Pope Benedict XVI Calls For Political Change Toward Social Justice

"Love is free; it is not practiced as a way of achieving other ends."

- Pope Benedict XVI

Pope Benedict XVI Calls For Political Change Toward Social Justice
Directs more responsibility for social justice directly to the state

Good news for social progressives from the leader of the Roman Catholic church.

There is a new 71-page encyclical called "God is Love" which characterizes Pope Benedict XVI's early pontificate as "one in which he seeks to return to the basics of Christianity with a relatively uncontroversial meditation on love and the need for greater works of charity in an unjust world." [NYT]

I hope that our elected representatives will hear the words of Pope Benedict XVI, and take them seriously. He's stepping out of the realm of the church's responsibility and telling us, in no uncertain terms, that we are responsible, politically, for social justice. The Pope's words take the biblical message found in Matthew 25 and, setting respectful parameters for the church's involvement in political life, he calls upon the State to "stimulate greater insight into the requirements of justice as well as greater readiness to act accordingly, even when this might involve conflict with situations of personal interest." In other words, when making public policy, stop being concerned with lining the pockets of those who can bestow favor upon you (or your re-election) and think about the spiritually and economically poorest in our society.

From a NYT/AP article:

"There will always be suffering which cries out for consolation and help. There will always be loneliness. There will always be situations of material need where help in the form of concrete love of neighbor is indispensable," he said.

Benedict stressed that the state alone is responsible for creating that just society, not the church. [my emphasis] "As a political task, this cannot be the church's immediate responsibility," he said.

However, he said the church wants to be involved in political life by helping to "form consciences in political life and stimulate greater insight into the authentic requirements of justice as well as greater readiness to act accordingly, even when this might involve conflict with situations of personal interest."

He said the church was "duty-bound" to offer such a contribution, and that the lay faithful, who as citizens of the state, are duty-bound to carry it out through works of charity.

While stressing that the church has no direct political role, he did offer a prescription for what the state should do. He stressed the church's charity workers must never use their work to proselytize or push a particular political ideology.

"We do not need a state which regulates and controls everything, but a state which, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, generously acknowledges and supports initiatives arising from the different social forces and combines spontaneity with closeness to those in need," he wrote.[my emphasis]

The Pope criticizes the Marxist political model, in which the state tries to provide for every social need. (And, mind you, American social democracy is far more in line with the principles of subsidiarity). While Marxism responded to the plight of the poor faster than even the church did during the Industrial Revolution, it did not succeed in creating the Utopian society that it had set its aims upon. Freedom is an all-important component to any form of politics with lasting social justice as its aim. The Pope reminds us, in a way that we can all understand, that even in the most just societies, charity will always be necessary. I am relieved to hear that the Pope, in many ways, is supportive of governments reducing corruption within their own systems while supporting the continuation of a vibrant political debate from people of faith.

This is not a Republican or Democratic statement - but I can see that it is a Progressive statement, and I'm grateful that we have our spiritual leaders speaking, out of agape love, on behalf of the poorest in our society.

* A Note on the principle of subsidiarity
(sounds like political progressive centrism):
The principle of subsidiarity was developed in the encyclical Rerum Novarum of 1891 by Pope Leo XIII, as an attempt to articulate a middle course between the perceived excesses of laissez-faire capitalism on the one hand and the various forms of totalitarianism, which subordinate the individual to the state, on the other.

Santorum: Patriotic Heroes Do Bumper Stickers

Santorum: Patriotic Heroes Do Bumper Stickers

"Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country."

-Words from the inaugural address of President John F. Kennedy, delivered in 1961

Young John Murtha, Max Cleland, and John Kerry went to the Viet Nam war in the days when these words were spoken.

They've been blasted by right wingers - portrayed as cowards - we saw purple bandaids worn on cheeks at the Republican National convention, swift boat style attack ads - and Republican leaders say nothing in Murtha, Cleland, or Kerry's strong defense because of political stinginess.

Yet, according to Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum, any American who would put a friggen Rick Santorum bumper sticker on their car is a patriotic hero. (Don't believe me? See the video.)

What a FAR CRY from JFK's plea for service.

What's next?
Medals of Freedom for the best Dem Vet-attack ads?

GIVE ME A BREAK, ALREADY!

World Doesn't See US as Honest Brokers of Diplomacy

World Doesn't See US as Honest Brokers of Diplomacy

Seen at Captain's Quarters today, regarding the latest EJ Dionne column:

Ed says -

Suddenly with Iran, the Democratic front-runner claims that allowing Europe a significant role in negotiations amounts to "outsourcing" America's responsibilities, and they scream that George Bush hasn't been unilateral enough.

Interesting point, Ed. There's no sense in screaming about the fact that President Bush is very lucky to have Jack Straw "representing". (along with other diplomats from Germany and France).

Yet, EJ Dionne is right in his column - what is so hot about Bush's post-9/11 strategy to begin with? Why are Democrats not talking about the aftermath of this so-called successful strategy? Is there life after all the post-9/11 misleadings, failures and power grabs?

Because of the Bush administration's post-9/11 strategy, with unilateralism and arrogance as its unfortunate hallmark, our President has all but eliminated America's chance of being seen as a respected nation with an offering of trustworthy international diplomacy that works. And now we are faced with the determination of Iran's leadership to resume nuclear research.

In the aftermath of the Bush preventive war doctrine (and whether or not it's been said 'on the record'), many world leaders see him as a naked aggressor with neocon wonks behind his every act of so-called "diplomacy". They believe he has ulterior motives, including a quick resort to brutal military intervention. Why shouldn't they? The very nature of his new doctrine would inform them that he would invade any nation he suspected of any (unproven - think Iraq) belief about their possession of WMD.

World leaders still give Great Britain the benefit of the doubt, and I'm glad that they do. The Bush administration understands this. The outsourcing of diplomacy must happen because we are no longer trusted. We should be very grateful that Tony Blair has stepped in to offer up Jack Straw do our diplomatic bidding. Blair is looking more like the leader of the free world these days, which is quite embarrassing for our once-respected nation.

Jack Straw has commented about his part in the diplomatic negotiations:

"British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw ruled out imminent military action against Iran, but has left the door wide open Tuesday to referring Teheran to the United Nations.
Speaking in Parliament in London, Straw reiterated “profound concern” at Iran’s resumption of nuclear research, adding, “Military action is not on our agenda, and I don’t believe it’s on anyone else’s agenda”, he said, pre-empting speculation that Israel or the United States might attempt a military strike.

Two differing views...one from our former (and very much respected) Secretary of State - the other from a sabre-rattling neocon wonk who'd likely love to see (our gravely overstretched) American might utilized to quell the Iranian crisis.

Jasper Gerrard on Colin Powell:

..the irony that Iran is a greater threat than Iraq but after the political deception and military stalemate there is no appetite for aggro this time? [Gen Powell:] “Even if there hadn’t been Iraq I do not believe there would have been an immediate leap from anyone for military action. I’m fascinated everyone here wants to talk about military options: just slow down. Iran is some years off a nuclear weapon. One of the papers said ‘if they had the material they could (make bombs in a couple of months’; well, they don’t. If I had the material, so could I.”

Clifford May -

"...military options — particularly those aimed at destroying as many of Iran's nuclear facilities as possible — must remain on the table.

"To say under no circumstances would we exercise a military option," McCain noted, "that would be crazy." He added: "There is only one thing worse than the United States exercising a military option — that is a nuclear-armed Iran."

I'm with Powell on this one. Sen McCain has had incredibly unimaginative and impractical ideas for Iraq - and I can't imagine a scenario where I'd trust him on Iran.

Bottom line, the Bush admin knows it's better for them to stay out of diplomatic negotiations with Iran, and they're hoping that they will be able to exercise stringent options by Great Britain acting as our defacto State representative. (see Geoffrey Adams - a new name on the Brtits' horizon on Iran. Mr. Adams was the consul-general for the UK in Jerusalem who led the negotiations with Arafat that helped to end the Bethlehem seige in 2002.)

Going back to EJ Dionne's WaPo column, I believe that we are at this weakened point in the international community because of our post-9/11 strategy - and Democrats will drive that point home if they're smart. You can support our nation and be critical in the face of the recognition that we have lost something very crucial to our nation's security when we lost the international community's trust in our integrity as leaders. I always hope we will work our way back to being the strong AND respected nation we have always been - until Iraq. I honestly believe it will take an entirely new U.S. Executive administration (and a distinct turn away from the influence of the neocon set) to convince the world community that we are honest brokers of diplomacy.

__________

Colonel Jerry, USMC (a retired Marine fighter pilot) gives real-life options on Iran at Chicago Boyz, responding to a post by Michael Hiteshew and a lively discussion following.

Iran is mountainous, full of hardened underground sites. Surgical anything is out. Conventional would be bad/really bad. Nuclear would be really really bad. Doing nothing would also be really really bad.

Take your pick...................

War or nothing - isn't that a false choice? Didn't we see those extremely limited options placed before us as we plunged headlong into Iraq without a winning strategy? Is this a serious problem? Of course. Does it mean believing that war is the only option? Dear God, no. Lets open up the discussion and lay every option out on the table instead of employing fear to move us closer to any unnecessary violence. I'm not a total pacifist - my family has a rich history of military fighters. But a soldier who's been there knows that you only go there when it's a last resort.

It's Official: Bush Admin Had Advance Warning on Katrina

"I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees. They did anticipate a serious storm."

- President Bush said in a Sept. 1 interview on ABC's "Good Morning America."

It's Official: Bush Admin Had Advance Warning on Katrina

Adding insult to injury, the Washington Post reveals that the White House Got Early Warning on Katrina. President Bush, in a televised interview three days after Katrina hit, suggested that the scale of the flooding in New Orleans was unexpected. We know now that this is so very far from the truth that it is hard not to feel slapped in the face by this misleading President.

The White House declined to comment yesterday on the specifics of the reports but noted that the president has repeatedly acknowledged his displeasure with preparations for Katrina.

No kidding. Heckuva job, Leader.

EJ Dionne on Dems and Karl Rove

EJ Dionne on Dems and Karl Rove

E.J. Dionne makes the same point I made last Sunday.
What's so hot about Bush's post 9-11 strategy, anyhow?

Mr. Dionne shows how Karl Rove takes his Joe Lieberman "I'm Tough" doll and holds it up as a weapon against any Democrat who disagrees with Bush's failure to reduce the threat of terror. In reality, with each civilian killed in Iraq, we've likely created five more terrorists to take their place. Hello? These people are froth-at-the-mouth failures.

Don't be shy, Democrats. We can do much better with National Security. Let's communicate that to Americans.

On a lighter note, blogger Anonymoses wants to talk with us about Post-Post 9/11:

Sen. McCain - Offer Something Statesmanlike or Just Clam Up

Sen. McCain - Offer Something Statesmanlike or Just Clam Up

I just love the way certain American political leaders toss stupid insults around and piss off leaders of foreign countries who control considerable amounts of the oil supply that heats our homes and fuels our automobiles.

Today, Venezuela's vice president told Senator John McCain he could "go to hell" for suggesting that "wackos" were governing Venezuela. "Maybe he has got nothing to do over there in the United States," Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel said.

Does Senator McCain figure that, if he becomes the Big Cheese, he will just invade Venezuela pre-emptively - or help to stage a coup if Hugo gets too uppity with us? (Didn't we try that once and fail?) Was Senator McCain just in the mood for being GOP Macho-man and mocking the Venezuelan government? Does he realize that he's winding up looking like a chump to every one in the U.S. who pays more and more at the pump by the day? This is no laughing matter to us.

Hey, Senator McCain - just clam up and come up with some better ideas - and show some success with your own party in legislating those ideas. Hugo's got you all over a barrel. We have to pay for the stuff since your party has ignored the need for alternative energy ideas in a world competing viciously for oil. Your record on Energy is pretty good - but where's the beef? Republicans have been in control of the Senate for years. Why didn't you support the United Nations Kyoto Conference treaty regarding global climate change? We have to pay out the ass for the stuff because your party has an energy policy that favors the pockets of Big Oil over the dire needs of the people. Your party has initiated a totally unnecessary war that caused the Middle East to jack up OPEC oil costs (and you totally supported the miserable venture).

Keep up the good work on protecting the environment. Reconsider your stance on Kyoto. If you have nothing constructive or statesmanlike to offer on foreign policy...

Just - clam - up.

Your party's done enough damage already. You don't have to act like Bush on Fox News Sunday to impress us. Impress us by showing how a statesman keeps his cool in the most trying of circumstances. If you were Howard Dean, the entire media would be at your throat for making such incendiary and aggressive political comments.

Mary McElveen is a columnist with the independent foreign-based news site known as VHeadline.com, which is committed to democracy in Venezuela and is not tied to any political faction. Listen to what Ms. MsElveen has to say about this McCain situation - and about John Edwards, who she thinks is a dignified potential candidate for 2008.

UPDATE: "High level name-calling won't help. It's just another form of wasted energy." - Jeffrey Shaffer, Christian Science Monitor

New Survey: 29% of Gen Y believes God Caused Hurricanes

New Survey: 29% of Gen Y believes God Caused Hurricanes
44% totally trust government to protect them from expected terror attacks

I was not surprised to read that many young people do not obsess about natural disasters taking their lives or livelihoods. We all tend to think, "It couldn't happen to me."

A new survey of Generation Y-ers by the latest Greenberg Quinlan Rosner/Polimetrix Youth Monitor shows that the main concerns about the future of the Generation Y-ers are focused more on everyday things:

- not having enough money to retire
- the possibility of identity theft
- the possibility of dying of cancer
- getting the education needed for a good job


I'd say that these young people have their priorities straight.

Something's really bugging me about this survey, though. We cannot neglect the issue of Values reflected in this survey.

29 percent of the Gen-Y crowd believe that 'God' played a role in the hurricanes which battered America last season. I found it to be unsettling to know that one in five (19 percent) of Gen Y-ers believe these tragedies are a sign of the end of the world.

I think, when we allow Nature to cause us to lose hope because of a God that we see as leading our world's heart to stop pulsing - and when we favor hiding in fear behind that professed form of faith, that we become apathetic. When we let apathy allow our democracy to atrophy, we are not really acting out of our faith. Instead, we fail to act for the public good - all as a result of our own human fear and imagined helplessness.

It's easier to fall into a state of apathy when we feel helpless. When we toss hope aside for fearful or apathetic resignation, I believe that our hopelessness indicates an absence of true faith.

I'd love to see a future survey where every Gen Y-er will choose the fullness of hope over their fearful End Time prohecies.

I'd love to hear young people say that none of them believe that God brought a hurricane to their doorstep of out Apocalyptic vengeance, and that although they expected natural disasters to happen, they had faith that their government would be there for them to assist in a meaningful way after the natural disaster had done its damage. But that's clearly not what they are saying.

We should lead our children to trust absolutely no one who would tell us that fear is the heart of love and faith - or of politics. We should encourage our children to work for better government - a government whose public servants would not employ the politics of fear or hold back public assistance and opportunity with the anti-public politics of greed (enrichment of the richest) and deliberate ignorance of scientific fact.

The political Christian Right has been given a powerful voice in the Republican party, and I have found that the politics of fear and helplessness run true in the storylines of both the End-Timers and the far right-wing. People under the spell of end-time prophecies can't be expected to care about the environment, and the Republican party who coddles them promotes an agenda reflecting that End Time apathy. Why would we care about the earth when hurricanes brought on by God are signs of a great Apocalypse foretold in the Bible? (Mayor Nagin of New Orleans apologized for saying as much - and I'm glad that he thought twice about his ridiculous comment). Why bother to do anything about global warming when you will believe you'll be lifted up in the Rapture? As long as we have a political party that harbors and supports this kind of thinking, they will remain willing apathetic governors over the helpless, fearful, and uncaring.

I find it odd to know, although 29% of these Gen Y-ers believe that God will send natural disasters to us because it is His will, that a large 44% of Gen Y-ers "totally trust" that their government will protect them from another terrorist attack. Isn't this putting more faith in government to protect you than in God Himself? I would fiercely argue that that is not the common value that most Christians share.

It is no wonder we have people who are putting stock in a National theology that bears little resemblance to actual religious ideology. This National theology (as seen with Dominionism) twists an angry God up in a nice political package with the far right Republican ideology. It is a knife to the heart of true freedom. It supports no democratic ideology - only the Angry-God Triumphalism of this National theology.

While it's great to discuss our spiritual values in the public square and talk about how those values intersect respectfully with the common values of all Americans, the apathy that comes from the fear of an angry God will only make our world a place where hopelessness and injustice will reign.

How can we reach Gen Y-ers today and help them to understand that what they can do for their fellow man is far more in line with their faith, freedom and opportunity than the politics of fear and the the hopelessness of the apathetic?

A good start is the Center for Promise and Opportunity, where thousands of young people have been encouraged to get involved in their communities and advocate policies that expand opportunity for their generation's future.

Another good beginning is Generation Engage - a non-partisan effort aimed at raising the political profile of young adults which claims that a broad political apathy among them weakens the nation as a whole. Generation Engage bypasses candidates, campaigns, and partisan onslaughts, and engages young people at the local level, providing the knowledge, the organization, and the voice they need to shape the future they will inherit.

See U.S. losing edge in world market, Edwards says at poverty forum:

[Sen. John Edwards].. urged college students to advocate for the poor.

"This is an opportunity for young people to engage again," Edwards said. "You can be their champions."

He encouraged them to volunteer or work on such issues as raising the minimum wage.

Goldberg Advocates Murder. Lies, and Dishonor

Goldberg Advocates Murder. Lies, and Dishonor

"I have sworn, upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man."

- Thomas Jefferson

Mark Kleiman:

Jonah Goldberg suggests that Bush murder Osama bin Laden under a false flag of truce. No conservative steps up to disagree. Since when did "conservatives" think so little of the national honor?

I wonder if any of those conservatives would have been "amused" at Fort William Henry at Lake George, N.Y. during the French and Indian War when, under the false flag of protection under surrender terms, the French victors watched their allies - the Hurons - slaughter and pillage at least 100 of the trusting British parolees who had no means of self defense.

Osama and his gang have succeeded at turning little chickenhawks into advocates for savagery, lies, and dishonor under an American ruler with absolute power.

If this fails to ring warning bells for any American who has ever studied American history, then we didn't pay attention in class.

We cannot allow these cowardly fools to reduce our nation to a ball of defeated meaninglessness and dishonor under a tyranny of capitalist interest disguised as freedom. We are so much better than this. We deserve much better.

If no right-winger can see the potential fatality of our nation's Founding ideals in Goldberg's hideous idea, we need to shout their error and omission of criticism from our virtual rooftops. We should be winning hearts and minds by offering security to a world who can clearly see that our ideas are the right ones. Goldberg wants to expose us as liars, murderers, and cheats.

James Madison quote

An elective despotism was not the government we fought for; but one which should not only be founded on free principles, but in which the powers of government should be so divided and balanced among several bodies of magistracy, as that no one could transcend their legal limits, without being effectually checked and restrained by the others.

James Madison, Federalist No. 48, February 1, 1788

Democrats: Show 'em a Better Way

Democrats: Show 'em a Better Way

Democrats shouldn't be shy about getting tougher and defending themselves much better when it comes to diluting the inevitably negative media effects of partisan spin. For instance, they need to press the fact that Karl Rove, on the offensive in order to make his party look stronger, is deliberately dividing Americans on the issue of the war about which a majority of the public believe is a disaster.

No Democrat should be afraid to say that, a few short years after WWII had begun, Hitler was committing suicide in his bunker because he knew, thanks to the brilliance and tenacity of America and its allies, that the game was over. His ideas were dead in the water.

Where are our allies today? Many have left the coalition in Iraq - and most declined to join us from the beginning. Italy's troops will be gone from Iraq by the end of the year. It won't be long before we find ourselves alone. What kind of leadership does that scene portray? I'd venture to say that it portrays the worst leadership in America's history.

Blogger Kevin Hayden recently asked what being a leader actually means. Kevin comments that "our terribly incompetent and ineffective commander-in-chief finds it necessary to play one-upsmanship spin games every time the serial killer (Bin Laden) speaks on tape."

He says:

Anti-Americanism across the globe - not just in Muslim countries - has increased in five years of his leadership to levels not seen in nearly half a century. If we're putting terrorists out of business - as Scott McClellan claimed - why has terrorism multiplied in the past five years, faster than at any time in modern history?

Rather than becoming despondent like Adolph Hitler, the weak-kidneyed sack of hatred Osama bin Laden seems to be basking in his glory and taunting his enemies, knowing he has sparked many copy cats around the globe to attack Westerners at every opportunity.

Gee, thanks, Bush administration. GREAT JOB!

If that is what Karl Rove or Scott McClellan believes is the great new Republican post-9-11 thinking, we're in BIG trouble.

It's time to talk about what happens after the many Bush administration
post-9-11 failures.

I'd like to see Democratic leaders out there in the media speaking out about the Democrats and their ideas about national security; better ideas for a stronger and safer America.

Democrats should explain that they won't sink to Osama bin Laden's level and play the war games by his rules. The Bush administration has left Osama on the gameboard for too long now. We can do so much better, and we Democrats should show America that we have a better idea.

As Molly Ivins said in her latest column:

What kind of courage does it take, for mercy's sake? The majority of the American people (55 percent) think the war in Iraq is a mistake and that we should get out....WHO ARE YOU AFRAID OF?

Let's show America that we have a better idea. Now is the time to be bold. Karl Rove is talking as if his party is strong and right, while in reality, they're walking disasters.

Tar Heel Tavern #48

Tar Heel Tavern #48



The theme for this week’s Tavern is HUMOR. For those of you who sent your submissions to me, and for all others who visit my blog this week, I proudly present to you the 48th edition of the Tarheel Tavern. I only had a few submissions, so I decided to do an Editor's choice, going out to some of the regular Tar Heel Tavern blogs in search of some light material.


I'll start by asking - What's on Your Fridge?


When chipper meets bitter, it's not the prettiest scene. You know you must be sick when you use "incessantly" and "sex" in the same sentence. Jon Lowder's blogpost has it all - cursed routes and business suits; chatty gals and rest room tales. (Here's hoping he's feeling better).



Scrambling eggs in bed, hungry chicks in the bathtub, dreaming about being plucked bare while swimming in grease. Billy, Billy, Billy. That's the hottest poem about chickens I've ever read. Whew.



Mandie's pal is sniffing around for some good blogposts.

A Reminder:
Mandie still has one of her prints available on eBay, with 10% going to the NC Coastal Land Trust. LINK


My own contribution here at Iddybud lends you some advice about being careful about what you give away for free.


Answer this question: Just what, pray tell, is a woman who faithfully performs her Kegel exercises supposed to do with 250 tampons and 100 Centrum Silver vitamins? And what led this lovely lady to an afternoon of fast-food garbage-picking? Don't ask me. Only Dear Jane can explain. A real-life must-read for any parent - or anyone thinking about becoming a parent and betting you'll still be sane by the time the kids go to college. (Rotsa ruck).

ZhaK shows us that form and function have little to do with a certain turquoise leather slim-cut skirt - even when it has a puffy jacket to match. ZhaK shares 40 years worth of something extremely personal with you in this blogpost. She may inspire you to open your closet door and take a good hard look at what you've been showing and telling the world about yourself.



Who do you think was the biggest wuss of 2005? Anonymoses is taking nominations for the first annual Wuss Awards.

Did you know that Bora is now a Blooker? He'll be finalizing his first Blook this weekend (and we wish him luck). He explains that he tends to blog about a wide variety of topics and that his eclectic taste leads him to reading a wide variety of blogs. He asks his readers to tell him why they come to his blog - and what they enjoy reading about.

Seen at Scrutiny Hooligans: If the leader of the free world went on Jeopardy..

Say 'Hello' to the adorable Squirt and Lucy at Slowly She Turned.

On a serious note, prayers and healing thoughts go out to our own Ron Hudson, whose mom has been in the hospital (on and off) since late December with cardiopulmonary issues. He's had to temporarily stop writing his blog, but he wanted to send his greetings to everyone. He says that he hopes to be back soon.

I'll end this edition of the Tar Heel Tavern with a link to a website that never fails to make me smile: Crying While Eating. I'm thinking about making my own Crying While Eating video. What will I eat? What will I choose to cry about? What will I wear? (Maybe Zhak can help me plan my wardrobe!)

My Mom's Act of Generosity

My Mom's Act of Generosity




One August day my mother decided to be generous. She'd had an extra-bountiful harvest from her gardening efforts. Plump tomatoes and zucchini were bursting forth from their many green stems. She wasn't in the mood for canning. We'd already eaten enough zucchini to make us sick that season. Zucchini bread, fried zucchini, zucchini in our pasta, zucchini in our soup - what was next? Zucchini milk shakes? The zucchini had to go, but my mother did not believe in wasting a thing.

She decided to share with complete strangers. The neighbors had already accepted more zucchini than they could handle. We couldn't possibly ask them to accept more of the big green gifts. No - it would have to be strangers who would be the recipients of Mom's generosity this time.

"How can I carry out this kind and generous deed?" she wondered. She tore some cardboard off of a box in our garage and created a sign with black magic marker.

It read:

"Please take - FREE!"

Proud of herself, she went into the back yard and dragged one of her picnic benches all the way to the front yard - to the street. We lived on more of a rural highway than a street. Cars would whizz by at about 50 mph on the average. I'm not sure how she expected anyone to be able to see her little sign and stop in time.

She enlisted me to help her carry the bounty of tomatoes and zucchini out to the bench, and when we were done, we looked proudly at our display. Mother was teaching me a lesson about sharing.

Back inside the house, we waited for a time at the front window with proud anticipation. Cars sped by - no one stopped.

The morning wore on and we got tired and just a bit disappointed. At one point, I recall someone finally stopping and taking many of the vegetables, leaving a few behind.

We lost track after a while - forgetting about the display.

Evening fell - and when Mom went out to retrieve the picnic bench, it was gone.

For the longest time, we scratched our heads and wondered what could have happened to it - and we laughed when we realized what had probably happened.

We found nothing but her cardboard sign laying on the ground.

Someone must have come along and taken the last of the vegetables - and left the sign propped up on the empty picnic bench - the one that had read:

"Please take - FREE!"

So someone took the bench!

It was the last time we shared that way.

High Energy Costs Stunting Economic Growth

High Energy Costs Stunting Economic Growth

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 1.96 percent yesterday, erasing its gains for the year. It was the sharpest one-day decline since May 2003. Stocks tumbled after crude oil surged past $68 a barrel and several corporate giants reported disappointing earnings. Shares of Google fell 8.5 percent, their biggest decline ever, after the company said it would fight federal prosecutors' demands for records on Internet users' search queries.

For investors, who just two weeks ago were celebrating the Dow's climb above 11,000, there has been a marked shift in mood. The earlier optimism, fed by expectations that profit growth would remain strong as the Federal Reserve put the brakes on interest rate increases, has eroded in recent days. - NY Times, 21 January 2006

Even though the war machinery has pumped the pedal that moves the wheels of the American market in the past, the uncertainty in Iraq is markedly hurting our economy.

As the standoff between Iran and Western nations drags on, the concern among oil experts is that a diplomatic or military confrontation with a major Middle East oil producer will curb oil supplies at a time when all other producers are pumping at their maximum capacity. - NY Times, 21 Jan 2006

The most frightening part is that the people hurt the most and hit the hardest are not even the market investors. It is the average American whose pockets are being picked by Big Oil; and Big Oil cannot stay above water without gouging the customers because of the Bush administration, who thought they could enrich Big Oil (and the RNC coffers) by showing American dominance in Iraq...all the while telling the public they were 'spreading democracy' and 'keeping us safe.'

Now, analysts fear that oil prices could surge much higher - even beyond $100 a barrel - if the UN Security Council imposes trade sanctions on Iran over its nuclear activities.

It appears that they've failed everyone.

On a very much-related note, the witty Molly Ivins is serious. She is sick of fear, timidity, and hypocrisy among the Democrats. She's gone as far as to say that she won't support Senator Clinton for President.

What kind of courage does it take, for mercy's sake? The majority of the American people (55 percent) think the war in Iraq is a mistake and that we should get out....The majority (87 percent) thinks big oil companies are gouging consumers and would support a windfall profits tax. That is the center, you fools. WHO ARE YOU AFRAID OF? [CNN]

Kosovo's President Rugova is Dead

Kosovo's President Rugova is Dead

According to Fisnik Abrashi of the Associated Press, Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova's death leaves the province's political scene in disarray at the most sensitive time since the end of the 1998-99 war between Yugoslav government forces and Kosovo Liberation Army.

A New York Times article reminds us that Rugova's popularity was not universal, but that he was regarded by many as the "father" of Kosovo. He'd drawn criticism for meeting with former Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic in Belgrade at the height of the 78-day NATO bombing campaign and appeared on Serbian television to call for a "political solution."

The feud that ensued between his party and the Kosovo Liberation Army, which had broad support of the ethnic Albanian population, led some analysts to conclude his political career was over, but his party regained support when the United Nations and NATO moved in to administer the province and the Kosovo Liberation Army was disbanded. - NY Times, 22 Jan 2006

Regardless of past criticism, Rugova was regarded as an international icon of the Kosovo-Albanian struggle for independence. His death leaves the future of Kosovo in questionable balance. Negotiations between ethnic Albanians and Serbs over the future of the province were set to start in Vienna, Austria this Wednesday, when it will be decided whether Kosovo’s majority ethnic Albanians will win the outright independence they've wanted. It's a great loss at a very important and sensitive time.

The head of parliament, Nexhat Daci, is expected to be named acting president until the parliament chooses a new leader.

Dennis Anderson Pays Tribute To Jill Carroll

Dennis Anderson Pays Tribute To Jill Carroll

Journalist Dennis Anderson, a two-time embed in Iraq, has written what I consider to be a lovely tribute to kidnapped journalist Jill Carroll. He brings to mind what I know as agape love - the love for God and mankind, and all of creation in the human heart. It's the spirit that draws special people like Jill Carroll and the late freelance journalist Steven Vincent to dangerous places like Iraq. It's what drives the soldier on to defend his brothers-in-arms, regardless of who sent him on his mission. It's the quality that enables a person to face all danger with self-command, with strength, and resolution. It is everything that politics, for the sake of politics, is not.

Mr Anderson employs symbolism in the form of the mythic unicorn, "rare creatures, who should be celebrated and revered, not hunted down," to frame the sorrow of Jill Carroll's current plight:

It’s a shame, and shameful. It is not that the journalists are stupid or lack sense. More, it is a comment on the murderous and thuggish nature of the terrorists and criminal swine who want to pull Iraq back into the pit of medieval tyranny from which it is emerging.

So, Jill Carroll was not foolhardy. She answered the call of the brave. Idealists, people of generous spirit and brave nature do this work because they believe it serves a higher purpose.

They want to feed or comfort the afflicted. They want to be peacemakers. They want the world to have a full and fair report of the sufferings of others. And for this there is great risk, and for this the thankless reward is that the ultimate price of that pure intention might be a horrifying death. The military who are serving in Iraq should be respected for the work they do, trying to restore sufficient safety so the unicorns will no longer be hunted and killed.

Why did Jill Carroll want to go to Iraq in the first place? She tells you in her own words.

What do we do at a time when we feel that we can do little else? We hope.
And we pray.

Italian Election is Reason for Troop Pullout from Iraq

Italian Election is Reason for Troop Pullout from Iraq

Listen to this meaningless mumbo-jumbo from Italy's Defense Minister Antonio Martino. [Toronto Star] His announcement to withdraw Italian troops from Iraq by the end of this year was made to a parliamentary commission yesterday:

Martino in his speech to the commission said the pullout, by year's end, "will achieve a worthy conclusion to an operation crowned by success...It will be a dignified re-entry, without any concession to the requests for immediate withdrawal, backed by positions of misunderstood pacifism and by presumptuous anti-Americanism," Martino said.

Crowned by what?! Has this guy read the news - or does Berlusconi depend upon his lackeys to read him selected headlines a la George W. Bush?

No concessions to the peaceniks or U.S.-haters? If that were the case, they wouldn't be admitting to pulling out the troops at the very same moment that Osama bin Laden is offering a truce.

The Italian emporer's been caught without his clothes.

The naked truth is, Berlusconi has an election to win this Spring, and by God, he's certainly not going to win it by ignoring the peaceniks and the U.S.-haters.

Chris Matthews Was Out of Line with Moore Comment

Chris Matthews Was Out of Line with Moore Comment

Listen to MSNBC's Chris Matthews spit out, in his usual machine-gun-style of speaking, this incredibly insulting and unfair comment about the controversial Eagle Scout/documentarian with a passion for justice and democracy, Michael Moore.

Mr. Matthews' flippant slander of Mr. Moore, comparing him to the murderous Isamic fundamentalist Osama bin Laden is so close to Freeperdom that it is beginning to scare me. In a rush to segue to his usual hyperbole, Senator Joe Biden's sickening cackle and wide chiclet-toothed smile after Matthews made the disgusting comment was a wink and a nod to the slander that is all too easily wielded by pundits in the mainstream media.

Crooks and Liars has the video.

Kos makes the point that it's not liberal who are in power. He says, "It's been George Bush and his neocon pals. It is THEY who have failed to capture or kill Bin Laden. It is they who have made our country less safe, and created a world in which terrorist attacks have increased. It is they who are making a mess out of the war in Iraq.."

"Mr. Matthews was out of line.
In essence, what he did was to tell every one of us that when we give any critical thought to the ways in which our government is conducting our business, that we are all Osama bin Ladens."

Kos provides other links to the story out in the blogosphere, including one by Peter Daou at Salon.com.

Chris Matthews needs to apologize to Mr. Moore and to all of us - if he wants to restore public confidence in him and in MSNBC as objective television journalists.

Mr. Matthews was out of line. In essence, what he did was to tell every one of us that when we give any critical thought to the ways in which our government is conducting our business, that we are all Osama bin Ladens.

_______






UPDATE - There's more to the MSNBC scandal of idiot pundits calling Democrats "Osama bin Ladens".

See Sarahlane and Grand Moff Texan's diaries at Daily Kos.

"We need to hear more Democratic leaders speaking to this issue and demanding action from MSNBC"

Senator John Kerry has spoken out on this, and I credit him for it. We need to hear more Democratic leaders speaking to this issue and demanding action from MSNBC, unless MSNBC wants to remain being seen as the dirty Republican-hugging pigs they appear to be right now.

Clean Up Washington

Clean Up Washington


Forty-three percent of members of Congress who left office since 1998 and were eligible to lobby have become lobbyists, indicating that Congress has increasingly become a way station on the path to the lucrative influence-peddling industry.

A list of Pioneers and Rangers painfully shows the hypocrisy of President Bush condemning the influence of Special Interests while he accepted at least $6.5 million bundled by lobbyists in 2003.

It's time to Clean Up Washington.

See the new Clean Up Washington website here.

What Do You Think These Folks Are Doing?

What Do You Think These
Folks Are Doing?



Nope, it's not an episode of CSI or Grey's Anatomy.
Click on the photo to find out what the heck is going on.

Bush-Tough Guy Myth Relies on Pop Fiction

Bush-Tough Guy Myth Relies on Pop Fiction

Blogger Sarah Devon of Athens, Georgia has made a comment about Maureen Dowd's latest column, Looking for a Democratic Tough Guy, or Girl.

If the Republican party is Jack Bauer, maybe Edwards is a stronger breed of Democrat, one that doesn't really have a place in today's pop culture. Maybe he's a Robin Hood of sorts. Maybe that's what Dowd wants to see. I know it's what I want to see.

The GOP has a guy doing his darndest to play a Jack Bauer role. Of course, we all know that Bauer is a fictional character played by a (very good) actor who is a tough-guy beholden, with respect, to the power of those who command him. Kind of like Bush, pulled by the strings of those who read the newspapers for him - that is, if you take away the courage to face war and gunfire; if you take away Bauer's extremely uncanny sense of intuition; and if you remove Bauer's ability to tell the truth to those he serves; and if you rely on pop fiction.

If the show "24" featured a Jack Bauer that hung around the office hiding under a desk while his comrades were being shot at, Maureen Dowd's simile might come closer to reality.

In recent polls, we see that the public clearly understands that the Jack Bauer they've been seeing on their TV screens gets different results than the bumbling Bauer wanna-bes in the Bush administration. The real Jack Bauers are the ones they irresponsibly stuck on the battlefield. You know their faces. They are the ones who are sitting ducks today in Iraq because of the idiotic missteps of the leader who would not listen to the voices that mattered.

I agree with Sarah - I want the real deal - and not an actor. We don't need a scripted brave man/cave man. John Edwards isn't a "Johny-get-angry." He's a passionate fellow with principles who, like most honorable characters and great leaders in literature, will not hide behind a mask of false bravado; will not lie or mislead; will call a duck a duck when everyone can see it's a duck - (maybe even before others can even spot the duck); is respectable; trustworthy; standing strong in his convictions. Cheery, reverent, thrifty - maybe John Edwards is more like a Boy Scout leader than a 'blam-blam' Bauer. What's wrong with that?



WE WANT A LEADER WHO IS.....



More Mr. Smith Goes to Washington than Ernest in the Army.



More Mr. Darcy than Mr. Ed.


More Viggo Mortenson from Lord of the Rings and less Sonny from "I, Robot"


More Jesus in the temple than Satan in the torture chamber.

Pssst, Hey, Osama -

Another bin Laden tape.....

Pssst, Hey, Osama-

Screw you.
Wait - I'm sorry. That wasn't a very Christian thing to say, was it?
Let me try again.
Go to hell.

You kill innocent people.
You torture people.
You employ fear to destroy peace.
You manipulate stupid men and women into doing the same things, thinking they can defeat your ideas when they are only acting in accord with them.

Only fear gives you the power you do not deserve.

I'd just as soon you kept your murder plots to yourself.

The extreme stupidity of some world leaders, including America's President, has exalted you to achieving a very much undeserved 'hero status' among some of your own misled people.
That's a shame - a damned shame.

I know all too well about misled people. You're a good manipulator, and you surely know how to keep the world a frightening and violent place for the poor sheep that actually believe that their political leaders will be their all-protective Daddy.

I'm not afraid of you or any of your minions.
Shove your tape and your truce.

It's faith, hope, intelligence, and the strength that only people of peace and principle can bring that will reduce your murdering little ass to meaningless dust, Osama - and put an end to the morally pointless wars that you've egged on.

______________

The best thing America could do is to end the charade in Iraq and concentrate on true justice, of which we lost sight when George W. Bush and Dick Cheney decided to forget that the rule of law ever existed. Bush and Cheney should both be impeached for their weakness in leadership and their unlawful, democracy-destroying behavior.

They should have never played by the rule of Osama.




**It's a travesty of all that is righteous and just! Why is this jerk Osama bin Laden still a free man - while over 2100 of our men and women who wear the uniform of the US armed forces - almost as many who died in the World Trade Centers - lie dead in their graves...going on five years from the time New York was attacked?

*** Bouldin knows what I'm talkin' 'bout.

Poverty in the News

Poverty in the News

Pauline Hovey writes about a recent conference called "Politics and Spirituality: Seeking a Public Integrity," held Jan. 14-16 on Capitol Hill:

Today countless people are enslaved by poverty, across the globe as well as in our country, and God is calling us to help. "Poverty is the new slavery," said Jim Wallis, who has traveled across the country promoting his recent book God's Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It and listening to people of faith who want to change the direction of public policy. As he explained in the second session, Action to Contemplation, "The two great hungers today are spiritual integrity and social justice." He views this as what he calls a "kairos moment," a time when things are "opening up" for change. "The country," he said, "is hungry for a politics of solution and hope." It appeared from the reaction of the participants that the hunger is growing....But rather than seek to align ourselves with a particular political party or label, Wallis suggested, "Don’t go left; don’t go right. Go deeper."

A painting contractor from New Hampshire talks about his recent Habitat for Humanity experience in Jonesboro, Mississippi.

I have seen urban poverty before, but uniform rural poverty like this was a new condition for me, and more disturbing. At times it was hard to believe we were in America and not some Third World country. [Union Leader]

Spiritual leader Deepak Chopra has a new idea about "rebranding peace," including the poverty alleviation issue:

[One]strategy to rebrand peace is to identify, connect, and expand the constituency of individuals and organizations that will spread the message of peace as a pragmatic reality. To do so, we are enlisting Internet leaders, such as Michael Karlin, the cofounder of the world's first Internet bank, to help create a Web-based community. A website, under the banner name "Constellation," should be launched later this year. This community will be engineered to connect individuals working on similar projects across many cultures and communities.

For example, in a model similar to Amazon.com - where when one purchases a book and five other related titles emerge - our Web community will provide lists of people and organizations building peace under a variety of categories - such as poverty reduction activities, education, or conflict resolution efforts. These individuals will then be able to communicate with each other, consolidate efforts, and reinforce the message that thousands are aligned to build peaceful futures for their families and their communities.

When we consider how individuals can make an impact on world affairs, we often only think of terrorists as having that impact through violence. Isn't it time to demonstrate the power of individuals through the actions of peace?

Jamie Anson at the Daily Evergreen [Washington State University] writes:

Any sociologist can speak of the links between crime and poverty, and the country that harbors no social responsibility for poor and repressed neighborhoods is doomed to suffer the consequences. Forty-five million Americans have no health insurance, and 37 million live in poverty, according to the article [What King Really Dreamed]. Dr. King would hold these numbers in contempt. Until the basic needs of these people are realized, their struggles will manifest themselves in some form of social unrest.

King colleague urges fight on poverty, racism, war

On what would have been the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 77th birthday, a fellow civil rights pioneer called Sunday in Minneapolis for Americans to rededicate themselves to the principles for which King lived and died.
"Martin called us to fight the three-headed monster: poverty, racism and war," the Rev. Joseph Lowery told about 900 people gathered in the Basilica of St. Mary for a Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration...."We're still judging people by the color of their skins and not by the content of their character," said Lowery, echoing one of King's most famous speeches. He said overt, legal segregation has been defeated

Washington State march:

"...about 250 parents, students and activists marched to the Capitol [in Washington state] on Monday in a rally organized by several anti-poverty groups on Martin Luther King Jr. Day....
...Poverty Voice, a publication sponsored by the action network and other groups, reports that 612,000 Washington residents live below the federal poverty line, but that number is low because the federal level is well below what a family needs to survive..The federal line is $16,090 a year for a family of three, the equivalent of one person making $7.74 an hour full time, according to the state..The poverty groups contend 1.7 million state residents make 80 percent or less of the state median wage, which is $44,158 a year.
- [Activists take poverty agenda to the streets]

John Edwards a Guest on NPR

John Edwards a Guest on NPR

Former senator and vice presidential candidate John Edwards was a recent guest on NPR's Talk of the Nation with Neal Conan.
Listen here. [app. 17 mins]

The Silk Road Leads to Queens

The Silk Road Leads to Queens



The Silk Road leads to Elmhurst?
Who knew?
Western Queens Gazette

This delicious NYT article by Julia Moskin made me hungry. I can't wait to get back to Queens and try some of these places.

Tenet: Slam or Sham?

Tenet: Slam or Sham?

I hear George Tenet's writing a book and he says he will also provide "the real context" of his own now-famous "slam-dunk comment" about Saddam Hussein's suspected pre-war weapons of mass destruction. (This, according to his publisher).


Yawn......

I wonder if it will be as "meaningful" as the confessions made in fellow Medal of Freedom winner J. Paul Bremer's book.

I have a sneaking suspicion that it will be an attempt at a "startling revelation" (fake gasp here) from just another guy who's reputation was ruined when he decided that his loyalty to a figurehead meant more than doing all he could to stop Bush from steering our nation toward disaster. Do I sound bitter? Jaded? Sick of seeing these people rake in millions for lame admissions once we've been had?

You might be right.

Josh Marshall: The Headline You Haven't Seen

Josh Marshall on The Headline You Haven't Seen

Josh Marshall wants to know why a key part of the Abramoff story is not being investigated or talked about in the mainstream media.

The wunderkind blogger is all over the Jack Abramoff saga. If you want to stay 'in the know', be sure to read Josh - several times a day if possible.

Iran: Diplomacy and the UN Security Council

Iran: Diplomacy and the UN Security Council

From Reuters -

European powers began circulating a draft resolution on Wednesday that asks the U.N. nuclear watchdog to report Iran to the Security Council, though diplomats said any U.N. sanctions would be a long way off...

....The chief of France's defense staff said the idea of Iran possessing a nuclear weapon was "a real nightmare" but added that a negotiated solution remained possible and that any hasty resort to military action would be "completely mad."

"That would create a dreadful drama in the Middle East," General Henri Bentegeat told Europe 1 radio. "Maybe one day we will get to that point. But today it is exclusively the diplomats who are having their say."

The EU draft asks IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei to keep up inspections to try to provide "credible assurances regarding the absence of undeclared nuclear materials and activities in Iran."

The text, being circulated among key IAEA board members, may undergo changes as they discuss it. [Reuters]

from the Guardian UK -

.....diplomacy is the right way to respond. The Islamic Republic is within its rights to want to develop nuclear energy, like all signatories to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty (NPT). It is not entitled to build nuclear weapons, though despite denials there is circumstantial evidence that it may be trying to do just that. Past evasion and concealment do not inspire confidence. The CIA's best estimate is that Iran is 10 years from building a bomb, though with dual-use technical breakthroughs or black-market purchases it could be sooner. Intelligence though, as the Iraq war showed, is notoriously unreliable. If accurate - and not exaggerated by spies, spin doctors or exiles - it can pinpoint capabilities. Intentions are a different matter. [editorial Guardian UK]

The Washington Post gives you the key players in the game.

Janine Zacharia at Bloomberg is reporting that Russia's proposal to hold off on a formal referral of Iran to the United Nations' Security Counci suggests disharmony ahead of an emergency (Feb. 2) IAEA meeting. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said what action the IAEA will take may not be clear until the last minute. A majority vote by the 35-member board of the IAEA, the UN's nuclear watchdog, is required for a referral to the Security Council.

Russia has offered to allow Iran to enrich uranium in Russia. Iran rejected this request, insisting it has the "right" to carry out enrichment on its own soil, and resumed research, triggering calls Jan. 12 from France, Germany, Britain and the U.S. to refer Iran's nuclear program to the UN.

In other news..

Russia's foreign minister warned Tuesday that sanctions were not the best way to resolve the Iranian nuclear crisis and urged all nations to keep non-proliferation as their goal. - CTV.ca

The Progressive website hosts an article by Amitabh Pal which points out that "the nuclear hypocrisy of the five established powers has been one of the major reasons that Iran’s nuclear program has widespread support among its populace."

Why was even Nobel Peace Prize-winner Shirin Ebadi, who has never hesitated to fight for her principles, recently reluctant to outright condemn Iran’s nuclear ambitions?

Last August, I blogged about a comment that Mme. Ebadi had made:

Listen to the reasoning of Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi of Iran (quoted below-see LINK).

"Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi has said that while she, too, opposes nuclear weapons, the West would do more good by focusing not on Tehran's nuclear programme but on promoting democracy in the Islamic Republic.

"In a country or a society where people supervise decisions and everything else, like a democratic country, the existence of an atomic bomb cannot be dangerous," Ms Ebadi said."

There could be many possible geopolitical consequences, depending upon the outcome with the IAEA and/or the UN Security council - look at this article:

Syria and Iran, an axis of evil upheaval

Veteran Smears From the Right Will Cost Republicans

Veteran Smears From the Right Will Cost Republicans

The political tactic of playing up the soldiers on the battlefield while tearing down the reputations of veterans who oppose them could eventually cost the Republicans dearly. It may be one reason that a preponderance of the Iraq war veterans who thus far have decided to run for office are doing so as Democrats.

A young American now serving in Iraq might rightly wonder whether his or her service will be deliberately misconstrued 20 years from now, in the next rendition of politically motivated spinmeisters who never had the courage to step forward and put their own lives on the line.

Rudyard Kipling summed up this syndrome quite neatly more than a century ago, writing about the frequent hypocrisy directed at the British soldiers of his day:

An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please;

An' Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool - you bet that Tommy sees!

- James Webb, a secretary of the Navy in the Reagan administration, was a Marine platoon and company commander in Vietnam

[NYT Select]

Warren Buffet: Trade Deficit Threatens US Economy

Warren Buffet: Trade Deficit Threatens US Economy
AP-Scott Sonner -

The U.S. trade deficit is a bigger threat to the domestic economy than either the federal budget deficit or consumer debt and could lead to "political turmoil," billionaire investor Warren Buffett warned. "Right now, the rest of the world owns $3 trillion more of us than we own of them," Buffett told business students and faculty Tuesday at the University of Nevada, Reno. "In my view, it will create political turmoil at some point. ...
...The U.S. trade deficit soared to a record $665.9 billion in 2004, and Buffett said he expects it to top $700 billion this year.

"That's $2 billion a day. We are like a super rich family that owns a farm the size of Texas. You sell off a little bit of the farm and you don't see it," he said. Fifteen years ago, the U.S. had no trade deficit with China, he said. "Now it's $200 billion. If we don't change the course, the rest of the world could own $15 trillion of us. That's pretty substantial. That's equal to the value of all American stock," Buffett said.

Forbes' Chris Noone says -

Fixing the trade deficit--which soared to a record $665.9 billion in 2004, and is expected to top $700 billion this year--is becoming rather like turning around an ocean liner by dipping a teaspoon in the water.

E.J. Dionne on Murtha Slander

E.J. Dionne on Murtha Slander

E.J. Dionne tells the bitter truth about the lengths the right wing will go to in order to politically protest (and destroy the reputation of) a veteran who dares to speak out.

"...there is no honor given to those who serve if they choose later to take on the powers that be."

Mr. Dionne says:

What's maddening here is the unblushing hypocrisy of the right wing and the way it circulates -- usually through Web sites or talk radio -- personal vilification to abort honest political debate. Murtha's views on withdrawing troops from Iraq are certainly the object of legitimate contention. Many in Murtha's party disagree with him. But Murtha's right-wing critics can't content themselves with going after his ideas. They have to try to discredit his service.

What's maddening, to me, is seeing the Washington Post's Howard Kurtz and Shailagh Murray irresponsibly spreading the crap around without any objective investigation. They - and their editors - make it a piece of cake for the right-wing mouth machine to get hold of a megaphone.

War and politics may be a nasty business, but responsible mainstream journalism is supposed to be an objective business.

Lt. Gen. Vines Replaced After One-Year "Stint"

Lt. Gen. Vines Replaced After One-Year "Stint"

Hmmmm.....

Last week, I sensed a definite clash between Generals in the opinions about the state of civil war in Iraq. I'd quoted this NY Times piece:

Sectarian rivalries and inefficient Iraqi ministries could turn the Iraqi security forces into "militias or armed gangs," Lt. General John Vines, the senior US operational commander in Iraq, said in an interview....In the weeks leading up to the December election, however, General Vines differed with his boss, Gen. George W. Casey Jr. over how and where to assign troops to ensure a peaceful and successful balloting.

At the time, I had asked this question, not realizing that Lt Gen Vines was already being replaced:

"Which opinion will be gagged and muffled? If this public split in philosophy does not die down, who will back down? Is it a civil war in Iraq or not?"

Lt. General Vines will be replaced by Army Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli - and I'll bet he'll be a lot more careful about keeping his message in line with General Casey's.
Now....

Army Lt. Gen. Peter Chiarelli replaces Army Lt. Gen. John Vines on Thursday as the No. 2 general in the U.S. command, said Lt. Col. Barry Johnson, a military spokesman in Baghdad. Vines, who last week forecast continuing violence in Iraq, is ending a year-long stint as the U.S. operational commander amid a bloody and continuing fight with insurgents. His departure is part of the regular rotation of senior U.S. commanders in the war, which began in March 2003.

Casey will stay - doing "terrific job"

The Pentagon said Casey, top U.S. commander in Iraq since July 2004, will remain in his post. Casey previously had been expected to wrap up his duty in Iraq this summer. "There are no plans or intentions to relieve him in the foreseeable future," said chief Pentagon spokesman Lawrence Di Rita, who said Casey is "doing a terrific job."

The article states that Lt Gen. Vines' departure is "part of the regular rotation of senior U.S. commanders in the war, which began in March 2003."

Meanwhile, shots of truth continue to tear through the curtain of the "happy talk."

Guardian Unlimited (Julian Borger):

An official assessment drawn up by the US foreign aid agency depicts the security situation in Iraq as dire, amounting to a "social breakdown" in which criminals have "almost free rein".
The "conflict assessment" is an attachment to an invitation to contractors to bid on a project rehabilitating Iraqi cities published earlier this month by the US Agency for International Development (USAid).

The picture it paints is not only darker than the optimistic accounts from the White House and the Pentagon, it also gives a more complex profile of the insurgency than the straightforward "rejectionists, Saddamists and terrorists" described by George Bush.

Lt Gen. Vines entertained questions from the press last Friday. Here are a couple of questions with answers that lead us to believe that the majority of the violence against the US/Iraqi force is coming from disgruntled Iraqi groups, many with whom we are negotiating for political settlement. As Jill Carroll reported just before she was kidnapped, we are negotiating with the same groups who are committing major acts of violence against us.

Jim Miklaszewski of NBC news went as far as to ask about the deals we're cutting with political figures in Iraq who've had direct ties to the insurgency:

There have been also reports that U.S. military is, in fact, talking to some of these insurgents. Is that underway?

Here are some other questions:

Q. [Al Pessin with Voice of America] - Even if all or most of the Sunni Iraqi part of the insurgency were to decide to support a broad-based government, how big an impact would that have on the overall picture of violence? In other words, how much of the violence is by the Iraqi groups and how much by the foreigners?

GEN. VINES: I believe that the majority is by Iraqi groups -- some who feel like they run the risk of being disadvantaged, and perhaps they're using violence as a bargaining tool to influence the political process; other insurgent groups and other terrorist groups have done that in other parts of the world, and you know them as well or better than I do. There is a portion of the Iraqi population that opposes the presence of the coalition, and they feel like that their resistance is nationalistic in basis, and they attempt to conduct operations in an effort to force the coalition presence out. So I believe it would have a very significant impact if they laid down arms and participated in a democratic process as opposed to violence.

Q: General, I'm Carl Osgood; I write for Executive Intelligence Review. You may know that one of the things that Congressman Murtha has been saying about the U.S. presence in Iraq is that the U.S. troops themselves are a target of the violence and a catalyst of the violence. I wonder if you could comment on that to the degree to which you think that may or may not be true.

GEN. VINES: Without question, some Sunni -- well, in fact, some Iraqis -- do view the coalition presence as a reason to conduct violence against them. That is without question. The extent of that I could not characterize.

Jill Carroll Seen On Video

Jill Carroll Seen On Video

Tape shown of US hostage in Iraq [BBC News]

Al-Jazeera has broadcast a video of the kidnapped US journalist Jill Carroll - the first sighting of her since she was abducted 10 in Baghdad days ago

The video can be seen at the BBC site.

The video contained a claim that Jill Carroll's abductors would kill her unless all female prisoners in Iraq were released within 72 hours.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack was unable to confirm that it was Ms Carroll in the video. "We will make every effort to work with the Iraqis to bring her back safe and sound as soon as possible." Mr McCormack declined to make further comment, including about whether the US would consider meeting the demands as aired in the broadcast. [Australian]



A statement from Jill's family [ABC News]

The Christian Monitor's website allegedly has quoted the Jordan Times, where Ms. Carroll had worked before becoming a freelance correspondent in Iraq, as saying her kidnappers "could not have chosen a more wrong target".

Salon.com has a related article, Alan's Melody, by Iraqi blogger 'Riverbend.' She remembers her friend Alan, killed during the abduction of Jill Carroll.

As always, I pray for Jill Carroll and her family. May she be released safely.

_

UPDATE

Hostage video ignites wide call to free Carroll
Wednesday, the umbrella group for a number of leading Sunni clerics condemned the Jan. 7 kidnapping of Jill Carroll. Those calling upon her abductors in Iraq to show mercy included senior members of the Muslim Brotherhood in Cairo, and some of Iraq's most influential Sunni Arab leaders, including Adnan al-Dulaimi, head of the Iraqi Accordance Front.

BBC News - Iraq detainees to be freed early

Hostage takers demanded on Tuesday that women be freed -
Iraq's ministry of justice has told the BBC that six of the eight women being held by coalition forces in Iraq are to be released early. The six will be freed because there is insufficient evidence to charge them, a justice ministry spokesman said.

I'm glad to see State doing what they can to secure Jill's release - although some others don't agree. Jawa Report - see today's entry.

Not Your Typical Bushworld Decision: Oregon Assisted Suicide Law Stands

"Congress did not have this far-reaching intent to alter the federal-state balance," Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote for himself, retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and Justices John Paul Stevens, David Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Stephen Breyer.

- NY Times

Not Your Typical Bushworld Decision: Oregon Assisted Suicide Law Stands

The NY Times has the SCOTUS story about the Oregon assisted suicide case as a headliner on their website.

The administration improperly tried to use a drug law to prosecute Oregon doctors who prescribe overdoses, the court majority said.

For me, this is definitely important news. I realize the legal argument wasn't over the merits of the debate over assisted suicide. Regardless, I cannot tell you what a relief it is to see the SCOTUS defending this particular State freedom.

I have seen more than one of my loved ones die an extremely painful death as a result of terminal illness. I sat by their side - I ministered to them. I lovingly served them with every ounce of my energy and caring. I am a deeply spiritual person. Certain life and death decisions should never be placed in human hands, and I believe in the sanctity of life; "the seamless garment of life". I am concerned about human existence before birth. I am against the death penalty. I cannot be a hypocrite, though. I put special spiritual emphasis on mercy for those who suffer. Mercy is a form of grace and can be shown in unexpected ways. I firmly believe that there comes a time when a meaningful Christian life is over. Most people of sound mind realize when that point has been reached. When a loved one's conscious suffering becomes nothing but a form of torture to them, it leaves deep emotional scars upon those left behind to watch them suffer, both physically and spiritually. It causes all to feel a sense of helplessness that goes far beyond pointlessness.

Christ Himself was said to have died within hours of His crucifixion. That, along with the foreknowledge that he would be put to death, was emotionally excruciating. He wept bitterly in the Garden of Gethsemane. He was said to have prayed for death on the Cross, invoking words He'd memorized from the 22nd Psalm.

Terminally ill patients have the same human foreknowledge about their impending death, the same emotional pain, the same fears, and the same hope for their safe delivery into God's hands.

Why would a merciful God condemn them for seeking mercy unto their death?

My mother died a month ago from a particularly painful form of cancer. She was a person of deep and abiding faith in God. Like her, I am a faithful person. She told me, as she suffered greatly, that she knew that there would come a day when people would look back to this time in history and call it a "dark age"; a time when we cared for the suffering of our animals more than we did for human beings.

I know that many of my fellow Christians will vehemently disagree with me on this issue, but I must be honest. I have not turned my face or my heart away - not for a moment - from the suffering of my loved ones. I would challenge any person of faith who has sat with a loved one in great and incurable pain and cared for them up to the time of their passing to tell me they are not happy to see that the freedom to decide was upheld today by our highest court.

The Times reports that "Oregon's law covers only extremely sick people -- those with incurable diseases, whom at least two doctors agree have six months or less to live and are of sound mind."

It's my opinion that any physician who would help a patient to go gently and painlessly into the inevitable "next room" is surely one of the most merciful and thoughtful people that God could ever send our way.

I'm disappointed, though not at all surprised, that new Chief Justice John Roberts backed the Bush administration on this, dissenting for the first time. The freedom to make a solemn and dignified choice about one's own life and the rights of individual states to decide to what degree a physician can practice merciful care was clearly not as important to Chief Justice Roberts as was the witch-hunt.

Could this decision be an indication that we are making baby-steps out of Bushworld?


_________

UPDATE - JANUARY 19, 2006 - The January 19th New York Times editorial conveys a similar opinion of Chief Justice Roberts' decision in this case:

The only disquieting note was that the new chief justice, John Roberts Jr., who had assured senators that he believed people had "the right to be let alone," nevertheless joined the dissenters in arguing that the federal government had the power to block Oregon's pioneering effort to let terminally ill patients end their own lives humanely.

The legal opinion is here