More on Bush's Support of Torture

As I am sure readers have figured out by now, I am no fan of the Bush Administration or the far right fundamentalist controlled GOP even though I was once upon a time a Republican. Besides the lies that were used to launch the war in Iraq, my biggest complaints are (A) the way this President and administration have destroyed the USA's reputation around the world and (B) the way it has destroyed the rule of law that is critical to a democratic and moral society. Andrew Sullivan has a great post that exposes the manner in which this administration advocates the use of torture and tries to use carefully crafted language to avoid the admitting what is actually being advocated.

http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2007/05/verschfte_verne.html)

As Andrew Sullivan points out:

The phrase "Verschärfte Vernehmung" is German for "enhanced interrogation". Other translations include "intensified interrogation" or "sharpened interrogation". It's a phrase that appears to have been concocted in 1937, to describe a form of torture that would leave no marks, and hence save the embarrassment pre-war Nazi officials were experiencing as their wounded torture victims ended up in court.

The methods, as you can see above in the attached translation, are indistinguishable from those described as "enhanced interrogation techniques" by President George Bush. Andrew continues stating that :

As you can see from the Gestapo memo, moreover, the Nazis were adamant that their "enhanced interrogation techniques" would be carefully restricted and controlled, monitored by an elite professional staff, of the kind recommended by Charles Krauthammer, and strictly reserved for certain categories of prisoner. At least, that was the original plan.

I guess I should not be surprised by any of this inasmuch as the "Christian" Right has used Nazi propaganda techniques in its crusade against gays and gay rights as well (see: http://www.hatecrime.org/subpages/hatespeech/afa.html). George W. Bush and his Christian Taliban allies have turned the USA into a beacon of shame, not a beacon of liberty.

Gay Species: A Kind of Psychosis?

Gay Species: A Kind of Psychosis?

Here's an interesting analysis of gays and religion by Gay Species who frequently comments on my posts. It certainly make a great case as to why taking the Bible literally is foolishness. I also like his take on St. Paul, who in my view, did extreme damage to the Gospels of Christ due to his inability to let go of the Jewish holiness code and its legalism which totally contradicted Jesus' rejection of legalism in favor of the spirit of the two great commandments.

Virginia's and "Taliban Bob's" Misplaced Priorities

An article in today’s Washington Post shows the Commonwealth of Virginia’s grossly misplaced priorities when in comes to gun control, particularly now in the wake of the Virginia Tech tragedy. Leave it to Robert “Taliban Bob” McDonnell to focus on the interests of the gun retailer lobby. (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902573.html?nav=hcmodule). Here’s the heart of the article:

“Because of a Virginia law that goes into effect in July, New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg (R) and his agents could be charged with a felony if they continue to target Virginia gun dealers with undercover sting operations, McDonnell said.

McDonnell (R) has sent Bloomberg what amounts to a cease-and-desist letter.
"This was a courtesy letter to the mayor to advise him about a change in Virginia law of which he should be aware," McDonnell said Wednesday.

Bloomberg's spokesman, Jason Post, did not seem shaken: "We wish Attorney General McDonnell was as aggressive in enforcing the laws that prevent illegal guns from getting in the hands of criminals as he was in enforcing the laws that protect the gun lobby.

Convinced that illegal gun sales in Virginia contribute to violent crime in his city, Bloomberg has been arming private investigators with hidden cameras and sending them into Virginia gun stores to try to make illegal buys.

The process involves "straw purchases," in which one person legally fills out a form and buys a gun for someone else."

Mr. McDonnell’s nickname comes from his participation in January, 2003 (i.e., prior to the U. S. Supreme Court decision in Lawrence v. Texas), in blocking the reappointment of a black female judge. The unfortunate judge you see was rumored to perhaps be lesbian. When asked by a news reporter if he had ever violated the crimes-against-nature law, which basically made sex other than the missionary position a felony, even between married couples, McDonnell’s response was "Not that I can recall." I guess Bob could not remember if he had gotten gaysted or not. A Daily Press newspaper editorial on the matter from the time can be found at: http://www.sodomylaws.org/usa/virginia/vaeditorial15.htm A photo of Taliban Bob, who wants to run for Governor, is posted above.

Nazi Anti-Jew Speech vs. Christian Right Hate Speech

The New Republic piece at http://www.tnr.com/blog/theplank?pid=104993 correctly identifies the real reason wingnut Theocrats want the Hate Crimes Act vetoed. The referenced National Review piece clearly shows that the goal is to have the civil laws controlled by one group’s religious beliefs:

“ . . . I am hesitant to support hate crimes legislation, for the usual libertarian, "thought crimes" reasons, but the arguments being presented against it by the religious right are indeed specious. But there's something fishy in the National Review editorial on the matter--which Brad also links to--and this phrase stuck out: "We want to deter and punish crimes against blacks, women, homosexuals, and everyone else. But we do not want to open the door to legal punishment for harboring incorrect thoughts about controversial issues especially when those incorrect thoughts are part of the historic teaching of our major religions." Presumably, National Review does not mean to imply that there are "historic teaching[s] of our major religions" against blacks and women. What the editors mean is gays.

And what are those "incorrect thoughts" that the bill is criminalizing? Not traditionally religious thoughts about homosexuality; these are protected. (After all, there are plenty of people in this country who find homosexuality immoral and don't lynch homosexuals.) The bill only punishes people whose thoughts about homosexuality veer from mere disapproval to the belief that violence is a suitable recourse. National Review is conflating a passive disapproval of homosexuality with the violent reaction to it. Of course, the Old Testament, the Koran and other religious works--as fundamentalists anywhere ought to admit--do call for outright violence against homosexuals.”

The James Dobsons and Tony Perkins of the world do want outright violence against homosexuals (their favorite bogus expert, Paul Cameron, has even suggested exterminating gays as far back as 1983), but know saying so outright would reveal the true hate-based nature of their agenda. A good review of their agenda can be found at http://www.hatecrime.org/subpages/hitler/hitler.html. These vicious individuals are two of the power brokers of today’s GOP. This is down right frightening.

Gaysted Sraight Guys

I first saw this on Andrew Sullivan's blog and found it very funny.

. . . there are those who pretend to be gay, but also those who are accidentally gay. Of course you know the term "gaysted," which is what a too-drunk heterosexual can become without knowing it's happening. The website BuzzFeed expounds:

"It is when you are soooo drunk (wasted) and dudes start dancing with you and you just sort of go along with it and then they start putting their arms around you and you just kind of keep rolling with it because you're drunk and you sort of think the dude is being your dancefloor bro, but then when you sober up you realize that the situash is sort of weird. When this happens, you tell your friends, "dude, i got so gaysted last night."