Saddam Hussein’s execution was poorly timed and carried out in an “undignified” fashion. The comedy of errors continued yesterday, when Iraqi executioners kinda… botched… the execution of one of Saddam’s henchmen. When the trap door beneath him was opened, the noose apparently popped his head off. (more…)

I must admit I was quite surprised at the rapidity with which Saddam Hussein’s death sentence was carried out. (more…)

Two men who claim they were among those to whom Michael Richards directed his racist invective during his near-psychotic breakdown at West Hollywood’s Laugh Factory have hired a lawyer. And guess what — they say an apology won’t be enough to assuage the wounds. They want money. (more…)

The day after the most recent elections, I had a conversation with a co-worker who is a staunch conservative and one of the few remaining unabashed admirers of George W. Bush. He also belongs to the continually shrinking minority who believes that the Iraq war is going better than the news media would have us believe. (more…)

Most of my life, I have been a liberal Democrat. In other words, I’ve been rooting for the underdogs.

By the time I came to be of voting age — 1988 to be exact — “liberal” had become a pejorative and the Democratic party was on the downswing. Frankly, the Democratic party hasn’t had a lot to crow about in a long, long time. Even when Clinton broke the Democrats’ presidential losing streak, there wasn’t much to cheer about. He started off with a shaky presidency, and by the time he got his act together the Democrats lost control of the House — and then Clinton got caught with his pants down. Literally.

Now the Democrats have won a resounding victory in Congress. I mean, they’ve not only given the Republicans a bloody nose but have also kicked them between the uprights and taken their lunch money. Had this happened 10 or 15 years ago I’d've been ecstatic. Not today.

Why? Because I no longer see “the other side” as the enemy. The Republican party has its virtues, having produced some fine leaders such as John McCain, a man capable of working in a truly bi-partisan way. Moreover, the Democratic party can be just as dirty and ugly as the GOP. It’s just harder to see because they’ve been the underdog for so long.

The real lesson of this election is not that “Republicans suck,” as some might have us believe. The real lesson is: “Be careful what you wish for, because you just might get it.

The Republicans wanted total control over the federal government. They pretty much got it by winning the presidency and a majority in both houses of Congress. It is fair to say that as a collective, they were pretty damned smug about it. Conservative pundits crowed about the death of liberalism and the Democratic party.

Then reality came crashing down on all of them.

With nearly total control of the federal government, Republicans had to stand and deliver on both the domestic and foreign policy fronts.

They failed. Miserably. The deficit has ballooned. We’ve made no progress on social security or immigration reform. The Medicaid prescription drug benefit was a costly boondoggle. The war on terror has gone badly: we’re losing ground in Afghanistan; Iran and North Korea are going nuclear; and our forces are tied down in an unnecessary war in Iraq. Mark Foley’s immoral behavior gave a black eye to a party that was insufferably preachy about morality.

So much for the inherent superiority of conservatism and the Republican Party. The Republicans knew how to achieve power, but had no earthly idea what to do with it. In receiving their wish, the Republicans found their downfall.

If the Democrats continue with this momentum and win the presidency in 2008, it will be their turn to stand and deliver. And they had damned well better, or the voters will smack them down as hard as they smacked down the Republicans.

Then it will be the Democrats turn to regret that their wish was granted.

Edited on 11/4/06 to include my own “position statement.”

I am losing patience with liberals and conservatives. It seems as though both have forgotten that ideology is supposed to be about ideas and principles, not about two teams circling the wagons around “their guys” and trying to get “the other guys.”

So I’m issuing a challenge. I hope at least a few of you will take me up on it.

I challenge you to take a liberal or a conservative position on an issue of current national or international importance and to defend that position on the basis of ideas rather than partisan politics.

You may debate with each other, but you may not reply to someone else’s post until you have contributed at least one “position statement” of your own. Everyone needs to have some skin in the game.

I really hope this thread won’t end up empty. I think the national dialog has deteriorated to the point where each “side” is doing nothing but name-calling, and this is my small attempt to try to change that situation.

The rules apply to me as well. Here is my contribution:

I firmly believe that individuals should be called to account for their actions, and that results generally matter more than intentions. Our current administration in Washington has produced spectacularly awful results in Iraq through a combination of:

1. A reliance on foolish assumptions, such as the belief that our troops would be welcomed as liberators in an area of the world where we are largely hated.

2. An unwillingness to consider information that contradicted their thesis about Iraq, such as intelligence that cast doubt on the assertion that Iraq had been able to revive its WMD program back to a state of viability.

3. A refusal to benefit from the experience of battle-tested military commanders, resulting in appallingly bad tactics such as the decision to leave arms depots unguarded, which in essence helped arm the insurgency.

4. An inability to plan for the insurgency, which was a foreseeable consequence of toppling Saddam Hussein’s regime.

I believe we need fresh ideas and a better, more realistic perspective grounded in experience and an understanding of military history. As much as I loathe President Bush, I believe his resignation would be ill-timed. And I realize that the political reality is that Dick Cheney will not resign, even though I believe he should. Nevertheless, the President could go a long way towards remediating the situation in Iraq by cleaning house, starting with the firing of Donald Rumsfeld. Rumsfeld should be replaced by Colin Powell.

Oh, yeah, I’m serious. Bush should get down on his knees and beg if need be. Powell has something that Rumsfeld lacks: credibility. Yes, Powell gave a speech in front of the U.N. making the case that Iraq had WMDs, even though he had his doubts. But at least Powell was able to admit afterwards that it was a mistake (he called it a “blot” on his record). Whereas Rumsfeld tells the press corps they need to “back off and relax” while our troops are dying in the desert sands of Iraq.

The only way this would work, however, would be if Powell were granted the level of respect and authority that Bush has so clearly given to Rumsfeld, a man who is clearly undeserving.

Powell is a strong yet unabrasive leader. He is unafraid to fight but believes we should be guided by our moral principles. His warnings to the administration demonstrate that his assessment of the situation in Iraq was far more clear-eyed and accurate than Rumsfeld’s. I believe if there is anyone who could help turn around the situation in Iraq, Powell is the man.

I doubt Mr. Stubborn-Pants Bush will even consider it. But I nevertheless believe it would be the right thing to do.

Jeff Skilling, former CEO of Enron, has been sentenced to more than twenty-four years in prison for his role in one of the biggest con-jobs in corporate history. The presiding judge in the case chose to slap Skilling with the maximum sentence as retribution for the staggering number of people whose financial security was destroyed as the result of his crimes.

Of course, Skilling will be allowed to earn time off for good behavior. Can’t do the time? Just behave yourself after you do the crime.

Skilling has also been ordered to undergo treatment for alcoholism, successful completion of which will shave even more time off of his sentence. Haven’t you heard? Victimizers are the new victims.

Some years ago, one co-worker of mine was verbally sparring with another. With mock exasperation, he said to her, “There’s a special Hell for people like you.”

I “consoled” the butt of this light-hearted rebuke by telling her, “Don’t listen to him. There’s no special Hell for you. You’ll go to the same Hell as everyone else.”

If there’s any justice in the afterlife, the same will be true for Jeff Skilling.

The cover story of the Sept. 25 issue of Time magazine suggests that a war with Iran may be more likely than people realize, and possibly inevitable.

Iran has ambitions to become the major power in the Middle East, and acquiring nuclear weapons would enable them to achieve those ambitions. Such weapons would also allow Iran’s crackpot president to deliver on his promise to wipe Israel off of the map. So, really, Iran doesn’t have a lot of motivation to forego the manufacture of nuclear weapons.

With the U.S. military committed quagmires in both Iraq and Afghanistan, I don’t see how we can mount an effective military campaign against Iran as well. But I also don’t see how we can live with a nuclear Iran. Deterrence and containment may have worked against the Soviet Union, but I think the Soviets were a bit more pragmatic than the nutballs who run Iran.

Talk about a rock and a hard place.

Oh, for crying out loud…! 

Islamic leaders are now angry about remarks made by Pope Benedict XVI. In particular they are upset that he quoted the words of 14th-century Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus: “Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.” The Pope claims he was merely trying to point out that violence and faith in God are incompatible and was not asserting that Islam is inherently violent.

In response, some jackasses firebombed two churches on the West Bank and said it was in retaliation for what the Pope said. Yeah, that’ll show us that Islam isn’t inherently violent!

I don’t, by the way, believe Islam is inherently violent. But these outraged Muslim leaders would have a lot more moral authority if they denounced the acts of radical Islamic terrorists with the same vigor they display when reacting to even the tiniest criticism from a non-Islamic.

Ralph “Bucky” Phillips has finally been apprehended. For those of you who are unaware, this “man” (and I use that term very, very loosely in this instance) escaped from the Erie County Correctional Facility in Alden, New York, on April 2, 2006. While on the run, Phillips allegedly shot three New York State Troopers, one of whom died as a result.Phillips had spent 23 of the last 25 years of his life in prison. At the time of his escape, he was cooling his jets in the clink because of a minor parole violation. He was scheduled to be released in a week.