It appears that almost no Democrats even knew of the "Shadow" government setup by the Bush Administration to ensure continuity of government in case of catastrophic attack on Washington. evidently they thought only approved government officials and legislators would be necessary, and that approved list didn't include any ranking Democrats. It makes me wonder what value the Republicans, or their leadership place on Democracy and government "By the People" really is. It makes me miss the days when conseravtives where worried about freedom related issues, not questionable economic policies, sex, a how much money the corporations are giving them.
Happily, Congress (both parties) is now reviewing its own continuity plan, although some members ar reluctant to deal with a "ghoulish" subject. Hey, guys, wake up and smell the coffee. Not having this already in place is irresponsible and short-sighted. That's usually a good descriptor of politicians anyway.
Athough there has been some legitimate criticism of some WTC widows and widowers trying to gain excessive profits from the disaster (one widow was upset because the $1.4 million payout is reduced by whatever life insurace amounts of the slain individual, and her husband had $1.2 million in insurance, so she got only $200,000), this goes just a lot too far. Ted Rall evidently doesn;t get that somethings just aren't funny, or that there are better ways to make a point. He certainly doesn't care about the additional pain and suffering he cause.
Yes, he has a right to say what he thinks, but is also his duty, since he gets paid fo political cartoons, to actually have a point, before criticizing people. He certainly needs to take responsibiliy for his actions. This type of thing is why so many people think the 1st Amendment goes too far..because of irresponsible garbage like he put in the New York Times. At least the paper had the sense to remove the cartoon from the web, and is now reviewing all of Mr. Rall's submissions.
This just in: Air pollution can kill you. We aren't talking asthma, carbon monoxide poisoning, acid rain, Bhopal, or volcaic ash here, we're talking lung cancer, we're talking about years of pain and suffering. We're talking about the same effects as second hand smoke. Of course it won't change any. Not while we allow easy access to politicians for big companies, or unlimited spending on lobbyists, or back-door, closed seesions of Vice Presidents with the Energy Industry. Make no mistake, this is about money. It is cheaper to poison people than to clean up pollution or switch to clean technology, at least for those who run the Electric Utilities.
Some people, notably my favorite sci-fi author Jerry Pournelle, say that Western Coal burns cleaner that Eastern Coal an is a quick, easy way to reduce pollution until we can do things like cold fusion, Solar Power Satellite Systems, or hydrogen cars. That may be. I haven't looked at the evidence, but until utilities are required to cleanup the smoke in their stacks, nothing will happen, and as long as George W. "voluntary controls" Bush is President of the United States, we get the privilege of breathing dirt air.
Kind of makes you feel all warm inside doesn't it?
Kerry Fires Back At G.O.P. Snipers
by Joe Conason
We are living in a time when scoundrels seek to bully the loyal opposition and demonize all dissent for their own advancement. That’s why certain Republican politicians and pundits have assaulted Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and other Democrats in terms usually reserved for foreign and domestic enemies.
What has been even more troubling than this ugly campaign, however, is the passivity of those who are its targets.
Mr. Daschle and his colleagues have remained inert during recent weeks and months, while their adversaries compared him with Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and accused him of giving "aid and comfort" to the nation’s enemies. They have stood by in silence while authoritarian propaganda emanated from Republican fax machines and spread across the country. They’ve allowed the South Dakota Democrat, an Air Force veteran and bioterror target, to be taunted like a traitor by Rush Limbaugh, Dick Cheney, Karl Rove and other tough-talkers who avoided military service as if it were anthrax.
From the outset of the G.O.P. jihad against Mr. Daschle last autumn, it has been obvious that the motives of his critics are partisan and political rather than patriotic. Their aim is to regain control of the Senate next November, and they will use whatever divisive means are at their disposal. With no real provocation, Trent Lott, the former Senate Majority Leader, and Tom DeLay, the House Majority Whip, seized upon a few mild remarks uttered by Mr. Daschle about the Bush administration’s policy and rhetoric.
His comments were not only careful and inoffensive, as always, but—as recent events in Afghanistan have proved—quite prophetic. "I don’t think the success has been overstated," said Mr. Daschle, "but the continued success, I think, is still somewhat in doubt. Clearly, we’ve got to find Mohammad Omar, we’ve got to find Osama bin Laden, and we’ve got to find other key leaders of the Al Qaeda network, or we will have failed. We’re not safe until we have broken the back of Al Qaeda, and we haven’t done that yet."
The Republicans reacted as if mentioning the obvious is now worthy of punishment by a military tribunal. Mr. Lott, who missed the chance to serve in Vietnam, pretended to be outraged: "How dare Senator Daschle criticize President Bush while we are fighting our war on terrorism?" he cried, as if he hadn’t repeatedly criticized Bill Clinton when Americans were in harm’s way overseas. Mr. DeLay called the Daschle comments "disgusting." As for Mr. Daschle, he didn’t retreat, but neither did he fight back.
So it was refreshing to hear at last from a patriot who found his voice and addressed the Republican Congressional leadership in the tone that they deserve. The first Democrat to speak up was, unsurprisingly, a Senator who has been both a war hero and a war protester.
On March 2, John Kerry took the podium at a political dinner in New Hampshire to defend Mr. Daschle, a colleague who is likely to become his rival for their party’s Presidential nomination. What the Massachusetts Senator said about Messrs. Lott and DeLay—and, by implication, about all the would-be White House enforcers—deserved more attention than a single article in his hometown paper, The Boston Globe.
"Let me be clear tonight to Senator Lott and to Tom DeLay: One of the lessons that I learned in Vietnam—a war they did not have to endure—and one of the basic vows of commitment that I made to myself, was that if I ever reached a position of responsibility, I would never stop asking questions that make a democracy strong," he told the audience of New Hampshire Democrats, whose startled murmurs quickly erupted into a standing ovation.
"Those who try to stifle the vibrancy of our democracy and shield policies from scrutiny behind a false cloak of patriotism miss the real value of what our troops defend and how we best defend our troops," he continued. "We will ask questions, and we will defend our democracy."
A combat veteran who received three Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star and a Silver Star in two Navy tours—and who later founded Vietnam Veterans Against the War—Mr. Kerry has ample stature to challenge the character assassins and commissars of the far right. The day after the Concord dinner, he didn’t hesitate to reiterate his rebuke, adding the name of another Southern-fried chicken hawk.
"My message to Trent Lott and Tom Delay and Dick Armey—each of whom did not have to endure the war in Vietnam … the lesson I learned in that war is, the best way to defend American democracy and our soldiers is to ask the right questions at the right time."
Suddenly, it was the Republicans who had nothing to say.
You may reach Joe Conason via email at: jconason@observer.com.
This column ran on page 5 in the 3/11/2002 edition of The New York Observer.
COPYRIGHT © 2002 THE NEW YORK OBSERVER ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
The same guys that want to keep their dirty powerplants going also want the government to keep building $600,000,000 highway interchanges that are under capacity before completion, rather than invest in Amtrak or other rail initiatives. High speed rail, light rail, any kind of rail. Electric, steam, or mag-lev, it doesn't matter. If it takes money away from Big Oil, Detoit, or Construction, it won't happen. They just have too much money.
Of course, the new light rail lines in Denver arer packed, and Atlanta's Marta is a booming success. If it's avaiable, peopl will ride, but it has to go where they need to go, and be easy, efficient, and affordable. Bring back the trolleys, and let us spend our money on something we need (like retirement savings or college) instead of super highways, gas, and a new car every five years...
I learned something ineteresting this morning about the men who are pushing the "war" against terror and operations in Afghanistan and declaring dissent to be "unpatriotic". Very few of them seem to have deigned serve in the U.S. military. The data was collected at www.awolbush.com. Here's the info on Prominent Republicans (other than General Colin Powell, current Secretary of State).
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* Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert - avoided the draft, did not serve.
* Majority Leader Dick Armey- avoided the draft, did not serve.
* Majority Whip Tom Delay - avoided the draft, did not serve.
* Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott - avoided the draft, did not serve.
* President George W. Bush - served four years of a six-year Air National Guard commitment.
* VP Dick Cheney, former Secretary of Defense- several deferments (4), followed by a paternity deferment, did not serve "had other priorities than military service"
* Attorney Gen. John Ashcroft - deferment to teach Business at SW Missouri State
* Karl Rove - avoided the draft, did not serve
* Former Speaker Newt Gingrich - avoided the draft, did not serve (also a former military dependent -- like me)
* Former President Ronald Reagan - served in a noncombat role.
* Bob Dornan - avoided Korean War combat duty by enrolling in college acting classes
* Senator John McCain - Former POW during Vietnam. Honors include the Silver Star, Bronze Star, Legion of Merit, Purple Heart and Distinguished Flying Cross.
* Former Senator Bob Dole Second lieutenant in the Army's 10th Mountain Division. Two Purple Hearts for his injuries, and the Bronze Star Medal. While trying to assist a downed radio man, Dole was hit by Nazi machine gun fire in the upper right back and his right arm was so damaged that it was unrecognizable. Dole was immediately given morphine by an Army field medic to alleviate the pain, and his forehead was marked with an "M" in his own blood to alert medics. He was not expected to live.
* Chuck Hagel - two Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star, Vietnam
* Duke Cunningham - nominated for the Medal of Honor, received the Navy Cross, two Silver Stars, fifteen Air Medals, the Purple Heart.
Notice how the men most responsible for putting troops in the line of fire, did not serve. This doesn't mean they can't make sound decisions, but would think it would keep them from being able to claim any special expertise. SO how do leading Democrats stack up?
* House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt - Served his country in uniform, 1965-71
* House Minority Whip David Bonior - Served his country in uniform, 1968-72
* Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle - Served his country in uniform, 1969-72
* Former Vice President Al Gore - Served his country in uniform, 1969-71; recipient of Vietnam Service Medal
* Bob Kerrey Congressional Medal of Honor, Vietnam
* Daniel Inouye Congressional Medal of Honor, World War Two
* John Kerry Silver Star & Bronze Star, Vietnam
* Charles Range Bronze Star, Korea
* Max Cleland Silver Star & Bronze Star, Vietnam
* Howell Heflin Silver Star
* Rep. Leonard Boswell (D-IA) - two tours in Vietnam, two Distinguished Flying Crosses as a helicopter pilot, two Bronze Stars, and the Soldier's Medal.
* Ambassador "Pete" Peterson, Air Force Captain, POW, Democratic congressman, Ambassador to Viet Nam, and recipient of the Purple Heart, the Silver Star and the Legion of Merit
* Rep. Mike Thompson, D-CA: U.S. Army staff sergeantwith the 173rd Airborne Brigade, Purple Heart.
Even Hillary Clinton attempted to join the Marines, but was turned down (they told her that she "couldn't see, was too old, why don't you try the dogs (Army)"). So who is best qualified when it comes to military matters, and who best knows what war is about? Not the rich kids who used daddy's money to avoid service.
Evidently the police and prosecutors in NYC think that anyone that does not toe the prevailing line is disturbing the peace and should be arrested. They also seem to think that if your opinion causes a ruckus, you are at fault, not those that create a scene. I can't believe that we even have to have this discussion. I would have thought that McCarthyism would have taught us the lesson, or J. Edgar Hoover's goons. I guess we're either ignorant or stupid. It's called the First Amendment people. Get over it.
This goes double for the VP and his security detail who recently arrested someone for carrying a protest sign when he didn't move quickly enough to a randomly chosen spot far away from anybody who cared. If I can find the article about this again, I'll post it. The point is, that is we all just follow the leader, and accept the propaganda that passes for "News" on TV these days, we've already lost our freedom, and we shouldn't even pretend to be a democracy anymore.
Since Sept. 11, a lot of Arab and Muslim Americans have been scooped up by police agencies and held without charges, access to lawyers, or to family. Many of those in custody have no connections to terror groups, although many are acing minor immigration violations that should result in small fines and/or deportation after a fair hearing before a judge, with representation by an Attorney. It would appear that if you're a Muslim or Arab in the U.S., habeas corpus, doesn't apply.
It is imperative that the INS and DOJ produce these individuals, charge them or free them, and allow them access to legal counsel and their families. This is a big issue. Under the Constitution everyone within the borders of the United States and its possessions is guaranteed the same basic rights to a public trial, an attorney, juries, etc... nothing that the President does can change that. We must insist on this or we are no better than a banana republic with a nefarious dictator as President. This is about who we are.
Any claims that "this is war" and, therefore, different, need to be carefully examined.. Congress did not declare war, it approved the "use of force". Congress couldn't declare because there was no one to declare war on. The Taliban were not a government, and you can't declare war on a terrorist group. You can send soldiers and cops after them, but that doesn't make it a "war" according to even the Army's definition. Yes, almost three thousand people died at the WTC, and it is a horrible tragedy. It was not an attack by a foreign power, it was a criminal conspiracy. The sooner we come to terms with that, and reclaim our civil liberties, the better it is for everyone.
If you decide to buy a PC from Dell, make sure you or your business aren't on their "watch" list. It appears that they don't want business from undesirable elements, like gunmakers or companies with "foreign" names. As an example take this case : Dell refused to sell Jack Weigand, owner of Weigand Combat Firearms, a new laptop and didn't even bother to tell him about it until he called to find out where it was. Dell's reasoning: "We have to apply export restrictions to domestic sales". Excuse me? It's news to me. Dell also seemed to think that the "strange" name of the company meant it might have links to terrorism. Yeah, right. Some idiot just decided not to allow the sale to go through because it was to a gun maker. I'm pretty sure that sort of thing is discriminatory.
Since when is it against the rules to sell a PC to a domestic business? Mr. Weigand has a right to make and sell his custom handguns, even if some people don't like them, and Dell shouldn't tell him that he isn't someone they want to do business with, unless he does something immoral or illegal. Period.
Note that I am not taking sides in the gun control issue here, just complaining about a big corporation making arbitrary decisions that affect individual rights.