
HT Vodka Pundit.
...Virtue, morality, and religion. This is the armor, my friend, and this alone that renders us invincible. These are the tactics we should study. If we lose these, we are conquered, fallen indeed... Patrick Henry (1736-1799) US Founding Father
Senate Endorses Plan to Divide Iraq
Action Shows Rare Bipartisan Consensus
September 26, 2007Showing rare bipartisan consensus over war policy, the Senate
overwhelmingly endorsed a political settlement for Iraq that would divide the
country into three semi-autonomous regions.
The plan, conceived by Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.), was approved 75-23 as a non-binding resolution, with 26 Republican votes. It would not force President Bush to take any action, but it represents a significant milestone in the Iraq debate, carving out common ground in a debate that has grown increasingly polarized and focused on military strategy.
The Biden plan envisions a federal government system for Iraq,
consisting of separate regions for Iraq's Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish populations.
The structure is spelled out in Iraq's constitution, but Biden would initiate
local and regional diplomatic efforts to hasten its evolution.
Brownback and Biden: On carving up Iraq
Biden and Brownback, a Kansas senator, maintained their plan for Iraq
would be the best solution toward stabilizing the country along the ethnic lines
of the Shias, Sunnis and Kurds, with a loose federal government in Baghdad that
would involve itself in sharing of oil revenues and coinage.
Both men adamantly denied that their legislation, which recently
passed the Senate and awaits House action, would create a forced partition of
Iraq. Instead they said the legislation was aimed at having the Iraqi's
restructure their government as allowed under the country's recently adopted
constitution.



One had lust in his heart
One got busted by a boy tart
And one is a blustering fart
The hot dog stand in the Pentagon's center courtyard, which long has
been a source of Cold War intrigue, will be torn down in the coming months and
replaced with a new eating facility.
"Rumor has it that during the Cold War the Russians never had any less
than two missiles aimed at this hot dog stand," said Brett Eaton, an information
and communications officer for Washington Headquarters Services. "They thought
this was the Pentagon's most top secret meeting room, and the entire Pentagon
was a large fortress built around this hot dog stand."
Reportedly, by using satellite imagery, the Soviets could see groups of
U.S. military officers entering and exiting the hot dog stand at about the same
time every day. They concluded that the stand was the entrance to an underground
bunker.
Congress considersConcord hazardous?
NASCAR fans might seem rabid, but are they actually contagious?
Getting a hepatitis shot is standard procedure for travelers
to parts of Africa and Asia, but some congressional aides were instructed to get
immunized before going to Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord and the racetrack in Talladega, Ala.
The House Homeland Security Committee planned a fact-finding trip
about public health preparedness at mass gatherings and decided to conduct the
research at two of the nation's most heavily attended sporting events, NASCAR's
Bank of America 500 event this weekend and the UAW-Ford 500 last
weekend.
Staff who organized the trips advised the NASCAR-bound aides to get
a range of vaccines before attending -- hepatitis A, hepatitis B, tetanus,
diphtheria and influenza.
Gay Rights Backers Split on Bias Bill
Legislation banning workplace discrimination against gays, lesbians and
bisexuals _ but not those who have had sex-change surgery or cross-dressers _
has stalled after an outcry from the transgender community and its allies,
including many gay rights organizations.
"Transgender" is an umbrella term that covers transsexuals,
cross-dressers and others whose outward appearance doesn't match their gender at birth.
The Employment Non-Discrimination Act would make it illegal for
employers to make decisions about hiring, firing, promoting or paying an
employee based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Churches and the
military would be exempt.
But when Democrats took vote counts and realized the measure would
fail, they substituted a new scaled-back version dropping transgender people
from the bill. A second bill to ban workplace discrimination against
transgenders was also drafted.
Gay rights groups that oppose a ban that leaves out transgender
people have waged an aggressive lobbying campaign.
"Fighting your friends can sometimes be difficult," said Frank.
Foreman agreed.
"I never thought in a million years we would be on the opposite
side of Barney Frank and it is painful," he said.
Jimmy Carter calls Cheney a "disaster"
Former President Jimmy Carter on Wednesday denounced Vice President
Dick Cheney as a "disaster" for the country and a "militant" who has had an
excessive influence in setting foreign policy.

Secessionists meeting in Tennessee
"We believe that an independent South, or Hawaii, Alaska, or Vermont
would be better able to serve the interest of everybody, regardless of race or
ethnicity," said Michael Hill of Killen, Ala., president of the League of the
South.
"We can’t sell our cars in China today because we don’t meet the
Chinese emissions standards."
More Big 3 Cars to China
Published: November 12, 2003
General Motors, Ford Motor and DaimlerChrysler said yesterday that they had reached agreements with China to import more cars and trucks built in the United States. The automakers want to raise their market share in China, which may pass Germany this year as the No3 vehicle market behind the United States and Japan.
President Thompson
After a recent Thompson speech in Iowa a member of the audience called
out: "Kill the terrorists, secure the border, and give me back my freedom."
Thompson replied "you just summed up my whole speech."