What have we become?

The Pentagon has come out with new rules for trying the unfortunate (mostly innocent) people they have incarcerated (without charges) for the past five years at Gitmo. Now they claim they can use hearsay evidence, along with coerced evidence, and on that basis can even execute people. The last time I remember hearing about anything as horrible and absurd as this is when I was reading about the French Revolution and the lettres de cachet (I think that may be right but as it must have been over fifty years ago when I read it I really am not altogether certain). In any case, back then, if you didn't like someone you could write a letter about them and they could end up in jail, tortured, or put to death. I guess this is just part of the direction of our country under Bush/Cheney: illegally attacking a sovereign nation that was no threat to us, using illegal weapons, hiding prisoners from the Red Cross, killing innocent civilians (just collateral damage), renditions, torture, abandoning habeas corpus, profiteering, etc., etc., etc. Now, as we apparently have no real evidence against most of the detainees, we'll just be able to make it up and kill them anyway. My country, right or wrong?

Everything is going just hunky dory. Let's see, Methodist Ministers have come out opposing the Bush Presidential Library that is being planned for SMU (much of the faculty has also come aout against this). Methodists apparently believe that the Bush Library would be completely inappropriate for SMU (personally, I think it would be innappropriate even for our Bonners Ferry Middle School).

Alberto Gonzales has announced that the Constitution does not support habeas corpus. As he and Bush/Cheney have repeatedly violated that sacred document what does it matter if it does or not? Habeas Corpus has served us very well for at least 800 years and is the bedrock of our system of justice (I guess no one told Alberto about this).

Then there is the problem of trying to find a jury for the Libby trial. It seems they are having great difficulty finding jurors who think Cheney is honest (imagine that) or that the Bush/Cheney administration can be trusted (gee!). I guess they may have to call the trial off or more it to another nation somewhere (perhaps somewhere in darkest Africa where they have no news - nah, they wouldn't trust Cheney either).

According to a recent study more Americans do not believe in evolution than citizens of any other developed nation. I am really comforted to know that so many of my fellow citizens believe the earth is merely 6000 years old, that Noah built an ark and saved two of every creatures on earth (it was a truly big ark), that Jonah was swallowed by a whale, Moses (or someone or other) parted the Red Sea, dinosaurs and people existed contemporaneously (actually, we have high school students who don't believe dinosaurs even existed), and other such interesting biblical accounts (facts?).

All in all our Republic has bumbled along fairly well until now. The Bush/Cheney nightmare years may yet spell the end. They have certainly spelled the end of the neocons dreams of an American Empire. Fasten your seatbelts, it is all downhill from here (except maybe for the Rapture which may select out a small group of the biggest fools of all).