -- Cher
Love to Love You -- Donna Summer
Vogue -- Madonna
Relax -- Frankie Goes to Hollywood
I Will Always Love You -- Whitney Huston
That's the Way I Like It -- KC and the Sunshine Band
Wake Me Up Before You Go Go -- Wham
I'm So Excited -- Pointer Sisters

Psychologist Dr. Todd Snider, author of the upcoming book, Don't Let Music Turn You Gay, recommends that if any of these songs start playing, "Turn them off immediately, leave the room, and start listening to any music by Ted Nugent, Ozzy Osbourne, Van Halen or Frank Sinatra. If it's too late, check into the nearest hospital emergency room as soon as possible."

R.I.P. Scary Squirrel Man's Heart

(well, that's it. i've died and gone to hell)

Breaking News: SANDRA BULLOCK MARRIES

Sandra Bullock married Monster Garage star Jesse James Saturday at a ranch north of Santa Barbara. Bullock and James started dating in December 2003. This is Bullock's first marriage and James' second. He has one son and two daughters from the previous marriages.

evidently, there is nothing sacred in this world anymore. so long as sandra remained single i knew my life would continue to have meaning. now that is to be no more. somewhere there is an Island of Lost Loves and i must begin preparations for the journey. if i blog never again you will know the reason why.
adieu, innocence.
fare thee well, dreams.
ciao, meaningful nocturnal emissions.
to sleep, perchance to wetdream...no more.

Plamegate

The tar baby that is Plamegate.

and here

and here (wherein we find that P.J. O'Rourke evidently has stepped over to the Darkside if he is indeed trying to dismiss this whole affair)

and here we have the letter sent by Joe Wilson to the Senate Select Committee, which refutes their dismissive claims.

ta for now. must try to find out if an Indian restaurant is going to be built in my neighborhood (so the rumors go).