* Israeli government not always right ~ Palestinian people not always wrong, but often wronged by their leadership – Many of us in the United States have a cultural and/or emotional connection to Israel. Others see a political connection to Israel as an American ally and some Christian fundamentalists see the connection as biblical. Regardless of the connection it would be unbalanced to say that Israel can do no wrong. The defense of Israel’s actions in Gaza predominates in the mainstream media in America. Bush’s neocon support of Israel and Obama’s silence about the attacks further the one-sided American perception of this conflict. I suggest that the debate encompass contrasting views such as Glen Greenwald at Salon.com in an article titled “Orwell, blinding tribalism, selective Terrorism, and Israel/Gaza,” the website Dissident Voice that discusses Top 5 Lies About Israel’s Assault on Gaza and Jstreet.org “the political arm of the pro-Israel, pro-peace movement.” In Israel there are strong demonstrations against the Gaza military action and Consenting Adult offers some insight including the observation that the attacks are really about Israeli domestic politics.
Marty Kaplan writing at Huffington Post soul searches the myriad moral and political dilemmas confronting the long-suffering Israelis and Palestinians. For those wondering why Israel launched their Gaza attack at this particular time Lisa Gans writing at Huffington Post suggests: “But the fact that Israel decided to launch this massive attack on the Gaza strip in the waning days of the Bush administration suggests that Tel Aviv, at least, thinks that the days for such an action might be limited… Nothing in the events leading up to the now nine day long assault (as of January 5th) on Gaza created a sense of urgency that justifies the scale and speed of the Israeli action… Rather than being a sign of support for the Gaza offensive, Obama's refusal to comment at all may suggest that, while he is unwilling to interfere in the White House's ability to conduct foreign policy, he may not be supportive of Israel's actions, and that he intends to take a different tone from the current administration tone in office.”
A final thought, at least for the moment. Let us not forget, although the Arab world will, that Hamas (like Hezbollah in Lebanon) chose to secret their armies and weapons in hospitals, schools and mosques and use civilian populations as shields. Let us not forget the suffering imposed upon the people of Gaza through Israeli blockades and policies prior to the current hostilities. And let us not forget the decades-long abandonment of the Palestinian people by the surrounding Arab governments who see the Palestinians as pawns. There are no heroes.
* Quote of the Week ~ On Monday Barack Obama announced the appointment of Dawn Johnsen to serve as the next Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC). It is the office that issued the torture memo justifying the behavior of the Bush administration in Guantanamo and other venues of disgrace. In an article in Slate on April 3, 2008 Ms. Johnsen said the following: “But we must regain our ability to feel outrage whenever our government acts lawlessly and devises bogus constitutional arguments for outlandishly expansive presidential power. Otherwise, our own deep cynicism, about the possibility for a President and presidential lawyers to respect legal constraints, itself will threaten the rule of law--and not just for the remaining nine months of this administration, but for years and administrations to come.” Contrary to former Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, whom I spoke about last week, Dawn Johnsen gets it. Thanks to Think Progress and Salon’s Glenn Greenwald for bringing this to our attention.
Greenwald is a constitutional lawyer who I have come to highly regard. He points out that “The Office of Legal Counsel, inside the Justice Department, is probably the most consequential federal government office that remains relatively obscure. The legal opinions which it issues become, more or less automatically, the official legal position of the Executive Branch. It is his opinion that Johnsen may be Obama’s best pick yet to serve in his administration.
* Hobby of the Week ~ Navel Maniac – The name does not refer to pirates off the coast of Somalia. Navelmaniac.com is a web site featuring photos of peoples’ navels. Since 1999 the photographer and web author stops men and women on the streets of Brussels and, with their permission, takes a photo of their belly button. On behalf of my readers I spent two hours looking at the vast collection and concluded that Belly Button Identification (BBI) could potentially replace finger prints and DNA in crime investigations. I sheepishly and salaciously concentrated on female buttons but sometimes could not tell the difference. I do not know if this brings into question my eyesight, my sexuality or the admonition to “get a life.” Since my travel agent Sheila reads my blog please consider this as a request to provide airfare and hotel accommodations for Brussels and a digital photo of your navel. In a world increasingly burdened with one crisis after another such a benign activity may prove beneficial to one’s mental well-being.
* Question answered ~ a moment of “a hah” – I have wondered why the Republican Party suffered dislocated shoulders throwing their arms around Sarah Palin in support of her vice-presidential nomination. Her Alaskan proximity to Russia seemed lame in establishing her foreign policy credentials. Her almost total lack of experience was a weak argument for “the fresh face” syllogism. Not every Republican is a religious fundamentalist. Finally, I have an answer to my quandary that makes sense. She understands how Republicans do political business (okay, Democrats too). An investigation of Palin appointments by the LA Times found: “More than 100 appointments to state posts — nearly 1 in 4 — went to campaign contributors or their relatives, sometimes without apparent regard to qualifications; Several of Palin’s leading campaign donors received state-subsidized industrial development loans of up to $3.6 million for business ventures of questionable public value.” In being guilty of being redundant I repeat the mantra that until we have public financing of elections, pay-to-play politics will prevail. You betcha!
* When the cupboard is bare one alternative is to eat crow – Marty Weisberg at Slate.com maintains an updated list of Bushisms, comments made by the President that usually do not make much sense. A Bush comment made this week but not yet added to the list is perhaps iconic of all that has gone before it. During a luncheon meeting with the Weekly Standard: “On domestic policy, Bush was asked if he made progress in some areas for which he hasn't and probably won't get credit. Topping his list was his unsuccessful drive in 2005 to reform Social Security.” By “reform” Bush meant “privatize.” He invested considerable time, energy and expense to sell this program to the American people. It proved to be a thorough dud that never came close to acceptance. Given the collapse of financial markets we can only say, “Thank goodness.” Given that a failed initiative tops his list of “making progress” we can only say, “Good riddance.”
* Clean Coal mythology – I recently noted the sludge spill from a coal-fired electric plant in Tennessee could wind up being an environmental disaster. It has not received that much attention in the mainstream news. However, the NY Times learned from the Tennessee Valley authority that in 2007 the plant’s byproducts included: “45,000 pounds of arsenic, 49,000 pounds of lead, 1.4 million pounds of barium, 91,000 pounds of chromium and 140,000 pounds of manganese. Those metals can cause cancer, liver damage and neurological complications, among other health problems.”
The holding pond that yielded the spill contained byproducts accumulating for decades. For days after the spill authorities maintained that the spill was not toxic. We now learn that, “Elevated levels of lead and thallium and what the EPA called “very high” levels of arsenic have been found in water samples taken near the site of the spill.” What should have taken hours to test took days. No surprise and screw the public. “The spill has reignited a debate over whether coal ash should be regulated as a hazardous waste. In 2000, the E.P.A. backed away from its recommendation to do so in the face of industry opposition, promising instead to issue national guidelines for proper ash disposal, though it never did.” No surprise and screw the public.
It is important to note that the Tennessee ash dump is not unique. There are 1300 similar coal ash dump sites across the U.S., most of them unregulated and unmonitored and that contain billions more gallons of fly ash and other byproducts of burning coal. “In 2007, an E.P.A. report identified 63 sites in 26 states where the water was contaminated by heavy metals from such dumps, including three other Tennessee Valley Authority dumps. Environmental advocacy groups have submitted at least 17 additional cases that they say should be added to that list.” This raises two questions: how many other locations are being contaminated since regulation and monitoring is lax to non-existent?; when will the EPA become as responsible to the American people as it is to the energy industry?
A final thought, at least for the moment. The standard for determining the cost of any fuel is the amount of energy it generates. It does not account for the real cost to our society that must include the cost of cleaning up the toxic effects of these fuels. It appears that the cost of addressing the toxicity from coal use in our air, our water and our bodies has yet to enter the calculation. It will be substantial.
* We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.
Native American Proverb
* It is horrifying that we have to fight our own government to save the environment.
Ansel Adams
Showing posts with label water pollution. Show all posts
Showing posts with label water pollution. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Sunday, November 16, 2008
* Bumper Sticker of the Week ~ Joe Must Go – Many voices are urging the Democratic Party in the Senate to remove Joe Lieberman from his chairmanship of the Homeland Security committee. I believe that this would be the correct action. His campaigning for John McCain and his questioning Barack Obama’s patriotism are at the bottom of the list of reasons for Joe to go. His pathetic record of leadership on this important committee is the overriding justification for his removal. Intentional incompetence best describes his tenure in this post. As Rachel Maddow on her MSNBC show and Heather writing at Crooks and Liars point out, Lieberman over the last two years, never held hearings on the disastrous US government response to the Katrina hurricane disaster nor did the committee look into no-bid contracts awarded to friends and associates of Dick Cheney and George W. Bush. Many of those contracts were implemented incompetently while the US government was overcharged billions of dollars. As chairman of this committee Lieberman did not represent the interests of the American people. Instead, Lieberman represented the interests of the Bush administration that operated in secret and often outside of legal parameters, and at great cost to you and me, the citizens recovering from a natural disaster, and the military men and women who were underserved as they served this country while in harms way. Joe Must Go.
* Remember Typhoid Mary? ~ Meet Leukemia Dick and some of the other dicks who “serve” America –
Drilling for natural gas, a policy being touted as a means of reducing America's dependence on foreign oil, may contaminate water supplies with unsafe levels of chemicals like benzene, a compound that can cause leukemia, according to an investigation by Pro Publica. The drilling process, pioneered by Dick Cheney's former company Haliburton, uses water pressure and chemicals to break rocks and release the gas. It was exempted by Congress from the Safe Water Act after a 2004 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) study declared it safe. It now appears that this EPA study was not as conclusive at it claimed to be.
It is well-documented that the EPA often goes out of its way NOT to protect the environment and the American public. It is well-documented that Cheney has been the most ardent advocate for the interests of energy companies and Haliburton. One wonders what influence was imposed upon the EPA that resulted in this exemption from the Safe Water Act. “More than 1,000 other cases of contamination have been documented by courts and state and local governments in Colorado, New Mexico, Alabama, Ohio and Pennsylvania. In one case, a house exploded after hydraulic fracturing created underground passageways and methane seeped into the residential water supply. In other cases, the contamination occurred not from actual drilling below ground, but on the surface, where accidental spills and leaky tanks, trucks and waste pits allowed benzene and other chemicals to leach into streams, springs and water wells.” This is but one example where the interaction of the executive branch, the legislative branch, federal agencies and business failed the American people. The majority of the problems and dangers confronting America today are the result of such failed leadership.
* Fly Me to the Moon ~ it may be safer – Sixteen months ago I commented about the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) being accused of covering up mistakes by air traffic controllers at Dallas-Fort Worth airport. It was discouraging to learn that a federal agency empowered to protect air travelers was actually complicit in reducing safe conditions. At a minimum, one would expect that the release of the report would have resulted in personnel changes and an upgrading of the oversight. Not in the current state of our federal government.
ABC reports a new investigation has found “the misclassifying of safety errors had continued” at Dallas-Fort Worth, that FAA employees continued to hide safety errors. It causes one to wonder if the repeated dereliction of duty by the FAA at Dallas-Fort Worth is it also taking place at other airports. What is happening in Boston, NY, LA, Miami and hundreds of other major airports? I imagine that remedial action will be taken when two or three planes collide, resulting in the death of 639 passengers, 19 crew members, 412 people on the ground and the widespread destruction of a residential neighborhood. The Senate Committee on Homeland Security may even hold hearings. Perhaps Republican Texas Senators John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchinson will exercise their fiduciary responsibility by pressing for an investigation into this problem that bodes dire consequences. Perhaps a new administration will coerce a sense of responsibility and accountability into the performance of federal agencies. That would be a refreshing development.
* Change we can believe in ~ it is up to us – The above examples of broken government brings to mind the often-used and cynical phrase, “You can’t fight City Hall.” It is only a truism if good people do nothing. I was reminded of this while reading an article by Gary Younge in the British newspaper The Guardian titled, “Obama's army of supporters must maintain their level of activism.” Younge notes that the characterization of American political life - the notion of a lazy, contented people who do not vote, care or really understand what is being done in their name and leaving governance to big business, and lobbyists – may be changing. I recommend the article because it notes many changes that have been occurring within the American electorate.
I would suggest that the change Younge identifies is a result of two influences; the devastatingly damaging tenure of George W. Bush and the electric and populist rise of Barack Obama. The Bush years awakened a previously unengaged citizenry and the Obama campaign provided the vehicle to channel the disappointment, the losses, the regression and resulting anger and frustration into a movement for change. This new activist citizenry demands responsible and responsive leadership. It opposes narrow ideology agendas and expects federal leadership to address the major issues that challenge our society – challenges that have been ignored over the last eight years. The higher expectations have brought us a new president, senators and representatives that embrace progressive ideas. Their mission is to overcome a bureaucratic government burdened by politicization, ideology and special interests as well as accepted and expected incompetence. Success will require a continually engaged citizenry that keeps a bright light on the ills, vociferously communicates to elected representatives the change that is required and rewards responsible and responsive representatives with re-election.
* All things Progressive – If you have interest in Progressive ideas and activities I recommend the web site The Bucks/Mont Progressive Events. The editor Tom Ulrich does a terrific job each month identifying Progressive events in the Philadelphia area and national broadcasts, publications and videos.
* All things regressive ~ prejudice, hate, ignorance – Much of the Sarah Palin rhetoric during the presidential campaign appealed to this three-headed Hydra. Those susceptible to divisive discourse reveled in the speeches of Palin and other Republican orators. The forces of hate are as real and alive today as they were 50 and 100 years ago. These forces certainly are not as widespread but, certainly as real. One example of such despicable human behavior is the Ku Klux Klan. This organization, originally spawned to repress African Americans, has broadened its “vision” to include Latinos and other minorities. It is fortunate that we have people such as Morris Dees and his organization The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) standing up to forces that debase civil rights and humanity.
In Kentucky on Friday the SPLC gained a decisive jury verdict against members of the KKK, accused of severely beating a Latino in 2006 at a rural county fair. As Dees noted, "The people of Meade County, Kentucky, have spoken loudly and clearly. And what they've said is that ethnic violence has no place in our society, that those who promote hate and violence will be held accountable and made to pay a steep price." The verdict against Imperial Klans of America (IKA), Imperial Wizard Ron Edwards and two former KKK members who have already served prison terms for their involvement was $2.5 million. It is likely the judgment will cripple IKA’s 16 chapters that are located throughout eight states.
The weakening of a KKK group is encouraging but the ugliness of hate that infects the land of the free and the home of the brave will not be eradicated in our lifetime. As noted in an article at the Huffington Post the election of Barack Obama has spurred hundreds of race threats and crimes that include, “Cross burnings. Schoolchildren chanting ‘Assassinate Obama.’ Black figures hung from nooses. Racial epithets scrawled on homes and cars.” America has come a long way in civil rights and human relations. Gay rights are improving with much still to be achieved. There is much to be proud of in America but the road ahead will not be free of prejudice, hate and ignorance. It is a flaw in the human condition that may never be overcome.
* “You cannot hate other people without hating your self.”
Oprah Winfrey
* Remember Typhoid Mary? ~ Meet Leukemia Dick and some of the other dicks who “serve” America –
Drilling for natural gas, a policy being touted as a means of reducing America's dependence on foreign oil, may contaminate water supplies with unsafe levels of chemicals like benzene, a compound that can cause leukemia, according to an investigation by Pro Publica. The drilling process, pioneered by Dick Cheney's former company Haliburton, uses water pressure and chemicals to break rocks and release the gas. It was exempted by Congress from the Safe Water Act after a 2004 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) study declared it safe. It now appears that this EPA study was not as conclusive at it claimed to be.
It is well-documented that the EPA often goes out of its way NOT to protect the environment and the American public. It is well-documented that Cheney has been the most ardent advocate for the interests of energy companies and Haliburton. One wonders what influence was imposed upon the EPA that resulted in this exemption from the Safe Water Act. “More than 1,000 other cases of contamination have been documented by courts and state and local governments in Colorado, New Mexico, Alabama, Ohio and Pennsylvania. In one case, a house exploded after hydraulic fracturing created underground passageways and methane seeped into the residential water supply. In other cases, the contamination occurred not from actual drilling below ground, but on the surface, where accidental spills and leaky tanks, trucks and waste pits allowed benzene and other chemicals to leach into streams, springs and water wells.” This is but one example where the interaction of the executive branch, the legislative branch, federal agencies and business failed the American people. The majority of the problems and dangers confronting America today are the result of such failed leadership.
* Fly Me to the Moon ~ it may be safer – Sixteen months ago I commented about the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) being accused of covering up mistakes by air traffic controllers at Dallas-Fort Worth airport. It was discouraging to learn that a federal agency empowered to protect air travelers was actually complicit in reducing safe conditions. At a minimum, one would expect that the release of the report would have resulted in personnel changes and an upgrading of the oversight. Not in the current state of our federal government.
ABC reports a new investigation has found “the misclassifying of safety errors had continued” at Dallas-Fort Worth, that FAA employees continued to hide safety errors. It causes one to wonder if the repeated dereliction of duty by the FAA at Dallas-Fort Worth is it also taking place at other airports. What is happening in Boston, NY, LA, Miami and hundreds of other major airports? I imagine that remedial action will be taken when two or three planes collide, resulting in the death of 639 passengers, 19 crew members, 412 people on the ground and the widespread destruction of a residential neighborhood. The Senate Committee on Homeland Security may even hold hearings. Perhaps Republican Texas Senators John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchinson will exercise their fiduciary responsibility by pressing for an investigation into this problem that bodes dire consequences. Perhaps a new administration will coerce a sense of responsibility and accountability into the performance of federal agencies. That would be a refreshing development.
* Change we can believe in ~ it is up to us – The above examples of broken government brings to mind the often-used and cynical phrase, “You can’t fight City Hall.” It is only a truism if good people do nothing. I was reminded of this while reading an article by Gary Younge in the British newspaper The Guardian titled, “Obama's army of supporters must maintain their level of activism.” Younge notes that the characterization of American political life - the notion of a lazy, contented people who do not vote, care or really understand what is being done in their name and leaving governance to big business, and lobbyists – may be changing. I recommend the article because it notes many changes that have been occurring within the American electorate.
I would suggest that the change Younge identifies is a result of two influences; the devastatingly damaging tenure of George W. Bush and the electric and populist rise of Barack Obama. The Bush years awakened a previously unengaged citizenry and the Obama campaign provided the vehicle to channel the disappointment, the losses, the regression and resulting anger and frustration into a movement for change. This new activist citizenry demands responsible and responsive leadership. It opposes narrow ideology agendas and expects federal leadership to address the major issues that challenge our society – challenges that have been ignored over the last eight years. The higher expectations have brought us a new president, senators and representatives that embrace progressive ideas. Their mission is to overcome a bureaucratic government burdened by politicization, ideology and special interests as well as accepted and expected incompetence. Success will require a continually engaged citizenry that keeps a bright light on the ills, vociferously communicates to elected representatives the change that is required and rewards responsible and responsive representatives with re-election.
* All things Progressive – If you have interest in Progressive ideas and activities I recommend the web site The Bucks/Mont Progressive Events. The editor Tom Ulrich does a terrific job each month identifying Progressive events in the Philadelphia area and national broadcasts, publications and videos.
* All things regressive ~ prejudice, hate, ignorance – Much of the Sarah Palin rhetoric during the presidential campaign appealed to this three-headed Hydra. Those susceptible to divisive discourse reveled in the speeches of Palin and other Republican orators. The forces of hate are as real and alive today as they were 50 and 100 years ago. These forces certainly are not as widespread but, certainly as real. One example of such despicable human behavior is the Ku Klux Klan. This organization, originally spawned to repress African Americans, has broadened its “vision” to include Latinos and other minorities. It is fortunate that we have people such as Morris Dees and his organization The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) standing up to forces that debase civil rights and humanity.
In Kentucky on Friday the SPLC gained a decisive jury verdict against members of the KKK, accused of severely beating a Latino in 2006 at a rural county fair. As Dees noted, "The people of Meade County, Kentucky, have spoken loudly and clearly. And what they've said is that ethnic violence has no place in our society, that those who promote hate and violence will be held accountable and made to pay a steep price." The verdict against Imperial Klans of America (IKA), Imperial Wizard Ron Edwards and two former KKK members who have already served prison terms for their involvement was $2.5 million. It is likely the judgment will cripple IKA’s 16 chapters that are located throughout eight states.
The weakening of a KKK group is encouraging but the ugliness of hate that infects the land of the free and the home of the brave will not be eradicated in our lifetime. As noted in an article at the Huffington Post the election of Barack Obama has spurred hundreds of race threats and crimes that include, “Cross burnings. Schoolchildren chanting ‘Assassinate Obama.’ Black figures hung from nooses. Racial epithets scrawled on homes and cars.” America has come a long way in civil rights and human relations. Gay rights are improving with much still to be achieved. There is much to be proud of in America but the road ahead will not be free of prejudice, hate and ignorance. It is a flaw in the human condition that may never be overcome.
* “You cannot hate other people without hating your self.”
Oprah Winfrey
Friday, April 11, 2008
* Chasing windmills ~ and enjoying it - This is the 50th edition of Stephen Views the News that began in June 2007. Readership and positive feedback continue to grow and in February I was invited to additionally post my blog each week at the websites PA for Democracy and Montgomery County Democracy for America. A question I am often asked is where do I find the time? The answer is less TV and fiction novels. The question I occasionally ask myself is, why? Writing about what is happening in our country is certainly challenging, it offers opportunities for creativity, it demands a degree of analysis that is not natural to my once apolitical inclination and it provides an outlet for the frustrations I experience viewing the news. However, the original motivation for writing this blog remains strong. I believe that America has room for improvement and the more we are aware of the ways and the degree to which our country is being damaged, the better the chance that the self-serving and power-driven incompetents managing our political system will be replaced. And, there is the possibility they will be replaced with more responsible leaders such as Webb, Casey, McCaskill, Sestak, Tester and Patrick Murphy who won elections in 2006. At times events cause me to feel like Don Quixote but it is not dissuasive. The 2008 presidential and congressional races could be subtitled “Save America”. It is my opinion that the core elements that made America the standard for modern democracy, freedoms and a better way of life are at stake. Tens of thousands of Americans are currently working diligently for positive change in our country. The opportunity to have a modest voice in this quest is satisfying.
* The Impossible Dream ~ McCain’s healthcare plan – John McCain says the country must provide access to healthcare for all citizens and that "we need to help people who need it." He is against requiring health insurance companies to cover people with pre-existing conditions because, “That would be mandating what the free enterprise system does." McCain also wants to shrink government's role in healthcare and doesn't want to impose regulations on insurance companies. The McCain healthcare plan reminds one of Bush’s Iraq incursion. There ain’t no plan! Bob Laszewski, an expert on health policy, has a website Health Care Policy and Marketplace Review that offers a more detailed analysis of McCain’s ideas on healthcare as well as the other candidates.
* It definitely is sobering - The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) released a new report stating that because "political progress is so slow, halting and superficial, and social and political fragmentation so pronounced," the U.S. "is no closer to being able to leave Iraq than it was a year ago." The new assessment -- which was conducted by the same experts that advised the Iraq Study Group (ISG) -- "predicts that lasting political development could take five to 10 years of 'full, unconditional commitment' to Iraq, but also cautions that future progress may not be worth the 'massive' human and financial costs" to the U.S.” The “surge” is now a “pause” and probably the best we can hope for until January 20, 2009.
* A Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq – While no one in the Bush administration attempts to bring the Iraq war to some resolution a number of congressional candidates and military experts have developed an intelligent multi-approach plan to change the Iraq dynamics and actually strengthen America. The highlights include:
End U.S. Military Action in Iraq
Use U.S. diplomatic power
Address humanitarian concerns
Restore our Constitution
Restore our military
Restore independence to the media
Create a new, U.S.-centered energy policy
The specifics of this plan can be read on line or downloaded to a PDF file at this link. You can sign on as a citizen co-sponsor of this plan at True Majority Action.
* Don’t drink the water – The Bush administration has been successful in stripping vital protections from the Clean Water Act. Polluters want to keep dumping contaminants linked to cancer, birth defects and other health problems into our water because dealing with chemical waste, oil spills, and other pollution would cut into their profit margin. According to the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), “That means that pollutants like E-Coli, bacteria, mercury, PCBs and dioxin could be contaminating the drinking water of more than 110 million Americans. The LCV offers a petition you can sign urging Congress to enact the Clean Water Restoration Act.
* Don’t drink the Kool Aid ~ or bleach – Florida has a strict abstinence-only sex education policy. How is that working out? “A recent survey that found some Florida teens believe drinking a cap of bleach will prevent HIV and a shot of Mountain Dew will stop pregnancy has prompted lawmakers to push for an overhaul of sex education in the state... The survey showed that Florida teens also believe that smoking marijuana will prevent a person from getting pregnant.” Florida teenagers may have whiter teeth but their genitals are falling off. As a nation we are beginning to pay attention to what is happening in Washington D.C. The same light should be shone on state legislatures who are equally susceptible to special interests that do not represent majority interests.
* A response to Guantanamo – The site of torture, indefinite imprisonment and ignorance of international and American law and morality will be the location where George W. Bush attempts to justify the criminality that permeates his “rain” of error. Trials for a number of these prisoners are being scheduled to take place. Five former Secretaries of State and the American Bar Association have condemned the activities that have occurred at Guantanamo and the possibility of fair trials. Fortunately, there are individuals and organizations in America that have not lost their conscience. The American Civil Liberties Union and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers have joined forces by assembling defense teams to be available to assist in the representation of detainees facing prosecution at Guantánamo. “We are taking this step because of our grave concerns that the Guantanamo military commissions process does not reflect our country’s commitment to justice and due process. The military commissions’ authorization of the use of coerced evidence possibly derived from torture, secret evidence, and hearsay is unconstitutional and counter to American traditions of fairness and justice.” You may not care about these “foreigners”, who may have committed egregious crimes, BUT, in a democracy we all should care about the application of justice on a selective basis. To not care is a dangerous road traveled.
* It definitely is us – When we hear figures that the Iraq war will cost the U.S. $196 billion this year or that the projected cost will reach more than $1,000,000,000,000 (trillion) the irony is that the numbers are so large that they are virtually meaningless on a personal level. Well, it just got personal. Barack Obama recently said that the Iraq war is costing each American household $100 per month. It was not campaign hyperbole. The source of the $100 figure came from The Three Trillion Dollar War, a new book by Joseph E. Stiglitz, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, and Linda J. Bilmes, a professor at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. It will cost each of our households $1200 this year. John McCain is comfortable with the U.S. being in Iraq for decades. Of course he is married to a multi-millionaire heiress, he has a federal pension and healthcare package. You and I are paying the price AS WILL generations to follow since Bush’s war is being paid for with our tax dollars but even more so with borrowed money – what the economists call deficits and I call an element of the Bush legacy.
* Truth ~ a fact that is verified – The Pentagon will begin issuing hand-held lie detectors to troops in Iraq and Afghanistan aimed at rooting out potential insurgents and terrorists. The Pentagon claims that these devices have an accuracy rate up to 90%. The Pentagon’s accuracy claims are questioned by polygraph experts. It seems that the accuracy rate is between 63% and 79%. "I don't understand how anybody could think that this is ready for deployment," said statistics professor Stephen E. Fienberg, who headed a 2003 study by the National Academy of Sciences that found insufficient scientific evidence to support using polygraphs for national security... ‘Sending these instruments into the field in Iraq and Afghanistan without serious scientific assessment, and for use by untrained personnel, is a mockery of what we advocated in our report." Mockery is the operable word for a Pentagon that did not provide our troops with adequate protective equipment as they went into battle and renewed a contract with a helmet manufacturer they knew intentionally produced helmets below specifications to increase their profit margin. Jimmy Breslin wrote a hilarious book about a group of incompetent Mafia-like sad sacks titled The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight. Well, neither can this gang but it is not humorous.
* Perfect Rice for the perfect wedding – It appears that Condoleezza Rice is vying to be John McCain’s running mate for the White House. As National Security Advisor in the early years of the Bush administration she “neglected to explain to President Bush the importance of a pre-9/11 intelligence briefing that suggested Osama bin Laden's followers intended to attack the United States, and she later claimed on the basis of no apparent evidence that a failure to attack Iraq would put the U.S. in danger of nuclear attack.” Secretary of State Rice is best known for playing the piano and her collection of shoes since her diplomatic achievements would fit on a grain of rice. Having been a surrogate in the flawed and failed Bush administration for seven plus years and given that McCain provides a continuum of Bush’s imperialistic and error-laden foreign policy it would be the perfect marriage. The neocons could be ushers, James Dobson could perform the ceremony, Joe Lieberman could be the ring bearer and ExxonMobil could pay for the honeymoon in the romantic, sun-drenched and historical city of Baghdad.
Dominatrix Update: ABC and the AP are reporting that Condoleezza Rice chaired explicit White House discussions in 2002 and 2003 about which torture techniques should be used on prisoners. This is the first time we see evidence that senior officials, "not only discussed specific plans and specific interrogation methods, but approved them". Recall when news of prisoner abuses at Abu Ghraib become public, responsibility was attributed to rogue low-level military personnel. Other “stellar” attendees at these Club Sadist meetings were Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Colin Powell, CIA Director George Tenet and Attorney General John Ashcroft and VP Cheyney approved these measures. As much as I would like to see Rice on a losing ticket with McCain this news will likely waterboard her chances. Speaking of chances, Bush and Cheyney may have dodged impeachment but a war crimes tribunal may not be out of the question.
* A marriage made in heaven – It is my sense that our souls are color blind and worship at a non-sectarian universal cathedral. I thought about this while reading an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer about the married couple David Hyman and Farah Jimenez. He is a white Jewish Democrat and she is a black Cuban American Baptist Republican. They are both active in their respective religions, political affiliations and perform wonderful work in the community. Their story is worth reading. Aside from the fact that Ms. Jimenez voted for Rick Santorum and to this day defends Bush, they are living examples of what America can be. Mazel tov and buena suerte.
* "We both want to have a positive impact on the world and we're not waiting for politics to make a difference."
Farah Jimenez
* The Impossible Dream ~ McCain’s healthcare plan – John McCain says the country must provide access to healthcare for all citizens and that "we need to help people who need it." He is against requiring health insurance companies to cover people with pre-existing conditions because, “That would be mandating what the free enterprise system does." McCain also wants to shrink government's role in healthcare and doesn't want to impose regulations on insurance companies. The McCain healthcare plan reminds one of Bush’s Iraq incursion. There ain’t no plan! Bob Laszewski, an expert on health policy, has a website Health Care Policy and Marketplace Review that offers a more detailed analysis of McCain’s ideas on healthcare as well as the other candidates.
* It definitely is sobering - The United States Institute of Peace (USIP) released a new report stating that because "political progress is so slow, halting and superficial, and social and political fragmentation so pronounced," the U.S. "is no closer to being able to leave Iraq than it was a year ago." The new assessment -- which was conducted by the same experts that advised the Iraq Study Group (ISG) -- "predicts that lasting political development could take five to 10 years of 'full, unconditional commitment' to Iraq, but also cautions that future progress may not be worth the 'massive' human and financial costs" to the U.S.” The “surge” is now a “pause” and probably the best we can hope for until January 20, 2009.
* A Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq – While no one in the Bush administration attempts to bring the Iraq war to some resolution a number of congressional candidates and military experts have developed an intelligent multi-approach plan to change the Iraq dynamics and actually strengthen America. The highlights include:
End U.S. Military Action in Iraq
Use U.S. diplomatic power
Address humanitarian concerns
Restore our Constitution
Restore our military
Restore independence to the media
Create a new, U.S.-centered energy policy
The specifics of this plan can be read on line or downloaded to a PDF file at this link. You can sign on as a citizen co-sponsor of this plan at True Majority Action.
* Don’t drink the water – The Bush administration has been successful in stripping vital protections from the Clean Water Act. Polluters want to keep dumping contaminants linked to cancer, birth defects and other health problems into our water because dealing with chemical waste, oil spills, and other pollution would cut into their profit margin. According to the League of Conservation Voters (LCV), “That means that pollutants like E-Coli, bacteria, mercury, PCBs and dioxin could be contaminating the drinking water of more than 110 million Americans. The LCV offers a petition you can sign urging Congress to enact the Clean Water Restoration Act.
* Don’t drink the Kool Aid ~ or bleach – Florida has a strict abstinence-only sex education policy. How is that working out? “A recent survey that found some Florida teens believe drinking a cap of bleach will prevent HIV and a shot of Mountain Dew will stop pregnancy has prompted lawmakers to push for an overhaul of sex education in the state... The survey showed that Florida teens also believe that smoking marijuana will prevent a person from getting pregnant.” Florida teenagers may have whiter teeth but their genitals are falling off. As a nation we are beginning to pay attention to what is happening in Washington D.C. The same light should be shone on state legislatures who are equally susceptible to special interests that do not represent majority interests.
* A response to Guantanamo – The site of torture, indefinite imprisonment and ignorance of international and American law and morality will be the location where George W. Bush attempts to justify the criminality that permeates his “rain” of error. Trials for a number of these prisoners are being scheduled to take place. Five former Secretaries of State and the American Bar Association have condemned the activities that have occurred at Guantanamo and the possibility of fair trials. Fortunately, there are individuals and organizations in America that have not lost their conscience. The American Civil Liberties Union and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers have joined forces by assembling defense teams to be available to assist in the representation of detainees facing prosecution at Guantánamo. “We are taking this step because of our grave concerns that the Guantanamo military commissions process does not reflect our country’s commitment to justice and due process. The military commissions’ authorization of the use of coerced evidence possibly derived from torture, secret evidence, and hearsay is unconstitutional and counter to American traditions of fairness and justice.” You may not care about these “foreigners”, who may have committed egregious crimes, BUT, in a democracy we all should care about the application of justice on a selective basis. To not care is a dangerous road traveled.
* It definitely is us – When we hear figures that the Iraq war will cost the U.S. $196 billion this year or that the projected cost will reach more than $1,000,000,000,000 (trillion) the irony is that the numbers are so large that they are virtually meaningless on a personal level. Well, it just got personal. Barack Obama recently said that the Iraq war is costing each American household $100 per month. It was not campaign hyperbole. The source of the $100 figure came from The Three Trillion Dollar War, a new book by Joseph E. Stiglitz, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, and Linda J. Bilmes, a professor at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government. It will cost each of our households $1200 this year. John McCain is comfortable with the U.S. being in Iraq for decades. Of course he is married to a multi-millionaire heiress, he has a federal pension and healthcare package. You and I are paying the price AS WILL generations to follow since Bush’s war is being paid for with our tax dollars but even more so with borrowed money – what the economists call deficits and I call an element of the Bush legacy.
* Truth ~ a fact that is verified – The Pentagon will begin issuing hand-held lie detectors to troops in Iraq and Afghanistan aimed at rooting out potential insurgents and terrorists. The Pentagon claims that these devices have an accuracy rate up to 90%. The Pentagon’s accuracy claims are questioned by polygraph experts. It seems that the accuracy rate is between 63% and 79%. "I don't understand how anybody could think that this is ready for deployment," said statistics professor Stephen E. Fienberg, who headed a 2003 study by the National Academy of Sciences that found insufficient scientific evidence to support using polygraphs for national security... ‘Sending these instruments into the field in Iraq and Afghanistan without serious scientific assessment, and for use by untrained personnel, is a mockery of what we advocated in our report." Mockery is the operable word for a Pentagon that did not provide our troops with adequate protective equipment as they went into battle and renewed a contract with a helmet manufacturer they knew intentionally produced helmets below specifications to increase their profit margin. Jimmy Breslin wrote a hilarious book about a group of incompetent Mafia-like sad sacks titled The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight. Well, neither can this gang but it is not humorous.
* Perfect Rice for the perfect wedding – It appears that Condoleezza Rice is vying to be John McCain’s running mate for the White House. As National Security Advisor in the early years of the Bush administration she “neglected to explain to President Bush the importance of a pre-9/11 intelligence briefing that suggested Osama bin Laden's followers intended to attack the United States, and she later claimed on the basis of no apparent evidence that a failure to attack Iraq would put the U.S. in danger of nuclear attack.” Secretary of State Rice is best known for playing the piano and her collection of shoes since her diplomatic achievements would fit on a grain of rice. Having been a surrogate in the flawed and failed Bush administration for seven plus years and given that McCain provides a continuum of Bush’s imperialistic and error-laden foreign policy it would be the perfect marriage. The neocons could be ushers, James Dobson could perform the ceremony, Joe Lieberman could be the ring bearer and ExxonMobil could pay for the honeymoon in the romantic, sun-drenched and historical city of Baghdad.
Dominatrix Update: ABC and the AP are reporting that Condoleezza Rice chaired explicit White House discussions in 2002 and 2003 about which torture techniques should be used on prisoners. This is the first time we see evidence that senior officials, "not only discussed specific plans and specific interrogation methods, but approved them". Recall when news of prisoner abuses at Abu Ghraib become public, responsibility was attributed to rogue low-level military personnel. Other “stellar” attendees at these Club Sadist meetings were Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Colin Powell, CIA Director George Tenet and Attorney General John Ashcroft and VP Cheyney approved these measures. As much as I would like to see Rice on a losing ticket with McCain this news will likely waterboard her chances. Speaking of chances, Bush and Cheyney may have dodged impeachment but a war crimes tribunal may not be out of the question.
* A marriage made in heaven – It is my sense that our souls are color blind and worship at a non-sectarian universal cathedral. I thought about this while reading an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer about the married couple David Hyman and Farah Jimenez. He is a white Jewish Democrat and she is a black Cuban American Baptist Republican. They are both active in their respective religions, political affiliations and perform wonderful work in the community. Their story is worth reading. Aside from the fact that Ms. Jimenez voted for Rick Santorum and to this day defends Bush, they are living examples of what America can be. Mazel tov and buena suerte.
* "We both want to have a positive impact on the world and we're not waiting for politics to make a difference."
Farah Jimenez
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
