The Rumsfeld Interview

Does Allison (my aim is true), have a phone number?

Am I a dance expert? Of course not. Am I a professional appreciator of dance? Perhaps. Can I tell the difference between Allison’s captivating moves and the insurgents’ captivating moves? I should hope so. Will I waltz my way into retirement in a couple of years? It seems likely.

Dammit, I didn’t know there was a show called “So You Think You Can Dance,” so I don’t even have the option of obsessing over Allison. I do know Sir Charles is running for governor of Alabama. Were I a ‘Bamian, I’d vote for him simply because he called W the worst president ever on The Best Damned Sports Show, Period. Also, I think he threatened to throw lobbyists out the window, and his threats are for real.

Meanwhile, I’m most happy Adam’s political wit pen is still fully loaded with incisive ink.

You go to war with the rhetoric you have, not the rhetoric you want.

Rumsfeld always gives the impression that he thinks he is so much more intelligent than his audience that he has to lead us through the interview. Basically anticipating all of our questions, paraphrasing them, then asking and answering. It’s this condescending attitude that gets on my nerves.

David: A while back Charles said that he was a republican because he wanted to keep his money. The other day, when asked why he would run as a Democrat, he said something to the effect of “I was a Republican until they lost their minds.” I thought that was classic. Being a resident of the state of Alabama, I will most likely vote for Sir Charles, if he runs. I think he has some good ideas for helping the poor and improving education. I have my doubts whether he’ll win. Half the morons in the state won’t vote for him ’cause he’s black. The other half of the morons won’t vote for him because he went to Auburn. And as we all know, Alabama probably has more than its fair share of morons.

SmokinJ: amen on Rumsfeld’s condescending attitude, even in the face of all the evidence of his bunglefest.

That little shake of the head he gave to Hilary Clinton, as if to say, “what has the world come to that I have to put up with this little gal’s sassing” made me want to do some random violence.

I love the constant refrain that decisions reflect “the best judgment at the time.” In this case, Rummy says that troop levels were based on what was the best judgment of commanders and civilian leadership. The unavoidable conclusion is that those people don’t have good judgment—why should we continue to listen to them?

When NOTHING goes according to plan, does that reflect badly on the planners? Yes, I think it does.

Is WTF shorthand for WaTerFowler?
Sorry I missed the last birding discussion. I was getting “salty” and watching dirty pelicans and frigates, herons, gulls, and even a ‘gator. We also caught a few trout and boiled some crab.
Y’all can bitch about who or whatever in this administration, but you’re gonna hafta come to grips w/ the fact that they still WANT TO CUT YOUR HEAD OFF. And your kids, and your Grandma’s, and anyone else that doesn’t do as they say. Are the lefties prepared to protect us from that? Not if we look @ slick willie’s record.

I think cooper’s in Maine, enjoying relatively cooler temperatures.

wf — to just what part of slick willie’s record are you referring? Surely not this part:

In August 1998, when [Clinton] ordered missile strikes in an effort to kill Osama bin Laden, there was widespread speculation — from such people as Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) — that he was acting precipitously to draw attention away from the Monica S. Lewinsky scandal, then at full boil. Some said he was mistaken for personalizing the terrorism struggle so much around bin Laden. And when he ordered the closing of Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House after domestic terrorism in Oklahoma City, some Republicans accused him of hysteria.

. . . the federal budget on anti-terror activities tripled during Clinton’s watch, to about $6.7 billion. After the effort to kill bin Laden with missiles in August 1998 failed — he had apparently left a training camp in Afghanistan a few hours earlier — recent news reports have detailed numerous other instances, as late as December 2000, when Clinton was on the verge of unleashing the military again. In each case, the White House chose not to act because of uncertainty that intelligence was good enough to find bin Laden, and concern that a failed attack would only enhance his stature in the Arab world.

John Harris, Washington Post

I can’t see where this adminstration’s approach has been any more successful, and neither can over 2500 of our sons and daughters.

Mojo,

I thought ‘fowler was talking about the administration wanting to cut our heads off. That sounds about right to me.

As for Barkley running for gov’r, I just remember what one of my fellow grad students said about celebrities running for office: “I think that Barkley would do a good job. I mean, look at Schwartzeneggar.”

I’m still trying to figure out how this guy manages to find employment.

The CIA gives bad intel? When did this start? Damn, I miss all the good stuff.

Or maybe I should’ve phrased it differently: Does the CIA give bad intel? Well yes, sometimes I suppose, but then everyone makes mistakes now and then, except of course when they don’t.

And y’all don’t worry about them coming to cut off your heads. I’m the uppity lesbian, so it’s MY head they want to cut off. Unless, you know, they don’t. I’d ask Rumsfeld but I’m confused enough for one day.

tess,

Sir Charles is cut from different cloth than der Groppenfuhrer. And he’s running for very different reasons. Smokin’ J’s paraphrase captures Sir Charles quite well. And unlike Arnie, Sir Charles has a reasonable grasp on reality, given what he has said both about Bush and about the contemporary Republican Party.

Also of note: …today Oklahoma state senator and minority whip Nancy Riley switched parties from Republican to Democrat, saying “The moderate Republican has been pushed aside for the extreme right wing. I was totally disregarded. The moderate Republican no longer has a voice.”

Kinky Friedman (author and country musician) is running for governor here in Texas. One of his slogans is “Kinky for Governor: How Hard Could It Be?”

I think this is because our last two governors (Bush and Perry) have been such dolts, and the state is still more or less moving along.

I would certainly prefer Charles Barkley over either of the last two.

Kinky Friedman almost makes me wish I stilled lived in Texas, just so’s I could vote for him.

Hey tess,

I’m sure wf *was* talking about the administration. Certainly they have guaranteed that my children and grandchildren will have to pay higher taxes to pay off their failed wars and other misadventures (not to mention Halliburton’s record profits) since they are so unwilling to do so. Certainly my children and grandchildren will be less secure thanks to the efforts of this administration to “internationalize” our economy, ensuring that there will be no good paying jobs other than CXO, not to mention the great harm they have done to the image of America and Americans.

There is no doubt that this administration (and those that hold their views) are the greatest threat to my (and my children’s and grandchildren’s) future (and current) well being.

Well, hello, sportsfans! I’ve got to tell you that when I left Maine this morning, the temperature was a brisk dry 55 F with hints of autumn wafting in the air. When I got off the plane in Charlotte, I walked into a wall of heat and humidity (August is known locally as the 2nd circle of Hell). Oh well, fun while it lasted. So, did I miss anything?

Dave D,

Amen and amen.

Cooper,

I was in Hendersonville last week. The ‘Villians were complaining mightily about the heat. I was in hog heaven, having left the 5th circle of hell, aka Orlando. Love those mountains.

Can I make you a license plate with a customized border? My current institution of employment does not currently offer that option. Am I willing to perform homosexual sex acts in exchange for soap? Under certain circumstances. Do I have a choice? It seems unlikely.

–D.R., prepping for his new career

I wish I was more technologically capable… I really want to dub Shirley Temple saying “Oh, my goodness!” over Rummy.

Also he should torture himself when he fails to provide satisfactory answers (i.e, always).

The war going as planned? Absurd concept. See, ya gotta have a plan tor anything to go according to it.

The “Decider” and Deputy and Assistant Deciders of Action in Iraq are much more like the Underwear Gnomes of South Park: “Phase One: Collect underpants. Phase Three: Profit” See: “Phase One: Start war. Phase Three: Profit” Except in the war Phase Three started at the same time as Phase One. There never was a Phase Two. It received as much attention from The Idiot Monkey Crew as it did from The Underpants Gnomes.

‘Course there were some folks who thought there should be some attention paid to Phase Two, but they were fired. The public just smiled…and re-elected the Idiot Monkey Crew because they felt their leader was actually doing a good job or it would be unwise to change horses in the middle of the flood even if the horse they were on had four broken legs, was blind, and had spent its life eating Jimson weed.