Thursday, January 4, 2007
Looking over at yahoo news for some inspiration (hehe) and found this:
Ouch. That's about all i can say to that. Of course, the democrats could really suprise me for the next two years, but I highly doubt it. The incoming congress just has too many differences of opinion with me for me to be too highly optimistic. They may do some good with earmarks (which would be very good) but not much else seems hopeful. They will undoubtedly spend their time with investigations and subpoenas instead of legislation.Democrats take control of Congress
AP - 1 hour, 30 minutes agoWASHINGTON - In a day of ceremony and historic change, Rep. Nancy Pelosi became the nation's first female House speaker on Thursday as Democrats eagerly took control of Congress for the final two years of President Bush's term.
To be fair, I don't think the democratic congress could get much done even if they do try. Not much of their agenda would be friendly to the remaining republicans or the President. That means vetoes and not enough votes to override them.
Other news:
Seems the local news of importance is:
Saban says yes
University of Alabama head coach Nick Saban receives a kiss from Colette Connell, of Tuscaloosa, as he is mobbed by Alabama fans at the Tuscaloosa Regional Airport on Wednesday. (Michael E. Palmer/Tuscaloosa News)
TUSCALOOSA -- After ending the 2006 season without a coach and with a 6-7 record, Alabama already has its first big win of 2007.
On Wednesday, after more than five weeks of searching, the Crimson Tide found a coach to replace the fired Mike Shula. Former LSU and Miami Dolphins coach Nick Saban accepted the job and
Some good news from the WhiteHouse: (of course he will have to pass a democratic Senate)
While I hate to see John Bolton leave without even a confirmation hearing from the Senate (maybe the Massachusetts Supreme Court could rule on whether the Senate followed their congressional duties^^), Khalilzad is a great one to appoint to the post. Assuming that he does indeed get confirmed, he will work well with the incoming Speaker (Ban-Kim) hopefully in implementing the reforms promised by Kofi and pushed by Bolton.Bush to Nominate Khalilzad for U.N. Job
Khalilzad, who is Afghan born, has served also as ambassador to Afghanistan. He is likely to be replaced in Baghdad by Ryan Crocker, a veteran American diplomat, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to make an announcement for the White House.By BARRY SCHWEID, AP Diplomatic Writer 23 minutes ago
WASHINGTON - Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, will be nominated by President Bush to become the U.S. envoy to the United Nations, a senior administration official said Thursday.
Khalilzad would replace John Bolton, whose appointment to the U.N. job expired recently.
The United Nations is a vast diplomatic meeting place, but that is about it. If they ever hope to actually wield the power that France and most of Europe think they do, then they will need a complete overhaul. When the 'world body' issues a sanction or calls for action, instead of everyone lining up to toe the line, most people in the world yawn.
Unless it is talking about the U.S. or Israel; most of the U.N. dialogue is full of empty threats and/or promises that will not be followed through. The Iran sanctions are no better or worse than the promises made to Dafur, but they are just as empty.
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Reason amongst the dhimmikrauts
Labels: coaching changes, college sports, congress, democrats, Local, U.N.
posted by Lord Nazh @ 18:00 | View blog reactions
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Friday, December 15, 2006
Poor Kofi. One of the reasons might be the way he describes the situation "...I leave office with the (Israeli) occupation...". This type of rhetoric might actually be harmful to the peace process as it indicates that you have already taken sides and aren't interested in a 'fair' deal.
Annan 'very sad' he couldn't resolve ME conflict
Outgoing United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan expressed great sadness on Friday that he couldn't help resolve the Israel-Palestinian conflict during his term of office.
"It is with great personal sadness that I leave office with the (Israeli) occupation now in its 40th year," he said in a message to a UN-backed conference on Palestine on Friday.
Annan called on all parties involved in the conflict as well as the international community to redouble their efforts to put the Middle East peace process back on track. (link)
Of course, this is the same idiot that allowed Dafur to rage on his watch, took part in the oil-for-food scandal and cashed in to the tune of millions of dollars in pension. Sad isn't something I expect Kofi to feel more than a week out. After that, he'll feel like any other criminal who got away with it. Of all the people in the world, this one man probably set back the poor and disenfranchised the most in history.
So forgive me if I have no pity for Kofi and his sadness, if he wants real sadness, he should take a trip to some of the places that his U.N. tried to 'save'.
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Reason amongst the swindlers
Labels: criminals, Middle East, U.N.
posted by Lord Nazh @ 06:38 | View blog reactions
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Thursday, December 14, 2006
As you can see, people from both sides of the aisle and even those on the fence are writing about the Senator. Some people do indeed write about the outcome if he doesn't get better, but on the most part it's all about support. Everyone continue to pray for Mr. Johnson and his family.
TMZ reports on the Miss America situation:
Miss USA Dethroned?
TMZ has learned that officials from the Miss USA pageant will make a "major announcement" today and may strip reigning Miss USA Tara Conner of her title due to inappropriate behavior.
Sources tell TMZ that executives from the Miss USA organization and NBC (which broadcasts the pageant) met Tuesday to discuss Conner and alleged incidents of her inappropriate behavior, including her conduct at New York City bars. While no one from the pageant would comment on the rumored troubles, several sources tell TMZ that a big announcement is expected some time Thursday. According to these sources, officials are extremely unhappy with the current Miss USA's conduct in public. (link)
Later in the article they have updates where 'the Don' states that Miss America is not being dethroned and they will work with her to fix her behavioral situations. This would be the 2nd Miss America dethroned that I can remember, so slightly big news (if you follow M.A. at all).
Meanwhile in Rafah:
18 wounded as Hamas, Fatah, Egyptians clash at Rafah
Talkbacks for this article: 32 Eighteen people were wounded on Thursday night in renewed clashes at the Rafah border crossing, hours after Hamas gunmen tried to seize control of the terminal, on the Egypt-Gaza border. Witnesses said Hamas gunmen were firing at the Egyptian side of the border, drawing return fire from the Egyptians and presidential guards from Fatah. During the battle, masked gunmen in three cars and a bulldozer stormed the terminal, witnesses said. The gunmen went on a rampage inside the building, destroying computers and furniture inside and plunging the area into darkness, the witnesses said. Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh was still being held back from returning to the Gaza Strip just a couple of hours after Israel had given him permission to embark. (link) | Photo: AP |
The U.N. gets a new chief:
New U.N. leader Ban Ki-moon vows to restore trust
     | By Irwin Arieff UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - South Korea's Ban Ki-moon was sworn in as the eighth U.N. secretary-general on Thursday and vowed to restore trust in an institution tainted by scandal and a growing divide between rich and poor nations. The former South Korean foreign minister, 62, takes over on January 1, succeeding Ghanaian Kofi Annan, 68, who steps down at the end of the month after 10 years as U.N. leader. "You could say that I am a man on a mission. And my mission could be dubbed 'Operation Restore Trust': Trust in the organization and trust between member-states and the secretariat," Ban said. (link) |
Let's all hope he is much better than Kofi was at EVERYTHING. The U.N. is at the point where the easiest way to save it would be to dismantle the apparatus and start over. It couldn't be any worse than the things that go on there now. While the U.N. spent years condemning Israel in the M.E. and the U.S. for not saving the world, they let the tragedy in Dafur rage, they stole money from various countries/people (oil-for-food) and they continue to allow their 'peace' workers to rape young women all over the world.
There is not much that can be said that is good about the U.N. so I won't even try.
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Reason amongst the wild
Labels: Middle East, Miss America, Palestine, politics, senate, U.N.
posted by Lord Nazh @ 15:15 | View blog reactions
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