I would say this is for the ladies, but let's face it, Junichiro Koizumi of Japan is hot in way that causes even straight men to turn to twitching sexual jelly.

Uhhh, not really.

I think this exercise in drawing blood from a turnip proves the truism that politics is show business for ugly people.

Posted by: Ace at 11:25 AM | Comments (19)
Post contains 71 words, total size 1 kb.

For newstips, arguments, flames, and Affairs of the Heart.

Whatever. No one's going to post here.

Posted by: Ace at 11:17 AM | Comments (97)
Post contains 20 words, total size 1 kb.

A crude and primative looking game. Go figure. Discovered in post 7/7 raids in Britain.

Your mission, as an Islamist freedom fighter, is to to destroy the robots of the last non-believer left in the universe.

I guess it's good that you're killing robots rather than people... although a cynic might say that choice was driven more by technical incompetence at rendering the human form than out of a respect for human life.

And an ultracynic might say that the casting the infidels as robots is just an attempt to further dehumanize the enemies of Islamist crazies.

Posted by: Ace at 10:44 AM | Comments (8)
Post contains 125 words, total size 1 kb.

July Job Growth Better-Than-Predicted At 207,000 New Jobs; June and May's Jobs Numbers Revised Upwards By 42,000

Golden diapahs, babies. Golden diapahs.

Democratic Spokesbabe Flavia Colgan called the job creation figures "inadequate." "The corrupt and illegal Bush Administration can try to fool the American people with its 'numbers' and 'stats' and 'proveable facts,' but the American people are smarter than that."

She paused for a moment to part her lips in a subtly sexy manner. "The American people know the economy is just like the Billy Joel classic Allentown, except it doesn't have a good beat and you can't dance to it."

Miss Flavia then announced she had to go, as she was late for Hotness Class.

Thanks to Running At the Mouth.

Justine Bateman Pics After The Jump: Okay, don't knock me because this first one isn't sexy. She's a little girl in it. But I think it's cute, because she's posing with a very-young Jason Bateman.

Update: And one shot of Jason Bateman as an adult.

more...

Posted by: Ace at 10:21 AM | Comments (21)
Post contains 235 words, total size 2 kb.

That's what an LA strip-club billboard proclaims, for all and sundry to read.

Okay, kind of funny. But completely inappropriate.

Traditionalists and so-called South Park Republicans split on a number of moral and social issues, but I think we can agree that this is out-of-bounds.

As a South Park Republican, yes, I want access to dirty stuff, and I don't like the idea of anything of an adult nature being controlled by the state to "protect the children."

On the other hand, protecting the children really is an important priority, and society should not countenance such blatantly-sexual public come ons.

"Private behavior" is, um, "private." A big billboard announcing easy access to vaginas is not private, it's public.

So yes, I support a liberal view on truly private choices. But no one cruising down this strip of road is making a choice, private or otherwise.

Posted by: Ace at 10:08 AM | Comments (30)
Post contains 151 words, total size 1 kb.

Sudan Rape Victims Get Free Copy of UN Report

(2005-07-29) -- In another display of the value of the United Nations, Secretary-General Kofi Annan today announced that women brutally raped by Sudanese government forces would each receive a free copy of the latest report documenting the widespread, savage abuse.

"It legitimizes their suffering and lets them know that they are not alone," said Mr. Annan, as he held aloft a copy of the 29-page report. "This is why the United Nations is so desperately needed in today's world. We will continue to take bold action in producing reports on the rape and abuse of Sudanese women. The U.N. exists to fearlessly monitor tragic violence against oppressed people by government forces in our U.N. member states."

Environmental activist and general pain-in-the-ass Sting immediately announced plans for a "LiveRape" concert, to better inform Sudanese women about the rapes they are experiencing on a daily basis.

Slated to perform: "Stinky."

Thanks to Fat Kid.

Sorry For The Confusion: This actually is Scrappleface, not real.

The headline was meant to suggest that it's hard to tell the difference.

But please be aware the quotes are all fake.

Posted by: Ace at 09:59 AM | Comments (12)
Post contains 207 words, total size 1 kb.

The UK Sun reports on bosomy Brit birds' discontent with the new anti-bust initiative.

And, just to show it's a class paper, it has pics of barmaids displaing their wares, and I don't mean Guiness and Harp.

And to show it's a really classy paper, it also helpfully lists the bra and cup sizes of each of its interviewees.

Because, you know, it's difficult to evaluate the strength of someone's position unless you know what they're packing in their racks.

The words of Juli Ashton (34E) really stirred me. Sadly, she's not pictured.

Posted by: Ace at 09:46 AM | Comments (12)
Post contains 109 words, total size 1 kb.

Although I'm disheartened that the public seems ready to go full Vietnam on a war that simply cannot be lost, it also has to be said this is a much longer, and much bloodier, war than most expected. Including many at the White House.

On one hand, it's good to know that when their backs are up the American people will not insist on a 100 hour quickie war, and are willing to support a necessary war for longer than that.

But "longer than that" turns out to be about two years. Which is not a small amount of time, to be fair to the public. But there will be quite a few necessary wars that cannot be won in that span of time.

The War in Iraq was necessary, and may still yield enormous benefits. But the downside has to be considered as well. Not only have we lost more than 1500 good men and women, not only are many units so exhausted that it will take one or two years before they're really fully combat-ready again, but certainly the American people have soured by now on the thought of another war, even if the next war is even more necessary than the one in Iraq.

There are those who fault the American people for not being ready to go to war in Iran, Syrian, or even Saudi Arabia, should it become necessary. I suppose I fault them as well, but I can certainly understand that reluctance.

Americans were probably too anti-war, even in the face of growing threats from Islamist terrorists, due to the Vietnam experience. Certainly their political leadership was. The brilliant and lightning-quick Gulf War changed that to a large degree, as did other amazingly successful operations in Panama and, to a lesser extent, Serbia.

But Iraq is just the sort of dirty, long, costly and painful war that reminds America of why it became so reluctant to go to war in the first place.

I can understand why the Bush Administration is downplaying the threat of Iran's nuclear weapons program. Even if it were proven by the testimony of a dozen bishops that Iran was within one year of acquiring nuclear weapons, could the American people be prodded into supporting military action against that state?

I don't know if they could.

I hope liberals understand precisely what a loss, or perceived loss, in Iraq would entail. It would be the Vietnam syndrome all over again, a cowardly and dangerous hesitation to act in the face of great danger. Some liberals might see a benefit there in that America would not be so ready to engage in what they call "wars of choice" in the future, but I hope they also appreciate that the Vietnam Syndrome Redux would prevent us from fighting what they call "wars of necessity" as well.

Whether you hate Bush or not, whether you think this Iraq mission was ill-advised or justified, the stakes are simply far too great to allow ourselves to lose this one.

You think Bush's war in Iraq is a good recruitment tool for young angry Muslim men willing to die for Allah?

Imagine the recruitment benefits of an American defeat in Iraq.

I Question The Sample: Several commenters point out that this poll has a 49/39 Dem-Rep split, which isn't even close to the actual division in America.

There's a whole debate on weighting for party ID -- some say that party ID fluctuates quite a bit, and a lot of moderates call themselves "Democrats" when they begin feeling more sympatico with the liberals -- and others say it's fairly constant and polls should be weighted according to what we know (or think we know) is the actual Dem/Rep split in the country.

Not really sure who's right, but that 49/39 split should definitely give one great pause. There is no way the Democrats are now a near-majority, and strong plurality, of the country. Actual Democratic affiliation is usually in the 31-35% range.

Posted by: Ace at 09:32 AM | Comments (62)
Post contains 688 words, total size 4 kb.

Two years' probation. For licking the bleeding wounds of minors. Repeatedly.

This science teacher will also have to attend classes on the dangers of blood-borne pathogens (and saliva-borne pathogens as well, I suppose).

Because, I guess, he's never heard of malaria. Or, you know, AIDS.

Several students say he was "just joking around."

Content Warning.
more...

Posted by: Ace at 09:09 AM | Comments (10)
Post contains 259 words, total size 2 kb.

No kidding, this is must-watch. I am absolutely dumbfounded. He is actually inciting warfare against his own country. And ours, of course.

Key quotes:

"Two of your daughters are being held prisoner by the West. Two of your beautiful daughters are crying, and no one will do anything about it. Jersusalem and Baghdad -- the foreign invaders have captured your daughters, and they're having their way with them."

"America set out to terrorize the world with its military power... but its power cannot go any further than the range an RPG."

By this he means (smiling) that the brave resistance can always shoot down our helicopters with RPG's.

He praises Muslims entering Iraq to fight America and Britain. And he also claims that most children killed and most buses and schools bombed were killed or bombed by Bush, not Zarqawi.

Must watch. The "treason" word is tossed out lightly at times, but I can't imagine that this would not have been considered outright sedition in any age except the current politically-correct one.

Thanks to Compos.

Posted by: Ace at 08:29 AM | Comments (12)
Post contains 188 words, total size 1 kb.