The US-Iran-Iraq-Israeli-Syrian War:
At a not-for-quotation pre-speech briefing on Jan. 10, George W. Bush and his top national security aides unnerved network anchors and other senior news executives with suggestions that a major confrontation with Iran is looming.
Commenting about the briefing on MSNBC after Bush's nationwide address, NBC's Washington bureau chief Tim Russert said "there's a strong sense in the upper echelons of the White House that Iran is going to surface relatively quickly as a major issue - in the country and the world - in a very acute way."
Russert and NBC anchor Brian Williams depicted this White House emphasis on Iran as the biggest surprise from the briefing as Bush stepped into the meeting to speak passionately about why he is determined to prevail in the Middle East.
"The President's inference was this: that an entire region would blow up from the inside, the core being Iraq, from the inside out," Williams said, paraphrasing Bush.
I watched this on MSNBC Wednesday night. While the men were serious and little freaked out by the briefing, I doubt it's had much impact on them. When the conversation got to this point:
MSNBC's Chris Matthews then interjected, "And it could be the rationale for going into Iran at some point."
Russert paused for a few seconds before responding, "It's going to be very interesting to watch that issue and we have to cover it very, very carefully and very exhaustively."
I laugh out loud. It was not a happy laugh. The 4th Estate has done a seriously piss-poor job for the past six years. I have no faith, no hope, in that changing.
So, Bush's actions and rhetoric over the past several weeks continue to mesh with a scenario for a wider regional war - a possibility that now mainstream journalists, such as Tim Russert, are beginning to take seriously.
Don't count on it Mr. Parry.
See the
Professor's take on the attack of the US Embassy in Athens. And expect this to happen with more frequency folks.
~ ~ ~There is hope for this sorry-assed country afterall:
Bush's approval rating hits new low.
Public approval of Congress has edged up a bit now that Democrats are back in control, but it's still nothing to write home about. Approval for the way Congress is handling its job rose to 32 percent in the latest AP-Ipsos poll, up from a meager 27 percent a month earlier. That puts Congress on par with President Bush, whose 32 percent approval rating represents a new low for him in AP-Ipsos polling.
Will you put impeachment back on the table now, Ms. Pelosi?
Oh, and while you're at it, Ms. Pelosi, do something about this wonderful economy Mr. Bush has given us:
Study: 744,000 Are Homeless in US:
"In the last 12 to 18 months, the homeless population has essentially exploded in Philadelphia," said Marsha Cohen, executive director of the Homeless Advocacy Project, which provides free legal services to the homeless in Philadelphia. "We are seeing big increases in singles and families, both on the street and attempting to enter the homeless system."
"It's a whole influx of new people, and that's the really scary part," Cohen said.
Please take a look at
Homeless & Crisis Assistance, at
Charity.com; it's a list of charities which provide help to the homeless. Give if you can.
~ ~ ~ Alaska stargazers excited about comet:
NASA astronomer Tony Phillips says Comet McNaught is the brightest comet visible from Earth in 30 years. It is six times brighter than Hale-Bopp in 1997, and 100 times brighter than Halley's Comet when it appeared in 1986, Phillips told The Associated Press on Thursday.
"It will remain a spectacular comet for weeks, perhaps months, in the Southern Hemisphere," Phillips said. "It could emerge as the brightest comet in recorded history."
Cool! Actually, COLD! 40 degrees below zero. It's information like that that keeps in me in New England. One of these days I'll get to Alaska, just not in January.
