Month: October 2004

Second Debate

Closer than the first one, but I call it for Kerry.

Bush did a better job this time in his presentation. He seemed more relaxed, didn’t make squinty faces as much, and although he obviously got excited a few times he did not whine. He fumbled badly the question about whether he had made any mistakes, his response to the environmant question was a joke, and most important – he is having trouble running from his record. Minor snarky side note — he called it “the Internets” rather than “the Internet”. I wonder if he’s ever even used the Internet?

Kerry smacked down the “flip flop” charge at two different times and handed Bush his butt on jobs, the environment, and of course the war. He made a point of remembering questioner’s names, referring back to them later in the event – as compared to Bush, who I think didn’t mention anyone’s name at all. And I think his answer to the pro-life woman about goverment funding of abortion was spot on.

What the audience thought of them both I don’t know. Bush got more laughs than Kerry, especially when he put his “aw shucks” personna on. If they really can’t see through that facade after all this time, then we’re in deep doo-doo on November 2nd. However, not to bash the audience too much, I think the questions were overall very good — as good as the ones Lehrer asked at the first debate and definitely better than Gwen Ifil’s.

Now to see what the pundits have to say.

Israel an ‘enemy state’ of Iraq?

Guy goes to attend a conference on terrorism, gets arrested — THIS is why we ‘freed’ Iraq?

Meanwhile, a former leading figure in the Iraqi National Congress party – the party led by Ahmad Chalabi – remained defiant after an Iraqi court indicted him Sunday for visiting the “enemy state” of Israel.

Mithal al-Alusi attended a conference there on terrorism last month and was subsequently expelled from the party.

I’m in a pretty foul mood already, reading this didn’t help me any.

In other news, my DVD of Fahrenheit 9/11 arrived today. Maybe this weekend I’ll watch it again.

End of an Era

Given the technological advances today and the reduced number of people seeking the monasitc life I suppose this is not surprising news, but it is sad:

The highest church in the world sits 8,000 feet up in the Alps on what was once the most dangerous mountain pass in Europe. Today, climbers and hikers come for the challenge, but for hundreds of years, the monastery of the Grand St. Bernard was a lifesaving refuge from the cold and snow for everyone from local hunters to Napoleon.

In the 1600s, the St. Bernard monks decided they needed help rescuing snowbound travelers. So they bred a burly but reliable dog, which they named after their patron saint.

“The St. Bernards were never just a symbol,” said Father Hilaire, a monk in the Hospice of the Great St. Bernard. “Before the 1900s, there were no skis, so the dogs made paths even if there were one or two meters of fresh snow. They helped us save lives.”

The St. Bernards have saved more than 2,000 lives since the monks started keeping records in 1700. They still tell stories about one dog named Barry who set the record with 41 rescues in the early 1800s.

But today, there are only four monks remaining, and they say they don’t have the time or the money to take care of the dogs.

Now this is the kind of thing you think the wealth of the Vatican would be a good use for. But no.

Oh, and in case you’re wondering,

The dogs never carried small barrels of brandy to revive climbers; 19th-century artists added that picturesque touch.

VP Debate

To be honest I think the VP debate was at best a tie.

Cheney was playing hardball, and unlike Bush, he is capable of speaking in complete sentances and sounding like he knows what he is talking about. He hit hard and often, and of course since he doesn’t care much about truth he had the advantage there. His line about “I’ve never met you before tonight,” although a lie, was a particularly nasty shot that might have legs.

I don’t think Edwards did badly, but I was annoyed a bit by how some of his foreign policy lines were almost verbatim repeats of what Kerry said last week – couldn’t he at least have rephrased it a bit so he wasn’t so obviously repeating talking points? I think he did better in the second half of the debate; he seemed more relaxed (it is not surprisng that he would be more comfortable discussing domestic policy issues). And his complementing Cheney for how his family has handled having a gay daughter was masterful. Cheney had absolutely nothing to say after it. Very nice.

Both sides will spin it as a win for their guy. We’ll see what the CW says tomorrow.

No Shot For You!

If you’re a flu shot recipient (I am not) this is a little alarming:

British authorities suspended the license of Chiron Corp. for three months because of problems at its vaccine manufacturing plant in Liverpool, England, which primarily supplies the American market. The action means the company can’t supply any flu vaccine during that time, and Chiron said it would provide no U.S. vaccine this year.

(snip)

Chiron had planned to ship 46 million to 48 million doses, but that already had been delayed by a contamination problem discovered in August in the English factory where the vaccine is made. At the time, the company said only 4 million doses were tainted but that the entire supply would be held up and re-tested.

About 1 million doses already had arrived in the United States, but now even that won’t be made available because of the British safety concerns.

Chiron’s stock, of course, is taking a sharp nosedive today.

And I can’t resist the political cheap shot:

Less than two weeks ago, top U.S. health officials assured the public that close FDA monitoring of the rest of Chiron’s supply suggested it was fine and that there would be plenty of supplies.

Guess that Reality Distortion Field emanating from the White House has reached the FDA too.

On Iraq and a Draft

It’s hardly a new or unique insight, but it’s all too obvious that we should never have left Saddam in charge of Iraq after Gulf War I. George Bush senior has been quoted as saying that at the time, the Arab members of the coalition forces objected to Saddam’s removal from power so he was left in place. I wonder sometimes, how much would have been different if was had told those allies, “No, he’s going down”.

The road ahead is grim, and the growing rumblings in the blogosphere and the press about the possible need to re-institute the draft are worrisome. I try not to make too much of the rumblings, but then I picture my 21 year old cousin with a draft card of his hand and it’s not so simple.

It’s been 30 years since the draft was last a reality. A lot has changed since then. One thing that hasn’t changed is that no matter how they try to write the rules, the richer, more well-connected, and smarter kids will find ways around any draft.

I am not, by the way, convinced that a Kerry victory means we will not have a draft instituted. It is not clear whether even with the best intentions we will be able to draw down significant troops out of Iraq in the near future. No matter who wins in November, it’s possible we will have to change how we build our military. But I am sure that a Kerry administration would not be so reckless with the lives of our soldiers as this administration has been.