The Bush administration takes advantage of the DeLay's indictment to dump some stories into the slipstream that it would rather not have in the headlines.

Bush pardons 14 people...

Robert Bonner, head of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, resigns...

Bush waives restrictions on Libya...

National Guard short on equipment....

(Hat tip to Rachel Maddow)

There's another great Media Watchdog site online now that looks like a possible successor to the sorely missed Media Whores Online:

Pre$$titutes

From their FAQ section:

Q. Why This Site?

We believe Pre$$titution is the First Cause of the worst presidency in U.S. history. The transformation of George W. Bush from a smarmy dilettante to a supposedly resolute, pious, compassionate leader is the result of a half decade of methodical Pre$$titution, both by hard right partisans and by reporters who have abdicated their interrogative role in order to pander to the administration. It is "death by a thousand cuts" in reverse: the cumulative effect of tens of thousands of implicit and explicit pro-Bush stories and soundbites has been to create the illusion of legitimacy around an individual uniquely unqualified to be president. Our aim is to make that process transparent.

Welcome to the fight boys and girls....

"Is this a private fight or can anyone join in?"
- Old Irish Saying

If you haven't seen the "Grapple In the Big Apple" yet, the debate on the Iraq war between George Galloway and Chris Hitchens, I highly recommend it. Galloway takes Hitchens apart and leaves nothing but the slime that Hitchens tried to drag in. He also destroys Hitchen's endless army of strawmen. It's a stunning debate... and very "spirited".

Democracy now has the video and audio up.

Real Video

mp3 Audio Download

Update: (After another listen)

Even with the great drubbing given to Hitchens by Galloway, the question that really left Hitchens stumbling for an answer was asked by Amy Goodman who was moderating the debate:

"As you've changed your views over time, do you feel the media is friendlier to you."

It's a stunning question that I can only hope will make Hitchens wake from his madness.

Best quote from the evening about Iraq was by Galloway quoting the famous words of Tallyrand:

"It's worse than a crime.. it's a blunder"

One more thing: What the hell was up with Hitchens repeatedly warning the somewhat boisterous audience to remember that they are all being televised.
What a creepy bastard.

More news that people around the world are reading that you will not find in many (if any) American papers.

Hunger strikers pledge to die in Guantánamo

Why the blackout? Can't the newly found backbone in the US press extend itself to include Gitmo?

I wonder why this didn't make Good Morning America and the Today Show.

UN hits back at US in report saying parts of America are as poor as Third World
The Independent

Parts of the United States are as poor as the Third World, according to a shocking United Nations report on global inequality.

Claims that the New Orleans floods have laid bare a growing racial and economic divide in the US have, until now, been rejected by the American political establishment as emotional rhetoric. But yesterday's UN report provides statistical proof that for many - well beyond those affected by the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina - the great American Dream is an ongoing nightmare.

The document constitutes a stinging attack on US policies at home and abroad in a fightback against moves by Washington to undermine next week's UN 60th anniversary conference which will be the biggest gathering of world leaders in history....

Read the rest. This is America?

You can guess the results. Juan Cole eviscerate Hitchen's falacies and torches his strawmen to ashes.

It's a must read and hopefully evidence of the last of Hitchen's attack on reality.

Juan Cole really is a national treasure.

Hurricane Katrina Actual Timeline

Friday, Aug. 26: Gov. Kathleen Blanco declares a state of emergency in Louisiana and requests troop assistance.

Saturday, Aug. 27: Gov. Blanco asks for federal state of emergency. A federal emergency is declared giving federal officials the authority to get involved.

Sunday, Aug. 28: Mayor Ray Nagin orders mandatory evacuation of New Orleans. President Bush warned of Levee failure by National Hurricane Center. National Weather Service predicts area will be "uninhabitable" after Hurricane arrives. First reports of water toppling over the levee appear in local paper.

Monday, Aug. 29: Levee breaches and New Orleans begins to fill with water, Bush travels to Arizona and California to discuss Medicare. FEMA chief finally responds to federal emergency, dispatching employees but giving them two days to arrive on site.

Tuesday, Aug. 30: Mass looting reported, security shortage cited in New Orleans. Pentagon says that local authorities have adequate National Guard units to handle hurricane needs despite governor's earlier request. Bush returns to Crawford for final day of vacation. TV coverage is around-the-clock Hurricane news.

Wednesday, Aug. 31: Tens of thousands trapped in New Orleans including at Convention Center and Superdome in "medieval" conditions. President Bush finally returns to Washington to establish a task force to coordinate federal response. Local authorities run out of food and water supplies.

Thursday, Sept. 1: New Orleans descends into anarchy. New Orleans Mayor issues a "Desperate SOS" to federal government. Bush claims nobody predicted the breach of the levees despite multiple warnings and his earlier briefing.

Friday, Sept. 2: Karl Rove begins Bush administration campaign to blame state and local officials—despite their repeated requests for help. Bush stages a photo-op—diverting Coast Guard helicopters and crew to act as backdrop for cameras. Levee repair work orchestrated for president's visit and White House press corps.

Saturday, Sept. 3: Bush blames state and local officials. Senior administration official (possibly Rove) caught in a lie claiming Gov. Blanco had not declared a state of emergency or asked for help.

Monday, Sept. 5: New Orleans officials begin to collect their dead.

(Adapted from: Katrina Timeline, http://thinkprogress.org/katrina-timeline/

Don't believe otherwise no matter how the right-wing machine is trying to spin what happened.
Posted for posterity and future reference.