Cheney: Cha-Ching!

[GomiGirl]

Have you been into my personal photo collection again Ultra-san???

Ah yes the early years... corsets are my thing now..

[GomiGirl]

You're just a dumb **** shacking up with a Jap musician and you think that makes you special. You are nothing and your husband is a loser. You know nothing about Japan except your daily life.

*GG sticking up for gomichild*

Completely untrue but more importantly completely unneccessary!!!

[American Oyaji]

Gai,

You were doing great until you started name calling.

Here's some water.

Now get back in there.


*DING* ROUND 2

[Resolute Optimist]

When Chiraq said he would vote against a 2nd resolution no matter what, I changed my mind... what a wonderful example of diplomacy

I don't understand what the major issue is for the anti-war party anymore. Are you against war by principle? I think there aren't many people who LIKE war by principle. However, it is also very convenient to prone non-intervention when we are sitting in the comfort of our democratic, liberal economy homelands. I can't see that being for the removal of tyrants (and in Hussein's case, he might not be dangerous NOW to US - because that is why you don't want us to go in isn't it?- but can you guarantee that Iraq wouldn't have become NK2 in the next 5 years?) is an any less valid cause. In both cases lives will be lost, but so far Hussein has killed approx.
700 000, so what is for worse?
The economy aspects... undeniable I suppose. But please don't be fooled by France's stance, they own one of the biggest oil companies in Iraq (Total Elf) and were doing quite nicely. At least maybe the oil will become a benefit to the Iraquis at last, creating jobs and a better redistribution of wealth.
There was a time when it was easier for people to stand up and take over when denied their rights. I don't think it's as easy as picking up your garden fork and walking on the Bastille in Iraq, considering the effort and dedication that SH's regime has put into keeping people terrorized. How can you use the "un enthusiastic" reception of the coalition troops as an alibi? Have you all forgotten the betrayl of the First Gulf War when under pressure from the UN, American troops left Iraq and abandoned the Iraquis who had uprisen? How would you behave the next time round when your father, uncle, brother and son had been shot for being enthusiastic? And yes, in the end, I think it is down to these sort of things, branded by anti war protesters as being too easy... so what DOES it take for a non-interventionist attitude to become non-assistance to persons in danger? Because not helping people because of the economical side of this war is also putting oil before people.

However, I'm not so convinced as to the coalition gaining the general arabo-muslim opinion. And this is where the trouble starts. Talk about Palestine, they'd be all for it because it holds a great symbolic value, religion against religion. (By the way, confided by my Syrian friend, apparently the Palestinian people were always considered as "flea-bitten savages" by arabic nations!!!). Arabic muslims (I insist on associating the two because it does concern more specifically those of muslim confession) feel a cohesion between themselves as a cultural community, but the incoherencies within that general feeling pinpoints in my mind the crisis that the Middle East is going through on a social level. Saddam, a muslim tortures his own people. But that holds no symbolic value to them. Tyrants are symbolic when they represent the oppressor of a religion, someone for a religious community to uprise against. Had Saddam been a christian I don't think they would covet the same position.

And I do hope that it will take away the sense of impunity to other tyrants... Mugabe is currently calling himself "Hitler" and has now precipitated the region to the brink of famine... I just think that although an honorable stance, being antiwar BY PRINCIPLE, is doing more to cut the West off from the rest of the world by almost suggesting that we are the cause of most wars and secondly by pretending that there won't be some other totalitarian nation willing to do it for us and in terms less fair than attacking countries oppressed by tyrants, etc...

And here I say no more ( I hear sighs of relief!).

[This is a pen]

The Chairman of the Louisiana Democratic Party gets a $100,000,000
No-Bid "Halliburton type" Contract to help rebuild New Orleans.



Where is all the Outrage?


1. The Story
2. About the CEO

[FG Lurker]

As a non-Jesuslander I would love to form a company to get onto this gravy train... Give me all your tax dollars!

It's interesting (in a macabre sort of way) to watch the US destroy itself... The only question is how long it will take and how badly it will affect the rest of the world.

[GuyJean]

Where is all the Outrage?

Again, if you actually read the whole article, the 'outrage' is coming from the Democrats:

Several Democrats and outside experts have raised additional questions about how the government spends the money allocated for Katrina relief. - http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=12620

No bid contracts are BS, in my opinion, no matter what party.. But Katrina happened in Shaw's own back yard:

Mr. Bernhard is a native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana where he currently lives with his wife Dana and their children. He graduated from Louisiana State University in 1976 with a degree in Construction Management. - http://www.lademo.org/index.php?display=ShowPage&id=329508

GJ

[This is a pen]

Where is all the Outrage?

Again, if you actually read the whole article, the 'outrage' is coming from the Democrats:

Several Democrats and outside experts have raised additional questions about how the government spends the money allocated for Katrina relief. - http://www.corpwatch.org/article.php?id=12620

Do you think the Reaction would have been the same if it was the Chairman of the Republican Party of Louisiana whose company was getting No-Bid Contracts?

No bid contracts are BS, in my opinion, no matter what party

We agree

.. But Katrina happened in Shaw's own back yard:

Mr. Bernhard is a native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana where he currently lives with his wife Dana and their children. He graduated from Louisiana State University in 1976 with a degree in Construction Management. - http://www.lademo.org/index.php?display=ShowPage&id=329508

GJ

Let me make sure I understand you on this,
This guy has ties to the Area, so it's OK if he profits from the bad things that happen there?

If that's the case, ......I think Cheney has some ties to Iraq.......

[GuyJean]

Do you think the Reaction would have been the same if it was the Chairman of the Republican Party of Louisiana whose company was getting No-Bid Contracts?

What do you mean? Democrats and outsiders asking questions (including questions about fellow Democrats), CNN featuring a story on 'questionable' no-bid contracts, and the Government Accountability Office conducting audits isn't a big enough 'reaction' for you?:

The inspectors general from half a dozen agencies, as well as officials from the Government Accountability Office, on Wednesday were addressing a House subcommittee on the Katrina cleanup and announcing several new audits to combat waste and fraud.

They are pledging strong oversight that includes a review of no-bid contracts and close scrutiny of federal employees who now enjoy a $250,000 -- rather than a $2,500 -- purchase limit for Katrina-related expenses on their government-issued credit cards. - http://edition.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/09/28/congress.katrina.ap/index.html

If that's the case, ......I think Cheney has some ties to Iraq.......

He was born, graduated, and raised his family in Iraq? Wow.. I didn't know that. Wouldn't that make him 'the enemy'?

GJ

[This is a pen]

Do you think the Reaction would have been the same if it was the Chairman of the Republican Party of Louisiana whose company was getting No-Bid Contracts?

What do you mean? Democrats and outsiders asking questions (including questions about fellow Democrats), CNN featuring a story on 'questionable' no-bid contracts, and the Government Accountability Office conducting audits isn't a big enough 'reaction' for you?:

Well......I was hoping for a press release critizising the wrong doers from Jesse Jackson, Moveon.org, Huffington Report, Barbra Streisand or Air America.


Hey!! It could happen!!

[Greji]

The Chairman of the Louisiana Democratic Party gets a $100,000,000
No-Bid "Halliburton type" Contract to help rebuild New Orleans.



[b]Where is all the Outrage?

There is one thing that has not be discussed in this to date, and that is expediency. Sure Halliburton and the Shaw Group have high profiles for both sides of the aisle. But the problem here is the government bidding process. These initial "we need now" public works are of such size that they require hugh organizations that can do the work and do it now, not wait for a year while we search for sub-contractors.

Since they need it now, how are you going to set up a government bidding system to get work done. It will take at least six months to a year to choose and verify a bidder. There is no time and if you have ever worked in government contracting, you would realize that sole source is the only way they could let this work with any hope of getting a fast, professional response.

Isn't fast action and response what the MSM and Dems have been saying is missing and screaming about? Now that it is finally begining, why does it need to be slowed down?

Granted this is not the best way to let bids, but these are not normal times, so I don't think there should be so much bickering, if we are getting the job we want accomplished, shoganai in this instance!

[FG Lurker]

What makes you think Canada would want Smogifornia? Or any other Jesusland escapees for that matter...

[cstaylor]

What makes you think Canada would want Smogifornia?

You'd be lucky to have us. Certainly more interesting than talking about hockey again.

[GuyJean]

Granted this is not the best way to let bids, but these are not normal times, so I don't think there should be so much bickering, if we are getting the job we want accomplished, shoganai in this instance!

I agree; The no-bid contracts for a natural disaster shouldn't be compared to one's in a pre-planned, (or what I would've hoped to be 'pre-planned'), war..

But couldn't companies bid on contracts before a natural disaster strikes? The government goes to tender with a few expereinced companies, giving them the same worst-case scenario disaster, asking them to give quotes on clean up, management, etc... The one with the best cost and benefit wins the contract..

GJ