posted here by me:
no one seems concerned that Plame's networks--networks that were specifically targeted towards WMD proliferation--were rolled up. forget, for a moment, the politics of this. republican, democrat, it matters not. here is what should concern every american--a specialist whose entire job was to smoke out those who could hurt us most, e.g. terrorists or rogue states with WMD, particularly nuclear ones, has been outed, and her network most likely has been rounded up. one can only speculate, but chances are "rounded up" is a euphemism for killed. And let's say that there is a 10% chance that one of those sources who has now been burned was pursuing, oh, say a lost Ukrainian stockpile of enriched uranium, or a belarussian missile that "fell off the back of a truck" or so on. and that trail is now cold. and that missile or material is later used against us.

this is why this story matters. this is why this offense should be punishable as treason (and the death penalty should be an option--i say this as someone firmly opposed to it but in this case if it exists it should be used as a scare tactic), this is what Bush 41 was saying in his now famous quote. Now the partisan in me could take this mighty far, and say that it perfectly encompasses everything that i fear and loathe about our administration, its secretiveness, its mendacity, its inability to discern the difference between moral rectitude and political success... but it doesn't matter. even minus that last sentence EVERY person of moral character, right/left/inbetween, should be enraged by this, and by bush's lack of caring about it.

Fun with the NY Times part 74:

the Sunday edition lead photo was of a bunch of Iraqi children being taught football, American-style, by our troops in Iraq. Yes, i can just see the day when Ahmed and Yousef get the thousand dollars necessary for their helmet/shoulder pads/knee pads, not to mention goalposts etc. oh, and steroids, they will need those too. of course, it shouldn't surprise anyone to note that Iraqi children DO love football, only the kind where are you need is a ball and a flat area, i.e. soccer. And in fact, the MLS did give Iraqi kids a ton of balls/goals/shoes etc., to their credit. but there is something so quintessentially empire-ish about that photo--you know, bringing cricket to the natives and all that...

Also, a question about the Victoria Plame/Wilson affair, best followed here via Josh Marshall: is it true, as some have alleged, that in being "outed" as she was, her network has been "rolled up"? (that means killed in spookspeak)

because if so, rove or whomever did this--but it has to be rove--has blood on his hands and should be spending 10 years in jail, which is in fact the maximum punishment possible for publicly naming a CIA officer.

scum, all of them.