Saturday Morning Home Repair blogging XXVII

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Saturday February 24, 2007 · 5:15 AM PST

2007/02/24 · 05:15

Good morning all! Claude is out this a.m and asked me to take over the blog for the part of the day.

... and in the tradition of the great Claude... It is a wonderful morning here in Stockholm, we've finally been getting the snowy New Mexico weather of a month or so ago and it had been snowing up until last night or so in that peaceful day-dreaming stare out of the window sort of way. As the daylight hours are slowly increasing, the whiteness of the snowy sky was all the brighter. However, the -14C/6.7F temps were getting too annoying and it is now just a tad below freezing... and apparantly getting warmer...

borkitekt

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Saturday January 20, 2007 · 4:43 AM PST

2007/01/20 · 04:43

The New York Times is reporting this morning that Iraq's Oil Law is close to completion and has some info on how the law looks so far.

The draft law would also radically restructure parts of Iraq’s state-controlled and often lethargic oil industry by giving wide independence — possibly leading to eventual privatization — to the government companies that control things like oil exports, the maintenance of pipelines and the operation of the oil platforms in the Persian Gulf.

borkitekt

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Friday December 22, 2006 · 2:28 PM PST

2006/12/22 · 14:28

Perhaps the MSM decided to bury this, but the Swedish paper Svenska Dagbladet is reporting that Gates has said that we are "... staying in the Middle East" and that, (translating from the article which appears to be a loose quote:)

The US has increased its military presence in the Persian Gulf. The intention is to make clear for countries in the region that the US will play a role there for a long time to come, says the new defense minister Robert Gates.

So much for the democracy of a democracy exporting country...

continued below...

borkitekt

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Wednesday November 29, 2006 · 2:10 PM PST

2006/11/29 · 14:10

Sorry for the late notice, but since the b-day diary has fallen off the charts and there were a few of you, us, who expressed an interest in pitching in for something special for Meteor Blades 60th b-day, MB has suggested we could make a donation to the Native American Rights Fund.

A bit of text from the front page of the website:

Celebrating 35 years of standing firm for justice.

Founded in 1970, the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) is the oldest and largest nonprofit law firm dedicated to asserting and defending the rights of Indian tribes, organizations and individuals nationwide.

NARF’s practice is concentrated in five key areas: the preservation of tribal existence; the protection of tribal natural resources; the promotion of Native American human rights; the accountability of governments to Native Americans; and the development of Indian law and educating the public about Indian rights, laws, and issues.

Our work depends solely upon the generosity of donors like you. Please make a secure online donation today.

Update 2 w/donation link: Happy 60th Meteor Blades!

borkitekt

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Monday November 27, 2006 · 3:07 PM PST

2006/11/27 · 15:07

...and with the striking of the clock, midnight GMT+1, November the 28th 2006 begins in my little slice of Europe.

Our Meteor Blades is 60, as indicated by the title, and I'd like to say happy birthday!

borkitekt

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Tuesday November 21, 2006 · 5:40 AM PST

2006/11/21 · 05:40

In an article out of the Houston Chronicle today, U.S. to accept all but one of Iran's nuclear work requests, the US apparantly makes the biggest about face in ME policy to date- supporting Iran's nuclear initiative:

VIENNA, AUSTRIA — The United States said Monday it would accept Iran's request for U.N. aid on seven nuclear projects but urged the International Atomic Energy Agency to deny assistance for a plutonium-producing reactor that can be used to make a bomb.

Whether or not this includes enrichment it does not say.

One has to wonder how much power we have in leveraging the UN, (if we, in fact, actually don't run the damn thing,) considering this global about face...

More below...

UPDATE explained below too.

borkitekt

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Tuesday November 14, 2006 · 1:19 PM PST

2006/11/14 · 13:19

Dear Kos,

As it has been discussed regarding advertising and the direction of this site, I think this ad is going way too far:

To me, this appears to be propaganda that could get us into another war, at a time when so many of us are concerned for our troops, concerned for Iraqis and others in the ME, concered for our country, etc, etc...

This should be one of the last things ever brought into this site, it is, after all, right wing poison posted right at the top of our community, is it not?

please, anything but this.

NOV Surprises: Saddam verdict and Sharon?

borkitekt

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Saturday November 04, 2006 · 1:31 AM PST

2006/11/04 · 01:31

Just a head's up: the Saddam verdict is expected tomorrow. No telling how or if it will be spun, but it should be on our radars as there has not been much anticipation of the event in the press, which may give the impression that the proceedings were an Iraqi affair as opposed to an American spectacle.

The second one is more tinfoily, but Haaretz reported last night that Areil Sharon's condition has worsened. Back a few months ago on one of those 'guess the October Surprise' diaries I made the prediction that this specific event, done like the Reagan funeral, would give a huge boost to the GOP and quite possibly the War on Terror, which, conincidently, we've been hearing more about Iran and Syria in the news in the past few days....

Some news snips below... Read More

Iran Propaganda Echo Chamber

borkitekt

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Friday November 03, 2006 · 5:05 AM PST

2006/11/03 · 05:05

Ok Kossacks! Before you go crazy with the new piece in the NYTimes you need to be asking more questions before you jump the shark on this one- this is, after all Judy Miller's newspaper, and it looks like she's writting under a pseudonym now:

Officials of the International Atomic Energy Agency, fearing, that the information could help states like Iran develop nuclear arms, had privately protested last week to the American ambassador to the agency, according to European diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the issue's sensitivity. One diplomat said the agency's technical experts "were shocked" at the public disclosures.

How does this not set of flags for us? We've been through this before!

borkitekt

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Monday October 16, 2006 · 4:00 AM PDT

2006/10/16 · 04:00

For those who are interested in the larger implications of the Iraq debacle, Joshua Holland, writing for Alternet, posted a wonderfully in-depth piece this morning called Bush's Petro-Cartel Almost Has Iraq's Oil that is an absolute must read, comparable to Naomi Klein's Baghdad Year Zero.

The article is so incredibly well written and there is little I can add except that I wanted to put this out so that everyone saw it. What follows is the first few paragraphs and a few snips with his permission:

Even as Iraq is on the verge of splintering into a sectarian civil war, four big oil companies are on the verge of locking up its massive, profitable reserves, known to everyone in the petroleum industry as "the prize."
Editor's note: this is the first of a two-part series.

borkitekt

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Thursday September 28, 2006 · 7:13 AM PDT

2006/09/28 · 07:13

I've noticed that at this moment it seems as if we are refusing to believe in a reality that, only a generation ago, was our America.

Can you sense this too? Does it not seem as though we come up against some undescernable wall and all the discussion ends with this `head in sand' wishful thinking, that things can't get worse phenomenon? Or is it some sort of cliff and we are all refusing, too scared to look down?

With all the discussion focused on torture and the erosion of our rights, I believe most in our generation (70s' + kids) have no context by which to understand the lengths our government will go in order to obtain some hitherto unknown, untold objective. Not only do we lack the historical perspective, but, damn it, we all are so caught up in the moment that not one of you in the older generation has said `yeah, I've seen them try that before, let me tell you about it...'

So, I'm calling you oldies out: What in the hell are we facing?

Jump? No, mister president, tear down this fucking wall!!!
Read More

Kos Site Ideas and Evolution 1.1

borkitekt

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Thursday September 21, 2006 · 1:44 PM PDT

2006/09/21 · 13:44

Dear Kossaks,

Inspired by wee mamas my dream daily Kos and the focus dmsilev gives to the site here, I wanted to continue the discussion about the way information is utilized on the site in hopes of exploring new possibilities of interfacing between the user, news and other information that could be of value to us. So, for healthy discussion's sake, I have a few ideas, questions and want to hear what ideas you have, tweaks, etc...

(note: this diary originally went out at the onset of the disney/abc war and, needless to say, few caught it, but with this event still fresh in our mind, we should rethink how we use information effectively to pursue our aims.

so please stop by for a sec, rec if you think others may find this of value, enjoy...)
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Saturday Morning Home Repair blogging XXVII

nyt: Iraq Drafts New Oil Law

"The USA is staying in the Middle East"

Re: B-day Gift for Meteor Blades

Update 2 w/donation link: Happy 60th Meteor Blades!

BRAKING: US Backing Down on Iran?

Kos, please, take it down!

NOV Surprises: Saddam verdict and Sharon?

Iran Propaganda Echo Chamber

Joshua Holland: Bush's Petro-Cartel Almost Has Iraq's Oil

What Was Our America, a Generation Ago?

Kos Site Ideas and Evolution 1.1