2007 October » Adamcat

Rudy on torture

Oct 272007

From the Washington Monthly:

The Washington Monthly: “RUDY ON WATERBOARDING….Rudy Giuliani on whether waterboarding is torture:

It depends on how it’s done. It depends on the circumstances. It depends on who does it.

Italics mine. So that’s that: when bad guys torture, it’s bad. When good guys torture, it’s good. Apparently that’s the modern Republican Party’s version of moral clarity.

Earlier today, Josh Marshall suggested that this kind of thing feeds into Rudy’s popularity:

For all his problems of temperament, authoritarianism, ignorance and general ridiculousness, I know most people don’t see him that way. The sheen of 9/11 is real for Rudy. And many otherwise sensible people see him as a generally moderate guy on social policy who couldn’t be as stupid as Bush in managing the country’s foreign policy but would still be ready to kick some ass to keep everyone safe. He’s the only one of their crew who could put even a few reliably Democratic states into play.”

(Via .)

Love letter from the Bike Snob

NYC No Responses »

Oct 252007

From a local bike blog I just discovered…..

The Indignity of Commuting By Bicycle: Notes on a Scandal:

Dear SUV Driver,

As I approached, your door flew open and remained agape for what seemed like an eternity. I then passed and witnessed what I can only imagine will be the closest thing I’ll ever see to a live whale birth as you grasped each side of the door opening and attempted to extricate yourself from the vehicle. I thought perhaps you might be with child, however your gender leads me to rule that out. I pray that the vehicle eventually relinquished you from its handsomely-appointed interior and that you were not consigned to a Jonah-esque fate. I also suggest that in future you request a street closure in advance of your arrival so that you can flail and wriggle unmolested by traffic. Or at least consider some flares and cones.

That’s an understatement!

NYC No Responses »

Oct 242007

Five hurt as errant car wrecks bus shelter:

“She drives, but she’s not that good,” he said.

Sunday Forum: Two problems with torture

Current, Politics No Responses »

Oct 242007

I really hope that one day, George Bush and Dick Cheney are held accountable for legitimizing/encouraging torture by the United States.

Sunday Forum: Two problems with torture:

It’s wrong and it doesn’t work, according to interrogation expert STUART HERRINGTON
I served 30 years in the U.S. Army as an intelligence officer, which included extensive experience as an interrogator in Vietnam, in Panama and during the 1991 Gulf War. In the course of these sensitive missions, my teams and I collected mountains of excellent, verified information, despite the fact that we never laid a hostile hand on a prisoner. Had one of my interrogators done so, he would have been disciplined and most likely relieved of his duties.

Guiliani

Politics No Responses »

Oct 242007

From the Washington Monthly:

Rudy Awakening:
Choosing the best presidential candidate among the 2008 contenders is a tough job. Picking the worst is easy. Rudy Giuliani is the guy you’d get if you put George Bush and Dick Cheney into a wine press and squeezed out their pure combined essence: unbounded arrogance and self-righteousness, a chip on his shoulder the size of a redwood, a studied contempt for anybody’s opinion but his own, a vindictive streak a mile wide, and a devotion to secrecy and executive power unmatched in presidential history. He is a disaster waiting to happen.

True, true. We can only hope that the religious right stick to their principles and refuse to vote for a pro-choice pro-gay candidate.