Retiring Prime Minister of democratic Malaysia, frustrated over lack of Middle East Road Map success, creates a Road Map of his own for Islamic successors to follow.
".....Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Thursday told a summit of Islamic leaders that "Jews rule the world by proxy" and the world's 1.3 billion Muslims should unite, using nonviolent means for a "final victory"....."
Regardless of how non-violently the Malaysian Prime Minister frames it all, "final victory" sounds violence-related to me.....how about you?
You can understand how this would make Israel uncomfortable...yes?
My question is this:
Are we EVER going to have an American leader who is wise enough to protect his vulnerable friends in Israel while showing an even and honest hand to those who have been separated from human rights and civil society in the region? Will an American leader EVER be able to be honest with an Israeli leader like Sharon and tell him he's
endangering his good people with his twisted and hateful policies?
Will the good people of Israel ever come to unerstand that hateful leaders beget hate?
When they begin to see that Sharon represents as much hatred as those ugly souls who call themselves warriors and use terror as a tool of fear....then perhaps we will get somewhere?
The current attitude and handling of "terror" by both Bush and Sharon is undermining the human rights of all the innocent on both sides of the Middle Eastern conflict.
If there is a G*d and we believe in G*d, how can our G*d-fearing leaders ignore the suffering of the innocent simply because terror reigns? Should we NOT do all we can for the good of mankind while terror reigns?
Why do Bush and Sharon return terror with terror and wait for a far-off day when terror is defeated while innocent people suffer and die?
This is NOT leadership, my friends.
This is a case of men perpetrating violence on top of violence...virtually signing death-warrants for more of the innocent.
Look at what we wind up with:
"....Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on Thursday told a summit of Islamic leaders that "Jews rule the world by proxy" and the world's 1.3 billion Muslims should unite, using nonviolent means for a "final victory."
His speech at the Organization of the Islamic Conference summit, which he was hosting, drew criticism from Jewish leaders, who warned it could spark more violence against Jews...."
THERE HAS TO BE BETTER WAY!!!
~~~~~~~~~~
see: There Is No "Road Map" to Peace,
Only the Hard Road Not Taken
By Bernard Weiner
Co-Editor, "The Crisis Papers."
October 14, 2003
"....Can we just acknowledge that there is no "road map" to peace in the Middle East? Under Bush, there is no U.S.-sponsored avenue or boulevard or street or back alley that could possibly take the parties to a solution. In sum, there are no shortcuts to peace.."
".....Extremists on both sides (egged-on, unfortunately, by their elected leaders) believe that their claim to the disputed land is given by God. The Israeli fundamentalists want a Greater Israel, the Palestinian extremists want a Greater Palestine, with no Israel.
Ordinarily, when two religiously-oriented groups claim that God is on their side, there is no room for accommodation, because it is believed that a compromise would be an affront to God.
But in this extraordinary situation, it is not required that either side forsake their God. If and when both sides can finally agree that the continuing slaughter is intolerable, that their economic and social situation are intolerable, that the constant stress is intolerable, that each losing its moral way is intolerable -- if and when they get to that point (which, unfortunately, probably means after Arafat and Sharon have died), then both sides can say to themselves something like this:
"Dear God/Allah: We have remained true to your desires for decades upon decades, but our peoples have grown weary with despair and never-ceasing bloodshed. We want to continue the battle for your rule, but the reality is that neither of us can make the other side disappear. If we don't come to some sort of agreement -- not to like each other but merely to recognize that the others are here and they're not going to go away -- we will provide nothing to our children and grandchildren but hopelessness and despair and perpetual slaughter and unbearable tension. Therefore, in the name of reality -- and, we hope, with your blessing -- we will make a peace. It will not get us everything we and you want, but it will reclaim the likelihood of a future for succeeding generations....."
Re: "On Listening"
by Thomas Friedman
NY Times
Published: October 16, 2003
"..don't limit your associations to people who agree with you.."
Richard H. Brodhead,
Dean of Yale College
Thomas Friedman's column today in the NY Times expresses many of my own reservations and complaints about Dick Cheney's speech in front of the Bush-admin-friendly Heritage Foundation last week.
Excerpt:
"...There was a headline that grabbed me in The Times on Saturday. It said, "Cheney Lashes Out at Critics of Policy on Iraq."
"Wow," I thought, "that must have been an interesting encounter." Then I read the fine print. Mr. Cheney was speaking to 200 invited guests at the conservative Heritage Foundation — and even they were not allowed to ask any questions. Great. Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein issue messages from their caves through Al Jazeera, and Mr. Cheney issues messages from his bunker through Fox. America is pushing democracy in Iraq, but our own leaders won't hold a real town hall meeting or a regular press conference.
Out of fairness, my newspaper feels obligated to run such stories. But I wish we had said to the V.P.: If you're going to give a major speech on Iraq to an audience limited to your own supporters and not allow any questions, that's not news — that's an advertisement, and you should buy an ad on the Op-Ed page...."
Mr. Friedman also puts Bush's position (*position??--or failure to act??) in the Middle East in the proper perspective:
"...Thankfully, there is one group of people the Bush team is listening to: Iraq's silent majority. Ironically, Iraq is the one place in the world where the Bush team has chosen not to become obsessed with terrorists, not to focus exclusively on them and their noise, but to just keep on building a better Iraq for Iraqis — the only way to counter terrorism in the long run — despite the bombs bursting in air.
Unfortunately, in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza — where some really sick terrorists claimed three U.S. lives yesterday — the Bush team has decided to fall in behind Ariel Sharon's failed strategy of only listening to the terrorists and postponing any initiatives until they are all defeated. So the only voice we hear there is that of the terrorists. No alternative reality is being built to smother or counter them, and that's just what the terrorists want."
Reminder: International A.N.S.W.E.R. March on Washington and San Francisco
OCTOBER 25, 2003
Bring the troops home now
End the occupation of Iraq
Money for jobs, education & healthcare - Not war
International A.N.S.W.E.R. (Act Now to Stop War & Racism) is organizing marches on Washington, D.C. and San Francisco for Saturday, October 25, 2003 to protest U.S. Wars around the world. Read more about the march, including the call to action and logistical information, on their website.
The 100 greatest novels of all time
"....as the BBC prepares to reveal [Great Britain's] best loved books, The Observer has compiled its own list of essential fiction from the past 300 years..."
How many of these books have you read?
* I hope Anonymoses will appreciate #7*
*This blog particularly appreciates #52*
Two Nations- Under God(?)...Indivisible(?)
The Supreme Court will hear the case of "under God".
They added the Pledge of Allegiance to the docket for its new term on Tuesday, agreeing to consider whether public schools violate the Constitution by requiring teachers to lead their classes in pledging allegiance to the flag of "one nation under God."
I find the whole thing quite silly.
If we want to have a realistic court decision on the Pledge, let's talk about issues which are more tangible and pressing than Deity recogition.
Today, it is more apparent than ever that we are two nations under God.
America is totally polarized. You read it in the papers...you see it on your television screens..you see it in electoral results and public polls. There it is...right under your noses.
Choose your polar labels..Conservative/Liberal; Republican/Democrat; Washington Times reader/Washington Post reader; FOX news fan/ABC Nightline fan; Red State/Blue State; Rush Limbaugh listener/NPR supporter; Christian Right/Progressive; Pro-War/Anti-War...you get the gist of it, don't you?
If Justice Scalia would recuse himself from the "under God" case, who should recuse themselves if the "two nations under God" case should come along?
Every justice save Sandra Day O'Connor would have to step aside, I would think.
After the Selection 2000 case, Justice Sandra is the only Supreme Court justice who may not be hypnotized and infected by polarization.
Or how about letting Justice Sandra recuse herself and let "two nations" come to a 4-to-4 tie...the imagined "two nations" appeals court ruling would automatically be affirmed and the truth would be affirmed.
We are no longer one nation under God....
*if we are indeed under God....rest assured, the Supremes will let us know whether or not we are under God soon.*
We are two nations...the "indivisible" being reserved for another day in court.
William Saletan: As hard as they've tried, confounded 2004 Democratic candidates can't find a way to deter the unstoppable Howard Dean
They just can't get it right
"....You can imagine how angry I am, as a swing voter, to find out these horrible things about Dean. My hands are trembling so violently, I can barely write his name on the check...."
Nuculus of a DunceCap..or Total Eclipse of the Mind?
Colors of the Aura:
Dull Yellow:
A dull yellow indicates jealousy, selfishness and negative outlook.
Washington Whispers 10/20/03
By Paul Bedard
Wilson adds ammo to hit war credibility gap
"Just as former Ambassador Joseph Wilson's story that Bushies blew his CIA wife's cover to get back at his criticism of the war in Iraq was getting old, he has stumbled on new ammo to hit the administration's credibility. Wilson tells us he plans to circulate the text of a briefing by analyst Sam Gardiner that suggests the White House and Pentagon made up or distorted over 50 war stories. You know some tall tales, like the Pvt. Jessica Lynch story. But there's more, says Gardiner, a war gamer who has taught at the National War College. Like how defense officials said the first Iraqi unit marines encountered, the 51st Mechanized Infantry Division, had surrendered four days before it actually did. And he says Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Richard Myers gave bad or deliberately incomplete info on several topics. Sure, propaganda has always been used in war to deceive and demoralize the enemy. But these guys went way overboard, Gardiner says. "Never before have so many stories been created to sell a war," he insists. "And they probably didn't need it."
Latest poll numbers show voters would rather elect the unknown
than face another four years with a man
who cannot lead successfully
From Washington Post-ABC News poll released today:
46 percent said they would reelect Bush if the election were held today, while 47 percent would vote for the yet-to-be chosen Democratic nominee.
They'd rather have this... 
than this 
People are really beginning to see that our nation is in danger of becoming a military state.
It seems that the rest of this world believes they will be little more than Bush campaign-contributors by caving in to his prideful, stubborn, untrustworthy demands. The EU is hesitant to help Iraq if it means helping Bush get reelected. Our nation, our troops, and the people of Iraq are gravely damaged in the process.
If it takes a new leader to make things safe for all concerned and to set us back on a road to international reconciliation and cooperation, we'll need new leadership in Washington.
Pollyanna Dubya Bush:
PUPPET MAN IN CHARGE
"The person who is in charge is me..They're just wrong about our strategy..We've had a strategy from the beginning.... Since the liberation of Iraq, thousands of new bidnesses have been launched...373 American troops exchanged for all them bidnesses..I'd say we're doing pretty good if I gotta say so myself....Pay no attention to those suicide bombers driving into those buildins...pay no attention to the four U.S. soldiers who sacrificed their lives this past weekend...look...look over here...Iraqis are building roads, for Pete's sake.....HEY!...stop looking at Donny...Condi's here with the good news...like me....me and Condi know what's going on over there, and it ain't like you liberal commie-type media bullies are saying....looks like ol' Pollyanna Dubya's gonna hafta set the record straight hisself..."
From the L.A. Weekly
David Corn: The Novak Affair
How I broke the CIA-leak story, and why nobody noticed
Read David Corn's scrutiny of today's typical Republican damage-control dissembling.
Excerpt:
"....The issue is not who’s screaming about the leak but who did it. Yet if Portman and the Republicans can succeed in presenting the controversy as another one of those same-old bitter face-offs between D’s and R’s — creating a moral equivalency between the leakers and the complainants — they win. Their aim is to exploit the public’s (justifiable) cynicism toward Washington and to battle to an it’s-all-politics draw. This is a good strategy — as long as no indictments materialize..."
Rush Limbaugh and Pat Robertson
This is a great tongue-in-cheek must-read by Juan Cole, Professor of History at the University of Michigan.
While you're there, read the rest of his "Informed Comment" site.
In this blog's humble opinion, it is the cream of the blogcrop.
Dick Cheney Gone Wild
by Bart Whiteman
From the Chattanoogan News
This blog thanks Mr. Whiteman for what we consider to be a generous contribution to the mental health of those of us out here who are beginning to think either we are certifiable.. or the rest of the nation has gone mad.
"...Cheney warned us all about the big, bad, boogie day of doom that awaits us all if we don’t toe the line. He tried very hard to frighten as many people as he could with his portrayal of the horrors that are in store if we don’t let these administration cowboys continue to round up and dispose of the terrorist herd at will.
Oh, and anyone who disagrees with him is a wimp.
Well, Dick, I noticed you delivered your bold message at the Heritage Foundation, the well-endowed incubator of conservative thought. Who’s the wimp here? If that ain’t preaching to the choir, I don’t know what is...."
Cheney came out of the bat cave on Friday and Americans saw his shadow
"....It’s pretty clear that nothing short of electoral defeat or impeachment will stop the war from the administration’s perspective, and since Congress is in the hands of the Republicans, they’ll just go keep going along for the merry ride..."
"...The major media have soft-pedaled and glorified the whole thing because they are along for the corporate ride..They have leveraged the war for better ratings and better advertising revenues. They have invested in your party. They have supplied champagne to celebrate whenever there is something to celebrate. There may be a few lunatics left out there questioning the whole operation, and the Iraqi people may be suffering through your trial by p.r., but they don’t really matter, do they?.."
Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? Dick Cheney knows....trust him..
Trust him?
"....There is no glorious anti-war rhetoric. The American public has submitted. You don’t need to justify the unjustifiable. You already did it. You started your war, and no one said ‘boo.’ You divided the world into the good (us) and the evil (them). Your action is the justification. The results are the justification. If you get your way, then what does it matter what anyone else thinks? Stop trying the sell the war. Wage the war. Shut down the p.r. machine. It’s not working. No one believes you any more, at least not your words, which change with every shift of the breeze. Go about your business.
Go back to shadow land..."
Totalitarian-style Editorial in NY Post-
Post imputes Howard Dean for the legal fallout of the free actions of Blake Lethem
"....Well, thanks to all the publicity, Howard Dean's favorite "artist" may be facing some richly deserved jail time...."
In a free and open America, this will never stand.
The NY Post's criticism of Howard Dean for giving an artist space to express himself in a legal manner is completely out of touch with our precious American values of free expression.
This is a clear GOP warning shot crossing the Democrats' bow....support the freedom of controversial art and you will not only risk political injury, but the artist you support will be imprisoned.
Is this Cuba..or America?
Is the U.S. Supporting a Terrorist's Organization?!
Pat Robertson has made nuclear threats and promoted terror against the U.S. State Department.
U.S. citizens are being forced to support his organization with faith-based funds.
Is this Saudi Arabia or the free United States?
What is the government going to do about Pat Robertson's terrorist threats?
Cheney's at it again at the Heritage Foundation--
Cheney says....
I'm watching VP Dick Cheney speak as I type these words.
Twist, twist, twist..
Fib, fib, fib....
In his speech this morning to the Heritage Foundation shamelessly promoting funds for the Iraq war,
Cheney told them...
"Remember what we saw on the morning of 9-11...."
"Remember Beirut..."
*he never mentions PanAm 103*
"Khobar Towers...."
"USS Cole..."
Cheney goes on to say there was a tendency to consider past acts of terror as individual criminal acts..he speaks of Ramzi Yousef....his criminal punishment...how some thought "case closed" once he was convicted.
(**Actually, Yousef won't be back..unless he outlives his 240-year sentence**)
Cheney says the threat was not recognized for what it was..a sustained campaign...
Cheney says for us, the war started 9-11....for them(**whoever them is**), it's been going on a long time.
Cheney says it continues today..
Riyadh(**where actual arrests have ben made and civilized justice is being done today**), Najaf(August 2003), Baghdad(**current*)....
***(notice how he pulls in POSTWAR Iraq...how many "terrorist" attacks do you recall in Iraq before the war began????!)****
Cheney is tying a long line of hatred for America by myriad nations, groups, individuals...
and claiming the culmination of it all was IRAQ.
I'm sorry, that is pure, unadulterated bullshit.
Cheney considers lobotomizing all Americans in case his lies don't go over terribly well....
He cites the Bush docritine..any government harboring terrorists will be held to account.
In that case, we are harboring them in Iraq today since we are the occupying force.
Let's hold US to account!
It's funny, by the way, these "terrorists" weren't there before the pre-emptive strike.
Hussein, as nasty as he was, would not have stood for this..he would have put these terrorists in
torture chambers...perhaps he would have gassed them!
That is the great conundrum, and the source of the Bush Administration lies.
Our war has CAUSED terrorist problems that were never there beforehand.
Cheney says Saddam Hussein had an established relationship to AlQeada--and this has NEVER been proven.
Let's ask Assistant Under Secretary Douglas Feith to show us the proof...he is the one at the helm of the top-secret department who went
terror-connection-shopping..cherry picking...to find enough slim rumor to create enough magnfied innuendo to scare the American people into believing a war was necessary at any cost.
Doug knows.....so why can't he prove it to us?
Now Cheney's defending David Kay's report which turned up with no WMD threat which would have constituted an imminent threat to any American before this pre-emptive war.
Bottom line, Cheney has nothing new.
Only old lies, boldly told, with a captive (fully supportive) audience applauding like zombies.
I'd love, just once, for Cheney and Bush to stand before a group of REAL Americans and speak....
with no one in the audience being held behind police barriers lest they should boo so loudly that the T audience might see how the Media presents pretty lies to them day in / day out.
Cheney mentions that GW Bush says our enemies are waiting to attack us with the most dangerous weapons possible.
In that case, we'd best forget the GRAVE error made in Iraq and move 'em out to North Korea pronto...lest Cheney is to be too clearly seen for the hypocrite he is.
Cheney says we fight in Iraq now so we don't have to fight in our own cities someday.
Iraq would fight us? With what? Old metal shit a redneck Iraqi scientist once buried under the rose bush?
I guess Cheney thinks it's important that we used Iraq as a stomping ground...
..but really--how moral does that sound to you?
The people of Iraq don't deserve the terror of war, either.
DO THEY?!
Bottom line....Iraq was NOT an imminent threat.
Bottom line...The Bush administration is liable for a great sin.
Whatever was happening in Iraq, it was NEVER sufficient reason to go into that nation without international support.
Americans were lied to and will now pay ever so dearly for the great caper..the great blunder.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THE OTHER SPEECH...THE OTHER "HOT ONE"....
Don't miss Buzzflash's Claims vs. Facts regarding Bush's New Hampshire Speech to Air National Guard Reservists
Democratic Debate
I was surprised to see Howard Dean confronting General Clark in last night's debate in Arizona.
This is the reference Howard Dean made tonight when challenging Gen Clark on his Iraq stance:
http://www.concordmonitor.com/stories/news/politics2002/1010_clark_2002.shtml
I imagine Gov Dean needs to separate himself from Gen Clark as the more consistent "outsider".
If I hear Dick Gephardt attack Howard Dean on Medicare one more useless time, I think I'll puke.
Gov Dean has clarified the issue so many times..to our complete satisfaction.
Rep Gep's looking ridiculous by dragging this out.
Dick Gephardt's line about the nation of Togo sending ONE soldier to represent them in the Iraq "coalition of the willing" was priceless sarcasm.
John Kerry had the line of the night with his deadpan Rush Limbaugh prescription drug reference.
Dennis Kucinich had the most wonderful idea..a Department of Peace. I can't imagine why we have not yet had a leader with the vision to incorporate the central idea of peace into everyday governing.
John Kerry's campaign seems to have great influence over Judy Woodruff.
She interrupted what was meant to be a "town-hall" style 'Q and A' session in order to facilitate a Kerry campaign attack on Howard Dean. This seemed terribly inappropriate to me.
She asked..out of the blue...:
(From Transcript:) WOODRUFF: Governor Dean, before you sit down, I've just been handed a document. I think it came out of the press room that Senator Kerry's staff has been distributing some comments about what was said. Among other things they are saying that you, Governor Dean, tried to kick Vermont seniors off their prescription drug plan. That's relevant to what you were just saying here, so do you want to respond to that?"
The strangest thing was this: While Dean stood to answer his TownHall question, Kerry could be seen behind Dean and Kerry's lips were definitely moving. It was as if Kerry was feeding information to someone...but who? And why?
In *Slate, William Saletan dubiously voted for Kerry as follows:
Least credible alibi:
"Kerry, after Woodruff read aloud a criticism of Dean that "Senator Kerry's staff has been distributing" in the debate press room. "I didn't raise this, and I didn't know they were saying that."
Speaking of Judy Woodruff, she was terrible annoying to both the viewers and (obviously) the politicians
as she interrupted them constantly. I did not care for this tactic, for this was supposed to be a debate and not an interview.
There seemed to be too much CNN pandering to individual campaigns.
Overall, I give CNN a "D" on their performance.
Time given each candidate was not well-meted and the usual blowhards took advantage.
You know who they are. ;)
I was completely underwhelmed by Joe Lieberman's vow to fight Hollywood. Thinking about the recent chokehold on our civil liberties these past two years with the Patriot Act, the last thing I want to hear is a promise for more censorship in this nation.
*You can see William Saletan's analysis at Slate.
Here's a sampling:
1. Clark's credibility problem:
Wes Clark always looks sincere
(**so true**)
2. Stop-Dean Gridlock:
If you're going to gang up on a candidate, get your story straight.
The more Howard Dean gets attacked from the left (by Dick Gephardt on Medicare and Social Security, and by Dennis Kucinich on the Iraq occupation) and from the right (by John Kerry and Joe Lieberman on trade and middle-class tax cuts), the more the attacks blur into a din of contradictory complaints, suggesting that Dean must be somewhere in the comfortable center. Every jab from Kucinich lets Dean show he's no Kucinich. Every jab from Lieberman lets Dean show he's no Lieberman. Dean summed up the effect when, after taking a shot from Gephardt, he said with a smile, "The folks that are running against me have had the greatest time. First they said I was George McGovern and couldn't win, and now they're saying I'm Newt Gingrich and I couldn't win."
Listen to what Dean said in this debate, and you'll get the real story:
Here are the differences between me and the [candidates] from Washington. First, our campaign is changing the political system in this country. Last time, last quarter, we raised more money than any other candidate by three times—200,000 donors, average gift $72. Secondly, I have a record. Everybody is going to talk about health insurance. Every kid under 18 in my state has health insurance. A third of all the seniors have prescription benefits. Working poor people have health insurance. And the third area is the war. ... If you want real change in this country, then I'd like your support.
That's one issue (the war), plus executive experience (legislators can't get their way as a governor can), plus raising money from medium-sized donors. The legitimate rap on Dean isn't that he's too far to the left or right, but that he's parlayed largely procedural differences into an image as the lone candidate who will bring "real change."
Blogging: Chicago Tribune Discovers a New Source of Talent
An unlikely new source of writing talent: Blogs
By Maureen Ryan
Tribune staff reporter
"....."The media is starting to pay attention to blogs."
Jeff Jarvis, co-founder of Entertainment Weekly
Dean Says Bush is Setting the Stage for the 'Failure of America'
By Jodi Wilgoren
NY Times
Published: October 9, 2003
"...they all come from Washington, which I think, this year, is going to be a problem for them."
Gov Dean speaking of some of his Democratic rivals
A Good-Tempered Man
Charley Reese
October 8, 2003
"....An honest man with sincere convictions will get angry when he hears lies. Some of our greatest presidents had ferocious tempers. George Washington, Andy Jackson and Harry Truman are three examples.
You don't see other candidates getting angry because they are all phonies..."
"...Whether you agree with him or not, Howard Dean actually believes in his convictions. He is a genuine man.
An honest, genuine man will not suffer fools lightly, nor will he stand around like a dummy with a phony smile on his face while he hears himself lied about..."
The Money Machinery vs. Direct Democracy in Politics:
We are not free...
Re: Tom Paine article
California Hangover
Robert B. Reich
After the California recall, it seems that American democracy only goes as far as the cash will take you.
The vote was nearly inconsequential when you examine the overall process.
What does 'direct democracy' truly mean in today's America?
WHAT?! You have no cash?!
End of the road for you, my friend.
If successful 'direct democracy' is exclusively and effectively tied to money, as Reich suggests, then freedom
is not TRUE freedom. Freedom is corrupted.
Freedom is relative to how much money you have.
Suddenly, it seems slavery is back in vogue.
When you think about it in a most realistic way, the average-to-poor person in this nation is chained to a system in which they will never have a hope of truly being able to be free...
not when the tyranny of money is the only avenue to American power...all other roads dead-ended.
Tyranny builds on tyranny.
Monarchy produced tyranny which sparked the American Revolution.
Will moneyed power-concentration in government do less?
How long will Americans stand for stolen elections and attempted coups in the guise of "elections"?
How long will media be accomplices in the process?
The only way to obtain your freedom in America.
This proves capitalism a flawed method of maintaining true freedom for individuals.
Reich has a good point here.
Things have gone too far.
It's time to take a step back and see what's happening to our country.
Democracy and freedom shouldn't be complicated concepts...
but they are.
They say you can't legislate what they call "freedom".
Eagles live on light...they soar on air.
We must put limits on this corrupted type of "freedom", if we are a nation of/by/for "the people".
Because what they are calling "freedom" is actually "money"...and nothing more.
Look up "freedom" in your favorite book of philosophy.
Keynes said of self-interest:
"Dangerous human proclivities can be canalized into comparatively harmless channels by the existence of opportunity for moneymaking and private wealth, which if they cannot be satisfied in this way, may find their outlet in cruelty, the reckless pursuit of personal power and authority, and other forms of self-aggrandizement. It is better that a man should tyrannize over his bank balance than over his fellow-citizens. . . ."
He is harmless is his miser's chamber...until he decides he wants your freedom as part of his sorry stash.
What happens when those who 'tyrannize over their bank balances' are allowed, through organized interest,
to govern a nation that was born to espouse democracy and the self-evidence of each man being created equal?
We are allowing it, my fellow Americans.
We are allowing freedom to become a perverted concept in our America.
Today's average American is no more than this...a slave to special interest.
One comment: If there was a positive to be seen, it would be the results of the recall.
It sparked many, many voters to get out and speak their mind.
I wonder how many of those voters who said "NO" to the recall realized that they never stood a chance?
Jude
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Excerpts:
".....Progressives of a century ago, such as California’s then Republican governor Hiram Johnson, never dreamed that a single person’s money could buy enough signatures on a petition to force an entire state to go through a recall vote. That would be the reverse of direct democracy."
"...now, any governor is fair game at any time, at least in California. All you need is one very determined and very wealthy person, coupled with a governor whose popularity has sunk for whatever reason and no matter how temporarily.."
"...Gray Davis wasn’t the only loser yesterday. If Californians woke this morning with a headache, it’s not surprising. They made a mockery of what their progressive forebearers intended to achieve.
"..Let’s hope they’ve learned a lesson, and the rest of the country has, too. Direct democracy is a fine idea, as long as it’s accompanied by strict limits on what people can spend on it..."
NOTE:
SEE MY BLOG ENTRY ABOUT THE RECALL FROM 6-29-03
The Second Superpower
James F. Moore
Berkman Center for Internet & Society
Harvard Law School
"..the collective wisdom of the second superpower is grounded in the individual wisdom within each of us..."
Congressman Conyers of House Judiciary Committee
asks for Rove's Resignation
October 7, 2003
Dear Mr. Rove:
I write to ask you to resign from the White House staff. Recent press reports have indicated that, while you may or may not have been the source of the Robert Novak column which revealed the status and name of a covert operative, the wife of Ambassador Joseph Wilson, you were involved in a subsequent effort to push this classified information to other reporters and give it even wider currency. This itself may be a federal crime, but regardless of that fact, your actions are morally indefensible......
see entire letter here at Buzzflash
Sometimes the Olde Times Feel Like the Now Times
From : The Pennsylvania Journal and Weekly Advertiser
1765
Newspaper of William Bradford, then-age 24...the leading printer in Philadelphia. On the day preceding the one in which the Stamp Act was to go in force, the newspaper contained the emblematic head and "doleful" communication seen in this engraving.
Main Entry: dole·ful
Pronunciation: 'dOl-f&l
Function: adjective
Date: 13th century
1 : causing grief or affliction a doleful loss
2 : full of grief : CHEERLESS a doleful face
3 : expressing grief : SAD a doleful melody
Main Entry: do·lor·ous
Pronunciation: 'dO-l&-r&s also 'dä-
Function: adjective
Date: 15th century
: causing, marked by, or expressing misery or grief
Pakistan Holds Second Missile Test in a Week With Rocket That Can Reach Most Targets in Rival India
By Paul Haven Associated Press Writer
Published: Oct 8, 2003
Four days ago, after the last Pakistani missle test, this was U.S. official reaction:
"...we have continued to urge both Pakistan and India to take steps to restrain their nuclear weapons and their missile programs, including no operational deployment of nuclear-armed ballistic missiles."
State Dept. spokesman Richard Boucher
SOME RESTRAINT!
Pipes Makes Apology and Excuse for Lack of WMD Discovery--
Furthers Story of Saddam Playing the U.S. for Complete Saps
"......If no WMDs exist, the real mystery is not how the Bush administration made the same mistake everyone else did; the mystery is why Saddam purposefully created the false impression he had WMDs. Why did he put himself into the bizarre position of simultaneously pretending to build WMDs and pretending to hide his non-existent weapons?"
In other words, Bush scratches his head....can't believe he was duped into becoming attack dog..and it's Clinton's fault as usual...(note the "everyone else" reference)
Colin Powell Speaks..
I Have Questions
I am using some of Colin Powell's quotes from this week's Washington Post letter:
POWELL: "What the world knew last November about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programs was enough to justify the threat of serious consequences under Resolution 1441. "
--Enough?
What DID the world "know", General Powell?
Obviously not what you THINK you knew.
I watched you at the U.N. before this war began.
You aren't fooling anyone, Sir.
Was it enough to justify all the war dead?
Was it enough to justify so much of this?
I say NO.
POWELL: "In the interim report, Kay and his team record the chilling fact that they "found people, technical information and illicit procurement networks that if allowed to flow to other countries and regions could accelerate global proliferation."
Having put an end to that harrowing possibility alone justifies our coalition's action against Hussein's regime. But that is not the only achievement of our brave men and women in uniform and their coalition partners."
--How can you say you have put an end to the possibility of the outflow of procurement when you don't even know where these weapons or plans for weapons are..if they ever existed....or if you don't know whether or not these
ghost-weapons have already made their way across borders while we lost control of Iraq during our unilateral strike?
It's strange, General Powell, that you completely fail to mention the Kuwaiti foiling of an attempt to smuggle $60 million worth of chemical weapons and biological warheads from Iraq to an unnamed European country last week. Do you not wish to expose how vulnerable you have made Americans?
No.
POWELL: "Three weeks ago I paid my respects at a mass grave in the northern city of Halabja, where on a Friday morning in March 1988, Hussein's forces murdered 5,000 men, women and children with chemical weapons. Saddam Hussein can cause no more Halabjas. His "Republic of Fear" no longer holds sway over the people of Iraq. For the first time in three decades, the Iraqi people have reason to hope for the future.
President Bush was right: This was an evil regime, lethal to its own people, in deepening material breach of its Security Council obligations, and a threat to international peace and security. Hussein would have stopped at nothing until something stopped him. It's a good thing that we did."
--Question for you, General Powell....
We don't have one weapon of mass destruction to date.
Not a one.
I see that Saddam Hussein was a horrific leader.
Terrible things happened under his rule.
That said....
WAS WHAT WAS HAPPENING IN IRAQ SUFFICIENT REASON TO GO INTO IRAQ WITHOUT INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT?
My answer is a resounding NO, General Powell.
NO!
French 9/11 provocateur loses libel case
PARIS, Oct 3 (AFP) - Thierry Meyssan, the French author of a book that claimed the September 11 attacks were organised by the United States and that no plane crashed into the Pentagon, has lost a defamation case against a newspaper that accused him of being a profiteering fabulist.
The Paris court Wednesday struck down Meyssan's EUR 25,000 (USD 30,000) claim against the daily Liberation, saying its articles criticising his theory and character were protected by freedom of the press and the right of journalists and the public to challenge the author's controversial position.
Liberation printed three stories in March and May last year rubbishing Meyssan's assertion in his best-selling book "L'Effroyable Imposture" (printed in English as "9/11: The Big Lie") that the September 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon was carried out with a bomb planted by US authorities, not a hijacked plane, and that it was "a conspiracy ordered by a militaro-industrial group close to President Bush to justify the war in Iraq.... Meyssan has continued to taunt the US government, and his association has started selling a deck of playing cards featuring the faces of President George W. Bush and his aides with captions alleging they waged war on Iraq for reasons of greed."
French Soundly Beaten by U.S. Military Complex
...or...
Vivendi and General Electric Sign Definitive Agreement on New Entertainment Company
By Jamey Keaten Associated Press Writer
Published: Oct 8, 2003
Now..to crush Disney....
One can never get enough military media concentration, can one?
Two sides of a story?
BAH!
Republicans Strike Again-
Anyone Aiding TerroristsDemocrats Will Be Hunted Down
GLOBE and MAIL:
"....Artist who spray-painted backdrop at political rally arrested
New York — The graffiti artist whose backdrop at a rally for Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean caused a brouhaha among New York City Republicans was arraigned on a charge related to a 1999 spray-painting incident, officials said...."
"....New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Staten Island Councilman James Oddo, both Republicans, spoke out against Mr. Dean's decision to have Mr. Lethem spray-paint a graffiti-inspired mural at his Bryant Park rally, saying it promoted a type of vandalism New York has fought to eliminate.
A spokesman for the Dean campaign said the presidential hopeful was merely giving an artist the space to
express himself..."
NY POST:
DEAN GRAFFITI 'ARTIST' BUSTED
October 8, 2003 -- Howard Dean's graffiti scrawler has been nabbed for practicing his "art" on subway cars in 1999.
Blake Lethem, 36, known as "KEO," was hired by the Democratic presidential wannabe to spray-paint a backdrop at a Bryant Park rally in August. And that proved his undoing.
Lethem's photo had been published when Dean was sandblasted by City Hall for glorifying graffiti.
Cops pounced on him at his Lower East Side apartment Monday after matching the photo with a home video showing seven graffiti vandals defacing subway cars in Manhattan.
He was charged with criminal mischief and arraigned in Manhattan criminal court.
Syria to Israel: War is coming with new attacks....
"Syria's ambassador to Spain said on Wednesday Damascus would respond militarily against Israel if the Jewish state carried out new attacks on Syrian territory....."
Bush eggs them on....
"...Sharon has been buoyed by support from President Bush. Washington has accused Syria of being a state sponsor of terrorism.
"The decisions that he (Sharon) makes to defend her people are valid decisions. We would be doing the same thing," Bush said on Tuesday. {talking out of the other side of his face...}-> He added that it was "important for the prime minister to avoid escalation."
Arnold Wins California
"YEE HA! I VON!"
The World Toasts the Governor
"....From an Internet chatroom in China to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s boyhood home in Austria, the world marvelled today at a uniquely American political triumph with more suspense than a Hollywood script..."
Failing GOP Dinosaur Bush to Campaign with a "new" Republican--
pro-gay, pro-abortion, pro-gun-control,
and
Clan-of-Kennedy...
Yes...the same Kennedy..as in the George Bush Award recipient Kennedy..
How will this win politically translate in 2004?
STUPERMAN
SUPERMAN
Arnold's win boosts GOP odds in state for 2004
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RESULTS
VOTE TO RECALL GOV. DAVIS (as of 09:52 a.m.)
Precincts Reporting: 97%
Votes
Yes 4,092,412
No 3,438,424
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CANDIDATE TO SUCCEED
GOV. DAVIS (as of 09:52 a.m.)
Precincts Reporting: 97%
Candidate Votes
X - Arnold Schwarzenegger 3,475,671
Cruz M. Bustamante 2,354,159
Tom McClintock 958,274
Peter Miguel Camejo 205,225
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Latest From Drudge:
"FRANK RICH: I'LL MISS THE RECALL CIRCUS
Tue Oct 07 2003 17:59:55 ET
"Forgive me for mourning the passing of the recall election in California," NY TIMES columnist Frank Rich is planning to write in a coming essay.
"Maybe it wasn't the greatest show on earth, but in its lasting impact it may prove one of the more transformative cultural events of our young century."
Newsroom sources tell DRUDGE that Rich will lament: "Eastern snobs who airily condescended to the spectacle as merely another example of left-coast madness just didn't get it. As goes California, so goes the nation.
"It's Disneyland, not Colonial Williamsburg, that prefigures our future, and the action-packed recall ride was nothing if not the apotheosis of the Magic Kingdom. It was fun, it was instructive, it was expensive, it was hawked relentlessly on television, it starred an Audio-Animatronic action figure. "
"It even had product placement for its leading man's vehicle of choice, the Hummer. And it will set off a chain of unanticipated consequences whose full meaning will become apparent only with time."
Developing... "
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Political News Analysis from AP- -
Recall Lesson: Incumbents Not Safe Unless They Address Voter Discontent
HUH?
Bush hopes says leaker won't be found
"This is a town where a lot of people leak, and I've constantly expressed my displeasure with leaks, particularly of classified information. I hope we can get this investigation done in a thorough way, as quickly as possible."
George W Bush today, answering press questions after a Cabinet meeting.
Bush turned the questions on reporters at the end of the Cabinet meeting:
"You tell me: how many sources have you had that's leaked information, that you've exposed or had been exposed? Probably none......
I don't know if we're going to find out the senior administration official," Bush said. "I don't have any idea. I'd like to. I want to know the truth."
But, Bush said,
"This is a large administration and there's a lot of senior officials."
"I have no idea whether we'll find out who the leaker is, partially because, in all due respect to your profession, you do a very good job of protecting the leakers," Bush told journalists.
Adding a note of optimism, Bush said, "But we'll find out."
Observer Why isn't the truth out there?
The willingness of journalists to accepts the establishment's view of the events of, and after, 9/11 is truly staggering, says Paul Donovan
Sunday October 5, 2003
"....One of the major weaknesses of journalism today is how easily some are seduced by power. The premier role of the journalist should be as a check on power, however, many seem to turn this dictum on its head and get greater job satisfaction as parrots of the official truth..."
"....It is sad that people had to wait for { Michael } Meacher to put together the strands of 9/11 and where were those expensively paid New York based correspondents on the public health and firefighter stories. The job of the journalist demands more than simply parroting official truths, the public deserve and should get better..."
Fair Game
By William Rivers Pitt
t r u t h o u t | Perspective
Monday 6 October 2003
".....the wives of Bush administration critics are fair game. CIA operatives are likewise fair game. If said CIA operative is working to defend our national security by keeping weapons of mass destruction out of the hands of terrorists, that does not matter, because they are fair game. Also, front companies used to protect the identities of CIA operatives working to defend our national security, and by proxy all of the agents whose lives are protected by that cover, are fair game as well.
Seeing as how this is the case, that the barest standards and principles no longer have a place within this administration, that the national security of the United States can be sacrificed for low-rent political retribution, that George W. Bush and his people have been exposed as the rankest and bloodiest hypocrites in the history of American government, that everything is now fair game, I say let’s have at it. If politics is now nothing more than a WWF cage match, I want in. I have a fighter in my corner who also believes in the idea that everything is fair game.
My fighter is an independent counsel...."
Afghanistan-Taliban's Back /
Pakistan- The Grand U.S. Hypocrisy
I made these observations from recent readings on Stratfor.com:
PAKISTAN
My Question: Isn't it incredibly, incredibly hypocritical and morally twisted that we know Pakistan is supporting terror and testing nuclear weaponry...yet we sell them F16s and pay them off for troops that we cannot get by international consensus?
This is basically what Stratfor.com is telling us:
There is some evidence that the Pakistani government has supported militant groups that cross the borders into Afghanistan and Kashmir.
Washington does not yet have Islamabad's cooperation in surveillance and shutting down the border crossings.
Direct quotes from Stratfor:
"U.S. troops operating in Afghanistan have been unable to chase militant suspects across the border into Pakistan -- and although it would be unpopular to publicly grant them permission to do so, Musharraf could accede to U.S. wishes, provided operations were conducted quietly and perhaps clandestinely.
Debt forgiveness { in the billions } will not be all that U.S. leaders agree to: According to a June 13 report by Defense and Foreign Affairs Daily, U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told Indian Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani earlier this month that Washington will resume F-16 sales to Islamabad. (They carry nuclear devices).
News of F-16 sales to Pakistan would raise tensions in India."
~~~~~~~~~~~~
AFGHANISTAN
My Question: Here we are--two years after 9-11...and here is Hamid Karzai, in his position of need to incorporate the Taliban into his nation's political order....
I ask you...how will this move NOT prove a massive failure in the U.S. war on terror? Consider the American lives lost on 9-11. During the Republican National Convention in NYC, you will hear 9-11 used and abused ad nauseum for political gain. Think about that..while you think about Taliban moving into political rule in Afghanistan once again.....are you sick yet????
From Stratfor:
"Afghan President Hamid Karzai recently hinted that he wants to integrate the Taliban into the country's future political order. If true, this would be an about-face from his earlier stance toward the Islamist movement. The contradiction reflects a realization that the Taliban cannot be overlooked in the construction of the new constitutional framework. If he pursues his apparent strategy, Karzai risks getting caught in the cross-fire between the Taliban, his government partners from the Tajik, Uzbek, Hazara and Turkmen tribes and his main supporter, the United States -- with virtually no gains to show for it."
Boston Globe
Bring back UN inspectors
By Jacqueline Shire, 10/5/2003
"....David Kay's report is an interim one. As National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice noted, analysts are still debriefing Iraqi officials and poring over "miles of documents." This must have brought a smile to the faces of UN inspectors who have spent 12 years analyzing thousands of pages of documentation. Their findings are a matter of public record, and a close reading would show that Iraq must still account for plenty: chemical and biological munitions it claims were destroyed unilaterally, stocks of agent and chemical precursors, drawings, plans, and prototypes for various weapons systems.
Ultimately, this is where the full story of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction will be told -- sorting through the muddled gray area of "unaccounted for" stockpiles and reports of "unconfirmed" destruction.
UN inspectors have a head start, and can do the job for a fraction of the cost..."
U.S. ISRAEL ATTACKS SYRIA
"We've consistently told Syria that it must cease harboring terrorists, and make a clean break from those responsible for planning and directing terrorist attacks from Syrian soil."
Adam Ereli, a State Department spokesman
"Israel has cast its strike against Syria as justifiable in a war against terrorism..."
Douglas Jehl - NY Times
In the NY Times today: "The White House said President Bush had called the Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon, after the predawn airstrike and urged him to avoid further heightening tensions in the region. A senior administration official said the United States was seeking "full details" about the raid [in Syria}....But the administration seemed to be avoiding any criticism of the attack, which Israel described as retaliation for the suicide bombing that killed 19 people in Haifa....In its reluctance to criticize the Israeli raid, the American stance was at odds with that of most of Europe and the Arab world, whose leaders roundly condemned what they called a dangerous increase in tensions in the Middle East by Israel."
In the Guardian today, "Islamic Jihad, which admitted responsibility, has once again done grave disservice to the Palestinian cause. But Israel's response to the attack is equally unjustified. Its air raid deep inside Syrian territory was a reckless act typical of Israel's leader, Ariel Sharon. It will dissipate international sympathy and further entrench Arab hostility. Mr Sharon has a genius for putting Israel in the wrong...... As for George Bush, he certainly needs to think again - and act quickly. US pressure on Syria and Iran has been intense of late. Far from reining in Mr Sharon, Washington's effete, partial policy seems to have emboldened him to attack, to escalate, to spread the conflict in the much-abused name of the "war on terror", while actively subverting the road map. This is no Bush-ian vision of a transformed, peaceful Middle East. This is a vision of hell, of a Haifa every day."
Bush twiddles thumbs while a very dangerous Sharon widens and fuels Middle East disaster
The United States, no longer considered a relevant or respected "player" at the U.N., puts in their
barren and hollow two-cents worth:
"..The US ambassador to the UN, John Negroponte, called on all sides to avoid heightening tension.
But he said: "The United States believes that Syria is on the wrong side of the war on terrorism..."
*What's new? The Bush administration is avoiding the Middle East conflict altogether...instead turning the actions from a dangerous Sharon into 'just another day in the war on terror'. Complacency: a recipe for death and destruction in that unfortunate land.*
Dear God....What Has This President Done to Our America?
(Bush Is Mostly Responsible For The Global Collapse In U.S. Support)
Washington Post Editorial
Talking to the World
Monday, October 6, 2003; Page A22
"....The collapse in global support for the United States during the past several years is hard to overstate..."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Hypocrisy Central: What has this President's administration done to the word..and to the very essence of... "democracy"?
Democracy on Hold
By Fred Hiatt
"......Throughout this administration, there are career bureaucrats and political appointees who are passionately committed to promoting democracy. But at the top, democracy seems to have become an afterthought, except when its championing is politically useful (Iraq, Afghanistan) or relatively cost-free (Burma, Zimbabwe). And even in Burma, it's not clear the administration will spend chits to influence other nations that could help..."
Washington Post feature by Samuel R. Berger and Ivo H. Daalder:
The Long Haul
Sunday, October 5, 2003; Page B07
Bush May Be In Too Deep In Iraq Failure To Tell Allies, Iraqis, And The People The Truth
"...The administration has embarked on a high-risk strategy -- that we can fix Iraq better and faster by ourselves than with others -- in the hope that we will win the race between dramatic improvement on the ground and the American people's loss of patience as they come to realize that we are in this largely alone. But to succeed, we need a strategy that is sustainable. As others have said, reconstructing Iraq is a marathon, not the sprint the administration assumed."
BuzzFlash interview: Jamie Doran
Producer-director of 'Afghan Massacre: The Convoy Of Death'
This interview originally appeared on BuzzFlash, the pro-democracy news source.
This riveting documentary charges that American forces were present at and permitted the massacre of approximately 3,000 Taliban prisoners. Although it has been shown in Europe, "Afghan Massacre: The Convoy of Death" has received virtual little distribution or air time in the United States...."
**Note- It was broadcast tonight over American airwaves..I saw a portion of it on satellite television.**
Dad of slain agent calls CIA's leak 'treason'
October 3, 2003
BY DEVLIN BARRETT
Chicago Sun Times
WASHINGTON -- The father of slain CIA officer Johnny ''Mike'' Spann said Thursday he believes an independent counsel should investigate allegations that someone in the Bush administration exposed a CIA officer's identity -- an act he called treasonous.
Spann, the first American killed in Afghanistan, died in a prison uprising. His father, also named Johnny Spann, said he is still angry because he feels his son's identity and hometown were disclosed before his son's family could be adequately protected..."
Truth may be slowly emerging about Iraq
by James O. Goldsborough
THE SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE
October 2, 2003
~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~
American voters lose faith in Bush's foreign policy
By Rupert Cornwell in Washington
04 October 2003
Independent UK
Reporters Trapped by a Promise
Unnamed Sources At Issue in CIA Leak
By Howard Kurtz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, October 5, 2003; Page A01
"....There are at least six people in Washington who know the answer to the city's most politically charged mystery in years. And they're not talking.
That's because they're journalists..."
~~ ~~
"...critics say journalists sometimes abuse their power by allowing prosecutors -- such as Kenneth Starr during the Clinton impeachment, or authorities in the sexual assault case against Kobe Bryant -- to leak damaging details without having to go on the record..."
~~ ~~
"..Protecting sources is important, said Joe Conason, a columnist for Salon.com, but sometimes "you reach a breaking point with it."
"The knee-jerk reaction -- 'Oh no, these are sources and we can't talk about it' -- is a little too easy," Conason said. He said most of the journalists who received the CIA information "had this prod from the White House to go after Joe Wilson, and they didn't report that the White House was out to get a critic. Whenever Bill Clinton was seen to be doing something like that, it was always big news."
News in Blogging:
This weekend's Blogger Con
"On Saturday(today), one of the questions we'll consider is if the NY Times should have a weblog.
Let's say you got the job -- you're blogger in chief for the NY Times. What's the first post? How would you work with the reporters? How much writing would you do? How much editing? How much independence would you have? At what point would it no longer be a weblog? Is it enough for it to follow the form, or is there more to it? What would it look like in Year Two? Year Three?
We'll have several experts on the subject, including Len Apcar, editor in chief of New York Times on the Web, to discuss this interesting subject. Who knows, maybe the future BIC of the NYT will be in the room on Saturday..."
Crisis Papers: Whatever would we do without the Internet?
"....It is not too soon for progressives to ponder, “what would we do without the internet?” for it is folly for us to take the internet for granted...."
~~~~~~~~~
Go to: 
See the FCC page.
While you're there, you can read about Secretary of State Colin Powell's most recent lie (on On ABC's This Week 9/27/03), when he re-circulated a false story about United Nations weapons inspectors being kicked out of Iraq in 1998.
Some major media outlets let Powell's comments pass without comment or correction.
A Rare Interview With Michael Moore
Moore speaks about his new book-"Dude, Where's My Country?"
Saturday October 4, 2003
The Guardian
"The capped crusader"
In the US, a supposedly rightwing country, Michael Moore's fearless campaigning and coruscating criticism of 'that frat boy' Bush have aroused huge hostility but also rapturous fellow feeling. Gary Younge meets an engaging man, who is intent on mobilising America - and is extending the clarion call to us Brits, without whom, he believes, there would have been no war on Iraq.
See link for interview.
DEMOCRACY NOW Showcase:
Thursday, October 2nd, 2003
Former CIA Agent Lashes Out at White House For Blowing Colleague’s Cover
From the interview:
LARRY JOHNSON: "....instead of focusing on the substance of the issue what is underway we continue to see Scott McClellan engage in this to suggest that because of some political beliefs by ambassador Wilson that that discredits the substance of his report.
Unfortunately, that is what has become typical of politics. We saw it under the Clinton administration and now we're seeing it under the Bush administration. George Bush promised a new tone in town and got the same old note..."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
AMY GOODMAN: "Larry Johnson to say the least, this is a political firestorm. You're a Republican. Why are you speaking out?"
LARRY JOHNSON: "There's right and wrong in this. I was disgusted by a lot of things I saw happening under the Clinton administration, and I expected a new tone and new direction. Instead we're getting a level of thuggery with -- the White House continues to do it.
What's unfortunate, when I say White House I mean Scott McClellan by raising questions about Joe Wilson's political affiliation. It's not relevant The simple question is, who revealed the name of his wife and compromised her cover status; and why are they attacking Joe Wilson for bringing the news that was available also in other sources which told them that that report that the President based his State of the Union message on was erroneous; and that there was in fact no credible evidence that Iraq was trying to obtain nuclear material. That was used as a pretext for war. That's wrong.."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SEE THE REPLY TO AMY GOODMAN'S QUESTION:
AMY GOODMAN: " Larry Johnson, it was interesting to watch the Vice President, Dick Cheney, on “Meet the Press” with Tim Russert a couple of weeks ago, because when he was asked about Joe Wilson he said, I never met Joe Wilson, I don't know Joe Wilson.
We did a piece called “Does a Felon Rove the White House” I did with fellow producer Jeremy Scahill.
Looking at what Cheney said, he then went on to say when Russert told him, “Well he was sent by the C.I.A. “ he said, “Who sent him?” clearly raising this question of his wife, I think is the suggestion.
But what about Dick Cheney going to the C.I.A. with Scooter Libby, his top aide, I believe Scooter Libby went, "Washington Post" reported, many times perhaps close to 20, the Vice President went a number of times as well during the period after Joe Wilson gave his report. He says he never heard about this, which is quite hard to believe considering the unprecedented nature of his visits as well as Scooter Libby's. Do you think they have anything to do with this?............................................"
_________________________________
This is what our nation needs:
"The People Speak: America Debates Its Role in the World"
See article about the organization's positive effect on American community here.
Related article by Swanee Hunt of Harvard's Kennedy School of Government here.
___________________________
TELECASTS OF PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES/ONE HOUR EACH/ ONE ON ONE BEGINNING OCT 13:
Speaking of the Harvard Kennedy School, the Institute of Politics at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government will host a series of one-on-one, hour-long, live forums with the Presidential candidates. MSNBC will produce and telecast each forum as part of its program "Hardball: Battle for the White House."
See article.
All the Democratic candidates have been invited to participate. Currently, the following candidates and dates are confirmed.
Oct. 13 - Sen. John Edwards
Oct. 20 - Sen. John Kerry
Oct. 27 - Rev. Al Sharpton
Nov. 3 - Rep. Dick Gephardt
Nov. 10 - Sen. Bob Graham
Nov. 17 - Former U.S. Ambassador to New Zealand Carol Moseley Braun
This is a Must-Read:
Has Bush Become a Threat to the Ruling Elite?
Who Got Us Into This Mess and Why?
By SAUL LANDAU
Readers, I do not want you to miss this article.
In my humble opinion, truer words about the current state of the Bush administration were never spoken.
The only part in which I tend to disagree is the possibility of the entrance of one Hillary Clinton into this race. I don't believe you'll see that happen.
"....the Bush Administration, now faced with its first serious opposition from Congress members and editorial writers from leading newspapers, no longer speaks with one clear, albeit simplistic voice..."
Kazakhs: Let's talk about succession
By Sergei Blagov
Asia Times
**Corruption Probe Involving US Oil in Kazakhstan**
Greed in America:
This is what happens when good oil men go bad.
The eldest daughter of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev has told the Russian media that her father's opponents "could relax" for the next decade. However, she has become increasingly high-profile in terms of Kazakh domestic politics..
Excerpts:
".....in recent months talk of succession has gained new momentum, being somewhat fueled by an ongoing criminal investigation in New York into alleged kickbacks to top Kazakh officials as part of oil deals between the government and Western oil majors.
In June, a former US oil executive, J Bryan Williams, pleaded guilty to charges of tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the US government in connection with a deal to develop Kazakhstan's energy sector. Williams, a lawyer, aided Mobil's oil operations in Russia and other parts of the former Soviet Union, including Kazakhstan. The guilty plea of Williams is helping to refocus attention on a bribery case involving unnamed Kazakh officials and merchant banker James Giffen........."
~~~~~
....Giffen, who is chairman of the New York-based Mercator Corp, was arraigned on March 31 on two counts of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. According to the indictment, Giffen allegedly funneled $78 million in fees from a deal between Mobil Oil Corp and the Kazakh government to two bank accounts controlled by top Kazakh officials. The indictment does not name the Kazakh leaders.
The Giffen indictment is part of a wider US corruption probe that is examining the dealings of oil conglomerates in Kazakhstan. Giffen reportedly served as an adviser to Nazarbayev, and had close ties with Kazakh Oil Minister Nurlan Balgymbayev.
Therefore, Nazarbayev is now understood to be seeking to position his daughter as his successor, allowing him the option of quickly departing office if developments in the graft probe made it expedient to do so. Dynastic succession would also secure life-long immunity from prosecution for Nazarbayev..."
______________________
Companion article: Ex-Mobil executive gets prison in Kazakhstan case
"...He [Williams] said that after the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States, he realized that, if he had been killed, his family would have been left to deal with the result of his crimes.
"It would have been a huge mess," he said, explaining that he then hired tax lawyers to help resolve the problem. But the government had already begun its investigation..."
This is why Howard Dean is successful on the road to
President of the United States in 2004-
He understands and in many ways,
has created "the new rules"
A very interesting case made by Joan Vennochi of the Boston Globe.
The new rules of political rhetoric
By Joan Vennochi, 10/2/2003
Boston Globe
Excerpt:
"...Candidates like Schwarzenegger, Romney, and former Vermont governor Howard Dean are bypassing the traditional political constituencies and cutting right to the chase, the general voting population. They are banking on their gut feeling that American voters are sick to their stomachs of the same old rhetoric, the same old jargon, the same old broken promises.
Much of the Democratic presidential field is stuck in the old rhetoric, jargon and symbolism. Missouri congressman Richard Gephardt and Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts are up in arms over the notion that a Democrat -- specifically, Howard Dean -- once said something to the effect that Medicare is poorly run. They are so incensed they are trying to crucify him politically in Iowa and New Hampshire by comparing him with Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House who remains the devil incarnate to old-fashioned liberals.
Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut is also outraged by Dean's suggestion that Mideast peace negotiations might take an actual turn toward peace if the United States isn't automatically on Israel's side in every "negotiation." Then there is all the vying for endorsements from labor unions, women's organizations, and failed politicians like Gary Hart. Within the context of Democratic primary politics, it is heavy pressure, and Dean is clearly trying to placate the interest groups who hold enormous sway in the process. Every time he does, he weakens his campaign argument to the general voting population...."
'Slime and Defend'
By PAUL KRUGMAN
Published: October 3, 2003
NY Times
Bottom line...Bush knew about the inexcusable leaks 11 weeks ago.
What did he do?
ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.
"....as long as the media were willing to let the story lie — which, with a few honorable exceptions, like David Corn at The Nation and Knut Royce and Timothy Phelps at Newsday, they were — he didn't think this outrage required any action..."
And Cheney of course, went out on Meet The Press and pretended he'd never heard of Joseph Wilson.
***AS IF!***
It's no wonder a solid majority of Americans no longer have confidence in these so-called "leaders".
They display very few positive elements of good character when times get tough.
When they're caught in their web of lies, they make an outer-transformation to the sludge they really are under the surface.
As Paul Krugman aptly states:
".... the true test of patriotism isn't whether you are willing to wave the flag, or agree with whatever the president says. It's whether you are willing to take risks and make sacrifices, including political sacrifices, for the sake of your country. This episode is a test for Mr. Bush and his inner circle: a true patriot wouldn't hesitate about doing the right thing in the Plame affair, whatever the political costs.
Mr. Bush is failing that test."
~~~
As I commented just yesterday, "A determination to live sustained, proud, cold, and hard lies will never translate to consensus...within or without these United States.
This, ultimately, is the failure of the Bush presidency."
Al Gore back in the news
Mr. Gore is close to striking a deal to acquire Newsworld International, a tiny cable network owned by Vivendi Universal.
Gore and his backers want to turn the digital channel into a liberal-leaning network. His partners include ex-Democratic fund-raiser Joel Hyatt and media investment banker Steve Rattner, who's said to be lining up financing.
Let's hope it happens...and soon.
We surely could use a sane network.
New on the Web: FRONT LINE VOICES
Whether you agree with the soldiers' varied opinions or you don't, you may get a glimpse of their reality....and I think they, above all, deserve a good listen.
"....Are American soldiers still dying? Yep, about one a day from my outfit, the 4th Infantry Division, most in accidents, but dead is dead.
If we are doing all this for the Iraqis, why are they shooting at us?"
"...I've already talked the weapons of mass destruction thing to death - bottom line, who cares? This country was one big conventional weapons ammo dump anyway.. We have probably destroyed more weapons and ammo in the last 30 days than the U.S. Army has ever fired in the last 30 years (remember, this is a country the size of Texas), so drop the WMD argument as the reason we came here. If we find it great if we don't, so what?..."
From a letter entitled "Our Real Motivator" by:
ERIC RYDBOM
MAJOR, ENGINEER
Deputy Division Engineer
4th Infantry Division
~~~~~~~~~~
**I sense a hope to control the tone of what is said on the site...it seems to basically be a
"give us some good-news"website. It seems to be based upon an inherent distrust in the media, which always gives one cautionary pause when weighing the possibility of censorship.
Bear this in mind...but do not close your mind. Read the organization's mission statement below and decide for yourself:**
Front Line Voices Introduction
Since, as the saying goes, perception is nine-tenths of reality, those who control what we learn about the war in Iraq and other conflicts have an immense power. They can spin a victory into a failure, and a perceived failure in the fight against tyranny can only strengthen the resolve of tyrants.
It has increasingly been the complaint of many troops that the picture that the media is painting of the progress in the War on Terror is far from reality. The mission of this site is to get out the full story by posting first-hand accounts as written by men and women who have actually been to Iraq and Afghanistan. There is no editing or commentary by those who run this site, and we will print any letter or story submitted by a legitimate source who has served overseas. Our only goal is to offer you the opportunity to read these stories and to find out what the reality is.
The Kuwait Story--
A fellow blogger wonders the same thing I have been asking....
from the "fast eddie's bullet" blog 10-02-03:
Fast Eddie asks:
"I wonder why...
... the neo-con administration isn't blasting this all over the front pages?"
Kuwait foils smuggling of chemicals, bio warheads from Iraq
"Kuwaiti security authorities have foiled an attempt to smuggle $60 million worth of chemical weapons and biological warheads from Iraq to an unnamed European country, a Kuwaiti newspaper said on Wednesday..."
He goes on to say:
"Hmmm, perhaps when there are actual FACTS they will, until then the Hindustan Times will have to be the groundbreaker. Oh wait a minute... this scoop, probably the most important piece of information since the issue of UN Resolution 1441, isn't even on their front page. May I repeat... hmmmm..."
It makes you wonder, eh?
If you're still feeling gullible, swallow this one:
Coalition Couldn't Have Given U.N. Inspectors More Time, British Official Says
By Michael McDonough Associated Press Writer
"If we allowed more time, we were simply allowing more time for deceptions and defiance by the Saddam regime," Jack Straw told British Broadcasting Corp. radio. "Gradually, the resolve of the international community to deal with this matter would have died down. "
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Sure Jack Straw.
I presume you are the same Jack Straw who stressed his embarrassment at not finding WMDs in Iraq in the months after the attack upon Iraq?
If we allowed more time, you're saying that Hussein would have deceived us more?
Do you mean more than you and Colin Powell deceived us at the UN with all those WMD ghost stories?
More than your Blair and our Bush spoke of 45 minutes to doom and yellowcake from Niger?
Hey, Jack Straw--Are you saying it would have been better for resolve to have been lost at the UN instead of what actually occurred...losing total respect for your nation and ours in the UN-based international community?
See: "Annan rejects US plan for Iraqi transition-issues stinging rebuke"
I mean, it's fine to have resolve.
David Kay has resolve to spare, but he hasn't come up with one frigging weapon of mass destruction.
What have YOU found, Jack Straw?
And where is Saddam Hussein today, for all your "we couldn't waits"?
Hello?????
Criminal Sunni Gang Attacks Shiites in the Powderkeg known as Pakistan
Or, as simple George W Bush might simply say,
"The Terrorists Attack the Terrorists"
Bus Carrying Shiite Space Agency Employees Attacked in Southern Pakistan, Five Killed.
By Afzal Nadeem Associated Press Writer
Published: Oct 3, 2003
As you can see, Muslim extremist turmoil is no different in Pakistan than in Iraq.
And THESE folks are the ones making up the supporting troops we're requesting in Iraq?
Is it me...or is anyone else a little shaky on this?
