Thursday, March 30, 2006

Just received the first edition of the Alice in Chains Newsletter

Here it is in full:


Dirt Issue I


Welcome to the first ever official Alice In Chains electronic newsletter – aka Dirt.

It’s a big day at AliceInChains.com; not only are we sending out the first edition of Dirt, we’re also launching the brand new Alice In Chains website.

The site is just getting started. Right now, it’s only a homepage, news page and tour page, but over the next several weeks we’re going to be adding tons of new content including images, a discussion board, an AIC store and lots of interactive features. If you have suggestions for the site, we’d love to hear them! Send us an email at help@aliceinchains.com.


And sure, the new website for the band is exciting but we know what you really want to hear about – Alice In Chains hitting the road. Jerry, Sean and Mike will play a number of European dates over the summer. Below are details on just a few of those shows:

Date
Venue
Location

5/26/06
Super Bock Super Rock
Lisbon, Portugal

5/27/06
Copera
Granada, Spain

5/28/06
Madrid Festimad
Madrid, Spain

5/30/06
Santana 27
Bilbao, Spain

6/2/06
Rock am Ring
Germany

6/3/06
Rock im Park
Nurburg, Germany


More dates are available on the Tour page, and yes, more dates will be announced in the near future. As soon as we find out about any confirmed dates, we will post the information on the site and send out another edition of Dirt.


Another question that has been on the tip of everyone’s tongue is who will take on the role of lead vocalist for these dates. The truth is, no one knows yet. But know this, when we know, you’ll know!

Before we go, we just want to thank everyone for signing up for this newsletter. If you want to send Dirt on to a friend, just click on the Forward link.

The AliceInChains.com Team

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

It's About Time

The Democrats Have A Plan

The Democrats have rolled out their plan for national security and it looks pretty good, and the best part is, it’s short. The brochure is comprised of ten pages, but that includes the title pages and both an English and Spanish version. The actual plan is only three pages long and it’s filled with easy to digest, specific solutions to security problems that have stumped the GOP. There are a few good swipes at the Republicans as well, even the title, “Real Security: The Democratic Plan to Protect America and Restore Our Leadership in the World” is a reminder of what Bush and the Republicans haven’t been able to do.

There is no wind bagging, no unnecessary words or complicated concepts, just clear-cut objectives and specific dates. Energy independence by 2020, securing loose nukes by 2010, screening of 100% of cargo containers, a promise to eliminate Bin Laden, finish the job in Afghanistan and make significant progress in Iraq this year so that troop redeployment can begin. Reading this plan I get the sense that the Democrats are not as clueless as they’ve led us to believe, a pleasant surprise for sure.

Read the rest

Taken from: The (liberal) Girl Next Door (Thank you very much LG)

More on the Immigration Fiasco

The debate over this new immigration legislation is continuing to spiral out of control.

For the shear entertainment value, I'm providing a link to a forum hosted by my local NBC affiliate. From reading this, you would probably deduce that the intelligence of the DFW area is sub-standard when compared to other metropolitan areas. However, I think it is just a lot of stupid people are commenting in this forum.

Another link I want to share, is a link to a Los Angeles CBS affiliate that has discovered that many Spanish-speaking media outlets organized all of these rallies that have occurred over the last few days.

I'm not going to complain about demonstrations, because it is our right to demonstrate, but here in the DFW area, thousands of students left school and protested at Dallas City Hall. I teenage girl had part of her arm severed in a roll-over crash in Dallas after her and her friends stole one of their parents SUV to attend on of these rallies. WHY?

Everyone on both sides of this issue need to take a couple of steps back, a few deep breaths, and chill the fuck out! We already have some fairly tough immigration laws on the books that are not currently being enforced, so why do we think that even if these new "tougher" laws pass, that they will be enforced? Just calm down, wait until election day, and then make your voice heard. If you are here illegally and can't vote, you don't really have the right to even bitch about this, but start the process of becoming a citizen.

If I'm out of line here, please let me know., but I think that this is much ado about nothing.

Check out the latest insane babble from Bugman Delay

Money Quote:
"...and all but treats Christianity like some second-rate superstition."

Yeah, right, Tom. Even if you add up all the atheists, agnostics, and followers of all the non-Christian religions in this nation, The USA is still 75-80% Christian. So tell me, Tommy, just how does 20-25% of the population somehow railroad and denigrate and wage some kind of cultural war against a huge majority and make any kind of inroads whatsoever? Is your religion and faith so weak that a tiny group of "Hollywood Libruls" and "Activist Judges" can thwart the wills of the vast majority of the nation?

What you see here ladies and gentlemen is the very key to the NeoCon(artists) republican ascent and rule over the past 25 years. Convince the majority that they are somehow in danger; that their values and lifestyles are being threatened by a small minority. Then convince them that you have the answers, the power to protect them from those evil secularists, the Hollywood Jews, the professors, the intellectuals, and our latest boogie-men: Judges and Muslims.

Rule By Fear: Its really the only gameplan that they have. And while Reagan had the ability to hide his fear mongering behind a sunny mask (must have been that Hollywood training), these Neocon-artists have just gone into full agro-battle mode. They don't even bother to try and pretty up their hate machine. And why bother? When you can convince members of the 80% that they are in danger from the 20%, who needs a facade? You've got everything on your side, except for the truth of course.

In a propaganda war, you need to be able to discredit and marginalize your opponents. Picking a tiny opponent with little resources to fight back is a great way to insure that your propaganda meets little resistance.

So goes the wingnut talking point: "Whoa unto us, the poor oppressed majority. We faithful, God-fearing innocent Christians, beset on all sides by the powerful and merciless wolves of the media and judiciary. We must bond together, mobilize and crush the enemies at our gate. And to do that, we need to send money to Tom DeLay, Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson. Oh yeah, and God Bless George W Bush for protecting us from those evil ragheads."

One more thing before I go, Tommy. If you are so Christian and moral and faithful to the tenants of your religion, then how come you can support Slave Labor and Forced Abortions in the American territory of Saipan?

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Al Bundy's Cd Reviews

If you want honest reviews on new albums, then your wait is over. Blabbermouth is a good site in all but their cd reviews suck sometimes. So if you want great cd reviews head over to Al Bundy's Cd Reviews right here: http://albundy2.blogspot.com/

Immigration Reform

I'm confused!

Please help explain this to me. This new bill that is stirring up controversy on both sides doesn't make any sense. By making the act of being in our country illegally a felony, what are we trying to achieve? Are we going to lock them in prison? How much is THAT going to cost tax payers? It is already illegal to be in this county illegally, hence the term "illegal alien". The punishment for this crime is deportation.

The problem is with the enforcement of the current laws, not the lack of stronger laws. Am I missing something here? Why aren't we going after the construction companies, landscaping companies, city work crews, etc... That are paying the illegal aliens less than minimum wage to perform jobs that most Americans refuse to do. If they didn't have a way to make money over here, they would stop coming over here.

Or how about we secure our damn borders? There was a report yesterday that two federal agents were able to sneak across the border, each carrying enough radioactive materials to make dirty bombs that could kill millions of people. So, we need to secure our borders anyway.

Once again, please explain this to me, because I'm obviously missing something.

Monday, March 27, 2006

What are the best Guitar Solos of all time?

The list posted today on Blabbermouth was total bullshit. I'll start a REAL poll later today, but please make sure I do not overlook any of the best solos. Enter your choices under the comments section.

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

From the "Too Much Time on Their Hands" Department:

While getting their superstitious asses handed to them daily by both Science and History, Delusional Wingnuts are now at war with a fictional novel and film.

I guess they need something to make themselves feel better about getting whupped across the nation on that "Intelligent Design" fiasco.

Who will be the Blabbermouth Party Candidate?

We need a third party to step up and show the Dems & Repubs what's up. Our good friend Al Bundy has suggested that we pull potential candidates from the vast list of blabbermouth posters. If you would like to be included, or knows of someone that should be included in the first ever Blabbermouth Party Primary, please submit your/their name in the comments section below. I will accept nominations for one week, and then we will begin the primary election, which will last for two weeks.

Please include reasons why you should be the Blabbermouth Party Candidate.

Update: Here are a list of the current nominees
Al Bundy / BlackLabelAxe
kissrules
FuckHaters (Lefty) / BigNewsDay

?

A man in Afghanistan is facing the death penalty for converting to Christianity. Didn't we go and blow up a bunch of rocks in Afghanistan to put an end to this kind of bullshit?

Read CNN article!

Friday, March 17, 2006

Funny Shit

I generally like to see how people get to my page, and think it is kind of funny when people either come from a doing a strange search in google or from some wierd blog. Here is a list of some the sites people enter from alongwith their original search criteria:

1.MSN Search -"figure skating and exodus music" - I'm third in the list.
2. Google Blog Search - "which states are the real bastions" - Only site listed
3. Google Blog Search - "Bush poll results" - Page three!I'm offended.
4. http://galerie-no-smoking.blogspot.com/2006/02/la-presse-de-exposition-quatre-mains.html ?
5. Google - "bignewsday blog" - go figure! Add me as a favorite and make life easier.

I'll post more of these as they come in. Go see what what the most round-about way you can get to my blog.

Tell me what you think

Please go watch the trailer for the new movie starring Samuel L. Jackson, and then comeback here and let me know what you think about this movie. I'll hold back on my opinion until I hear from a few of you.

Snakes on a Plane

and the Emmy goes to...

I just wish our politicians were this wise and passionate and articulate.

Thursday, March 16, 2006

Today's Quiz

NBA OR NFL?





36 have been accused of spousal abuse
7 have been arrested for fraud
19 have been accused of writing bad checks
117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses
3 have done time for assault
71, repeat 71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit
14 have been arrested on drug-related charges
8 have been arrested for shoplifting
21 currently are defendants in lawsuits. and
84 have been arrested for drunk driving in the last year

Can you guess which organization this is?





Give up yet? . . . Scroll down, citizen!










It's the 535 members of the United States Congress. The same group of Idiots that crank out hundreds of new laws each year designed to keep the rest of us in line.

Red State Leaches

This is hilarious. Red State Reichwing Ranting Retards are always going off about "The Nanny State" and Dependency and Wasteful Government Spending and over taxation. Well guess what Jethro, if you and your kinfolk would stop sucking off the government teat so much, looks like America wouldn't have such financial difficulties.

Check this out...

In a study released today, the nonpartisan Tax Foundation reveals that red states continue to rely on the largess of the federal government.

The top seven charity cases -- and 13 of the top 15 -- are states that cast their votes for Bush in 2004. First in line for handouts is New Mexico, which scores $2 for every buck it sends to Washington, The rest of the top 15: Alaska, West Virginia, Mississippi, North Dakota, Alabama, Virginia, Hawaii, Montana, South Dakota, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Kentucky and Maryland.

And which states are the real bastions of up-by-your-bootstraps self-reliance and compassion for the least among us? Well, the top five giving states are ones that John Kerry carried in 2004: New Jersey -- which got 55 cents for every dollar it gave to Washington -- followed by Connecticut, New Hampshire, Minnesota and Illinois.

What about Californians and New Yorkers, those coastal snobs who are so self-absorbed that their skin has turned blue? It turns out that they can take care of themselves and a whole lot of other Americans, too. They're eighth and ninth on the most-charitable list, getting back just 79 cents of each dollar they send to Washington. -- Tim Grieve


http://www.taxfoundation.org/press/show/1395.html

Get those figgin hillbillies off the dole!!

Results from Latest Poll

President Bush should be:

Selection..............Votes
Praised.......................20%11
Impeached................20%11
Horse Whipped........20%11
Hanged......................39%21
54 votes total

This shows that Bush's poll numbers are even lower than the major networks are reporting.


Which (if any) American festival tours will you attend this summer?

Selection........Votes
Ozzfest...............6 votes
Gigantour..........27 votes
Sounds of the Underground.......12 votes
Unholy Alliance.......40 votes
Other - use comments to specify.....2 votes
None................9 votes

This poll speaks for itself. Ozzfest is over!


And the favorite color amongst metal heads is pink!

More polls will be available soon, so check back later. Al Bundy has suggested a presidential poll using only Blabbermouth posters as candidates. If I do this, I will only accept nominations from the actual user to ensure no one is nominated that does not want to be. I will have more details on this later.

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

A fun game for everyone to play

I call this game "Spot the Fallacies"

Back in November; I did a post discussing commonly used fallacies which I copied from this web page. I commonly see news reports that contain many of these fallacies.

Earlier this week, we learned that Senator Russ Feingold was going to propose a resolution that would censure President Bush because of his illegal wiretapping policies.

So here is the game. Read the following article on CNN's website, and then post any fallacies that you spot along with the type of fallacy in the comments section. The winner receives absolutely nothing but an official "Congratulations!" from me.

CNN Article

Here is an example:

Cheney stated "Do they support the extreme and counterproductive antics of a few, or do they support a lawful program vital to the security of this nation?"

That is the classic Either/Or Fallacy.


Update: to make the game more interesting, you may use any article (including blog posts), but make sure you include a link to that article.

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

The Next Governor of Texas


I had the pleasure of signing the petition this weekend. Hopefully by this time next year, ican proudly proclaim "My Governor is a Jewish Cowboy!"

He already has two great campaign slogans

"Why the hell not?"

&

"How hard can it be?"

Click on the link below and read more of his ideas.

Kinky For Governor

Monday, March 13, 2006

Feingold Setting Himself for 2008 Presidential Bid



Senator Russ Feingold from Wisconsin, the only Senator to vote against the Patriot Act when it was first introduced, is about to make a bold political move by submitting a resolution censuring President Bush. The wingnuts have tried to make Bush's illegal domestic spying program seem legal, but the American public isn't buying it. Thankfully, Senator Feingold has taken the initiative to make Bush accountable for the illegal spying.

What? Someone is holding Bush accountable? I could hear the right's boo's already! While such a resolution will simply scold Dubya, it has greater implications. The most visible one is Feingold's positioning himself for a 2008 Presidential race. I'm liking this guy more everyday. He's got some balls, something that has not been seen in the Democratic Party very much!

In light of this, it would be great if we could have a presidential straw poll. To do this, I'll need everyone to post a comment with politicians they think should run. I already know Hilary Clinton, Feingold, Clark, Daschle, and Gore are possibilities, but please include anyone else you would like to see take a shot. Once we gather enough names, we'll conduct a straw poll. Good Day!

Friday, March 10, 2006

Best blog article I've read this week

Please click here to an amazing article written by The (liberal) Girl Next Door in regards to the collapse of the port deals, and why we are not out of the woods yet. I'm truly impressed with her ability to write.

The End of the Bush Administration?

Cross-Posted on The Metal Pundit



The Bush administration suffered yet another political blow, thanks to the collapse of the Dubai Ports deal. Bush's painfully low approval ratings may have pushed many GOP Congressmen to oppose the deal, despite Bush's veto threat. Being an election year, this isn't all too surprising. This latest debacle solidifies the idea of Bush's White House being incompetent.

Incompetence has been the theme of the Bush administration since being re-elected. He failed miserably on social security reform, despite his national tour promoting it. He pissed off his wingnut base by nominating Harriet Miers, a seemingly qualified attorney who wasn't conservative-enough. The far-right hated her so much, that they denied her the "up-or-down vote" they have been so vociferous about! Bush ignored warnings about Katrina's potential devastation, possibly leading to FEMA not having the resources to be at the scene in time. At the moment, he's shifting blame to Congress for the lack of progress in the rebuilding efforts, a tactic that implicates his fellow GOP (remember Congress is GOP-controlled). The Iraq mess is only getting worse, and now Iran appears to be in the cross hairs. How many days was Bush on vacation in Texas?

While the Democrats still must work hard to convert these failures into Congressional gains, the job is looking much easier these days. Could this be the end of the so-called conservative movement? I sure hope so because it sure hasn't worked!

Bye Bye Dubya!

Art Imitates Life

Well it's hard out here to be a CHIMP

This Duck Gets Lamer By The Day

Wonder if Bush is getting that
  • Sinking Feeling?


  • The latest AP-Ipsos poll contains more great news for those of us in the Reality Based Community and more bad news for the Busha Nostra and their congressional appeasers.

    Highlights include:
    70% of Republicans think civil war will break out in Iraq.
    70% of Americans think US is on wrong track
    37% approve of his job performance
    74% of Republicans approve his performance, down from 82% in February
    36% approval rating on domestic affairs, down from 39% last month
    43% approval on foreign policy and terrorism
    40% approval on Iraq and economy
    2/3 disapprove of Congress job performance

    Excellent Smithers, Excellent...

    Actually, I don't believe that Bush and Congress's numbers are that good. I think that there's still a number of people who believe that you don't speak out publicly against your president and/or government during wartime, and those people keep their comments positive or neutral, despite their privately held misgivings.

    No wonder Rethuglican members of Congress are fleeing from Bush like roaches from a burning building. I guess election years can make one rethink their loyalties. We shouldn't let them. Every single Democrat running this year should fill their campaign ads with photos of their opponents with Bush, Abramson and DeLay. And they should detail every time that the opponent has spoken out in favor of a Bush policy or voted in favor of a Bush-approved piece of legislation that turned out to be a boondoggle.

    Many of these guys have been riding Bush's coattails for years. Now is the time to make sure that the American public is reminded of that every time some repug pretends to flash a little election-year "independence."

    Oh, I'm sorry. Was that an Act of Sedition?

    Thursday, March 09, 2006

    UAE firm to transfer port operations to U.S. 'entity'

    Wow!

    This seems like good news on the surface, but I'll wait until all the details regarding the deal are on the table. We can at least claim victory to a certain extent.

    Read full CNN Article Here

    We don't need no stinkin' Civil Liberties!

    Looks like the Patriot Act is being renewed. Booooooooooo!

    The President is also trying very hard to make it illegal for the press to make critical statements regarding the administration using information that was leaked by an insider. The funny thing is that it is the press that will be help responsible. The Sedition Act was trashed in 1921 on the grounds hat it was unconstiutional, but Bush wants it back.

    In New Mexico, a nurse was recently investigated on grounds of Sedition. Read the article here. This is getting spooky!

    Special thank to The (liberal) Girl Next Door for this!

    Wednesday, March 08, 2006

    Ozzfest 2006

    Speculating and starting rumors about who's touring with Ozzfest is a springtime American metalhead tradition. The Osbourne camp has given us our first look at this summer's lineup:

    SYSTEM OF A DOWN
    DISTURBED
    BLACK LABEL SOCIETY
    UNEARTH
    ATREYU
    BLEEDING THROUGH.

    -This marks the end of the objective narrative, now it's time to spill the blood...

    System of a Down is a very cool band, but they sound like children in a large arena setting. I've seen them at the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, SC, and they rocked all 2,000 people that packed it into that sweatbox. Then, I saw them play at Ozzfest 2003, where they took the headlining spot before Ozzy, and after Rob Zombie. Let me tell you that System sounded irritating and abnoxious after Rock/Metal juggernaut Rob Zombie, and they failed miserably to connect with a crowd that large. To put System of a Down in a headlining situation is a terrible mistake at a "heavy" show.

    Disturbed is a band that is trying their hardest to lose every fan they've ever had. Lead singer David Draiman has descended to the level of haters to take shots at them on the internet, and it makes me wonder why he's even in the business of making of music if he's so sensitive to critisizm. Rumor has it that he used to be in a "boy band", singing pop music. It's getting tougher to ignore the "poser" label. The fact that the band's singer can't take heat from internet trolls doesn't have anything at all to do with the fact that they are contributing to the "suck" factor at Ozzfest. The strongest track on "10,000 Fists" is a Genesis cover, "Land of Confusion", and the rest of the album sounds a bit tired and familiar. Disturbed is a band that has run their course, and cannot hold my interest any longer let alone lure me to buying a ticket. The band still has millions of fans that disagree with me, so financially Sharon probably made a good decision.

    I really wish Zakk Wylde's Black Label Society would just quit the Ozzfest thing. Doing the same tour every year is almost as numbing as releasing the same album every year, which BLS has been doing since 2003 (some would say "1919 Eternal" is expendable also, which would extend the streak back to 2002). There's only two BLS records worth buying, and you'd have a hard time making a single third worthy purchase out of tracks from the last 5 releases. It's time for Zakk to put down the booze and stop being in love with himself. There's a reason all his long-time bandmates and friends have left the band.

    Unearth, Atreyu, Bleeding Through: this is getting too boring to even write about. Minus Black Label Society, this could be the Vans' Warped Tour, and nobody would even notice.

    There are persistent rumors of a Sepultura reunion at Ozzfest. If Sharon pulls this off, I will proudly buy a ticket. Max Cavalera has been hinting that he's not opposed to it, as has Andreas and Co. If I go to see a Sepultura reunion, I'll probably leave right afterwards. I'll go drink beer for $7 a pitcher at a bar instead of $7 for a cup and lines of people waiting to piss.

    Ozzfest is facing increasing competition from the Sounds of the Underground (SOTU), Gigantour, and Slayer's new project, the Unholy Alliance Tour. I somehow doubt that even Megadeth, Slayer, and whoever is headlining SOTU will de-throne Ozzfest as the hot summer ticket, but at least now metal fans have an alternative. System of a Down and Disturbed are just so popular that I'm sure it will sell out all over the place. The cool thing about 2006 is that now there's at least 4 summer metal tours in America, so you can choose which you like the best, or choose them all like I'll probably do.

    SEPULTURA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Tuesday, March 07, 2006

    This Week's Poll Results

    What band has the most annoying fans?

    Selection..........................Votes
    Black Label Society......24% 36
    Meshuggah...................16% 24
    Guns n' Roses...............15% 23
    Metallica........................21% 32
    KISS...............................13% 19
    Motley Crue..................11% 16

    150 votes total

    ANNOUNCEMENTS

    Don't forget to pay a visit to BND's official advise columnist Ken Hawk!

    I'm out of ideas for the BND's Stupid Poll so if anyone has any ideas, I'll be happy to consider them. Also, I'm always looking for other contributors to post concert/album reviews, opinions about world events, and general news about what is happining around us. If anyone is interested in being a member of the BND Blog, shoot me an e-mail and I'll send you an invite (maybe).

    BigNewsDay@gmail.com

    Why am I not suprised?

    Today is Primary Day! If you were under investigation due to your dealings with lobbyist and are running for re-election, how do you spend primary night?

    If your name is Tom DeLay, you spend it at a fundraiser thrown by lobbyists. Here are a few lines from a CNN article regarding this issue:

    "Entry to the fundraiser costs $1,000, $2,500 and $5,000 for political action committees and $500, $1,000 and $2,100 for individuals, according to an event invitation."

    All of which will go to the DeLay's re-election campaign.

    Here are some words from one of the Republicans running against him in today's primary:

    "I think it's amazingly ironic and callous he would be spending election night with a group of lobbyists," Campbell said. "I don't think he understands how unhappy constituents are with what appears to be a trade of principle for power."

    (doesn't that book behind his ear make him look like an elf?)

    I sure hope he looses! DeLay and Bush sure are making Texans look foolish.

    Monday, March 06, 2006

    This makes me sick!

    This girl is not Islamic. She is not from the middle east, but from the mid-west. Yes, she is an American girl from a Baptist family, in Topeka, KS.

    Meet Fred Phelps. He is the Pastor at the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, KS. This jackass believes that it is his god-given duty to protest the funerals of soldiers killed in the line of duty, because the United States supports homosexuality. Here is a recent CNN Article about a protest performed over the weekend.

    I'm all for freedom of speech, but I also think we should be able to beat the tar out of people like this.



    I don't know if you can read these signs or not, but they say:

    "Thank God for Dead Soldiers"
    "God Blew Up the troops"
    "Thank God for IEDs"




    Update:
    Here is an article from The Army Times that gives further information about a motorcycle group called the Patriot Guard Riders that use their motorcycle engines to drown out the Phelps freaks.

    Saturday, March 04, 2006

    Question of the Day

    What are you more afraid of,

    what is in this old man's sock...















    or what is in one of these containers?
















    The amount of money spent on airport security is exponentially higher than the money spent on port security. Now our President is attempting to sell several large ports to a business that has been know to fund terrorist organizations which is from a country where two of the 9/11 hijackers came from.

    What are your thoughts?

    Friday, March 03, 2006

    Link to Dimevision Trailer

    Dimevision Trailer

    Some of the material seems to be some of the same stuff they showed at Dime's public memorial held after is funeral in Arlington. I wish they would make that whole film available, because it was truly magical.

    America Continues to Wake Up

    Its probably too little, too late, but what the hell. We'll take our good news where we can get it.


    Our friends at Gallup have published two interesting and encouraging polls recently. What I find the most interesting about this first one is that only 7% of Americans think that terrorism is America's most important problem. So just who are these Chicken Littles who go around fretting day and night about the possibity that "ragheads" are going to murder them in their sleep? Looks like only Ann Coulter, Fox "News" robots and members of the Bush Junta are pitching that paranoia to one another. The rest of America seems to have figured out that they are far more likely to be killed by polutant-induced cancer or lightning (or Dick Cheney on a bender) than by a terrorist.

    NEW YORK On the eve of the State of the Union message, Gallup pollsters last
    week posed the question Ronald Reagan asked in 1980 when he was running against
    Jimmy Carter for president: "Are you better off than you were four years
    ago?"


    The reply from Americans represents "a strong rebuke of the Bush era,"
    Gallup declared today, with nearly two-thirds saying things have gotten worse in
    the past five years. Only 28% say things have improved.


    In reply to another question, 35% said they were "satisfied" with the direction of the country, and 65% are dissatisfied.


    Does this represent merely the lingering fallout from 9/11? Not likely, since only 3% cited "terrorism" and 2% "homeland security" as a main reason for offerign negative views. Most often cited as evidence that things have gotten worse: Iraq (cited by 26%) and "the economy" (24%).

    Asked separately to list the "most important problem facing the country," 23% said the Iraq war, and only 7% terrorism. Various economic issues accounted for 30%.


    As expected a whopping 92% of Democrats gave a negative reply to question of have-things-improved-under-Bush, while 60% of Republicans went positive. But, critically, 70% of Independents gave that "not improved" assessment.


    Only 6% cited gas prices and 3% poverty as reasons for a negative view.



    And the second Good News Poll is:
    (the last sentence is the best. Looks like all the criminal scum from Delay to Frist to Santorum are headed for the trash heap of history)

    NEW YORK While newspaper editorials remain virtually silent on the subject, the American public seems to have made up its mind. A new Gallup/CNN/USA Today poll out tonight shows that 2 out of 3 adult Americans now want U.S. troops to start to come home from Iraq. And 55% call the decision to attack Iraq in 2003 a "mistake."

    The same poll found President Bush's approval rating plunging to 38%. It was even lower in a CBS poll earlier this week: 34%.

    In the poll, 38% said some troops should be withdrawn from Iraq now with another 27% saying they all should come home.

    Bush's handling of Iraq drew the support of just 35%, while 64% said they disapprove.

    Of the 1,020 adults surveyed, 59% said President Bush can no longer manage the government effectively. An overwhelmingly number say they oppose the Dubai ports deal. Asked who they would likely vote for in November, 53% picked Democrats, 39% Republicans.

    Thursday, March 02, 2006

    Question of the Day

    Should we use business taxes, consumption taxes, or a combination of both?

    My boss sent me this article the other day regarding the current tax structure here in Texas. Even though this article is about taxes in Texas, I believe that it is somewhat relevant in any state or even the federal level.

    All Taxes are not Created Equal

    After reading this article, please let me know where you stand on this issue.

    Update: The above website is listed as a conservative think-tank website so the article does lean towards the right. For information about websites, you can go to Source Watch.