The End of the Raven by Edgar Allan Poe’s Cat from POETRY FOR CATS by Henry Beard On a night quite unenchanting, when the rain was downward slanting, I awakened to the ranting of the man I catch mice for. Tipsy and a bit unshaven, in a tone I found quite craven, Poe was talking to a Raven perched above the chamber door. “Raven’s very tasty,” thought I, as I tiptoed o’er the floor, “There is nothing I like more.” CONTINUED….

And you can download it here. (We’re sure there are also similar masks available this year for those who support him as well…although since Halloween is apparently the devil’s work, that may thin out the rank of partisans a bit…) TMV thanks Rick in Miami for the tip.

Cross-posted to Random Fate. — I have a post in the works on the entire “Pajamas Media” story, but at the moment, this email I received today encapsulates the hypocrisy: Subject: NY Launch Invite For New “Citizen Journalism” News Service – Pajamas Media Hi Jack, On November 16th, 2005 Pajamas Media will launch a new publishing medium that brings together some of the top online influencers and personalities, under one banner, to help evolve and expand journalism....

cross-posted to my blog at Basie.org President Bush’s nomination of doctrinaire conservative Samuel Alito — “there will be no one to the right of Sam Alito on this Court,” says NBC legal analyst/George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley — is clearly a move to wipe the legal and ethical issues surrounding the administration and the GOP off of the front pages. But it is also an attempt to distract from real and pressing issues facing the country, such...

FOX News: I am normally reluctant to write about the highly charged issue of abortion, but this time is an exception. For those of you who consider all abortion to be murder, you should stop reading now. These remarks are directed to the rest of the population that considers abortion appropriate in at least some circumstances — a clear majority of the American public. Two noteworthy events occurred recently that are critical to further discussion of this very important public issue: publication...

President George Bush has nominated conservative judge Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court — giving conservatives the kind of judge they hoped they were going to get after John Roberts was named Chief Justice and likely guaranteeing a Democratic battle: “Judge Alito is one of the most accomplished and respected judges in America,” Bush said from the White House, with Alito by his side. “And his long career in public service has given him an extraordinary breadth of experience.” Alito,...

Someone’s spoiling for a fight!

From MSNBC.com: WASHINGTON – President Bush is nominating Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court, The Associated Press has learned, choosing a long-time federal judge embraced by judicial conservatives to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Bush plans to announce the nomination at 8 a.m. EST, officials said. The story continues with an observation that this choice may mend fences within the Republican Party after the nomination of Harriet Miers, who apparently was chosen because...

(Cross-posted at The Reaction.) The Washington Post is reporting that President Bush will “announce a new Supreme Court nomination today, moving quickly after a weekend of consultations to put forward a replacement for the ill-fated choice of Harriet Miers in hopes of recapturing political momentum, according to Republicans close to the White House”. The three leading candidates: Alito, Luttig, and Batchelder. “Any of the three would draw support from many conservative activists,...

Generally, they’re good for liberals and bad for conservatives — at least for conservatives who claim to be originalists (as if it’s possible to know the “original intent” of the Framers, as if what applied back in 1789 can possibly apply in full in 2005). Plus, my fellow blogger Vivek Krishnamurthy, now at Yale Law School, comments on conservatism, originalism, and precedent. Definitely worth a read. It looks like we who oppose such strident originalism have no less...

According to The Washington Post, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid has called on Karl Rove to resign. Appearing on This Week with George Stephanopoulos, Reid also said that “Bush and Vice President Cheney owe an apology to the American public”. Reid: “I think Karl Rove should step down. Here is a man who the president said if he was involved, if anyone in the administration was involved, out they would go. Anybody who is involved in this, they’re gone.” I’ve got...

He’s bruised and battered, but anything’s possible.

You just KNEW this was coming, didn’t you? Via The Christian Science Monitor: RALEIGH, N.C. – School principals from Newton, Mass., to Denver find themselves increasingly haunted at Halloween by this refrain: Get out, ye ghoulies! Bowing to concerns of a wide range of groups – from Christians who consider Halloween to have pagan or satanic overtones to church-state separatists who object to the holiday’s religious roots – some elementary schools are canceling their...

Our occasional linkfest from all over the Internet. Links are NOT limited to one viewpoint and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Moderate Voice. We posted this by mistake now so it will be reposted tomorrow. The New Delhi Bombings: Winds of Change offers this troubling analyhsis. BEWARE OF BLOG THIEVES! Read Dean Esmay here (and if you have some ideas contact him). SPECULATION MOUNTS OVER GWB’S NEXT SUPREME COURT PICK and the person to read is Red State’s Eric. UPDATE: In...

The tabloid news site Sploid for this: How many Floridians does it take to change a light bulb?: Doesn’t matter, 3.6 million still without power

Here’s unique solution to economic ills, courtesy of Iran’s new President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: just hang a few people and Iran’s stock market problems might be over. Tehran, Oct. 30 – Iran’s hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told the latest cabinet meeting in the Iranian capital that “if we were permitted to hang two or three persons, the problems with the stock exchange would be solved for everâ€?, according to a Tehran-based newspaper. Ahmadinejad...

Earlier today, my fellow co-blogger Holly reported on a Chicago Tribune article that suggests that Bush will nominate either Alito or Luttig — perhaps as early as today (but, I would think, more likely early tomorrow morning to set up the week’s news cycle). I’ve got more on these two “leading” candidates over at The Reaction, including a link to a positive take on Luttig that I wrote back in July, before Roberts was nominated. As some of you know, I generally find myself...

According to the AP, officials in the United Arab Emirates have revealed that Saddam agreed to go into exile in order to avoid war: Saddam Hussein accepted an 11th-hour offer to flee into exile weeks ahead of the U.S.-led 2003 invasion, but Arab League officials scuttled the proposal, officials in this Gulf state claimed. The exile initiative was spearheaded by the late president of the United Arab Emirates, Sheik Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, at an emergency Arab summit held in Egypt in February 2003,...

A truly gruesome story.

From Bloomberg: India’s capital New Delhi was rocked by three explosions that killed at least 41 people and injured hundreds in crowded market places as people shopped for the main Hindu festival of Diwali and the Muslim festival of Eid. The death toll is likely to rise, Home Minister Shivraj Patil told reporters in New Delhi today. Television channels such as NDTV 24×7 have put the toll as high as 65. The home minister said at least 50 people had been injured. The blasts left men, women...

Was it really all about this?

Bull Moose has a prediction: The Moose expects that the President will never again betray his lovers. Indeed, it’s hard to believe that we’ll see Harriet Miers The Sequel. TMV agrees with Bull Moose here: The Bush Administration needs the enthusiastic support of the right now more than ever as it moves into the upcoming crisis period. That is why they will replace Harriet with a true believer. And the White House wouldn’t mind a judicial fight that could be a diversion from their...

A how-to guide, courtesy of the Mexican government.

….and some wonder why.

When Prince Charles meets with President Bush during his upcoming tour of the United States he plans to take the Prez aside and give him a bit of a lesson in tolerance: The Prince of Wales will try to persuade George W Bush and Americans of the merits of Islam this week because he thinks the United States has been too intolerant of the religion since September 11. The Prince, who leaves on Tuesday for an eight-day tour of the US, has voiced private concerns over America’s “confrontational”...