US POLITICS FALL 2011: Uzbeki-beki-beki-beki-stan-stan

Symmetry.

good work.

this thread is about a new Eminem single, right

Someone should've told Cain "That's funny, like you calling that shit pizza."

No matter the season, some Dems know how to shoot themselves in the feet. This is regarding new details on last week's stupid proposal:

The new deficit-reduction plan from a majority of Democrats on the congressional Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (the “supercommittee”) marks a dramatic departure from traditional Democratic positions — and actually stands well to the right of plans by the co-chairs of the bipartisan Bowles-Simpson commission and the Senate’s “Gang of Six,” and even further to the right of the plan by the bipartisan Rivlin-Domenici commission.

http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=3605

neo-poli-poli-poli-tana-tana

I almost called the thread: "What, at this point, is the rationale of the Democratic Party?"

while in foreign policy:

the administration is also seeking to expand military ties with the six nations in the Gulf Cooperation Council — Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

Great. The US wants to associate with the the Gulf Cooperation Council, best known for going into Bahrain and crushing the protests there.

really, "some" Dems, curmudgeon? And they're not shooting themselves in the feet, they're shooting us in the head.

xxpost -- Maintaining oligarchy minus theocracy.

Today's NYT story gives the lie to us "leaving" Iraq. And no one mentions the private contractors who remain.

thx for the link

And no one mentions the private contractors who remain.

Of course not. That wouldn't be patriotic. Everyone who is there does so out of the goodness of their hearts.

same as in uganda

You're welcome!

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/30/world/middleeast/united-states-plans-post-iraq-troop-increase-in-persian-gulf.html?ref=middleeast

found it already, thx

The Obama administration plans to bolster the American military presence in the Persian Gulf after it withdraws the remaining troops from Iraq this year, according to officials and diplomats. That repositioning could include new combat forces in Kuwait able to respond to a collapse of security in Iraq or a military confrontation with Iran.

The plans, under discussion for months, gained new urgency after President Obama’s announcement this month that the last American soldiers would be brought home from Iraq by the end of December. Ending the eight-year war was a central pledge of his presidential campaign, but American military officers and diplomats, as well as officials of several countries in the region, worry that the withdrawal could leave instability or worse in its wake.

After unsuccessfully pressing both the Obama administration and the Iraqi government to permit as many as 20,000 American troops to remain in Iraq beyond 2011, the Pentagon is now drawing up an alternative.

How do these two sentences jibe? As presented in the article, it looks like the military is trying to convince the administration to leave troops in the area, not that the administration is looking to leave troops in the area, which seems to be a fairly important semantic difference.

A week or so ago there was talk that the military wanted to maintain a presence in Iraq but ONLY if troops were granted immunity from prosecution in Iraq

The issue of immunity is a major one for both sides. U.S. officials have insisted that they can't agree to leave American troops in Iraq unless they're protected from prosecution by Iraqi authorities

http://www.stripes.com/news/middle-east/iraq-says-it-s-asked-for-5-000-u-s-trainers-awaits-reply-1.157516

That's the problem – they don't. Then there's this: "That repositioning could include new combat forces in Kuwait able to respond to a collapse of security in Iraq or a military confrontation with Iran."

The administration's already thinking about a "military confrontation with Iran."

xpost to Dan

it would be criminally irresponsible for the administration NOT to think of a "military confrontation with Iran"

I almost called the thread: "What, at this point, is the rationale of the Democratic Party?"

― lumber up, limbaugh down (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, October 31, 2011 11:29 AM (20 minutes ago) Bookmark

this would've been better, since uzbeki-beki-beki BS should be in the 2012 GOP thread tbh

not like there's much separation at this point

x-post re Iran

Did you find their nukes Dan?

Obama could say no to the military but he hasn't

There's a difference between thinking about what might happen if Iran got feisty and feeding the perception, as this story does, that we're going to war with Iran soon.

I did not get the impression from that story that we are going to war with Iran soon.

Or rather, I did not get the impression from that story that the administration is looking for an excuse to go to war with Iran, would be the more accurate way of putting it.

Greenwald on that article:

American officials can announce with a straight face: we’re interfering further in this region in order to prevent “outside interference” in this region (from nations that are actually in that region). I don’t expect Hillary Clinton to point any of that out, but perhaps the New York Times might, rather than just publishing these laughable official decrees without comment.

http://www.salon.com/2011/10/31/middle_east_propaganda_101/singleton/

When you've got Iran encircled by U.S. forces, provocation is a trigger away.

Let's not forget the great love between Iran and Saudi Arabia.

the US is not eager to go to war with Iran, come on now

also lol at the implication that there are any circumstances under which we would not have troops in the middle east. once the US sends the military somewhere they STAY THERE. we've been there since Gulf War I and will be there indefinitely in some capacity.

US out of South Korea amirite

also lol at the implication that there are any circumstances under which we would not have troops in the middle east. once the US sends the military somewhere they STAY THERE.

No one disputes this. But the consequence is that the U.S. presence is a provocation, as the families of suicide bombers have said again and again.

we've been there since Gulf War I and will be there indefinitely in some capacity.

As Richard Dreyfuss as Dick Cheney as Doctor No said, "We're not leaving."

obama team's early thoughts about 2012 elections.

"What, at this point, is the rationale of the Democratic Party?"

https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/petitions#!/petition/actually-take-these-petitions-seriously-instead-just-using-them-excuse-pretend-you-are-listening/grQ9mNkN

"petition to actually take these petitions seriously"

"What, at this point, is the rationale of the Democratic Party?"

lol, who is that?

From the digby post I posted last week.

ah. well then.

http://www.joesherlock.com/09-V-Kod.gif

can a mod correct the spelling of "ubekibekibekistanstan"

So I wrote to my moderate Democrat Virginia Senators urging them to support the Jobs bill and I got a response from Jim Webb that included this:

Thank you for contacting my office regarding the American Jobs Act and federal government spending. I appreciate your taking the time to share your concerns with me.

Out of respect for the principles of free and open debate, on October 12, 2011, I voted to proceed to debate on the American Jobs Act. I do not, however, support final passage of the bill in its current form. As I have long-emphasized, I believe taxes should not be raised on wages or ordinary income. This legislation, if passed, should be paid for by other means such as raising capital gains or ending costly subsidies and tax loopholes. The effort to begin debating the bill was defeated by a filibuster, 50-49.

So let me get this straight--Webb opposes higher income taxes for millionaires but he supports raising capital gains taxes and ending subsidies and loopholes. Oy veh.

Inconsistency you can believe in!

CYA

can a mod correct the spelling of "ubekibekibekistanstan"

― max, Monday, October 31, 2011 5:32 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

this is really annoying me every time i see the title

We are easily annoyed, eh?

lol how long have you been here

I propose that more z's be added to the thread title

you wanna bumble with the bee, huh

bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzt

im just saying, lets at LEAST get the thread title right

aero, I am respectfully "choking" back some ripostes to that one.

America needs multiple servings a day of my dick. DJP & iatee want to deny America its recommended daily allowance of my dick. Do not vote for DJP & iatee imo

Several voters on the gay thread are missing their daily allowance.

http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/Fpyr/pmap1.gif

aero, do you have anything to recommend about america's daily allowance of nuts

congrats btw on the successful passage of your previous legislation re: yr nuts

DAMMIT xp

GINGRICH/AERO'S DICK 2012

okay feeding our schoolchildren Newt Gingrich is just cruel AND unhealthy

clearly vegans are gettin' the shaft here

it's a hairy situation

bro-in-law met Sec'y of Defense "Drones" P4nett4 at work yesterday, thought he seemed like "a nice guy" who engaged ppl w/ a lot of questions. I made no comment since I'll probably live out my dotage in sister's basement.

if Sydney Pollack were still alive, I'd cast him as Panetta.

I had a pancetta/my dick remark but I think my dick's hour in this thread's limelight has sadly faded

RIP

it's realy sad, it was yr dick

difficult dick hour

because it was bitter
because it was my dick

whose dick this is I think I know
his balls are in the village, though

he will not see me ballin here
and watch his mouth fill up with...

Because I Could Not Stop for Dick
It Kindly Stopped for me
My Mouth Held Just His Balls
And Immortality

"Truth, Lord, but I have marr'd them; let my shame
Go where it doth deserve."
"And know you not," says Love, "who bore the blame?"
"My dear, then I will serve."
"You must sit down," says Love, "and taste my meat."
So I did sit and eat.

mark but deez nuts, and mark in this
how little that which thou deniest me is

the great thing about those Metaphysical poems is we barely have to touch'em.

Just a playful caress?

It totters when she licks it with her tongue
I sha'n't be gone long
You come too

*moves bookmark*

A narrow fellow in the grass
Occasionally rides;
You may have met him,--did you not,
His notice sudden is.

The grass divides as with a comb,
A spotted shaft is seen;
And then it closes at your feet
And opens further on.

He likes a boggy acre,

GOP really trying hard here guys!

Instead, Republicans proposed to achieve $640 billion in savings, primarily through cuts to domestic agency budgets, a pay freeze and bigger pension contributions for federal workers, cuts in farm subsidies and an array of other spending cuts and revenue raisers.

The offer, delivered Thursday to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), included no cuts to the Pentagon other than attrition in the civilian workforce. It also included just one small tax increase, focused on owners of corporate jets, failing two key tests for Democratic negotiators.

lol

like man what a great offer - here accept some cuts that are worse and deeper than the triggered cuts, spares the pentagon entirely, and has one token tax increase. high comedy.

gop to call for federal employees to volunteer to be turned upside-down and having the money that falls out of their pockets seized for budgetary reasons

http://a57.foxnews.com/img.foxnews.com/static/managed/img/fn-latino/news/660/466/Chavez%20and%20Obama.jpg

i am going to go out on a limb and say that picture is photoshopped.

call me crazy!

Analysing the SEIU endorsement.

u british now?

boehner be caving

NRO's genius says the Dems lost this one in the long term. I don't understand his a-ha glee. Most people know the payroll tax...is a tax (Frances Perkins among other libs in the FDR administration hated it for this reason).

whose job is it/whom does symmetry require start the 2012 thread? my nom for title is "Indefinite detention? But I have soccer practice at 4"

go 4 it

^^

yes

yes

We need a running count of who's next in line.

keep reading this as US POLITICS FAIL

Iowa ILE poll results in, Aero should do it (since he first brought it up).

Aero who? Aero me?

STEVEN TYLER THIS IS YOUR MOMENT

plz lock thread, mods.

It ain't "FALL 2011" no more.

continued at

Indefinite Detention? But I Have Soccer Practice at 4: U.S. Politics 2012