Did you know that:

• …the Statue of Liberty, by French creator Frederic Bartholdi was originally designed to be an Egyptian peasant woman gracing the entrance to the Suez Canal with the inscription “Egypt, bringing light to Asia”?
• …the ratification of our Constitution was in part due to the pressures put on the staunchly independent states by the dangers in the Middle East? That a fictional book about white slavery and occupation helped fuel the fear needed to reach that end?
• ….the father of conservationism in the US, George Perkins Marsh, came to his ideas of setting aside land for protection while visiting the Middle East and viewing the devastation from land misuse in Palestine in the 1840’s?
• ……one George Bush advocated intervention in the Middle East on religious grounds? In1844? (And yes he was a forbearer of the current George Bush).

As Democrats are accused of having no plan as an alternative to Bush’s surge, more of us might want to read this book. McGovern and Polk present a detailed plan of 24 steps for withdrawal, complete with costs. Interestingly enough one of the authors is someone for whom I did not vote in 1972 when I was married to a Bellevue Republican attorney. . . How far I have traveled to find my own voice!

Another presidential candidate for whom I did not vote back in 1976. I always relied upon the wisdom of my ex-husband about issues and recommendations for judicial positions. . I must say that my daughter and my son have since inspired me! I now appreciate President Carter. At this point in time, with Bush so “Christian,” one finds Carter’s own Christian views quite encouraging.

Carter quotes Republican John Danforth, former Episcopal priest before being elected to the U.S. Senate, in his (Danforth’s) editorial published in the New York Times in April 2005:

Hill’s steps would start with Secure Voting and other steps include instant runoff voting, overhauling the U.S. Senate, and reform the Supreme Court, among other necessities. These are steps I hadn’t thought about. We’ve got a long ways to go and a political battle to wage to repair our democracy!

I learned a lot of history that I hadn’t known before! Where have been?!!

A very frank book among which are highlights of the efforts of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert in Comedy Central’s The Daily Show and the Colbert Report (remember as in no t is pronounced at the end of Colbert, neither is the t pronounced in Report!)

If you never saw Stephen Colbert at the 2006 White House Correspondents' Association Dinner with Bush in attendance, here’s a description of his address.

In this video it is very interesting to watch the faces of some of those in the audience who were stunned at what was being said. Also this video shows a split screen of both Bush and whoever was speaking:

Names of some of the Static chapters:

• Outlaw Nation
• Hijacking Public Media
• News Fakers
• The Torturers’ Apprentice
• Bravo Bush!
• Cindy’s Crawford