Iraq Study Group Report

The report can be downloaded from here for free. I heard it was already no. 18 on Amazon (source: Sales soar for Iraq study).

I saw little bit of the news conference when James Baker et al announced the findings. I was tuning into The View at the time (of course!), and the networks cut into the broadcast.

I'm looking forward to reading this. A lot.

Troops on streets in Fiji's "coup by strangulation"

It's weird to read about warfare and strife in Fiji since I've always pictured it as an exotic tourist destination with serene, beyond gorgeous coastline in the South Pacific, which in itself conjures up images of lazy Sundays lying on the hammock. Something along the lines of this promotional website.

I thought of it as a quiet island whose abundance of gorgeous scenery was the perfect tourist attraction.

Link

Bush says he does not live in a bubble

This headline makes me laugh. He "does not live in a bubble?" It's like he's arguing with a kid in the playground, and that kid accuses young Bush of not having a clue, of living in a bubble, but he says "Nah Arggg. I don't live in a bubble. I live in the freaken real world, dude." The headline makes it seem like some 12 year-old girl wrote it. What's the next headline? "The President has popped the bubble he was once living in?" Or "The President is no longer blowing bubbles?" Not eloquent enough, I suppose. The media amuses me. And I in turn amuse myself.

ETA: Baby Bush Toys. A perfect companion for the headline above that makes our President sound really dumb.

[Link]

Bush's State of the Union

I know it's suppose to be important and all, but it's filled with annoying pomp like clapping every minute and standing up for no purpose that I'm turned off by it. Ok, I admit maybe it's because I'm not a fan of Bush, but when a room full of people stands up or claps every time the man pauses, it get old real quick.

so, like, Bush had his inauguration

Yes. I watched parts of it. The boring part where the cameras are showing people walking down hallways and stairs. And sometimes TV commentators would comment or analyze stuff while the cameras are showing people walking down hallways and stairs. Talk about captivating TV. If only someone tripped...

Sometime after everyone was done walking down hallways and stairs, Bush got to put his hand on the Bible and swear to be the BEST PRESIDENT EVER! Then he gave his speech full of unfathomable ideals or something like that. Sorry, no recap on the speech as I was getting ready for class. Mascara is really hard to put on, you know. Plus, I have the cheap kind that clumps.

And I suppose Bush + family got to go through all those balls. And what's the big deal about who's wearing what? I saw CNN talk about sketches of what the First Lady and her daughters were going to wear. And how awkward was it for me to hear Barbara Walters and Peter Jennings (I'm guessing. I think I watched it on ABC) discuss Mrs. Bush's bold fashion choices now that she's grown more comfortable with her role as First Lady. Ha! I bet she could show some cleavage now.

Anyways, so, yeah. I didn't really watch the speech because, frankly, this wasn't the guy I voted for. It takes a lot for me not to snicker at all those things he said he wanted for this nation and the world in his speech. Blah…blah…blah.

People are protesting the Ukrainian election?

MSNBC - Ukraine post-election crisis deepens | Ukrainian Protesters Vow to ‘Stay Until the End’

I am finding similarities between the Ukrainian election and our own election. The exit polls showed that the opposition was leading, but final election results differ, and the PM won.

However, the opposition is holding out on accepting the election results, and thousands and thousands are holding peaceful protests. Here's my question, "why didn't we protest?" Why didn't Kerry supporters protest? How is the Ukrainian political culture different from our? Is that why they are still protesting? And major cities in the Ukraine have refused to accept the results. Why can't the blue states do the same?

It's the old versus the new. Do you want more of the same or something different? Four more years or (I can't remember if the Dems had an answer for this chant)...

I see us, Americans, being incredibly bitter and divided (the magical word), but we choose to be bitter and divided about it. Our way of letting off election steam was to complain and threaten to move to Canada! The Ukrainians choose to march and protest on city streets and squares. Our disappointment was internal; theirs was external.

One of life's surprising mystery...

I know this has been circulating the Internet for the past couple of days, and I'm late on the bandwagon, but it was too funny not to post.

And I must hand it to the Brits because this headline is pretty clever and CATCHY.

Lately, I'm feeling like I have nothing to post about. I figure that I’m in a state of withdrawal over the election results. I've been reading article after article on what went wrong with Kerry's campaign, and how Bush won this election. I have been reading other blogs, and have checked people's comments regarding the election. All in all, I'm pretty tired.

Kerry supporters are "shocked and awed," if you will, over the outcome while Bush supporters are beaming that their man got reelected. Not surprising. But, there seems to be a consensus among Kerry supporters that the next 4 years of the Bush Presidency will be hell. They cite mostly the same reasons for hating Bush. They vehemently despise him and his presidency. I hear the same dejected, yet outraged tone from Kerry supporters all across the board, and I'm taken aback by the overwhelming disappointment about Kerry's defeat and by it all.

And I suppose Bush supporters are, well, just really, really happy.

The life of a person

I look at Arafat and I sigh. It's sad. I'm sad because I feel it's an example of life unlived, of choices made in life.

He's reportedly dying. I'm sad because people are always speculating about what's going to happen after he is dead. It seemed so callous for people to be saying, “Arafat’s dead, so what do you think is going to happen?"

I'm sad because he could have done something else with his life. He's hated, and he's made an example of--"look at this despicable person, this terrorist." I'm sure many people are wishing for his death. But he's still a man, a person, and he might be on his deathbed.

Fidel fell and people made fun of him. It's justified because he's a communist dictator. It's not about a life of a man anymore. He could have another path in life—a path drastically different from his current one. He could have empowered the Cuban people and the Cuban economy and not become such a divisive figure. But choices get made, and people end up where they are now.

I can't help but feel some sadness for Fidel and Arafat, who is at the end of his life, even if they aren't the epitome of good human beings. I'm grieving for a life lost, a choice not made.

EDIT: Read Slate's article on assessing Arafat's legacy: Yasser Arafat.