What's so hot about North Dakota?

Queenie's always saying that we should pack up and Move to North Dakota because she believes given enough time we will have ocean front property. Needless to say, the royal offspring scoff at the ramblings of the dotted upon dowager.

But then we read this: Scientists say Arctic once was tropical

Hmmmmm..... Could the Royal Mother be right?

Shames Plug for Rightous Babes

WE LOVE THE DIXIE CHICKS
http://www.dixiechicks.com/

From the Washington Note

High Morale Reported Among Soviet Troops in Afghanistan Too
During the Soviet war with Afghanistan, which Zbig Brzezinski once commented he helped lead the USSR into -- helping in his view to end the Cold War with the minor cost of riling up some Muslims -- morale among Russian troops was always reported to be high...

Members of the Royal family who have military connections have reported to us that from what they hear "The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are going well - it just isn't being reported."

First of all QD shudders to think about what a military officer means when he describes a "war going well." She suspects that it spells death of innocents.

Second of all ~ Queenie's Daughter is very skeptical.

Who's Next to Play Pay the Piper???

Rove-Novak Call Was Concern To Leak Investigators
By Murray Waas, National Journal

and gleefully.... hopefully.... inevitably...

Prosecutors say silence in CIA leak case may signal Rove indictment coming

Heck of a job Kenny Boy!

Ken Lay and Jeffrey Skilling held accountable for their crimes!
HOUSTON - Former Enron Corp. chiefs Kenneth Lay and Jeffrey Skilling were convicted Thursday of conspiracy to commit securities and wire fraud in a case born from one of the biggest business scandals in U.S. history.

Yes we were quiet this week, but the wheels of justice were rolling along ...

Two Good Rentals

Matchpoint
Bright YOung Things

A Million little Pieces Redux

TheTruth Out story by Jason Leopold about Karle Rove's indictment has turned out to be just that a "story." More fiction than the fact it was reported to be, Leopold got everyone's hopes up for a perp walk and what many would consider Fitzmas in May.

So Leopold either lied or was misled. In any event his credibility is now nil and he has caused great embarassment to the truthout website.

Read what the The Washington Post has to say ...
QD will stay off the bandwagon except to say this:
Did Jason Leopold invent a story that may or may not be true to sell more copies of his upcoming bio ala Frey's Million Little Pieces?

Woe Journalism ... Where hast thou gone??

Bad Fella: James Gandolfini

Speaking Monday night from the National Museum of American History for the Washington premiere of the HBO documentary “Baghdad ER,” James Gandolfini said President Bush should “reinstate the draft, send 500,000 troops and finish it.” (Source: The Hill)

QD was not going to post on politics today.
She was going to keep it strictly about entertainment/tv.
And then she read this ...
An ugly alliance of celebrity hubris and testosterone fueled patriotism.

All in an effort to sell a film.

Now we have looked the other way at the Soprano's ... we watched it season one but it was too violent and too creepy so we stopped. But we didn't bash the show. Not even when so many of its crew were arrested for forgetting to stop acting like thugs in their real lives. We read about it in Page Six but did not jump off and start spouting that the show was an insult to law abiding Italian Americans and was glorifying violence and crime.

Why? Because we have always had a great deal of respect for Gandolfini as an actor.

Until today.

When James Gandolfini advocated drafting innocent children to fight an illegal war in order to promote his own movie...we lost all respect for him as an actor and a human being.

Shame on you James. Shame. Shame. Shame.

Royal Viewing

When it all seems like much too much
and life is pain and indecision
Pick up a couple of burgers at Jimbo's
and chill out with television!!!

The Princess Bride
Scaling the Cliffs of Insanity, Battling Rodents of Unusual Size, Facing torture in the Pit of Despair. - True love has never been a snap. (tagline)
Simply one of the best movies of all time.

AI Results Show
Well, yes we have watched all season but tonight we just turned it on at the very end to confirm what we already knew: Elliot out and McPhugly and Spaz are the final two.

The Amazing Race
This was the first we ever saw of it, but at the beginning they recapped the whole season and we liked the hippies ... so we switched between commercials to see if they would beat the Frat Boys. They did. The good guys won. It was sort of satisfying in that very low standards of what makes you happy kind of way.

The Office
Gareth: "I work hard. I earn my keep. But unfortunately the history books are full of just people who toil and fight for worthy causes and the freedom of others"
Tim: "That’s the most profound thing you’ve ever said mate"
Gareth: "Yeah and you don’t want that only for foreigners, or women, or disableds to take advantage of it"
Tim: "Can I withdraw my last comment?"

Absolute Power
from the BBC website ... "A savage swipe at the modern-day obsessions of celebrity and spin, Absolute Power cast light on life at Prentiss McCabe, the doyen of PR agencies where - with an almost heroic lack of morals or ethical responsibility - the staff spin news stories to benefit their often loathsome clients: wife-beating entertainers, ruthlessly ambitious politicians, bad-boy footballers, duplicitous TV personalities and others."

Mea Culpa

In an obvious mode of "wish fulfillment" QD did not "double source" the Jason Leopold article over at Truthout which states that Rove has been indicted.
Here's a little look at Mr. Leopold and his reporting.

What's the truth? Dunno. B
ut we are still hoping for a perp walk.

Why No Rove News???

From the Washington Note:
Karl Rove: Don't Plan on AEI Speech Being His Last Word
Wednesday this week, the Valerie Plame grand jury will assemble again, and that might be the day that Jason Leopold's report on Rove's indictment last Friday either makes global news or fizzles out.

According to Steve the fact the Rove is cheerful is an indication that all is not well. Seems Rove is an "opposite day" kindda guy.

Queenie's Sister is more suspicious and puts nothing past the liars and thieves that lead us ... she thinks that Rove knows where lots more bodies are burried than Libby and therefore would be more heavily protected!

Whatever. QD just wishes we would hear already. She's even got the champagne on ice:)

What's on Condi's IPod?

http://www.mediainfo.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002503166

Click the link. See the U2 entry? Condi tells guest editor Bono that she loves any and every U2 song. While it may be true it seems a little suckuppy. Ok - alot suckuppy.
And just for the record...
U2: Good
Bono: fucking annoying

Pentagon 9/11 film to be Released

www.judicialwatch.org

Supposedly this will put an end to all those conspiracy theorists out there who question the official story of American Flight 77.

Yeah ... releasing a tape five years after the fact is just the sort of timely response that will satisfy the curious and skeptical. Clearly there has been no opportunity for editing (or filming) such a tape.

Why You Should Be Worried About Immigration

An Epistle to Radical Right on the Eve of Implosion

by Karl Rove

Dear Fellow God Loving Americans,

I would like to warn to you about a very real and imminent danger: Illegal Immigrants.

You should be very afraid of Immigrants because they are taking all of the American jobs that were not shipped overseas from you. Immigrants are bad and you should fear them because if you do not they will take over America and make people speak Spanish.

Now, I never graduated from college so take it from me: Spanish is a hard language to learn. And frankly, it is unAmerican. And if you are not with America you are against America. And if you are against America you are against God. Immigrants are against America and Immigrants are against God. Got that? Good.

Now tomorrow I am going to be indicted on federal charges of lying and obstructing justice. I want you to know that this is is just a ploy by overzealous prosecutors, activist judges, and partisan Democrats to try to stop this President from acting on Immigration and protecting America. Don't let the indicters win! They are against America and for making our new National language Spanish.

If you love God you will believe that I am innocent and that the real obstructors of justice are the terrorists and the real liars are the immigrants. Terrorists and immigrants are trying to kill you and kill America and ruin innocent people like me.

Don't let the immigrant terrorists win!
Next election VOTE Republican.

Stay the course!
Love,
Karl


Queenie's Daughter found this letter in the trash bin next to the President's itinerary.
It was labeled "Resignation Speech 1.0: Set backs? Blame it on the Wetbacks!"

Nice Try Karl - but you're so busted!

Rove tries to brazen out his involvement with the Plame affair by playing smart ass with David Corn today.

Meanwhile back in reality where contempt for the law does not equal exemption from it -
Rove's bravado seems to be masking the fact that he has been INDICTED...
Article:
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/051306W.shtml
Comment:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x1186820
Rove Says:
'We're in a sour time -- I readily admit it'...

And if you don't believe the Truthout report - weigh it against a sharp drop in the market.
Could the money boys know something we don't know?
Wouldn't a Rove scandal drag the market down?
It's surely as big a deal as puking on a Japanese leader.

Troll "Free" Press?

Federal Source to ABC News: We Know Who You're Calling
May 15, 2006 10:33 AM
Brian Ross and Richard Esposito Report:
A senior federal law enforcement official tells ABC News the government is tracking the phone numbers we call in an effort to root out confidential sources.

Now QD is sensitive to the claims that leaking classified security information puts Americans "in harms way." But nothing puts more people in danger than an unchecked goverment that does not abide by the rule of law and who has proven again and again to be untrustworthy.

So ask yourself this: which is treason - informing Americans about the actions of their government or starting a war under false pretenses, refusing to abide by the rule of law and then spying on and destroying the lives of the people who report what you have done.

What do you hear?

Seventy two in Congress join battle against wiretaps

This wiretapping business is bad news. It is bad news to the American people because it shows (1) that we don't do anything when our rights are under attack and (2) that we will give away almost anything in the sacred name of "security."

So here is a question that has been bugging us: How much will we as Americans give away and once we cry uncle and fight back ... how much will there be left of what we had?

We suspect it is done for (ie our "rights" are mere illusions) which means two things: either we throw up our hands and give up or ... we who are alive today are the next foreparents of this country.

We take the fact that this administration has taken the law into their own hands as an invitation to ... not literally do the same ... but to intellectually step outside the "truths" we have taken for granted and come up with new solutions, new methods ... dare we say it ... new ideas!

You can't dress your teenager in her cute little red baby shoes no matter how much you want to or try. Sure, you can chop off her feet and stick the stumps in and it may look like you have succeeded, but all you have done is crippled a perfectly healthy creature.
It is the nature of the universe to grow and to change.

The word on the street is that the first change should be in the leadership of this country.
Hear that? It's the rumble of reckoning and we reckon Rove will be the tip of iceberg.

She Scares Us

VOTE: Is Oprah a spiritual leader for the new millenium?
"She's a really hip and materialistic Mother Teresa," says Kathryn Lofton, a professor at Reed College in Portland, Ore., who has written two papers analyzing the religious aspects of Winfrey. "Oprah has emerged as a symbolic figurehead of spirituality."

"A really hip and materialistic Mother Theresa." someone actually said that.
No wait ... less suprising is the fact that it was an ACKademic. Good Grief ... What is wrong with us? ... Does Oprah encourage this sort of drivel ... We think so!

Go ahead, let us have it ~ but we think Oprah is frightening.
She scares us. She makes us want to hide the children.
We fear she is a hologram beaming into the world messages of mediocrity, easy answers and really stupid questions. We credit her with being the beginning of the end for starting the TV self help craze. Wasn't there recently a survey that found that elderly people who watch Oprah were dumber than those who didn't? Ms. Winfrey is part of what is wrong with America. She is out of proportion to reality. While she understands nuance and abstraction she is content to lead people to believe in facile answers and a dependence on fraudent authority. Most evil of all ... Oprah is responsible for Dr. Phil.

Say it isn't NOE

Laundry List of Tom Noe's alleged crimes.

Avid Bush Supporter .... Fraud ... Money Launderer ... Bully

Is this the new America?

Peace Offerings

Listed below are some but not all of the activities and events that we partook of at the Children's Peace Tent at the United For Peace and Justice Festival on April 29, 2006. There was more...

One lovely woman brought a drum and we held the impromptu "Parade of Three or More."

We walked around the Children's Peace tent which was strung with the names, ages, units and details of the deaths of all of the coalition soldiers killed in Iraq and we sang "Where Have All the Flowers Gone."

But mostly people puppeted, played and relaxed and some read and some had their face painted. It had the peaceful feeling of a the last Black Out in NY - a community carnival of laughter and love...

April 29th, 2006
Children's Peace Tent at the United for Peace and Justice Festival in NYC

1) Silly Hats For Peace: punch holes in paper plates, tie with ribbon and decorate with stickers and markers and odds and ends. (Also makes a fun "dance prop" - add some bells and it is a great percussion instrument:)

2) Paper Bag Puppets: Make puppets with paper bags, construction paper, glue and scissors. If you want to get fancy buy googiley eyes:)

3) Hands Off Iran Hand Fans: Precut hand outlines and have the kids decorated them with markers, glitter, stickers etc and then tape/staple them to a tongue depressor. Make little stickers that say "Hands off Iran." Just format the images in word and run them through a color printer onto a sticker/label sheet.

3) Face Paint Face Peace (Someone donated some GREAT face paints ... it is well worth it to spend a little extra and get the good stuff since it lasts longer and is easier to use.)

4) Spin Art For Peace- pick up a spin art machine at Toys-R-Us and get some glitter. It captivates children They will wait in line for it, discuss it, watch it, ohh and ahh over it ... they love it!

5) Putt For Peace: We made a mini golf course that we decorated with UFPJ stickers etc. We had ramps and even a little house to hit into. This was a wildly successful activity and was made with foam core, cardboard tubes and decorated with stickers and markers. It will only last one use. You can pick up a mini golf set for cheap at any kids store.

We had a few other events/activities but they were a little more intensive in terms of prep and implementation:

Make your own Peace Book: We printed out lyric sheets for songs and provided construction paper, staples and decoration items so kids could staple together and "make" their own books. Actually - grownups were more into this than kids. We think that's because the 4 people who had volunteered to do music were unable to come we didn't have the resources. TThe CD player broke and there was not so much singing also the kids didn't know the songs. This project really requires supervision, adult interaction and a working boom box.

Si Se Puede Puppet House: We donated a puppet house We had made last year. It was easy to make but fairly elaborate: it's about 7 feet tall with turrets and multi colored towers. Really any puppet house would do - but if you have a puppet house kids insist on Puppet Shows. We had the kids put on their own. It was awesome.

Remembering the War Dead: We copied the lists of all the soldiers who have been killed in Iraq from the CNN website and pasted them as tables into Excel. Then we created Mail Merge documents that would format the names and info as lables. We printed out the (2000 plus) names on shipping labels and stickered them to multi colored index cards (2 names per card). We punched holes in the index cards and strung them up around the perimeter of the kids tent. The woman in charge of the Code Pink Peace Ribbons has those cards (some are missing). We did not have time to do the Iraqi casualties but that can be done faily simply using the Excel tables and the Mail Merge. This is labor intensive and fairly expensive project (75-80 bucks for labels, cards and ribbon) but it is really effective and people all helped out. It was also terribly sad.

Misc:

We brought books from home and set up a poetry corner (Neruda, LOA American Poetry, Ain't I A Woman etc.). we also brought coloring books, toys etc.

We had a SAND BOX: this is really useful b/c it is perfect for babies/toddlers. We used an old plastic box filled with the sand we use to pot our cactus. We filled it with sea shells, kitchen strainers, and plastic dinosaurs and rocks.

Its seems like alot: and it was:)

But the thing with kids is that they all have different developmental abilites so we had enough projects that pretty much every age group had an activity they could enjoy.

Also: Sidewalk Chalk, jump ropes, mini basket ball and a Chess Game ... very popular!

What's the most important thing?

Half of Teachers Quit in 5 Years Working Conditions, Low Salaries Cited

Queenie's Daughter is considering going to graduate school and becoming an elementary school teacher. In order to do this she must move to a city with a lower cost of living and also decide to give up some of her luxuries just so she can afford to waste three years getting a Masters which will qualify her to make about as much as a receptionist.

She will then have the dubious honor of working for a dysfunctional educational system training children out of their natural curiosity and into the mindset of memorize and regurgitate.

Some days this seems like a better idea than others: for QD is an experienced educator with a passion for teaching and a flair for engaging young minds.

Today, however, the prospect of becoming a teacher totally sucks.

What do you think?

Rove Watch

SHUSTER: Well, Karl Rove’s legal team has told me they expect a decision will come some time in the next two weeks. I am convinced that Karl Rove will, in fact, be indicted and there are a couple of reasons why...

Te Quiero Mucho!

Dolphins (and other lovies) ‘know each other’s names’
Happy Birthday Husband!

Whistles are used for individual recognition
DOLPHINS may be closer to humans than previously realised, with new research showing they communicate by whistling out their own “names”.

We Should Be So Lucky!

Rove's Time in Limbo Near End in CIA Leak Case
Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald is wrapping up his investigation into White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove's role in the CIA leak case.

The thing we hate the most about this is that if Fitzgerald chooses not to indict Rove we will never know what Fitz. had on him.

Who will win?

We are in a death grip power struggle and while Royal wisdom dictates that greed will ultimately GET you ... we are concerned that the universe has a perverse sense of humor...

And enjoys aroving in the wild.

We thinks that knowing soon either way if Karl will implode is best for all.

The dems have no idea how great a thing this could be for them and for that reason Queenie and Daughter have nothing but scorn for the dumbs.

So we shall all take a step back and wait to see the fate of Bush's Brain decided.

And should Karl Rove be consigned to the destiny he has surely made for himself, we hope that we will pray for his soul as he burns in hell.

The Darfur rally. A reader's take: from warandpiece

The Darfur rally. A reader's take: from warandpiece
It was huge.
I brought my dog - who loves being around tons of people, so in that way, it was also kind of fun.
But in a way it was a bit depressing. It was a very Jewish rally - tons of school kids from around the country. Darfur is apparently a huge issue in the reform Jewish community synagogues and day schools. [[ed. note: more on this]] ...
Anyway, the reason it was a bit depressing is that Elie Weisel and a few other speakers kept comparing what was going on today to the Holocaust - the theme of the rally being "never again" - which is fine, I agree - never again.
But now it's Monday and the rally is over and famous people like George Clooney are on flights back to L.A. - and what is going to happen?

Read the whole article

Not sure we have ever commented on how much respect we have for Laura Rozen's blog www.warandpiece.com but we have alot and it keeps increasing.

We dont have time right now to get into this limo scandal but we do ask one question:
Do you ever get the feeling you are the only one not raking it in off of some ethically questionable escapade? Do you ever feel like a fool since you are the only Pollyanna not on the Cash Crusade?

Sigh ... the royal husband is getting sick of peanut butter and honey, rents go up and so many of us got no money ... what's the good of a clean conscience when you have an empty plate?

PLENTY. We sleep alright and we don't have any blood on our hands!

Add to Wish List

The Case for Impeachment: The Legal Argument for Removing President George W. Bush from Office

By David Lindorff, Barbara Olshansky

FROM THE PUBLISHER
It's time for the American people and Congress to act. With so much at stake, we have a president whose administration stands out in its criminality and disdain for the rule of law. The Case for Impeachment explains the legal history and grounds for impeaching George W. Bush and brings forth more than a half dozen articles of impeachment the likes of:* Lying and inducing Congress and the American people into an unjust war.* Allowing his friends and business cronies to profiteer off the war in Iraq.* Authorizing torture and rendition of prisoners of war and suspected terrorists--a complete violation of the Geneva Conventions, a treaty the U.S. has signed and is therefore part of our law.* Stripping American citizens of their Constitutional rights--holding people with no charge, wiretapping them illegally, offering them no trial, and never allowing them to face their accusers.* Failing in almost every way possible to defend the homeland and our borders.
Hard hitting and persuasive in its argument, The Case for Impeachment will be one of the most talked-about political books for the pathetic remainder of the Bush Presidency.

Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth Is

Seems as if the writers over at the Chronicle of Philanthropy have been listing to the private conversations of Queenie's Daughter in which she has been losing friends and pissing people off by telling them that they are not liberals as long as their stock portfolios are filled with dirty industries. And by dirty we mean industrially, ethically, etc.

Think about it: you can bitch and moan and march and mock as much as you want, but if your funds are all tied up in the very companies that work against the practices you preach YOU ARE A HYPOCRITE. And you can change that:)

Come on over from the dark side. You don't have to lose money - you can use your money to make a better world!!!

Meshing Proxy With Mission
Few foundations do much to influence shareholder votes
By Harvy Lipman
As part of its campaign to fight global warming, the Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies has for the past two years been trying to persuade several large commercial and residential real-estate companies to do a better job of making their properties energy efficient.
The coalition has achieved mixed results, persuading some companies to adopt more efficient designs and use energy-saving materials, while others have resisted its efforts.
Among the tactics the coalition pursues: encouraging shareholders to put pressure on the companies to change their ways. //more//
See Also: Stock-Investment Policies at the 50 Wealthiest Private Foundations

QD: Not Quite back yet so chew on this

Ladies and gentlemen, I believe it's yogurt. But I refuse to believe it's not butter. Most of all, I believe in this president.