Obama's domino theory

Juan Cole, Professor of Middle Eastern and South Asian history at the University of Michigan, discusses Obama's rhetoric on Afghanistan.

"Obama's dark vision of the overthrow of the Afghanistan government by al-Qaida-linked Taliban or the "killing" of Pakistan by small tribal groups differs little from the equally apocalyptic and implausible warnings issued by John McCain and Dick Cheney about an "al-Qaida" victory in Iraq. Ominously, the president's views are contradicted by those of his own secretary of defense. Pashtun tribes in northwestern Pakistan and southern Afghanistan have a long history of dissidence, feuding and rebellion, which is now being branded Talibanism and configured as a dire menace to the Western way of life. Obama has added yet another domino theory to the history of Washington's justifications for massive military interventions in Asia. When a policymaker gets the rationale for action wrong, he is at particular risk of falling into mission creep and stubborn commitment to a doomed and unnecessary enterprise."

Update: Added link to wikipedia's entry on the domino theory.

The Imperial March played with a Tesla coil and a Faraday suit.

via Metafilter.

New Nanogenerator May Charge IPods And Cell Phones With A Wave Of The Hand

Hitler's response to this year's football season

I think we all saw last year's response. I gotta say, I think he took it well.



And if this little girl wasn't so damn cute, I would whip her ass.

Chamberlin responds!

Jimmy Chamberlin responds!

March 24, 2009 | 6395 views

Jimmy Chamberlin has crafted his own response to the news that he has left The Smashing Pumpkins.

I will say, without going into any unnecessary details that this represents a positive move forward for me. I can no longer commit all of my energy into something that I don't fully possess. I won't pretend I'm into something I'm not. I won't do it to myself, you the fan, or my former partner. I can't just, "Cash the check" so to speak. Music is my life. It is sacred. It deserves the highest commitment at every level and the Pumpkins are certainly no different. I'm sorry but it really IS that simple. There is no drama, bad blood, or anything else but a full commitment to music. My best goes out to Billy and I'm glad he has chosen to continue under the name. It is his right. I will continue to make music with the Jimmy Chamberlin Complex as well as pursuing other musical interests. I feel that I have a long way to go and a lot to give



I think the "cash the check" comment is telling.

Dr. Feelgood

The Last of the Real Gunslingers

Dave gets married.

Absolute complete and total bullshit.

THE SMASHING PUMPKINS' BILLY CORGAN ANNOUNCES THE DEPARTURE OF JIMMY CHAMBERLIN FROM THE GROUP

CORGAN SET TO HEAD INTO THE STUDIO TO CREATE NEW SMASHING PUMPKINS MUSIC

The SMASHING PUMPKINS' guitarist, singer, songwriter and founding member Billy Corgan has announced that drummer Jimmy Chamberlin has left the group. Chamberlin joined the band Corgan founded in Chicago in 1988 and played on all their albums except Adore (1998). Corgan will continue to write and record as SMASHING PUMPKINS with plans to head into the studio this spring.




I know most of you will simply shrug your shoulders. But people, know that this is a sad day for me. And fuck Corgan for still calling it the Smashing Pumpkins.
Goddamn it! 2009 has not been a good year so far.

Hey Paul Krugman

I first got wind of this video a few days ago, but didn't get around to watching it until I saw it over at Crooks and Liars.

Wargames via E-mail

I was thinking about out gaming discussion and ran in to this program on the internet. It's called cyberboard, and it allows you to play games via e-mail. The catch is that you still the need the game for the rules, combat tables, etc. and it's not live action. However, the coolest part is that this cat also made a designer program so that you can make your own boards and game pieces. I made a replica of the Tactics 2 game board this weekend. Pretty rad.

Battlestar Galactica Fools!!

I don't know if you guys are watching the finale, but it's about to get sick ya'll!!!

Steven Colbert vs. RNC Chair Michael Steele: The Rap Battle

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Michael Steele's Rap Battle Response
comedycentral.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Mark Sanford

The Obama administration is screwing Chris Dodd over the AIG bonus scandal

Glenn Greenwald lays it out:

"There is a major push underway -- engineered by Obama's Treasury officials, enabled by a mindless media, and amplified by the right-wing press -- to blame Chris Dodd for the AIG bonus payments. That would be perfectly fine if it were true. But it's completely false, and the scheme to heap the blame on him for the AIG bonus payments is based on demonstrable falsehoods."

I guess that this wouldn't be as terrible if Dodd wasn't facing an uphill battle for his seat in the next election cycle. It would still be craven and dishonest, but less treacherous. 

Calvin does Capitalism

via Crooks and Liars.

Axis and Allies, the Early Years

So I was going through some old pictures. In my search, I came across this one - further proof that the South is still fighting the war.

And a handsome pair, don't you think?

AIG Tax

Chris and I were just talking on the phone, and he asked me about the plan to tax employees of AIG who received some of that $165 Million in bonuses. I said that it seemed to me that the plan wouldn't be constitutional, as it seemed to be an example of a bill of attainder, which is explicitly prohibited by the US Constitution. 

Marc Ambinder  of The Atlantic thought the same thing. Then he asked Lawrence Tribe of Harvard what he thought. Here is Tribe's take on it.

Back home

Hey everyone, just wanted to let you know that I had a good time seeing all of you this last week. As I was entering Gainesville proper, I noticed a young couple standing on the sidewalk, looking skyward. I did the same in time to see the plume from the Shuttle launch streak into existence. It is the second time that I've seen the launch from Gainesville, but the first time was during a very overcast day, and the plume was barely visible against the cloud-cover. Today, however, the skies were clear, and the smoke from the boosters was the only thing visible. 

NCAA tournament expands.

NCAA Expands March Madness To Include 4,096 Teams

Frank Schaeffer kicks the Republican party straight in the balls.

Former Republican and member of the Religious Right lays the smack down.

"You Republicans are the arsonists who burned down our national home. You combined the failed ideologies of the Religious Right, so-called free market deregulation and the Neoconservative love of war to light a fire that has consumed America. Now you have the nerve to criticize the "architect" America just hired -- President Obama -- to rebuild from the ashes. You do nothing constructive, just try to hinder the one person willing and able to fix the mess you created."