Douglas Anders: seeingToledoWell, at least it's home(Untitled)- June 30, 2004 In February, Jack Kelly wrote a column called "Exploding AWOL Myth". I did a good job of undermining his whole argument at the time, because it was full of crap. But I did shy away from calling George Bush a "deserter". Apparently, I was wrong, and that George Bush actually is a deserter.http://blogs.salon.com/0001147/categories/seeingToledo/2004/06/30.html#a1084 Yeah, That's a Sign of Strength- June 28, 2004 I endlessly rag on Jack Kelly for claiming that the situation is Iraq is rosy, and all the contrary indicators are just media spin. That the US had to hand over power in full stealth mode, with barely a peep to any journalists, is that a sign of strength Like Fox News says, "You Decide."http://blogs.salon.com/0001147/categories/seeingToledo/2004/06/28.html#a1081 What to Do Now- June 28, 2004 At the very end of the credits of Fahrenheit 911, the screen directs people who want to do more to go to MichaelMoore.com. The ideas there aren't all that original. I have a better suggestion. Take an 18-year old to see it next weekend.http://blogs.salon.com/0001147/categories/seeingToledo/2004/06/27.html#a1080 Gotta Love the Land-Mine-Exploding-Monkeys- June 28, 2004 Short review of Fahrenheit 911: Even though the Moroccan land-mine-exploding-monkeys are only on-screen for seconds, they alone are worth the price of the ticket. (Necessary Full Disclosure: I like the Michael Moore film Canadian Bacon. I don't know why, I just do. Maybe it's a Great Lake thing.) I didn't expect to write about Fahrenheit 911 once I saw it---others have done so, and they are more qualified. And I didn't expect to respond to the film--I spend hours a day reading liberal blogs,.http://blogs.salon.com/0001147/categories/seeingToledo/2004/06/27.html#a1079 Jack Kelly is a Liar, Part XXVII- June 27, 2004 Before I go to work on Jack Kelly's latest column, I'd like to revisit something he wrote back in April: The radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr -- who wants to create an Iranian-style theocracy in Iraq -- launched an abortive coup which has fizzled. Disdained by most Iraqi Shiite clerics and disliked by most rank-and-file Shiites, Sadr has so far been unable to attract much support beyond his Iranian-financed militia, the "Mahdi Army," whose strength has been estimated at between 3,000 and...http://blogs.salon.com/0001147/categories/seeingToledo/2004/06/27.html#a1078 (Untitled)- June 26, 2004 The movie was sold out--damn liberals. Unfortunately, tonight's happy collision of an untapped entertainment budget, a willing Gabe-sitter, and free-time isn't going to happen again for a long time. Michael Moore is going to have to struggle by without my $8.50. Also, at the theater, no protesters. Bummer.http://blogs.salon.com/0001147/categories/seeingToledo/2004/06/25.html#a1075 Going to Fahrenheit 911- June 25, 2004 We just arranged a sitter for Gabe tonight, so we can go see Fahrenheit 911. I'm really geeked about this, partially because going to a movie on the Friday it opens is a rare event (hell, seeing a movie before it hits the $2.00 cheapo-theater is rare), and, obviously, it's Fahrenheit 911. I'm hoping that there will be some sort of Thing at the theater--wholesome Republican protesters, or a mob of college radicals, but, Toledo being Toledo, I suspect it will just be a few paunchy, pale-skinned...http://blogs.salon.com/0001147/categories/seeingToledo/2004/06/25.html#a1074 Annoyed by Smokers- June 24, 2004 If anyone is eager for their town or city to emulate Toledo's noble experiment in the banishment of public smoking, I urge you to think twice before you try. For one simple reason: public smoking advocates are the biggest bunch of whiny-ass losers you will ever encounter (though they will likely be surpassed by Republican whiny-ass losers come Nov. 3). They are annoying, and you will find that they are none too bright. One bar owner has now been found guilty of 11 misdemeanors for allowing...http://blogs.salon.com/0001147/categories/seeingToledo/2004/06/24.html#a1070 "Disaster"- June 23, 2004 Syndicated columnist Jack Kelly has made the accusation in his Op-Ed pieces that the media is in the process of losing the war in Iraq for the US by talking down the good news and focusing on the bad. According the Kelly, the war is already won, and the media is engineering a defeat for their guy Kerry. According to this article, from the Financial Times (pointed to by Juan Cole), it's the military--at least some in it--who are saying that we may have lost the war already: Counter-insurgency..http://blogs.salon.com/0001147/categories/seeingToledo/2004/06/23.html#a1068 (Untitled)- June 20, 2004 Though it is about a purely local issue, I have a nomination for one of the stupidest statements made in the Western Hemisphere this week. Some background: there has been a proposal to build a coke plant in the Toledo area. The location abuts both the City of Toledo and Lake Erie. Needless to say, environmental issues are important considerations. Coke plants are notorious emitters of both sulfur dioxide and mercury. Learning that a modern coke plant built in 1998 near Chicago has been cited..http://blogs.salon.com/0001147/categories/seeingToledo/2004/06/20.html#a1065 |