jesse_ewiak

The Republican Party has recieved millions from Scaife, so what's your point?

Well, I somehow doubt Zenon would want Kibs around in any shape or form, plus he'd probably just Demonstar whoever won the contest

Yup, I'm sure Rove and Hughes absolutely had nothing to do with these at ads at all. They're innocent as babes. If the Bush campaign asked them to stop before the ads came out, I'm absolutely sure they would've ploughed ahead anyway. So, he's for tougher campaign finance reform. Odd, I don't remember that stance during his election. Hmm.... Mike, just admit the fact you're pissed that the top "Conservatve" papaer in country can't crack the top 50 in circulation. You're pissed because unions haven't been totally broke yet, and that us Democrat's have grown a spine this time and won't be Dukakised. PRoven false by who, freerepublic? Or Sean Hannity? Novak or Carlson, perhaps?

Well, it all leads to a simple fact...if Bush wanted to, he could get them to stop running the ads. He's not. Thus, the ad should just go ahead and have Bush saying, "Well, I don't approve of this ad, but ya' know, I'm only the leader of the Free World and the GOP, so what can I do?" Cue the shrug and a wink. So, maybe the right should stop acting like this is an independent group and call it what it is....a smear machine for their side.

Doing good so far......300, looking at about 30-35 homers for the year.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/olym...ex.html?cnn=yes

Again...from the article I quoted before... current proposal by Rep. John Linder (R-GA) says that a 23 percent rate would be adequate. But such a low rate can only be sustained by making completely absurd assumptions about what would be taxed. Every serious economist who has ever looked at this question has concluded that a vastly higher rate would in fact be needed. First, an unstated assumption is that the 23 percent rate proposed by Mr. Linder is comparable to existing state and local sales taxes, where the tax comes on top of the purchase price. Thus, a 5 percent sales tax on a $1 purchase comes to $1.05. But that's not the way the Linder plan works. He deceptively calculates the rate as if the tax is part of the purchase price. He calls this the tax-inclusive rate. Calculating the rate the normal way people are accustomed to with state and local sales taxes would require a 30 percent tax rate, not 23 percent. When Congress's Joint Committee on Taxation scored the Linder proposal 4 years ago, it estimated that it would actually require a tax-inclusive rate of 36 percent, not 23 percent, to equal current federal revenues. Calculating the rate in a normal, tax-exclusive manner would mean a 57 percent rate. Economist Bill Gale of the Brookings Institution notes that supporters of the sales tax assume that there will be no tax evasion under their proposal and that the size of government will not grow, even though they would send a large annual check to every American in order to offset the regressivity of the tax. Making realistic assumptions, Mr. Gale estimates that the tax-inclusive rate, comparable to Linder's proposed 23 percent rate, would actually have to be about 50 percent. A rate comparable to existing sales taxes would be close to 100 percent. And let us not forget that state and local sales taxes would come on top of the federal sales tax, pushing the total rate even higher. Obviously, the federal government is not going to impose tax rates this high, nor would anyone pay them if it did. There would be a massive tax revolt. The Linder bill (H.R. 25) is also deceptive in its basic assumption that all consumption of goods and services in the U.S. would be taxed. Implicitly, Americans would be taxed on, among other things, all medical care, purchases of new homes, and services provided by state and local governments if Linder's bill became law.

Again, here's a really wacky idea. Why doesn't Bush push to change the tax code so the rich can't dodge taxes instead of going, "oh well, guess I've got to give them more than 50% of the tax cut next time"?

Ah, crap. I know I read that, I just fell into standard four corners mode for no good reason. *slaps self on head* But hey, if people want to comment, go ahead.

Well, if anybody has some comments/suggestions, thanks... “Welcome back to Smarkdown, loyal citizens, it is I, CYYYCCCLLLOONNNEEE COMET~!” shouts The Masked Avenger himself as the capacity crowd in the America West Arena cheers and makes all sorts of noise. “Well, we still got a bunch of show, including MUCH MORE MADDIX~ and Tom Flesher proving once again he is the greatest man in the history of the SWF by beating Sean Davis, even with Spike as the special referee,” says Riley. “That remains to be seen Robert, but right now we have four defenders of justice facing of in an um, unusual match.” “Just say what you want to say Comet…the bookers are on crack,” says Riley with mirth in his voice. “Whatever substances they are using to come up with ideas, it’s working. Anyway, it looks like Citizen Funyon is ready to begin.” The impeccably dressed Funyon begins as the crowd murmurs, “The following match is a FOUR-MAN THREE-PHASE ELIMINATION MATCH!” Small pop, half just because Funyon said it loudly, and half because it sounds weird. “The rules are as follows, four men start out in the ring at the same time. Disqualifications and Count-Outs are in full effect. One man is eliminated by being disqualified, pinned, counted out, or by submitting, and he returns to the backstage area, leaving the three remaining competitors behind. At this point, the count-outs rule is dropped, and wrestlers can be pinned anywhere in the arena. Once one more competitor is pinned, leaving two men left, the disqualification rule is dropped and there are no rules!” Impending violence pop as Funyon continues, “Introducing first…” Around the arena the lights drop out, leaving everyone shrouded in complete and total darkness. After a few moments of silence, an ominous voice bellows from the rafters as the SmarkTron slowly fades to life, showing a large crag of mountain that seems larger than life... "An overwhelming symbol of power..." ...the voice fades away as the opening notes of "Darkest Omen" cascade over the crowd, two large spotlights hit the entrance ramp, showing a large figure standing tall and looking out over the arena. The music continues and the man steps from the shadows, revealing himself to be none other than Edward James. With an intense look frozen in his eyes, Edward walks to the ring, his every step met with the mix of slow, classical tones and cymbal crashes of his music... “…from Redwater, Alberta, Canada, at a weight of 276 pounds…EDWWWWWWWWARD JAAAAAAAMES!” The crowd cheers the rookie as he climbs the ring steps, turning to face them as he reaches the apron. He raises one fist slow and delibrately, holding it high in the air for a moment before turning back and climbing into the ring, his motions like a caged lion - waiting to be unleashed onto the SWF. “Introducing next…” (Go To) California” by Rob Zombie starts up to a small, first match of the night pop as Nathan Xavier walks out and makes his first appearance in the SWF. Looking very much like Batista of the WWE…very thick and brutish. Xavier is wearing long black and baggy leather pants and a dark blue sleeveless SWF T-shirt. Nathan has short black slightly spiked hair with no sideburns and a short goatee. Alongside him is his wife and manager Sasha Edwards. Funyon continues, “…weighing 326 pounds, from Santa Clara, California, accompanied by Sasha Edwards…NATHAN XAVVVVVVVVIER!” Xavier gets in the ring and goes to the corner, waiting as the crowd cheers. “And their opponent…” Cue the creepy beginnng to 'Back on Earth' by OZZY~ as David Cross walks out to the ring, focused on the ring as the crowd gives him a pop as a small bit of pyro goes of behind him. “…weighing 277 pounds, from Oil City, Pennsylvania…”THE FALLEN ANGEL” DAAAAAAAAAVID CROSS!” Cross walks down to the ring, absent mindedly slapping hands as his eyes stay focused on the ring. As he gets in, he gives his jacket and cross to the ringside attendant. Cross goes to the second rope on his corner, saluting the fans before waiting for the final man. “Finally…” "Lapdance" by N.E.R.D begins to play in the background, while multi-colored lights flash. A lone spotlight shines down upon the stage and as the vocals drop, "Lap-dance" continues, causing Ryan Dustin comes to the stage, through the curtain, facing the crowd -- arms folded across his chest -- while his red cameo jacket flutters from an unknown undercurrent. After a pause, Dustin makes his way to the ring, interacting with various fans... “…weighing in at 228 pounds, from Carson City, Nevada…”THE REEEEEEEAL DEAL” RYYYYYYYYAN DUSTIN!” ...Until he reaches the ring, climbing up the outside of the turnbuckle, he poses once again, sizing up his would be opponent by placing his hands in the form of a 'picture frame'. As if waiting for a cue, Ryan turns to the crowd, nodding his head to the beat... before backflipping into the ring, giving the fans a little flourish for their buck. Ryan props himself up in the corner and awaits the action to begin, as his music fades into the background. DING! DING! DING! “Here we go, four talented wrestlers all looking to move up in the ranks here in the SWF,” says Comet as the four try to choose who will pair off first. “Well, Cross and Xavier are new, Dustin seems to have hit a brick wall, and was James ever higher than Blanka’s first opponent?” asks Riley as Dustin and Edward James face off. Ryan and Edward go into a collar-and-elbow tie-up with James gaining the easy advantage with a headlock. Dustin however throws a few quick elbow to the stomach, leading James to send the cruiser into the ropes. Dustin though leap frogs James, then as the two grapplers come off the ropes, Dustin does a quick tumbleweed roll under a clothesline attempt of James and unleash a quick snap kick as Edward turns around! Then, as James is stunned Ryan nails him with a quick… “..SHOTEI!“ yells Comet as the fans pop while James falls to the mat. “The quickness and experience of Citizen Dustin is overwhelming the young rookie here, Robert.” “Well, Dustin’s strikes are surprisingly strong after years of practice. He knows right where to nail you with them to get the most damage.” James gets up quickly, only to get taken right back down to the mat by a Ryan arm drag, followed up by a big dropkick right to Edward’s expansive chest when he rises back to his feet! Edward recovers again, and gets right back to a vertical base, but this time “Tonight’s Highlite” comes from behind, and drops James face-first to the mat with a reverse Russian legsweep! Edward is a little stunned again, but is further attacked as he gets up as Dustin leaps on to him, and brings him down to ground level with a rana! He tucks in for the pin… …ONE… …TW - STRONG KICKOUT! “Ryan should know better. James my be a rookie with no discernible skill, but he’s still big and strong so he still probably has a way to go before he falls to a pin,” says Riley with some contempt in his voice. “Well Robert, if you think you can do better, why don’t you replace Citizen Dustin?” asks Comet. “I would, but ya’ know, my back…” says Bobby, pleading injury. “I thought it would be more your knees, Robert.” replies Comet. As Riley recovers from the zinger, Ryan rushes in on a standing James only to get a boot to the gut as the fans cheer the comeback! James brings Dustin down to the mat with a powerful clothesline, then sends him into the corner. There, James rears back and… *SLAP* “WHOO!” *SLAP* “WHOO!” *SLAP* “WHOO!” …seeing that Ryan’s chest in nice and red, Edward sends Dustin into the other corner with a hard Irish whip! Dustin bounces out of the corner, right into a Eddy J SPINEBUSTER bringing the fans to their feet! But, as Eddy plays to the crowd, a hurt Ryan crawls over to the corner and tags in Nathan Xavier to a pop! “Two very large men are about to make this ring shake,” says Comet as the two hosses square off. “both Citizen Xavier and James have not had the most success here in the SWF.” “Xavier lost to Candance for Christ sakes, Comet. He sucks, and his wife probably swallows,” says Riley as Ryan gets back to his corner, still holding his back. “ROBERT!” screams Comet. “This is a family show!” “Er, Comet…if this is a family show, Janus is mentally balanced and Suicide King has not an ego at all.” The two men continue to circle each other, then Eddy J throws his hands up for a test of strength. Nathan obliges, and the two men locks hands to see who is the strongest. While, at least for a moment until Xavier doubles over Eddy J with a kick to the gut followed by a quick double arm DDT that sends the rookie right to the mat! “Hmm….maybe this Xavier kid has some brains,” muses Riley as Xavier slaps on a half nelson. “Because he was able to trick James?” asks Comet. “No, no, no…a syphilatic monkey could trick James,” replies Riley as Nathan completes the manuever with by putting on a headlock. “Nathan actually just shows the ability to be a bit dick-ish. I like it.” Xavier keeps the hold locked on, on the right side of the ring while Ryan plays to the fans, while the forgotten ‘Fallen Angel’ continues to scan the ring, watching the other competitors. James begins to make his way over to the ropes, slowly at first as Xavier tries to grind in the hold further. But, Eddy J is a little bit stronger than the Santa Clara native and he is able to get a little closer to the ropes, bit by bit as the fans begin to stop their feet a bit to rally their hero of the moment. “Citizen James is refusing to give up Robert.” says Comet as Eddy J inches a little closer to the ropes. “He could easily tap out as he has been in the match the whole time thus far, but he’s sticking it out.” “Well, he’s stronger than Xavier by a bit. Why wouldn’t he?” says Riley. “It’s not like Flesher has a hold on him. Then, it’s be time to tap.” “Does Flesher pay you five bucks every time you mention him in a match that isn’t his?” replies Comet. “No, I do it out of the goodness of my heart.” As the announcers bicker, James inches a little closer to the ropes, then as the fans cheer finally grabs the middle rope to a pop! Xavier breaks cleanly, as James rises to his feet, rolling his neck. Xavier attempts a forearm, but Eddy blocks it and throws one of his own, drilling Nathan. But Xavier fires back, landing one of his own… *THWACK!* *THWACK!* *THWACK!* *THWACK!* *THWACK!* *THWACK!* …after a series of blows back and forth, James lands a second in a row, then delivers a quick kick to the gut, following it up with double axe handle, bringing Nathan to his knees! Xavier is brought to his feet by Eddy J, and as the crowd cheers James, he takes Nathan back down to the mat with a vicious, quick… “…SNAP SUPLEX!” cries Comet as the fans rise to their feet. “Citizen James is not standing dowm here at all even though he has been in the ring the whole match.” “But, he better get out of their quick. Cross hasn’t done a thing, and Dustin looks fully recharged judging by the fact he’s doing a strut in front of the crowd here.” “It appears so,” remarks Comet while Eddy J drills Nathan with a big boot bringing him back down to the mat. James picks up Nathan, and slaps on a waistlock and tries to bring the heavyweight up and over, but Nathan fight back throwing elbow to keep Eddy from finishing the move! Edward tries again, but again Xavier throws out a quick elbow, this time nailing Eddy J right in the jaw! The strikes his with enough force to allow Xavier to employ a standing switch, then drop Eddy with his own German Suplex! Not even attempting the pin, James is picked right up, then delivered right to the mat with a hard… “…LARIATOOOOO~!” cries Comet as James falls right to the mat like a sack of potatoes. “In just two moves, Citizen Xavier has changed the complextion of this match.” “Well Comet, James is finally run out of gas. He’s been playing defense since moment one it seems, and it’s finally catching up. Add to the fact Xavier’s move have a bit more behind them than Dustin and you have a recipe for James going down,” says Riley as Eddy is brought up from the mat again by Xavier. In one fluid motion, Nathan grabs Edward by the throat, picks him up, and slams him right down to the mat with a nasty choke slam! While the fans pop, Xavier plays to the crowd a little, while James gets back to his feet. Eddy J though is peppered with a few shots to the melon by Nathan’s right hand while Sasha cheers him on. Then, Edward is locked into Rock Bottom position, and after just a moment’s hesitation, brought right down the mat with a nasty, vicious… “…STALLING STO BY CITIZEN XAVIER!” cries Comet while the fans rise to their feet in the loudest pop of the match so-far. “Citizen James has to make a comeback here, or the match is lost.” “So, you’re saying he’s done,” replies Riley as Xavier continues to play to the crowd. “If he doesn’t tap that inner reserve all FIGHTERS FOR JUSTICE~ have, then yes Robert, he will be eliminated.” “Inner reserve? I never had that.” “You were and are still a villian, Robert,” says Comet while Xavier hooks the leg and goes for the pin. “Ah, right,” says Riley while Kivell drops down to count… …ONE… …TWO… …THRE - SHOULDER UP! Xavier gets back to his feet, shoots a look to the ref, but just backs up to clear his head. As he stands, looking at James as he struggles to his feet, all of the sudden Ryan rushes over, and tags himself in! “Shouldn’t that fool know that you don’t piss off 270 men who can easily break you?” says Comet as Dustin does a little playing to the crowd as James uses the ropes to get to his feet. “It seems Citizen Xavier is taking it in stride,” replies Comet as Nathan goes to his corner with a small grin on his face. “Wuss.” As Edward finally gets to his feet, Ryan rushes over and nails him with a quick jumping side kick right to the gut! Not taking a moment’s rest, he bounces off the ropes and delivers the quick, vicious knee strike known to some as the Shining Wizard, but to Dustin as… “…JUST DEAL by Citizen Dustin!” cries Comet as James crashes to the mat again. Ryan though immediately runs to the side ropes, and hits the second rope, then the top rope and then flies over on to the fallen Wayward Son with a REAL CLASSIC moonsault! As the fans pop and cheer, Kivell counts… …ONE… …TWO… …TH - NATHAN BREAKS UP THE PIN… …as Dustin looks at Nathan with a look of surprise, Xavier simply shrugs while Eddy gets up again. “Citizen Xavier got a measure of revenge there for Dustin blindly tagging himself into the match,” says Comet. “While, it allows him to get a little more refreshed and causes both Dustin and James to expend more energy to win the match. Not the worst idea ever,” replies Riley as James rises to his feet. But, as James does that, Ryan is ready and strikes up the band while the crowd cheers and then nails Eddy right into the jaw with a perfectly placed DONE DEAL superkick! Dustin does a little strut, then gets up to the top rope as the fans cheer even louder. Ryan gets his back to the ring, does his little ’picture frame’ hand signal, then leaps off and lands on James right in the middle of the ring with a perfectly executed… “…STAAAAAAAARDUSTIN PRESS~!” yells Comet as the fans pop huge and Kivel drops down for the pin… …ONE… …TWO… …THREE! Funyon jumps in, “Edward James has been eliminated. For the next fall, the countout rule is WAAAAAAAAIVED~!” Not waiting for someone to finally tag him in, The Fallen Angel steps over the top rope and gets into the ring as James slides out. Dustin turns around with a big grin, and walks right into the chest of Cross! “This could be trouble for Citizen Dustin,” says Comet as the two combatants staredown for a moment. “Well, Cross and Xavier are the two numbskulls who never tagged him in,” replies Riley. “Hell, he should be thanking them. He’s still at one hundred percent while these two have been slapping around Eddy J for the last ten minutes.” Deciding discretion is the better part of valor, Dustin quickly backs up and tags in Nathan to a pop! Xavier just shares a look with the smallest grappler left, then enters the ring to face off with Cross. The two heavyweight warriors immediately lock up in a collar and elbow tie-up with neither man gaining much of an advantage. The two break it off, then go right back to another tie-up, this time Xavier quickly gaining the advantage, and slapping on a headlock. Cross pushes him off towards the ropes, sending him toward the far ropes as David flies off the near ropes as both men collide into each other with a double clothesline…with Xavier falling back a bit into the ropes! “See, last time those two did that, neither man moved an inch,” says Riley. “This time, Xavier stumbles a little.” “I’m surprised, Robert,” says Comet. “Usually, you save the analysis for the big matches or any match with Flesher in it.” “Hey, I’m being generous,” says Riley. “Don’t say anything about it or I’ll do my Blanka riff.” “Point taken,” replies Comet as Cross fires over a few forearms, keeping Xavier tied up in the ropes! He then sends Nathan into the ropes, firing a stiff big boot, further stunning Nathan as the crowd cheers! Xavier then groggily walks right into a quick, vicious SPINEBUSTER as the fans pops big! Cross brings Nathan up to the mat, then takes him right down with a fireman’s carry right near the ropes, then drops the elbow right on Xavier’s chest. Not even bothering with a pin attempt, Cross brings Xavier back to his feet and fires a few more shots backing Nathan back into the ropes again, then fires a quick kick to the gut of Xavier. Cross then quickly follows it up with a high knee, then before Xavier knows what hit him… “…CRESCENT KICK BY CROSS!” yells Comet as Xavier goes right over the top to the outside as the fans pop like mad. “Citizen Cross just demolished Xavier who just got sent to the outside where there countout rule is not in effect,” continues Comet as Cross goes to the outside. “Good, the more violence the better,” replies Riley. “I was getting tired of all the rules being followed and such. Two guys beating the crap out of each other is much more fun.” As Riley says that, Cross unloads on Nathan as he gets him, hitting Xavier with several haymakers, before a quick kick to the gut and Cross slams Xavier down on the floor! Not done yet, Cross continues to vent his frustration about being frozen out by stomping Xavier, not once, not twice, not thrice, but four times right in gut! Cross then picks Nathan up, but the Santa Clara powerhouse blocks the Irish Whip and sends the Fallen Angel right into the ringside barrier. Nathan then follows that up by kicking Cross right in the throat and keeping his boot there! After a few moments, Xavier let’s go, only to drop Cross on the cold, unforgiving floor with a… “…CHOKE SLAM BY XAVIER~!” again screams Cyclone as the fans pop like mad as Nathan raises his arms to the cheering crowd. “I do think Robert that was a definite momentum changer,” continues Comet as Cross stays down on the ground, but is already stirring. “But look Cyclone, the big goof is already rousing himself up. Cross is a tough customer Cyclone, and Xavier is apt - what in the hell?” asks Riley, suddenly brought off-topic? “Ah, well, that is interesting. It seems Citizen Dustin is not that impressed with either of his opponents,” replies Comet. What is Dustin doing? Well, he’s pantomiming taking a nap and yawning as he watches the two heavyweights rumble. As he notices the camera is now on him, Dustin does a little strut before playing to the crowd a little more. Meanwhile, as we go back to the action, Cross has been brought back to his feet by Nathan, who nails him with a big knee to the chest, followed by a huge axehandle to the back! However, the crowd is buzzing, not because of that. It’s because Ryan is stretching in the ring, running off the far ropes, jumping onto the second rope… “INCOMING!” yells Riley as Dustin then goes to the top rope, changes direction and falls onto both Xavier and Cross with a… “…REAL CLASSIC TO THE OUTSIDE BY CITIZEN DUSTIN!” screams Comet as the crowd comes unglued. “ALL THREE MEN ARE DOWN” Yup, cue the chants… “HOLY SHIT!” “HOLY SHIT!” “HOLY SHIT!” Not surprisingly, Dustin being the attacker is the first to get up and raises his arms to the cheering crowd. However, Nathan Xavier follows quickly after him, and Dustin can’t be having that, so he runs the rail and nails Xavier with a… “…JUST DEAL OFF THE RAIL!” screams Comet…again as the crowd pops huge. “Dustin is being absolutely mental in this match. I think he realize he has not been impressive at all these past few weeks, and this is his last chance to get in with the suits,” says Comet as Dustin delivers a few stiff kicks to the back of Xavier. “Well Robert, whatever his reasons are, Citizen Dustin is truly being impressive tonight,” replies Cyclone as Ryan plays to the crowd even more. However, The Fallen Angel is making his way to his feet and he is not a happy camper. Ryan turns around and finds that out by himself, when he walks right into David’s outstretched right hand! Trying to avoid becoming a stain on the floor, Ryan points at Xavier, out on the floor. Cross simply nods, and pushes Dustin away as the crowd buzzes. “Are Citizen Dustin and Cross making an alliance?” asks Comet as Cross drags a very groggy and out of it Xavier to his feet as the crowd gets even louder. “It’s an alliance in a middle of a match,” replies Riley. “It’ll last about seven seconds after they both get what they need. Which is Xavier out of the match.” Xavier is rolled in by Cross as Dustin does a backflip in, earning himself a look from Cross, and another round of cheers from the fans. Cross picks up Xavier, and then takes him right down to the mat with a nasty EXPLODAH~ suplex as the fans pop. Dustin waits on the outside as Cross pulls Xavier up again and explodes on him with a vicious SHORT ARM LARIATO~. Then, he calmly walks over and tags Dustin in to a large pop from the Arizona crowd. “Hmm…maybe I underestimated these two,” says Riley. “They might have a whole brain between them.” Comet simply sighs as Cross kicks Xavier in the gut and brings him into the universal power bomb/piledriver position. Dustin stands a few steps away as The Fallen Angel brings Nathan up as Sasha tries to get her husband to get out of the hold. Then, as Cross begins to bring Xavier down, Dustin comes over and grabs Nathan in a neck breaker. Cross suddenly let’s go and… *CRASH!* “…OH MY WORD!” Comet yells simply as Dustin brings Xavier crashing to the mat. “I guess one could call that a modified Real Deal or such, but…” “I think you call that ‘Nathan Xavier is going to need a new C4’ Comet,” replies Riley as Dustin lays on the mat, temporarily drained of strength. After a moment, he turns over and hooks the leg… …ONE… …TWO… What, did you really think I was going to have him kick out of that? …THREE! “You could’ve counted until one hundred, Comet.” says Riley as the crowd cheers. Funyon breaks in the moment, “Nathan Xavier has been eliminated! This is the final fall, and it is under HAAAAAAAARDCORE RULES!” Large pop for that as Xavier slowly rolls out of the ring, Sasha helping him to his feet as she shoots a glare at Dustin and Cross. ‘The Real Deal’ has a cocky grin on his face while Cross is unreadable as ever. However, as Dustin turns around, he walks right into a… “…YAAAAAAZU - NO!” screams Comet as Dustin uses his speed to duck under the martial arts move from Cross, and quickly legsweep the mystery man from Oil City, knocking him to the mat! Cross recovers quickly but Ryan is quicker as he hit’s the Fallen Angel with a quick shotei, then takes a step back and stuns Cross with a quick snap quick to jaw, and finishing off by taking Cross to the mat with a flourish with a HURRICARANA! “Citizen Ryan is ably using his quickness and guile to use hit and run tactics on Cross,” Comet says as Dustin rolls to the outside while Cross stays on the mat winded. “Hey, whatever works Cyclone,” replies Riley. “Now that it’s hardcore, let’s begin the violence!” “You are truly sick, you know that?” asks Comet as the crowd pops for Dustin getting a chair! “Just like these fans you always crow about, Comet.” replies Riley. “They want blood and violence almost as bad as I do.” Dustin slides in the ring, and raises the chair to a pop from the crowd, then as The Fallen Angel gets up, he tosses it at him. Of course, instinct makes Cross catch it, only allowing ‘The Real Deal’ to nail David with a DROPKICK TO THE FACE WITH ADDED CHAIR! Ryan quickly snags the chair and sets it up as Cross groggily gets to his feet. As The Fallen Angel returns to a vertical base, Dustin runs up and jumps off the chair, nailing Cross with the JUST DEAL! Stunned, Cross stumbles around as Dustin strikes up the band again, waiting for Cross to turn around and as he does… “…IT’S A DONE DEAL BY CITIZEN DUSTIN!” cries Comet as Cross crashes to the ground. “This match could be all over, Robert.” “What, no blood? No excessive violence? Bah. Give me broken bones or give me death,” replies Riley as Dustin plays to the crowd before sliding to the outside again. “I’m sure we could find an able number of SWF wrestlers to give you either, Robert.” replies Comet. “But, your wishes may come true as Citizen Dustin is looking for something under that ring.” “Good, anything to finally kill off these two,” replies Riley with his usual good cheer. Meaning none at all of course. “Hopefully ‘The Quasi-Real Deal’ will screw up and we’ll have two men with broken bones.” “You are truly heartless, Robert.” “After so long, you’re just figuring that out now?” says an incredulous Riley as Dustin finds what he was looking for…a table. Dustin slides in the table as the fans cheer, quickly following it in and setting it up as Cross begins to stir. Ryan takes care of that, courtesy of a quick kick to the back of the head to KO Cross again as he finishes getting the table legs locked and loaded. He then pulls Cross up and somewhat roughly tosses him on the table. Dustin then gets up to the top rope as the fans cheer even louder. Ryan gets his back to the ring, does his little ’picture frame’ hand signal, then leaps off the top rope and… *CRAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!* “HOLY SHIT!” “HOLY SHIT!” “HOLY SHIT!” “CROSS MOVED! CROSS MOVED! CROSS ROLLED OUT OF THE WAY OF THE STARDUSTIN PRESS AND BOTH MEN ARE LAID OUT IN THE WRECKAGE!” screams Comet over the insanely loud crowd. Kivell simply shrugs and begins the count… …1... …2... …3... …4... …5... …6... Cross gets up to his knees, breaking the count and gets to his feet, thanks to the ropes. He then raises his fist, then does the throat slitting motion to a big pop from the Phoenix crowd! He picks up Ryan, completely out of it from the crash, kicks him in the gut, brings him into the powerbomb position, picks him up and then drops him to earth with the… “…BLACK MASS BY CROSS~” yells Comet who still somehow has his voice. “Well, Ryan’s dead,” deadpans Riley as Kivel counts… …ONE… …TWO… …THREE! DING! DING! DING! Funyon makes his announcement as Cross gets up, and gets his hand raises, “The winner of the match, “THE FALLEN ANGEL” DAAAAAAAAAAAAAVID CROSS!” “Back on Earth” plays as Cross salutes the fans as we fade to a commercial for Pepsi Max.

Yup, and religious theocracy's have such a great record. Do the words Iran or Saudi Arabia mean anything to you? Yes, they're filthy Muslims, but it's not like Christians haven't done worse in the last few centuries. Too much religion...bad. Banning religion...bad. Free expression of religion without it being involved in government...good. Is that so complicated?

Easy, the left = Hitler in Mike's view. But, he mentioned Hitler, so let's close up the thread. Godwin's Law and all.

On the other hand, if you want to play against other people to gain power and prestige, there's always here American Government Simulation. Or want to joni the race to be a Senator, go here -> KernsCorp Or, want to be the big dog himself? -> Election Night Yeah, I'm involved in all three, so hey, it's better than play against an AI you can exploit. Other people are so much more fun. :-)

*Hums #1 by Nelly even though I have no clue of how it goes...* Contact Hitting 6 , Power Hitting 4 , Strike Zone Judgment 7 , Defense 3

Rolling Stone has obtained copies of the still-secret annexes to General Taquba's report on the abuses at Abu Ghraib: http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story...sion=6.0.11.780 Highlights... "The new classified military documents offer a chilling picture of what happened at Abu Ghraib -- including detailed reports that U.S. troops and translators sodomized and raped Iraqi prisoners. The secret files -- 106 "annexes" that the Defense Department withheld from the Taguba report last spring -- include nearly 6,000 pages of internal Army memos and e-mails, reports on prison riots and escapes, and sworn statements by soldiers, officers, private contractors and detainees. The files depict a prison in complete chaos. Prisoners were fed bug-infested food and forced to live in squalid conditions; detainees and U.S. soldiers alike were killed and wounded in nightly mortar attacks; and loyalists of Saddam Hussein served as guards in the facility, apparently smuggling weapons to prisoners inside. The files make clear that responsibility for what Taguba called "sadistic, blatant and wanton" abuses extends to several high-ranking officers still serving in command positions. Maj. Gen. Geoffrey Miller, who is now in charge of all military prisons in Iraq, was dispatched to Abu Ghraib by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld last August. In a report marked secret, Miller recommended that military police at the prison be "actively engaged in setting the conditions for successful exploitation of the internees." After his plan was adopted, guards began depriving prisoners of sleep and food, subjecting them to painful "stress positions" and terrorizing them with dogs. A former Army intelligence officer tells Rolling Stone that the intent of Miller's report was clear to everyone involved: "It means treat the detainees like shit until they will sell their mother for a blanket, some food without bugs in it and some sleep."In the files, prisoner after prisoner at Abu Ghraib describes acts of torture that Taguba found "credible based on the clarity of their statements and supporting evidence provided by other witnesses." The abuses took place at the Hard Site, a two-story cinder-block unit at the sprawling prison that housed Iraqi criminals and insurgents, not members of Al Qaeda or other terrorist organizations. In one sworn statement, Kasim Mehaddi Hilas, detainee number 151108, said he witnessed a translator referred to only as Abu Hamid raping a teenage boy. "I saw Abu Hamid, who was wearing the military uniform, putting his dick in the little kid's ass," Hilas testified. "The kid was hurting very bad." A female soldier took pictures of the rape, Hilas said." "According to England, Staff Sgt. Ivan Frederick made an X on another prisoner's chest with his finger and said, "Watch this." Then the six-foot-tall Fredericks punched the man in the chest. The hooded prisoner lurched backward and fell to his knees. He gasped for air. "Frederick said he thought he put the detainee in cardiac arrest," Sivits later told investigators. England was asked why she thought Frederick assaulted the man. "I guess just because he wanted to hit him," she said." "The prison was filled far beyond capacity. Some 7,000 prisoners were jammed into Abu Ghraib, a complex erected to hold no more than 4,000 detainees. Prisoners were held in canvas tents that became ovens in the summer heat and filled with rain in the cold winter. One report found that the compound "is covered with mud and many prisoner tents are close to being under water." Another report described the conditions in one compound: "The area is littered with trash, has pools of water standing around latrines, and the bottles of water carried by detainees for water consumption are filthy. The tents lack floors and are inadequate to provide protection from the elements." Detainees wore soiled clothes because laundry facilities were inadequate; mentally ill detainees were "receiving no treatment." In a series of increasingly desperate e-mails sent to his higher-ups, Maj. David DiNenna of the 320th MP Battalion reported that food delivered by private contractors was often inedible. "At least three to four times a week, the food cannot be served because it has bugs," DiNenna reported. "Today an entire compound of 500 prisoners could not be fed due to bugs and dirt in the food." Four days later, DiNenna sent another e-mail marked "URGENT URGENT URGENT!!!!!!!!" He reported that "for the past two days prisoners have been vomiting after they eat." " "According to an internal Army investigation contained in the secret files, the civilian-run Coalition Provisional Authority had hired at least five members of Fedayeen Saddam -- a paramilitary organization of fanatical Saddam loyalists -- to work as guards at the prison. An Iraqi guard, probably one of "Saddam's martyrs," had smuggled the gun and two knives into the prison in an inner tube, placed them in a sheet and tossed them up to the second-story window of Cell 35. In May, when Taguba testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sen.Wayne Allard asked him a direct question: "Did we have terrorists in the population at this prison?" Taguba answered, "Sir, none that we were made aware of." His own files make clear, however, that a more accurate response would have been: "Yes, sir -- but only among the guards." "

Just found this, from humaneventsonline.com...important parts bolded Sales Tax Won't Eliminate the IRS humaneventsonline.com by Bruce Bartlett Posted Aug 9, 2004 House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) created a flurry of excitement in Republican circles the other day when it was reported that he is proposing abolition of the Internal Revenue Service in a new book. This would be accomplished by eliminating all existing federal taxes and replacing them with a national retail sales tax. There is no indication of what tax rate Speaker Hastert thinks would be necessary to replace all federal revenue. A current proposal by Rep. John Linder (R-GA) says that a 23 percent rate would be adequate. But such a low rate can only be sustained by making completely absurd assumptions about what would be taxed. Every serious economist who has ever looked at this question has concluded that a vastly higher rate would in fact be needed. First, an unstated assumption is that the 23 percent rate proposed by Mr. Linder is comparable to existing state and local sales taxes, where the tax comes on top of the purchase price. Thus, a 5 percent sales tax on a $1 purchase comes to $1.05. But that's not the way the Linder plan works. He deceptively calculates the rate as if the tax is part of the purchase price. He calls this the tax-inclusive rate. Calculating the rate the normal way people are accustomed to with state and local sales taxes would require a 30 percent tax rate, not 23 percent. When Congress's Joint Committee on Taxation scored the Linder proposal 4 years ago, it estimated that it would actually require a tax-inclusive rate of 36 percent, not 23 percent, to equal current federal revenues. Calculating the rate in a normal, tax-exclusive manner would mean a 57 percent rate. Economist Bill Gale of the Brookings Institution notes that supporters of the sales tax assume that there will be no tax evasion under their proposal and that the size of government will not grow, even though they would send a large annual check to every American in order to offset the regressivity of the tax. Making realistic assumptions, Mr. Gale estimates that the tax-inclusive rate, comparable to Linder's proposed 23 percent rate, would actually have to be about 50 percent. A rate comparable to existing sales taxes would be close to 100 percent. And let us not forget that state and local sales taxes would come on top of the federal sales tax, pushing the total rate even higher. Obviously, the federal government is not going to impose tax rates this high, nor would anyone pay them if it did. There would be a massive tax revolt. The Linder bill (H.R. 25) is also deceptive in its basic assumption that all consumption of goods and services in the U.S. would be taxed. Implicitly, Americans would be taxed on, among other things, all medical care, purchases of new homes, and services provided by state and local governments if Linder's bill became law. This means that if you are sick and have large doctor bills, you are going to pay 30 percent on top to the federal government. (Alternatively, you would pay 30 percent more for health insurance.) If you buy a new house listed for $150,000, your actual purchase price is going to be $195,000, including the sales tax. (Alternatively, there could be a tax on the imputed rent homeowners pay themselves for living in their own homes.) And if your children receive $20,000 worth of education each year from the local public schools, somehow or other you are going to have to pay an additional $6,000 to the federal government. Of course, it is completely idiotic to think that the American people will ever allow this to happen. The idea of taxing all consumption sounds nice in theory until you realize just how broad the definition of "consumption" would be under Linder's plan. Economist Evan Koenig of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas makes the point that any new sales tax is going to raise prices by that amount. If the Federal Reserve accommodates it, we are going to have 30 percent inflation the year the tax is introduced. If it is not accommodated, then producer prices are going to have to fall by 30 percent, which will cause a severe recession and greatly reduce the tax yield.

Mike, Tax Revenue in 2001 (Latest Year I could find numbers) = 1.87 trillion Final Sales of Domestic Product - That's Everything As Far as I Know - (2003, again latest numbers) = 10.899 trillion Divide those two = 20.3% OK, so I was off by some. But still, that's the bare minimum. On Everything. Including mortgages and college tuition and milk and SUV's. Once you start excluding stuff, the numbers just go up higher Mike. Of course, I'm not an ECONOMIST~, so if Stephen wants to do a run-in here, go ahead.

You are aware that a national sales tax would be so insanely regressive it'd be like a wet dream to the tippy top .5 percent, right? Let's say you make $50,000 last year and paid oh, $20,000 in taxes total when you throw in FICA and Social Security tax, along with state and local income tax. Now, no income tax sounds good because then you're paycheck is much larger. But, then the little things add up.... Usual motgage....$1000 let's say, under a 25% tax...boom, $1250 and an extra $3000. College tuition....$8000 at a state college...nope...try $10,000 now. Even little things like groceries. Let's say again, 400 a month...nope, 500. So, that's another 1200 a year down the drain. Of course, since even a 25 percent sales tax would drop people in the top tax bracket (39.4) down to 25 anyway, of course it's popular. But when John and Mary at the store are wondering why groceries for the week have jumped from 100 bucks to 125 bucks, that's where the poor and middle class get screwed.

Yes, I know this sucks, just proof I showed~. :-) “Welcome back to S…W…F LOOOOOOOOOOOOCKDOOOOOOOOOWN~!” says Cyclone Comet with his usual amount of overabundant happiness. “With me as always is Bobby Riley, and I’m CYCLOOOOOOOOOOOOOONE COMET~!” “Must you always do that?” asks Riley. “Why wouldn’t I?” replies Cyclone, oblivious to Riley holding his ears in pain. “Oh, no reason.” says Riley as he sighs. “It’s a loaded show tonight, including Toxxic keeping the belt warm for Tom.” “But first, we’ve got a hardcore match for the number one contendership to that title.” says Comet. “Funyon looks like he’s ready, let’s send it to him.” The dapper as always Funyon waits for his cue and then begins, “The following match is set for one fall with a twenty minute time limit as is under hardcore rules!” Large pop for the coming chaos as the veteran ring announcer continues, “It is also a number one contender’s match for the Hardcore Gamers Championship! Introducing first… Cue the creepy beginnng to 'Back on Earth' by OZZY~ as David Cross walks out to the ring, focused on the ring as the crowd gives him a small, but larger than last show’s pop as a small bit of pyro goes of behind him. “…weighing 277 pounds, from Oil City, Pennsylvania…”THE FALLEN ANGEL” DAAAAAAAAAVID CROSS!” Cross walks down to the ring, absent mindedly slapping hands as his eyes stay focused on the ring. As he gets in, he gives his jacket and cross to the ringside attendant. “Cross was impressive in his redebut last week, defeating Citizen Xavier.” “So he beat another rookie. Big deal. As much as The Birdman is a freak, at least he’s been in the SWF for a little bit.” “And his opponent…” Funyon continues. Birdman comes out to “Let’s Get Retarded” by the Black Eyed Peas. He will come out from behind the curtain and dance on the stage just as the music of the song begins to pick up. Birdman runs down to ringside, interacting with the fans, before sliding underneath the bottom rope to enter the ring. He removes his cape and dances inside the ring as Cross just stares at him. “…weighing 219 pounds, from Psrts Unknown….THE BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRDMAN!” DING! DING! DING! The two fan favorites just look at each other for a second before El Birdman flaps his wings a little to cheers, before trying to charge in with a quick kick to the gut of Cross. But, The Fallen Angel quickly blocks that and just throws the suited grappler down to the mat. Birdman recovers quickly and gets right back up, only to get nailed by a quick forearm knocking him back into the corner. Cross then sends the feathered high flier into the corner, who bounces right out…into a BIG BOOT! “Citizen Cross just dominating here from the opening bell, throwing around one half of Flip Flop like he was a - “ Riley interrupts, “a dead bird?” “I was thinking more along the lines of a sack of potatoes or something, to be honest Robert.” “Well, what old Birdbrain has to do is stop being knocked around like his middle name was Battered Wife. Use his speed and quickness to keep Cross confused. After all, he can’t be all that smart.” Cross picks up the slightly groggy Birdman, puts him in position and takes him over and slams drops him to the mat with a big gut wrench suplex! Without taking a breath, The Fallen Angel then picks up the lightweight competitor again for a vertical suplex, but The Birdman is able to flap his “wings” enough to get out of the suplex and slide down his opponents back! Taking advantage of the luck he was granted, The Birdman immediately takes Cross down to his knees by dropkicking him right in the back of his right one! “Just like that, The Birdman has changed the momentum of this match.” says Comet. “He has to keep up the pace though,” replies Riley. “If Cross recovers quickly, Birdbrain’s down a creek without a paddle or hell, even a boat.” Birdman immediately runs to the near ropes as Cross gets up to his feet. But, the feathered freak is quick enough and launches an Asai Moonsault right at Cross, knocking him to the ground! Not even pausing for a moment of celebration, The Birdman drops a quick elbow, then gets right back up and delivers a fistdrop right to David’s skull! The Birdman then races to the top rope as Cross gets up, a bit groggy. He stumbles around, then turns around, right into a FLYING HEADSCISSORS right from the top rope! The Birdman grabs a leg, and Kivell counts… …ONE… …T- STRONG KICKOUT! “Citizen Cross seems to be not really that effected by Birdman’s attacks as of yet, Robert.” says Comet. “Well, Cross outweighs Birdbrain by about sixty pounds. He has to hit more than two or three moves before even thinking about going for the pin,” replies Riley. Cross is surprisingly first to get up, but is immediately knocked down by a charging Birdman who gets up right after the large grappler from Oil City. Flapping his wings wildly, The Birdman is able to get a few shots in, dazing Cross. Birdman then whips Cross into the far ropes, but as the masked bird goes off the near ropes, he leapfrogs Cross only to get nailed by a SPEAR by Cross when the two warriors go off the ropes again! “See what I mean, Comet. A mediocre big man will always beat a small whacko in a bird suit every time,” says a chuckling Riley. “You are a discredit to your orientation, Robert.” says Comet with a bit of dissapointment in his voice. “Hey, I’m just bored. Neither of these guys seem to want to go hardcore at all,” says Riley. As Riley says that though, David rolls outside the ring and begins to search under the squared circle. After a few moments and murmurs from the crowd, Cross pulls out a…cookie sheet? “Not the most dangerous implement of destruction, but Citizen Cross could cause some major headaches for The Birdman with that cookie sheet.” “Or he could bake up some oatmeal cookies,” replies Riley. Sliding back in the ring, Cross waits for The Birdman to turn around and… …*WHACK*… …down goes The Birdman with a thud to the mat! The crowd cheers the violence, as The Fallen Angel picks up a groggy Birdman and grabs his left wing, locking a half nelson on the feathered fan favorite. Then, as The Birdman struggles a bit flapping his free wing, Cross takes him up and over with to the hard mat with a nasty HALF NELSON SUPLEX! “That can’t be good for The Birdman’s neck,“ says Cyclone as the crowd pops for the brutality. “Do birds have necks?” asks Riley. “Are you seriously asking that Robert, or is it another of your silly jokes?” retorts Comet, a little perturbed. “Seriously, I don’t know. In biology class, the football team always sat in front of me,” says Riley. “What, were they too tall?” “Well, I was on my kn -” “ROBERT!” However, Cross doesn’t bother going for the pin. Instead, he picks up El Birdman by the no - er, beak and kicks him in the gut! As the crowd pops, David brings up The Birdman for a jackknife power bomb, only to get assaulted by his feathered foes wings! After a couple hard knocks to the noggin, Cross drops the cruiserweight wrestler to the mat, allowing The Birdman an opening. He takes it, driving a quick knee to the gut of Cross, then bringing him down to the mat old-school with a SWINGING NECKBREAKER! “Cross is allowing Birdbrain way too many openings. He isn’t taking him seriously. Not that most people would. I mean, it’s a guy in -” Again, Cyclone cuts off his partner, “nockkay about the ayfabekay.” “Wha - oh? Right. Nevermind then.” Taking the cookie sheet Cross dropped to the mat prior, The Birdman goes right to work as Cross gets up, nailing him not once… …WHACK… …not twice… …WHACK… …but three times… …THWACK! Cross is now wobbling in the middle of the ring, as The Birdman tosses the cookie sheet at him. On instinct, Cross grabs it, only to get nailed with a dropkick RIGHT INTO THE COOKIE SHEET! Cross stumbles right out of the ring, as The Birdman runs and dives on to the groggy Cross with a TOPE CON HILO sending both fowl and man down to the floor! “The Birdman is on a real roll here, using the slightly more liberal rules to give him an advantage,” says Comet. “If this was say, Spike Jenkins, you wouldn’t be saying that. You’d be decrying his rulebreaking and dastardly ways.” “That would require Spike being able to be dastardly.” “Point taken.” Back outside the ring, The Birdman is up first and looks for something, anything, under the ring. After a few seconds as David gets up, he brandishes his weapon…a bag of cotton candy!?! “What in the name of Todd?” says Riley. “I truly have no idea, Robert.” replies Cyclone. “Perhaps the cotton candy is laced with ether or some other plan.” “Or The Birdbrain is exactly that.” “Entirely possible.” After a split second, The Birdman tosses the bag of cotton candy at Cross who catches it easily. But, as Cross catches the bag of candy, The Birdman jumps into the air towards his opponent and plants his feet into the victim's midsection while wrapping his hands behind the victim's neck, as though going for a monkey flip... only instead of flipping his opponent overhead, Birdman drops his weight straight down towards the mat, jamming his knees underneath the victim's chin! “BIRD BREAKER!” yells Comet as the crowd explodes with cheers. “See, the dummy Cross should’ve just flattened this idiot a long time ago. It’s not like he doesn’t have the moveset. Stupid do gooders,” says Riley with contempt in his voice. Getting up slowly, Cross gets to his knees after the stunning move only to get hit again as The Birdman flies through the air with a MOONSAULT OFF THE RING BARRIER! Both men fall to the ground again with Cross taking the brunt of the punishment on the unforgiving concrete floor! Birdman does a little dance to the cheers of the crowd, then rolls Cross in. He then gets on the apron and flip in on to The Fallen Angel with a nasty somersault legdrop and the pin… …ONE… …TWO… …KICKOUT! “Citizen Cross has not given up on this match yet, Robert!” “Unfortunately. Longer this match goes, the longer until we see Maddix finally take out Johnny Dangerously once and for all.” “Keep on dreaming, Robert.” Cross slowly gets up again, rising to a vertical base. But, as he does that, The Birdman scatters to the second rope and dives on to Cross with a huge BULLDOG! Driving Cross face first to the mat, the Birdman then gets up, dances something resembling a jig, then rolls to the outside. After only a second, the fans pop big as one half of Flip Flop has a table! “WE WANT TABLES! WE WANT TABLES!” “Savages, all of them,” says Riley. “Says Mr. Has A Tape of SWF Bloodiest Matches of 2003,” replies Comet. “That’s for research purposes.” “Whatever you say, Robert. Whatever you say.” The Birdman sets up a table right in the middle of the ring, pulling the legs out and locking them in, before grabbing an out of it Cross and laying him on the table. Shaking his feather clad ass a little, The Birdman goes to the top to the cheers of the crowd as he launches himself off the top, crashing his full weight on to The Fallen Angel’s chest. Only one problem…Cross moves! CRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRASH! “The Birdman just took a huge gamble to finish this match, and -” “- it just failed miserable, Comet!” says a cackling Riley. “Looks like this hero just fell!” Cross gets up first, rising to the cheers of the crowd as The Birdman rolls in agony. Raising his fist, Cross pulls his feathered foe up then drives him right back to the mat with a vicious SHORT ARM LARIATO~! As the crows continues to cheer, a groggy Birdman is helped up, kicked in the gut, brought up high in the air, then slammed right into the mat with great force thanks to the move known as the… “…BLLLLLLLLLACK MASS~!” yells an excited Comet. “Check please. The Birdman is cooked.” Cross simply hooks the far leg as Kivell counts… ONE! TWO! THREE! DING! DING! Funyon immediately speaks, “The winner of the match via pinfall, and the new number one contender to the HARDCORE GAMERS CHAMPIONSHIP….the FALLEN ANGEL, DAAAAAAAAAAVID CROSS!” “Back to Earth” begins again as Cross goes to a corner and salutes the fans as The Birdman walks to the back, holding his back a little.

w00t....we both suck!

Well, I fucked up the date, and had to write a crappy match in two hours. Poor Kibs.

If you go by Hollywood rumors, every male star is gay. Which leads me to believe that guys, gay and straight still have the same delusions about being able to score with whoever they want.

Here's a better idea -- tax those most able to pay for it, close loopholes, increase penalties for tax cheats, and strengthen enforcement. That way, Bush's friends won't be able to dodge taxes. But whatever. Abolish the speed limit because people speed anyway. Abolish drug laws because people do drugs anyway. Eliminate murder statutes because people kill people anyway.

The economy has turned the corner...