It would appear from the story being presented by KTSP that the President’s “It was gone before we got there” excuse for the Al-QaQaa fiasco has been dealt a kick in the pants. Apparently KTSP had a reporter embedded with the 101st Airborne Division, and they visited an area around Al-QaQaa. They found lots of explosives.

The news crew was based just south of Al Qaqaa, and drove two or three miles north of there with soldiers on April 18, 2003.

During that trip, members of the 101st Airborne Division showed the 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS news crew bunker after bunker of material labelled “explosives.” Usually it took just the snap of a bolt cutter to get into the bunkers and see the material identified by the 101st as detonation cords.

“We can stick it in those and make some good bombs.” a soldier told our crew.
In one bunker, there were boxes marked with the name “Al Qaqaa”, the munitions plant where tons of explosives allegedly went missing.

Once the doors to the bunkers were opened, they weren’t secured. They were left open when the 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS crew and the military went back to their base.

They were at the sites 9 days after the fall of Saddam Hussein. That refutes the claim that they were hidden before the invasion.

The Stranger presents the year’s scariest costumes!

Bush has been elected…the year’s top villain!

Bush won the dubious accolade, announced Wednesday, for his appearance in Michael Moore’s anti-Bush documentary “Fahrenheit 9/11.”

He beat a shortlist that included the nefarious Doctor Octopus, played by Alfred Molina, in “Spider-Man 2″; “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’”s cannibalistic Leatherface; Andy Serkis’ creepy Gollum from “Lord of the Rings” trilogy; and Elle Driver, the eyepatch-wearing assassin played by Daryl Hannah (news) in “Kill Bill.”

I’d like to be the first to congratulate the soon to be former President on his recognition. Kudos!

Note: In not-unrelated news, 60,000 absentee ballots missing in a heavily democratic Florida county!

With the help of Engadget, Mac users can learn how to record all audio playing on their computer. I don’t know how I’ll ever use this, but I’m sure someone will find it interesting.

Not content with causing Michael Jackson to vomit with rage, Eminem has produced his own October surprise. A withering indictment of Bush, the Mosh video should be included with every free download of Fahrenheit 9/11 this week.

It’s just too bad that I’ve already voted, because I found Angry 15 Year Olds for Bush. Highly compelling, I’m kicking myself for not voting a straight republican ticket. For example:

But thanks to george bush’s economy my dad has TWO jobs now which is cool because I get all the free mcdonalds I want. I can’t wait to see him tomorrow when he is home before I go to school. I have not seen him in three days!!!

He also delivers a comparison/contrast of George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan:

Ronald Regan killed all of the communists with the cold war which was called that way because it was fought by star wars as well as in siberia which is real cold. The soldiers killed lots of people in communism russian but they all fled and because they were white they came to america and became librals. SO regan did not do as much to save america as George W Bush did, because if regan did better then there would nit have been Bill Clintons sex obsest communist rule for 8 years or even Jimmy Carter.

Compelling stuff.

Spam is annoying enough when it gets sent to your e-mail. Try extracting it from your weblog. Go ahead, try. If it weren’t for MT-Blacklist, I’d have thrown up my hands and turned off comments permanently. Now it’s common knowledge that spammers are pedophiles who only spam the web when they’re not driving around near elementary schools in white cargo vans.

We can’t stop spammers from molesting innocent children, but we can cut them off at the knees by reporting them and having their accounts canceled. So be warned, spammers. You’re going down.

Another reason Portland rocks: A fully functioning retro 80s arcade!

Krause breaks it down for us.
I found this particularly insightful:

You can list more than five reasons why Starbuck’s is evil.

Coming from a neighborhood where a newly installed Starbucks was firebombed, I can safely say there is a bit of hostility for the ubiquitous corporation in this town.

Also noteworthy:

You go to a coffee bar and see two guys get into a fight over who makes the best IPA.
When the weather gets above 50 degrees, you put on your shorts, but you still wear your hiking boots and parka.
When the weather gets above 60 degrees, you replace your hiking boots with sandals.

Of course, this is one of my favorites:

You can go skiing after work.

Make it snowboarding, and it’s dead on.

In addition to garnering the coveted Mulling It Over endorsement, Kerry has won the approval of Dr. Gonzo himself.

BULLETIN
KERRY WINS GONZO ENDORSMENT; DR. THOMPSON JOINS DEMOCRAT IN CALLING BUSH “THE SYPHILLIS PRESIDENT”
“Four more years of George Bush will be like four more years of syphilis,” the famed author said yesterday at a hastily called press conference near his home in Woody Creek, Colorado. “Only a fool or a sucker would vote for a dangerous loser like Bush,” Dr. Thompson warned. “He hates everything we stand for, and he knows we will vote against him in November.”

Thompson, long known for the eerie accuracy of his political instincts, went on to denounce Ralph Nader as “a worthless Judas Goat with no moral compass.”

“I endorsed John Kerry a long time ago,” he said, “and I will do everything in my power, short of roaming the streets with a meat hammer, to help him be the next President of the United States.”