Anti-war Journalist Laments Creeping Capitalism in Vietnam

Magnum photo-journalist, Philip Jones Grifith, chronicles the whoring and exploitation of "communist" Vietnam.

In Columbia Rice Promises More War and Terror

Condi Rice is on a tour of Latin America. On this tour she is promising more misery, poverty, free trade and an escalation of violence through increases in military aid for all governments willing to committ to more violence, misery and free trade. There seem to be a few less takers these days but not most.

Good News for Humanity: Worldwide Cancer Rates Double

I am not being facetious here. This means that people are living longer and they are not dying from malaria, infections, the flu, at birth, etc...

Not a Show to be Missed

Thievery Corporation now on tour.

Lemmingcide? Walt Disney Guilty as Charged!

Lemming mass suicide myth exposed!

Winning, Winning, Winning!

What did Goebbles say about repetition? I heard much of this press conference with the General. He probably said "winning" 234 times. But at the same time he said the violence was at the same level as last year! US Out Now!

Repeat

I know I have posted this before but I am always profoundly moved by this site. Guatemalan Death Squad Dossier.

German Toads Spontaneously Combusting

Exploding toads!

Crime Down, Prison Population Up!

Over 2 million a now in prison in the US even though crime is down. By the way this population is not in the unemployment figure. Social program of the 80's and 90's, build more prisons.

Gunder: You Will Be Missed

Here's an obit of one of my favorite "academics." A little star fucking here, I was also in the convertable in Miami. No, he was not my lover. Hasta La Victoria! Siempre!

The One Sided Class War

"Once inflation is taken into account, compensation for nonsupervisory workers in the private sector--about 80 percent of the workforce--dropped 0.4 percent in 2004."
Read a commentary on the dismal state of wages in the US.

"Compassionate" Conservative

In one of his first pronouncements as Pope the new dress claden one condemns law to expand rights for minorities.

US Out Now!

Here's a liberal Democrats take on the the war. If only 90% of them would be this honest. If Clinton was Prez would he do the same thing? I doubt it.

Haliburton

I wonder what these guys would actually have to do to lose their contracts? Here's an interview with a community activist that is trying to put pressure on the government to try these criminals.

NATO

In a meeting in Lithuania yesterday NATO representatives continued their provocative rhetoric regarding Belarus and Russia. The alliance has now almost completely encircled Russia and is on the offensive even though its raison detre, the Soviet Union, now longer exists.

Reconstruction: Coming Soon To Your Nation

Once again Naomi Klein gives us a new way to look at the neo-colonial order. "Reconstruction" of devastated regions from acts of God or acts of Bush, ordered by God?-Klein's phrase-is a way to re-order a society. It's a time for privatization, lectures on democracy, restructuring outdated programs, like health care, did I mention privatization? Give it a read.

April Madness

Thanks to Scott for the Pope tournament brackets.

Bizarre Flesh Eating Cult To Choose New Leader

Hundreds of super-rich dress clad celibate men are meeting in a gold laden state to choose a new infallible leader this week. The medieval "conclave" is following rules set down by the largest land owners of pre-industrial Europe to guide their 1 billion followers so that they can avoid the world's most venal evils; blow jobs, Playboy magazine, equality of women, gay sex, etc... Smoke will billow from the Sistine Chapel soon so that we will know that God's choice has been consummated.

Coke

Of all the "miracles" of the new wave of neo-liberalism in the last 20 or so years is the blossoming and awakening of India. After 30 years of autarky, the narrative goes, India has finally seen the error of its ways and embraced the market and liberated prices and markets. In practical terms this now means that 100 million or so can now enter the Wal-Mart world and the other 1 BILLION or so can eat scraps at first world prices. Cockburn puts a fine point on the miracle in this agitprop from one of our best political writers.

Thomas Friedman: Idiot!

Thomas Friedman explained.

Andrea Dworkin, Censor, Kiljoy, Dead at 58

I think Katha Pollitt has it right here. Andrea Dworkin's gender nationalism was off and puritanical in many ways but she really made us think and agitprop is certainly something we need. Although I bet Fox News would have invented her if she didn't exist in the first place.

Viagra Kosher During Passover

Viagra is kosher during Passover, Rabbi announces. Well thank yahweh for that!

Greil Marcus on Bob

Greil Marcus has a new book about Bob Dylan. Here's a review.

Melinda and Melinda

Here's a review worth reading of Woody Allen's latest.

Humans Name Beetles After Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld

Scientists name three mould eating beetles with prominent teeth after parasites Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld.

Action To Oppose CAFTA

It looks like the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) may be in trouble. Urgent action is needed to try to stop this legislation. here are 10 reasons to oppose CAFTA.

Amazing Website

My favorites are Soviet Propaganda Art and Cars We Probably Have Forgotten.

Flu Virus

I truly do not understand why the virus was sent out in the first place ? I really have not been able to find an answer to this question. Any ideas?

Double Standard?

A long time Cuban terrorist is applying for political asylum in the US. Let's see hhow the impartial "justice" system works for this one.

Nationalism:The Socialism of Fools

The CCP (Chinese Communist Party) has one card left, nationalism, and they are playing it with resounding success. Given that they have given up on the central idea of communism, equality, and they never have been a democratic organization, they maintain legitimacy by representing themselves as the purest representatives of the nation. This latest popular expression of nationalist sentiment is just but just wait for the ugly head of national chauvinism to express it self in the near future, probably through war.

Imperial Plan

Michael Klare on the US imperial plan after the Iraq War.

"Crazy" Ex-President of Ecuador Returns

"Crazier than ever" (his words) ex-President of Ecuador returns amid political and economic upheaval in country introducing a new facet to a revolutionary moment.

Ominous Signs in Mexico

Mexico City's mayor has been stripped of immunity from prosecution in a clear move to ban him from gaining the presidency, the law says anyone under indictment cannot take the presidency. The popular Mexico City mayor is of the PRD a left of center party that was robbed of the presidency two terms ago. Both the PAN (the current president's party) and the PRI (the party of the revolution and 70 years of corporatism and corruption) don't want the popular D Feffee (Mexico City is a Federal District not unlike DC) mayor to challenge them for the presidency thus the stripping of immunity over a minor corruption scandle.

Barbara Stanwyck

TCM has been showing some amazing Barbara Stanwyck films lately. In particular I thought The Lady Eve and Clash By Night are classics.

More Double Standards

Columbians smuggle drugs to the US they go to trial in the US. Us troops smuggle drugs IN COLUMBIA, the US says they are immune from prosecution!

Ruthless

A ruthless review of Downfall which I also thought was brilliant.

A Comprehensive Look at the State of the Working Class in the United States

Here's a review and commentary on the state of wages and inequality in the US over the last 30 years. Bleak to say the least.

Eduard Shevardnadze Impoverished, Can't Pay His Bills, Booh Fucking Hoo!

Former dismantler of equality and dictator of Georgia can't pay his electricity bill. Well maybe there is some justice in the world! Now maybe he is getting a taste of the disaster for much of humanity that is the former Soviet Union and other socialist countries of eastern Europe. Pensioners eating from garbage dumps, declining life expectancy, lack of employment and education for most, rampant inequality, war, general social malaise as the former states are transformed into bastions of criminality and cleptocracy. I think the NY Times missed this part of "freedom on the march."

Here's a "balanced" report from UNICEF on the social indicators from 1989 to 1999.

The Priorities of the Liberal Press

On the day that one of the great writers of the 20th century dies, Saul Bellow, NPR this morning leads with the death of the decadent, American wife shopping-he once offered Marilyn Monroe a queenship before snagging another blond movie star wife, off shore capital hording, playground for the ruling class entertaining monarch of Monaco. Sickening. I think I would rather hear about the Pope!

Funny Blog From Mi Hermano

Things my girlfriend and I have argued about.

Kill the Monkey to Scare the Chicken

The above slogan is widely endorsed in China. It means that we use the death penalty as a deterrent. The problem is that it doesn't work. Amnesty international reports that the death penalty is at its highest level in a decade.

Bye Bye Papa

Before things get too carried away, pun intended, I wanted to say a few things about JP II, too late. This is a guy who just recently said we (all non-sinning Catholics/the overwhelming majority of humanity) are going to burn in Hades for eternity because we don't believe in the one true faith. Osama bin Laden doesn't even claim this. He also says any sex that isn't for procreation, particularly sex between sames, is a major no-no. Masturbation-not allowed. Eating the body and blood (literal) of the three headed god-allowed. Women, they are not worthy of having important jobs like being a priest. He also thought some governments, like the Soviet Union and the Nicaraguan ones were bad because they don't support the wealthy clergy that hang out with the oligarchs, but governments like the Brazilian dictatorship or the Guatemalan governments that murdered their citizens on a mass scale were OK. Liberation theology-a radical Christian ideology that stressed that god was in us all and took off in much of Latin America-was for JP II a major threat that was more of an evil than Fascist dictatorship. He has replaced most of these folks with clergy that think more like him. Which means that for hundreds of years to come we can expect more like him from the Catholic hierarchy. In other words, if you side with the poor, by re-distributing wealth and you see the church as an impediment to this, BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT IT HAS ALMOST ALWAYS DONE, than you can been eliminated and this PAST Pope would not get too worried about it.

If you think this guy was a saint and a positive force in the world we are in worse shape than I thought.