Global
AUSTIN, Texas -- As I.F. Stone used to say, "All governments lie," so that's no shockeroo. What's peculiar is the reaction in the media.
-- You may recall that when even the administration finally admitted Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction (with that adorable video of President Bush on his hands and knees searching under sofas in the Oval Office for the missing WMD -- oh, it was so amusing. Eight hundred American dead.), we were treated to the following rationales:
1) Didn't make any difference because Saddam Hussein was a really, really bad guy anyway.
He was, of course, and it was always the only decent rationale for getting rid of him. It was the argument made by Tony Blair but specifically rejected by the Bush administration. Paul Wolfowitz explained in Vanity Fair that human rights violations were not a sufficient consideration for invasion.
2) It was all Saddam's fault that we thought he had WMD. The wily coot fooled us by repeatedly denying that he had any, a fiendishly clever ploy.
-- You may recall that when even the administration finally admitted Saddam Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction (with that adorable video of President Bush on his hands and knees searching under sofas in the Oval Office for the missing WMD -- oh, it was so amusing. Eight hundred American dead.), we were treated to the following rationales:
1) Didn't make any difference because Saddam Hussein was a really, really bad guy anyway.
He was, of course, and it was always the only decent rationale for getting rid of him. It was the argument made by Tony Blair but specifically rejected by the Bush administration. Paul Wolfowitz explained in Vanity Fair that human rights violations were not a sufficient consideration for invasion.
2) It was all Saddam's fault that we thought he had WMD. The wily coot fooled us by repeatedly denying that he had any, a fiendishly clever ploy.
1.
Back in the day before the gray
I was Mr. Right
And it was my right of way
Met a guy in church kinda like John Birch
In that subtle way
That didn't have to say
Well it was all about the money in those days
We had our kids to raise
And we kept them cool in the back yard pool
Yeah it was so about the dough you know
Sometimes I had to tune out
Just to count
2.
Then came a time of drinks
Out on the links
With party brass
Said laws for the tax cuts we would get
(And bill it to the debt)
Had come to pass
So we told God bless the nation
And we toasted
To our fortune and our station
Yeah we told God bless the nation
And with righteous indignation
Hit the gas
3.
Then came that morning when
The paper read
Of thousands dead
Miles of city blocks
reduced to rocks
And so I checked my stocks
And there it was you know
In my portfolio
To my alarm
This company that paid to me so handsomely
That was a part of me
Built the bomb
4.
Back in the day before the gray
I was Mr. Right
And it was my right of way
Met a guy in church kinda like John Birch
In that subtle way
That didn't have to say
Well it was all about the money in those days
We had our kids to raise
And we kept them cool in the back yard pool
Yeah it was so about the dough you know
Sometimes I had to tune out
Just to count
2.
Then came a time of drinks
Out on the links
With party brass
Said laws for the tax cuts we would get
(And bill it to the debt)
Had come to pass
So we told God bless the nation
And we toasted
To our fortune and our station
Yeah we told God bless the nation
And with righteous indignation
Hit the gas
3.
Then came that morning when
The paper read
Of thousands dead
Miles of city blocks
reduced to rocks
And so I checked my stocks
And there it was you know
In my portfolio
To my alarm
This company that paid to me so handsomely
That was a part of me
Built the bomb
4.
SUPER SIZE ME, now playing at the Drexel East, is one of the very few films
that can be called a "Must-See" for all Americans. Whether you eat at
McDonald's or not.
It's rare a piece of reportage that can cut to the very heart---or stomach---of the American way of life. But Morgan Spurlock's solid, brilliant and cunning documentary is one for the ages.
Spurlock builds his case carefully. In great physical condition to start, he visits three physicians and a physical therapist to document his weight, cholesterol, heart functions and more. He starts out at six-feet-two, 185 pounds, with vital statistics that could easily get him sent to Iraq (which McDonald's would probably like to see at this point). .
Then he embarks on a solid month of eating at McDonald's. Starting with what must be the most graphic barf in US film history (you might do well to turn your head during this scene), we follow the downward spiral of Spurlock's body to the brink of fast food death.
It's rare a piece of reportage that can cut to the very heart---or stomach---of the American way of life. But Morgan Spurlock's solid, brilliant and cunning documentary is one for the ages.
Spurlock builds his case carefully. In great physical condition to start, he visits three physicians and a physical therapist to document his weight, cholesterol, heart functions and more. He starts out at six-feet-two, 185 pounds, with vital statistics that could easily get him sent to Iraq (which McDonald's would probably like to see at this point). .
Then he embarks on a solid month of eating at McDonald's. Starting with what must be the most graphic barf in US film history (you might do well to turn your head during this scene), we follow the downward spiral of Spurlock's body to the brink of fast food death.
I appreciated Your series about cannabis / hemp, especially, "Hemp - It's Growing!" (June 1, 2004). It is one reason I support Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich for the Democratic Presidential nominee. Kucinich put in writing on His website, if elected President He will decriminalize cannabis and regulate it similar to alcohol. It stands to reason, if citizens may have and grow cannabis with THC that farmers would be allowed to grow hemp with out THC.
My main concerns on the cannabis / hemp issue are Biblical, where We presently have a powerful nation, caging humans for using what God said was good on literally the very 1st page of the Bible. Cannabis / hemp, a plant, known as kaneh bosm, before the King James version, is good and should not be exterminated.
My main concerns on the cannabis / hemp issue are Biblical, where We presently have a powerful nation, caging humans for using what God said was good on literally the very 1st page of the Bible. Cannabis / hemp, a plant, known as kaneh bosm, before the King James version, is good and should not be exterminated.
While the major media screams about the latest beheading in the Middle East,
John Ashcroft's destruction of a man in the middle west -- likely for
political purposes -- has gone unnoticed.
The ghastly court appearance here in Columbus, Ohio, of Nuradin Abdi has underscored the high likelihood that the Bush Administration used variations of torture to break this impoverished Somali immigrant. And his dubious indictment may well have been used to overshadow a campaign visit here by John Kerry. No Republican has ever won the White House without carrying Ohio.
On Monday, June 14, the eve of Kerry's two-day visit here, Attorney-General Ashcroft dramatically seized national headlines by unsealing a month-old four-count indictment of Abdi, a Somali native living in Columbus. "The American heartland was targeted for death and destruction by an al-Qaeda cell allegedly which included a Somali immigrant who will now face justice," Ashcroft boasted.
The ghastly court appearance here in Columbus, Ohio, of Nuradin Abdi has underscored the high likelihood that the Bush Administration used variations of torture to break this impoverished Somali immigrant. And his dubious indictment may well have been used to overshadow a campaign visit here by John Kerry. No Republican has ever won the White House without carrying Ohio.
On Monday, June 14, the eve of Kerry's two-day visit here, Attorney-General Ashcroft dramatically seized national headlines by unsealing a month-old four-count indictment of Abdi, a Somali native living in Columbus. "The American heartland was targeted for death and destruction by an al-Qaeda cell allegedly which included a Somali immigrant who will now face justice," Ashcroft boasted.
The U.S. Senate will vote on the Federal Marriage Amendment on July 15.
Make a call on July 12, and send a letter before then! Equality and liberty depend on it!
For more information about marriage equality and to sign a petiion supporting the right of homosexuals to marry, visit www.hrc.org/millionformarriage/index.shtml
The "pro-family" (read: homophobic) American Family Association (AFA) is planning a national anti-gay marriage Senate call-in day on July 12. It's important that those of us who care about freedom and equality also make calls on that day in support of gay marriage.
The AFA has convienently tabulated a list of addresses and phone numbers of Senators who support or oppose the amendment www.protectmarriagerally.com/default.asp#sj30.
Make a call on July 12, and send a letter before then! Equality and liberty depend on it!
For more information about marriage equality and to sign a petiion supporting the right of homosexuals to marry, visit www.hrc.org/millionformarriage/index.shtml
Most of the mainstream media in the United States is participating
in a despicable display of blatant, state sanctioned propaganda. I am
insulted every time I turn on the television. The lies and sanctification
of the criminal Ronald Reagan is sickening. The constant repetition of
"The King is Dead, Long Live the King" is frightening in the extreme.
What has happened to our country?
His policies maintained a system of rich & poor, black & white. He assaulted affirmative action and social welfare programs while distributing crack cocaine into our inner cities to fund his illegal war on a democratically elected government in Nicaragua. This was one of the darkest, most evil episodes of American history. The involvement of Reagan and his criminal enterprise in the crack cocaine assault on our people is very well-documented although it is rigorously kept out of the media. The advent of the crack cocaine "epidemic" has damaged many children's lives. Tens of thousands, maybe even millions of young dreams & lives vanquished, futures destroyed. There aren't words to articulate the depth of Reagans depravity.
His policies maintained a system of rich & poor, black & white. He assaulted affirmative action and social welfare programs while distributing crack cocaine into our inner cities to fund his illegal war on a democratically elected government in Nicaragua. This was one of the darkest, most evil episodes of American history. The involvement of Reagan and his criminal enterprise in the crack cocaine assault on our people is very well-documented although it is rigorously kept out of the media. The advent of the crack cocaine "epidemic" has damaged many children's lives. Tens of thousands, maybe even millions of young dreams & lives vanquished, futures destroyed. There aren't words to articulate the depth of Reagans depravity.
George W. Bush's environmental record can be dummied down to one simple
word: devastating.
Not only has President Bush gutted numerous environmental laws--including the Clean Air and Water Acts--he has also set a new precedence by disregarding the world's top scientists and the Pentagon, as their concerns about the rate of Global Warming grow graver by the day.
As Mark Townsend and Paul Harris reported for the Observer in the UK in February of 2004, '[The Pentagon report] predicts that abrupt climate change could bring the planet to the edge of anarchy as countries develop a nuclear threat to defend and secure dwindling food, water and energy supplies. The threat to global stability vastly eclipses that of terrorism, say the few experts privy to its contents.'
Not only has President Bush gutted numerous environmental laws--including the Clean Air and Water Acts--he has also set a new precedence by disregarding the world's top scientists and the Pentagon, as their concerns about the rate of Global Warming grow graver by the day.
As Mark Townsend and Paul Harris reported for the Observer in the UK in February of 2004, '[The Pentagon report] predicts that abrupt climate change could bring the planet to the edge of anarchy as countries develop a nuclear threat to defend and secure dwindling food, water and energy supplies. The threat to global stability vastly eclipses that of terrorism, say the few experts privy to its contents.'
President Bush's continued insistence that Al Qaida
and Iraq were joined at the hip rings hollow in light
of the findings of the 9/11 commission. It also sounds
pathetic. But he will not apologize for his deliberate
misleading of America and the world into the war of
choice that Iraq was. But that is typical of the
dry-drunk he is...Don't take responsibility for
anything, deny everthing.
So, no matter how hard he wishes it were otherwise, wishing will not change the simple fact that there is no credible evidence linking Al Quaida and Saddam Hussein. He lied to start a war...And that is truly monstrous, Saddam Hussein's crimes not withstanding. He embarked on a war of choice based upon lies. And for that, he must be removed from office. He has violated the Constitution he has sworn to uphold...He has violated international treaties which the US is signatory to...He has violated US and international law in pursuit of a war of aggression. It's impeachment time.
So, no matter how hard he wishes it were otherwise, wishing will not change the simple fact that there is no credible evidence linking Al Quaida and Saddam Hussein. He lied to start a war...And that is truly monstrous, Saddam Hussein's crimes not withstanding. He embarked on a war of choice based upon lies. And for that, he must be removed from office. He has violated the Constitution he has sworn to uphold...He has violated international treaties which the US is signatory to...He has violated US and international law in pursuit of a war of aggression. It's impeachment time.
Political myth-making goes into overdrive every four years. With
presidential campaigns fixated mostly on media, an array of nonstop spin
takes its toll while illogic often takes hold: When heroes are absent,
they're invented. When convenient claims are untrue, they're defended.
Many supporters come to function as enablers -- staying silent or mimicking their candidate's contorted explanations to try to finesse the gaping contradiction. Fast talk substitutes for straight talk. A kind of "covering fire" across media battlefields makes it easier for the candidate to just keep on dissembling.
There are true believers, of course -- people who believe every word that comes out of their own mouths when, for instance, they stand at the podium of the Republican or Democratic convention. Whatever the extent of their sincerity, only superlatives will do as speakers unequivocally praise George W. Bush or John Kerry.
Many supporters come to function as enablers -- staying silent or mimicking their candidate's contorted explanations to try to finesse the gaping contradiction. Fast talk substitutes for straight talk. A kind of "covering fire" across media battlefields makes it easier for the candidate to just keep on dissembling.
There are true believers, of course -- people who believe every word that comes out of their own mouths when, for instance, they stand at the podium of the Republican or Democratic convention. Whatever the extent of their sincerity, only superlatives will do as speakers unequivocally praise George W. Bush or John Kerry.