Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Oops! Misplaced 490,000 weapons in Iraq

Well here is another item to place in the history books and in the George W. Bush Presidential library, under the category of "Incompetence". Looks like auditors have found that there are over 490,000 missing weapons in Iraq that no one can find. They don't know whether insurgents have them or not. The weapons include semi-automatic weapons, machine guns and rocket launchers. That's a sure way to ensure that the war can continue. All along I thought it was the Iranians supplying the insurgents. Now it is clear it is the Bush Administration. Heck, if the war ended how would the President claim he is a war president. Now that image is intact.

When filing this one in the Bush Presidential Library, should it be cataloged after Katrina or before it? Hmmm. R, as in Rumsfeld, should alphabetically come after Katrina.

Saddam Hussein verdict

Watch how the President and VP react when the verdict is read on Saddam Hussein on Nov. 5th, just 2 days before the elections. Coincidentia? I think not. Listen for the phrases and pronouncements, "Justice is being served in Iraq". "He has been found Guilty of his crimes by a duly elected democratic government". Ha! He should have been tried for War Crimes in the Hague, as he would have gotten a fair trial there. This is going to be a lynching under the guise of a fair trial and we all are going to be happy with the verdict, but that doesn't mean it was a fair trial.

One of Saddam's major crimes was trusting our government back years ago when we did business with him, as pictures have shown him and Donald Rumsfeld. I can't fault Saddam for trusting our government. We have and look where it has gotten us. Make no mistake though in interpreting my comments, Saddam was a bad guy and will deserve whatever he gets.

Rep. Duncan Hunter's folly into Presidential politics

Rep. Duncan Hunter (R of CA) and powerful head of the Armed Services Committee has decided to run for President in 2008. He sees the major issue in 2008 being Border Security according to his comments on CNN's Lou Dobbs. He has supported building a 700 mile fence across the 1800 mile border with Mexico. And obviously doesn't think the current Administration and Republican controlled Congress is going to do much about the problem between now and 2008. That doesn't say much about the Republicans and their ability to get this issue resolved, does it? He has been in office for 26 years so he has definitely been part of the problem that long. Now he has admitted that the Congress, even when controlled by Republicans in both Houses, can't tackle this issue. So much for leadership! If he can't convince his colleagues to pass legislation controlling our borders when he controls the purse strings, how is he ever going to do anything as President? Save your money Rep. Hunter, and don't waste it on a run for President.

Sunday, October 29, 2006

Voting machine tests reveal 40% error rate!

An article reported by the Examiner here in California reports that the fist tests of the electronic voting machines yielded an error rate of 40%. If you are worried about this much of an error rate, you should be. Many elections are only a few percentage points away from favoring one candidate over another across the nation.

As reported, "With the election scheduled for Nov. 7, test votes cast by trained personnel Thursday, which was the first day of pre-election tests of the new equipment, failed to match up to the voting “scripts” they were given by elections officials 40 percent of the time, David Tom, county elections manager, said. The number of errors in the so-called Logic and Accuracy tests dropped to 25 percent on Wednesday and about 14 percent on Friday, with all errors eliminated by Monday morning, Tom said.

All of the errors were attributed to tester error, most often caused when a tester failed to select the predetermined candidate in the “script” they were following or mistakenly skipped a race altogether, Tom said. “The equipment was new to them, so there was a higher number of errors than we would like,” Tom said."

To read the entire article click here.

Saturday, October 28, 2006

Looking beyond the election: It might prove worse for everyone!

Ten days left before the mid-term election and cable network news commentators are saying that the Congress is for the taking by the Democrats, and up to them to lose. Most say the Senate will not be won by the Democrats. This may be the worst outcome possible. The reason is that then the Democrats will be partially responsible for the War in Iraq and will be put into positions uncomfortable for them. They will have few choices to change the course of the war. The only lever they will have is the purse strings and either cutting funds for the war or refusing to approve requests from the Administration for additional funding. I can see the 2008 election campaign season and I don't like what I see. Democrats saying that they voted against the funding to curtail the mission and the President and his minions saying they didn't support the troops.

There is one way to avoid this. The Democrats must take BOTH the Congress and the Senate. If you are tired of this weary journey, I implore you to vote Democratic.

Friday, October 27, 2006

Election smear tactics: What should be our response?

The smear tactics have escalated in Virginia and a few other states. As the mud is slung, we need to turn off the TVs or radios and stop reading the newspapers and any Blogs that are promoting such nonsense. If you can't make up your mind as to the facts after 2-4 years of data you shouldn't be allowed to vote. You know when people get old, they are required in some states to take a driver's test. Maybe we should use a similar standard for people to be allowed to vote! I'll bet you can come up with some requirements can't you. How about sharing them.

Update: Oct. 27 6:40pm E.S.T.

I checked as to whether the smearing will affect all VA voters and found the following:

Federal Post Card Applications from Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA) voters (whether the application is sent by mail, e-mail attachment or fax) for the November 7th General Election must be received by the local election office no later than 5:00 PM Eastern Standard Time on Tuesday, October 10, 2006 for overseas voters who are not already permanently registered in Virginia, or who are only eligible for “temporary registration”.


I think many Absentee ballots are already completed and not affected by all this last minute maneuvering, not just in VA but the rest of the country as well. I believe it is one way to commit before the smearing begins. If more people used Absentee Ballots, these smear tactics might be reduced. In my County of Marin, CA, over 40% of the votes have been cast by Absentee already.

Thursday, October 26, 2006

Does it matter what type Nuke North Korea has tested? YES!


Occasionally I find something worth printing from others Bloggers and today I found just the perfect piece. I am copying and pasting it in its entirety for your reading pleasure. I also suggest visiting the site and reading other articles that may be of interest. This is from, The National Interest online and the title of the article is, "What Kind of Nuke Are you" by James Gorden Prather.

What Kind of Little Nuke Are You?
By James Gordon Prather

October 17, 2006


"Editor's note: The New York Times reported today that U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that, according to atmospheric sampling, North Korea's test explosion was in fact powered by plutonium. That NYT article fails to explain the overriding significance of the plutonium finding. The piece below (published the same day as the NYT article) clearly describes what the implications of such a finding are for the foreign policy record of the current president and his predecessor.

A critical question, easily answered by President Bush, is this: was the nuke that North Korea just tested a Uranium-235 or Plutonium-239 device? That difference, though seemingly technical, is of considerable geopolitical (and just plain political) significance. The answer would indicate whether Bush’s decision to pull out of the Clinton-era Agreed Framework directly resulted in North Korea producing nukes from its plutonium assets “frozen” under that framework or if North Korea indeed did have the uranium-enrichment, bomb-making capabilities that Bush has been claiming—a less likely scenario for all such a program would entail.

As of this writing, we don’t know what kind of bomb was tested, but Bush does because the at-least partially successful nuke blast was not completely contained. The office of the National Intelligence Director John Negroponte said yesterday that analysis of air samples gathered last week detected radioactive debris that confirms North Korea conducted an underground nuclear explosion. A radiochemical analysis of that debris can quickly and accurately determine the type of nuke and its fission yield.

In the past few months there has been both good news and bad news for Bush. North Korea conducted a test of not only a nuclear weapon, but also ballistic missiles that could reach our West Coast. The good news for Bush is that the tests will help him justify the zillion-dollar ballistic-missile defense boondoggle being constructed in Alaska. The bad news depends on whether North Korea tested a uranium nuke or a plutonium nuke; and whether the media elite chooses to explain the implications of the difference to the voters.

Flashback to 1994

First, let’s briefly look at some recent history.

In 1992, because of a dispute with the International Atomic Energy Agency over the analysis of certain materials and activities they were subject to under an IAEA Safeguards Agreement—as required by the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons—the North Koreans threatened to withdraw from the NPT.

In 1994 President Clinton had persuaded North Korea to sign the Agreed Framework, under which North Korea agreed not only to remain a signatory to the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons but also to shut down its 5-MW, Plutonium-239-producing reactor; close its spent-fuel reprocessing facilities; and place all its existing nuclear materials—including (you guessed it) the Plutonium-239 contained in spent fuel elements—under lock and seal of the International Atomic Energy Agency; and to abandon construction of its 50-MW and 200-MW, Plutonium-239-producing reactors.

At the time, the NPT had to be extended every 5 years, and Clinton was hell-bent on getting the NPT extended indefinitely and to get all countries—especially Israel, India and Pakistan—to become NPT signatories, and to sign and ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. For Clinton, the Agreed Framework’s principal benefit was North Korea’s promise to remain a NPT signatory.

What did the Koreans get in return? Well, Clinton promised to facilitate the replacement of their graphite-moderated Plutonium-239 producing reactors with conventional nuclear power plants and promised to provide millions of tons of fuel oil to tide them over until the plants came on line.

But the principal benefit the Koreans got under the Agreed Framework was a promise by the president of the United States to never use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against them. And as denizens of the Hermit Kingdom well know, over the years several American presidents had threatened them with nukes.

Bush Was Aggrieved by the Agreement

Well, you can imagine how constraining Bush the Younger considered the Agreed Framework to be. He couldn’t even threaten to nuke Kim Jong-il. Worse, President Clinton promised when getting the NPT extended indefinitely—and again at the 2000 NPT Review Conference—to never use or threaten to use nukes against any NPT signatory—including Iran.

North Korea was on Bush’s Axis of Evil because it had already supplied Iran ballistic missiles capable of reaching Israel and was developing ballistic missiles that might one day be capable of reaching our West Coast and carry warheads weighing perhaps several hundred pounds.

So, Bush apparently saw the Agreed Framework as constricting and welcomed a North Korean (and Iraqi and Iranian) withdrawal from the NPT. Although it has not been discussed much, Bush requested a National Intelligence Estimate in 2002 not just for Iraq but also for North Korea—and it was also highly controversial in the intelligence community. That document alleged that Pakistan’s A.Q. Khan had provided North Korea (circa 1997) a dozen or so gas-centrifuges similar to those someone (A.Q. Khan, perhaps?) provided Iran at about the same time. The document also alleged that the Pakistanis trained North Korean engineers on how to operate them. The North Koreans were “assessed” to have produced a substantial amount of weapons-grade uranium.

In September 2002 U.S. officials privately confronted the North Koreas of having a secret Uranium-235 nuke program, which the North Koreans then vehemently denied publicly, and have continued to deny to this day.

The president—citing the Uranium-235 nuke “intelligence”—stopped the fuel oil shipments to North Korea in November 2002, thereby abrogating the Agreed Framework. As Bush may have intended, the North Koreans almost immediately announced they were withdrawing from the NPT.

Hence, in January 2003, on the eve of Bush’s invasion of Iraq, North Korea ejected the IAEA inspectors, restarted their Plutonium-239 producing reactor, and began recovering Plutonium-239 from their spent fuel, which had been under IAEA lock and seal since the Agreed Framework was established in 1994. By most estimates they now have enough Plutonium-239 to make 6-10 nukes and are busy producing more.

So What Was It?

So the question remains: Was that tested nuke Plutonium-239 or Uranium-235? If the nuke was a plutonium bomb, then Bush can put a nuke-armed North Korea on his list of foreign-policy achievements. If it was a uranium bomb, then the 2002 NIE on North Korea was correct.

Uranium or plutonium? America needs to know.


James Gordon Prather's long association with U.S. nuclear weapons programs includes active duty with the Armed Forces Special Weapons Project, participation in nuclear weapons tests as a diagnostic physicist at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory and as a technical director at Sandia National Laboratory. He was chief scientist for the Army under the Reagan Administration. Dr. Prather has been actively involved since 1991 in the Nunn-Lugar-Domenici Nuclear Threat Reduction programs."

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

A divided Democratic party: Who's to blame?

Many have, rightfully so, described the Democratic Party today as scattered, and not united on what to do in Iraq. This fact is true. But who is to blame, at the cause of a possible missed opportunity and the reason they don't speak with one voice? I'll tell you who. It's the divisive Howard Dean, who was unfortunately elected to lead the Party. Some have tried to unite the party like Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D- Il). I know about Howard Dean, as I lived in Vermont for 18 years. The American public all got a sense of him in the 2004 Presidential Democratic Primary and his subsequent flameout. He couldn't unite Democrats in VT and now he has honed this skill to art form which keeps Democrats divided at one of the most crucial times in the history of our country. The Democrats, who elected Dean as Party Chairman, are to blame, as is Dean himself, for not rising to the historical challenge of our time. If Democrats don't regain the Congress and the Senate, they will have no one to blame but themselves. Sometimes I think this is deliberate, as maybe, just maybe, the Democratic Presidential hopefuls want to fight this battle in 2008, not 2006, as the Party will become culpable in having part ownership of the troubles of this country at that time, if they are in control of at least the Congress.

Here's the October Surprise!

This morning at 10:30am E.S.T., the much anticipated October surprise, which Karl Rove promised fellow Republicans, will be announced at a news conference by President Bush. Whatever it is remember that this was "planned" and calculated to win the election. Don't be manipulated. This President will do anything, and I mean anything to manipulate us for another 2 years of a free ride for his Administration. Much is at stake here. Today is exactly 2 weeks before the elections. Coincidence? I think not. The goal will be to either change the subject or imply a promise that can't and won't be met regarding Iraq. Watch for it.

UPDATE: 10:50am E.S.T.

Well, if it was a surprise promised by Rove, it was a dud. Nothing new to report. I listened to the entire opening statement and couldn't find a single news item other than, "If I could bring the troops home, I would." Well Mr. President, if you can't, who can? Yeh, I know, "It's tough".

Monday, October 23, 2006

Advantages of voting absentee

Today, my wife and I filled out our absentee ballot for the uocoming election. Over 40% of the residents of the county vote absentee. I don't know what they % of absentee ballots is for our state of California, nor do I know about other states. But I was listening to the media and when they say, If the election were held today, the Democrats would win the election in a landslide. I don't know if this is true but I can tell you that for many the election is now history and only the counting of the votes remain. By casting an absentee ballot, you can be sure there is a paper trail. As long as they don't get lost, the vote is counted but that is a big assumption. After the election is complete, I am going to see if I can determine if my vote was counted, as I have a receipt and a number that is also on my ballot, and I should be able to trace the vote. I'll let you know.

Friday, October 20, 2006

Who lost the Iraq war? U.S. Generals!

There is much blame to go around on this topic and some still naively believe we can still win this war. Most of the blame seems to be placed squarely on Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld. Some place blame up at the top with President Bush. Certainly both have their share of the blame. I would like to focus on some who have never been blamed. But first, here's an examination of the conditions leading up to where we find ourselves today.

When we first invaded Iraq, it was the fastest charge a country has made in history to conquer a territory. The military was praised for their rapid deployment and march to Baghdad with few casualties. As documented by the Center for American Progress, "In the march to war, Wolfowitz took the unusual step of publicly rebuking Army Chief of Staff Gen. Eric Shinseki for his estimate that "several hundred thousand troops" would be necessary to provide security in post-war Iraq. At the time, Wolfowitz dismissed Shinseki's estimate as "wildly off the mark" and said "the notion that it would take several hundred thousand American troops just seems outlandish."

The only General to give honest opinions as to the needed level of troops required for success in Iraq was forced into retirement or, as most of us have learned since, was fired. So much for the lies from President Bush that "whatever our military leaders need they will get from this Administration". With that single act of firing a General who told this Administration what they didn't want to hear, the President and the Civilian leadership of the Military sent a shot across the bow of all other Generals from speaking their mind, for fear of losing their lifelong careers in the service of their country. Rumsfeld's message to his Generals was clear.

When General Tommy Franks marched to Baghdad in record-breaking time, we were all both surprised and gratified to see that it was done with minimal loss of life. We were all happy that the Iraq forces decided not to fight but to retreat into the shadows of the population. We were all happy that there was no biological or chemical attack on our troops and that they were safe. However, what wasn't done was to secure all the weapons caches that were found along the way. Those weapons caches numbered in the thousands. We were too busy looking for Weapons of Mass Destruction to realize that the weapons caches were going to be used against us in an insurgency and in the resistance movement to follow. These weapons caches were used as IED's that have killed over 2,700 of our finest and wounded another 21,000. Who is to blame for this?

The seeds of the loss of the Iraq war were sown even before a shot was fired. It was with the Civilian leadership of Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Cheney and yes President Bush. And while we must not loose sight of this fact, there is another fact, which has not been a focus of our disappointment and anger. It is with the Generals who lead our armed forces of the Army and Marines and the Joint Chiefs of Staff and their lack of courage to stand up for what they believed was needed- more troops from the very beginning. These are men who swore to give their lives to this country but haven't the guts to stand up and take on the Civilian leadership when they are and have been wrong. It is only in retirement that most have spoken out. They have been before Congress speaking out. They have been before the news media often CNN and various news programs. Or they have written books on the war. I dare say that they have not served their country well. But their brave men and women who serve under them can be proud of their service.

It is too late for more troops. We have lost the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people and justifiably so. There is no turning back now. We must retreat and learn from this experience. One significant question that this war has raised for me is the following. Does the model of Civilian leadership of our Military really work? In the past 2 memorable wars in my lifetime, Vietnam and Iraq, I wonder whether it really works. Maybe it is time to reconsider every assumption we have made. Maybe we need to examine whether the Military should report directly to the President or to the Congress. The Congress is the only branch of Government authorized to declare war and to fund the wars. What do you think?

Saturday, October 14, 2006

What if this election were stolen again by this Administration?

When do you get so upset that you are willing to march in the streets in protest? I know where my limit is. It is if and when the Republicans and this Administration steal this election. Be wary, watch and if it happens, be ready to march in the streets. They did it in the Ukraine when the stench of election foul play showed a different result contrary to how they had voted. These paperless election machines are a major afront to our democracy. Having a paper trail for every vote is our only hope and even those can be stolen, as we witnessed in Florida in the 2000 Presidential election. You must be willing to be heard and have the courage to use peaceful means to protest any wrong doing or you don't deserve to keep your freedoms.

Friday, October 13, 2006

October surprise?

Where's the October surprise Mr. Rove? Wouldn't you agree that time is running out for you to pull the rabbit out of your hat? What you didn't count on was that your Republican colleagues had their own surprise this month. It was the Rep. Mark Foley revelations and the way Speaker Dennis Hastert didn't deal with the issue when he had the chance.

Sunday, October 08, 2006

Who is to blame for America's many problems and a betrayal of our trust?

Looking back at the elections for President in 2000 and 2004, I have wondered how many people were fooled as to what type of person they were getting for President by electing Bush. Without understanding these shortcomings, we as a nation have come to understand that we are destined to repeat the same mistakes in the 2008 presidential campaigns.

The job of discerning who the candidates really are, often falls to the media and to the candidates themselves. In the case of George W. Bush, his mastermind was Karl Rove, who not only defined who Bush was, but also successfully defined the opposition. In 2000, that was in defining VP Al Gore, and in 2004 it was in defining John Kerry.

Some phrases during the 2000 Presidential campaign that still can conjure up those campaigns vividly are:
"I am a uniter, not a divider"
"I will restore honor to the White House"
"We will ban abortion"
"I'm a compassionate conservative"
"Jesus Christ is my favorite political philosopher"

Some phrases during the 2004 Presidential campaign:
"He's a flip-flopper"
"I'll go after the terrorists"
"They're weak on Defending America"
"I voted for the war before voting against it"
"I'm a war President"
"I'm the decider"
"Bring it on!"
"We'll get the Evil-Doers"

Were we paying attention to those words spoken during these campaigns? Did they provide insight into the man we were getting as President? Looking back, were we duped, or did we want to see the best side of those comments? Whose problem was it? What has this taught us and what must we learn?

Let me start with the last question. There were many flags we should have paid attention to before anyone supported this President. These flags were revealed during the past 6 years, and have cost America dearly. We should have learned after the first 4 years, that the country was as divided as it has ever been, with the exception of America's Civil War. We have become a Nation of people who allowed fear to scare us into wringing our hands and hiding our courage to stand up and declare, "Your policies aren't working, Mr. President and your rhetoric must stop. You have lost the trust of the American people. Start anew by being a uniter as you promised, not just of the Republican party, but of all Americans, Mr. President. You have failed us miserably!"

We were aided in our deception by the media. I can remember that after 9/11 the media gave George Bush a pass, as we were united as a country. But when we were building up for and followed through with the invasion of Iraq, the media failed to ask probing questions.This came out of fear of challenging this President and Vice President, who were quick to charge people with being unpatriotic. The media was silent in the dialogue about the details of the Patriot Act. Much is still not known of the powers of this President and Administration, to the detriment of both parties. Some day there will be a Democratic President with these powers now law. We saw our Constitution slip through our very hands with unauthorized and illegal wire-taps, and when challenged at all, being labeled as siding with terrorists. We saw this Administration abandon the high ground by allowing torture, in violation of the Geneva Convention. It has only been in recent months that the media has felt it was OK to attack these positions. Where was it early in the process?

We are angry and want to blame this President, VP and the Republican leadership for everything, from that deep place of anger. But we should be angry at ourselves. Those who did not vote in the last election should accept the fact that they are responsible for what has happened to America in the intervening years. Those who did vote Republican and now have regrets should accept the fact that religion and politics should not mix. Faith in God, or not, is a personal matter. With more experience in these matters than our generations have, our Founding Fathers warned us of the unintended consequences when we do not separate Religion and the State, when the two are mixed. Do not forget the emotions the Terry Schiavo interference had on this country, when political leaders got involved.

The entity responsible for where we find ourselves as a country today is you and me! The only question that remains is the following: Are you going to accept the responsibility, correct the matter and restore America as a beacon of hope for the world, by voting next month for change? If not, don't look to anyone but yourself to blame. It is true that we are not replacing a President this mid-term election, but we have an opportunity to restore checks and balances on the Executive Branch, which have been missing for 6 long years.

Saturday, October 07, 2006

Latest Presidential polls on Bush: What to make of them?


The latest polls dated Oct 4th show President Bush's Approval ratings slipping again. Here's the data:

Time: 36% approval and 57% disapproval
AP: 38% approval and 59% disapproval
Pew: 37% approval and 53% disapproval
Nwswk 33% approval

When I examine the data, the question that begs for an answer is the following:
How can 36-38% of the American people truly believe they approve of the job this President is doing?

Much has been said about Bush by news commentators, political hacks and pundits, but no one has focused on the people who truly support Bush. Are these people uneducated or brainwashed? Do they watch TV and if so what do they watch? If they don't what are they doing to be so uninformed? Did they ever hear about Iraq, Katrina and other bungled enterprises? I must be honest that all I can do is guess at this point, as there are no profiles of Bush supporters available in the media. Based on what I hear, these people are apparently his base, which implies they are the Fundamentalists in the various Protestant Churches. In addition, there is probably support from the Jewish community. They can't be living in New Orleans as that city was cleaned out after Katrina.

I know of some people who are not in those groups that support Bush. I would love to hear their reasons why they still do believe, what they believe we should do in Iraq, whether they would be willing to serve there and fight in this Iraq war, and whether they would be willing to send their precious children there to fight and possibly die in this Civil war? How do they dismiss all the lies President Bush has made because they have, in fact, been proven as lies?

There is so much to learn about these supporters I wish we could learn more. If you read this Blog and are a supporter, tell me why you still think Bush deserves your approval rating for doing a good job. If you are in the media and read this Blog, do a story on this group of people so we can learn more about them.

Thursday, October 05, 2006

The October surprise?

Karl Rove promised an October surprise. Is the Rep. Foley (R) issue that surprise? Was this what was planned to keep the conversation going into the elections off Iraq? Is Karl Rove going to smile as somehow he leaked this Foley story out while all along they had known this for the past 3 years?

While Karl Rove is smart, he isn't that smart (or stupid either). This group of politicians can't get rebuilding New Orleans right, nor can they get rebuilding Iraq right. So don't plan on this disaster working out right for them, no matter how confident you are in the abilities of mastermind Karl Rove.

But that begs the question, where's the October surprise that Rove promised? It can't be that this month in Iraq has led to the highest number of American service personnel killed in Iraq. In just 4 days 21 of our brave men and women have died. Pray for their families who have lost a love one. And pray we get out of Iraq sooner rather than later.

But where's that promised surprise?

Demonstrations today in over 100 Cities

From a freind named Dennis:

Below is the text from the "World Can't Wait" organization's Oct. 4th full-page ad in the "New York Times," spelling out the problem. Click here to see that full-page ad, remembering that fascism came to power in Germany when that nation was the most literate and cultured on Earth.
It CAN happen here, and is IS happening now, and ONLY we American citizens who love all that our nation was formed to represent, can stop it. Please consider speaking out against this madness, and standing up for the Constitutional and democratic principles our nation was founded upon, since those are RIGHT NOW being scuttled by the present theocratic regime.
These present neoconservative architects led our nation into the morass of Iraq, based totally in lies and fabrications, just as they're planning to lead us into Iran with more of the same. They've squandered the huge budget surplus the previous Administration left them, replacing it with the greatest budget deficit in our nation's history, while placing our nation into perpetual resource wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, and next Iran, labeling anyone who speaks out against their insanity as unpatriotic.
I'm sorry, my sisters and brothers, but having given three of the best years of my life to the famed 82nd Airborne Division (two in Asia) during the Viet Nam War era, while the architects of this current madness ignobly held our coats, I simply cannot remain silent while this coup is being conducted in behalf of the Corporate Oligarchy (led by Big Oil) which bankrolls and controls our current, corrupt regime, including the electronic voting machines many believe stole the last two elections and will hack the one next month, as well.

MASTERS OF WAR: MILITARY SERVICE OF NEOCON CLIQUE SENDING AMERICANS TO DIE IN IRAQ (atop the world's 2nd largest known oil reserves), in a war totally based on lies, fabrications and deceits; in Afghanistan, where our entire, stated reason for being there--to capture bin Laden--became a farce when he was allowed to escape for Tora Bora years ago, and next in Iran (3rd largest known oil reserves on Earth):
Dick Cheney did not serve, saying he "had other priorities," gaming the System for 5 separate deferments.
Karl Rove did not serve.
Scooter Libby did not serve.
Paul Wolfowitz did not serve.
Richard Perle did not serve.
Douglas Feith did not serve.
John Bolton did not serve.
Elliott Abrams did not serve.
William Kristol did not serve.
George W. Bush, who's been gaming the System his entire life, as everyone now knows (former Texas Governor Ann Richards says he was born with a silver foot in his mouth), didn't REALLY serve and, in fact, was AWOL for over a year while hiding out in the Alabama National Guard from serving his country during the Vietnam Era when all these neoconservatives could have. [National Guard troops then KNEW they would never have to serve in the Vietnam War, as they do today in Iraq, partly because the U.S. had a military draft back then, which it doesn't today.]
As a kid, my insatiable curiosity always wondered where all the GOOD Germans were when a fascist regime was taking over their country. Today, here in the Autumn of my life, I never thought I'd live to wonder the same thing about this nation I was born in, love, and served as a paratrooper to ENSURE this would never happen here. Respectfully, your friend who can no longer remain silent and complicit, Dennis

SILENCE + TORTURE = COMPLICITY

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 5, ACROSS THE U.S.: NO WORK! NO SCHOOL! MARCH WITH US!

"Can't the United States see that when we allow someone to be tortured by our agents, it is not only the victim and the perpetrator who are corrupted, not only the 'intelligence' that is contaminated, but also everyone who looked away and said they did not know, everyone who consented tacitly to that outrage so they could sleep a little safer at night, all the citizens who did not march in the streets by the millions to demand the resignation of whoever suggested, even whispered, that torture is inevitable in our day and age, that we must embrace its darkness?"--Ariel Dorfman, "Are We Really So Fearful?"

YOUR GOVERNMENT HAS NOW CODIFIED TORTURE. The new law does not prohibit the government from using "alternative interrogation techniques" that include sleep deprivation, extreme cold, personal degradation, waterboarding (simulated drowning), "temporary" disablement, and psychological disorientation. The new law grants George Bush the sole authority to decide what torture is. Abu Ghraib and the secret renditions were horrible. But to take the next step and write such practices into law is even worse. . .qualitatively worse.

Your government has officially shredded constitutional promises of basic and fundamental rights to due process, taking a huge step towards replacing the rule of law with the arbitrary rule of men. The new law will give the president the right to hold people indefinitely without charging them, and without review from the courts, nullifying habeas corpus rights. Congress has now passed legislation that denies defendants the right to see evidence used against them, and allows the use of "evidence" gained through torture. It forbids anyone to invoke the Geneva Conventions in any civil case or habeas corpus proceedings undertaken against the U.S. government, and, according to some experts, it may also forbid this in criminal cases.

Your government--which already holds over 14,000 people overseas without charges, has dramatically expanded the scope of who it can detain to include people anywhere in the world, including within the U.S. People can now be declared an "unlawful enemy combatant" simply for providing what the president decides is "material," including financial or indirect support for hostilities against the U.S.

Your government is rewriting the law on crimes against humanity to exclude itself, incurring the contempt and hatred of people all over the planet.

Few in Congress made anything but the most token show of opposition, as leading Democrats let Bush set the agenda, staying silent when it mattered, refusing to filibuster, then voting no only when the die was cast.

This unprecedented legalization of torture is part of a package coming from the Bush regime. That package includes an atrocious, nightmarish occupation of Iraq and now the ominous threat of war against Iran. It includes an assault on critical thinking and serious motion toward a theocracy. It includes the criminal response to Hurricane Katrina. It includes a systematic attack on women's reproductive rights, and the demonization of gay people and denial of their basic human rights. It includes the scapegoating of immigrants and severely repressive new legislation aimed at them.

And it gets worse with every passing week. As the call for The World Can't Wait-Drive Out the Bush Regime states: "The Bush regime is setting out to radically remake society very quickly, in a fascist way, and for generations to come." With this legalization of torture, who will now deny that? The stakes are clearly enormous.

If Not Now, When? If Not Us, Who?
THIS MUST HALT! This entire package must be repudiated, and the whole direction of this country must be reversed. There is a way to act against this onslaught, effectively. There is a vitally important step to take now to begin driving out this regime and reversing this nightmare direction:

Join those demonstrating this Thursday, October 5, in over 100 cities across the U.S., raising the demand to DRIVE OUT THE BUSH REGIME.

Think of the message that people taking off work and school and marching this Thursday, would send to the tens of millions within the U.S. who are already deeply distressed and even outraged over the direction that the Bush regime is dragging the country and the world, but who feel paralyzed. And think of the message it would send to the hundreds of millions around the world, who think that Bush acts in our name. Demonstrations like these could galvanize the political atmosphere so that the next day in America, and for days and weeks to come, the conversation and the sharp debate over the water coolers, at the lunch wagons, on the campuses and street corners will revolve around whether and how to stop this disastrous course, and how to remove the regime that is perpetrating it. The mobilization throughout society would reverberate up to the very top, and back down again. The political dynamic of fascist-type onslaught from forces represented by Bush--and passivity from everyone else--would begin to be seriously reversed. A real basis for hope could fight its way into existence, drawing forward others. Come out this Thursday. And do more, now, to help make it happen. Donate. Volunteer. Organize your friends.

"The point is this: history is full of examples where people who had right on their side fought against tremendous odds and were victorious. And, it is also full of examples of people passively hoping to wait it out, only to get swallowed up by a horror beyond what they ever imagined. WHICH ONE WE GET IS UP TO US." - From the call: "The World Can't Wait! Drive Out the Bush Regime!"

DEMONSTRATE IN NEW YORK CITY: 12 noon-Dag Hammerskjöld Plaza, March to Union Square/Rally 4pm
worldcantwait.org

Tuesday, October 03, 2006

Rep. Boehner comments on Hastert: UPDATE

The number 2 person for the Republican party, Rep Boehner, stated today the following, "I believe, I spoke to Speaker Hastert about the emails." Since when do you or I ever start a sentence with, "I believe I spoke to..." Give me a break. If I had spoken to someone I would state it as" I spoke to...". This isn't something you would have difficulty remembering. I can't wait for just straight talk from this group of scoundrels.

UPDATE:

Seems like Rep. Boehner is blaming his boss (Hastert) rather than looking at himself and taking some accountability himself. Everyone knows how to blame someone else rather than taking responsibility. Rep. Boehner knew about the problem, said he notified Speaker Hastert, and then decided to drop the matter from his responsibility, since he had told Hastert. I wonder what he would have done if it were his child that was approached by Rep. Foley and saw the emails. I'll bet he wouldn't have just told Hastert and dropped the matter! What hypocrisy!

Monday, October 02, 2006

Hastert: "I don't recall being informed" on the Rep. Foley emails

Ah yes, the old "I don't recall" excuse. If you believe that, I have a bridge I want to sell you in Brooklyn!
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