More Bu$hco Misleading Information

Once again we find ourselves being misled by the Bush administration. In recent days President Bush stated his intention to close the prison at Guantanamo. Now we hear from the Pentagon of the impending opening of a new maximum security facility, Camp 6. Millions of dollars have been spent for a permanent facility designed to hold 200 prisoners. Not much evidence of any winding down in this series of events.
There seemed to be hope on the horizon with the Hamdan decision from SCOTUS. Now we not only find the administration calling on Congress to legalize the confinement and torture of detainees but we find them planning permanent detention centers. No longer am I surprised and yet I continue to be shocked by the absolute lack of integrity in this crowd. How much longer can our country afford this bunch? How much lower can they stoop? We can only hope the end will come in November with the elections.

We Need Real Courage in Journalism

Today we need real courage in journalism. Real courage from the press requires more than just sending reporter to war zones. True courage in the press means taking responsibility for the honest news. This means not always taking the word of a speaker or a press secretary at face value. This means checking the facts and reporting only what is news and leaving behind what is only a rehash of old news.

Today we live in an instant world. Every moment of the day we are exposed to the news of the moment on television. The print press has an opportunity to offer real news as opposed to the momentary entertainment. Reporters for the print media have the opportunity to take time for evaluation, investigation, and comparison before submitting an article. Editors can ask hard questions of the reporters to be certain of the accuracy and timeliness of any article.

Today the press is foregoing much of its responsibility by becoming an entertainment venue instead of an information venue. We need a return to real information. The truth is tough sometimes, but truth is better than living in a world of delusion fed by a print media too afraid to print the truth.

Fascism post to read

Follow the link to read a really scary post. All about comparing our administration to a current definition of fascism. Not for the faint of heart. Really good for someone open to really thinking about today's US government.

Bush and National Security

In March, 2006, President Bush signed an introductory statement to the National Security Strategy. Read the full text HERE. Excerpts follow with my commentary.

America is at war.

A declaration of war requires a defined enemy. The so-called war in question is the war on terrorism which has no real enemy, only an ill defined group who threaten to attack the United States or its interests. There are better ways to counter terrorism than to attack with military force.

… the rise of terrorism fueled by an aggressive ideology of hatred and murder

With a rise fueled by the ongoing occupation of Iraq yet ignored by the administration.

America also has an unprecedented opportunity to lay the foundations for future peace. The ideals that have inspired our history – freedom, democracy, and human dignity – are increasingly inspiring individuals and nations throughout the world. And because free nations tend toward peace, the advance of liberty will make America more secure.

Once that was true. After the attacks of 9/11 the United States enjoyed the sympathy of the world. At that time we were the most powerful nation in the world in both military and overall world popularity. Since that time we have seen our influence in the world community vastly diminished. Today we are less approved and more disliked as a nation than at any time in our history. The initial invasion and ongoing occupation of Iraq were mistakes of colossal magnitude.

We have kept on the offensive against terrorist networks, leaving our enemy weakened, but not yet defeated.

Wrong, wrong, wrong. Terrorism by any measure has increased around the world. Leaving Americans in Iraq fuels the insurgency and has allowed the beginning of spread to other countries such as Jordan.

We have joined with the Afghan people to bring down the Taliban regime – the protectors of the al-Qaida network – and aided a new, democratic government to rise in its place.

And now we see the ineffectiveness in that government as the Taliban rears its ugly head stronger than before.

We have cultivated stable and cooperative relations with all the major powers of the world.

Cooperation is not really possible when the US hands out the only acceptable terms. Other countries around the world left the coalition of the willing long ago. World opinion continues to deteriorate.

We have also found that the defense of freedom brings us loss and sorrow

More than 2500 American troops dead and uncounted thousands of Iraqis is surely cause for sorrow.

The ongoing course of this administration is just too much. No longer can any one of us afford to remain silent. We must all speak up and speak out loud and clear before time runs out and change cannot be accomplished.

Worst Presidency in History?

Are we suffering the worst presidency in history? Certainly many historians think so. To look at the facts we see an administration buried in cronyism with a large credibility gap. Family friends and longtime supporters hold many high positions. The words of the administration have rarely been followed by action (for examples No Child Left Behind and the Katrina disaster). We lack a full report but scandal has certainly tainted officials close to the administration. President Bush led us into what is certainly a failing if not completely failed war.

While we cannot be sure how history will judge this administration we each have a responsibility to our country to speak up and let our feelings be known. Our legislators have the power to change much of what is wrong. They need only to hear the public sentiment that supports such changes. Only by our voices being heard loud and clear will this country begin to change the course of this failing administration.

We Need an Active Public

In any time of war the feelings and opinions of the public at large assume utmost importance. In a democracy such as ours, political leaders should act in accordance with public opinion. It is in such turbulent times that we, the public, most need to educate ourselves as to the basis for our country’s actions. Absolute certitude and impassioned patriotism are no substitute for reasoned expression based on knowledge of the facts.

In past times of war our citizens were often carried to action by emotion rather than reason. This response is perfectly human, but each of us must remain mindful of our own behavior.

I implore each and every citizen of this country today to educate themselves. Given today’s overall world political setting and the specific conflict in Iraq we each need to be fully aware of our Constitution and its guidelines for freedom. Without the open expression of opinion based on such knowledge we are seriously in danger of being misled as a populace.

Today we continue to see a government acting outside the will of the people. How can this be allowed to continue? Only with an active citizenry expressing their views can we make a difference. Otherwise we continue the downward run to oblivion.

Left and Right

I am deeply disturbed by the divide between the so-called left and right in our country. We are engaged in a raging debate that is actually more existential than political. The very nature of reality itself is being called into question. As one who proudly calls myself a liberal I have a great deal of trouble understanding the world view of the so-called “Christian” right which seems to be all about trying to force other people to follow rules about abortion and creationism without demonstrating true Christian values like tolerance, love, or charity. These are the people who proudly voted for a president who lied about WMD’s and a false connection between Iraq and 9/11 because he sometimes seems to be against abortion. Apparently it’s fine to kill 2500 plus American soldiers and countless Iraqi civilians in a senseless war but not OK to kill unborn fetuses. Go figure.

Here’s a little nugget from the Bible to use as a litmus test: “By their fruits ye shall know them.” Don’t listen to what George Bush and his cronies say about their Christian faith and values. Pay attention to the results of their actions. By this you will see the real unvarnished truth. The truth is that the Iraq war is an ill considered mess that has resulted in the needless deaths of thousands. The truth is that when our country needed strength most in the horrible aftermath of hurricane Katrina, the Bush administration failed us miserably. The truth is that torture of prisoners in Abu Graib was condoned by the Bush administration and Dick Cheney even now is trying to block legislation that would prevent further abuses. The truth is that rather than fighting terrorists, the Bush administration’s unilateral decision to go to war on false pretenses has created more hatred against the US that feeds terrorists zeal and has completely eroded our relations with most of the other countries in the world. I could go on and on about the environment, energy crisis, women’s rights, healthcare, etc. but the list is too long. So I am asking people who still support the Bush administration to please keep their eye on the bottom line. Who profits from the actions of the Bush administration, the rich and powerful or the American people? Pay attention to the fruits (rather rotten in this case) and you will know the truth.

Liberal: open-minded, giving freely and generously, favorable to progress or reform
4. of or pertaining to representational forms of government rather than aristocracies or monarchies

Conservative:
1.- disposed to preserve existing conditions, institutions, etc. or to restore traditional ones, and to limit change
2. – cautiously moderate, a conservative estimate

Belief vs Reason

I am continually amazed at how belief seems to abhor reason. Can we not have faith and be rational at the same time. God gave us brains as well as a heart, we ought to use them! Many people think our country was founded on Christian values. This is not true, although the constitution does give a date in the conventional manner of the time as “the year of our Lord, ..” This small mention of God hardly constitutes the basis for a faith-based document. Other people think the “moral values” that gave Bush the presidency are based on “biblical Christianity”. This completely ignores what is known to be historical fact, which is that the Bible was written by human beings and human beings chose to put certain books in the Bible and left others out for political reasons. This for me, does not lessen the power of some of the teachings of the Bible. Surely we may appreciate and learn from these books, while understanding that they are imperfect human understandings of God’s will, and that our understanding of these ancient words is necessarily flawed by the fact that the bible has been translated and re-translated numerous times and that all of the writers wrote in the context of the historical times in which they lived. This historical context means that we may not be able to understand what they were referring to and that we may not be able to solve modern problems that were not written about in biblical times.

“By their fruits ye shall know them.” This is from the bible. Perhaps those “Biblical Christians” who feel the need to take the bible literally may learn from those words. We are directed by the bible not to be taken in by false words, but to judge people by the results of their actions. Put your hands over your ears to block the words of Bush and his administration and look at the fruits. The fruits of the Iraq war are rotted and laying on the ground for all to see. This is what I see: I see an invasion of Iraq where we were told that Osama Bin Laden and terrorists were in Iraq. This was a lie. Now more than 2500 U.S. soldiers are dead and more than 15,000 are wounded. The Iraqi civilian casualties are in the tens of thousands. We have lost the good will of much of the rest of the world that our previous presidents, both republican and democratic, worked so hard to forge in the past.