Quick hits

Here's some items that might not deserve their own post, so I'll go through them all rapid-fire style:

* 6 years for Smilin' Jack. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy, and of course that's just the beginning. Abramoff is getting a reprieve from his jail time so he can continue to cooperate with the ongoing Justice Department corruption investigation. But sooner or later, he'll have to hit the slammer. And nobody deserves it more.

* The Security Council has reached a deal on Iran, which has all sorts of compromises and nonbinding language in it. Compromises are typically successful if absolutely nobody is happy with the outcome. However, binding or nonbinding, if you recall hearing "Saddam wouldn't comply with UN resolution 1441," this would be the Iranian antecedent. Actually I have no problem with a muscular diplomatic stance in this case. Of course, my spider sense tells me the US agreed to whatever concessions they needed just to get a unanimous resolution on Iran, which will come in handy later.

*Newly minted fundie John McCain is flip-flopping all over the place. He supports an anti-gay marriage amendment now? Add that to delivering the commencement address at Jerry Falwell's college (he once called Falwell one of the agents of intolerance). I know you have to eat a lot of shit to get elected, but Mr. Straight Talk's gonna get sick with that kind of appetite.

*3 years worth of insurgency, lack of postwar planning, chaos, and civil war in Iraq? All Saddam's fault. Can you imagine the situation there if he wasn't under lock and key all that time then? What a ridiculous statement. It's the Iraqi version of the "Blame Clinton" mentality.