Quite truly, I did not think this event would occur. I used my biased American standards of justice and simply assumed that Hussein would utilize his lawyers in such a way as to either draw the trial into a circus aspect (which it did resemble) or into such a confused circumlocution of gibberish as to make a finding impossible. Text from this photo:

This video image released by Iraqi state television shows Saddam Hussein’s guards wearing ski masks and placing a noose around the deposed leader’s neck moments before his execution Saturday Dec. 30. 2006. Clutching a Quran and refusing a hood, Saddam Hussein went to the gallows before sunrise Saturday, executed by vengeful countrymen after a quarter-century of remorseless brutality that killed countless thousands and led Iraq into disastrous wars against the United States and Iran. (AP Photo/IRAQI TV, HO)

ABC’s Terry McCarthy wrote:

There are five men in black face masks who are visible on the gallows platform around Saddam, acting as guards. As they guide him towards the trap door and put the noose over his head, they start chanting religious slogans with the names of Moqtada al Sadr (the head of the Mahdi army, accused of organizing death squads against Sunnis) and Baqr al Sadr (the father-in-law of Moqtada). Saddam, a Sunni, is outraged at this last-minute provocation, and tells them to “go to hell.” This is generally where the two TV stations cut the video, but on at least one occasion that we saw, Arabiya allowed the video to keep rolling: The cell phone camera is jerked down to the ground, as if the person holding it had to conceal the camera, then it is slowly raised up to Saddam again, and suddenly his body shoots down through the trapdoor. At this, the Arabiya anchor came on and made a scissors symbol with two fingers with a mischievous grin on his face, as if to say that they really shouldn’t have shown that, but so be it. A cynical voyeuristic ploy, nudge nudge wink wink.

What will this mean for Iraq? What shall be the implications?

It is said that Hussein was a Sunni, but he was in truth mostly areligious. He ruled with a militaristic fist, not by the hand of Mohammad or the Koran — which he hypocritically clutched at the final moments of his life.

Our military in Iraq is on edge; some Iraqis are dancing in the streets, some are planning their revengistic strategies.

Israel worries about the fallout re perceptions of “Palestinians” and Hussein. From The Jerusalem Post:

During the first Gulf War in 1991, the Palestinians cheered Saddam’s missile attacks on Israel, chanting “Beloved Saddam, strike Tel Aviv,” as the Scud missiles flew overhead. He further endeared himself to the Palestinians during the recent uprising with Israel by giving US$25,000 to the family of each suicide bomber and US$10,000 for each Palestinian killed in fighting. The stipends amounted to an estimated US$35 million. Saddam’s support for the Palestinians, whose cause is deeply popular with Arabs throughout the Middle East, was at least partially aimed at gaining widespread support throughout the Arab world. “Saddam was a person who had the ability to say, ‘No’ in the face of a great country,” said Hosni al Ejel, 46, from the al Amari refugee camp near Ramallah.

Hussein’s death: I expected it not to come to fruition. But now that it has occurred, will it be another match lighted to the general Middle Eastern tinderbox?

My gut feelings: it won’t be the “rallying point” that many believe or hope it to be. Had Saddam Hussein been more overtly Islamic, perhaps; as it rests, it was always more about him than about Islam.
________________________________________

President Ford:

Allow me to be quick and blunt: Gerald Ford was America’s 38th President. He passed away this past Tuesday, December 26th, at age 93 in Rancho Mirage, California. His family, including his wife, 88-year-old Betty Ford, was at his bedside.

Ford was the only American President to never have been elected.

He assumed the post in 1974 when Richard Nixon stepped down. He found himself facing Jimmy Carter in the 1976 election and was defeated predominantly because he granted Nixon a Presidential Pardon for his misdeeds.

He’ll likely be remembered for three things: falling or slipping in public, and two assassination attempts within three weeks of each other, conducted by two females.

On September 5th, 1975, whilst in Sacramento, California (gosh, my home town!), Lynette “Squeeky” Fromme, dressed in her finest garishly-red garments, whipped out a Model 1911 Colt .45 caliber pistol and pointed it at Ford in the park surrounding our Capitol. Though loaded with four live .45 caliber rounds, she had clearly neglected to read up on the 1911’s idiosyncrasies. Due to its single-action nature, one must first insert a loaded magazine into the well, pull back on the slide and release, in order to load a round into the chamber. Its hammer now back, one should thumb up the safety. This is known in the Colt Kingdom as Condition One. Cocked and Locked.

Squeeky, being a Blonde, thought inserting the magazine was sufficient. Sorry, old girl. That stupid move cost her Life In Prison. And oh, a wondrously alert Secret Service agent managed to insert the webbing of his hand between frame and hammer. Not that it made much difference — he was, after all, dealing with not only a Blonde but a Manson Blonde.

Second attempt on Ford:

On September 22nd, 1975, Ford visited San Francisco much to his later chagrin. Here, Sara Jane Moore, outside the St. Francis Hotel, fired one .38 caliber round from her revolver at Ford from roughly 40′ and missed. This was because a bystander named Oliver Sipple managed to grasp her arm and deflect the first round, then wrestled her to the ground and kept the revolver from firing a second time. The first round, going wild, struck the facia of the hotel and slightly injured a bystander.

Ford’s largest influence, as far as I can determine, came in the Kennedy Assassination whilst he was a Republican Minority Leader:

In 1997 the Assassination Records Review Board (ARRB) released a document that revealed that Ford had altered the first draft of the report to read: “A bullet had entered the base of the back of his neck slightly to the right of the spine.” Ford had elevated the location of the wound from its true location in the back to the neck to support the single bullet theory.[20] The original first draft of the Warren Commission Report stated that a bullet had entered Kennedy’s “back at a point slightly above the shoulder and to the right of the spine.” Despite its conclusions, the Commission’s work continues to be debated in the public arena.

What did Ford know, when did he know it, and what has been buried with his death?

What shall we truly know about the Kennedy Assassination?

Ford was a President; he should be shown respect. A nation mourns to a degree. Judgmental: he deserves only a fraction of the respect shown to Reagan upon his passing. I’m sure that Gerald Ford was a nice man. He certainly was not Presidential Material.

Facts are what they are.

History is what it is.

BZ

Admittedly, I have been removed from blogging for a few days, tied up with some very critical decisions at work, familial obligations and Life In General. It’s the time of year when everything seems to descend at once, including social interfacing for “The Holidays.” I have also been remiss in my visits to other’s blogs: guilty.

But I am at least about to start the New Year with some work and personal resolutions, not to mention an eagerly-anticipated trip to the Fornicalia coast for a three-night stay at a beautiful hotel facing directly toward the Pacific Ocean, next Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights. This is the proverbial “test drive” with my fiance for our upcoming honeymoon.

Yes, boys and girls, we’ve “set the date.” We’ll be getting married on a day actually easy for me to remember: Valentine’s Day, 2007. After getting married in a fashion to honor my parents (they “eloped,” much to my Grandmother Goodenow’s horror and dismay, in Reno, Nevada, on April 24th, 1942!), we’ll be staying at The Ridge in Nevada then traveling for some stays at Timber Cove near Jenner, the North Cliff Motel in Fort Bragg, and then to further points north to include Bandon, Oregon, Seattle, Washington and British Columbia as well. Canucks, here we come!

In the interim, President Ford passed away. Saddam Hussein is about to be hanged.

I’ll get to those later.

BZ

It’s Christmas Eve and I doubt many will be blogging today; for whatever reason I find myself on the upstairs HP confuser listening to Porcupine Tree’s Stupid Dream album. I am alone tonight. My fiance had to work today, as this is her “Monday.” She works Christmas Day and to Wednesday. I have tomorrow off. She works and lives in Sacratomato. I live high in the Sierra Nevada mountains.

I went train chasing today and caught a beautiful UP consist heading downhill over the Long Ravine Bridge towards Colfax.

I came home after a bout of photography and began cleaning up after the Early Christmas. I put all my Christmas things away (on Christmas Eve, of all times!) but left my wreath on the front gate. I organized even more thoroughly for next year, placing all the Christmas items in my Grandmother’s trunk from Scotland, which rests in my living room. Everything fit wonderfully. I cleaned out more spaces around the house and vacuumed, oiled the antiques, reorganized the cupboards. As I write this I’m doing multiple loads of wash; I’ve already broomed off the decks in anticipation of more snow this week. I loaded more wood. The stove is already stacked with a load ready to light. My pantry is stacked with bottled water and canned food. The propane tank is up to around 70% — more than enough to get me through the worst of winters.

When I finished, I opened a nice Merlot, lit some candles, and reflected on the work I’ve done since 2004.

I exited one moribund relationship in 2004 and found myself with a vacant house minus some door pulls and other key items. Such it is with give-and-take. A few properly-written checks later I completely severed the exsanguinated relationship and began a full court press to redecorate the house. In a fashion that I, for once, wished.

First, I threw away an amazing amount of needless gurp. I will be the first to admit that my cabin is small; not more than 1,250 sq ft., though it has two bathrooms (one upstairs and one downstairs) and three bedrooms. The upstairs bedroom (not technically a bedroom since it contains no “closet”) is a loft overlooking the open bottom floor.

I repainted several rooms and purchased new applicances, a wondrous, rich leather loveseat and sofa from Breuners, a huge Toshiba 42″ HiDef TV, and had the exterior repainted in the fashion I’d not been “allowed” under the previous regime. Quite naturally, it looks great. I also spent $9,000 on a new Trex deck and, in 2005, spent $5,000 to have a massive 192′ pine removed from the property — its base had been damaged by lightning as I feared it would crack and fall in the coming winter.

In summary, my house is now precisely how I like it. Influenced and created and decorated by no one other than me. To me this means everything. I finally have control over my home and, by proxy, over my Life. Because, at work, I have No Control.

My home is now the Anchor I have sought in my fevered existence. Without this Anchor, a spot I can cleave to, Nothing Makes Sense. When I desire, I can retreat to my own personal Hidey-Hole, disappear down its shaft and pull the rock in after me. What I also discovered is that no one, besides me, has my taste in decoration. And I do have fabulous taste. This is not bragging; this is simply fact.

I tried to express the import of my feelings about this to the prior administration but they eventually turned a deaf ear. They are now on their own and God Bless their efforts. They are operating now within their own parameters and I am now on mine. To our mutual benefit.

And what has this to do with the current post?

Well, perhaps, a bit of reflection over the past year and back a few years to 2004, a turning point for me.

2006 will soon be gone. What do I envision for 2007?

Any prescient predictions on my part?

I’m thinking:

The GOP will continue to be dazed and confused; it will not much coalesce — it hasn’t the intelligence. The Dems will continue to fight each other, like the GOP. There will be no unified strata on either side of the aisle.

2007, however, will be THE year that Presidential Candidates MUST assemble their war chests, amass their troops, Fish or Cut Bait.

There are no real clear leaders on either side of the aisle just yet. But I might hazard this guess:

On the GOP side: Rudy Giuliani appears, to me, to be the most credible of candidates. Yes, he leans a tad Left on certain social issues. That’s fine with me. Considering the total of those who may represent the GOP, I’m finding I’ll back a Leader more than I will someone who weakly espouses something of the daily Talking Points. Yes, Giuliani will have a time explaining the issues with his wife and his affair; guess what? I’ll STILL take Giuliani because he IS a LEADER.

I suspect that, in 2007, Israel will have to make a massive military strike on either Syria or Iran. This will be backed my US military equipment but not by overt US action. Prior to this, Lebanon will be a source site of missiles into Israel which will be a predicating event for Israel’s action. Israel will NOT give up Gaza.

North Korea will continue with the sabre-rattling. Sensible Shoes will remember that NK still cannot produce glass without sugar candy imperfections. The Midget will be distracted by more and more internal strife and dissension — dealing with the lack of basics such as food, housing.

America will continue within Iraq. There will be a stronger and stronger push to completely abandon this country. Saudis will find themselves pushed physically up against the Sunni/Shiite wall — and it won’t be comfortable. Their power and comfort will still be the dollar-per-barrel charge they make. When the Shiites loom, they will cut loose with a deafening defense.

Iran will find itself more and more challenged from within. When the overall elections did not go completely towards Ahmadinnerjacket’s this year, that was a portent from Allah.

Europe will continue to be challenged by immigration. China will continue to rise boldly. The dollar will stabilize to a degree. At home, we may finally realize that our funding is finite. The Taxpayer may finally come to realize how inordinately He and She has been Fleeced.

This will continue to create dissension in the US ranks. We will be on the cusp of realizing how much and to what degree we ignore and sacrifice domestic issues for international issues.

In a Nutshell, there will be a greater push to make America more Isolationist.

I do not inherently disagree with this immediate policy.

We can start with the UN.

DO YOU HAVE PREDICTIONS FOR THE COMING YEAR, 2007?

BZ

I’ve been tagged by Sues at Sues Views.

But before I get into that I noticed, whilst perusing her profile, that she’s a fan of Disturbed, SOiL, Slipknot, Metallica, Korn and AC/DC. Damn. Some of my favorite bands too. A woman after my own musical heart — and, boys and girls, I’m pushin’ 60. Just a strange observation.

Trivia bit: Sues, were you aware that Angus Young is 51 years old now, 5’2″ tall and weighs 120 pounds?

So here is the tag:

“Ok, this is how it works: The player (me) must list 3 things that I would love to get for Christmas. Then I must list 3 things that I definitely do not want to get for Christmas. Then I tag 5 friends and list their names. The one I tag needs to write on their blogs about their Christmas wishes then tag 5 more people. They must also clarify all the rules. When you tag someone you need to leave a comment that says “you’ve been Christmas tagged!” in their comments and tell them to read your blog. Ok everybody..”

Three Things I Would Love To Get For Christmas:

1. A new car. Still haven’t settled on one specifically, but the Short List would be a 2007 Honda Accord EX V6 w/244 hp, a 2007 Honda CR-V EX-L AWD, in-line 4 w/166 hp, or a 2007 Toyota RAV4 Limited 4WD with the 3.5L, 270hp Lexus V6 engine. Zowee!
2. Five years of a satellite internet connection — primarily because my current connection is dial-up via a 56 modem working, on a good day, at 53kbps. I’ve got DirecTV or, otherwise, I’d be completely isolated. Even then, my view of the southern sky is kinda limited due to the fleet of 175’+ pine trees surrounding my property.

3. A State of Fornicalia PERS retirement — fully paid medical upon retirement until death. Yeah right. Fat fucking chance.

Three Things I Wouldn’t Want For Christmas:

1. Any Abba CD;
2. A subscription to any vapid magazine such as People, National Enquirer or Oprah;
3. A pair of Uggs.

But I’m such a jerk; this is where my meme ends. If you yourself wish to take up the challenge and post your own 3 Favorites and 3 Least, then please go ahead.

It’s 8:45 pm on Saturday night and I’ve got house-cleaning and wash to do following last night’s Early Christmas. My fiance has to work on Christmas Day (imagine, if you will, having to do that if you were 50 years old!) because she has little seniority on her job — so my family conducted our Christmas last night. Actually, it was great. We had a massive 20-lb radial-sliced ham, green beans, Brussels sprouts, red potatoes in Rosemary, fresh biscuits, and Lava cakes for dessert. My nephew even came from the Bay Area for dinner — through the horrific eastbound I-80 Friday-evening-up-the-mountain traffic. I handed out presents and acted the Santa Claus. Everyone had a great time. Dad was feeling well but I messed up: I gave him a quilted vest, just as he likes, with zipping pockets — only — dammit, in the wrong size!!

Ever conducted “The Search” for someone’s birthday or for Christmas? That’s when you offer a wrapped present that only contains a “hint” for locating the next message, so the recipient can find the true present? I did that for my fiance’s final present: a 2 ct set of Princess diamond studs with screw backs. The third and final set for her triple-pierced ears.

Last night was 19-degrees. No additional snow. But I know it’s coming.

BZ

We had a retirement dinner for a fellow employee last night. He was retiring after 28 years and we had gathered at an Outback to present him with a plaque, a certificate and to honor his work. No sooner had we sat down than another employee told us all that my good friend had called to say he was coming to the dinner. His mother had been given two weeks to live. We hadn’t expected him at all, for obvious reasons.

A few moments later, we learned that his mother passed away earlier in the day. Yet, despite that, he appeared at the dinner with Christmas cards for all, wishing us well. He said that his mother had passed in an incredibly peaceful fashion.

He still came to the dinner in order to honor his co-worker. My friend is an amazing man of faith.

Goodbye to you, Mrs. Murray, and God Bless.

BZ