Mike Kuykendall

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Bush Finally Hires Someone to Do His Job Correctly
2007-05-16 16:47:00
As previously discussed here, President Bush finally found a fool to assume the mantel of "war czar". As described by the Vice President in an interview, this position would;Q What can you tell us about the war czar position? We understand the White House is thinking about establishing a war czar. Is there anyone whose name we should recognize being considered? THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, what it is, it's really a coordination role. The basic chain of command is going to continue to run, obviously, from the President, the Secretary of Defense, and down to our commanders in the field. But there are a lot of activities with respect to what we're doing over there that require coordination between various agencies -- State and Defense and a lot of our domestic agencies that have roles over there in trying to help establish, for example, a good judicial system for the Iraqis. And pulling all of that together we think requires somebody here in Washington who would report directly...
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Falwell Dead!
2007-05-15 19:39:00
I just saw the news flash on TPM!
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Falwell Hospitalized
2007-05-15 18:55:00
Although I do not wish anyone harm for any reason, it is somewhat agreeable to see the Reverend Jerry Fallwell one step closer to his buddy Jesus;The Rev. Jerry Falwell was found unconscious in his office Tuesday and taken to the hospital, a Liberty University executive told a newspaper.Ron Godwin, the executive vice president of the school, told The News & Advance of Lynchburg that Falwell was found unconscious after missing an appointment Tuesday morning. Falwell arrived at Lynchburg General Hospital around noon, the newspaper reported on its Web site.Why would I be so callous, you ask? Call it revenge for this inanity;Perhaps his most disturbing moment (though only time will tell) came two days after the September 11th terror attacks on the U.S. On a broadcast of the Christian television program The 700 Club, Falwell lashed out at those whom he saw as a threat to the moral crusade he and the Christian Right had been on for some 30 years, saying, ?I really believe that the pagans...
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Nine Inch Nails New Album Kicks Teeth In
2007-05-12 18:32:00
When I was in high school a couple of friends of mine and I had a little garage band. I was the singer (read: screamer) and had the standard one guitar, one bass and the drummer-kinda band. Anyhow we did covers of Van Halen, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Motörhead, Pearl Jam, you know- the standard fare for rock/blues enthusiasts of the early 90's. I write this out of sheer narcissism- the back story was not exactly required for the point.We tried to think of the best possible album name for a little band trying to make it big, and after much painful deliberation (and consuming mass-quantities, of course) we decided the highest praise for a true rock band would be, "they kick teeth in, man." Our first album would be appropriately titled "Kick Teeth In" in salute to this idea. Shut up, we were kids and it was 20 years ago!But I digress.I am reviewing the newest Nine Inch Nails album "Year Zero"- it definitely "kicks teeth in." Fully. Like damnit-I-swallowed-one-IN.Besides true mastery o...
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Right Wing Nutjob Showcase
2007-05-12 17:15:00
I have posted "comment wars" by freepers before (here and here) and I received some good feedback from my readers, so I figured I'd do it again. This exchange was prompted by my recent posts suggesting the GOP is in trouble come 2008. For the sake of clarity and anonymity I will label Democratic supporters as Dem 1, Dem 2, etc. and neocon chuckleheads as Freeper 1, Freeper 2. (names and urls removed for privacy- warning; this is a long one!);__________Freeper 1: This will be a permanent GOP majority. GOP 2004.In other words, don't count on it.Indigent A-hole: Hmmm, can you support your opinion or is that just a belief? I'm not sure if you were aware, but one of the rules of logic state that repeating a thing doesn't make it true.Your statements fly in the face of public opinion, every available poll, and even Republicans themselves (check William F. Buckley's latest Bush screed.)Freeper 1: My point is that history has plenty of examples of parties and people saying this then ...
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Republican Hypocrisy
2007-05-10 14:37:00
How can anyone possibly justify blocking the Democrats recent attempts to end the war in Iraq while at the same time pressuring Bush to do the same?At the White House, 11 moderate House Republic a n s met with the president and top aides Tuesday. Several participants at the meeting, disclosed Wednesday, described a remarkably blunt discussion in which lawmakers told the president that the war was unsustainable without public support and that it was having a corrosive effect on GOP political fortunes. "We asked them what's Plan B," said Rep. Tom Davis of Virginia. "We let them know that the status quo is not acceptable." Davis said the president responded that if he began discussing a new strategy, his current one never would have a chance to succeed.Taken independently I would have cheered such a turn of events, if another story hadn't proven it to be a vote-saving farce;But Republican House whip Roy Blunt branded the measure "dumb and dangerous" and accused his rivals of engaging in...
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The Death of a Political Party
2007-05-05 20:41:00
I have posted a few times on how I believe the Republican party is in dire trouble, and without modifying their base of support, it is possible they could reduce themselves to a minority party for decades to come. That is if they don't disintegrate completely.As you can expect every post in that vein has drawn freepers out like cockroaches when the lights go out. It infuriates them for me to even hint that the GOP is fallible, much less mortal and thus able to die.As a history lesson to those who may not have been awake during American Government (for me it was Social Studies) I'd like to present a couple of American political parties that have gone down the same road. Take a look and see if you can catch any similarities between the demise of these parties and current goings-on;Federalist party- Formed by Alexander Hamilton and pals, this party started in 1793 and met its end anywhere from 1816 to somewhere in the 1820's, depending on which historian you talk to. In a sens...
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Bush Literally Drives Soldiers, Marines Crazy
2007-05-05 18:21:00
Despite the mantras the Administration has its lackeys recite regularly for the complaint mass-media depicting the Republicans as the guardians of the troops' welfare (and of course the corollary that Democrats want them dragged out in the street and killed, along with a cute little unborn fetus and baby Jesus, of course) the recent boondoggles at Walter Reed and other VA medical centers pointed out for the citizens that perhaps these statements were, well... less than accurate, to be kind.A report on troop mental health released from the Office of the Surgeon General, U.S. Army Medical Command in November 2006, shows clearly that Bush and company are definitely not as concerned about the troops as they portray themselves to be. Why? Let's start with the consequences of time in theater;Central Findings1. Not all Soldiers and Marines deployed to Iraq are at equal risk for screening positive for a mental health problem. The level of combat is the main determinant of a Soldier's ...
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The Iraqi Government Will Fail
2007-05-05 16:23:00
I hate to say that- I would love for the puppet Iraqi government installed by Bush's corrupt and inept administrators to somehow magically work, putting aside the difference that have kept Muslim societies bifurcated for generations. I doubt that this will happen, for the following reasons;1. The fractious Iraqi parliament is taking a long summer break, which will lead to breaking U.S. "benchmarks" and thus losing the confidence of the American public and the Democratic leadership. Leaders on both sides of the aisle are already pissed;?That is not acceptable,? Sen. John Warner (R-Va.) said. ?An action of that consequence would send a very bad signal to the world that they don?t have the resolve that matches the resolve of the brave troops that are fighting in the battle today.? Added Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.), ?I certainly hope they?re not going to take any sort of recess when the question is whether they?re going to make any progress.?2. The factions within the government and out...
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OK, OK I'm Back
2007-05-05 15:45:00
Good morning all you freaks and outcasts out there! I figure anyone reading these words has to be at least near the lunatic fringe of society. Progressive thought has for some reason turned into radicalism when I wasn't looking, if the media and pundits are to be believed.First off, though, let me describe what has happened to the blog lately, for those who regularly read my insanity. My job involves a lot of "hurry up and wait" moments, so since the inception of this blog I have filled in that time tracking down the stories that mattered to me and trying to explain how I think they fit in the big picture. I do this because I think Americans in particular have lost a bit of objectivity and a feel for the holistic nature of our political system. Anyhow, I guess my voluminous posting caused my boss some discomfort (he may very well be reading these words now!) so I have had to tone it back. After all, until I can actually get paid to do it, blogging must fall in the "hobby" cat...
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No More Indigent A-hole
2007-05-03 17:25:00
I regret to say I must shut this blog down indefinitely. My thanks to everyone who read it and enjoyed it.Take it easy and remember to fight the good fight!
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More Evidence Republicans Are in Trouble
2007-05-02 19:04:00
More bad news for the Republic party- the National Republica n Senatorial Committee is having a hell of a time finding viable candidates to run in 2008. As I previously posted, the political winds definitely do not favor the GOP (emphasis, and schadenfreude, mine);One GOP operative said what hurt the NRSC last cycle is likely to sink it again in 2008.?A bunch of people are going to start scratching their heads and saying, ?Gosh, maybe it wasn?t Elizabeth Dole,?? the operative said. ?I think people are giving it the benefit of the doubt for a little while. But that?ll all change real soon.?The operative pointed to a persistent poor environment for the GOP, which includes the war in Iraq, as well as a lack of help from the base and contributions from members.Bensing said if the current environment persisted there would be ?90 Democratic senators,? but emphasized that such things are cyclical.NRSC Executive Director Scott Bensing is going to find out how incredibly hard his job is goin...
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Quote Retirement
2007-05-02 16:40:00
We retire this quote with reverance for Mr. Schlesinger- he was a brilliant man;What we need is a rebirth of satire, of dissent, of irreverence, of an uncompromising insistence that phoniness is phony and platitudes are platitudinous.-Arthur Schlesinger
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Duck Genitalia Evolves for Sexual Warfare
2007-05-02 14:52:00
I just had to post about this story- it sometimes amazes me what makes the front page on Yahoo.So you think you had it hard as a human in the war of the sexes? Maybe you're a girl and hate the way you are objectified by men. Maybe you're a man who hates the way the ol' resources get tapped when pursuing a female. Either way, ducks have it worse. For the girls (emph. mine);...in many species, females choose a mate after he puts on an elaborate courtship display, and breeding pairs are often monogamous. An exception is ducks -- especially mallards. Although mallards pair off to mate, females are often raped by stray males.Don't fret, ladies- the males have it worse;Yet studies show that these rapes do not pay off for the males. "Even in a species where 40 percent of the copulations are forced copulations, the ducklings still are mostly sired by the mates," Brennan said. "That implies the females may have some kind of mechanism that allows them to keep control of the paternity....
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A Sampling of Right-Wing Nutjobs II- Electric Boogaloo
2007-05-01 21:17:00
Reprising a popular post, I thought I'd show my loyal readers a little of the foolishness I deal with in the comments on this blog and elsewhere- the comments were on this post regarding the simple fact that Rudy Giuliani will NEVER be President (I obscured the name because I don't want anything more to do with this fool);__________Freeper: Doesn't matter, it's going to be Fred Thompson. Feel free to start shaking in your boots.Indigent A-hole: HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!Hang on, are you serious?You wingers are truly morons if you think Mr. Law and Order half-ass campaigner has a chance in hell against any one of our candidates, much less the fact that there is NO electoral precedent for two Presidents from the same party, back-to-back.You and your ideology-driven crowd are doomed. You have misunderstood the strength of the progressive argument just like many elitists before you- we are not driven by ideology, but by CONVICTIONS, deep-seated compassion for our fellow man, and most importan...
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Republican Party Fears for Its Life
2007-05-01 16:36:00
William F. Buckley, a conservative icon for decades, does not know whether the Republican party will survive Bush (via Carpetbagger); General Petraeus is a wonderfully commanding figure. But if the enemy is in the nature of a disease, he cannot win against it. Students of politics ask then the derivative question: How can the Republican party, headed by a president determined on a war he can?t see an end to, attract the support of a majority of the voters? General Petraeus, in his Pentagon briefing on April 26, reported persuasively that there has been progress, but cautioned, ?I want to be very clear that there is vastly more work to be done across the board and in many areas, and again I note that we are really just getting started with the new effort.?The general makes it a point to steer away from the political implications of the struggle, but this cannot be done in the wider arena. There are grounds for wondering whether the Republican party will survive this dilemma.That is j...
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Afghanis Tell America to Stick It
2007-05-01 15:25:00
It's hard to believe after the extensive fighting in Afghanistan to defeat the Taliban. billions spent, gallons of America n blood spilled, that they still hate us over there;The protestors, mostly students, briefly blocked a main road into the provincial capital, Jalalabad, and repeated calls for Karzai to step down. "Karzai should go. He has no power and he can't serve us," said one student, referring to Karzai's repeated calls for Western troops to avoid civilian casualties. "We do not want American forces. They should go. Death to America," another chanted, before the protest ended peacefully under a tight police watch.So let me get this straight- we leave them alone to fight the Russians, only stepping in to train and equip them, and we eventually hear chants of "Death to America!"We spend tons of treasure and hundreds of young American lives and we still hear the chants? Why are we there again? Oh yeah, that's right, to "liberate" the Afghan people from the Taliban.Here'...
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It's Almost Like X-mas for Bloggers
2007-04-28 16:48:00
Wow, I can't believe my luck. After a couple of weeks of little to no major news events, I'm simply delighted to see a story about the Deputy Secretary of State resigning due to... wait for it... hookers!!It's like manna from political heaven!We had all hoped to bag somebody when the DC Madam story came out, since as Bill Clinton showed, Democrats can get laid- it may be horrible but I figure Republicans probably have more folks paying for sex than us hippies, on average. After all, we are the evolution of the "free love" generation, the descendants of Hunter Thompson and Janice Joplin; these guys have heroes like Reagan and William F. Buckley, Jr. I can't prove it but I doubt Reagan got a lot of trim. call it an educated guess.Anyhow you guys are probably waiting for the fun details;ABC's 'Blotter' reported that Tobias told the network Thursday "he had several times called the "Pamela Martin and Associates" escort service "to have gals come over to the condo to give me a...
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Bush Acts Like a Tough Guy
2007-04-28 15:20:00
In the military we had this sort of unwritten law; the shorter a guy was the more likely he had "short man's disease", which we defined as being one irascible son of a bitch. The more you looked like someone could kick your ass the more likely you were to be a blustering, swaggering braggadocio.In politics I think the same rule applies, in a way. The more weak a politician's position, the more likely that person will act like they rule the world. They'll act like they can do no wrong and are the people's champion, despite poll numbers to the contrary. Bush is a textbook example of this kind of posturing, especially with his recent "tough guy" stance on the supplemental funding passed by Congress;"And if the Congress wants to test my will as to whether or not I'll accept the timetable for withdrawal, I won't accept one," he told a news conference at his retreat in Camp David, Maryland, alongside Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. "So if they want to try again that wh...
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Bush to Lose Cold War, Retroactively
2007-04-27 20:19:00
First the Bush administration lies us into a disastrous war, then lies about nonexistent North Korean enrichment activities (pushing Kim Jong Il to restart the process, eventually winding up with a functioning nuclear warhead), now it seems Cheney and his lapdog George won't be satisfied until they lose us the Cold War as well, retroactively after it is already over, somehow (previously badly blogged about here- hey, I was just starting up, give me a break!);Putin told Czech President Vaclav Klaus at a Kremlin meeting that the proposed missile shield would be used to track Russian military activities. "These systems will monitor Russian territory as far as the Ural mountains if we don't come out with a response," Putin told Klaus. "And we will indeed do this. Anyone would." "We will not get hysterical about this. We will just take appropriate measures," he said, without elaborating. Russia views the U.S. plan to base 10 missile interceptors in Poland and radar in the Czech Republi...
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Boy, Conservatism Sure Has Changed
2007-04-27 18:39:00
A small story caught my eye this morning- U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman announced it would be giving priority to power companies to overrule state authority in the construction of new power lines;The federal government said yesterday that it would give power companies special rights to build their lines in the Washington region and some other parts of the country, permitting the companies to bypass state authority if necessary in the interest of bolstering the nation's electrical grid.The change could give Dominion Virginia Power greater authority to build a controversial line through Northern Virginia. The company says it has no plans to bypass the state's authority but won't rule it out.Now keep in mind, Mr. Bodman is clearly a "Bushie";Previously, Secretary Bodman served as Deputy Secretary of the Treasury beginning in February 2004. He also served the Bush Administration as the Deputy Secretary of the Department of Commerce beginning in 2001. A financier and executive...
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Word of Wisdom From Our Elders
2007-04-27 18:20:00
Chris, who simply loves it when I note his age (49 or something), wrote such a good comment on my TALON post I didn't want to keep it hidden from the front page- I'm reposting it in full just so it can be read by as many people as possible. He is a poet and a patriot, so you heathens should heed his words;My feelings about the Patriot act are absolutely critical of its intent and methods. I have heard said ?The Patriot act is the price of freedom today.? I could not disagree more. This is giving up irreplaceable personal freedoms. Once these personal freedoms are given away, they do not come back after time. The government is like a pet Lion. Yes it can do tricks but don?t ever forget it is in its heart a wild Lion, I am pretty sure it won?t. Don?t get me wrong the government does a specific job, yet still must be treated like any wild beast and never trusted to act otherwise. That is not being paranoid, just sensible. At some point a government small or large, in some fit of gro...
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Hawking Soars
2007-04-27 17:22:00
As a diehard nerd I just had to post this pic from the AP showing a weightless Professor Stephen Hawk ing, the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge (a chair once held by Isaac Newton.) He has been paralyzed by ALS, a debilitating motor-neuron disease, since he was 21. In this photo he rides the vomit comet to get a feel of no gravity- it's got to do your heart good to see the emotion in this photo;
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Tenet Changes Story on WMD's
2007-04-27 15:50:00
Early this morning I was forced awake sooner than I would like seeing the news about George Tenet's 60 Minutes interview in which he claims the Bush administration distorted his words on Iraq's possible possession of WMD's;Tenet, who called the administration's distortion "disingenuous and dishonorable," says it has resulted in the ruining of his career and reputation. "The phrase 'slam dunk' didn't refer to whether Saddam Hussein actually had WMDs," Tenet says, according to a CBS News report. "He says he was talking about what information could be used to make that case when he uttered those words. 'We can put a better case together for a public case. That's what I meant,'" Tenet explained.Expect this to cause an uproar in the D.C. Oversight Gang, most notably Henry Waxman, whose dogged pursuit of Condoleeza Rice led to a subpoena this week (and her subsequent complete disregard of it, of course.) I expect Mr. tenet will be receiving a letter from the Chairman's commit...
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Debate Follow-up; Not!
2007-04-27 14:33:00
As a political blogger 4th Class it shames me to say I did not catch the debates last night. I hope to find it streaming somewhere today. I do have a good excuse though; Freethinker and I are busy getting ready to move into our new house and things are just chaotic. We were frantically fighting the banking system yesterday (which I do not recommend, much in the same way one does not fight the law ala Sonny Curtis) because our bank put a hold on our deposit check, and... oh hell, to sum up it was just a mess. Still is, as a matter of fact.So for those faithful readers with an opinion about last night feel free to drop comments and tell me what your take was. Who "won"? Who gained traction? Who lost it?Comment away, knuckleheads. Or don't and kiss my ass, either way is fine with me.
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Bush is the King of Pork
2007-04-26 20:09:00
With the 2007 Iraq emergency spending bill on it's way to the President's desk for a veto, I thought it would be a good time to debunk the "pork barrel" talking point that has surfaced recently. Namely that the House passed a big, fat bill full of special projects. Never mind that the administration and it's congressional allies passed the same request last year chock full o' pork, when it comes to the Democratic majority, Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell did not mince words;"The solution is simple: Take out the surrender date, take out the pork, and get the funds to our troops," said Republican Leader Mitch McConnell.Hmmm, how does that square with the deals Republicans have pulled off during their disastrous turn at the majority? Consider the controversial CAFTA bill from 2005;Late-night arm-twisting by House leaders to get votes is of course nothing new. We witnessed far worse when Congress passed the ruinous Medicare prescription drug bill in the dead of night two ...
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Senate Approves Iraq Withdrawal Bill
2007-04-26 19:24:00
I just saw a blurb on CNN- the Senate has approved the Iraq supplemental by 51-46. Now for the veto and the constitutional clash sure to follow.UPDATE: Surprise, surprise, guess who voted with the Republicans;Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., sided with Republicans in opposing the bill. "We delude ourselves if we think we can wave a legislative wand and suddenly our troops in the field will be able to distinguish between al-Qaida terrorism or sectarian violence. Or that Iraqis will suddenly settle their political differences because our troops are leaving," Lieberman said.As to his first point, he really should direct it to the Commander-in-Chief; you can't wave a propaganda wand and help the troops distinguish the difference between Sunni and Shia, either.Bush really should have known that before committing troops!
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Fascism in America
2007-04-26 17:51:00
Naomi Wolf has a great must-read piece in the Guardian about the steps needed to create fascism in a country, and how these steps have been followed by the Bush administration since 9/11. I previously wrote here about how much an OSS profile of Hitler sounded like our president, and I'll repost it here just because I want to;His primary rules were: never allow the public to cool off; never admit a fault or wrong; never concede that there may be some good in your enemy; never leave room for alternatives; never accept blame; concentrate on one enemy at a time and blame him for everything that goes wrong; people will believe a big lie sooner than a little one; and if you repeat it frequently enough people will sooner or later believe it.Here's her steps, minus the juicy details- I'll leave the comparisons to our current government in her capable hands;1. Invoke a terrifying internal and external enemy2. Create a gulag3. Develop a thug caste4. Set up an internal surveillance system5...
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Doctors Pull Gallbladder Out Through Woman's Vagina
2007-04-26 17:07:00
I just had to post about this (emph. mine);Doctor s in eastern France said Thursday they had carried out the world's first "no-scar" surgery, using hi-tech instruments to remove the gallbladder of a 30-year-old patient via her vagina. The operation breaks new ground in minimally invasive surgery, a technique designed to boost post-operative recovery and avoid the emotional impact of scars, lead doctor Jacques Marescaux told AFP.So don't worry, ladies! If you have surgery scheduled soon and dread the resulting scar tissue, just ask the doctor to yank it out the hard way.
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TALON Domestic Spying Program to be Scrapped
2007-04-26 15:43:00
I'm not sure if many people really picked up on the controversy surrounding the Pentagon's TALON operation (short for Threat and Local Observation Notice), a domestic spying program institutionalized as "the DoD standard for reporting suspicious activity" by Paul Wolfowitz May 2003. It was intended as a way to siphon tips from military members about these "suspicious activities" to the Army's Counterintelligence Field Activity (CFA), an agency created to track threats to military installations inside and outside of the U.S.That's the candy-coated version, really. In reality it was just a small member of a network of spying programs instituted after 9/11 by the Bush administration. These programs, supposedly meant to counter national security threats, spied on American citizens and anti-war groups;The DOD database obtained by NBC News includes nearly four dozen anti-war meetings or protests, including some that have taken place far from any military installation, post or recru...
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