Japan orders textbooks' WWII sections to be edited

Japan representatives (semi) apologized for forcing women to become sex slaves during World War II, and now the government seems to be trying to alter history again. This can be likened to textbooks in the U.S. playing down how our government aquired most of the land in the country. (Hint: It wasn't from stock trading with the Native Americans.)

PUBLISHED IN THE LINCOLN JOURNAL STAR SAT. MARCH 31, 2001

Obama admits to cocaine use

I couldn't find a story about this in any newspaper, nor any valid link on the internet that wasn't a blog (the liberal media?), but Barack Obama a few days back admitted to drug use in high school.

Reasons why people should take a closer look at other candidates:
-He used cocaine in high school
-He's a fresh face, not much experience

Reasons why people should still vote for Obama:
-Obama is the most honest candidate anybody has seen in a long time
-(Bill) Clinton claimed he never inhaled marijuana, Obama puts it all out in the open
-He's handled mud-slinging very well, and has avoided most of it
-Obama is a very talented speaker
-He calls for change in this country
-He's young, outgoing, charming and has facial expressions (no John Kerry)

Tillmans say Army lied to promote war

If you haven't heard about Pat Tillman, you most likely haven't picked up a newspaper in the past year. It's a tough subject. What is wrong here is if the Tillmans are correct in their theory - that the Army lied to promote the war.

There has been evidence that Army officials knew the whole time the Tillman death was because of friendly fire. Even if they didn't lie to promote the war, they lied period. That's what's wrong here. All any major official will do about this senseless death is admit that "mistakes were made". If the Tillman's don't get closure from that, I can't blame them, but I'm sorry to say, there won't be much more.

PUBLISHED IN THE OMAHA WORLD-HERALD WED. MARCH 28, 2007

Political Cartoon of the Week

In a surprise upset this week, a local cartoonist beats out everybody else. It was a very good week for cartooning, with the attorney firings, the anniversary of the war and the death penalty being held up in Nebraska, among other things.

Jeff Koterba from the Omaha World-Herald wins this week's PCW. Yes, this week's running theme has been subpoenas and testifying, but this one was too good to pass up. That, and Karl Rover is absolutely brilliant.

PUBLISHED IN THE OMAHA WORLD-HERALD THURS. MARCH 22, 2007

Meeting may clash with Gonzales' claims

Remember how the refusal of subpeona's suggested something to hide? Less than a week later, we find out what it was. Gonzales did, in fact, meet with aides to discuss firing U.S. attorneys, making this whole fiasco looking more and more suspicious. If the firings were innocent and not politically motivated, then why the lies and why the hiding? This has to be some of the worst damage control by this administration so far.

PUBLISHED IN THE OMAHA WORLD-HERALD SAT. MARCH 25, 2007

Bush: Congress can talk to aides

The only reason this hasn't been posted before is because, despite all the speculation, there hasn't been 100% proof that the firings were politically motivated. What's the real disturbing part of this story? Remember sunshine week last week? And how you said "no, our government is not secretive". Well, turns out, yes they are.

"If the Democrats truly do want to move forward and find the right information, they ought to accept what I proposed," Bush is quoted as saying. "If socring political points is the desire, then the rejection of this reasonable proposal will really be evident for the American people to see."

Let's analyze that statement. First off, Bush is offering to make the aides speak off record, without a transcript, without an oath and behind closed doors. That is not at all reasonable. To get real information, it takes a subpeona (which, according to CNN just a few minutes ago, was granted).

Second, the only thing that is really evident in this whole subpeona-denying fiasco is that this administration has grown incredibly secretive, and until that changes, Mr. Bush's 37% approval rating will keep sinking.

PUBLISHED IN THE LINCOLN JOURNAL STAR WED. MARCH 21, 2007

Political Cartoon of the Week

Sunday is the new Friday, as far as Political Cartoon of the Week goes. This was a close race between two particular cartoons, the other using the always classic Hilary Clinton war-vote tactic (never let that one go, the irony is so precious).

The winner, however, by Gary Brookins comes away with the win because of the overall feeling of the cartoon: disaster and panic. The Libby and Gonzales incidents are included, and that is what makes this cartoon relevant this week.

PUBLISHED IN THE OMAHA WORLD-HERALD SAT. MARCH 17, 2007

Japan cites study about sex slavery

This study concluded much sooner than expected, but with a result that was no surprise at all. All the women, all the witnesses, all the evidence wasn't enough to prove anything to the Japanese government. Nowhere in the world would 200,000 women willingly offer themselves up to get raped repeatedly every day for years on end. That should be proof enough.

*Blogger's note: I have not posted for a while because I was on a photo journalism assignment since Wednesday.

PUBLISHED IN THE OMAHA WORLD-HERALD SAT. MARCH 17, 2007

Ann Coulter Calls John Edwards a F****t

This happened a bit ago, but there was a little something about it in today's Newsweek. Coulter called John Edwards the f****t at 2007's Conservative Political Action Conference (how do you spell fun for the whole family? CPAC). Apparently, some newspapers are now dropping Coulter's columns after this comment.

The big question is: Why didn't they refuse to run her columns before? It's not like she hasn't said anything this controversial before, i.e. her comments on 9/11 widows or her books calling for an invasion of foriegn countries so the United States can spread Christianity, which is a complete crock, considering the United States of America isn't actually a Christian nation.

In the big picture, Coulter is harmless. She's just a sad little girl who pisses off sensible people, which should make them even angrier because that's what she's trying to do.

Political Cartoon of the Week

Congratulations Bob Gorrell on the most relevant cartoon of the week. (And happy Sunshine Week America.)

Even though this was another relatively slow news week (we had no more burying buxom blonde developments) the political cartoons were above par, it was a close call between a few of them. Mr. Gorrell's won not just because of how timely it was (Sunshine week starts Sunday), but also because he seems to understand the paradoxy of the situation. We have a president who not only made it harder to get a hold of anything after filing a Freedom of Information request, but also gave past presidents and vice presidents control over anything that happened during their administration too. Meaning our government is more closed off that it ever has been before.

Everything in this cartoon sums up what the government has turned into. Notice "anonymous" and "refused to comment". Some democracy this has turned out to be.

I don't know about you all, but I am going to take this week to file as many Freedom of Information request as I can. I urge everybody to do the same.

Former sex slaves bear proof

No matter how late this was, I wasn't going to let this go by. There is no proof of the "comfort women"? Because 200,000 infertile women - a lot of whom have had cervical cancer from being raped dozens of times a day for years - isn't enough proof.



If I hadn't have waited, I wouldn't have had this story in. Mr. Abe is going to look into the claims and then maybe apologize. Should someone who has so strongly denied this suddenly turn around and apologize it? Be realistic: no. But perhaps it is a step forward, no matter how small.

1,000 Journalists Killed in 10 Years While Reporting

As a journalist, this makes me furious and very frightened at the same time, and I mean besides the fact our government is in bed with Putin, apparently the long-lost brother of Tony Soprano.

There is a definate risk of being a journalist - sources who sue too easily, covering war stories, being hated by the general public. A government killing it's own people and turning the other way is another story. If the administration had any respect for journalists at all, they would tell Putin to stop this or cut off any contact with Russia. But, then again, if 200,000 people dead in Darfur won't intice anything, why should 1,000 journalists, a profession this administration seems to have a problem with anyway.

PUBLISHED IN THE NEW YORK TIMES WED. MARCH 7, 2007

Bill would strip benefits from illegals' kids

What's the best way to curb illegal immigration when funding for the Great Fence of Southern United States is drying up? Why, go after those who are legal citizens as defined in the Fourteenth Amendment in the Constitution, of course!

This shouldn't just make illegal immigrants who are parents furious - it should make all of those who are natural born citizens angry. Those just like you, born in your communities are losing the rights that are guarenteed to them in the Constitution. Which is par for the course over these past few years.

There is actually a possibility that people will be refused medical services. The injustice of this bill is staggering. Three million people in this country who have done nothing wrong will be turned down. That's 3 million people will all sorts of health problems pushed out of hospitals and clinics all over the country. This bill cannot pass, as Americans born in the United States, we should be absolutely livid.

PUBLISHED IN THE LINCOLN JOURNAL STAR MON. MARCH 5, 2007

Political Cartoon of the Week

A slow news week, apparently, brings down political cartoons also. This one, by one of my favorite editorial cartoonists John Branch, stood out the most. Branch has the ability to find irony and hilarity in situations this administration finds itself in all too often.
What I like about this cartoon (besides how the ears of both nations great leaders are drawn) is the little luggage Blair is carrying, and the fact Bush's box is upside down. This isn't just a silly side-note, it suggests everything about this surge is backwards and wrong.

PUBLISHED IN THE OMAHA WORLD-HERALD THURS. MARCH 1, 2007

Transsexual Official Faces Firing in Florida

Civil Rights violation alert! The idiocy of the people of Largo, Florida is shocking. Read the quote by the honorable mayor Pat Gerard - "...he...would have continued to be a great city manager..." A sex change, believe it or not, only changes the sex of the subject not, say, the ability to make decisions for the city or think rationally. Unless anybody knows anything about recieving free brain transplants with the purchase of getting your penis lopped off. And something tells me that doesn't happen often.

PUBLISHED IN THE NEW YORK TIMES THURS. MAR. 1, 2007