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Thursday, August 12, 2004 Background checks in aisle 3 Background checks will be required for all new store associates to check for criminal offenses before they are hired under a plan released Thursday by Wal-Mart Stores Inc. "We have hundreds of thousands of trustworthy women and men serving our customers," said Sue Oliver, senior vice president of People for Wal-Mart's Stores Division. "By adding another level of security to our hiring practices, our associates can be assured that we are strengthening our efforts to try to intercept anyone who might otherwise damage that integrity. We also believe this will add yet another level of comfort for our customers." Story here. Now, does that include the illegal immigrants too? (Thanks to Lindsey for the tip.) posted by chris at 11:03 PM   Our new CIA man A little self-doubt is good for you, right? U.S. Congressman Porter Goss, President Bush's nominee for CIA director, could be his own worst enemy when it comes to making the case that he deserves to lead the U.S. intelligence agency. "I couldn't get a job with CIA today. I am not qualified," the Florida Republican told documentary-maker Michael Moore's production company during the filming of the anti-Bush movie "Fahrenheit 9/11." A day after Bush picked Goss for the top U.S. spy job, Moore on Wednesday released an excerpt from a March 3 interview in which the 65-year-old former House of Representatives intelligence chief recounts his lack of qualifications for employment as a modern CIA staffer. "I don't have the language skills. I, you know, my language skills were romance languages and stuff. We're looking for Arabists today. I don't have the cultural background probably," Goss is quoted in an interview transcript. "And I certainly don't have the technical skills, uh, as my children remind me every day: 'Dad you got to get better on your computer.' Uh, so, the things that you need to have, I don't have." So instead he should head the CIA? Well, as we learned from Bush, it doesn't matter how good of a leader a person is, it's all about who he surrounds himself with that matters. (Via Atrios.) posted by chris at 11:49 AM   Mixed messages President Bush pushed back Wednesday against Sen. John Kerry’s criticism of his handling of Iraq, saying, “I know what I’m doing when it comes to winning this war.” So does that mean "major combat operations" are NOT over? Explosions and gunfire echoed across the holy city of Najaf on Thursday, as the U.S. military and Iraqi forces launched a full-scale assault to crush a weeklong uprising by militiamen loyal to radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Thousands of U.S. troops were taking part in the offensive, which began with the cordoning off of the revered Imam Ali shrine, its vast cemetery and Najaf's Old City. ``Major operations to destroy the militia have begun,'' said U.S. Marine Maj. David Holahan, executive officer of the 1st Battalion, 4th Marines Regiment. I thought all this silly Iraq business was done with now that we handed over soverignty. Lucky for us (and the Iraqis), Bush knows what he's doing. (Thanks to Kos and Xoverboard.) posted by chris at 11:17 AM   Too little, too late The Washington Post gets reflective: As violence continues in postwar Iraq and U.S. forces have yet to discover any WMDs, some critics say the media, including The Washington Post, failed the country by not reporting more skeptically on President Bush's contentions during the run-up to war. An examination of the paper's coverage, and interviews with more than a dozen of the editors and reporters involved, shows that The Post published a number of pieces challenging the White House, but rarely on the front page. Some reporters who were lobbying for greater prominence for stories that questioned the administration's evidence complained to senior editors who, in the view of those reporters, were unenthusiastic about such pieces. The result was coverage that, despite flashes of groundbreaking reporting, in hindsight looks strikingly one-sided at times. This is so ridiculous. The Post is trying to admit they were wrong without admitting they were wrong. Hell, later in the article, they even refuse to apologize to their readers. They offer excuse after excuse and hedge around the fact that they screwed up, but still want to assure their readers that they're a viable source of news. That we can trust them to do their actual job of investigating and reporting the news. I'd like to think that this would be a lesson for the future, but I'm afraid that the next time a President tries to take us to war based on lies and deception, they'll be the first in line to get embedded with the troops. Aarrgh! Just one more reason to read alternative media. posted by chris at 11:03 AM   ------------------ Tuesday, August 10, 2004 The Olympics of sponsorship Strict regulations published by Athens 2004 last week dictate that spectators may be refused admission to events if they are carrying food or drinks made by companies that did not see fit to sponsor the games. Sweltering sports fans who seek refuge from the soaring temperatures with a soft drink other than one made by Coca-Cola will be told to leave the banned refreshment at the gates or be shut out. High on the list of blacklisted beverages is Pepsi, but even the wrong bottle of water could land spectators in trouble. Fans will be allowed into the Olympic complex if they are drinking Avra, a Greek mineral water owned by Coca-Cola, which paid $60 million US for the privilege of being one of the main sponsors. Officials are under orders not to let in rival brands' bottles unless the labels are removed. All hail the real winners of the Games. posted by chris at 4:44 PM   What he said, what he did With campaign promises being tossed around with wild abandon, it seems like a good time to look back on Bush's 2000 promises and see what he actually did. The American Progress Action Fund has compiled the list. Here are a couple good ones: THEN: "As President, Governor Bush will…pay the debt down to a historically low level." [Source: Bush-Cheney 2000 website] NOW: As of July 30, the national debt stood at $7,316,567,571,232.89, a record high. This year's budget will also create a record deficit: $445 billion, according to the White House. [Source: Treasury Department, 8/3/04, Reuters, 7/31/04] THEN: "[B]y far the vast majority of my tax cuts go to the bottom end of the spectrum." [Source: George W. Bush, 2/15/00] NOW: The top 20 percent of earners received 69.8 percent of President Bush's tax cuts. [Source: CBPP, 4/23/04, p. 17] There's more. posted by chris at 2:28 PM   Bush gives up on enforcing taxes? April 15, 2004: And in my budget, I proposed a 10.7 percent increase to make sure that tax cheaters are found, make sure the IRS gets after those who don't pay taxes; make sure that the system is fair for those of us who do pay taxes. We want everybody paying their fair share. August 9, 2004: Bush also said high taxes on the rich are a failed strategy because "the really rich people figure out how to dodge taxes anyway." So let's give them huge tax breaks then . . . that's a better strategy! From the Progress Report, which has a host of other "changes" from the Bush administration. posted by chris at 2:18 PM   ------------------ Monday, August 09, 2004 Election woes You'd think that the Beacon of Democracy for the WorldTM would be able to conduct its upcoming elections in an open and transparent manner befitting a country of such self-proclaimed democracy- and beacon-ness. But you'd be wrong. posted by chris at 4:20 PM   I always feel like somebody's watching me The government is increasingly using corporations to do its surveillance work, allowing it to get around restrictions that protect the privacy and civil liberties of Americans, according to a report released Monday by the American Civil Liberties Union, an organization that works to protect civil liberties. Data aggregators -- companies that aggregate information from numerous private and public databases -- and private companies that collect information about their customers are increasingly giving or selling data to the government to augment its surveillance capabilities and help it track the activities of people. Because laws that restrict government data collection don't apply to private industry, the government is able to bypass restrictions on domestic surveillance. Congress needs to close such loopholes, the ACLU said, before the exchange of information gets out of hand. -clip- The report listed three ways in which government agencies obtain data from the private sector: by purchasing the data, by obtaining a court order or simply by asking for it. Corporations freely share information with government agencies because they don't want to appear to be unpatriotic, they hope to obtain future lucrative Homeland Security contracts with the government or they fear increased government scrutiny of their business practices if they don't share. More. posted by chris at 3:34 PM   Fighting against the war on terror The al-Qaida suspect named by U.S. officials as the source of information that led to this week's terrorist alerts was working undercover, Pakistani intelligence sources said Friday, putting an end to the sting operation and forcing Pakistan to hide the man in a secret location. Under pressure to justify the alerts in three Northeastern cities, U.S. officials confirmed a report by The New York Times that the man, Mohammad Naeem Noor Khan, was the source of the intelligence that led to the decision. A Pakistani intelligence source told Reuters on Friday that Khan, who was arrested in Lahore secretly last month, had been actively cooperating with intelligence agents to help catch al-Qaida operatives when his name appeared in U.S. newspapers Story. Intelligence experts weren't so happy about it: "The whole thing smacks of either incompetence or worse," said Tim Ripley, a security expert who writes for Jane's Defence publications. "You have to ask: what are they doing compromising a deep mole within al Qaeda, when it's so difficult to get these guys in there in the first place? posted by chris at 1:11 PM   Always low wages, always. From CBS News: A recent University of California, Berkeley study found that the fast growing retailer takes more from communities than it gives. "Because of the low wages and because people do not have health insurance through their employer, people rely on public support to make ends meet," says the school's Ken Jacobs. Estimates are the result is a tab to California taxpayers of $82-million a year for health care, food stamps, and other social services. And what does Wal-Mart say in its defense? The big store fires back that it pays far more in taxes and hires out-of-the-mainstream workers - seniors, students, immigrants, part-timers, says Whitaker. That's interesting, because those "out-of-the-mainstream workers" are just the kinds of workers who will work for lower wages and often won't receive benefits. Don't think that's quite the point Wal-Mart was trying to make. posted by chris at 1:03 PM   ------------------ Sunday, August 08, 2004 National Preparedness Month The Bush campaign/U.S. Government (these people can't seem to distinguish between the two) is planning to name September National Preparedness Month. Now why on earth would they choose September? Oh, I don't know . . . maybe because it's immediately after the GOP convention and only a couple months before the Presidential election? There's a bunch of other elements involved in this impending announcement, but just go read Bob Harris. He's done all the research so we don't have to. And then spread the word about this cynical, politically-motivated move. posted by chris at 12:40 PM   ------------------

    

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