Decision ‘08 » 2005

Archive for December, 2005

Saturday, December 31st, 2005

My New Year’s? I’m Staying Home, Thank You Very Much!

I got most of my partying out of my system, and these days I’m the kind of guy who, without ever swearing off alcohol completely, enjoys a quite occasional drink or two and not much else. Even when I did engage in heavier consumption, though, New Year’s was always a bit risky for a […]

1 Comment » - Posted in Navel-Gazing by Mark

Saturday, December 31st, 2005

Yet Another Prediction…

…this time from Alec Baldwin (yes, that Alec Baldwin), and it involves hurricanes, global warming, and an impeachment (but not that one you’re thinking of). Read on, if you dare…

4 Comments » - Posted in Progressive Nonsense / Nutroots® by Mark

Saturday, December 31st, 2005

Cindy Sheehan: The 2005 Jackass of the Year

The first Jackass of the Year, Micheal Moore, was an easy pick. He neatly symbolized the ‘progressive’ strain of politics that proved so fatal to the Democrats’ hopes for regaining the White House, and it certainly didn’t hurt that he is a pompous serial liar and a complete moral hypocrite.
This year’s pick is more […]

21 Comments » - Posted in Iraq, Progressive Nonsense / Nutroots®, Weekly Jackasses by Mark

Saturday, December 31st, 2005

The Fatuity Of Online Polls…

…is illustrated handsomely by W. C. Varones…

5 Comments » - Posted in Progressive Nonsense / Nutroots® by Mark

Saturday, December 31st, 2005

WORLD ALERT!!!! ***** !!!!!! White House Keeps Web Stats

This is getting more ridiculous by the day:
The White House said Friday its Web tracking technology is consistent with federal rules because it only counts the number of visitors anonymously and doesn’t record personal information.
The White House’s site uses what’s known as a Web bug — a tiny graphic image that’s virtually invisible — to […]

2 Comments » - Posted in Domestic Affairs by Mark

Saturday, December 31st, 2005

An Award You Don’t Want to Win

No, it’s not my Jackass of the Year (coming up later today or this evening); it’s even worse! How bad is it? Well, the runners-up are Robert Mugabe, Alexander Lukashenko, and Muammar Qaddafi…can you guess the category and winner? The answer is here (free registration may be required)…

No Comments » - Posted in North Korea, Foreign Affairs by Mark

Saturday, December 31st, 2005

Novak Rips The Declining Congress

In the midst of a harangue on what a joke our congressional representation has become, Bob Novak sheds light on what happened during James Sensenbrenner’s refusal to grant the six-month extension of the Patriot Act the Senate had passed earlier this month:
This bizarre Senate session reflects a general decline on Capitol Hill. If there […]

No Comments » - Posted in Bill Frist, Domestic Affairs, Republican Candidates by Mark

Saturday, December 31st, 2005

U.S. Planning Iran Air Strikes?

That’s the speculation from Germany’s Spiegel Online, based largely on reports from unnamed sources and close parsing of travel itineraries:
…”western security sources” claim that during CIA Director Porter Goss’ Dec. 12 visit to Ankara, he asked Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to provide support for a possibile 2006 air strike against Iranian nuclear and […]

4 Comments » - Posted in North Korea, Radical Islam / GWOT, Iraq, Foreign Affairs by Mark

Friday, December 30th, 2005

Standup SCOTUS

Who’s the funniest Supreme Court justice? Adam Liptak has the answer (but most of these ‘jokes’ - well, you really had to be there, I bet)…

No Comments » - Posted in SCOTUS by Mark

Friday, December 30th, 2005

Conspiracy Theorists, Start Your Engines!

In the wake of an energy crunch in Iraq caused by terrorist threats on tanker drivers, the Oil Minister has been asked to take a leave of absence - and guess who was named to temporarily fill the position? That dastardly Cheney has done it again!…

No Comments » - Posted in Iraq by Mark

Friday, December 30th, 2005

2006 In Review

James Lileks channels his future self, and presents us with a preview of next year’s end-of-year wrap-up:
The New York Times, fresh from reporting the self-destruct codes for the American spy satellites that had inadvertently listened into 15 pay-per-view porn orders from cable subscribers in Omaha, revealed that U.S. subs have been violating Chinese territorial waters […]

No Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by Mark

Friday, December 30th, 2005

More Quotes of the Year…

…from Ann Althouse, including this gem:
“What are you, some redneck blogger pig?”– Claire Fisher on “Six Feet Under” (to her boyfriend, when he defended the war in Iraq)
That’s good stuff; I’m glad I’m not one of tho- hey, wait a minute!
I represent that remark…

No Comments » - Posted in Linky Love by Mark

Friday, December 30th, 2005

What Presidential Hopeful Had The Best (and Worst) 2005?

Chris Cillizza’s WaPo blog is becoming an essential resource for political junkies. Today, he looks back on ‘05 as it related to 2008 hopefuls. Read the whole post, but his best and worst I would largely agree with: Mark Warner and Bill Frist.
What about the worst, on the Democratic side? I would […]

6 Comments » - Posted in Mark Warner, Bill Frist, Rudy Giuliani, Republican Candidates, Democratic Candidates, Election 2008 by Mark

Friday, December 30th, 2005

Breaking: Justice to Investigation NSA Leak

Can’t find a link yet, but the Justice Department has announced it will investigate the leak of the NSA eavesdropping program. More later…
UPDATE 10:13 a.m.: From the Associated Press:
The Justice Department has opened an investigation into the leak of classified information about President Bush’s secret domestic spying program, Justice officials said Friday.
The officials, who […]

27 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by Mark

Friday, December 30th, 2005

Predictions Abound

NRO and the Anchoress have a look ahead at the year that will be…
My predictions? Decision ‘08 will surpass Daily Kos to become the most popular political blog. Howard Dean will resign as head of the DNC and take over as head of PETA. Bono will quit U2 and join the Backstreet Boys, […]

5 Comments » - Posted in Navel-Gazing by Mark

Friday, December 30th, 2005

The Wild and Wacky Quantum World

Dennis Overbye, author of the excellent Einstein In Love, has a fascinating piece in the NY Times on the first experimental data to achieve the ‘cat’ state. Schrodinger would be so proud - or would he be chagrined? In any event, enlighten yourself and check out the link…

5 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by Mark

Friday, December 30th, 2005

The Year in Quotations…

…from the Washington Post. My favorite:
“Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt, Matt, you don’t even — you’re glib. You don’t even know what Ritalin is. If you start talking about chemical imbalance, you have to evaluate and read the research papers on how they came up with these theories, Matt, okay? That’s what I’ve done. […]

No Comments » - Posted in Celebrities / Pop Culture / Sports by Mark

Thursday, December 29th, 2005

Bush Administration Tracked Web Surfing on Government Web Site…

…reads the hilarious Huffington Post headline, referring to the story I covered earlier. This dastardly technique is known as the ‘cookie’. And, in fact, here’s a blockbuster for you - Huff’n’Puff uses ‘em, too, and this blog, and virtually every site on the Internet. It’s been clear for quite some time that Huffington […]

No Comments » - Posted in Domestic Affairs, Progressive Nonsense / Nutroots® by Mark

Thursday, December 29th, 2005

If You Haven’t Already…

…please consider reading Michael Totten’s piece in L.A. Weekly on his visit to Libya. It’s an oddly moving account of the cultural, social, and political desperation that sets in under totalitarian regimes. Highest recommendation on this one…

No Comments » - Posted in Foreign Affairs by Mark

Thursday, December 29th, 2005

Speaking of Polls…

… - and we have been, haven’t we? - Chris Cillizza’s WaPo blog shows why, in his words, “polling is equal parts science and art”. Two pollsters, two party affiliations, same results, different interpretations. Read it and enlighten yourself, grasshopper…
A far more substantive poll is on the verge of being pretty much tossed, […]