I have to admit I’ve used blogads (I run them and have occasionally taken out a small one or two) — but this kind of advertising raises eyebrows: For $10,000, Kari Smith has gone ahead and had her forehead tattooed with the Web address of a gambling site. Smith, 30, who sold her unusual advertising space on eBay, said the money will give her 11-year-old son a private education, which she believes he needs after falling behind in school. “For the all the sacrifices everyone makes,...

There’s been a lot of talk these days comparing Vietnam to Iraq. How does it hold up? Oxblog’s David Adenesnik looks at this post that raises the issue and here’s his reaction.

But now he’s not and THIS PERSON seems to be the one Californian’s like best.

A Zogby poll shows yet more erosion of President Bush’s ratings, even after his high-touted Iraq speech at Fort Bragg. And it also shows heightened polarization, where a large chunk of the electorate believes he should be impeached if it’s proven he lied about the reasons for going to war with Iraq. It’ll be interesting to see if this coincides with other poll findings over the next few weeks — you have to keep individual polls in the overall context and Zogby’s reputation...

Some of the hostages in the 1979 Tehran embassy are claiming that the new Iran leader-elect was one of their captors! Speaking of the war on terror, what about that 9/11-Iraq connection?

Time Magazine is about to discard a fundamental journalist principle — and if Newsweek doesn’t do the same thing, you can bet Newsweek’s reporting is going to have many more details than Times’ in the future: Time Inc. said Thursday it would comply with a court order to deliver the notes of a reporter threatened with jail in a probe of the leak of a CIA officer’s name. The New York Times, which is also involved in the dispute, said it was “deeply disappointed”...

Mexican President Vicente Fox better get ready for another phone call from the Reverend Jesse Jackson. First, Fox proved himself not-so-foxy when he stepped in it after making a comment widely labelled as racist about blacks. And now his government has issued a stamp with artwork that looks as if someone copied a program from a minstrel show in America at the turn of the century — the turn of the 20th century. But, hey, there can’t be anything offensive about it: it’s just from...

Let’s put it to you this way: a cigar draws better….

We usually get more on this site (too much) and that includes some posts by the evening San Diego time. But we’re going to resume our posts here tomorrow morning after 6 a.m The reason: work continues on our server (he’s getting his teeth capped). Powerblogs needs TMV to put his wordiness on hold for at least one evening. So our posts will resume after 6 a.m. tomorrow, San Diego time.

Richard Nixon is still making headlines from the grave…this time via some new tapes in which he calls India’s later-assassinated Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and “old witch.” It’s a delightful look at what REALLY lurks underneath the fixed teeth-showing smiles of heads of state when they meet. And Secretaries of State, too: in the tapes Henry Kissinger calls Indians “bastards.” In a tape that will perhaps turn Jerry Springer Show viewers onto foreign affairs...

When polls show that this administration is losing swing voters who previously supported it in droves it’s due to Pinocchio-like whoppers like this that totally destroy it’s credibility: A Republican congressman from North Carolina told CNN on Wednesday that the “evidence is clear” that Iraq was involved in the terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001. “Saddam Hussein and people like him were very much involved in 9/11,” Rep. Robin Hayes...

Editor’s Note: President George Bush delivered a long-awaited speech in Iraq last night at Fort Bragg. Accounts of the speech were carried by news organizations and shown on television. The speech received mixed editorial reviews and was criticized by some as being dull — but The Moderate Voice has learned the REAL SPEECH was not. A reliable source has provided TMV an exclusive video of the REAL speech delivered last night without after-the-fact editing changes. Here are excerpts which...

In what was billed as a major address before large group of uniformed soldiers, President Bush made the case that the war in Iraq was worth the sacrifices and tied it into the context of 911 — but was this a speech that will pick up or regain lost public support or simply impress those who already support him? First, some details, via the New York Times: President Bush sought to rally the American people behind his Iraq policy tonight, urging them to look beyond the daily carnage, and indeed...

We will be doing a post on the President’s speech. It should be appearing on this site shortly. After that it’s unlikely we will post anything until tomorrow morning around 6 a.m San Diego time. The reason: some work will be done tonight on my server (the waiter needs a gall bladder operation). We’ve been asked to refrain from posting anything tonight after 7 pm. due to the work on Powerblogs. On the other hand, perhaps they simply read some of our posts..

We wonder how much more of THIS is going on (and will go on)? Via Crooks And Liars

And, so, finally the world saw the face of evil and heard the voice of evil. And it was the voice and face of anyone who could live next door. To you. To me. Someone who could be a scout or church leader. A plumber. A teacher. A car mechanic. Because when 60-year-old Dennis Rader pleaded guilty in a courtroom in Kansas to 10 murders yesterday, at the judge’s prodding the former Scout leader and church president let it all hang out — his psyche, his desire for domination, his thrill at...

This is a big day in Washington…because some decisions are being pondered at the FEC that could impact weblogs’ so far relatively unfettered freedoms. Some links: –RedState.org has a short MUST READ post on the hearings. It’s founder Matt Krempinsky (who we had the pleasure of meeting while being on a panel with him on blogging at Stanford. If the panel broke we would have fallen off the wall.)will be testifying. Read ALL of the links on the post. Krempinsky has been at the...

HERE’s yet ANOTHER scandal involving allegedly made-up sources — this time at the Sacramento Bee and it’s enough to give a journalist hives: A newspaper investigation of a former columnist for The Sacramento Bee could not verify 43 sources she used in a sampling of 12 years of her work. Diana Griego Erwin resigned May 11 as she came under scrutiny about the existence of people she quoted. She has denied making up information, but Executive Editor Rick Rodriguez said the Bee should...

Several readers and a talk show host have emailed us over the past few months asking: “Do you know of a centrist alternative to The Drudge Report?” The answer is a resounding “YES!” It’s the Dilby News Monitor — a site set up exactly like you-know-who’s with some differences. It gives you all of the latest links, is updated often, and even has the same layout. The differences are: It has a lot more information on it, including streaming videos, 800 numbers...

If the level of thinking in this Iraqi writer is widespread among the population, and they are vocal, Iraq might turn out a relatively peaceful country with just enough regard for each other’s differences to keep most people satisfied. Also see some healthy discussions about the role of the federal government in regions far removed from Baghdad in this post.

The great Republican website RedState.org has a post saying a “Deep Throat” has indicated Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is out of consideration as a Supreme Court justice due to backlash from the party’s base. My “Deep-Throat” source appeared this evening. Here’s what I’m hearing….. The rumblings from the base were too great. I am also told that, for the same reason, McConnell is now out. He would have been a perfect fit, but several of the movers...

Yes, polls can be see-saw but President George Bush’s polls are now more saw than see — as a new poll gives him his highest disapproval ratings: The number of Americans disapproving of President Bush’s job performance has risen to the highest level of his presidency, according to the CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Monday. According to the poll, 53 percent of respondents said they disapproved of Bush’s performance, compared to 45 percent who approved. The margin of error...

The New York Times is reporting that Shi’ite Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani is suggesting Iraq’s new constitution allow for proportional parliamentary representation. In effect, this would guarantee Iraq’s Sunni population a set number of seats regardless of voter turnout in the next election. The only issue is that the Kurds, who are concerned over oil-rich Kirkuk and their future autonomy, may view the deal as a threat. I look at the numbers and explain why, which is important...

So why did Jeb Bush order a new investigation into the length of the 911 call in Terri Schiavo affair? Forget all the talk from Dad George Bush that his son won’t go for it in 2008, Newsweek in effect says, Jeb Bush is — in his own mind and in the minds of some GOPers — a viable political option in 2008. Read the whole item yourself. Here’s the key part: Ill-advised or not, Bush’s maneuver only fueled speculation about a possible presidential run in 2008. Given a GOP...

…at Julien’s List, a blog that describes itself this way:”Progressive, balanced, committed, tolerant. Proud to represent the unheard voices of same-sex couples and their supporters…Read, think, ACT!” Reader response to Take A Peek has been great so we’re stepping up our efforts to offer you a diverse cross section of weblog tips. But don’t get the WRONG idea: Julien’s List is NOT a one-note blog. It’s chock full of links and excerpts from stories,...