The Progressive
July 2003
Internet muse.
Daring, bold, never sold.
My daily weblog of politics, humor, philosophy...and a constant and nagging reminder of the existence of universal love....
Wednesday, October 01, 2003
Wesley Clark's Official Blog
Clark Calls For An Independent Investigation Into Leak of CIA Agent's Identity
Daddy Knew Better Than Dubya
From the Daily Mis-lead: Bush Jr.'s Failure to Heed Advice of Bush Sr. Traps U. S. Forces in Iraq for Foreseeable Future
On Tuesday members of the Iraqi Governing Council contradicted Secretary of
State Colin Powell's optimistic timetable for self-government, saying it
take up to 18 months to ratify a constitution, thus extending the U. S.
occupation into 2005. This is far longer than senior administration members
suggested just last week but is exactly what President Bush's father warned
might happen.
Plame/Wilson..We Knew It was Coming
"If there ever was a case for the appointment of a special counsel,
this is it."
House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi
Republican Retort:
"Surprise, surprise, they are calling for a special counsel. My goodness."
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay of Texas
**Do you mean after the special counsel public investigation into president Clinton's private affairs? Was that politically motivated, Tom Delay? Is that what you're insinuating? Are you saying that current consideration of special counsel would unjustifiably turn a private matter into public concern? Oops, that was 1998. This is 2003. And THIS turning of a private matter into a public concern was about a treasonous felony...not a sordid little affair.
MY GOODNESS!***
You can see my first mention of the Valerie Plame (Joseph Wilson) outing at this link.
My Quote:
"...Joseph Wilson's wife was exposed by the Bush administration as a covert CIA operative. Why? Because her husband dared to breathe the truth about
Bush lies and cover-ups...."
Trust me. I knew this was coming.
It smelled of White House venegeance from the very start.
Josh Marshall has one of the best (if not THE best) breakdowns and coverage of the case:
Talking Points Memo
The Intelligence Leak: A Guide
Important Dates in the case
Bush: If there was a leak, 'I want to know'
~~~~~~~~~~
Last, a quote of astounding hypocrisy from Senator Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.
"These are the people that asked for the abolishment of the special counsel" law, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said of the Democrats. "Let's give the Justice Department a chance to do their job. Anything else is politics."
Within hours, White House critics served up a rebuttal of sorts, in the form of a comment Graham had made on television in 1999, when Clinton was in office.
"Any time you have an attorney general asked to investigate their boss, you've got a conflict of interest," he said then. "So you need a mechanism to allow an investigation of a high government official to occur that will have credibility."
~~~~~~~~~
MY GOODNESS! Tom DeLay---did you catch that one?"
Tuesday, September 30, 2003
Ripped Off...Suckered
RIPPED OFF
US paid $1m for 'useless intelligence' from Chalabi , Buncombe, Independent UK
".... Information from Iraqi defectors made available by Ahmed Chalabi and the Iraqi National Congress before the US invasion was of little or no use, a Pentagon intelligence review shows..."
**How does it feel paying your taxes for a crook's disinformation?**
~~~~~~~
SUCKERED
Blair suckered his party into an unnecessary war , Clark, Guardian UK
"...the only thing bold about the last year was the brazenness with which Blair suckered his party into an unnecessary war. "
**It's not only Blair. I think we Americans were suckered, too..don't you?**
~~~~~~~
UNPROTECTED
Big Increase Seen in People Lacking Health Insurance
"... The number of people without health insurance shot up last year by 2.4 million, the largest increase in a decade, raising the total to 43.6 million, as health costs soared and many workers lost coverage provided by employers, the Census Bureau reported today..."
**Have you checked your policy lately? Do you still have a policy?**
~~~~~
HUNTED BY RAPISTS
House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's backroom talk about drilling for oil in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is distressing.
"..It is the first time a prominent drilling advocate had openly acknowledged an intention to use the refuge as "precedent" for unbridled oil exploration..."
Oil Of DeLay
**Is America Tom DeLay's dirty whore?**
~~~~~
BEING ATTACKED BY THE EXTRATERRESTRIAL
Meteorite crash causes Indian panic
"....Hundreds of people in the state of Orissa panicked when a fireball streamed across the sky and burning fragments fell across a wide area.
The fragments destroyed several houses..."
**Wouldn't YOU panic? I mean..the sky really IS falling.**
Rove: King of Destruction Self-Destructs
Trips Over Self and Into
Garbage Can of Inhumanity
From Whence He Came
Sept 30 2003
Buzzflash
The Truth is Puttin’ on its Shoes: An Inquiry Into the "Innocent" Mr. Rove
"...Rove’s temper has always been his weak spot. He cannot seem to control his anger. When Ambassador Joseph Wilson wrote in the New York Times that there was no truth to the allegations that Iraq had tried to purchase yellowcake uranium from Niger, Rove is said to have gone "ballistic." No one who has known Rove for any period of time doubts that Rove was the one who orchestrated the leak, which "outed" Ambassador Wilson’s wife as a CIA agent. Rove has always made sure that his enemies knew he will strike back, and swing with deadly power..."
~~~
See BUZZFLASH for some of the best coverage of the vengeful and treasonous burning of Valerie Plame.
~~~~
DO NOT MISS:
The Most Insidious of Traitors
By William Rivers Pitt
t r u t h o u t | Perspective
Tuesday 30 September 2003
".....Also, the fact that this data came to the Washington post from a White House official means that another Deep Throat may have just been born.
The White House has denied the allegation, and promises a full investigation. A great many people find it laughable to believe this White House is capable of investigating itself, and are demanding an independent investigation. A quick look at the White House telephone logs will reveal who called whom, and when. It may well be the case that Rove was not involved; there are several administration officials - Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Perle, Rice, Card - along with a constellation of administration associates and media mouthpieces, who had a vested interest in shutting Ambassador Wilson's mouth. The White House phone logs will be revelatory. If this administration fails to hand those logs over, they will stand in taint of high treason.
J'accuse. ..."
Mission Accomplished??
"..Liberians voiced muted thanks Tuesday for U.S. Marines sent to the war-ruined country
but also were dismayed at their silent, final withdrawal..."
"..U.N. officials and others had urged the United States to maintain a military presence here, such as troops to help train a new Liberian army.
"..If the Americans are leaving, it's too bad,'' said Saa Thomas. ``But we can only say thanks that they set foot on Liberian soil...''
~~~~~~~~~~
"Some aid workers have criticised the American decision to leave before the UN force is fully established.
They say the early departure could jeopardise the Liberian peace process..."
~~~~~~~~~~
Can we do more?
See: Jesse Jackson pushes aid for Liberia
Krugman: Will they EVER change their ways?
"You got to change your evil ways...
baby..
before they stop lovin' you....
Oh, wait...
they never loved you to begin with..
Whoa, dudes, like...
you've really got to change."
Who's Sordid Now?
By Paul Krugman
NY Times
Published: September 30, 2003
".....the cost of the occupation is exploding, and military experts warn that our army is dangerously overcommitted. Yet officials are still allowing Iraqi reconstruction to languish, and the disaffection of the Iraqi public to grow, while they steer choice contracts to their friends. What makes you think they will ever change their ways?"
"Pass the popcorn and get out the handcuffs. This is going to be fun."
Atrios
Monday, September 29, 2003
Of Paradise and Power: America and Europe in the New World Order by Robert Kagan
Robert Kagan explores the widening gap between the United States and Europe
By Matthew Guarnieri and John H. Jernigan
Harvard Political Review OnLine
"It is time to stop pretending that Europeans and Americans share a common view of the world, or even that they occupy the same world."
Robert Kagan
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Do you believe the Europeans have been able to develop a utopian world view, (at least one that does not require them to exercise power abroad), only because America has been protecting them from the "dangers of the real world" for so long? This is the way Neo-Conservative Robert Kagan thinks. His views deserve a good thorough reading, in my opinion. We cannot make judgements until we understand howthe Neocon mind works, can we?
From the book:
"The United States, in short, solved the Kantian paradox for the Europeans. Kant had argued that the only solution to the immoral horrors of the Hobbesian world was the creation of a world government. But he also feared that the "state of universal peace" made possible by world government would be an even greater threat to human freedom than the Hobbesian international order, inasmuch as such a government, with its monopoly of power, would become "the most horrible despotism." How nations could achieve perpetual peace without destroying human freedom was a problem Kant could not solve. But for Europe the problem was solved by the United States. By providing security from outside, the United States has rendered it unnecessary for Europe's supranational government to provide it. Europeans did not need power to achieve peace and they do not need power to preserve it.
The current situation abounds in ironies. Europe's rejection of power politics, its devaluing of military force as a tool of international relations, have depended on the presence of American military forces on European soil. Europe's new Kantian order could flourish only under the umbrella of American power exercised according to the rules of the old Hobbesian order. American power made it possible for Europeans to believe that power was no longer important. And now, in the final irony, the fact that United States military power has solved the European problem, especially the "German problem," allows Europeans today to believe that American military power, and the "strategic culture" that has created and sustained it, are outmoded and dangerous.
Most Europeans do not see the great paradox: that their passage into post-history has depended on the United States not making the same passage. Because Europe has neither the will nor the ability to guard its own paradise and keep it from being overrun, spiritually as well as physically, by a world that has yet to accept the rule of "moral consciousness," it has become dependent on America's willingness to use its military might to deter or defeat those around the world who still believe in power politics."
Situation Excellent, I Am Attacking
By William Rivers Pitt
t r u t h o u t | Perspective
Wednesday 24 September 2003
"That's the spirit, George. If nothing else works, then a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through."
-- General Sir Anthony Cecil Hogmanay Melchett, 'Blackadder Goes Forth'
There is not enough grammar in the entirety of the English language to describe the incredible international humiliation that has befallen the United States of America. That this humiliation was brought down upon the American people by the man supposedly in charge of the country is, in all honesty, no big surprise for those who have been watching this all unfold. The layers of crushing embarrassment have been building like river sediment for months upon months upon months. On Tuesday, however, George W. Bush managed to completely obliterate the hard-won standing the United States has earned within the global community.
Never mind that the Iraqi seat was filled at the United Nations by none other than the crawling kingsnake himself, Ahmad Chalabi. Chalabi has been cheerleading for war in Iraq for years, and became a boon companion of Donald Rumsfeld and the other neocon hawks who cobbled the war together with a tapestry of lies and fear-mongering. He was, in fact, Rumsfeld's hand-picked leader-in-waiting of Iraq as early as 1997. Chalabi was convicted of 32 counts of bank fraud and sentenced to 22 years imprisonment by a Jordanian court in 1992, and yet this hand-picked sock puppet was George W. Bush's chosen exemplar of a free and democratic Iraq. If you want to know one big reason why the mainstream media reported so long and so erroneously about Iraq's weapons capabilities, look to Chalabi, who was the main source for New York Times reporter Judy Miller's horribly inaccurate reporting on the matter. Where the Times goes, the others will follow. Thank you, Ahmad. I hope the chair is comfortable. You are no more deserving of its accommodation than the vile people who occupied it before you.
Never mind that the entire United Nations may as well not have shown up in the first place. The pitch and tenor of Bush's speech was not aimed at that body. It was directed at the mainstream American media, whose reporting on these matters has been about as sharp as a sack of wet mice. Yet even to that tone-deaf receiver, Bush failed to complete the pass. He meandered off into a free-association rant about sex slaves, somehow forgetting that his own citizens were waiting to hear how he was going to get them out of the mess he so brazenly threw them in to. Certainly, the matter of international slavery in the 21st century is of deadly importance, but what connection it has to the blood-and-guts catastrophe unfolding in the Middle East is still hovering somewhere in space.
Never mind that in the first ten words of his speech, George W. Bush once again tried to connect the nation of Iraq to the attacks of September 11th. He failed to explain how a nation under near-total occupation before the war, crushed by sanctions, devoid of weapons of any merit whatsoever, unable to even launch a fighter aircraft in its own airspace, and completely lacking in any connections to Osama bin Laden or al Qaeda, could have managed to challenge the most powerful nation on the face of the earth. These are mere details. Bush chose instead to hew close to the bones of our beloved dead, to use them again as an excuse and as cover for his terrible mistakes, lies and mismanagement. The Iraq-9/11 connection has been so thoroughly debunked that Bush himself was forced recently to publicly denounce it, while claiming shock that anyone would think he'd try to make such a connection. Yet there he stood before the judgment of the world, coughing up the same old hairball on their carpet.
Never mind the rank absurdity of it all. There is an old story of a French officer who, when thrown into an impossible battle, sent a communiqué to his commanders: "Hard pressed on my right. My center is yielding. Impossible to maneuver. Situation excellent, I am attacking!" That sad chestnut was on display before the United Nations on Tuesday, with George W. Bush and the United States of America standing in for the officer. Bush was at the United Nations for one reason: He got his country into terrible trouble, in defiance of virtually the entire international community, and was forced to come begging for help. An ounce of contrition would have furthered the cause of actually helping to repair the devastation in Iraq. An ounce of contrition would have shown America to be the humble nation Bush promised us way back in 2000. An ounce of contrition would almost certainly have motivated the U.N. to leave aside wrangling, roll up its sleeves, and begin to repair the damage that has been done. That ounce was not offered, and the jut-jawed whipsaw President barefaced his way through what could have been the most hopeful moment the Iraqi people have seen in 100 years. Situation excellent, I am attacking.
Never mind the 26,000 liters of anthrax, the 38,000 liters of botulinum toxin, the 500 tons of sarin and mustard gas and VX gas, the 30,000 munitions capable of deploying this red death, the mobile biological weapons labs, and the infamous 'yellow-cake' uranium from Niger, that has so fantastically failed to materialize. All of this is sitting on a White House web page called 'Disarm Saddam Hussein.' This was the argument, the reason for war. None of it exists in any coherent state. The administration's own hired-gun weapons inspector, Dr. David Kay, has been tearing through Iraq to find all of these horrors promised by Bush and the gang. His report, saying pointedly that the stuff isn't there, was ready to be released on September 15th, but was promptly buried by the administration.
Never mind all that. It comes down to this.
Over the last 227 years, the United States of America went from a brawling, rebellious infant to the greatest democracy in the universe. This nation spent oceans of blood, sweat and tears to earn the respect of the world. Too often, it abused that respect by abusing the world, but always managed to regain its standing within the global community by the sheer force of its goodness, its ideals, and its willingness to help other nations in need. When the attacks of September 11th came, that global community responded to our essential goodness by embracing us with a passionate ferocity that has no precedent in the annals of human history. That standing is dust now, ground under the heels of a pack of ideological extremists who would wrap the world in flames if it profited them a few more ducats. The world sees this, and has seen it for some time now. The United Nations was used on Tuesday as a prop for a failing President's Fox newsbite writ large. It is a shame and a scandal and a disaster beyond description that this great nation has fallen so very low.
A moment will come on January 20th, 2005. It will be cold in Washington D.C. A man who is not George W. Bush will raise his hand and swear and oath to preserve, protect and defend the United States of America. The words "So help me God" will be snatched by the wind and carried across seas and mountains to the furthest corners of the planet. When that happens, all of the Earth will be joined together in the deepest and most profound exhalation of relief. When that happens, George W. Bush will have become in his absence what he completely failed to be with his presence: A uniter.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
William Rivers Pitt is the Managing Editor of truthout.org. He is a New York Times and international best-selling author of three books - "War On Iraq," available from Context Books, "The Greatest Sedition is Silence," available from Pluto Press, and "Our Flag, Too: The Paradox of Patriotism," available in August from Context Books.
Saturday, September 27, 2003
Joseph Wilson--CIA Investigates White House
a couple of Sundays ago, He's Going to Know Him NOW!
CIA seeks probe of White House
Agency asks Justice to investigate leak of employee’s identity
See Josh Marshall's astute commentary at his website.
If John Ashcroft doesn't see this through, there is no CIA agent who will ever feel safe working for the vindictive Bush administration again.
~~~~~~~~
See Iddybud's blog from July 27: http://iddybud.blogspot.com/2003_07_27_iddybud_archive.html#105969918879522636
~~~~~~~~
SEE RELATED BUZZFLASH EDITORIAL
Wes Clark: Left-Handed Compliments-Can Progressives Love a Military Man?
Left-Handed Compliments-
Can Progressives Love a Military Man?
Richard Goldstein / Village Voice
September 24 - 30, 2003
DON'T MISS THIS ARTICLE.
"We have to do whatever we can to get rid of Bush.
I would vote for Zilla the Gorilla" in order to accomplish that. ..."
Rita Haley, president of the New York City chapter of the National Organization for Women
Bush lies contributed to death of Jesus, says father
From Guardian UK:
"...The father of a soldier killed in Iraq accused President George Bush yesterday of being responsible for his son's death. Fernando Suarez, whose 20-year-old son, Jesus, was one of the first fatalities, said: "My son died because Bush lied."
~ ~ ~
"....In another sign of the growing protest movement, the father of two soldiers serving in Iraq used a full page advertisement in yesterday's New York Times to demand the sacking of the US defence secretary, Donald Rumsfeld.
The ad accused President Bush and his administration of misleading the public about weapons of mass destruction."
View ad in pdf
Sen Robert Byrd: Have we not learned the lessons of our own past?
A Nation With Questions
by Robert C. Byrd-
Democratic Senator from West Virginia.
The Senate Appropriations Committee opened hearings into the President's request for $87 billion for the military and for Iraqi reconstruction on September 22, 2003. Senator Byrd, the lead Democrat on the committee, made this opening statement.
"Have we not learned the lessons of our own past?"
Sen Robert Byrd
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Also from TomPaine.com:
A New Moment For Progressives
by John Podesta
-The body of a memo sent to "Leaders of the Progressive Community" on Sept. 22, 2003.-
"..One would think that confronted with an $8 trillion turnaround and a request for an additional $87 billion for Iraq, the Administration would, in the interest of the country, change its path and reconsider its failed economic policy, especially its top rate tax cuts, which are helping send the federal deficit out of control..."
"..At the center of the progressive response are three issues, now symbolically powerful, that give progressives the force to define the future debate -- the Iraq request, the jobless recovery, and exploding deficits.."
"..This is a moment for progressives to pose bold alternatives consistent with the need for leadership, responsibility and the right priorities..."
The Other Lies of George Bush-David Corn
by David Corn
An article adapted from the new book, "The Lies of George W. Bush: Mastering the Politics of Deception"
(Crown Publishers).
"..George W. Bush is a liar.
He has lied large and small, directly and by omission.
His Iraq lies have loomed largest..."
"..Throughout his campaign for the presidency and his years in the White House, Bush has mugged the truth in many other areas to advance his agenda..."
"..While politicians are often derided as liars, this charge should be particularly stinging for Bush..."
"..This country has a lot to deal with. Lies from the White House poison the debates that must occur if Americans are going to confront and overcome the challenges of this century at home and abroad...Presidential lying, in fact, threatens the country. To render informed and wise choices about the crucial and complicated controversies of the day, people need truthful information... "
"..The future of the United States remains in the hands of a dishonest man."
Bangladesh Can't/Won't Help U.S. in Iraq
"Bangladesh, Though Friendly to United States,
Remains Firmly Against Sending
Peacekeepers to Iraq"
The short version:
"Sorry, Charlie"
"....the government [of Bangladesh] fears it would lose public support if it were to send peacekeepers to Iraq, political scientist Badruddin Umar said.
Bangladeshis will not "approve sending our troops to Iraq under the present circumstances," Umar said."
Friday, September 26, 2003
Howard Dean: "Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz Must Go"
".....For officials at the highest levels of this Administration to exploit the emotions of the American people regarding the attacks of September 11 to achieve their political objectives is unacceptable....."
".....Americans are contemplating the President’s request for $87 billion -- and wondering why they are being stuck with the bill. They are asking why they will be asked to sacrifice so much to pay it, while the wealthiest in our society continue to reap the benefits of the President’s tax cuts...."
".....our soldiers continue to fight the fight virtually alone because this Administration has damaged our relationships with our friends and allies to such a degree that most are not willing to commit meaningful numbers of troops or financial contributions to what they view as America’s misadventure. The President’s speech before the United Nations did nothing but perpetuate his foreign policy of petulance...."
"....To succeed, we will need the assistance of our allies and the international institutions that this Administration has so recklessly alienated. To rebuild those relationships, credibility must be restored to every aspect of the operation.
Until we have new leadership at the Department of Defense, that credibility will be nearly impossible to achieve. Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz must go."
Bush at UN: Simplistic 'us vs. them' speech skirts question: Why do they fight?
question: Why do they fight?
September 26, 2003
By John Adams
Commentary in Syracuse Post Standard
It is not surprising that the president found few friends at the United Nations. President Bush's speech missed the mark - its "us versus them" rhetoric of division and confrontation is too simplistic to win adherents who are not already in accord with his vision.
The president's use of the rhetoric ofpolarization positions us against "them" without stopping to consider what it is that drives people to terror - to suicide, to apparently diabolical acts of violence against other human beings.
His rhetoric creates a divide that sets out to eliminate the middle ground where negotiation, dialogue or further conversation can take place.
Somebody needs to ask the terrorists what they want. Do we know what they want? Does anybody know what they want?
By asking their apparent leaders this question and listening to their answers, we may at least be reminded of what they're fighting for so we may better understand what we're fighting for.
I challenge President Bush to ask the terrorists the "what" questions. These questions need not be seen as the opening gambit in a spin toward appeasement, but as an attempt to get the terrorists to elaborate their visions of the better world their acts of terror seek to create - the good they hope to accomplish.
What good can possibly come of terrorism? I, for one, want to know their answer.
John Adams, a visiting professor of rhetoric and communications at Hamilton College, spent 10 years as a professor at Syracuse University and also taught at Empire State College.
Copyright 2003 Syracuse Post Standard
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