Thursday Stuff

Still busy but thought you might enjoy the following stories:

1. King of Zembla is on fire.

2. MSNBC - "Extreme Victory":

The radicals are learning how to massage their message. Nashat Aqtash, a communications professor at Birzeit University on the West Bank, has been tutoring Hamas candidates on the language of modern politics. He says he learned one of his most valuable lessons from watching Bush's spin doctors: replace hot-button words with polite equivalents. "We don't need to 'kill people'," he says. "We need to 'remove occupation.' Both are the same, but the meaning is totally different." And aim your pitch to attract swing voters. "People tackling social issues get higher votes," he says. "When you kill, don't say you're going to do it. Just do it. And then say you're sorry."

3. Capitol Police = Brownshirt Scum

4. David Neiwert's The Orca Killers describes an ugly nexus of corporate avarice and public policy:

The Building Industry Association of Washington is an organization that not only is ruthless to the point of consciencelessness, it also has become an extraordinarily significant player in Washington state politics. They are, in fact, one of the most powerful funders of the conservative movement's agenda here.