Friday, May 21, 2004

Strippers against Bush According to a story from AP, strip clubs are holding voter registration drives and asking their clientele to vote against Bush. Micheal Ocello, president of the Association of Club Executives, said the group believes the president's brand of conservatism is bad for business. ''We must do everything within our power to help ensure that Bush and his ultra-conservative administration are removed from the White House,'' Ocello wrote in a letter to nearly 4,000 club owners. ''If we are to survive, we must act now.'' The article quotes RNC spokeswoman Heather Layman, who says she doesn't understand why the businesses would campaign against Bush. I think she has a point. One can justifiably see the President and his administration as pro-stripping. [Thanks to EA, Altercation and the invaluable Cursor.] 5:11:13 PM    comment [] Bush Leads Pep Rally on Capitol Hill From today's Washington Post: President Bush ascended Capitol Hill yesterday for what Republican lawmakers called a "pep rally" to restore the spirits of a GOP caucus worried about chaos in Iraq and Bush's declining poll numbers. Behind closed doors, Bush gave a 35-minute version of his stump speech covering Iraq, the economy and energy policy. When he finished, the participants filed past a bank of microphones to announce that they were unified in support of Bush and that there had been no dissent expressed at the meeting. Bush took no questions. "The president was great," said Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (S.C.). "We saw the determination and spirit of a great leader," said Sen. Rick Santorum (Pa.). "There were several standing ovations," reported Sen. George Allen (Va.). [snip] Several Republicans were surprised Bush took no questions. He usually does take questions at such sessions, they said, including at a GOP lawmakers retreat in Philadelphia in late January. Bush's reluctance to field queries appeared to be a matter of some sensitivity. Allen, for example, called yesterday's session a "good team meeting" with no dissent "that I heard." But asked whether Bush allowed questions, Allen replied: "I don't care to answer that question." [snip] "Hi, everybody, good to see you," the president said as he walked briskly into the meeting, followed by political adviser Karl Rove and other aides. Afterwards, Sen. Trent Lott (Miss.), asked about Iraq, told reporters Bush "will talk to you about it." Seconds later, Bush rushed by, ignoring reporters' questions. Bush left about 15 minutes to shake hands with his listeners. Though the White House press secretary described the session as a pre-recess briefing on "a number of important priorities that we're pursuing," the lawmakers acknowledged it was more about morale. "The president wasn't there to educate," said Sen. John E. Sununu (N.H.), who said he had not learned anything new. Sen. Wayne Allard (Colo.), was more blunt. "It was a rally," he said. "November's not that far away." Postscript: Are you ready for a cheer? Cue up the Notre Dame fight song! GEORGE W. BUSH VICTORY MARCH Rally Sons of the Party Sing His Glory on bended knee Raise the Red and Blue and Cheer with voices true-- Rah Rah for George W. Bush (U Rah Rah) Keep reporters in a hush Keep GOP coffers lush We'll never forget Him and cheer Him 'til election Loyal to George W. Bush-- Cheer! Cheer for George W. Bush Wake up the echoes, get out the push Send the volley cheer on high Shake down the thunder from the sky What tho' the odds be great or small George W. Bush will win over all While his loyal minions are marching onward to Victory 4:41:41 PM    comment [] A Poet's Prayer for the President The Presidential Prayer Team site has posted another gem by WWDT's favorite poet laureate, Rev. Greg Asimakoupoulos: A Prayer for a Battle-Weary Commander-in-Chief Lord, protect our President from unexpected assaults at home that attempt to divert his attention from the unwanted conflict abroad. While our sons and daughters serve in Iraq, our brother George is under attack. He is the victim of less-than-friendly fire. Be near Mr. Bush, Father, as the war of words deflects the focus from the frontlines to the front page and to who's out front in the polls. Please give him the ability to look to You as he does his best in this ultimate test against terrorism. Equip him with a non-combative spirit as he defends himself and his staff against misguided media missiles. Remind him, Lord, there are millions who stand up for him as they kneel beside their beds at night and pray for Your hand to guide him. May such knowledge energize his efforts today. Won't You keep him from discouragement, self-doubt and battle fatigue? As a godly pastor once prayed, Give him the ability to accept the things he cannot change, courage to change the things he can and the wisdom to know the difference. In Your holy Name we pray. Amen [Note: "The Presidential Prayer Team is a spiritual movement of the American people which is not affiliated with any political party or official."] Postscript: For previous poems by the Evangelical Pindar, click here and here. 4:20:33 PM    comment [] Fair and Balanced Thanks to a donation from the Los Angeles-based Spirit of America charity, U.S. Marines are distributing high-tech equipment to Iraqi television stations in an attempt to build an "unbiased" Iraqi media. The 1st Marine Division, operating in the Al Anbar province (which includes Fallujah and Ramadi), requested the donation from SoA to restore seven Iraqi television stations in the province and establish a local alternative to Al Jazeera to generate more "accurate and balanced" coverage. The Marines have received $80,000+ worth of audio and video production equipment, which they will be distributing to the Al Anbar stations within the next 2-3 weeks. The Wall Street Journal reports (and the SoA's blog repeats) that the charity received $1.25 million in donations and a commitment from Hubbard Broadcasting Inc. for hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of digital television equipment in response to the request. The money may be used to fund similar projects throughout Iraq and in Afghanistan. According to an e-mail from Lt. Col. John Lutkenhouse, the 1st Marines are coordinating their efforts with representatives of the Harris Corporation to implement the latter's "strategic plan" for developing the media there. The program may involve not only distributions of equipment, but also mentoring programs "to help these broadcasters think and operate as independent news organizations/media enterprises." The Harris Corporation is the U.S. government's telecommunications contractor. Their past claim to fame was installing the hotline from the White House to the Kremlin. Nowadays they are playing a key role in developing and maintaining the Department of Homeland Security's communications network. How independent? The question is, how independent will these new local stations be? Al Anbar happens to be the province in which a U.S. air attack killed 40+ civilians (including women and children) under contested circumstances. Iraqis claim that they attacked a wedding party, whereas U.S. military leaders claim they attacked insurgents crossing the boarder from Syria. How would the new stations cover this story? How does the U.S. military think the story should be covered? Would the stations be allowed to air video footage of child victims, when the military is denying that any children were killed? Here are some quotes articulating the relevant principles: [1] According to the Marines' original request, they are making a deal with the stations to help them in exchange for PSA broadcasting and a ban on anti-coalition propaganda. The donated equipment will be the property of the Iraqi stations. The stations can create their own news and choose their own programming with the agreement that they will prohibit airing of anti-coalition messages that incite the local population. The stations also agree to sell airtime at a fair market price so that the Marines can communicate their information efficiently and quickly when needed. For example, images were recently broadcast of a mosque in Fallujah damaged during fighting. With these stations the Marines could have provided the full picture by airing video of combatants firing on them from the mosque grounds. These stations would have enabled Iraqis to understand the complete picture. News of reconstruction projects and humanitarian assistance that balances the news of conflict will also be provided on these stations. The stations will be free to criticize the Coalition. [2] The Marines Corps News article on the distribution offers a similar recap, but without the strong claim that the stations will be "free to criticize the Coalition." "We want to push out the division's 'no better friend' message to the people," added Maj. Holden Dunham, media operations officer. "We're up against Arab perception at the moment. Our goal is to get the truth out there, and the Iraqis can form their own opinions." The hardware is intended allow credible media to operate without censorship or undue influence. Once the Iraqi Media Network receives the gear, Coalition Forces will not have a say as to what can and cannot be covered. Still, there will be stipulations. "This will not be a Coalition-controlled media outlet," Lutkenhouse said. "But they will be required to not put out anti-Coalition propaganda." Lutkenhouse said those in charge of reporting the news do not have to be for or against the Coalition, but they do have to report the facts in an unbiased manner. "We will use the media outlets for our public service announcements," said Dunham, of Dallas. "Eventually, we'll purchase air time when the networks get up and running." It will be interesting to see how the local Al Anbar media covers the news, and I hope that the story will be monitored. What will count as "anti-Coalition propaganda" when it comes to reporting, e.g., the Abu Ghraib scandal, the relative popularity of the Coalition and Moqtada al-Sadr among Iraqis, and the recent attack on the "wedding party"/"insurgency raid" in the province's western desert? What will count as prohibited "anti-Coalition propaganda" after the Coalition, in priniciple, disbands after the June 30th deadline? 10:10:50 AM    comment []

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