The TV crews are gone. The politicians have gone home. The news cycle has turned. Yet, the unreality continues, made worse by the fact that the unreality is so real.
Any American touched by New Orleans prior to the failure of the Army Corps of Engineers and the subsequent flood, and who has re-visited or even keeps in touch with things there, knows how bad things are.
There's an old Meters' song, "Talkin' 'Bout New Orleans," that says, "If you've ever been there, then you know what I mean." It meant the good things. It even meant the bad things. It meant the things about New Orleans that made it unique on the planet.
Now, if you have visited New Orleans since the flood, you have another sense of that song.
And by the way, let's stop calling the disaster "Katrina." It's short and convenient, but let's get it right. Call it the flood. A man-made flood caused by incompetence and greed. It wasn't a hurricane that drowned a city, it was a flood caused by massive, criminal incompetence.
But that's not what this is about.
This is about the emotions those of us who have a New Orleans connection are feeling. The emotions that come through the psychic air 3500 miles away here in Portland, Oregon…the despair, the anger, the sense of living in a daily nightmare that just won't seem to go away. The sense of loss. Loss and abandonment. Is anyone surprised that the suicide rate in New Orleans has tripled in the past year?
Can you feel it?
How dare Bush show his face? The shame of the conditions in New Orleans is on him. It should eat him alive at night…that and the tens of thousands of dead and maimed Americans and Iraqis from his own personal boutique war.
I was at Jazzfest in May, and as I wrote here at the time, the anger and despair of the people of New Orleans ran as deep as the Mississippi. Lately these feelings have been given more exposure, but if Bush had a single testicle, he would have faced some real people and took the heat. Taking heat is not in his job description. Taking heat is part of taking responsibility, he doesn't do that.
Thankfully, his allies are deserting him. If we are able to swing the House of Representatives in the fall, he will stand with his administration and have to answer for what he's done. I would prefer that he move into the cell formerly occupied by Milosovic and be tried before the world, but that's not going to happen.
The anger and despair of the people of New Orleans (at home and also those who are part of the tragic diaspora) and their sense of unreality is the legacy of American greed and bumbling.
I can feel it. Maybe you can too.
The power must be taken away from the Republicans. Congress must be taken back, and these jackals and their servants must be swept out of the Executive Branch, from top to bottom.
Feel like you want to do something for the people of New Orleans other than sending money their way? Do something to change the balance of power.
The next sixty days are crucial. Don't let it slip through your fingers again.
this also appears on huffingtonpost.com
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Monday, August 21, 2006
REVEALED! Whitney Solo Concert for Osama--1985
All of our current difficulties in the world could have been prevented. We would not be in Iraq. 9/11 would never have happened. We would be at peace around the world, had it not been for one 1985 incident that I have now been authorized to reveal.
The location was a remote palace in Yemen. The principals were Osama Bin Laden and Whitney Houston. No one knew that the fate of the planet would turn on the events that night, but indeed that was the case.
As the New York Post has reported, "Kola Boof, the Sudanese poet and novelist who claims to have once been bin Laden's sex slave, writes in her autobiography, 'Diary of a Lost Girl,' which is excerpted in the September Harper's: 'He told me Whitney Houston was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.'"
But Boof (pronounced "Booth" in Sudanese) did not know about the clandestine solo concert Bin Laden ordered performed for him by Houston in 1985. Bin Laden's people contacted her personally, bypassing her agent, telling her that he wanted to hear her sing a capella, for his ears only, in exchange for $1 million in cash, all in untraceable bills.
When she asked why, she was told Bin Laden admired her beauty and her voice and craved a one-on-one concert. She asked if he expected sexual favors and was told that no, he had great respect for her.
She agreed and was handed a brief case containing the money. The next day she was picked up by his representatives and driven to a private airport in a huge limo where a private jet was waiting. Houston found it filled with lavish gifts of jewelry, perfumes, food and clothing. She was shocked to find all of the clothing fit her perfectly. When she asked why that was, the servant told her that Osama had done his homework.
When she arrived at the palace she was pampered and massaged and spent the night alone in a suite the size of her entire Hollywood mansion. She was told her meeting with Osama was to take place early that evening.
According to the New York Post story, Boof reported that, "He said he wanted to give [her] a mansion that he owned in a suburb of Khartoum. He explained to me that to possess Whitney, he would be willing to break his color rule and make her one of his wives."
She was introduced to several of his children during the day. They did not know who she was because he did not allow Western music to be played in the palace.
Finally the time came for their meeting. She walked into a vast marble room, the floor covered with Persian rugs, finding him sitting in a large wooden throne-like chair. The first words out of his mouth were compliments to her beauty. She smiled. He smiled and told her how truly Islamic he thought she was, something he also told Boof, according to the New York Post. The comment confused her, but she complimented him on his children, saying, "I believe the children are our are future. Teach them well and let them lead the way."
He was pleased to hear that, and told her she must be very wise. She added, "You should make sure you show them all the beauty they possess inside. Give them a sense of pride to make it easier. Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be."
He said, "Will you sing for me now?"
She sang several songs. Osama was visibly moved, and also visibly sexually excited. This was confirmed by Boof when she wrote, "'In his briefcase, I would come across photographs of the Star [magazine], as well as copies of Playboy. 'African women are only good for a man's lower pleasures,''" she quoted him as saying.
He was so excited that he proposed marriage to her on the spot. She asked, "But where is the mother of the children I met today?"
He replied that, according to Islamic custom, he had several wives and many children. "Did you think I was saving all my love for you?"
She stood up in front of him and boldly said, "I decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadows. If I fail, if I succeed, at least I live as I believe. No matter what they take from me, they can't take away my dignity."
He told her she had been brainwashed by American culture, a statement confirmed by Boof, and quoted in the New York Post article.
At that point, she spread her arms and sang the Star Spangled Banner just as she would at a subsequent Super Bowl. When she finished singing, she turned her back and walked out of the room.
It was downhill from there. Jihad was declared, buildings were destroyed, countries invaded and thousands of lives lost. Oddly enough, one survivor was Houston's husband, Bobby Brown whom Osama threatened to kill, according to Boof.
We can only imagine what would have happened, had Houston's decision gone the other way. When she returned to America, she wrote to a friend, "I could feel his love for me but the greatest love of all is easy to achieve. Learning to love yourself …it is the greatest love of all"
You can also find this at huffingtonpost.com
The location was a remote palace in Yemen. The principals were Osama Bin Laden and Whitney Houston. No one knew that the fate of the planet would turn on the events that night, but indeed that was the case.
As the New York Post has reported, "Kola Boof, the Sudanese poet and novelist who claims to have once been bin Laden's sex slave, writes in her autobiography, 'Diary of a Lost Girl,' which is excerpted in the September Harper's: 'He told me Whitney Houston was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.'"
But Boof (pronounced "Booth" in Sudanese) did not know about the clandestine solo concert Bin Laden ordered performed for him by Houston in 1985. Bin Laden's people contacted her personally, bypassing her agent, telling her that he wanted to hear her sing a capella, for his ears only, in exchange for $1 million in cash, all in untraceable bills.
When she asked why, she was told Bin Laden admired her beauty and her voice and craved a one-on-one concert. She asked if he expected sexual favors and was told that no, he had great respect for her.
She agreed and was handed a brief case containing the money. The next day she was picked up by his representatives and driven to a private airport in a huge limo where a private jet was waiting. Houston found it filled with lavish gifts of jewelry, perfumes, food and clothing. She was shocked to find all of the clothing fit her perfectly. When she asked why that was, the servant told her that Osama had done his homework.
When she arrived at the palace she was pampered and massaged and spent the night alone in a suite the size of her entire Hollywood mansion. She was told her meeting with Osama was to take place early that evening.
According to the New York Post story, Boof reported that, "He said he wanted to give [her] a mansion that he owned in a suburb of Khartoum. He explained to me that to possess Whitney, he would be willing to break his color rule and make her one of his wives."
She was introduced to several of his children during the day. They did not know who she was because he did not allow Western music to be played in the palace.
Finally the time came for their meeting. She walked into a vast marble room, the floor covered with Persian rugs, finding him sitting in a large wooden throne-like chair. The first words out of his mouth were compliments to her beauty. She smiled. He smiled and told her how truly Islamic he thought she was, something he also told Boof, according to the New York Post. The comment confused her, but she complimented him on his children, saying, "I believe the children are our are future. Teach them well and let them lead the way."
He was pleased to hear that, and told her she must be very wise. She added, "You should make sure you show them all the beauty they possess inside. Give them a sense of pride to make it easier. Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be."
He said, "Will you sing for me now?"
She sang several songs. Osama was visibly moved, and also visibly sexually excited. This was confirmed by Boof when she wrote, "'In his briefcase, I would come across photographs of the Star [magazine], as well as copies of Playboy. 'African women are only good for a man's lower pleasures,''" she quoted him as saying.
He was so excited that he proposed marriage to her on the spot. She asked, "But where is the mother of the children I met today?"
He replied that, according to Islamic custom, he had several wives and many children. "Did you think I was saving all my love for you?"
She stood up in front of him and boldly said, "I decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadows. If I fail, if I succeed, at least I live as I believe. No matter what they take from me, they can't take away my dignity."
He told her she had been brainwashed by American culture, a statement confirmed by Boof, and quoted in the New York Post article.
At that point, she spread her arms and sang the Star Spangled Banner just as she would at a subsequent Super Bowl. When she finished singing, she turned her back and walked out of the room.
It was downhill from there. Jihad was declared, buildings were destroyed, countries invaded and thousands of lives lost. Oddly enough, one survivor was Houston's husband, Bobby Brown whom Osama threatened to kill, according to Boof.
We can only imagine what would have happened, had Houston's decision gone the other way. When she returned to America, she wrote to a friend, "I could feel his love for me but the greatest love of all is easy to achieve. Learning to love yourself …it is the greatest love of all"
You can also find this at huffingtonpost.com
REVEALED! Whitney Solo Concert for Osama--1985
All of our current difficulties in the world could have been prevented. We would not be in Iraq. 9/11 would never have happened. We would be at peace around the world, had it not been for one 1985 incident that I have now been authorized to reveal.
The location was a remote palace in Yemen. The principals were Osama Bin Laden and Whitney Houston. No one knew that the fate of the planet would turn on the events that night, but indeed that was the case.
As the New York Post has reported, "Kola Boof, the Sudanese poet and novelist who claims to have once been bin Laden's sex slave, writes in her autobiography, 'Diary of a Lost Girl,' which is excerpted in the September Harper's: 'He told me Whitney Houston was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.'"
But Boof (pronounced "Booth" in Sudanese) did not know about the clandestine solo concert Bin Laden ordered performed for him by Houston in 1985. Bin Laden's people contacted her personally, bypassing her agent, telling her that he wanted to hear her sing a capella, for his ears only, in exchange for $1 million in cash, all in untraceable bills.
When she asked why, she was told Bin Laden admired her beauty and her voice and craved a one-on-one concert. She asked if he expected sexual favors and was told that no, he had great respect for her.
She agreed and was handed a brief case containing the money. The next day she was picked up by his representatives and driven to a private airport in a huge limo where a private jet was waiting. Houston found it filled with lavish gifts of jewelry, perfumes, food and clothing. She was shocked to find all of the clothing fit her perfectly. When she asked why that was, the servant told her that Osama had done his homework.
When she arrived at the palace she was pampered and massaged and spent the night alone in a suite the size of her entire Hollywood mansion. She was told her meeting with Osama was to take place early that evening.
According to the New York Post story, Boof reported that, "He said he wanted to give [her] a mansion that he owned in a suburb of Khartoum. He explained to me that to possess Whitney, he would be willing to break his color rule and make her one of his wives."
She was introduced to several of his children during the day. They did not know who she was because he did not allow Western music to be played in the palace.
Finally the time came for their meeting. She walked into a vast marble room, the floor covered with Persian rugs, finding him sitting in a large wooden throne-like chair. The first words out of his mouth were compliments to her beauty. She smiled. He smiled and told her how truly Islamic he thought she was, something he also told Boof, according to the New York Post. The comment confused her, but she complimented him on his children, saying, "I believe the children are our are future. Teach them well and let them lead the way."
He was pleased to hear that, and told her she must be very wise. She added, "You should make sure you show them all the beauty they possess inside. Give them a sense of pride to make it easier. Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be."
He said, "Will you sing for me now?"
She sang several songs. Osama was visibly moved, and also visibly sexually excited. This was confirmed by Boof when she wrote, "'In his briefcase, I would come across photographs of the Star [magazine], as well as copies of Playboy. 'African women are only good for a man's lower pleasures,''" she quoted him as saying.
He was so excited that he proposed marriage to her on the spot. She asked, "But where is the mother of the children I met today?"
He replied that, according to Islamic custom, he had several wives and many children. "Did you think I was saving all my love for you?"
She stood up in front of him and boldly said, "I decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadows. If I fail, if I succeed, at least I live as I believe. No matter what they take from me, they can't take away my dignity."
He told her she had been brainwashed by American culture, a statement confirmed by Boof, and quoted in the New York Post article.
At that point, she spread her arms and sang the Star Spangled Banner just as she would at a subsequent Super Bowl. When she finished singing, she turned her back and walked out of the room.
It was downhill from there. Jihad was declared, buildings were destroyed, countries invaded and thousands of lives lost. Oddly enough, one survivor was Houston's husband, Bobby Brown whom Osama threatened to kill, according to Boof.
We can only imagine what would have happened, had Houston's decision gone the other way. When she returned to America, she wrote to a friend, "I could feel his love for me but the greatest love of all is easy to achieve. Learning to love yourself …it is the greatest love of all"
You can also find this at huffingtonpost.com
The location was a remote palace in Yemen. The principals were Osama Bin Laden and Whitney Houston. No one knew that the fate of the planet would turn on the events that night, but indeed that was the case.
As the New York Post has reported, "Kola Boof, the Sudanese poet and novelist who claims to have once been bin Laden's sex slave, writes in her autobiography, 'Diary of a Lost Girl,' which is excerpted in the September Harper's: 'He told me Whitney Houston was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.'"
But Boof (pronounced "Booth" in Sudanese) did not know about the clandestine solo concert Bin Laden ordered performed for him by Houston in 1985. Bin Laden's people contacted her personally, bypassing her agent, telling her that he wanted to hear her sing a capella, for his ears only, in exchange for $1 million in cash, all in untraceable bills.
When she asked why, she was told Bin Laden admired her beauty and her voice and craved a one-on-one concert. She asked if he expected sexual favors and was told that no, he had great respect for her.
She agreed and was handed a brief case containing the money. The next day she was picked up by his representatives and driven to a private airport in a huge limo where a private jet was waiting. Houston found it filled with lavish gifts of jewelry, perfumes, food and clothing. She was shocked to find all of the clothing fit her perfectly. When she asked why that was, the servant told her that Osama had done his homework.
When she arrived at the palace she was pampered and massaged and spent the night alone in a suite the size of her entire Hollywood mansion. She was told her meeting with Osama was to take place early that evening.
According to the New York Post story, Boof reported that, "He said he wanted to give [her] a mansion that he owned in a suburb of Khartoum. He explained to me that to possess Whitney, he would be willing to break his color rule and make her one of his wives."
She was introduced to several of his children during the day. They did not know who she was because he did not allow Western music to be played in the palace.
Finally the time came for their meeting. She walked into a vast marble room, the floor covered with Persian rugs, finding him sitting in a large wooden throne-like chair. The first words out of his mouth were compliments to her beauty. She smiled. He smiled and told her how truly Islamic he thought she was, something he also told Boof, according to the New York Post. The comment confused her, but she complimented him on his children, saying, "I believe the children are our are future. Teach them well and let them lead the way."
He was pleased to hear that, and told her she must be very wise. She added, "You should make sure you show them all the beauty they possess inside. Give them a sense of pride to make it easier. Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be."
He said, "Will you sing for me now?"
She sang several songs. Osama was visibly moved, and also visibly sexually excited. This was confirmed by Boof when she wrote, "'In his briefcase, I would come across photographs of the Star [magazine], as well as copies of Playboy. 'African women are only good for a man's lower pleasures,''" she quoted him as saying.
He was so excited that he proposed marriage to her on the spot. She asked, "But where is the mother of the children I met today?"
He replied that, according to Islamic custom, he had several wives and many children. "Did you think I was saving all my love for you?"
She stood up in front of him and boldly said, "I decided long ago, never to walk in anyone's shadows. If I fail, if I succeed, at least I live as I believe. No matter what they take from me, they can't take away my dignity."
He told her she had been brainwashed by American culture, a statement confirmed by Boof, and quoted in the New York Post article.
At that point, she spread her arms and sang the Star Spangled Banner just as she would at a subsequent Super Bowl. When she finished singing, she turned her back and walked out of the room.
It was downhill from there. Jihad was declared, buildings were destroyed, countries invaded and thousands of lives lost. Oddly enough, one survivor was Houston's husband, Bobby Brown whom Osama threatened to kill, according to Boof.
We can only imagine what would have happened, had Houston's decision gone the other way. When she returned to America, she wrote to a friend, "I could feel his love for me but the greatest love of all is easy to achieve. Learning to love yourself …it is the greatest love of all"
You can also find this at huffingtonpost.com
Friday, August 18, 2006
Corporate lies: Tobacco Department. And a Slap on the Wrist
Yesterday Federal Judge Gladys Kessler ruled that "smoking causes disease, suffering, and death," and that tobacco companies were gulping profits like a Hummer gulps gas, “with little, if any, regard for individual illness and suffering, soaring health costs, or the integrity of the legal system.”
The defendants are Philip Morris USA Inc. and its parent, Altria Group Inc.; R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.; Brown & Williamson Tobacco Co.; British American Tobacco Ltd.; Lorillard Tobacco Co.; Liggett Group Inc.; Counsel for Tobacco Research-U.S.A.; and the now-defunct Tobacco Institute.
She added that "Over the course of more than 50 years, defendants lied, misrepresented and deceived the American public, including smokers and the young people they avidly sought as 'replacement smokers,' about the devastating health effects of smoking and environmental tobacco smoke."
She isn't kidding. But are you aware of the extent of what the tobacco companies told us was true about cigarettes?
Kirven Blount, in his book, "What's Your Poison: Addictive Advertising of the '40s- '60s," reprints dozens of cigarette ads. The outrageous lies the tobacco companies told us are astounding, given what we know about cigarettes, and the fact that they knew those same facts when these ads were written. Forget the Marlboro Man and the "image" ads, these are very specific.
Take the Camel Brand. No cute cartoon characters back then. Nope, just statements like (all caps and capitalizations as they appear in the ad):
"According to a recent Nationwide survey:
MORE DOCTORS SMOKE CAMELS THAN ANY OTHER CIGARETTE
EVERY DOCTOR IN PRIVATE PRACTICE WAS ASKED"
There's a photo of a grandfatherly "doctor" in one ad and a female "doctor" in another. In other Camel ads:
"28% LESS NICOTINE EXTRA COOLNESS FLAVOR"
And testimonials:
"Vivian Blaine says; 'I've tried the different mildness tests. My throat made my choice….CAMELS!' Not one single case of throat irritation due to smoking CAMELS."
"These smokers gave CAMELS 30-YEAR Mildness Tests."
"'My voice is my living'…says Vaughn Monroe radio and recording star."
Below it there's a word balloon coming out of Vaughn's mouth.
" …so it's only common sense that I smoke the cigarette that agrees with my throat…CAMEL!"
They cap it off with these lines:
"Not one single case of throat irritation due to smoking CAMELS
Make a note…Remember Your Throat"
"Camels agree with more people than any other cigarette."
And, apparently Camels are good for your psychological well-being:
"WATCH YOUR NERVES…LET UP…LIGHT A CAMEL
In hazardous jobs—in every-day 'grinds"—smokers say 'CAMELS ARE SOOTHING TO THE NERVES.'"
They were not alone. Philip Morris pulled this out of their corporate asses:
"DO YOU INHALE?
All smokers do—some times. And inhaling increases the chance of smoking-irritation.
Reported by eminent medical authorities is this vital difference between Philip Morris and four other leading cigarettes. On comparison, the other four brands averaged 235% more irritant than the strikingly constrained Philip Morris.
Further—the irritant effect of the four other leading brands was found to last more than five times as long! You can't see this difference…but you can feel it, especially when you inhale! That's vital to all who smoke.
Especially if you inhale—Call for Philip Morris! Enjoy the world's finest tobaccos—with no worry about throat irritation.
MEDIAL AUTHORITIES KNOW THIS ONE IS SUPERIOR--- PHILIP MORRIS
Scientifically proved less irritating to the nose and throat.
When smokers changed to Philip Morris, substantially every case of irritation of the nose and throat---due to smoking---cleared up completely, or definitely improved!
This is from the findings of distinguished doctors, in clinical tests of men and women smokers---reported in an authoritative medical journal. Solid proof that this finer-tasting cigarette is less irritating to the nose and throat."
It is one thing to cover up the fact that your product is a major cause of DEATH and DISEASE, but it's another to ACTIVELY tell you it doesn't.
A news story yesterday said, "Mark Smith, a spokesman for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company…said, the company was disappointed by Kessler's finding that the companies had conspired to violate federal law and deceive consumers." This goes to show you that they haven't stopped lying. Consider these Chesterfield ads:
They got SINGERS to endorse the cancer sticks.
"'You might say I'm careful, that's why I say Chesterfields SATISFY me!' Rise Stevens (autograph) Metropolitan Operas World Famous Carmen"
"MILDNESS—plus No Unpleasant After-taste *
* from the report of a well-known research organization…and only Chesterfield has it!"
"Hundreds of prominent tobacco growers say: 'When I apply the Standard Tobacco Growers' Test to cigarettes, I find Chesterfield is the one that smells Milder and smokes Milder.'"
"Only Chesterfield is Made the Modern way---with ACCU RAY to bring you SMOOTHER, COOLER SMOKING than was every before possible."
Accu-ray, how space-age.
They all seem to acknowledge that cigarettes make you feel bad, but they all claim that THEIRS doesn't. Take Pall Mall:
"Guard Against Throat-Scratch
…smoke PALL MALL the cigarette whose mildness you can measure.
Outstanding…and they are mild!"
The problem with the ruling yesterday is that the death-dealing liars got to keep their money. No reparations for killing your parents and grandparents. This is thanks to the Bush administration. The justice department tried to keep the damage to their corporate masters as minimal as possible. They succeeded.
Tomorrow, nobody will remember this story.
Just add it to the list of lies, lies and more lies. They don't mind killing you for money. Remember that in November. They don't mind killing you for money.
They've merely stopped telling us that we'll get pleasure from it as they did in this Camel ad:
"IT'S A PSYCHOLOGICAL FACT: PLEASURE HELPS YOUR DISPOSITION
For more pure pleasure…have a CAMEL"
They use fear now, not pleasure. The lies are the same, however. And they're from the same folks.
this also appears on huffingtonpost.com
The defendants are Philip Morris USA Inc. and its parent, Altria Group Inc.; R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.; Brown & Williamson Tobacco Co.; British American Tobacco Ltd.; Lorillard Tobacco Co.; Liggett Group Inc.; Counsel for Tobacco Research-U.S.A.; and the now-defunct Tobacco Institute.
She added that "Over the course of more than 50 years, defendants lied, misrepresented and deceived the American public, including smokers and the young people they avidly sought as 'replacement smokers,' about the devastating health effects of smoking and environmental tobacco smoke."
She isn't kidding. But are you aware of the extent of what the tobacco companies told us was true about cigarettes?
Kirven Blount, in his book, "What's Your Poison: Addictive Advertising of the '40s- '60s," reprints dozens of cigarette ads. The outrageous lies the tobacco companies told us are astounding, given what we know about cigarettes, and the fact that they knew those same facts when these ads were written. Forget the Marlboro Man and the "image" ads, these are very specific.
Take the Camel Brand. No cute cartoon characters back then. Nope, just statements like (all caps and capitalizations as they appear in the ad):
"According to a recent Nationwide survey:
MORE DOCTORS SMOKE CAMELS THAN ANY OTHER CIGARETTE
EVERY DOCTOR IN PRIVATE PRACTICE WAS ASKED"
There's a photo of a grandfatherly "doctor" in one ad and a female "doctor" in another. In other Camel ads:
"28% LESS NICOTINE EXTRA COOLNESS FLAVOR"
And testimonials:
"Vivian Blaine says; 'I've tried the different mildness tests. My throat made my choice….CAMELS!' Not one single case of throat irritation due to smoking CAMELS."
"These smokers gave CAMELS 30-YEAR Mildness Tests."
"'My voice is my living'…says Vaughn Monroe radio and recording star."
Below it there's a word balloon coming out of Vaughn's mouth.
" …so it's only common sense that I smoke the cigarette that agrees with my throat…CAMEL!"
They cap it off with these lines:
"Not one single case of throat irritation due to smoking CAMELS
Make a note…Remember Your Throat"
"Camels agree with more people than any other cigarette."
And, apparently Camels are good for your psychological well-being:
"WATCH YOUR NERVES…LET UP…LIGHT A CAMEL
In hazardous jobs—in every-day 'grinds"—smokers say 'CAMELS ARE SOOTHING TO THE NERVES.'"
They were not alone. Philip Morris pulled this out of their corporate asses:
"DO YOU INHALE?
All smokers do—some times. And inhaling increases the chance of smoking-irritation.
Reported by eminent medical authorities is this vital difference between Philip Morris and four other leading cigarettes. On comparison, the other four brands averaged 235% more irritant than the strikingly constrained Philip Morris.
Further—the irritant effect of the four other leading brands was found to last more than five times as long! You can't see this difference…but you can feel it, especially when you inhale! That's vital to all who smoke.
Especially if you inhale—Call for Philip Morris! Enjoy the world's finest tobaccos—with no worry about throat irritation.
MEDIAL AUTHORITIES KNOW THIS ONE IS SUPERIOR--- PHILIP MORRIS
Scientifically proved less irritating to the nose and throat.
When smokers changed to Philip Morris, substantially every case of irritation of the nose and throat---due to smoking---cleared up completely, or definitely improved!
This is from the findings of distinguished doctors, in clinical tests of men and women smokers---reported in an authoritative medical journal. Solid proof that this finer-tasting cigarette is less irritating to the nose and throat."
It is one thing to cover up the fact that your product is a major cause of DEATH and DISEASE, but it's another to ACTIVELY tell you it doesn't.
A news story yesterday said, "Mark Smith, a spokesman for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company…said, the company was disappointed by Kessler's finding that the companies had conspired to violate federal law and deceive consumers." This goes to show you that they haven't stopped lying. Consider these Chesterfield ads:
They got SINGERS to endorse the cancer sticks.
"'You might say I'm careful, that's why I say Chesterfields SATISFY me!' Rise Stevens (autograph) Metropolitan Operas World Famous Carmen"
"MILDNESS—plus No Unpleasant After-taste *
* from the report of a well-known research organization…and only Chesterfield has it!"
"Hundreds of prominent tobacco growers say: 'When I apply the Standard Tobacco Growers' Test to cigarettes, I find Chesterfield is the one that smells Milder and smokes Milder.'"
"Only Chesterfield is Made the Modern way---with ACCU RAY to bring you SMOOTHER, COOLER SMOKING than was every before possible."
Accu-ray, how space-age.
They all seem to acknowledge that cigarettes make you feel bad, but they all claim that THEIRS doesn't. Take Pall Mall:
"Guard Against Throat-Scratch
…smoke PALL MALL the cigarette whose mildness you can measure.
Outstanding…and they are mild!"
The problem with the ruling yesterday is that the death-dealing liars got to keep their money. No reparations for killing your parents and grandparents. This is thanks to the Bush administration. The justice department tried to keep the damage to their corporate masters as minimal as possible. They succeeded.
Tomorrow, nobody will remember this story.
Just add it to the list of lies, lies and more lies. They don't mind killing you for money. Remember that in November. They don't mind killing you for money.
They've merely stopped telling us that we'll get pleasure from it as they did in this Camel ad:
"IT'S A PSYCHOLOGICAL FACT: PLEASURE HELPS YOUR DISPOSITION
For more pure pleasure…have a CAMEL"
They use fear now, not pleasure. The lies are the same, however. And they're from the same folks.
this also appears on huffingtonpost.com
Monday, August 07, 2006
Hezbollah didn't win. Nobody won.
Don't believe the nonsense you hear that Hezbollah (or Hizbullah, or any other manner of spelling it) has won the latest chapter in the centuries-old war in the Middle-East. Nor have they lost. Neither has Israel won or lost.
A cease-fire will be just that, they'll stop shooting, for the most part. There is no victory. There can be no victors. There will be no final victors. And when the oil runs out, it will stop being important to the rest of the world. When the oil runs out, nobody will care if the Shia wipe out the Sunnis or who lives in Israel/ Palestine/West Bank/Gaza/Kurdistan/the other two parts of Iraq/or any of the Emirates.
Most of us will never see that day, but it is as inevitable as death.
When the oil runs out the hatred and killing in the Middle-East will be as remote to the rest of the world as the same behavior in Sudan is now or as Rwanda was a decade ago.
"The Arab Street" will be as meaningless as "The Peruvian Street." And by the way, how crazy is it to decide life and death and the possible annihilation of the planet by how many goobers are jumping up and down on top of flags they don't like, firing guns into the air and acting like fools?
Why not just decide everything the same way the winner is decided on "American Idol?" So kindly don't tell me that Hezbollah won because "The Arab Street" believes it to be true. They also believe that women should walk around with their heads covered up and that thieves should have their hands cut off.
It is like having U.S. foreign policy decided by the students at Bob Jones University. Of course, that's how the Republicans gained control of U.S. foreign policy. The Arab Street and The Republican Base have a great deal in common.
And before you get to weeping over the slaughter of the innocent in Lebanon, consider that many of the surrounding countries, and all of the radical Islamists want Israel wiped off the map. What would you do if they said the same thing about the United States and attacked us. Oh, you mean they did? And you even supported BUSH when it came to raining fire on the Taliban who supported Al-Qaeda, didn't you.
Supported? You cheered.
And when the Germans and Japanese threatened our survival you didn't hesitate to wave the flag when we fire-bombed the civilians of Dresden and wiped out two entire major Japanese cities with nuclear weapons.
So don't come crying to me when innocents are killed in a war.
This is dirty. We encouraged it. We stood by while the bombs fell. No, we were not threatened. You're doing a heckuva job, Condi.
Hezbollah didn't win. Nobody won. Everybody lost. There is no chance for a lasting peace, and hardly a chance for any kind of settlement brokered by the crew currently representing us. Perhaps when the Republican finger-painters who are at the controls lose their jobs in 2008, some reason might be restored to the process, but even Clinton couldn't make a peace with those who only wanted Israel destroyed.
On the other hand, it was Europeans who created the country of Iraq out of three groups who hate each other and planted the seeds bearing fruit today by their other colonial mistakes. It was also Europeans who decided that Jews should own the land where Israel now sits, and told the people who had been controlling that land to go fuck themselves. There's that.
People tend to forget these things.
It's obvious the U.S. has squandered any positive role it might have had in the Middle-East. Perhaps a leader from a country other than the U.S. can emerge and stop all this, but I doubt it. The state of the holy land is the best argument for atheism.
This also appears on huffingtonpost.com
A cease-fire will be just that, they'll stop shooting, for the most part. There is no victory. There can be no victors. There will be no final victors. And when the oil runs out, it will stop being important to the rest of the world. When the oil runs out, nobody will care if the Shia wipe out the Sunnis or who lives in Israel/ Palestine/West Bank/Gaza/Kurdistan/the other two parts of Iraq/or any of the Emirates.
Most of us will never see that day, but it is as inevitable as death.
When the oil runs out the hatred and killing in the Middle-East will be as remote to the rest of the world as the same behavior in Sudan is now or as Rwanda was a decade ago.
"The Arab Street" will be as meaningless as "The Peruvian Street." And by the way, how crazy is it to decide life and death and the possible annihilation of the planet by how many goobers are jumping up and down on top of flags they don't like, firing guns into the air and acting like fools?
Why not just decide everything the same way the winner is decided on "American Idol?" So kindly don't tell me that Hezbollah won because "The Arab Street" believes it to be true. They also believe that women should walk around with their heads covered up and that thieves should have their hands cut off.
It is like having U.S. foreign policy decided by the students at Bob Jones University. Of course, that's how the Republicans gained control of U.S. foreign policy. The Arab Street and The Republican Base have a great deal in common.
And before you get to weeping over the slaughter of the innocent in Lebanon, consider that many of the surrounding countries, and all of the radical Islamists want Israel wiped off the map. What would you do if they said the same thing about the United States and attacked us. Oh, you mean they did? And you even supported BUSH when it came to raining fire on the Taliban who supported Al-Qaeda, didn't you.
Supported? You cheered.
And when the Germans and Japanese threatened our survival you didn't hesitate to wave the flag when we fire-bombed the civilians of Dresden and wiped out two entire major Japanese cities with nuclear weapons.
So don't come crying to me when innocents are killed in a war.
This is dirty. We encouraged it. We stood by while the bombs fell. No, we were not threatened. You're doing a heckuva job, Condi.
Hezbollah didn't win. Nobody won. Everybody lost. There is no chance for a lasting peace, and hardly a chance for any kind of settlement brokered by the crew currently representing us. Perhaps when the Republican finger-painters who are at the controls lose their jobs in 2008, some reason might be restored to the process, but even Clinton couldn't make a peace with those who only wanted Israel destroyed.
On the other hand, it was Europeans who created the country of Iraq out of three groups who hate each other and planted the seeds bearing fruit today by their other colonial mistakes. It was also Europeans who decided that Jews should own the land where Israel now sits, and told the people who had been controlling that land to go fuck themselves. There's that.
People tend to forget these things.
It's obvious the U.S. has squandered any positive role it might have had in the Middle-East. Perhaps a leader from a country other than the U.S. can emerge and stop all this, but I doubt it. The state of the holy land is the best argument for atheism.
This also appears on huffingtonpost.com
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