Believe Me, My Heart IS in My Dream

And of Course It Makes a Difference Who You Are!!

In my typically optimistic mindset I am assuming that my audience here is attuned to and properly irate over the somewhat fantastical path that the Disney/ABC cartel is embarked on right now. I am posting anyway, as this is too important to not mention.

I don't know about you, but I have a bit of gray matter permanently inscribed with the sounds of "when you wish upon a star" and locked-in to Sunday evening back in the late '50's and early '60's. I am considering seeking electroshock cure for that given the recent news. This is only one of numerous helpful posts on the subject of the awful still-scheduled (from what I can tell) upcoming ABC propaganda "drama" that attempts to assign all blame to Clinton for 9/11 and shield the vacationing and memo-dodging bush administration largely through totally contrived fictitious scenes and omission of most of the obviously incriminating activities (and more critically, passivity when it came to actually grappling with the prospect of possible terrorist attacks) of the bush administration from January to September 2001.

Despite the vociferous and righteous public outcry against ABC’s "Path to 9/11" docudrama, it still appears that Disney honcho Robert Iger is choosing to air a politicized and inaccurate account of our great American tragedy. This travesty of a film, which is being fronted by only the Republican 9/11 Commission co-chair Thomas Kean (who’s now making money off that role as paid consultant on this project), was initiated by Loren and David Cunningham and their right-wing Christian missionary group (YWAM) in tandem with its auxiliary arm, The Film Institute, and promoted by uber-wingnut David Horowitz. The Center for Popular Culture, Horowitz’s LA-based group, announced two years ago that it would launch a widespread PR campaign to blame Bill Clinton for the 9/11 attacks. Read more at Seeingtheforest:

According to Max Blumenthal at Huffington Post, Republican strategist (and Karl Rove friend) David Horowitz was involved from the start in ABC’s Path to 9/11 smear blaming Clinton for 9/11. This is significant because Horowitz has been involved for some time in a strategic PR effort to shift blame for 9/11 from Bush to Clinton. According to a Feb. 26, 2002 story in O’Dwyer’s PR Daily, titled "PR CAMPAIGN BLAMES CLINTON FOR SEPT. 11 ATTACKS",
The Center for the Study of Popular Culture, in Los Angeles, has begun a PR campaign to pin the blame of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the Clinton Administration.

The Center has mailed copies of David Horowitz’s new pamphlet entitled "How the Left Undermined America’s Security," to about 1,500 media outlets on Feb. 19. Horowitz is president of the Center.

The 46-page pamphlet charges that the U.S. national security interests were undermined by the left, leading to the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11

Joe Conason has been reporting on this blame-Clinton-for-9/11 cabal since 2002, and you can get more background here. (sorry about the ad)

Disney/ABC’s blatant refusal to honor the requests of the citizens of this country–from the left and the right–should serve as a wake-up call for all Americans to look closely at what has become of our media, and most importantly, to our publicly-licensed airwaves, off which Mr. Iger and his conglomerate ilk make billions. The American public–led by the progressive blogs and progressive membership groups, then media, then even conservatives–came together to call out ABC over their irresponsible disregard for the integrity of our national memory concerning events that led to the attacks on 9/11. But this effort has fallen on deaf ears. Iger even thinks he’s above the reproach of the 9/11 Families!

September 9, 2006
Dear Mr. Iger,

I have seen the advertisements for and read the press coverage of ABC’s film, “The Path to 9/11,” that your network plans to air this Sunday and Monday to coincide with the fifth anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks. I am writing to express my concern and deep reservations about this film and to ask you, out of respect for the victims of 9/11 and their families, not to air it.

My wife worked for the Walt Disney Corporation and was a victim of the terrorist attacks as a passenger on American Airlines Flight 11. I have great respect for you and your company and I know that you must have worked hard to make a good film. Admittedly, I have not seen it. However, accounts from those who have suggest that it contains inaccurate and invented scenes. It seems to me that fictionalizing this tragedy does not honor the memory of those who were lost on September 11th.

Given the gravity of this event for our nation and the personal loss I suffered, I believe it is critically important that we do everything possible to prevent another 9/11. That begins with making sure that we are united in our understanding of what we could have done better in the years, months and weeks leading up to the attacks of 2001. I am deeply concerned that Americans will watch this film and not fully understand – or be led to misunderstand – the true history of this tragedy.

I feel the 9/11 Commission Report was a correct and very responsible accounting of the terrorist attacks of 2001. Since “The Path to 9/11” deviates from this report in key instances, I strongly and respectfully urge you not to air this film.
Sincerely,
John Beug

We must take the energy and awareness created over the last week and funnel it into meaningful ways of taking back control of OUR media. Yes, we must organize boycotts of Disney and ABC, and keep up the pressure. We must demand that ABC give equal time to critics of "Path to 9/11." We can propose programming with historians and investigators, and those who were there as a counter-balance in the coming weeks. We must push ABC News to bring a balanced account of the controversy over their network’s Path to Shame (h/t LATimes). We must do all of these things, but more importantly, we must step back and look at the big picture concerning the need for reform of our whorish corporate media.

It is time for America to join a concerted media reform movement, so the Igers of this world are kept in check. Please visit the sites below and see the hard work these organizations are doing. Join their lists. Donate money. Offer your knowledge and talents to their tremendouse efforts to save our democracy through media reform.

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What I Did on My Summer Vacation

It's long past time to document our brief summer vacation trip. I apologize up front that some of you may be afflicted (or inflicted, if you don't prefer) with this more than once as I could be repeating myself in different venues.

I am also biting tongue that I have spent a week or more trying to get Blogger, AOL, and Picasa to even minimally cooperate with each other. I'm having to settle for what can only be most flatteringly described as a piss-poor job. There is no obvious way to meld text and pics. Support facilities almost make the famously laughable Microsoft Help(!) screens suddenly only stupid instead of obnoxious. What is it with you "service providers"?? I'd be fired if what I came up with at the end of the day was as offensive to the customer as your products!

After counting to 1,000, I will move on.

My scheme for our trip was to get back to Banff and Jasper parks in Alberta. We'd seen the first briefly a decade or more back with the kids, but Jasper was more of an undertaking than we could manage. This time the strategy revolved around bagging Jasper, doing as little mega-highway and as much two-lane or blue highway as possible.

Since a co-worker had extended gracious invite to visit them at Flathead Lake in Montana, we elected to do the loop route I was working up in counterclockwise direction. Prime goal was Banff/Jasper. And I was determined to see for the first time at least a bit of the Okanagan Valley, a famous British Columbia valhalla.

Trip summary starts with I-90 to cutoff to Flathead Lake, significant diversions limited to bkfst in Cle Elum and futile pursuit of rumored Black-back Woodpeckers in same general vicinity. My limited involvement in the last few years in reviewing materials related to the Coeur d'Alene Superfund site made the passage through that tremendously scenic and historically fascinating locale intriguing in ways it never was before. You'd never know that the freeway you are driving on is in many stretches built on mine tailings laced with nasty heavy metals like lead. The mind reels at the toxic implications of mine debris for folks living in this otherwise entrancing (at least in summer) mountain vale. Cleaning up a huge site like that is an almost incomprehensible challenge.

Secondary roads to Flathead deserve a trip of their own. Eagle spotted taking off from riverside with large fish was joyous.

We greatly enjoyed several hours with said co-worker and family at Flathead Lk, including a terrific spaghetti feed and circuit of nearby Island. Many thanks, Jill and John!

Our motel reservation was in Kalispell, worth staying in even if just for the name (which admittedly was about all we had a chance to appreciate this time). Glacier Park was as always fantastic, but so much so that after the predictable agonies of being patient with trailers and RVs on the way up, there was a 30-minute wait for parking at the top. We'd planned a short walk at Logan Pass, repeating the one we took with kids that yielded wildlife sightings. Alas. Instead, we plunged down the east-side descent.

From there we were mostly onto new turf. We'd never visited Waterton Lakes in Alberta. Even the approach highway was entrancing, featuring incongruously steep and scenic roads with great mountain vistas and an intriguing border crossing (prior convictions? mace? alcohol?). If you could ignore the large wheeled vehicles, it was possible to feel like you had moved outside the envelope of commercialized civilization. I.e., not at all what you find on entry to Glacier NP and at this time of year at Logan Pass. However, Waterton proper was more in the category of GNP. Scenery fantastic, but tourism at full throttle. Not my normal thing, but Waterton is an incredible spot. The Prince of Wales hotel, while in my book not in the top echelon of such park buildings (to me, Mt. Rainier, Banff, Mt. Hood, and Yellowstone among others feature more stunning structures), is still very impressive, and its site is to die for. We were there for a mere first brief look, but I hope we can go back for something more. Famous hike involving boat ride, tunnel crawl, and vertiginous catwalk is irresistible!

I'm going to call it (i.e. your reading tolerance) quits here. Further episodes possibly to follow - depending on interest/feedback and my ability to juggle priorities - and, oh yes, ever so critical, my patience with the sad disfunctionality of the "service" providers.

pj

Remind You of Anyone?: "Accommodation of Special Interests" and "Prefers Dictatorship to Democracy"

Full copy of post at Talking Points Memo:

Alert reader LI pointed me towards this fun little Jeb Bush smack-down from this past week.

The backstory here is that Gov. Bush is opposing an incumbent state senator in the Republican primary. The falling out between Bush and Sen. Alex Villalobos came over tuition vouchers and a school class-size amendment.

Given that history, Bush sent out a fund-raising letter for Villalobos' opponent, writing that Villalobos "has abandoned our party's principles and lost his way."

That prompted a strong reaction from fellow Republican and Villalobos supporter Sen. Nancy Argenziano. The St. Pete Times takes it from there:

Argenziano: "The governor has a history reflecting accommodation of special interests as evidenced by the agencies' contracts, and his flexible Republicanism is at odds with both America and actual Republican principles. In his heart of hearts, the governor prefers dictatorship to democracy."

Carole Jean Jordan, Florida Republican Party chairwoman: "Personal attacks on the sitting governor of Florida questioning his character are far beyond the bounds of responsible dialogue. I sincerely hope that Senator Argenziano will reconsider her comments, especially in light of all that Governor Bush has done for the people of Florida and for the Republican Party."

Argenziano: "Carole Jean Jordan can kiss my ass."


If you listen carefully, you can hear the air hissing out of the GOP balloon.

-- TPM Reader DK

Why Are WA Post and ABC Still Doing Republican Propaganda?

The admirable Michigan Congressman John Conyers has been doing heroic work for so long I'm concerned he might be taken for granted. Let's please not do that. Think of all the garden slugs swilling down congressional salaries and playing full-out bootlicker (being polite) for the last five years. If only a bit of stale beer in a container could take care of a decent number of them! (It wouldn't take a complicated container, from what I can tell.) This is from his blog, which you should have bookmarked and be routinely monitoring:

I couldn't let this pass. The Washington Post's editorial page yesterday made the outrageous claim that Ambassador Joe Wilson never provided the White House with information to debunk the Administration's fabricated Niger-Iraq uranium connection, and that Wilson, himself, was responsible for the outing of his wife.

[I]t now appears that the person most responsible for the end of Ms. Plame's CIA career is Mr. Wilson. Mr. Wilson chose to go public with an explosive charge, claiming -- falsely, as it turned out -- that he had debunked reports of Iraqi uranium-shopping in Niger and that his report had circulated to senior administration officials.

I just don't see how any reputable news source could make this claim. This is nothing short of Republican Party propaganda. And patently false.

In the spirit of politicizing the news comes the latest from ABC, the network that will be airing a right-wing produced 9/11 TV docudrama that purports to be based upon the 911 Commission, reportedly exonerates Bush of any failings related to that fateful day, and puts the blame on Clinton and his administration.

While I have yet to see the film, few doubts are evident about its content and its political motive. The film's producer has been promoting this all over the right wing blogs.