October Surprise? Palin’s out!

Back to Alaska!
The smartest move the McCain campaign could make right now would be to cut Sarah Palin out of the race. I’d even bet Mitt Romney would be ready to step up, and it would bring relief to the repuglicans as predictably as a titty to a hungry baby.
Watching white, working class Americans act like reptilian humanoids salivating over the bait being thrown by both Ms. Palin and, with more finesse by Mr. McCain was an awful, horrific experience for this privileged white person. It would have been so easy for these ignorant people to be pushed over the edge to the next step and have themselves a lynchin’.
This McCain campaign phenomenon of making Americans insane with anger and fear by false associations of an American Senator as a "terrorist," "Muslim" or, perish the thought, an "ARAB" must not be allowed to grow outside the rallys and spill over into our communities.
Tonight’s surprise release of the Troopergate Report is the icing on Palin’s retirement cake. It stated clearly and completely without equivocation that Ms. Palin abused her power. She acted exactly like a greedy, self-inflated politician who used her office for personal vengeance. She is more of the same, not change. Combine her eagerness to fan the flames of racism with the concrete evidence of Palins lying and manipulating the trust of her constituents, Palin has become major damaged goods.
While questioning Newsweek’s Michael Issicoff about the Troopergate news, Rachel Maddow asked: “Is this an impeachable charge?” Seems to me this opens the door for McCain to dump Palin, pronto. Who could argue with the maverick standing up for values and country first, even if it costs his career? Of course, it won’t. Good republicans will see it as redeeming McCain from any association with corruption and hate speech. The reptilian humanoids will just turn in the direction their pointed towards.
I'd like to believe most Americans have a good spirit and know it is better to respect your neighbors. That way they'll be there for you just as you'd be there for them in times of trouble. And we've got plenty of trouble here in America.
The third act will commence after a brief intermission.

Zombie Cindy's Secret Sister

This just in from Smirking Chimp. Cindy McCain, despite being on the record many, many times as saying she’s an only child, in fact has a sister and apparently was conscious and around when they were growing up. Of course, we don’t know if she was on drugs during her childhood, but the facts are facts and repuglicans must face them square on in straight talk. Heeee hee!

Seems Cindy Lou Hensley McCain has a secret, mystery sister, and she's a Democrat

by Robin Elliot | August 18, 2008

Is there a mystery woman in Cindy McCain's life? And why does she look so familiar? Hmmmm? (see photo here)

Last Tuesday, NPR broadcast a story about Cindy McCain's business and charity work. In it, Ted Robbins described McCain as the only child of Jim Hensley, a wealthy Arizona businessman. The next morning, NPR received an e-mail from Nicholas Portalski of Phoenix, who heard the story with his mother."We were listening to the piece about Cindy McCain on NPR, All Things Considered, and it just struck us very hard," Portalski said.His mother, Kathleen Hensley Portalski, is also Hensley's daughter.

::brakes screeeeeeeeeech!!:: Huh? Cindy Lou has a sister? Since when? And where, why, has she been hiding her?

The Portalski family is accustomed to hearing Cindy McCain described as Hensley's only child. She's been described that way by news organizations from The New Yorker and The New York Times to Newsweek and ABC. McCain herself routinely uses the phrase "only child," as she did on CNN last month. "I grew up with my dad," she said then. "I'm an only child. My father was a cowboy, and he really loved me very much, but I think he wanted a son occasionally."McCain's father was also a businessman — and twice a father.

Why oh why are they shunning Kathleen? Are they ashamed of her? She's not Republican or wealthy enough for them? Not enough face lifts? No P.O.W. creds? Can't draw crosses in dirt?

"I'm upset," Kathleen Portalski says. "I'm angry. It makes me feel like a nonperson, kind of."

Uh, yeah, one might be a tad upset if one's very famous, dare I say "celebrity", sister of beer wealth/presidential nominee wife fame is ignoring her very existence.

Documents show Kathleen Anne Hensley was born to Jim and Mary Jeanne Hensley on Feb. 23, 1943. They had been married for six years when Kathleen was born. Jim Hensley was a bombardier on a B-17, flying over Europe during World War II. He was injured and sent to a facility in West Virginia to recuperate. During that time, while still married to Mary Jeanne, Hensley met another woman — Marguerite Smith. Jim divorced Mary Jeanne and married Marguerite in 1945.

Wowzers! He's just like Cindy's husband, John Sidney McAdulterer! They have so much in common, you'd think they'd be the closest sisters ever, wouldn't you?

Cindy Lou Hensley was born nine years later, in 1954. She may have grown up as an only child, but so did her half sister, Kathleen, who was raised by a single parent. Portalski says she did see her father and her half sister from time to time. "I saw him a few times a year," she says. "I saw him at Christmas and birthdays, and he provided money for school clothes, and he called occasionally."

The monetary gifts lasted 10 years. And then daddykins got really rich and the payments stopped. But wait! Our soap opera, "As the Beer Ferments", is only just beginning:

When Hensley died in 2000, his will named not only Portalski but also a daughter of his wife Marguerite from her earlier marriage. So, Cindy McCain may be the only product of Jim and Marguerite's marriage, but she is not the only child of either. She was, however, the sole inheritor of his considerable estate. Kathleen Portalski was left $10,000, and her children were left nothing. It's a fact Nicholas Portalski says his sister discovered the hard way. "What she found in town — on the day of or the day before or the day after his funeral — was that the credit card didn't work anymore," Nick says.

Looks like they treated Kathleen the way J Sid treats most of America.

They also say they are Democrats, but Nicholas Portalski says he had another reason for coming forward. "The fact that we don't exist," he says. "The fact that we've never been recognized, and then Cindy has to put such a fine point on it by saying something that's not true. Recently, again and again. It's just very, very hurtful." Kathleen Portalski says she'd like an acknowledgment and an apology. NPR asked the McCain campaign — specifically, Cindy McCain — to comment or respond. Neither replied.

Lying and deception is everywhere in the John Sidney McCain/Cindy Lou Hensley household. No telling what you'll find if you look hard enough.

Kathleen with Daddy Dearest, Jim Hensley

Definitely go to Smirking Chimp to read the comments: http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/16541
There's a hilariously sardonic one by JamesPB if you like a wry twist into the world of the rich & adulterous.
Here's the NPR article with more details:
Cindy McCain's Half Sister 'Angry' She's Hidden
by Ted Robbins

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=93708729

Stop Blackwater

I want to believe Congress will do the right thing, but reading through this article makes it seem like they're playing good cop/bad cop. One step forward, two steps back, again?

Private soldiers no longer above the law
Ewen MacAskill in Washington, Thursday October 4, 2007, Guardian Unlimited

Although some Republican senators described the wording of the House bill as sloppy, Democratic leaders in the senate said they intend to push forward with a similar bill. They said they wanted the legislation to go to the president as quickly as possible.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,,2183843,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=networkfront

Are We Dead Yet?

You start reading this with trepidation, and rightly so if you've read Empire Burlesque. Chris Floyd has been at the vanguard of blogging and predicting the worst for a loooong time. It is a tribute to his confidence in the human spirit that you manage to finish this feeling a bit hopeful, as he declares:

Every word or action raised against the overthrow of the Republic will find an echo somewhere, from one person to another to another to the next -- each isolated, individual voice slowly finding its way into a swelling chorus of dissent.

Post-Mortem America: Bush's Year of Triumph and the Hard Way Ahead

From Empire Burlesque, Written by Chris Floyd , Sunday, 02 September 2007

http://www.chris-floyd.com/content/view/1272/135/

Giuliani's Slimebags and Crooks Club

Giuliani seems to enjoy the company of slimebags and criminals. Barry S. Edwards appears to be both!

Giuliani event aide quits over sex, theft charges

BY MARC CAPUTO AND GARY FINEOUT, mcaputo@MiamiHerald.com

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking_news/story/222005.html

TALLAHASSEE --

An organizer for a Rudy Giuliani presidential event plans to step down amid revelations of his arrests for allegedly extorting an FSU student in a sex case and his conviction for dealing in stolen state computers.