muskrat_john ([info]muskrat_john) wrote,
@ 2007-07-02 19:17:00
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Current mood: cynical

Outrage Fatigue
ANNNNNND the president commutes Scooter Libby's sentence.

A couple of years ago, I believe, the Onion had an article on "Outrage Fatigue."

I think I reached that point about twelve months ago.

Pass the Vodka. Preferrably Altai. I'm looking at YOU, my Finnish friends.

Seriously. I've pretty much had it.

Maybe some Jameson...?

Buddies from Cork? I'm lookin' at YOU now...


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[info]bajingo
2007-07-03 12:23 am UTC (link)
I've got some Stoli in the freezer, if you end up having to slum. I wanted to feel outrage over this, but I just can't. It's like all the anger I've had with the Bush administration got to such a high level that it snapped something in my brain. I don't know if that's good, or bad.

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[info]ls56
2007-07-03 12:37 am UTC (link)
I <3 your icon.

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[info]bajingo
2007-07-03 12:46 am UTC (link)
Thank you. I just made it last night. I need more pics of Grant.


For icon making! I swear!

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[info]beezelbubbles
2007-07-03 01:13 am UTC (link)
Riiiiight.... for icon purposes. Wink wink, nudge nudge.
And yeah, I've hit the brain snappage point. Now I'm just like, "Oh... really? Huh." and then I look at immigration laws for New Zealand and Canada some more.

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[info]mere_bystander
2007-07-03 12:33 am UTC (link)
I'm to the point that I don't even care about what type of alcohol it is -- anything will do...

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[info]hypogonadisme
2007-07-03 12:37 am UTC (link)
Good ol' George "Bleeding Ulcer" Bush! :)

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[info]hackard
2007-07-03 12:40 am UTC (link)
All I want is a bottle of Patron Silver, a couple of limes, and hankies to cry into.

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[info]righteousfist
2007-07-03 12:41 am UTC (link)
If I were in the Bush White House, I would start killing hobos for fun. It's not like anything would actually HAPPEN to me after all, you know?

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[info]smoemeth
2007-07-03 02:29 am UTC (link)
I'm sure they are killing hobos for fun. The press just isn't allowed to report it. :P

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[info]hexar_le_saipe
2007-07-03 02:57 am UTC (link)
I'm pretty sure that the reporter who broke the story about Cheney shooting his friend in the face is in Guantanamo Bay right now.

/Icon love!
/It's a streetlight!

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[info]smoemeth
2007-07-03 03:04 am UTC (link)
/its not a streetlight i swear its from outer space lolz ;>

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[info]zenfrodo
2007-07-04 01:20 am UTC (link)
Alien? Yup. It's a Streetlight People...living just to find emulsion...

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[info]ebenbrooks
2007-07-03 12:58 am UTC (link)
I have to say, it is completely, utterly, bogglingly unsurprising...

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[info]sandchigger
2007-07-03 01:05 am UTC (link)
Seriously? Noone else is surprised by this? I'd have bet Scooter'd receive a full pardon, none of this commutation stuff.

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[info]botgrrrl
2007-07-03 01:11 am UTC (link)
Oh, he'll be pardoned alright. On the last day of Bush's term. If he did it now, he wouldn't get anything else out of Congress.

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[info]sandchigger
2007-07-03 01:14 am UTC (link)
Yeah, good point. There's still time. Far, far, FAR too much time...

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[info]wire_mother
2007-07-03 02:49 am UTC (link)
if he's fully pardoned, that waives his fifth amendment rights. this way, he can still avoid testifying about any skullduggery in the administration, since he's still, technically, fighting the fine in appeals and any such testimony might potentially be used to incriminate him.

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[info]sneezythesquid
2007-07-03 06:03 am UTC (link)
Wow, I hadn't thought of that bit. Adds a whole new layer of scum to this pond.

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[info]quaryn_dk
2007-07-03 07:03 am UTC (link)
Well put.

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[info]wire_mother
2007-07-03 09:11 pm UTC (link)
to me, the most frustrating thing about this is that it shows that the sitting administration may really be clever, but that it refuses to use its cleverness for any other reason than to gain and maintain power.

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[info]ottietav
2007-07-03 07:48 am UTC (link)
Not to mention that he'll probably have no problem having someone pay off the fine for him.

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There's a reason he didn't get pardoned...
[info]phoenix_hawk
2007-07-03 02:51 am UTC (link)
I haven't finished law school, but there's several law blogs out there commenting on the fine difference between commuting and pardoning. One of the bigger ones is that if Scooter was pardoned, he'd lose his 5th amendment priviledges (can't self incriminate against something there's no legal consequence for soing). I don't fully get why this is the case, but apparently mere commuting does not remove 5th amendment protection, as there is still the possibility of further incrimination.

It's a smart move, in that Bush looks like he still believes some punishment is deserved, yet deftly maneuvers into CYA.

There's several blogs covering this, http://www.firedoglake.com/ is one of the most prominent ones.

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[info]spotweld
2007-07-03 01:18 am UTC (link)
If this doesn't drop his approval below the Nixon record, then nothing will.
(rum and coke at the moment)
Speaking of Vodka, ever tried Tito's? (To follow the rum and coke)

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[info]muskrat_john
2007-07-03 01:24 am UTC (link)
Never tried Tito's.

Texan, huh? Now I'm interested...

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[info]spotweld
2007-07-03 01:28 am UTC (link)
A friend introduced me to it when I was in Dallas for A-kon.
Not sure if it's what you'd call "smooth", but it's the first vodka I actually like straight.

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[info]k_kinnison
2007-07-03 01:59 am UTC (link)
I have some Death's Pass vodka from Washington Island in wisconsin

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[info]quaryn_dk
2007-07-03 07:08 am UTC (link)
Ah, would that I had some of that awesome pepper vodka the Russians were handing out at the Texans' room party at WorldCon '05. It was drastically better than the Finlandia the Finns were serving next door.

After I saw Fahrenheit 9/11, I bought a bottle of Cuba Caramel vodka (which I can readily drink state) and was determined to drink until I forgot what country I'm from.

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[info]quaryn_dk
2007-07-03 02:03 pm UTC (link)
Er, that should be straight, not state. Shouldn't write comments before coffee...

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May I suggest...
[info]feren
2007-07-03 01:34 am UTC (link)
... gin. Or, if you're not about the pine trees in your mouth, you can stay with vodka. Really all that matters is that you indulge in a clear, high-tension booze.

Yes, there is rage fatigue. I know from first-hand experience, and Cheb can vouch.

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[info]k_kinnison
2007-07-03 01:56 am UTC (link)
can someone please tell me what the president cannot do without being punished? I know what he is suppose to not do, or be able to do.

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[info]quaryn_dk
2007-07-03 07:12 am UTC (link)
I'm just waiting for him to wander down to the National Archives, break open the glass case, and literally piss on the Constitution. Since he's been figuratively pissing on it so much the last six years without getting punished, I'd wager the most they'd do is fine him for indecent exposure.

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[info]tagryn
2007-07-03 12:41 pm UTC (link)
The more depressing thing for me is that a lot of the stuff that the current Administration is doing had their precedents set back when Clinton was running things. There's no reason to believe that merely changing the parties in office will solve anything, as both parties have had their swing at power already and shown the same tendencies.

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[info]whisper_jeff
2007-07-03 02:09 am UTC (link)
I seriously do not get it. I cannot, for the life of me, fathom how Bush is still in power. At what point do people say enough is enough and hold him accountable for his egregious abuses of power? Previously, I always commented that certain things that Canadian politicians would pull would never fly in the states - I'd always comment that Americans would be up in arms if their politicians ever tried to pull some bullshit like that. Apparently I was wrong...

Just boggles my mind...

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[info]sneezythesquid
2007-07-03 06:06 am UTC (link)
I seriously do not get it. I cannot, for the life of me, fathom how Bush is still in power

Because for a long time the Republicans were in charge of oversight in Congress, and now the Democrats refuse to grow a spine and do the job. They're still scared of being labled "weak on 'fill in the blank'" and act as if Bush still had Regan numbers.

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[info]gamingkitty
2007-07-03 10:08 pm UTC (link)
There are times I think the British parliamentary system (where you can boot the government out of power any time you can pull the needed votes) has an advantage over the US system (where you're pretty much stuck with the guy who won for the full term). This is one of those times.

My understanding, though, is that the decision to commute doesn't step over the line on what the president is legally empowered to do. While I expect his approval rating to drop yet again, there isn't anything here that we can legally boot him out of office for.

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[info]smoemeth
2007-07-03 02:31 am UTC (link)
I hit the "outrage fatigue" point the day after the last Presidential election.

I, too, am only surprised that it wasn't a full pardon ... and that it took this long.

Really, *nothing* this administration does can possibly surprise me any more. I've been waiting for the tanks to start rolling in the streets since 9/12/01.

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[info]zonker1984
2007-07-03 02:47 am UTC (link)
I feel your pain. I think that someone in Madison should start an angry liberal support group or something. We could all get together and drink and bitch.

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[info]hexar_le_saipe
2007-07-03 02:59 am UTC (link)
Porn actresses have a more fully developed sense of shame than our Fearless Leader.

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[info]sorchar
2007-07-03 03:17 am UTC (link)
Yeah. At this point it's more like annoyance mixed with despair. How is this man still president?

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[info]merseine0613
2007-07-03 03:26 am UTC (link)
On the positive side of things, with a felony conviction, Libby won't be able to cast a vote in any election every again.

Yay.

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[info]spkelley
2007-07-03 03:45 am UTC (link)
Village idiot? I wish I could say the country idiot was lost...but I can't.

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[info]lllvis
2007-07-03 03:51 am UTC (link)
Well, hardly surprising, given the caliber of politicians we have these days. All this does is put Bush down there with Clinton who did much the same thing, and that doesn't say much for either.

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[info]speaks
2007-07-03 11:57 am UTC (link)
But... But... CLINTON!

That excuse is tired, weak, and beneath dignifying with any further bandwidth you pathetic troll.

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[info]lllvis
2007-07-03 12:09 pm UTC (link)
Well, ok then. Perhaps it puts him UP there with Clinton, Ford, Nixon, and a bevy of others.

Does that make it any better?!?

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[info]speaks
2007-07-03 12:40 pm UTC (link)
No.

Actions should be judged on their own merits, rather than justifying it because "other people do it."

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[info]lllvis
2007-07-03 12:51 pm UTC (link)
True. I had no intention of defending it or justifying, only mentioning to support the theme that of relatively late we haven't exactly had any high quality Presidents in quite awhile. In that so many have made similar despicable acts, it puts them all in the same (trash) pile. I just chose to compare it to similar actions by his most recent predecessor, but certainly there are plenty others to make the same comparison with.

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[info]lllvis
2007-07-03 03:53 am UTC (link)
OH, and I have most of a bottle of Johnny Walker BLUE label I'd be happy to share...!

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[info]georgmi
2007-07-03 03:58 am UTC (link)
I saw a bumper sticker recently that said, "If you're not OUTRAGED, you're not paying attention!"

To which I can only respond, if you still have energy left to be outraged, you haven't been paying attention long enough.

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[info]mock26
2007-07-03 11:23 pm UTC (link)
Sadly, as wrong as I find this act of our President (30 months for a federal crime is NOT excessive) I cannot fault him for it. Every modern President from the 50's or 60's on up to today has granted one or more questionable pardons. Ford Pardoned Nixon. Reagan pardoned Weinberger. Clinton pardoned some terrorists! Bush pardoned Libby. They all do it, so we shouldn't be surprised by it. Besides, the hypocrisy coming from those who defended Clinton's pardons and are now bashing Bush is quite humorous!


Take care and have a great day....



ciao,
john.

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