the toothless kiss of skeletons
in summer hail
i'm the king of nails


Tam Ochiai, Frisbee, 2005, pencil, colored pencil and acrylic on wall

* License to Torture. excerpt:

"For some critics of George Bush's war on Iraq--especially those within the political establishment--the treatment of prisoners of the 'war on terror' is last on their list of concerns.

"But make no mistake: the abuse suffered by Padilla is no less a war crime than the massacres committed in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"And it is happening not just to one man or a handful of men, but to hundreds if not thousands of detainees around the globe. Similar prolonged isolation and abuse has been used against prisoners held at Guantánamo Bay, Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. And this does not include the unknown numbers of people the U.S. has "rendered" to foreign governments like Saudi Arabia or Syria--to be subjected to torturous interrogations."
...
"Despite rhetoric to the contrary, the Democrats helped pave the way for such abuses--by helping to pass the Military Commissions Act of 2006, which stripped detainees of their right to trial.

"Padilla's prosecution is critical for the Bush administration--a 'slam-dunk' case it hopes will offset the series of failures documented in a recent audit by the Justice Department's inspector general, which concluded that the White House routinely overstated its successes.

As Klein points out, it's not as if the government is unaware that the interrogation 'techniques' it subjects Padilla and others to constitute torture. Even a revised Army field manual issued last year warns of the extreme psychological damage that prolonged sensory deprivation and other documented U.S. interrogation tactics can cause.

"'If these techniques drove Padilla insane,' Klein concludes, 'that means the U.S. government has been deliberately driving hundreds, possibly thousands, of prisoners insane around the world. What is on trial in Florida is not one man's mental state. It is the whole system of U.S. psychological torture.'

"If the Bush administration gets its way, even more detainees will be subjected to such dehumanizing treatment."

* Tommy Lasorda out of uniform. [via]. excerpt:

"SportsByBrooks has grabbed a hold of some of those excerpts from that madam book involving Tommy Lasorda and ... uh ... holy crap.

"Sasha/Gibson: 'She's a sweetie. Her name is Nanna. She's Swedish, about 5'6'', nice perky 34b, slim and terrific company. Perhaps you can tell me what you're looking for? Anything in particular I should know?'

"Lasorda: 'Actually, Sash, I'd like to have some porn for me to watch while she sucks my (expletive). I'm into watching two gals together in a movie. Can she have that there?'

"(Edit: Nanna reports to Sasha/Gibson after Lasorda encounter)

"Nanna: 'He was super easy and a really nice guy. You were right on all counts, Sasha. First he requested I pop in my girl, girl porn movie. ... He just loved watching all that! I noticed though that he wasn't the aggressive type. ... Here I had this real hot porn movie on. He enjoyed watching the girl, girl bisexual sex scenes best. He started to take his (expletive - penis) out and (expletive - masturbate). Then when I saw he was good and hard I started to suck his (expletive - penis). He really liked that! Then I used your 'swirly' move and relaxed my throat muscles so I could take him deep into my throat."

* "God is this huge creature who we must know, love, and serve, though actually you feel like you want to kick the son of a bitch." -- Robert Stone

* Finally, after 12 years of listening, am excited to see Sparklehorse tonight in Baltimore.