One year ago Little Miss Attila started her blog and it was annoying. It ranted and postured and generally stank of the mental blindness that marks the Puckered Right. She supported Bush's Conquest of Iraq - rah! rah! - without question and even claimed to have definitive proof(!) that Hussein had Weapons of Mass Destruction. This blog, Little Mr Mahatma, was a direct reaction to her blog and in the year since, I've ranted and postured and tried to stink generally from the Waffling Middle although I tend to vary towards the Putred Left.

I suggested she send her definitive proof of WMDs to Bush a long time ago because it looked like a sham excuse to go into Iraq guns a-blazing. Her proof was the same kind of crap that Bush produced. Only now has she questioned whether she was shammed. Baby, shammed, scammed, and rammed up the rear without benefit of lubricant!

A year ago I suggested that when we look for bin Laden it'll likely coincide with Bush's election campaign and - lookie! - one year later Bush has launched a concerted effort to find bin Laden as campaign 2004 looms so close. And what has happened to Hussein? He's disappeared, awaiting his moment in the spotlight. Imagine: The U.S. captures bin Laden and then we drag out both evil, bad guys for public ridicule and damn good photo ops. Picture Bush standing over bin Laden and Hussein, arms raised high, looking victorious in his crisp military uniform. Hail the Conqueror Bush!

And has Bush made the world safer? Doubtful. Iran is loudly going ahead with their nuclear program. You'd think Iraq would have deterred them but instead the reverse has happened. Iran has seen from Iraq that we're militarily stretched (something that Bush swore in his 2000 election campaign, he'd never let happen), economically shaky, and politically sick of war. The Middle East is no more secure now than it was a year ago. Democracy hasn't and likely won't take root in Iraq any time soon. Gas and oil prices are skyrocketing and we have no reserves due to the War.

Meanwhile the Puckered Right focus on that most dire threat to the American Way of Life: Same-sex marriages. I've yet to hear convincing arguments why such marriages shouldn't be allowed. The first argument is usually about procreation, as if all marriage disappeared tomorrow, people would stop having kids. This argument overlooks those who marry and choose to not have kids. As I said before procreation should not be the reason for marriage. You get married out of commitment for the other person.

Another reason I hear is that any children raised in same-sex marriages will likely have gender issues when it comes to sex. Their role models won't be the normal heterosexual twosome. OK, can someone explain to me then whether VP Cheney, his wife, or both are gay, since they have a lesbian daughter? By the logic if a child is gay then that's implying at least one parent is gay, right? Yeah, stupid logic - so that argument doesn't hold much water.

Another argument: Same-sex couples would have to adopt or have kids via artificial insemination (for the women) or surrogate mothers (for the men) and that's un-natural, although their valid options for couples unable to have children naturally. Ask Miss Attila about the adoption process. They don't hand out children to anyone. It's not a drive-through service. They check damn near everything - environment, mental health, financial means, background checks, etc. If Same-sex couples can meet the stringent requirements for adoption, then bless them. Give an orphan a good home.

Or, another way of looking at it: Today in the news - two NY ministers were charged for marrying gays. So marry gays - go to jail. Molest young kids, get a new parish. Gotta love that old time religion.

MEANWHILE the House passed stiffer fines for on-air indecency violations, a subtle step towards censorship. The Supreme Court (*cough* Scalia, Ginsburg) reveals itself as having problems with impartiality. And Spain, once an ally of the U.S., has had enough of us and may start thinking on their own. It's become a different and scary world out there. The rest of the world has had enough of the ugly American thanks to bully Bush. 9/11 - the world was with us. Now we stand alone. Worse, we stand watching helpless as this group - certainly not Americans, not Patriotic Americans - runs roughshod through Our Government, ransacking our treasury and our future for the pockets of their friends.

And will Kerry be any better? Doubtful. With his Skull and Bones affiliation who knows where his true loyalties will lead if he takes power. Politicians, as exemplified by Bush, will say anything to get elected. Campaign promises mean absolutely nothing because there's always another agenda beyond that which is publicly stated.

Not one of my better postings but sometimes there's so much crap you want to vent about that it all comes out without much sense or style. I could hire a proofreader (I think Miss Attila is looking for a job) but then it's not me. Mistakes and all this is my crap and it's been burbling forth for one year. Happy Anniversary from LMM! If you wish to read some of the older posts visit the main LMM blog.