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* Thank you for the courage of your convictions.By ROSS SNEYD, Associated Press Writer 4-20-07Vermont senators voted Friday to call for the impeachment of President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, saying their actions have raised "serious questions of constitutionality."The non-binding resolution was approved 16-9 without debate — all six Republicans in the chamber at the time and three Democrats voted against it.The resolution says Bush and Cheney's actions in the U.S. and abroad, including in Iraq, "raise serious questions of constitutionality, statutory legality, and abuse of the public trust.""I think it's going to have a tremendous political effect, a tremendous political effect on public discourse about what to do about this president," said James Leas, a vocal advocate of withdrawing troops from Iraq and impeaching Bush and Cheney.Vermont lawmakers earlier voted to demand an immediate troop withdrawal from Iraq in another non-binding resolution.Democratic House Speaker Gaye Symington has kept a similar resolution from reaching the floor in her chamber. She argued that an impeachment resolution would be partisan and divisive and that it would distract Washington from efforts to get the United States out of Iraq, which she says is more important.In the Senate, Republican Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie had opposed the resolution, but he was absent Friday. That left Democratic Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin in charge, and he immediately took up the measure.More than three dozen towns voted in favor of similar nonbinding impeachment resolutions at their annual town meetings in March. State lawmakers in Wisconsin and Washington have pushed for similar resolutions.

A Steve Bell Cartoon © Steve Bell, The Guardian, UK, 20.04.07Mr. Bell missed AG Alberto Gonzales. His position,too, is precarious. Nicknamed Fredo by the president, in his appearance before the Senate Judicial Committee on April 19th, the attorney general gave the impression that he belonged to a home for mentally deficient rather than being at the helm of the Department of Justice. The president's efforts to win support for his pet war are not resonating with the American public. Time for circling the wagons but the White House is running out of them.Fredo on the RopesDana Milbank in The Washington PostGonzales had weeks to prepare for yesterday's hearing. But the man who sat at the witness table sounded like the sort of person who forgets where he parked his car.Explaining his role in the botched firing of federal prosecutors, Gonzales uttered the phrase "I don't recall" and its variants ("I have no recollection," "I have no memory") 64 times. Along the way, his answer became so routine that a Marine in the crowd put down his poster protesting the Iraq war and replaced it with a running "I don't recall" tally.Take Gonzales's tally along with that of his former chief of staff, who uttered the phrase "I don't remember" 122 times before the same committee three weeks ago, and the Justice Department might want to consider handing out Ginkgo biloba in the employee cafeteria. Comments Anonymous — 2007-04-20 Great cartoon! You're right, though... Fredo should have been included. Even more ridiculous than Gonzales' idiotic display is our President's RESPONSE to it! I couldn't believe this: http://www.thenewsroom.com/details/226138/US

At least 33 people, including the gunman, dead at Virginia Technical University, Blacksburg, VA. There were two separate incidents -- two were shot dead in the first incident and 31 in the second. It is yet to be confirmed if the same gun man was involved in both.We know what the NRA would say about this deadliest mass shooting in American history......."Guns don't kill people, People Do".Yes, but how many people the killer would have succeeded in murdering with a sword, knife, or a stick ?Guns make it easier to kill, don't they ? But nothing is going to change. Guns will continue to be easily available, and they will be used again and again in killings.

The non-existent stockpile of WMD in Iraq is going to be back in the headlines. Not welcome news for the warrior in the White House. According to Al Kamen's column in today's Post, the Presidential Medal of Freedom has not deterred former CIA director George Tenet from writing about what went on behind the scenes and his role in the neocons' war against Iraq. Some people in the Bush Administration are going to be unhappy; they emerge smelling bad. Not that Tenet's revelations were needed; they were rotten eggs to begin with. "The drums have begun sounding for the long-awaited book by former CIA director George Tenet, in which he gives his take on pre-9/11 days and on Saddam's huge cache of weapons of mass destruction."Excerpts:And the drums are saying that Tenet is not going to get too many Christmas cards from Vice President Cheney's office after they read "At the Center of the Storm." Folks from down the river at the Pentagon, including former deputy secretary of defense Paul Wolfowitz-- a guy who's already going through a rough patch -- and former defense undersecretary Douglas Feith, might also get some heartburn.Former secretary of state Colin Powell comes out fine. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who was President Bush's key adviser in engineering the Iraq invasion, doesn't come out so fine. Not fine at all.The White House definitely won't be overjoyed, we're hearing. Tenet even takes some shots at himself and for the first time explains his astute assurance that "it's a slam-dunk case" when Bush asked him how solid the WMD evidence was.Tenet has never really explained his views on that comment. The 500-page book -- or more likely his "60 Minutes" interview on April 29, the day before the book goes on sale -- will be the first time he goes over that.Tenet, who ran the CIA from July 1997 to July 2004, did the first of two days of taping last week at Georgetown University, where he's teaching. * Casualties in IraqThe number of dead American soldiers went past 3300. The latest figure is 3303 including 55 in the first 15 days of April.

* Hypocrites, Prayers and Cold Showers * Mr. Wolfowitz in Stormy WatersNot many will be surprised by conclusion of a national study about sex and teenagers. The "abstinence only" program was another pipe dream of conservative Christian groups embraced by the president who had, in his own words, committed "youthful indiscretions". It does not work. It never did. But don't expect them to stop the claptrap. To them "condom" is a dirty word; they are opposed to comprehensive sex education. Washington Post: "A long-awaited national study has concluded that abstinence-only sex education, a cornerstone of the Bush administration's social agenda, does not keep teenagers from having sex. Neither does it increase or decrease the likelihood that if they do have sex, they will use a condom.""Comprehensive education means teaching about abstinence and a myriad of other topics," said spokeswoman Martha Kempner. Among them, she said: "contraception, critical thinking, one's own values and the values of your family and your religious community."Abstinence-only was an experiment and it failed."Spit on the Comb, Paul WolfowitzA stalwart of the team that gave us the war in Iraq is in a scandal. Paul Wolfowitz, who became president of the World Bank two years ago, is facing calls for resignation because of his role in awarding a huge pay raise for his girlfriend. After reading about it, a friend commented: "Doesn't it kill you that it's always these damn self-righteous right wingers like him and Gingrich, to name just two, who are so quick to attack others for their ethics when their integrity is no better?"World Bank President Paul D. Wolfowitz personally dictated the terms under which the bank gave what it called his "domestic partner" substantial pay raises and promotions in exchange for temporarily leaving her job there during his tenure, according to documents released by the bank's executive board yesterday.

Salute to Kurt Vonnegut (November 11, 1922 – April 11, 2007)Excerpt from Slaughterhouse Five,Or The Children's Crusade: A Duty Dance With Death"All this happened, more or less. The war parts, anyway, are pretty much true. One guy I knew really was shot in Dresden for taking a teapot that wasn't his. Another guy I knew really did threaten to have his personal enemies killed by hired gunmen after the war. And so on. I've changed all the names.I really did go back to Dresden with Guggenheim money (God love it) in 1967. It looked a lot like Dayton, Ohio, more open spaces than Dayton has. There must be tons of human bone meal in the ground.I went back there with an old war buddy, Bernard V. O'Hare, and we made friends with a cab driver, who took us to the slaughterhouse where we had been locked up at night as prisoners of war. His name was Gerhard Müller. He told us that he was a prisoner of the Americans for a while. We asked him how it was to live under Communism, and he said that it was terrible at first, because everybody had to work so hard, and because there wasn't much shelter or food or clothing. But things were much better now. He had a pleasant little apartment, and his daughter was getting an excellent education. His mother was incinerated in the Dresden fire-storm. So it goes.He sent O'Hare a postcard at Christmastime, and here is what it said:"I wish you and your family also as to your friend Merry Christmas and a happy New Year and I hope that we'll meet again in a world of peace and freedom in the taxi cab if the accident will."I like that very much: "If the accident will."I would hate to tell you what this lousy little book cost me in money and anxiety and time. When I got home from the Second World War twenty-three years ago, I thought it would be easy for me to write about the destruction of Dresden, since all I would have to do would be to report what I had seen. And I thought, too, that it would be a masterpiece or at least make me a lot of money, since the subject was so big.But not many words about Dresden came from my mind then -- not enough of them to make a book, anyway. And not many words come now, either, when I have become an old fart with his memories and his Pall Malls, with his sons full grown.I think of how useless the Dresden part of my memory has been, and yet how tempting Dresden has been to write about, and I am reminded of the famous limerick:There was a young man from Stamboul, Who soliloquized thus to his tool: "You took all my wealth And you ruined my health, And now you won't pee, you old fool."And I'm reminded, too, of the song that goes:My name is Yon Yonson, I work in Wisconsin, I work in a lumbermill there. The people I meet when I walk down the street, They say, "What's your name?" And I say, My name is Yon Yonson, I work in Wisconsin..."And so on to infinity.Over the years, people I've met have often asked me what I'm working on, and I've usually replied that the main thing was a book about Dresden.I said that to Harrison Starr, the movie-maker, one time, and he raised his eyebrows and inquired, "Is it an anti-war book?""Yes," I said. "I guess.""You know what I say to people when I hear they're writing anti-war books?""No. What do you say, Harrison Starr?""I say, 'Why don't you write an anti-glacier book instead?' "What he meant, of course, was that there would always be wars, that they were as easy to stop as glaciers. I believe that, too.And even if wars didn't keep coming like glaciers, there would still be plain old death."© Dell Publishing Comments Anonymous — 2007-04-14 Hey Rena, It is said to see Kurt go, but it's nice to see him go on his own terms. Were it not for this Imus suicide watch, I am sure Kurt would have gotten the coverage he deserved. Yet, my sense is that he would give it up it in a second, if asked, to see Imus removed from his microphone.

©MusafirRainy morning in April. The weather forecast turned out to be right. Woke up to sound of rain.Don't know why I pulled out an old cassette of Kurt Weil's music. But Ute Lemper is a pleasure to listen to. Others have recorded Weil's songs -- I know of Lotte Lenya and Marianne Faithful. They are good; not as good as Ute Lemper.Kurt Weil did not write about the war in Iraq but "Oh show me the way to the next whiskey bar/ oh don't ask why/ oh don't ask why/ for we must find the next whiskey bar/ for if we don't find the next whiskey bar/ I tell you we must die..." made me think of the soldiers dying there.. The wounded don't receive much publicity ; 45 dead so far in this cruel month of April. Among them 20-year old David N. Simmons, 20, Army Private 1st Class, of Kokomo,Indiana. The deaths have no effect whatsoever on Bush and Cheney. John McCain has decided that his success in the 2008 presidential election lies in being an out and out supporter of the war. Then there is Joseph Lieberman. Do they sleep well at night?See: Three Generals Spurn the Position of War 'Czar' (Washington Post) *The War's "trickle down" EffectIt was inevitable. The billons of dollars being spent to continue the president's pet war are beginning to impact local and State government programs which depend on Federal aid. "DENVER — The cost of the Iraq war is filtering down to state and local budgets, forcing cuts in transportation funding, Medicaid, education and other federally subsidized programs, according to analysts and lawmakers."Summit Daily News April 8, 2007ExcerptsJust how big that impact has been is unclear. What state lawmakers do say is that the $456 billion already spent or appropriated for the war could have gone a long way toward helping them balance their own budgets.In Colorado, lawmakers expect to lose about $200 million in federal funding for the next fiscal year, forcing the state to cut back on programs that receive federal money.“These are funds that we aren’t going to receive. Low Energy Assistance Program, $9.8 million, gone. Head Start, $3.7 million, gone. Child Care and Development Block Grant, $1.1 million. Community Development Block Grant, $13.5 million. Special Ed, $8.8 million,” House Majority Leader Alice Madden, D-Boulder, said during a debate Thursday over a state resolution opposing the escalation of the war in Iraq. * According to the Colorado Municipal League, Bush’s proposed 2008 budget includes only a 1 percent increase in nonmilitary and homeland security programs.The league said the budget proposal cuts Community Development Block Grants nationwide by $735 million, education by $1.5 billion, the Individuals with Disabilities Education act by $291 million, and $107 million from Head Start. Social Services block grants would be cut nearly in half to $1.2 billion, and Low Income Heating and Energy Assistance would see a $400 million cut.The league said funding for the Department of Homeland Security would be slashed, including a 63 percent cut for training and exercises, while federal assistance to state and local law enforcement would be cut by more than half. The Clean Water State Revolving Fund would be cut $312 million over the previous year.Sen. Moe Keller, D-Wheat Ridge, said 24 hospitals in Colorado risk losing federal funding after Bush issued an executive order changing the definition of public hospitals to reduce Medicaid spending, cutting $128 million in federal aid that could force a major hospital in Denver to close. The Colorado Legislature is debating a resolution asking Bush to restore that funding.Keller said the state also is losing about $48 million in federal funds for transportation, money the state was promised.She said the cost of the war is trickling down to local governments, with cuts to federal funding for homeland security.“We’re bearing the brunt of the federal cuts. There’s no other reason than the war,” Keller said. Comments Adam — 2009-04-25 Hey, you should check out Ute Lemper's new album Between Yesterday and Tomorrow . It has a lot of political "imagery" and is great listening. Also you may want to check out Ute's YouTube Channel for video clips (posted every other day). Marjorie — 2009-04-30 Adam- Listened to your recommendation and i loved it!! It's beautiful. I want to go to a concert!

*The Holy Week ended. Perhaps the only good news was the release of the 15 British sailors and marines by Iran. The war in Iraq and its terrible toll (3275 U.S. soldiers and countless Iraqis dead) have become major concerns for Americans. The unjust war that our nation was conned into cries out for an end. But not going to happen. The neocons hatched the plot for war long before 9/11. Bush, Cheney and others put it into action when Americans were in shock and vulnerable. Now they will not, cannot, admit their role in the mess that they created. Many more will die.Further reading:Cheney Sticks to His DelusionsHow Bogus Letter Became a Case for WarThe Secret Downing Street Memo *Baghdad, of course, has become a familiar name to Americans. But other Iraqi cities in the theatre of war (Fallujah, Najaf, Mosul, Kirkuk, Balad,Bequba, Basra, Samarra among them) are not that well known. Came across poems by American soldier Brian Turner in NPR's web site.Ashbah The ghosts of American soldiers wander the streets of Balad by night, unsure of their way home, exhausted, the desert wind blowing trash down the narrow alleys as a voice sounds from the minaret, a soulfull call reminding them how alone they are, how lost. And the Iraqi dead, they watch in silence from rooftops as date palms line the shore in silhouette, leaning toward Mecca when the dawn wind blows. * Najaf 1820 Camel caravans transport the dead from Persia and beyond, their bodies dried and wrapped in carpets, their dying wishes to be buried near Ali, where the first camel dragged Ali's body across the desert tied to the fate of its exhaustion. Najaf is where the dead naturally go, where the gates of Paradise open before them in unbanded light, the blood washed clean from their bodies. It is November, the clouds made of gunpowder and rain, the earth pregnant with the dead; cemetery mounds stretching row by row with room enough yet for what the years will bring: the gravediggers need only dig, shovel by shovel.From Here, Bullet. Copyright 2005 by Brian Turner.List of soldiers who died in Iraq in the first 7 days of April.Jason R. Arnette, 24, Army Staff Sergeant, Apr 01, 2007William G. Bowling, 24, Army Specialist, Apr 01, 2007Robert M. McDowell, 30, Army Sergeant, Apr 01, 2007David A. Mejias, 26, Army Staff Sergeant, Apr 01, 2007Eric R. Vick, 25, Army Staff Sergeant, Apr 01, 2007Miguel A. Marcial III, 19, Marine Private 1st Class, Apr 01, 2007Brian E. Ritzberg, 24, Army Specialist, Apr 02, 2007Curtis R. Spivey, 25, Army Specialist, Apr 02, 2007Bradley D. King, 28, Army National Guard Sergeant, Apr 02, 2007Daniel R. Olsen, 20, Marine Lance Corporal, Apr 02, 2007Shane R. Becker, 35, Army Staff Sergeant, Apr 03, 2007Gabriel J. Figueroa, 20, Army Private 1st Class, Apr 03, 2007Jerry Clark Burge Jr., 39, Army Staff Sergeant, Apr 04, 2007James J. Coon, 22, Army Private 1st Class, Apr 04, 2007Jason A. Shaffer, 28, Army Specialist, Apr 05, 2007Anthony Palermo JR., 27, Army Captain, Apr 06, 2007Joseph C. Schwedler, 27, Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class, Apr 06, 2007 ©iCasualties.org

Guns and ButterIt is that time of the year. April 17, the deadline for filing tax returns, is nagging those who have yet to begin the process. Of course, there are those who filed early and already got their refunds -- lucky them.As President Bush and Congress face off over appropriations for his pet war, cover of The New Yorker, (copied below) reminds us where our money --- a great chunk of it goes. When it comes to Defense budgets we are Number 1, unquestionably the 500 lb. gorilla towering over the rest of the world. Some interesting facts:The US Department of Defense has submitted its FY 2007 budget request for $439.3 billion. This is 7% more than the FY 2006 request, but slightly less than the $441.5 billion eventually appropriated by Congress in the FY 2006 budget. (Source: Defense Industry Daily)How does it compare against other nations? Back in 2005, it was reported in Jane's Defence Industry Weekly:Defence expenditure in the US will equal that of the rest of the world combined within 12 months, making it "increasingly pressing" for European contractors to develop a "closer association" with the US, corporate finance group PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) says.Take a look at major member nations of the European Union. The numbers (in US Dollars) were reported in February 2005.Institute for Security Studies, European UnionUnited Kingdom 49 Billion - Percentage of GDP 2.4 (2003)France 40 Billion - Percentage of GDP 2.6Germany 29.7 - Percentage of GDP 1.5Italy 17.5 - Percentage of GDP 1.9Total for 15 European Union member countries was 126.94.Percentage of GDP for the United States was 3.7 *

*The battle over the Iraq appropriations bill is heating up. President Bush has made it clear that he intends to veto it. And the strategy for winning public support will be to emphasize the pork included in the bill (see below). True that one man's pork could mean bread on the table for another. However, even as a supporter of troop withdrawal deadlines I feel uncomfortable about some of the "other spending measures". While the American public has become tired of the war and lost faith in the president, how will the veto play out is a question mark. Democrats are not likely to be able to muster the two-thirds majority to override it.Washington PostReid pushed the war spending bill through on a largely party-line 51 to 47 vote yesterday. The measure would fund operations in Iraq and Afghanistan but also require Bush to begin withdrawing combat troops from Iraq within four months, with the goal of a pullout by the end of next March.The bill includes billions of dollars for domestic priorities, such as Hurricane Katrina aid and agricultural disaster relief, as well as $100 million for security at the 2008 Republican and Democratic conventions -- a widely mocked provision that critics tried to strike from the measure.The dueling events on opposite ends of Pennsylvania Avenue left the executive and legislative branches hurtling toward a high-stakes collision, with neither side showing signs of backing down. Both sides, in fact, appear to be relishing the confrontation to some extent, gambling that they can outmaneuver the other, galvanize the most passionate forces within their parties, win over public opinion and force an eventual resolution on their terms.© Associated PressIf the chart appears too small, go to: CNN.comOverriding Presidential VetoOverride of a veto - The process by which each chamber of Congress votes on a bill vetoed by the President. To pass a bill over the President's objections requires a two-thirds vote in each Chamber. Historically, Congress has overridden fewer than ten percent of all presidential vetoes.