Some of the news that is fit to print

AI... and then there were nine...

CJD’s AI3 recap and vote from the March 30 episode of American Idol...

First off, the CJD rundown…
Best performance of the evening... Fantasia
Worst performance of the evening... John Stevens
Who should be in the Bottom Three... Camile Velasco, John Stevens, Jon Peter Lewis
Who will be in the Bottom Three... Camile Velasco, John Stevens, Jennifer Hudson
Who should go home... John Stevens
Who will go home... Camile Velasco

And CJD’s in-depth analysis…
Camile Velasco… I’m trying to keep my Hawaiians right this week. To be honest, I have never really understood why she made the finals. I thought her performance was mediocre. She just sounded weak. My friend Martin says that she’s hot, so perhaps that is why she is still here. Simon said, "That was average, Camile. I think you have one more week to make something happen." I think he was generous. I don’t think she will see another Tuesday.

Jon Peter Lewis signing "This Old Heart Of Mine"… Not his best performance, but he is cute and people like him – including me. He does need to keep it up… raise it to the next level. I keep wanting/expecting some Clay-like growth from him, but it hasn’t happened yet. But I think he has a strong voice, not that you could tell in this performance. But I don’t think he’ll go… yet.

LaToya London signing "Ooh Baby Baby"… I think LaToya is great. I really love her voice and I think she has been consistent and put out strong performances. Last night was no exception. If Fantasia wasn’t in the contest, I would be a huge LaToya fan. Right now I’m just a fan.

Amy Adams signing "Dancin' In The Streets"… I thought it was a good song choice for her and she did a good job… except for the last note, as all the judges mentioned. Her performance, however, elicited the most odd comment of the night. Simon says that he reminds him of… Jay Leno’s sister? She doesn’t look ANYTHING like Jay Leno?

John Stevens signing "My Girl"… So John can actually move on the stage, but overall, the performance is just painful. John looks awkward. His voice is off-pitch the entire song. Simon was right on. “That was abysmal…absolutely terrible. This is your worst week by a mile.”

Jennifer Hudson signing "Heatwave"… I expect her to be gone soon, but I sure do like Jennifer, strange looks on her faces and all! I thought it was a good song and Jennifer has definitely grown during the competition. I hope she has enough time on stage to continue growing because I think she will become even better.

Jasmine Trias signing "You're All I Need (To Get By)"… Jasmine demonstrates that last week’s awful outing was an anomaly by turning in a great performance. Jasmine is just sweet and she has a very strong voice. Simon was (once again) right on when he said it was the best performance of the night, so far.

Diana Degarmo singing "Do You Love Me?"… Simon says that people could see her performance in any high school across the country. Randy shoots back that one couldn’t hear that performance in any high school and that this is a singing competition. I tend to agree with Simon expect the performance seemed less high school and more cruise ship. And I strongly disagree with Randy – AI is about finding a pop star, an idol, and that is so much more than just finding somebody who can sing.

Fantasia Barrino signing "I Heard It Through The Grapevine"… Fantasia already is a pop star. In my book, she is the only person, week in and week out, who comes in with a kick-a** performance. And she does different things and tries different styles. I think she is just great. All that being said, the sweater was horrible.

Finally, George Huff signing "Ain't Too Proud To Beg"… OK, so I have professed my caveat that I don’t like George – to me, he has a hallow sound like he is on a speakerphone – but Motown night was tailor made for him. He did a good job. Now I’m not exactly sure what the towel thing was, but… Paula had her best line yet. "Do you remember when Simon said you were like a back-line singer for The Temptations? Well, tonight, you showed you are a front-line man. You are a star." And Simon agrees. "I take what I said back. I apologize."

No opinions wanted...

An interesting item about one of my favorite programs, PBS's NewsHour with Jim Lehrer.

Journalist Christian Parenti was invited to talk about Iraq on the March 2 broadcast of PBS's NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. But Parenti's criticism of the reconstruction contracts granted to corporations like Halliburton and Bechtel apparently crossed a line for the program's host. According to a report by Cynthia Cotts in the Village Voice newspaper (3/17/04), Lehrer objected to comments Parenti made in response to a question about whether bombings in Iraq would "make the American job harder on the ground in Iraq": PARENTI: I would think so. I would think that we have to look at some of the deeper causes as to why there's so much frustration. Why are Iraqis so angry and willing to point the blame at the US after this sort of bombing? A lot of it has to do with the failure of meaningful reconstruction. There still is not adequate electricity. In many towns like Ramadi there wasn't adequate water. Where is all the money that's going to Halliburton and Bechtel to rebuild this country? Where is it ending up? I think that is one of the most important fundamental causes of instability, is the corruption around the contracting with these Bush-connected firms in Iraq. Unless that is dealt with, there is going to be much more instability for times to come in Iraq. Two nights later (3/4/04), Lehrer made an unusual on-air announcement: "An editor's note before we go, for those who were watching two nights ago: A discussion about Iraq ended up not being as balanced as is our standard practice. While unintentional, it was our mistake, and we regret it."

AI3... and then there were 10

As you may know, I am a fan of American Idol. It is foolish but irresistable.

So here is the CJD in-depth analysis of what went down last night…

First off… Who in the hell was that terrifying Stephen Tyler-looking clothes w*ore in the video? I had to TiVo through it because it was scarring the dogs!!!

As for the performances…

Amy Adams… GREAT! It was the first time I cared about her at all. Just FAB!

Camile Velasco… She just seems terrified up there as if she is scared to death. So I was not impressed. I think she is a gonner this week.

Diana DeGarmo… I thought it was one of her better performances. I think one of the judges said that her video was cheesy… and I have to agree. But she’s in it for awhile.

Fantasia Barrino… She is my pick for a winner and I totally agreed with the judges last night. I thought she gave a controlled performance. And, frankly, I disagree with Simon – I don’t think it was safe for her. It would have been safe to come out and do a fast paced song that blew the roof off the joint – which we know she can do. I thought it showed real maturity. I was impressed yet again.

George Huff … OK, I have a bias here because I just don’t like Huff. He just doesn’t do anything for me. And I don’t really remember his song. That being said, I don’t think he’ll go anywhere.

Jasmine Trias… She is sweet, but as Paula might say, not her best performance. ‘Breath’ was a bad song choice for her. But I think she will improve as the weeks go on and that she will not be booted.

Jennifer Hudson… It totally shocked me that she was the next to the bottom last week because I like her and I think she is improving all the time. Last night, I thought she looked great, I loved the new hair, and I think she did a good job of it. So I think she stays… although I think she will make the bottom three, for reasons beyond me.

John Stevens… His best song yet, I thought, but this guy has zero personality, at least on television. How many takes did they have to do on his video to catch an actual emotion? But ‘the kids’ love him, so he’ll stay.

Jon Peter Lewis… I love JPL, but it was a horrible performance last night, perhaps his worst ever. But he is so cute, he’ll stay.

La Toya London … The best performance of the night, I thought. She was just great. But I think she is great. She’ll stay. (And I text-message-voted for her last night!)

Matthew Rogers … Um, ugh! I think he could be doing much better and that the coaching has not helped him. Based on two weeks, he should be gone, but I think he’ll stay.

So… the long and the short of it…
My prediction for the bottom three…
Camile Velasco is out…
Jasmine Trias will be among the pair, but gets saved at the end…
Jennifer Hudson will be among the three, but gets saved early.
Tune in tonight.

Photo of the day...

Just irresistable...

Dick Clarke, Part II

Former terrorism czar Richard Clarke is making the rounds.
Read the transcript of his interview on PBS's The News Hour
and White House communications director Dan Bartlett on the same program.

My favorite Bartlett line:

You did not hear the president saying that 9/11 was directly linked to Iraq, he's never made that point. The point he has made is that 9/11 had to change the way we conducted foreign policy in America. What it means is we can no longer wait and hope and think that oceans protect us, that we need to confront threats before they fully materialize. And that's why he brought the case to the international community about enforcing demands of the world to remove Saddam Hussein from power if he doesn't elimination his programs of mass destruction. So he is trying to combine those two things and the president was very clear and his efforts in Afghanistan were very successful.

Never? This is from the UK's Telegraph from 9.10.2002...

"We know that Iraq and the al-Qa'eda terrorist network share a common enemy: the United States of America," he said.

"We know that Iraq and al-Qa'eda have had high-level contacts that go back a decade. Some al-Qa'eda leaders who fled Afghanistan went to Iraq. These include one very senior al-Qa'eda leader who received medical treatment in Baghdad this year and who has been associated with planning for chemical and biological attacks.

"We have learned that Iraq has trained al-Qa'eda members in bomb making and poisons and deadly gases. And we know that after September 11, Saddam Hussein's regime gleefully celebrated the terrorist attacks on America."

You can read it on the White House Web site as well.

Iraq terrorism myth

So just days after Defense Department Defense Department Deputy Secretary Paul Wolfowitz were once again trying to connect Iraq and terrorism -- a connection that they have yet to prove in any way, shape or form -- long-time anti-terrorism leader Richard Clarke went on "60 Minutes" not only disputing the connection but offering a stirring indictment of the Bush administration's so-called 'war on terrorism.'

"Frankly," he said, "I find it outrageous that the president is running for re-election on the grounds that he's done such great things about terrorism. He ignored it. He ignored terrorism for months, when maybe we could have done something to stop 9/11. Maybe. We'll never know."

Clarke went on to say, "I think he's done a terrible job on the war against terrorism."

And this comes from somebody who has worked for Regan, Bush the First, Clinton, and then Bush 2 for two years.

Clarke has a book out, so you can read more...
Against All Enemies : Inside the White House's War on Terror--What Really Happened

ABB, part 2

New York Hospital Is Ordered to Release Abortion Records [NYT, 3.20.2004]

A federal judge in Manhattan has ordered New York-Presbyterian Hospital to turn over to the Justice Department records on abortions performed there... The Justice Department has said that it needs the medical records to defend the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act, passed by Congress last year. Several abortion providers who are suing to block use of the law assert that the ban would prevent them from providing medically essential procedures. Justice Department lawyers say they need to examine records from those doctors' facilities to test those assertions.

DHS hollywood style...

Homeland Seeks 'Entertainment Liaison' [AP, 3.19.2004]

Protecting America against terrorist attacks and other disasters requires strong interagency communication and superior intelligence-gathering. Oh, and a little help from Hollywood.

Iraq, one year later...

So administration folks are out and about professing why the war was justified and how we are winning.

The most amazing thing to me is that they are essentially saying what they have always been saying -- including linking Iraq to the overall so-called 'war on terror.'

Here is Defense Department Deputy Secretary Paul Wolfowitz on PBS's The News Hour last night:

First, they appear to be hanging on to the link between Iraq and al-Qaida:

We think there is a connection between Iraq and al-Qaida. We think that Zarqawi and the people associated with him are al-Qaida people who were finding sanctuary in Iraq, that there were contacts between Iraq and al-Qaida, so that was part of the equation, as Secretary Powell said in his U.N. statement.

I thought they had left that behind once and for all. Apparently not.

Then, there was this:

The reason for going to war was because Iraq was in violation of the U.N. Security Council resolution. In fact, there were three major reasons, and if you go back and read Secretary Powell's speech to the U.N. in February of last year, he said specifically it is weapons of mass destruction, It is their support for terrorism, and it's the oppression of their people and we had agreed in fact with Resolution 1441 to limit it to weapons of mass destruction and give them one last and final chance to come clean and he did not come clean.

Um, WMD -- BZZZZ! Their support for terrorism? Bzzzz! The oppression of their people? Yes, but I would guestion whether that is our role. If so, there are oppressed people all over the world and the U.S. military is going to be quite busy.

One point that seems to have been completely lost is that we rushed to invade because there was an immanent danger. That is why we had to bypass the United Nations. That is why we could not spend the time building a coalition. (Oh! Sorry! I forgot about the coalition of the willing! Bzzz!)

In fact, there was immanent danger.

I don't have a problem with the intelligence problems. Don't get me wrong, I think it is a huge concern, but I understand that it can be difficult to find out such information, especially in a dictatorship. And it is something that we should assess to figure out how we can do intel better. But, in hindsight, it seems that the policies we had in place were, in fact, working. Inspections were ongoing. Sanctions were working. Iraq was not a major player.

Are the Iraqi people better off today? Sure, they are free, but by all accounts they don't look at U.S. forces as liberators but as an occupying force. And there is no prospect for getting U.S. troops out of that country any time in the future.

The situation may be better for them, but is it better for us? I have significant doubts.

'Exorcist' silenced...

"Exorcist" Demon Voice Silenced [E! Online via Yahoo!, 3.17.2004]

You may not recognize her face, but Mercedes McCambridge's voice is in your nightmares.