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This blog is the work of an educated civilian, not of an expert in the fields discussed.

Saturday, December 31, 2005

More Dave

And Also: "We get into the habit of compromising and therefore we are always compromised." A good line in the HBO film The Girl in the Café, a good rental that mixes the personal relationship between a middle aged British servant and young woman with a past with G8 battles over poverty. The message aspect is a bit much, but not to be shunted aside, while the personal stories (and performances) truly make it worthwhile. Good audio commentary on DVD.



More Dave Barry ...

Meanwhile in Iraq, the first free elections in half a century are held under tense but generally scary conditions, with more than 8 million Iraqis turning out to elect a National Assembly, whose idealistic goal, in the coming months, will be to not get blown up. ...

In a strongly worded rebuttal, angry Congressional Democrats state that, because of a scheduling mix-up, they missed the president's speech, but whatever he said, they totally disagree with it, and if they once voted in favor of it, they did so only because the president lied to them. ...

In Washington, President Bush bypasses Congress with a recess appointment of his controversial nominee John Bolton, to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. Bolton immediately signals a new tone in American diplomacy by punching out the ambassador from Yemen in a dispute involving the U.N. cafeteria salad bar.

In other foreign-policy news, the Rev. Pat Robertson states on his Christian Broadcasting Network show that the U.S. should assassinate Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. Responding to harsh criticism, the Rev. Robertson retracts this statement several days later with the explanation, "Evidently I am a raving lunatic." ...

It is not until . . . . . . SEPTEMBER . . . that the full magnitude of the New Orleans devastation sinks in, and local, state and federal officials manage to get their act together and begin the difficult, painstaking work of blaming each other for screwing up. ...

Also heating up in November is the debate over Iraq, with even Vice President Dick Cheney joining in, fueling rumors that he is still alive. President Bush makes a series of strong speeches, stating that while he "will not impugn the patriotism'' of those who oppose his administration's policies, they are "traitor scum."