Well, Goodbye, Henry

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Henry Kissinger has resigned from the commission that will investigate the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

In his letter, Kissinger said he was prepared to submit all relevant financial information to the White House and an independent review, as well as to other members of the joint commission.
“It has become clear, however, that although specific potential conflicts can be resolved in this manner, the controversy would quickly move to the consulting firm I have built and own,” Kissinger’s letter said.

This sounds like Kissinger finally realized the extent to which his global influence peddling business would be subject to scrutiny. And, if there’s one thing Kissinger won’t stand for, it’s full disclosure (which is why it was such a joke that he was named to lead the commission).
The only drawback here is that it leaves an opening for President Bush to make a smarter appointment the second time around. He can now choose a more subtle candidate to whitewash the investigation’s findings.

Martin Pointdexter: J’accuse

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gore.jpg
Trent Lott’s recent comments aren’t really that shocking, are they? It’s not as if anyone needed further proof that the senator from Mississippi is a reactionary toad.

“I want to say this about my state: When Strom Thurmond ran for president, we voted for him. We’re proud of it. And if the rest of the country had followed our lead, we wouldn’t have had all these problems over all these years, either.”

Nothing new there.
The real news here comes from Al Gore’s reaction, which is just the latest embarrassment from the desperately over-eager former Vice-President.

“To say that the problems that we have in America today, some of them, stem from not electing a segregationist candidate for president … is fundamentally racist,” Gore said.
Asked if he believes Lott is a racist, Gore said, “Trent Lott made a statement that I think is a racist statement, yes. That’s why I think he should withdraw those comments or I think the United States Senate should undertake a censure of those comments.

Racist? Censure? Come on. Lott is an idiot. And his politics are despicable and destructive. But is it really so bad that he says what he feels? Isn’t this the way we find out who a person really is? His words speak for themselves, and are rightfully being publicized and derided. Do we really need Gore rushing to be the first to scream “racist” at the top of his lungs? Talk about zealous overkill.
It’s way past time to put Gore out to pasture. He means well, but he’s not leadership material. And he’s never going to be President.

Narcotic, Anti-narcotic

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Last night I watched Mission To Mars and Requiem For A Dream. The first almost put me to sleep (what a waste of Mars). The latter made it difficult to get to sleep &#8212 not exactly something to send one off to slumberland with sweet dreams.

Slopes And Soaks

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Saturday morning, I woke up early, grabbed my snowboard and jumped on the train to Matsumoto. Met some friends and we drove north to Goryu ski area in Hakuba.
Snow conditions were a bit disappointing, but it felt great to be back on the slopes. At the end of the day, snow started to fall, and it doesn’t seem to have stopped since.
We left Hakuba around 5pm and headed back towards Matsumoto, with a stop at an onsen. There’s nothing quite like soaking in a hot outdoor pool with snow falling.

Don’t Vote

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Ah, those silly, democracy-loving Republicans. Always ready to take the high-road in politics, aren’t they?

In Louisiana, a Democrat Wins a Tough Senate Race
With a last-minute outcropping of anti-Landrieu signs, the Republicans did their best to suppress the black vote so crucial to Ms. Landrieu’s fortunes.
The new signs, paid for by the Louisiana Republican Party, said: “Mary: If you don’t respect us, don’t expect us.”The quotation was from a popular black official, State Senator Cleo Fields, who had initially been cool to Ms. Landrieu’s candidacy because she had not supported his bid for governor and because he believed that she was taking the black vote for granted. Mr. Fields later endorsed Ms. Landrieu.
The Republicans paid black youths $75 today to hold the signs aloft on street corners in black neighborhoods.

How is the opposition party going to match this? Perhaps by hiring Christians to wear t-shirts to church with this message: Armageddon scheduled for Election Day&#8212God says “Stay home!&#8221