Internal Monologue

Via a diarist on Kos , here's the Washington Post : A Republican congressman knew of disgraced former representative Mark Foley 's inappropriate Internet exchanges as far back as 2000 and personally confronted Foley about his communications. A spokeswoman for Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-Ariz.) confirmed yesterday that a former page showed the congressman Internet messages that had made the youth feel uncomfortable with the direction Foley (R-Fla.) was taking their e-mail relationship. Last week, when the Foley matter erupted, a Kolbe staff member suggested to the former page that he take the matter to the clerk of the House, Karen Haas, said Kolbe's press secretary, Korenna Cline. The revelation pushes back by at least five years the date when a member of Congress has acknowledged learning of Foley's behavior with former pages. A timeline issued by House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) suggested that the first lawmakers to know, Rep. John M. Shimkus (R-Ill.), the chairman o

Someone famous, quick, do something equally skanky, otherwise the tide of bad Foley jokes will drown us.

What does this headline make you think of: Are We Driving Elephants Crazy? Their behavior in the wild has grown strange and violent in recent years. Researchers say our encroachment on their way of life is to blame. The title of the article in question is An Elephant Crackup? . It's in today's NYT Magazine . And no, it's not a special on the implosion of the Republican party, but an article about actual elephants. For Republican party implosion, you have to turn to this week's Time magazine :

...how can Internal Monologue not post it? "This scandal is like the Cliffs' Notes version of a more complicated treatise on how the Bush movement operates. Every one of their corrupt attributes is vividly on display here: The absolute refusal ever to admit error. The desperate clinging to power above all else. The efforts to cloud what are clear matters of wrongdoing with irrelevant sideshows. And the parade of dishonest and just plainly inane demonization efforts to hide and distract from their wrongdoing: hence, the pages are manipulative sex vixens; a shadowy gay cabal is to blame; the real criminals are those who exposed the conduct, not those who engaged in it; liberals created the whole scandal; George Soros funded the whole thing; a Democratic Congressman did something wrong 23 years ago; one of the pages IM'd with Foley as a "hoax", and on and on. There has been a virtual carousel -- as there always is -- of one pathetic, desperate attempt after the

...those who understand binary, and those who don't.

Apparently, Iran's Supreme Leader Khameini is willing to answer questions about masturbation on his website (HT: Sullivan ) (Click "Newly Asked Questions" and then "The Latest Questions" in the new window.): To Masturbate While Fasting Q: If somebody masturbates during the month of Ramadan but without any discharge, is his fasting invalidated? A: if he do not intend masturbation and discharging semen and nothing is discharged, his fasting is correct even though he has done a ḥarām act. But, if he intends masturbation or he knows that he usually discharges semen by this process and semen really comes out, it is a ḥarām intentional breaking fasting.

Homeland security doesn't wan to let this man on a plane! From Majikthise : BS News [sic] has obtained a copy of the "no fly" list , a secret roster of suspected terrorists compiled after the attacks of September 11th. Among the 44,000 terror suspects: Bolivian president Evo Morales, the dead 9/11 hijackers, and everyone named "Robert Johnson:" [emphasis added] If Robert Johnson is on the list, you better put his admirer Eric Clapton on there, too. If only Led Zeppelin knew they were covering a future terrorist. Apparently, " John Williams " is also on the list. I know the Star Wars movies have been annoying recently, but putting the theme music composer on the "no fly" list is hardly a proper remedy. (My idea is to file a class action lawsuit to have the Star Wars intellectual property siezed and turned over to someone who can write better dialogue. Lucas could still design cool looking creatures and spaceships and stuff.) This &