George Bush's perpetual smirk has recently got smirkier. After years of being booed and hissed at, folks were finally beginning to appreciate that he is really a nice guy.

Take this week, for instance. A reigning pop diva had composed a song especially for him. And what inspiring lyrics.

"Thank you for democracy
Thank you for the rule of law
Thank you for debt relief"

Ok, so it didn't rhyme, but it's the thought that counts. He witnessed rapturous crowds singing hosannas to him for his role on terror. They cheered his forward thinking foreign policy; they sang paeans to his magnanimous aid packages to less privileged nations; and they were in awe of his innovative trade agreements. Heck, one bloke high up in the government told him his popularity rating was up in the nineties.

When making a quick run to the store, pumping your gas or paying the bills, even I must admit the carefree swipe of a Visa Check Card can make life a little easier. My friends at Visa, however, have recently launched an ad campaign that seems to lend more to a growing problem in the United States than a technological luxury.

Perhaps you’ve seen the ads (one link is the title, and if that’s not enough, here’s another.) that makes the conventions of paying by cash or check seem clunky, inconvenient and almost socially unacceptable. Not only are you slowing everyone down around you in these ads – thus annoying the unending conga line of consumer behind you to no end – you’re killing the flowers (as witnessed in ad #2) and making a general ass of yourself.

Here's a report from a Lefty blog referencing another Lefty blog that references a Sunday Times of London report that says, and I quote, "(T)he Pentagon has drawn up plans for massive air strikes against 1,200 targets in Iran, designed to annihilate the Iranians’ military capability in three days." One can only wish.
 
Interestingly, the Lefty blog that's referenced had posted the following at the Daily Kos:
 

The Telegraph has laid out a long and detailed discussion of whether Bush is prepared to bomb Iran. To me, it seems just a case of contingency planning being leaked and then evaluated, which is not a bad thing in and of itself (the lead is, but not the evaluation). But, it should be remembered that such planning is on-going for nearly every conceivable possibility, and so the planning for a war with Iran would be just one of many.
 
It's a long piece, but worth the time. I won't quote anything here, because there's just too much to choose from. Give it a read.

Here's an interesting take on Iranian President Imajihadi (or whatever his name is) and his efforts in Iraq. The essential point of the commentary is that Imajihadi has failed in Iraq by not securing Basra, which holds 70% of Iraq's oil reserves and also maintains the port by which US troops would leave Iraq.
 
It's an interesting argument, and makes some sense. Read the story for yourself.
 
Before you do, though, note that the commentary also makes a fairly strong claim that Bush has essentially allied himself with Iran in Iraq, and backs it up with some marginally compelling evidence:
 

Bush amazes me sometimes. As President, heading into the summit of Pacific Rim leaders, I would expect him to take something of harsh stance, use his bully pulpit a bit. China has a horrible human rights record, has threatened the US with economic warfare, of a sort, has done little to control the piracy of US intellectual property, etc.
 
Here's the part that bothers me the most:
 

Via Little Green Footballs, check out the headline on this Time Magazine story: "Bush Motorcade Kills Cop." I mean, come on, you've got to be kidding me. How could they possibly have come up with such a headline by accident? It's not possible.
 
Of course, the officer in question crashed his motorcycle, and it's not yet known what exactly happened. But what does Time mean to imply, that the motorcade drove over the unfortunate soul? On purpose, maybe?

Just as a quick aside, I'll never understand this statistic:
 
Active duty deaths during Clinton's first four years (1993 - 1996): 4302
Active duty deaths during Bush's first four years (2001 - 2004): 5187
 
During Bush's first term (for better or worse) we toppled oppressive regimes in two countries, Afghanistan and Iraq. In Clinton's first four years we... well, what exactly did we do?
 
Please note that I consider even a single American death a tragedy. I just think it's interesting to put things into perspective.

A president often sets or reflects the tone of the country.

The tone changes the environment, sometimes subtly, sometimes harshly, sometimes almost not at all.

John F. Kennedy represented a tone of hope, and many of us were inspired to believe all things good were possible. His assassination crushed that hope. Cynicism and rebellion followed in its wake.

Our current administration has helped create a condition of paranoia. We are all affected by it. The number of people in uniforms barking out orders has increased. Fear in peoples' eyes, acceptance of violence as a solution to problems, restricting the rights of others -- all these things have increased remarkably.

Living in such an environment changes the way we relate to one another. The overall tone in America today is harsh, fearful, and increasingly polarized.

All the above affect me every day.

What about you?

- Arye Michael Bender -

The always sage, Baba Ram Dass (Richard Alpert) during the time of Watergate, once said that he admired Richard Milhaus Nixon.

When I asked why, he replied: In this great cosmic dance, imagine the courage of The Being inside Richard Nixon, acting to draw out all the hate from so many.

Same could be said for Bush.

So I offer compassion and forgiveness...

Just won't vote to elect another one.

- Arye Michael Bender -