Free Republic

I never read "War is a Racket" by General Smedley Butler until I was an adult. I never read It Can’t Happen Here. Sinclair fictionalizes another election year, and traces the popular democratic process from republic to – don’t be alarmed – fascist dictatorship. In Chapter 1, the "cyclonic applause" was the response of average Americans to a retired general’s impassioned claim that we are a great nation that "[arms] itself more and more, not for conquest – not for jealousy – not for war – but for peace!" Tommy Franks on the convention floor, anyone? "Epidemic patriotism" is offered...

Watching President Bush’s speech on Wednesday, and the GOP reaction, was one of the most disturbing political experiences I’ve ever had. Bush’s convention speech had everything that should raise red flags for those concerned about the decline of liberty in this country. The president’s words had the worst of everything in American politics. He seemed to be trying to appeal to everyone whose main political goal is to see the government expand in one way or another. Looking at different elements in his speech, you can see how Bush is reaching out to conservatives, moderates, liberals and even some libertarians...

TO: Pollyannas FROM: The rest of us SUBJ: "Don't get cocky about the bounce" Enough of the wet blanket mentality, already. No sooner do we get good political news, and somebody here applauds it, then they get swamped with: 1. Don't get cocky, we've still got xxx number of days until the election. Really? Thanks for the newsflash, Captain Obvious. I haven't already seen that gem 250 times since last night. Maybe 251 will finally get it done. 2. Those democrats are really gonna get down and dirty, now. You don't say. What's new. They're scumbags. Nothing new there, so...

NEW YORK -- His hair so long a police officer called him "Jesus," Sebastian Licht said he set out Tuesday to celebrate his 22nd birthday, only to be swept up in one of the largest mass arrests in the nation's history. He emerged two days later from court _ smelly, bleeding and determined to become the activist he says police feared he was.

Fighting back, Democratic Sen. John Kerry called President Bush "unfit to lead this nation" because of the war in Iraq and his record on jobs, health care and energy prices. He lashed out at the incumbent and Vice President Dick Cheney for avoiding service in the Vietnam War.

When I think of spies in the Defense Department, I think of the pitiful debt-ridden Ron Pelton, who worked for 14 years at the National Security Agency, quit in 1979, and began selling secrets to the Soviets until he was arrested in 1986. I heard it was to complete construction on a home he had been building for years and years. Construction projects can be like that

At least 12 people were killed and 53 others were wounded Tuesday afternoon in two explosions within minutes of each other on two buses in the southern city of Be'er Sheva.

PO2 Joined: 13 Aug 2004 Posts: 16 Location: TX USA Posted: Mon Aug 23, 2004 1:49 am Post subject: Even my brothers in SBVT don't know it yet, but Kerry (pituie) is in for an even bigger supprise before then. How is he going to disprove copies of the actual documents created during his time in Nam which proves what we have been saying. Radio logs, damage reports, spot reports, After action reports... the list goes on. Within the next three days I will be disclosing to the media the location of all the original documents, and how to contact...

This is amazing, just looking at it from an operational point of view. Massive influx of money into Rat 527s, and the recently expired Rat convention should mean a Kerry campaign that can go relatively quiet whilst the 527 hatchetmen nick Bush going into his convention. Instead, 250 vets who start out with less money then John Edwards makes in a week of litigating run an ad in three states, and all hell breaks loose. The 527s and DNC have to spend money just to defend Johnny, and Johnny sets himself up for the rope-a-dope play by coming out swinging...

To make sure the DNC lights don't go out at the FleetCenter, NStar chopped down a tree in Natick. ``No warning, nothing,'' said an angry Lynne D'Agnelli, who owned the 19-year-old willow. ``It's just a tree.'' D'Agnelli said the tree, which was planted in honor of her youngest daughter's birth, had sat in the yard with no problems for the last two decades.

Move over, Buffy. You've got competition - from John Kerry [related, bio]. In the current issue of the comic book ``Sword of Dracula,'' a character modeled after the Democratic presidential hopeful takes on the king of the undead, Dracula himself. ``I chose Kerry because I am impressed with his background as a military man,'' writer Jason Henderson said yesterday.