In dozens of letters spanning 66 years, Mother Teresa described the "emptiness" she felt and confessed her struggles with faith and the existence of heaven in pages she had planned to have destroyed."What do I labour for? If there be no God -- there can be no soul -- if there is no Soul then Jesus -- You also are not true."
Good question, Sergeant
BAGHDAD -- In the east Baghdad strongholds of the Al Mahdi militia, U.S. efforts to weaken ties between the militant Shiite Muslim group and the Shiite population are falling short, say American soldiers assigned to carry out the plan. .. "They want to have the militia here," said one experienced noncommissioned officer who has served multiple tours in Iraq. "So, why are we here?"
Whack-a-mole
This year’s U.S. troop buildup has succeeded in briging violence in Baghdad down from peak levels, but the death toll from sectarian attacks around the country is running nearly double the pace from a year ago.[Whack-a-mole]
The U.S. is 1 of 8 Nations
As of March 2007, 185 nations had signed the international “Treaty for the Rights of Women”, leaving the United States as one of eight nations in the world and the only industrialized nation that hasn’t signed it. The only other nations that haven’t yet signed it are Sudan, Somalia, Qatar, Iran, Nauru, Palau and Tonga.
But, we let our women vote
Eighty-seven years ago today, on August 26, 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, was ratified.
'The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.'
It's an embarrassment to this country that it took 133 years and 19 Amendments to do what should been done from the very start wthout even being questioned.
The Terminator
Making good on a promise to trim the state budget, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger eliminated a $55-million program Friday that advocates say has helped thousands of mentally ill homeless people break the costly cycle of hospitalization, jails and street life.Parting shot
The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is expected to suggest a reduction in the U.S. troop level in Iraq next year by almost half, according to a Friday report in the Los Angeles Times. Gen. Peter Pace will make the recommendation to President Bush, the report says ... Pace's advice to Mr. Bush could directly challenge a report being prepared by the senior U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus ...And they're still good buddies
Pakistan, one of George Bush's stalwart allies in the "War on Terror," gave substantial military support to the Taliban in the years leading up to 9/11, according to newly released documents. Obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by George Washington University's National Security Archive, the documents provide a striking contrast to the Administration's portrayal of Pakistan. They show that Pakistan not only supplied arms and troops to train and fight alongside the extremist group.
Wow, did he say that?
"I just would assume that if it goes through the White House, they will take it and do what they, you know — I’m sure they will probably tweak it."[Those guys from Virginia are sure coming around, aren't they? Can anyone say, 'George Allen'?]
We'll just put them all in jail
WASHINGTON, Aug. 24 — The number of detainees held by the American-led military coalition in Iraq has swelled by 50 percent under the troop increase ordered by President Bush, with the inmate population growing from 16,000 in February to 24,500 today, according to American military officers in Iraq. Nearly 85 percent of the detainees in custody are Sunni Arabs ...
'From across the country'
ST. LOUIS -- Nathan Hubbard came from a family of soldiers that had already lost one son to the war. Ricky Bell was due to fly home in less than a month. Michael Hook couldn't wait to get back to the states -- his fiancee is pregnant. They were among 14 U.S. soldiers aboard a Black Hawk helicopter when it crashed Wednesday in northern Iraq. The military said it appeared the aircraft was lost due to mechanical problems. There were no survivors. The 14 came from across the country: California, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington. Some were based in Hawaii; others in Washington state.
Surrender Monkey
"Senator John Warner, veteran of wars past and longtime Republican of Virginia, today called on President Bush to issue a strong signal to the Iraqi government by withdrawing a small contingent of American troops home around Christmastime.And he's obnoxious, too
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Jim Cramer's stock picks on his nightly CNBC show "Mad Money" haven't beaten the market over the past two years, according to an article in the August 20 edition of Barron's.Not an option
MOSCOW: Scientists in a Russian provincial capital say they may have unearthed the remains of two of Czar Nicholas II's children, hoping to solve one of the enduring mysteries surrounding the start of the Bolshevik Revolution. An archaeologist in the city, Yekaterinburg, said clues left by a leader of the assassins of the czar and his family had led investigators to a roadside makeshift grave where they found the possible remains of the czar's son, Aleksei, and one of his daughters.
That's big of them
WASHINGTON: Army Secretary Pete Geren on Thursday ruled out extending U.S. troop deployments beyond the current 15 months, saying that longer tours in Iraq put stress on soldiers and their families, and have contributed to an increase in suicides.
The Limbaugh Award
This week's pick for the prestigious, but infamous, award for lying, was pretty easy. The 'committee', always ones to look for time to relax, picked Karl 'Turd Blossom' Rove last Sunday to be the 26th winner, and we all took the rest of the week off.
Rove appeared on both Fox News Sunday and Meet The Press last week and Chris Wallace and David Gregory, who was filling in for Tim Russert, threw their obligatory softball questions at Rove. And of course, Rove did his usual, bob and weave around anything incriminating, e.g., Valerie Plame ...
But, as John Nichols of The Nation points out, Gregory at least followed-up Rove's interview with Matt Cooper, the Time Warner reporter who testified before the Grand Jury that it was Rove who told him about Plame.
MATT COOPER: Yeah, I, I think he was dissembling, to put it charitably. Look, Karl Rove told me about Valerie Plame's identity on July 11th, 2003. [Bob Novak's article was July 14, 2003] I called him because Ambassador Wilson was in the news that week. I didn't know Ambassador Wilson even had a wife until I talked to Karl Rove and he said that she worked at the agency and she worked on WMD. I mean, to imply that he didn't know about it or that this was all the leak...by someone else, or he heard it as some rumor out in the hallway is, is nonsense.There it is, Turd Blossom. You treasonous piece of shit ... You outed a covert CIA agent who was working on Iran's nuclear proliferation and you're still a hero to 'conservatives' (sic)?
You're despicable, and congratulations, you're also the 26th winner of the Limbaugh Award.
Past winners of the prestigious, but infamous,
Limbaugh Award
The Exterminator - Tom Delay - 8/19/07
Big 'Rooster' - Mitt Romney - 8/12/07
Total Suck Up - Glenn Beck - 8/5/07
General Gonzo - Alberto Gonzales - 7/29/07
Pro Liar - Tony 'Snowjob' Snow - 7/22/07
Bush bin Lyin - George W. Bush - 7/15/07
Freed Felon - Scooter Libby - 7/8/07
Mr. Overrated - Rudy Giuliani - 7/1/07
Crazy Lying Okie - James Inhofe - 6/24/07
Pro Liar - Tony 'Snowjob' Snow - 6/17/07
Mormon Moron - Mitt Romney - 6/10/07
Bye Week - 6/3/07
Commander Guy - George W. Bush - 5/27/07
Pat's Brother - Bay Buchanan - 5/20/07
Used Car Salesman - John Boehner - 5/13/07
Uncultured Wussy - Bill O'Reilly - 5/6/07
Mr. Overrated - Rudy Giuliani - 4/29/07
Turd Blossom - Karl Rove - 4/22/07
The Decider - George W. Bush - 4/15/07
Lying Chickenhawk VP - Dick Cheney - 4/8/07
Mr. Straight Talk - John McCain - 4/1/07
Attorney General - Alberto Gonzales - 3/25/07
Fox mouthpieces Sean Hannity and
Victoria Toensing - 3/18/07
Fox News guy - Brit Hume - 3/11/07
VA Secretary - Jim Nicholson - 3/4/07
Rep. Michele Bachmann - (R-MN) - 2/25/07
