A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....10-02-03...Where's My Yellowcake?! Part II

John Huang2; Aquamarine; Billie | John Huang2

[Aquamarine]

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay, or a profile of another FReeper.

On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY

If you have a suggestion, or an idea, or if there's a FReeper you would like to see featured, please drop one of us a note in FR mail.

We're having fun and hope you are!
~ Billie, Mama_Bear, dansangel, dutchess, Aquamarine

Where's My Yellowcake?! Part II

by JohnHuang2

I'd have finished this essay sooner if it weren't for all the dang interruptions. Some weirdo calling himself "Anonymous Senior Administration Official" kept ringing my phone off the hook, peddling some CIA agent's name whose hubby (can't recall exactly) traveled to Africa looking for yellowcake sales receipts with Saddam's signature, or some such...anybody know anything about this? At first I thought it was some nutty new sales pitch by some nutty telemarketer trying to beat the Wednesday 'Do-Not-Call List' deadline. 'Keep it up , buddy,' I told the caller, 'and I'll have the Feds frog-march ya out of that house in handcuffs!' Then I thought maybe it's that South African businessman who keeps clogging my email with some incredible business proposition.

Okay, okay...I'll confess: There were no phone calls. I made it up. I think I was probably carried away by the spirit of the moment (to borrow a line).

So what's the media fuss all about this time?

First, chalk this whole thing up as more bad luck for Democrats. Just as Bush was beginning to 'slip' in polls, Bang! out of nowhere comes a "scandal" big enough to make Bush's ratings soar.

The "growing controversy" centers on who "leaked" the super-ultra-secret identity of a covert agent everyone but Robert Novak knew wasn't a covert agent but a pencil-pusher at CIA. Covert agents need low-profile, and, for whatever reason, CIA doesn't think marrying an Ambassador is a fabulous way to lower your profile. So Valerie Plame, wife of former Clinton NSC aid Joe Wilson, was good for pencil work but not cloak and dagger. So clandestine, so deeply-concealed was the mystery of Plame working at CIA that the Washington Post claims two "Senior administration officials" tried to get a bunch of reporters interested in a 'Wife-Gets-Job-For-Hubby-In-High-Profile-Iraq-Probe' angle, but only one reporter bit. Nepotism in Washington? Say it ain't so! (By the way, CIA neither confirms nor denies the identity of covert agents. CIA confirmed Plame's identity and employment when Novak called, which shows Plame was no covert agent.)

Democrats, who complained bitterly of Starr's $60-million-dollar independent probe, demand bitterly a Starr-like $60-million-dollar independent probe.

In a bid to show they're principled and consistent, Democrats, who blast the Patriot Act as horrid abomination, say the Patriot Act is indispensable here to probe who "leaked" to the media what the media and everyone already knew. Democrats also deny politics or the looming election season has anything to do with this, just undying devotion to high-minded principles so common in Washington.

Democrats say, Reuters reports, that "if such an incident had occurred during the presidency of Democrat Bill Clinton, Republicans who control Congress would be calling for hearings and issuing subpoenas." I might add that if such an incident had occurred during the presidency of Democrat Bill Clinton, Democrats, adhering scrupulously to high standards of ethics, would denounce calls for hearings and issuance of subpoenas as nothing but a right-wing witch hunt or fishing expedition to discredit Bill Clinton. Indeed, were it not for minor matters like Whitewatergate, Cattlegate, Travelgate, Zippergate, Paulagate, Juanitagate, donorgate, Chinagate, Pardongate, Filegate, etc., Clinton's would be The Most Ethical Administration In Human History.

MSNBC reports, quoting a profoundly knowledgeable college professor, that "the launch of a formal (Justice Dept.) investigation could be 'a turning point in terms of public perception'" of Bush, "a point of transition which eventually seeps down to public consciousness." I can vouch for that. Indeed, when I heard the Justice Dept. had opened a probe, I sensed a change of my public perception of Bush, a point of transition that immediately seeped down to my public consciousness; then a powerful desire overcame me, an urge to vote for Dean! Kucinich! Kerry! Lieberman! Anyone but George!

Bush's vow to cooperate fully with investigators was especially damaging to my public perception. Aren't moral presidents supposed to invoke Executive Privilege, suborn perjury, obstruct justice, cover-up, delay, deny, destroy a la Clinton? I'm confused.

Incidentally, CIA requests for probes of possible leaks are so rare, the Justice Dept. gets about one a week.

What's the fallout from all this, politically? How'll this shake out? Not to be pessimistic or anything, but this 'scandal,' phony though it is, has got the element of simplicity going for it -- it's easy to grasp -- and might resonate in ways that Enron and other previous pseudo-Bush "scandals" couldn't.

Indeed, I can, in one brief sentence, wrap up the gist of this whole 'scandal':

"Senior administration officials," in an act of 'revenge' against a prominent antiwar critic, brilliantly committed felonies by disclosing to reporters, who didn't seem interested because they knew felonies weren't being committed, the ultra-secret identity of a deep-undercover CIA agent that everyone and his sister knew worked at CIA because she wasn't deep-undercover at all, just an agency analyst who, to ensure a fair and impartial probe into White House claims that Saddam sought yellowcake Uranium from Niger, pulled agency strings so that former U.S. Ambassador Joe Wilson, an antiwar activist and her husband (but that's just a coincidence) got appointed to head up a probe so thorough and exhaustive it lasted 8 whole arduous Sweet-Mint-Tea-Sipping days "with dozens of people" in Niger, after which the good Ambassador, in a classified report submitted to appropriate authorities at the New York Times, brilliantly OUTS himself (and by extension his wife) as CIA-connected, but that's not the point because, he says, the point is that after a week of not searching for evidence to back up White House claims, he failed to find evidence to back up White House claims, which, he said, drove him to think what he fairly and impartially wanted to think all along, to wit, that Bush IS AN EVIL LIAR and SADDAM'S INNOCENT and NO BLOOD FOR OIL!

Now, try cramming that cogent one-liner on a bumper sticker ;-)

Sure, the Democrats are toasting champagne, clicking their heels over Bush's grave.

Truth is, Plame-"Gate", or whatever they're calling it, will go about as far politically as the BUSH-KNEW-ABOUT-9/11-BEFORE-9/11-BUT-DID-NOTHING-TO-STOP-IT! "scandal" which was supposed to force Bush from office. Democrats were toasting champagne, clicking their heels over Bush's grave. Or the BUSH-DIDN'T-KNOW-ABOUT-9/11-BEFORE-9/11-BUT-SHOULD'VE! "scandal" which was supposed to force Bush from office. Or, recall the No-Weapons-Of-Mass-Destruction-Found-In-Iraq -- BUSH LIED! "scandal" which was supposed to force Bush from office. Or, how about 16-Word-"Gate"? Or the Bush-Was-In-Bed-With-Ken-Lay-And-Enron! "scandal" that would march Bush frog-tied out of the White House in handcuffs.

By the way, under penalty of law, you must keep my secret identity -- "JohnHuang2" -- and my work here at Free Republic as spammer and 'analyst,' a secret. Got that?

Anyway, that's...

My two cents..

"JohnHuang2"

THIS WEEK'S THREADS 09-29-03 Military Monday 09-30-03 Hall of Fame #5 10-01-03 Muscle Car Mania!

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
3) In the next box enter your name in the "Calendar Text" field and then click on submit.
4) If any of the screens fail to load simply click on refresh in your browser and that will usually fix it.
5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me a FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~Mixer

Click on the photo to view the album. To
submit your photo, please contact danbh59@yahoo.com
and include Freeper Photo Album in subject line.

[LadyX]

Managing to read through the whole thread in bits and pieces, I see the initial problem with your precious new granddaughter has already been resolved.
Continuing prayers for her full recovery and ability to go home soon.

By the way - my third child and only daughter was born in the hospital on Ellsworth AFB on 30 September 1962....lotta memories there....hasty trip out from Rapid City, first snow flurries of the season falling gently...42 minutes of hard labor and there she was!

Know you are anxious to see and hold her, ladtx, and assume you will be able to when they swing through Texas on their way to Florida in December.

May God watch over all of you and yours, and keep you safe...

[dansangel]

Wonderful news, ((((((ladtx)))))))

Prayers are posted on Ashly's thread. May God continue to bless you all.

[LadyX]

"I meant to send that double post to all y'all....)"

We need a double triple, quadruple, jillion, mebbe.. dose of jwfiv every day...:))

Busy with some home projects, and am about to go put a second coat of paint on two objects. Be back later - -

[Molly Pitcher]

"What a day" Greetings to all my Finest FRiends...

dutchess, so sorry to read of your family's loss. Prayers lifted for you all....

[Calpernia]

What happened? Did I miss something? You ok?

[lonestar]

I am still having problems with my voice but I can't shut up and don't give it time to get well.

[MEG33]

Cal,I think this is in reference to a cousin's husband who died suddenly of a heart attack.Very sad.

[Calpernia]

Thanks Meg,

Sorry I missed that Dutchess.

[Calpernia]

Tea. Heavy on the honey. Very soothing.

Don't keep waiting either if you aren't improving. You may have a secondary infection.

[dansangel]

(((((((((Aqua)))))))))) - stellar presentation, sistah! You have outdone yourself!

(((((((JH2)))))))) - but the question is - ***Do they know how STUPID they sound????*** How can they listen to their mindless drivel and not hear how stupid, inane, rabid, hateful and just plain *obnoxious* they sound? Are they *that* brain-dead? Sheesh. You ****ROCK**** John! :-)

Hello and, uh, *goodnight* to my Finest ((((((sistahs)))))) and fuzzy [[[[{{{{((((brothah))))}}}}]]]]. Today was rather *special*......

[Aquamarine]

I am still having problems with my voice but I can't shut up and don't give it time to get well.

LOL! I dread it when the phone rings not knowing if the voice is going to work this time.

[Aquamarine]

Good night (((Dansy))). Happy to hear you're *special* day is behind you now. :)

[lonestar]

I don't have a cough. What I've been doing is talking to loud when I talk and I think I've made it worse. I've been on the phone too much the past few days, too.

I have been drinking tea with lemon and honey today.

[dutchess]

Aqua...so sorry I wasn't able to spend time here today...between work...and...what was wrong with FR today????...kept getting error readings the few times I "snuck in" and tried to lurk or post. Anyway great job

(((((dansy)))))) Okay...sistah...fess up...what was so special...or (blush) should I not ask????

Billie, lori and brotha wolfie....love you sistahs and brotha wolfie...

Ladtx....Wonderful news about your grandbaby...bet you can't wait to hold her...prays that she continues to grow stronger every day

Cal...thanks for your concerns and prayers...It was my cousin's wife's brother (they're as close as siblings to us) He was only 42, an unexpected massive heart attack. He leaves behind a lovely wife and children ages 5, 9 and 11 and 17. Shelly, his wife, was just declared in remission a few months ago after a 4 year battle with ovarian cancer. Don't pray for me...but PLEASE pray for them as well as John's parents.

Leaving early for Michigan. If I can't sneak away from "my mother's grasp" this weekend...see you all Sunday.

[deadhead]

Thank You All. Thank You for your 2 cents, JH2...."Where's My Yellowcake?! Part 11 Excellent as always. LadyX, your Dear John "1003" letter cracked me up.

Great Presentation Aqua & Billie! jwfiv, it is a little late, but here is a cup of coffee from me to you :-)

JH2, you are our Santa at Free Republic, always giving us gifts. LOL, I picture you always at your computer, typing away.

[dutchess]

Hey Colleen...How dare you post and not tell us how Lucy is???? Hopefully okay.... sending a favorite a treat to her....

[deadhead]

Thank You, dutchess. Lucy is about the same as last night, better then she was last weekend, but still not right. Per her Vet, making an appointment to see a Neurologist. (deadhead is still a nervous nellie)

I feel so bad for you and your cousin's family. Prayers continued for John and his loved ones.

[dutchess]

Just a thought. Do you have a veterinary college near you??? We have a Vet Hospital here as part of Ohio State University. I believe they saved Codee about 5 years ago... She was deydrated and bleeding internally to death...two opinions were cancer...the hospital residents fought the diagnosis and it turned out it was a bleeding ulcer from the medication she was taking for arthritis.

If Lucy doesn't respond...a thought....teaching hospitals are also very affordable. Hugs to her...She has to get better cause Giz wants to meet her!!!!

[deadhead]

"Do you have a veterinary college near you???"

No, there is not one here that I know of. Thank You for the suggestion.

Lucy wants to meet Giz too :-)

[Aquamarine]

I had the same problem earlier today....kept coming up Internal Error. Decided maybe I was supposed to do my ironing...finally! lol

Look forward to seeing what you put together for us next week Dutchess.