More Foley And Our Congo Connection (Wednesday's Second Hour)

The faces of the forgotten.

We start the hour with Anderson and then we're straight back to John. I sense a pattern here. John then recaps the Foley headlines and intros us into a Rusty Dornan piece about Foley's molestation claims. In any story there's always a who, what, when, where, why, and how. The claims seem a little suspicious because all we've got is the 'what'. We don't know who specifically did the molesting or when and where they did it. The alcohol thing is also up for question because not even his own brother in law knew he had a problem. New York representative Peter King also doesn't buy it, but he's kind of a piece of work himself, IMHO. Following this piece we have a Brian Todd rerun.

Next up we have a taped interview with George Washington University law professor and former page, John Turley. Turley is proposing a new page system and states that it's grotesque some conservatives want to get rid of the program all together. I have to agree, that's stupid. Turley thinks the page program is one of the few good things left in Washington and at this point, he's probably right. John says some of the republicans are basically saying, "trust us with running the country, but don't trust us with your children." Right on, John.

Transitioning now to the blood bath in Iraq, we have a Jamie McIntyre piece that informs us we have lost 19 soldiers in a span of only four days and Iraqis are dying at about a rate of a thousand per month. Of note is that a whole brigade of Iraqi police have been pulled because there is suspicion they are involved in militia killings. Jamie tells us that about 300,000 forces are now "standing up", but we're no where near being able to stand down. After the piece Michael Ware joins us live and tells us that Shia death squads have institutionalized themselves in the govenment, police units, and even hospitals. We've now got all of our eggs in a Malaki basket, but the prime minister is powerless. The plan is to prop him up and give him the credit. John asks Michael if we're losing and though he says we're not winning, the question is difficult to answer. One thing is clear though, the war has emboldened both Iran and Al Qaeda. Once again, mission accomplished. Michael reinterates that we're almost at our target for trained Iraqi forces, but it hasn't made any difference with the insurgency.

Transitioning back to Anderson and a piece that is sure to make everyone feel guilty. You see, the Congo is very rich in natural resources, but the government and officials are so corrupt that the people never see any of the money. Anderson takes us down in a mine where workers are mining tin. This is where the guilt comes in. Tin is used in circuit boards in cell phones and other Congo resources end up in lithium batteries and other gadgets. So half a world away most of us carry a piece of the Congo around every day. These resources should be taxed, but they're not due to the corruption and therefore there are basically no social services in the country. The violence across the country is often related to power struggles over the minerals. Congo's mineral wealth may benefit us, but it has been nothing but a curse for the people living there. After the piece we have a live interview with a worker from the International Crisis Group. He states that the Congo has been a kleptocracy for the past 30 years and it's time to make the state work for the people. More die from humanitarian issues than the violence, so social services would definitely help. Also discussed is the fact that moral society has broken down there and there is no court system to punish those that commit horrific acts.

On now to a former marine who was with the African Union. He tells us what he saw with his own eyes and it's not pretty. People dismembered. Body parts everywhere. You get the picture. It's the stuff of nightmares. After this we have a Sanjay piece from the camps in Chad. This is where we see that baby I mentioned in the first hour post. He's in such respiratory distress that he's using his stomach muscles to get air into his body. A simple twist of fate and that baby, if even sick at all, would be intubated and taken care of in a hospital in the US. But this baby is in the Congo. And he's going to die. And there are thousands just like him.

After a bit of Sanjay live, we move on to a Jeff piece about aid workers being forced out of Darfur. Since the peace deal, 12 workers have been killed and the women are constantly at risk of being raped. Yet everyday they do their work expecting no praise for the amazing things they do. We get Jeff live after the piece and he tells us that the situation is getting so bad that people are actually getting redisplaced out of the displacement camps. It seems there is no light at the end of the tunnel for Darfur. As we end the night, Anderson does his best kiddie show host impression and tries to get the kids hanging around the live shot to wave us goodbye. Unfortunately, it looks like they should have practiced it. On that awkward, yet adorable note, we end the night.

Screencaps by sherynroyce.

So what image from the show is sticking in your head?

Rubber Bullets At May Day Rally, Mission Accomplished Four Years Later, Raw Politics, And Immigration Issues (Tuesday's First Hour)

Hi everyone. Anderson is still in Los Angeles and we're kicking it off with the BREAKING NEWS that, uh oh, the LAPD has fired rubber bullets at the May Day rally marchers. Well...crap. Now that's going to be the story. It doesn't matter how few people it involved, all coverage of the May Day events will now include this video. I don't know exactly where I stand on the whole immigration debate, but I do know having their whole event defined by this now isn't fair. Anyway, since this BREAKING NEWS seems to have actually been breaking, they don't know much else, so we're moving on to the news that Bush just vetoed the Iraq spending bill. Not a shocker. And you know what today is, don't you? Four years after he strutted on that aircraft carrier underneath the "mission accomplished" banner. Four years after thousands of people have died. Four years after thousands of more have been injured. Four years after billions wasted. Four years after dozens upon dozens of excuses. 360 plays us a clip of what Bush said today and what he said back then. Nice touch.

To talk about this we're joined by two of my favorites, David Gergen and Michael Ware. Anderson wonders if either side came out on top politically in the Iraq timeline debate. David doesn't really think so, but he thinks there might be a compromise involving benchmarks in the future. But then Anderson turns to Michael and asks if benchmarks will really work when it comes to putting pressure on Maliki. Michael is so over this question. We know the drill by now: he's never lived up to them before and he doesn't have the real power in Iraq anyway. Michael thinks that at some point we're going to have deal with Iran. Anderson then asks David if politically the Bush Administration has too many eggs in the Maliki basket. That totally sounds like a phrase I would use. Oh, and hey, I did. Ha! Well, it amused me anyway. David points out that so far we can't leave and we can't stay. As I've said before, we're stuck in a Clash song. But he's optimistically looking at these possible benchmarks as a way out of that. Yeah, I don't really see that happening. Anderson then brings up how Maliki is running an office in the government that's pushing a Shia agenda and he wonders if there's even any support for a Sunni/Shia democracy. Michael says no and notes that the true power is going to lie with the Iraq intelligence community. Now the Shia are setting up their own parallel agencies. Hey, just like Douglas Feith. Sigh.

For more discussion we're joined by Kendrick Meek (D) of Florida and Mike Pence (R) of Indiana. Hmm, not the normal players, are they? Anyway, Anderson starts by playing a Bush clip and then asking Meek if a timed withdrawl makes sense. Meek points out that it's not a hard withdrawl date and then he kind of wanders off topic. Anderson presses and then presses again, asking if the terrorists will just lie low until we're gone. Meek basically says we can't win it militarily anyway. I should probably point out that Bush has no leg to stand on here since he advocated a timed withdrawl in regards to Kosovo. Anderson then notes that Bush states he doesn't want the troops taking directions from politicians and civilians. However, he points out that's basically what they've been doing this whole time. Pence doesn't agree. Anderson tries again, stating basically everyone agrees now that we didn't go in with enough troops and that was because of Rumsfeld. But Pence still doesn't see the light. Anderson tells us that Pence stated he saw signs of modest success in Iraq and wonders where that was. Pence then talks about certain areas of Baghdad and al Anbar province. Yeah, and what about Diyala? I'm with Michael, let's start talking to the militias and Iran. It's not pretty, but it's our only way out.

Transitioning now to Ted Rowlands live, looking a little freaked because he was just in the middle of that May Day chaos with the rubber bullets shot by police. There's no concrete info yet, but he states that dozens were shot into the crowd with basically no warning. He says police were clearly trying to clear the crowd, but he's not sure exactly why. He notes that children had been in the crowd. We're shown a clip of Ted talking to a guy that got shot. He is not happy and has a nasty welt on his side. Ted then shows us a bullet and indicates they're not lethal. Well, not normally, but that's not really true. Ask the Red Sox fan that got hit with one in the eye. Oh, you can't. Because she's dead. These aren't love pats here folks, this is the real deal.

Moving on now to some immigration talk with Glenn Beck. Oh, 360. Seriously? We've been through this. Do we need to sit down and have a talk? Glenn is no better than Don Imus and having him on makes you enablers of his racism and misogyny. Because I love you guys I'm just going to blame this on all Klein. He's got a gun to your head, right? Right? Anyway, Glenn doesn't think the rallies help the cause and Anderson asks what we should do about the 12 million people already here illegally. Glenn basically doesn't answer and instead focuses on security. Anderson wants to know why we can't have both: security and comprehensive immigration reform. Glenn's not having it. Then Anderson brings up the fact that Glenn thinks this could all lead to a civil war in America. Well, at least he's bringing up one crazy thing he's said. Glenn starts talking about how most people are in the middle and he basically tries to paint himself as some sort of centrist uniter and not the fringe right provoker that he is. After the interview Anderson pimps Glenn's special and I throw up in my mouth a little. Okay, I'm exaggerating (obviously). Hell, if we're going to really do this let's go for it. Ann Coulter next week. What do you say, 360? Lower that discourse!

Next up we have an Anderson piece on our "Planet in Peril." Okay, so they're in LA and LA is the most polluted city in the US...and I think that's pretty much what this piece is built on. Don't get me wrong, I love the environmental news. It's just that I no longer have any idea what they're trying to do with this "Planet in Peril" stuff and quite frankly, I don't think they do either. Moving on to "Raw Politics" with Tom Foreman and we learn that Joe Biden has opened his big mouth again, stating he wants to shove the veto down Bush's throat. Presidential. CNN then does some pimping of their debates and Tom tells us to "Mark your calendars, put the kids to bed, lock up your dog." My dog can't watch? He's very into politics. We also learn that Bono is teaming up with Senator Clinton on an education bill for the poor. However, Tom tells us "he's not endorsing her at this point. Perhaps he still hasn't found what he's looking for." Groooaan. Maybe he'll tell her he can do it 'with or without you'. Hey look, I can do it too. Finally, McCain has found himself back on top, but it's still early. Really early.

We're back to the immigration chaos footage now and Anderson notes that the rubber bullets are "very soft". Oh, Anderson. To be fair, he points out that they leave welts, but still. Perhaps he needs to be shot with one and then he can report how soft they are. Though really, that sounds more like a Rick Sanchez piece. Nobody wants to see Anderson get hurt. Just saying. On now to a Joe Johns "Keeping Them Honest" piece on what the heck happened with all that promised immigration reform. As Joe tells us, the midterm elections got in the way, but what's unclear is what the voters actually said. Both sides are pretty much claiming victory. We're told, "republican Peter Roskam beat Democrat Tammy Duckworth, claiming she was too soft on illegal immigrants." Whoa, whoa, whoa. Tammy Duckworth was a victim of major robocalling by the NRCC. Is that what lost her the election? I don't know, but it's definitely worth noting if you're going to talk about a reason why she might have lost.

Next we've got more May Day footage and then a Gary Tuchman piece about crossing into the US. He's hanging out on the Rio Grande and even sees a dude swimming. Funny thing is, as soon as the guy sees the camera, he swims back, claiming he was just doing the breast stroke for leisure. Uh huh. Gary tells us the word on the Mexican street is you have to be careful now because the US is cracking down. I guess that's a good thing. Erica with the headlines tonight and some of what she bring us includes Anna Nicole's daughter and where she'll live. "That's for up to "Access Hollywood" or "ET" or something to decide maybe," says Anderson. I'm holding you to that Anderson Cooper! The Shot tonight is Mt. Etna in Italy blowing its top. Wow. Pretty amazing shots of the lava. Afterwards Anderson urges us to send them our Shots, but not to get too close to a volcano just to get on tv. Um, not a problem in St. Louis. Again, a really good show, though I did think they were a little casual about the rubber bullets. B+

Iraq, Draft Talk, A Jihadi Spy, Kramer's A Racist, And News Corp Gets A Clue (Monday's First Hour)

Hello all. Looks like Anderson is taking the week off. That slacker. Okay, I suppose he deserves it. John Roberts is back from his month long Iraq banishment and he's holding down the anchor chair for us tonight. We begin on the subject of Iraq and apparently it has been determined that the only three options left are to go big, go long, or go home. Options one and three have been deemed unacceptable, so it looks like we're going long But seriously people, it's not a freakin football toss. In a piece from Jamie McIntyre we learn that a strategic dialogue group has been formed and General Pace will take their recommendations to Bush. We also learn that Henry Kissinger told the BBC that we can't win a clear military victory, but we can't pull out either. So, uh, we just stay there and lose forever?

To talk about Kissinger's statements and more, Michael Ware joins us live from Iraq. Michael agrees the US is not achieving victory right now. John mentions Ramadan as a reason for increased attacks and Michael explains that while it's true the violence is better this month, no one is reading that as the insurgency being curbed. John lays out the new plan to increase forces in the short term and Michael brings it all into perspective. He tells us that 20,000 extra troops would only make a dent in the insurgency because commanders are telling him that they need 15,000 more troops in Ramadi alone. As I've posted before, if we want to make any change with extra troops we're going to need at least 100,000, not 10,000 and we just don't have them.

Moving on now to an interview with "Cobra II" author, Michael Gordon, who believes there is no one solution for Iraq. He suggests a temporary surge of forces in Baghdad, diplomacy with Iran and Syria, and a step up of Iraqi army training. That stuff sounds good, but haven't we tried it all before? Minus the diplomacy of course. Because we all know we don't do that. John then brings up that democrats want out of Iraq and Michael thinks that says more about American politics than Iraqi politics and taking out troops removes all leverage the US has. The Iraq Study Group, which is beginning to become like the Holy Grail of Iraq solutions, is also mentioned. Everybody seems to have their eggs in this group's basket and for all we know they got nothing.

Transitioning now to a Joe Johns piece on representative's Charles Rangel's proposal to reinstitute the draft. Rangel is a decorated Korean war veteran who is against the Iraq war. No other democrats are on board with the idea, so it's obviously just to make a point. Rangel believes with the current talk of increasing troop levels the country needs to have a conversation about how this war is disproportionately effecting the poor and minorities. Rangel tried this before too, but it's getting much more coverage this time around due to the democrats recent win and the fact that the public has turned away from the war, making it safe for the sometimes cowardly media to cover this kind of stuff. I have to admit, my first reaction to this news was purely political and it went a little something like this: "What are you doing, man?!" Stuff like this is fodder for the Right. Although I do tend to agree with him that if everyone might be sent to Iraq, a lot more people would take an interest in what's going on over there. However, I have a 20 year old brother, so for that reason I'm against a draft. Yeah, it's a selfish reason, but it is what it is. It's not like either one of us ever supported the war.

Keeping on the same subject we have a taped interview with Charles Rangel himself. He tells us that those in charge are playing checkers with human lives and everyone needs to sacrifice. John brings up the fact that some cynics would say he's just trying to scare people to get out of Iraq. Rangel counters that if Kissinger is saying there's no military victory to be had in that country, why is the military there? Following this we have a snippet of a Dan Lemon interview with Barack Obama. Dan asks if Obama thinks a black man can be elected president and Obama says "absolutely". There's more of this in the second hour.

Transitioning now to a Nic Robertson piece on Omar Nasiri, a spy for French, German, and British intelligence inside Al Qaeda and author of "Inside the Jihad." Maybe it was just my cable, but it seems like the first part of this was kind of messed up. Anybody else get that? Anyway, Nasiri believes that Al Qaeda wanted the US in Iraq and that Ibn Sheikh al-Libi lied to the US when he was captured in 2001. Many will remember that it was al-Libi's claim that Al Qaeda was working to get chemical and biological weapons from Saddam that was used as evidence for going to war. I always assumed that al-Libi lied under torture telling his US captors what they wanted to hear. This is probably true, but it's horrible to think that not only did our leaders lie us into this war, they also allowed themselves to be manipulated into the war by the very people that are our enemies. Nasiri also states that he had contact with Abu Zubaydah and even wired money to him, but in the end he became frustrated because no one was paying attention to the intelligence he was collecting. So many missed opportunities.

Moving on to a Brooke Anderson piece where we learn that, hey, that lovable goof Kramer from Seinfeld is actually a big old racist. Michael Richards was performing at the Laugh Factory when he was heckled by some African Americans. This then proceded to set Michael off and that's pretty much the biggest understandment I've ever made. This guy lost it, screaming and spewing the N-word all over the place. I think this is the fastest amount of time I've ever lost complete respect for someone. During Monday night's Letterman taping, Seinfeld was the guest and Michael came on to apologize via satelite. We're shown a short clip where he claims he's not a racist. Um, duuude, that kind of crap doesn't just happen. People who aren't racist don't go around screaming the N-word. Sorry. So anybody wanna take bets on how soon we'll hear about his stint in rehab for alcohol? I hear tell from a certain Mr. Mel Gibson it apparently makes you a racist. Or maybe he'll go the prescription drug route and blame it on Ambien.

On now to an interview with Sinbad. Hey where's he been lately? Anyway, Sinbad was there and he informs us Michael wasn't even being heckled all that bad. He also mentions that even before the racial slurs, Michael was bragging about how he's rich and could have the police follow the hecklers around. Geez, he's sounding like Bill O'Reilly and his Fox News police. John then asks Sinbad about the N-word and how whites aren't allowed to say it, but blacks do. Sinbad doesn't agree with rappers using it and basically thinks no one should say it. I agree. It should be said by no one. Blacks of today know racism, but they don't know the violence that word once brought. I wonder if half of them even know what Billie Holiday was referring to when she sang about strange fruit. Back in the interview, John wants to know if Michael's career is over. I think it is. Sinbad thinks America will forget as soon as the next person does something stupid. Eh, he's got me there. I guess I don't mind that they covered this (even though it's really sensational and more entertainment than news), but this was a good opportunity blown to talk about racism in America.

Our last piece tonight is from Jason Carroll and guess what? The OJ book and special are history. Whoopee! News Corp has bowed to pressure and what a lot of pressure there was. A total of 12 Fox affiliates had refused to air the special and big names from Fox News like Bill O'Reilly were also bringing the outrage. When O'Reilly and I both agree about something you know it's bad. There was also a petition started by the Goldman family. I love that a public outcry stopped this vile trash from going out onto the airways and into bookstores, but I kind of wish the public would outcry on some more serious stuff too. Not that this wasn't serious, but my God, they got rid of hapeas corpus and nobody made a peep. Of course I guess the public would actually have to know in order for there to be an outcry and that would require the news to stop focusing so much on celebrities and actually do their job. I won't hold my breath. Anyway, Simpson's already been compensated, so he makes out either way.

Joe Johns doing the headlines again and one bit of news he brings us is that the government is doubling the Avian Flu vaccine, so now we have enough for 6 million people. Great. Just 294 million to go. Yeah, we're all gonna die. The Shot tonight is a Nascar gas tank explosion that leaves the car on fire, but its driver walks out to safety. Can someone please explain Nascar to me? Cars driving in a circle. I just don't get it. That'll do it for the hour. B-

Would you support a draft? Is Michael Richards career over?

Live From Karachi: The Bhutto Assassination (Friday's Show)

Hi everybody. The regulars know I don't do Fridays (nor do I do windows), but I figured if 360 is going to fly 16 some-odd hours across the globe to bring us the news, eh, this week I can do a Friday review. As the title says, we've got Anderson Cooper coming at us live from Karachi, Pakistan and he gives us the rundown on the latest. We then get an Anderson piece that contains new video and recaps the assassination. Also, you know how she died from being shot? Scratch that. Well, maybe scratch that. Like a lot of things in life, it depends on who you talk to. Because Pakistan's Interior Ministry says she died from a skull fracture that occurred when she ducked down in the vehicle. This is contradicted by, well, everyone else--including rational logic. I'm no doctor, but I'm thinking that a skull fracture and a bullet wound to the neck are fairly distinguishable from each other. So now we've got a martyred leader and controversy about her cause of death, which is always fabulous when you've already got fire-setting protests going on. Also? Pakistan is pointing the finger of blame squarely at al Qaeda, specifically Baitullah Mehsud, a linked Taliban leader.

For discussion about this, Peter Bergen joins Anderson in Karachi and Nic Robertson is live from Switzerland, uh, doing some banking or something. So, okay, another horrible news story; another complicated name to learn. I guess they all can't be Mullah Dadullah, which still kind of cracks me up. You've got to find your fun where you can. Anyway, Peter tells us the Mehsuds are a tribe from Waziristan, which we all remember is not a happening vacation destination. Anderson notes that Pakistan really has no control over the area. He also points out that some think it's pretty convenient for Pakistan to suddenly name this guy (you can throw me into that some), yet he's also a likely suspect. Nic explains that Mehsud is associated with al Qaeda leaders and recently Ayman al-Zawahri said Bhutto was a US plant, essentially putting a target on her. Then they all talk about the peace agreement Pakistan signed with the tribes, which 360 talked about extensively last year when they went to Afghanistan (see my September 2006 archives). Nic then talks about how Pakistan's intelligence officials actually helped train some of the people that are fighting for the Taliban and al Qaeda today, only they were trained to fight a proxy war with India. Well, now that sounds familiar, doesn't it? Funny how those proxy wars always work out.

Next up, we have a David Mattingly piece where he and CNN security analyst Mike Brooks kind of analyze the video of the assassination. Basically, the gunman was able to get way too close. "With all the threats she has had and the attempts against her life, she should not have been out of that vehicle at all," says Mike. Thank you! I don't mean to blame the victim, but she knew the threat and was reckless. I understand that she didn't want to hide and she loved her people, but now what can she do for them?

Coming back from commercial, Anderson assures us that he will be back in New York for the New Year's Eve special, which I hope to be the case. Because man, I'm not positive, but I'm pretty sure that being stood up on New Year's Eve by your cable news anchor boyfriend that doesn't know you exist, might just possibly be the most pathetic thing ever. I mean, I'd have to double check the "Official Book of Pathetic", but it's got to be close. Sigh.

Moving on now to an Ed Henry piece for the latest from the White House. Some people may not realize it, but the Bush Administration had their fingers all up in this Bhutto situation. You see, Musharraf's power was slipping, so the plan was to bring home Bhutto and have them potentially share power. But like everything the Bush Administration touches, it all turned to crap. Okay, don't get me wrong; I'm not saying they had anything to do with the assassination (which wouldn't make any sense, anyway). I'm just saying their problem-solving track record isn't so hot. They're really more in the problem-creating business. So with plan B out the window, what's plan C? One option is Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Sure, he's got "connections to Islamist parties", but who doesn't these days, right? Or, you know, maybe they'll just let Musharraf have his police state. I guess we only get really stubborn about democracy and rooting out terrorists when the country begins with an "I."

Transitioning back to Anderson and Peter, who are joined by Reza Aslan. Reza smacks down some conventional wisdom, telling us Bhutto really wasn't all that popular and because of that, the US might have compromised her by putting all their eggs in her basket. He further explains that now we're up a creek because in Pakistan, it's all about leaders with charisma, and there's nobody else like Bhutto. Apparently the Pakistanis also elect their officials based on who they'd like to have a beer with. The panel then talk a bit about whether the election will be delayed. Peter tries to go glass half full on us, suggesting that maybe now ordinary Pakistanis will put pressure on their government to crack down on al Qaeda and the Taliban. Well, not if they're too busy watching "Pakistani Dancing with the Stars." I mean, Americans slept while Congress took away habeas corpus, so forgive me if I don't have much faith in people rising up. Anyway, Reza then tells us that Musharraf is a "dictator in civilian clothing," who we're going to be stuck with for a while. Awesome. Also? The satellite delay during this segment was kind of bordering on the comical, but whaddaya going to do, you know?

We're next played Hillary Clinton's recent statements on the Pakistan situation. Let's see, she wants an independent international investigation, Pakistan has no credibility, Bush sucks, blah, blah, blah. Good luck with that first one. And the others? Duh. Moving on to an interview that Anderson had with Edwards, he begins by asking the candidate what he would do in this situation. First off, Edwards throws down that he not only called Musharraf, but also met with Bhutto. Look at that foreign policy cred! He then talks a very, very long time, yet manages to not really answer the question. After that he starts talking about why we shouldn't trust Musharraf and there's nothing to be snarky about.

On now to a discussion with Candy Crowley and Mark Halperin of "Time." Anderson begins by playing us a clip of Huckabee, who says that besides the Mexicans, Pakistanis are coming over our border in higher numbers than any other nationality. So be afraid, people! Be afraid...and vote republican. But Anderson tells us that, uh, that Huckabee claim is actually not true. Oh, good lord. I love how the media swooped on this guy like he was the second coming, but it turns out that if he has to say anything of substance, well, he's kind of an idiot. He's got the charisma thing, but not much else. Kind of reminds me of a certain eight-year mistake I know. Anyway, Mark is marveling at Huckabee's teflon-like abilities. He says it's up to journalists to hold him accountable. Well, crap. We're out of luck then, aren't we? Aw, 360, you know I'm just kidding you. Sort of. Candy tells us that voters still want to talk about domestic issues, but the candidates are insisting on flaunting their experience. We then get played a McCain ad and Anderson is so sick of this satellite delay, he wants Mark to take it right after. Anderson will defeat the delay, yes he will!

The hour ends with more talk from Peter....and that's it. You'd think that they'd do two hours after coming all that way, but then again, they probably didn't have time to have two hours ready. As for the Saturday night special that wasn't, your guess is as good as mine. Technical problems? Changing flights? Kind of weird though. I mean, at least give us a blog post or something, people. Anyway, I'm assuming the NYE show is still on. Obviously I'm not going to be reviewing it, but maybe I'll have something fun for you guys, depending on what happens. I mean, c'mon, Anderson and Kathy Griffin together for two hours? I don't see how hilarity wouldn't ensue. Shall we place bets on whether she keeps her hands off the anchor? Heh. Show was good. A-

Fighting Allies And Polygamy Returns (Wednesday's Show)

Hey guys. We begin tonight with emmy award winning Anderson Cooper giving us what is perhaps the Best Flub Ever. Anderson corrected himself quickly, so probably not many people caught it, but as he went to say "president Bush", it came out "president duh." He was either going for Dubya or it was just an awesome Freudian slip. Whatever it was, I certainly got a kick out of it. Anyway, I guess I should get on with the show. The lead story tonight is the bickering going on between Hamid Karzai and Perez Musharraf. In a piece by Suzanne Malveaux we're told both presidents are accusing each other of not doiong enough to fight terrorists. Karzai is mad about the deal Pakistan cut with tribal leaders and Musharraf thinks Afghanistan is weak and Karzai is not taking responsibility for his failures. Oh boy. I can't say I didn't see this coming. My guess is that if it gets bad enough Karzai will be pushed out. Pushing out Musharraf is not possible. However, we're no where near that point yet. After the piece we get Suzanne live and she's basically cooling her heels and waiting for a dinner with Bush, Musharraf, and Karzai to be over.

Next up we have a John Robert's piece that aims to analyze just how good our allies really are. It is noted that both leaders have very complicated political situations and neither controls their whole country. The Taliban is currently gaining ground in Afghanistan, but that seems to be part of Pakistan's plan. Karzai is doing a bad job cracking down on poppy growing because he doesn't want to anger war lords and Musharraf is doing a bad job tracking down Bin Laden because to catch him would be political suicide. Basically these two aren't great, but Karzai is loyal and Musharraf is about as good as we're going to get. So...yay? When the piece ends we get Peter Bergen live and they pretty much go over stuff we've heard several times before. Peter thinks that Pakistan is using the Taliban as a kind of insurance card that they can play when need be.

On now to a Michael Ware piece that shows us some really fierce fighting going on in Ramadi. The battalion he is with has lost 17 guys in just seven months and the general admits he does not have enough troops to win the battle. Are you hearing this Bush? You say you listen to the guys on the ground. This is a guy on the ground saying he needs more troops to win. Give them more troops or pull them out. "Stay the course" is a slogan, not a policy. Michael then joins us live and Anderson asks, "Do they feel like their voices are being heard?" Michael says they basically just want their story told. Anderson also asks if they're still doing things like building schools (Remember when the media used to get slammed for not covering that stuff enough?) , but a departing civil affairs head has said they've given up on that. Basically the battle for hearts and minds is over and we lost big time. Now they're mostly just trying to prop up the government.

Next Anderson informs us that a new poll has found that 71% of Iraqis want the US out of their country within a year. Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't dear leader at one point say that we would leave when asked? I guess they were talking about the puppets they help prop up and not the actual Iraqi people. Because who really cares about them anyway, right? Not us obviously. We call that collateral damage. 3,000 Americans die and we completely freak out. Hundreds of Iraqis die EVERY SINGLE WEEK and we shrug. Sorry. Right before writing this I learned of the vote on the detainee bill, so I'm a little bitter. Anyway, the stats segway us into a piece from Jamie McIntyre concerning the internal military battle over war plans. Right now our strategy is "clear, hold, and build." For those keeping score at home, that's the same strategy we had for Vietnam. And that worked out just peachy, didn't it? General Casey believes the war is in transition and basically everyone is now putting all their victory eggs in a unity government basket. Sorry if I'm not optimistic.

Big transition now to...polygamy! This story just won't die. I guess I should be thankful they didn't play that creepy tape of Warren Jeffs singing. Because I swear to God if they do that again I will find a way to make them all listen to John Ashcroft singing "Let the Eagle Soar". Be kind to your viewers, 360. Torture is bad. So anyway, Jeffs is in court and he's charged with arranging marriages to underage girls. His attorney has this really freaky looking bow tie. Maybe he's Tucker Carlson's dad. You all can probably figure out by my comments I didn't pay much attention to all this because I don't care. I'm really, really glad he's caught, but I don't want to see full pieces on him anymore Poor Gary Tuchman is on the case again and he says Jeffs' followers have become even more insular (if that's possible) and he's never been anywhere on the planet where he gets such an unwelcome reception. Aw Gary, I would totally talk to you. Poor Gary is going to have self esteem issues when this is all over.

We move on to a taped Harry Reid interview that Anderson intros as "in his own words." In the tape, Reid, a mormon himself, rails against polygamy, but I wasn't really listening because I was too fascinated by meta issues. I want to know where this interview came from. Reid looks to be in his office and he's talking to someone, but our camera isn't over the interviewer's shoulder like normal, it looks to be coming at him from the side. And we never hear or see the interviewer. Did 360 jack someone else's interview? Inquiring minds want to know. Following the interview we have a Rick Sanchez piece where he goes up in a plane and shows us this big polygamist compound in Texas. I have a really hard time taking Rick seriously.

Next Anderson gives us a clarification about the clogging piece they did the night before. Oh good. Because if you'll remember I was a little confused. Apparently the money Hal Rogers got did not build the center. Well that clears things up. Except, uh, ...it totally doesn't. In fact that makes it even more confusing. You know what? I'm just going to let it go and choose to believe someone at 360 is just really amused by clogging. Maybe there was some sort of bet made. Who knows? But that's all the brain space I'm using on this. The Shot tonight is....OUCH! This woman totally got pierced through the foot and you pretty much have to see it. After The Shot there is a little piece on Musharraf's Daily Show appearance. Did you guys watch it? So funny. Anderson agrees, "pretty darn funny." And so weird to see someone like that on there. Jon is my fake news hero. And he's got a little Oprah effect going on too because Musharraf's book bumped up to #4 on Amazon.

This is about the time that 360 does their best to totally confuse me. Anderson had said there would be a taped second hour, so I figured I was done for the night. However, when the second hour began they ran the (now taped) beginning from the first hour, which really threw me. And then suddenly Anderson's live again. WTF? The reason for this is apparently because that dinner Suzanne Malveaux was waiting on just ended, lasting longer than expected. She and Anderson then discuss stuff like body language and basically a bunch of speculation that's really not helpful and not worth staying live.

Next we have a repeat of the John Robert's piece and at this point I don't know if they're staying live for the hour, reruning the first hour, or running a special. After the piece, there's Peter live again. He and Anderson talk a little and Peter says Afghanistan is starting to look like 2003 Iraq. However, Afghans tend to be more pro-American than Iraqis. Eh, give them time, Peter. Give them time Peter then takes a breath to say more, but Anderson totally cuts him off. He is ready to go, people. I think Anderson has a hot date. In his hurry, Anderson proceeds to completely butcher the word "proliferation". It takes him about three tries to get it out and even he can't help but laugh. "It's getting late," he tells us. Yes it is. But, uh, you do this the same time every night. Heh. Like I said, Anderson totally has a hot date. Tonight was a pretty eh show. C+

Screencaps by liberation337 and stormi0611.

So what do you guys think about the bickering between Musharraf and Karzai? And...have you had enough of polygamy?