Yosio - short story

I fear Alito is going to be confirmed. I hope I am wrong. Here is another short story to take your mind away from this travesty.

February 2:
I have been living here in the village for exactly one month and in my new house for one day. It's a fine little house with the floor and walls made of woven cane and a roof thatched with grass. It's going to be quite comfortable. There is a large kitchen area with a built in table, a nook for my desk and typewriter, a small bedroom and another nook for the bucket shower. Almost the entire population of the village is presently standing outside watching everything I do. So far everything has gone well and they seem very friendly. I remember Professor Read's last words before I left: "Remember, they really are savages you know."
Strange, but they don't seem like savages. In most respects they seem to me very much like people I know back home. It's true they're still in their traditional dress and mostly naked. And they don't bathe often. And they still carry their bows and arrows everywhere. The villages and the womens' houses are still inhabited by dogs and pigs as well as women and children and there are animal feces strewn everywhere. The water is filthy and you dare not drink it unless it is boiled. Of course they drink it. Even so, except for their teeth they seem remarkably healthy. A few of them even have nice teeth. I must get started on the language. In the meanwhile Pidgin English seems to work pretty well.
February 5:
Change has affected them in strange ways. They are no longer cannibals (although I think some further back in the "bush" may still be) and they are not constantly fighting as they were before pacification. The last male initiation was held four years ago. They are due for another but say they won't do it anymore (we'll see). Other than that they seem to still practice most or all of their traditional customs. They certainly do things that most Europeans would find repugnant. For example, this morning I saw a woman suckling a piglet just as though it were a child. Having the pigs in the houses is not so charming either. They have no toilets but just squat down out in the grass and assume the pigs will clean it up (which they do). Some of the children are literally covered with sores which I'm certain would go away if they were properly bathed. The children have constantly running noses. Even so, I think they are nice people: friendly, helpful, and certainly fascinating. One simply has to remain objective.
February 10:
I am really quite pleased with my house and the vantage point we have from this ridgetop. Sitting outside on my little patio last night I looked directly across at Mt. Michael. There were storms with great bolts of lightning striking all around the top of it. Much better than TV! During the day I look out across the valley floor. It is quite beautiful with the rolling grasslands dotted here and there with stands of casuarinas and bamboo. You know when you see the casuarinas there are people because they have to bring the seedlings from the river and plant them by hand. The river winds through the middle of the valley and on the far side the montains tower over everything. There are so many different shades of green and the sky is so incredibly blue the scene is almost artificial. It must have to do with the light and the air which is so unbelievably clear. No one could ask for better surroundings.
This new Council system has them confused. The newly elected Councilor thinks they need to meet every morning so he can tell them what to do. He doesn't really have the authority to do this, nor can I see any particular need for it. They all know exactly what they have to do - work in their gardens, build fences, look after pigs, etc. The only thing the Councilor needs to worry about is getting them to work on the road one day a week (and they are very resistant to this). Actually, it works to my advantage, as they all gather in front of my house every morning - a great opportunity to observe all kinds of things. It will be interesting to see if these meetings continue for very long or if the people will eventually rebel and stop coming (which I predict will happen).
Vississe was here this morning with his two-year-old daughter, Yosimi, holding her on his lap and being extremely nurturant and loving. She is a beautiful little girl with clear chocolate skin and unusually large brown eyes. She adores her father but is terrified of me. She runs to hide behind him whenever she sees me.
February 20:
Most everyone came to "line" this morning. The Councilor harangued them for a long time about cleaning up the village, fencing it, and keeping the pigs outside (the Patrol Officer instructed him to do this). They don't want to do it of course as their pigs are their most important valuables and naturally they don't want them left out in the grass where they will almost surely be stolen.
I watched Vississe and Yosimi for a time. He calls her Yosio and is extremly demonstrative with her, holding her and kissing her all over. When she cries he immediately picks her up and soothes her, whispering her name and cuddling her in his arms. When she is happy she has a smile that would easily melt ice.
Little boys, unlike the girls, run absolutely wild. No one seems to discipline them at all. This morning a group of them were chasing Katagupa's pig, throwing rocks at it, and trying to catch it. No one, including Katagupa, said a word. I was told yesterday that some of them had pulled all the tail feathers out of Bore's chickens. Yatama, who told me this, thought it was terribly funny. When I asked him what Bore did about it he said, "Nothing. What could he do?"
The meeting broke up earlier than usual this morning. Everyone is working to get their gardens fenced and planted before the rainy season. Men work together fencing and digging garden ditches, women tend to work alone or at least in smaller groups planting and weeding.
March 1:
No "line" this morning. Two of the men are killing and butchering pigs to present gifts of pork to their maternal kinsmen (I don't as yet know exactly what for). They hit the poor creatures on the head with hardwood clubs and seem to delight in making them squeal as much as possible. After taking out the intestines and the backbone they hang the carcass up on a post and singe off the hair with grass torches. They clean out their earth ovens and heat the stones until they are white hot. The pits are lined with grass and banana leaves and they put in sweet potatoes and yams, greens and corn or beans. The pig goes in last on top. The whole thing is then covered with grass and leaves and dirt with a couple of bamboo tubes inserted so they can pour in water to generate the steam. A great way to cook except they don't let it cook long enough. The pork is never completely done. Also, if you watch closely, the entire procedure is totally unsanitary because at the last minute they throw in grass and leaves left over from previous occasions, apparently oblivious to the fact that in the interim dogs and pigs (and perhaps small boys) have urinated and defecated on it. It must work in spite of this as they've been doing it for hundreds of years. It is a bit disconcerting, however, to have someone spit on the sweet potato they are offering you!
Vississe was present the entire time with Yosio. She no longer runs from me but still doesn't allow me to approach too close.
March l2:
As I predicted, people are beginning to skip the morning meetings. I can't blame them as they are totally unnecessary except to give the Councilor a chance to berate them for not cleaning up the village, working on the road, or whatever. Vississe and Yosimi still come pretty faithfully although Vississe's wife no longer comes. When I asked him about it he said she was busy in her garden and didn't have time (sensible!).
Yosio, like all the children here, is given to tantrums. This morning she had a beauty. Vississe tried to hold her but she just squirmed and yelled until he finally put her down and left her alone. She eventually stopped. They never punish their children. If they do something they don't like they simply distract them with something else. Both men and women are terribly fond of their children, the men even more so than the women it appears.
Yesterday, during the butchering, a pig's bladder was given to a boy who played with it just as you would play with a balloon. I also observed two boys playing with a sleeping pig. They played with its penis until it urinated at which point they laughed and one of them kicked it in the belly. Aside from a grunt the pig paid no attention. Boys will be boys. I can't help but like these people in spite of some of the strange things they do.
April l5:
Cultural relativism be damned! I had a terrible experience this morning and I am still disturbed by it. Iron (yes, that's his name) somehow caught a little songbird. He tied a string to its leg and went about playing with it for a long time, releasing it to fly and then jerking in back over and over again. He thought this was very funny. Then, when the bird was too exhausted to fly anymore he built a small fire, plucked the bird (ALIVE!), threw it on the fire for a short time and then proceeded to eat it (WHOLE!). All of this right here in front of me. I couldn't help but be absolutely horrified. Of course I feigned indifference and managed not to say anything but I confess it truly upset me. I thought for a moment I might actually be ill. I have no doubt the children do this often. I've just never seen it before. Aaagh!
Early this morning when I was walking through the village Yosio actually came up and held on to my leg. When I tried to pick her up she started to cry. But I am making progress.
May 2:
Success! Yosio allowed me to pick her up and hold her. She has to be about two and a half but she is so small it is hard to believe. Although I do see her with her mother from time to time she is obviously her father's pet.
These people do have a sense of humor. Today, for example, while we were at the funeral (for the fifth straight day!) two little boys about four were playing with their miniature bows and arrows. There was a large pig nearby. One of the men suggested to the boys that they shoot the pig, which they tried to do. Even though they were only five feet from the animal their tiny arrows either missed or hit the pig and fell harmlessly to the ground. When they both had exhausted their arrows one little boy, obviously frustrated, walked up and hit the pig over the head with his bow. The whole gathering exploded with laughter (in spite of the funeral). Actually the funerals are terribly boring. You just sit there day after day waiting for various kinsmen to arrive to claim their gifts of pork. On these occasions a small ceremony is performed (to placate the ghost) and then you wait again. Fieldwork is mostly like this.
June 3rd:
Yosio comes to me regularly now whenever she sees me, holding out her little arms to be picked up. It's easy to see why Vissise is so captivated by her. I confess I am too. She is so tiny and has the most remarkable smile. Vissise or her mother must bathe her regularly because she is always cleaner than most of the other children. She wanders around from person to person in her little string apron acting very important indeed. They all pick her up and hug her and give her little morsels of food. She is only just now being weaned and is not too happy about it.
Another repulsive custom. I know I shouldn't be saying this what with my vaunted scientific objectivity and all. But really! When they are feasting the women are given the intestines which they wash in the stream and "clean" before cooking. When they come out of the earth oven (underdone as always) an older woman will sometimes carry a length of them to the assembled men (men and women always sit apart). She also carries a sharp bamboo knife. As she approaches each man in turn he is required to bite at the length of intestine and she then slices off a bit so he can eat it. Unfortunately this custom is extended to visitors. And, in a culture where people who eat together are friends and those who don't are enemies it is difficult to decline. I don't know why they do this on some occasions and not others. Sometimes I genuinely hate fieldwork!
August 6:
Most of the people, including the children, have very bad teeth. Lots of cavities. Naturally they don't brush. This morning I observed Kagiya digging with a splinter into a cavity in his son's mouth. He kept at it for quite some time and the boy, obviously in pain, fought back his tears. They are a stoical bunch. Just like last week when Opat split Bulo's head with his axe (a most unusual event that has everyone terribly upset) and cut him badly behind his ear. He displayed no sign of pain whatever even when I cleaned and bandaged it (the bandage, of course, disappeared a half hour later!). They are really quite amazing. In spite of all the things they do that I personally find revolting I still find them likeable. Most of them anyway. And I still believe that underneath this cultural veneer they are basically the same as all other people. I suppose it's true that in some sense they "really are savages," but in many other ways they are really fine people. In the months I have been here nothing has been stolen from me even though my house cannot be locked. They provide me with a constant supply of fruits and vegetables at a very nominal cost. Although it is impossible to make appointments to see them (they only show up when they feel like it which may be a day or two later than you expected), when I do see them they answer my questions patiently no matter how foolish they must sometimes seem to them. They obviously care for their children and each other (but absolutely despise their enemies). There is no crime (within the clan itself). No one goes hungry. There are no orphans. They help each other (and me) faithfully and take good care of the elderly. They are good citizens albeit perhaps of a culture that could stand some improvements. I know I will miss them when I leave. I will certainly miss Yosio whom I have grown genuinely fond of.
September l:
An old woman wandered off into the grass outside the village and died there. The pigs had eaten part of her by the time the body was discovered. This woman was so old no one here knows where she came from. They don't know if she came as a bride or if she is really a clanswoman who returned from her deceased husband's clan. She was ashamed, I was told, because there was no one to kill pigs for her when she died. She tried to raise pigs herself but became too feeble to continue. She gave the pigs to Kagiya's wife. Finally she just wandered off alone to die. The Councilor wrapped her in a dirty piece of cloth and buried her where they found her. Interesting, because they did take care of her. Mumugefa brought her firewood, repaired her old house, and made sure she always had food even though he was not related to her as far as anyone knows. Someone always takes it upon themself to look after an old person or adopt an orphan. No one ever starves. Not bad for "savages."
October 29:
I totally blew it today! I am still so angry I can barely write this. God damn it! They truly are savages! At the moment I can't stand the sight of them. This morning when Vissise came with some bananas he was carrying Yosio. She had rolled into the fire while asleep and burned her foot. BADLY! The flesh is all burned black and the raw flesh is visible. You can even see the bones in a couple of her toes. It is so bad it was all I could do to keep from throwing up. And all this happened THREE DAYS AGO! When I asked that stupid bastard Vissise why he hadn't brought her to me he just shrugged. And he refuses to let me take her to the Aid Post even now. Not that I think much could be done at this point other than perhaps a bandage. In addition to all the damage you can see dirt in the wound. How can he be so goddamn stupid? She is obviously in pain and will certainly lose at least three of her toes. I can't believe it! I can't believe Vissise could possibly be so unconcerned. I completely lost my temper and yelled at him. I told him at the top of my voice he was a dirty savage, a "kanaka tru," among other things. But he seems to think nothing of it. Just sits there as if nothing happened. Doesn't even change the expression on his face. It's true that it happens fairly frequently here but its not usually this bad. Goddamn it! You'd think they would be more concerned about it. I know they love their children. I just don't understand these people. I don't think I ever will. And Yosio just clings to Vissise and buries her little face in his shoulder and weeps.

Who to believe

Well, the Alito hearings began. According to Democrats, Alito is the worst thing to come down the pike in a long time. According to Republicans he's the greatest thing since the invention of fire. So who do you want to believe? Kennedy and others claim he is a supporter of an Imperial Presidency, as well as secretly wanting to undo Roe vs Wade. His Republican supporters insist he is an objective and well intentioned Judge who will carry out his duties honestly and fairly. As he has written probably more than 4000 opinions in his 15 years on the bench it is possible to find evidence for either view. As I have learned over the past ten years or so that I cannot believe anything Republicans say I have to go with the Democrats on this one. I think there is no doubt that Alito is a supremely conservative candidate and, as he is much touted and loved by the Falwells and others of that ilk, he has to be truly bad news. He has clearly been well rehearsed and well prepared for this endeavor. He comes across as serious-minded, pleasant, and honest. So beware! At the moment I believe he will probably be confirmed (although my instincts and information tell me he should not be).

Can anyone tell me how it is that the Senate can pass the McCain Amendment outlawing torture at precisely the same time they passed the Graham-Levin Amendment that not only takes away the basic right of habeas corpus but also for all intents and purposes makes the McCain Amendment useless? I confess that our Senators and Congresspersons work in mysterious ways. Of course they always work to support our nitwit President and the Corporations that feed him obscene amounts of money to insure he will continue always to act on their behalf. Corporations + Government = Fascism (ask Mussolini).

There is a website, www.ConvictBush/Cheney.org, that everyone should definitely check out. This is a serious business supported by very well respected people and organizations determined to expose Bush/Cheney's lies and war crimes and see to it they are either impeached or convicted or both. It couldn't happpen to a couple of nicer guys.

There is no law?

Apparently in a debate with Doug Cassel, John Yoo argued there is no law that would prevent the President from torturing a child, even crushing his testicles, if he wished to do so during a time of war. This is of course part of Yoo's argument that as Commander-in-Chief there is nothing the President can't do during wartime. Ignore for the moment that we are not truly at "war," as only Congress can declare war, and consider what the implications of this really are. In our claimed democracy there is supposed to be built in a system of checks and balances. But if the President can set aside any law he wishes, at any time, and for any purpose, what is the point of checks and balances? I'm sorry, but Professor Yoo (how in the hell he ever got a professorship at Berkeley of all places is a mystery to me), is just plain and simply wrong. There is nothing in the Constitution or in American law that says the President could have dictatorial powers in any circumstance. Indeed, this has already been determined by the Supreme Court when Sandra Day O'Conner, writing for the court, said a state of war would not give license to such powers to the President. And, if in our system of checks and balances there is no control over the President, in other countries it must be the same or worse. Thus during wartime there simply is no law, period. This means there is no either local or international law whatsoever. Furthermore, as the argument is that whatever the President does is the law, that also means there is no law. Law is a communal thing. It is something that groups of people have to agree upon. If it is created simply by one person it cannot be a "law." The argument that the President can do whatever he wishes and call it law is simply absurd. No President is above the law. This is not complicated, not difficult to understand. Bush/Cheney's attempt to establish a dictatorial theocracy will simply fail. Unless, of course, the Democrats and the public lets them get away with it. Remember what McCain said when they falsely accused him of fathering a black baby and suggested his mind might have been affected by torture: "politics is not bean bags." This business about Presidental power is definitely not bean bags and you had better be prepared to fight it until it is made clear to Bush/Cheney that they will be lucky to escape long jail terms.

We, the U.S., that is, has stepped up the bombing in Iraq. Today we dropped a bomb on six teenagers and killed them all. Earlier we bombed a house and killed an entire family, father, mother and children. That is bad enough, but what I want to know is why are we bombing them in the first place? What is the point of more or less random bombings? Don't they hate us enough already? I guess the idea is to make it clear we will go ahead with our massive consulate and four permanent bases no matter what they think about it.

Local scene: The local Democrats will have a party and fund raiser on friday, January 20th, at 6:30 in the evening, at the Fairgrounds. Tickets are $10 and will be available at the door as well as from your local representative. Volunteers are needed for setting up and cleaning up. Contact either Linda Langness (267 5680) or Fred at Bear Mechanical (267 5763).

Shape up or...

Can you believe it? Four Democratic Senators visited Iraq and apparently told them, "either shape up or America will be leaving." At least that is the way it was reported in the news. I'm sure that is not precisely what they said, but apparently they did say that if Iraq doesn't form a broad based national government soon the Americans would probably pull out. This is a threat to Iraq? Nothing they would like more for us to get the hell out of their country. What arrogance! We illegally and immorally attacked their country, killed probably at least one hundred thousand of them, including women and children, totally disrupted their society and culture, are busily trying to steal their oil, establishing permanent bases there, and so on, and our Senators have the gall to insist they should "shape up." Not only that, they had the effrontery to say that we (Americans) are about to "run out of patience." What the hell do they think the Iraqis are about to run out of, with no electricity, water, etc. I don't know about you, but I know what I would tell them if I were an Iraqi. America doubtless will pull out soon, but not because of the failure of the Iraqis to establish a viable administration. We'll get out because we have lost, have exhausted and virtually destroyed our military, and are going bankrupt while "staying the course." This was the most foolish, stupid, idiotic, unnecessary, illegal, immoral, unconstitutional "war" ever conceived. And those responsible for it are war criminals and should be treated as such.

Now we have he case of "Baby Noor." While I think it is wonderful that our soldiers found this little baby who needs medical attention desperately, and arranged for her to be flown to the U.S. for free usually very expensive medical attention, and will thus give her at least a chance to live (she will probably never walk), does no one see the rampant hypocrisy involved? We have killed probably at least one hundred thousand of her countrymen, and at the moment have stepped up our bombing campaign fivefold to kill even more, but we are so compassionate we are trying to help this one little baby? Surely the world is mad.

Howard Dean apparently took Wolf Blitzer to task over the Abramhof scandal. Blitzer, another news toady for the Republicans, tried to insist that this was not a Republican scandal, but that Democrats had been on the take as well. Dean, however, pointed out the truth. Abramhof gave nothing to Democrats. Nothing. A few Democrats did get money from Indian tribes but this money was not linked to Abramhof, it was given directly by the tribes. Blitzer's (and others) attempts to try to lump these donations in with those of Abramhof is just another cheap attempt by the Republicans to obfuscate and deny their "culture of corruption."

Senator Feingold has reportedly said he would not rule out impeachment if it is found that Bush did indeed break the law with respect to the spying without warrants. If someone of his stature is now talking about possible impeachment, and if the Conyers group goes ahead with their investigation, you know we might be finally getting close to something. I like Feingold. And I don't care if he is a Jew. What I would care about is if he is an uncritical supporter of Israel who would do nothing to improve the lot of the Palestinians and would allow the Israelis to continue stealing Palestinian land and water. Until some American President is allowed to curb the Israelis there will never be peace in the Middle East.

Tomorrow the fireworks will begin over the Alito nomination. There is no way the Democrats should accede to this appointment. He may be a fine legal mind but he is obviously the candidate of the far right fundamentalists who believe they can dictate what they believe to all the rest of us. I think this is not going to be any fun.

The Lost One - brief book review

I have just finished the second of a number of books I received for Christmas. The Lost One, A Life of Peter Lorre by Stephen D. Youngkin (University Press of Kentucky). As biographies go this is fairly typical, being a chronological account of Lorre's life pretty much from birth to death. It is quite thorough and about as detailed as such works are, perhaps a bit more detailed than most. The author clearly spent a great deal of time and effort reviewing the professional career of Lorre and interviewing a great many people who knew and worked with him. As one might have surmised Peter Lorre was far more complicated than the image most of us have of him. He was not at all like the murderous stereotyped character he was forced to play by the media and the film industry. In addition to being an exceedingly accomplished if mostly unappreciated actor, he was also an intellectual, a practical joker, and a man blessed with a marvelous sense of humor. Addicted to morphine from a relatively early age he struggled with the problem all his life, and while it did not keep him from pursuing an unusually active and busy career it did at times force him into hospitals and sanitariums for "cures." Although he took eagerly to the Southern California lifestyle and Hollywood he was well aware of the shallowness and pretensioness of the industry. He worked for the money which he seemed unable to hang on to for long and, of course, died broke. I think what I came away with is the appreciation that he was a remarkably fine and talented human being who was much abused by the "business." Driven out of Germany and away from his friend and mentor, Bertolt Brecht, I'm sure he wished it had not been so. This is a fine biography and if you have any interest in such things I recommend it. Even the finest biographies regretfully can tell us only the high and low spots of someone's life, much like trying to comprehend a human body from a mere fingerprint. You must appreciate what you are given.

The small California coastal town of Arcada passed a resolution calling for the impeachment or resignations of Bush/Cheney. See, there really are some intelligent and responsible people. Too bad they seem to be so few. But things are, at last, looking up a bit. DeLay is finished as a leader and quite likely even as a Congressman. Cunningham apparently wore a "wire" which will no doubt help implicate others in this ongoing Republican scandal (don't buy into the claim that it was bipartisan, it was overwhelmingly Republican). And don't believe even for a moment that what Bush did was legal. Keep the pressure on until they all end up in jail where they rightfully belong.

Getting somewhere?

Are we at last perhaps actually beginning to "get somewhere?" Senators Warner, McCain and Graham have indicated they are not going to roll over for Bush's claim he does not have to follow the McCain amendment regarding torture. When Bush signed the amendment he also executed what is known as a "signing document." While this is not a legal document, it is an indication of how the President views this matter. And he views it as something he can completely disregard if he feels like it. This is another claim on absolute power by the President. So now there is a direct conflict between the Senate and the President over the extent of Presidential power (the President is going to eventually lose but no doubt after weeks if not months of controversy, effectively keeping any other important business from being considered). Does Bush really believe that McCain, having fought so hard for this amendment which passed something like 92 to 6 (or some such figure) is going to just stand by and let him claim he doesn't have to obey it? Now the battle is truly joined. Stay tuned for the fun.

Pat Robertson, the senile and idiotic "leader" of a least some so-called "Christians," is at it again. It is now reaching the point where one has to wonder if he is even sane. His latest foray into something that is not his business in the first place has to do with Sharon's massive stroke. According to Robertson this stroke was God's punishment for Sharon trying to divide up "God's land." That is, withdrawing from the Gaza strip. God, according to Robertson doesn't like it when someone tries to divide up his land. I guess this has nothing to do with the fact that Robertson and his cronies want Israel to sell them (or perhaps give them) 35 acres or so where they can establish "Jesusland." This is going to be a theme park featuring, I guess, walking on water, feeding hundreds on a loaf of bread, perhaps parting the waters, and such things. No doubt it will be a non-profit enterprise devoted entirely to the worship of Jesus. Would someone tell me how these people keep escaping insane asylums?

Alito comes up next week for confirmation for the Supreme Court. From what is now known about Alito it would seem that he is singularly inappropriate for such a position. Not only is he on record as being opposed to abortion, he is also on record as favoring an Imperial Presidency (just what we need at the very moment that Presidential powers are an exceedingly contentious issue). So far there is no indication that he will not be confirmed although there is some very remote possibility the Democrats may filibuster. But why is he being allowed to come up at all at the moment, given the current problems with the Bush/Cheney administration? Surely we ought to be able to wait until we know whether Bush/Cheney are going to survive the next year or two. If Democrats allow this appointment they clearly have a death wish.

One interesting and unprecedented development has come up. The Human Rights Watch has written to Bush suggesting that our massive (and heretofore never challenged)support for Israel should be cut back in the amount they are spending on their illegal wall and expanding their equally illegal west bank settlements. It is clear the wall is not merely for security but is more importantly a blatant land grab that is and will create terrible hardships for Palestinians. Sharon, of course, has gone ahead with this even though he has been told not to by the U.S. and the U.N. (when has Israel ever paid any attention to anyone that attempted to be fair and balanced with respect to the Israeli/Palestinian problem?). Nothing will come of this, of course, but it is interesting that as far as I know it marks the first time anyone has actually suggested that monies should be withdrawn because of Israeli violations.

Fasten your seat belts! It's going to be an interesting and exciting year. Come on Fitzgerald, join the fun. The sooner the better.

The rats are leaving

Geez, you go away for a couple of days and all hell breaks loose. With Abramhof and Scanlon agreeing to cooperate and perhaps implicate as many as 60 others, and Senators and Congressmen falling all over themselves to return tainted Abramhof money, it is obvious that the rats are deserting the sinking ship of state. It is not clear exactly how far this will go but those in the know think it will be the worst scandal in decades. It is pretty clear that DeLay is finished. Hallelujah! There will no doubt be others as well.

Bush held a meeting to which he invited all the ex Secretaries of State, Defense, and so on. He claims he wants their input on the situation in Iraq. Too bad he didn't think of this before he recklessly and immorally ordered the attack on a helpless nation that was not a threat whatsoever. Bush is the worst war criminal since Hitler. He says he heard things he liked and things he didn't like. He's trying to demonstrate now that he doesn't really live in a bubble. Sorry Georgie, too late.

It's not enough that he ordered spying on Americans without warrants, and insists he will go on doing so, he now says he doesn't have to live up to the McCain amendment on torture. If he wants to torture he will. Can no one get through to him enough so that he can understand that he has delusions of dictatorial grandeur? He is either completely uninformed about what he is doing or he is crazy as a loon. It is plain and simply not the case that being at "war" (which we aren't) allows him dictatorial powers. If he has his sycophants that want to tell him otherwise, like Yoo and Gonzales or whomever, well and good, but it just ain't so. Of course if no one is willing to do anything about it perhaps he will get away with it (and most of us will have to ask for political asylum elsewhere).

Now he has also decided that he doesn't need Congressional approval for his appointments. He has just made 17 "recess" appointments which allows him to bypass any oversight. And he has predictably appointed political cronies to positions for which they are mostly unqualified. Julie Myers is perhaps the most blatant of these crony appointments but they are all bad. This must be the most incestous administration ever.

In spite of the fact that today there were more than 130 killed in Iraq, including at least 5 more American troops, Bush continues to insist that things are going well and we are making "progress." Rumsfeld, the senile old goat who goes on pretending to be Secretary of Defense, also insists that things are going well, the troops really like what they are doing, the Iraqis are "coming around," and so on and on.

And finally, in a few days, the Alito confirmation will come up. Personally, I cannot understand why they allow this to go forward at this time, pending the possible impeachment or resignation of Bush/Cheney. Furthermore, as it now appears that Alito is somewhere to the right of Genghis Khan, and seems to believe in a dictatorial presidency, to say nothing about opposing abortion and being overly favorable to corporations, it would seem this will be a very divisive confirmation (which I don't think Bush/Cheney really need at the moment). But what do they care? It promises to be an interesting year. Don't expect even one single positive thing to come out of our government for the next three years (unless Bush/Cheney can be prevailed upon to resign). As long as the Republican Party continues to support and defend them, they are equally criminal. And don't expect anything out of the cowardly Democratic "leadership," other than more silence and inactivity. I'm sorry to have to say it, but we need nothing short of a cultural revolution.

Something strange...

Morialekafa will not appear tomorrow. If all goes well he'll be back on Wednesday.

Something very strange is going on in our country. Bush/Cheney are claiming dictatorial powers and virtually no one is seriously challenging them. Of course there is Conyers and maybe a very few others, but for the most part the Democrats are silent. What, for example, happened to Dennis Kucinich? He was an outspoken critic of the "war" and in the past minced no words. Is he now so happily married he just doesn't care anymore? Or has Bush/Cheney's secret spying found out something that forces his silence? What about Barney Frank? He used to be very outspoken but what have we heard from him lately? Or is it the case that they do speak but the MSM simply refuses to cover them? Then there are the Clintons. But they have obviously joined the Bush/Cheney group (they know where the real power lies). One scenario, not at all far-fetched, is a Hilary vs McCain contest in which the Republicans (corporations) will win whomever is elected. Then there is Kerry who seems to be totally unaware of reality and goes on pretending that he participates in some form of democracy. There is Biden who claims he doesn't know anything much about the DeLay scandal and wants to continue the "war." John Roberts? Is the MSM aware of him? Warner of Virginia? He doesn't say much of anything about the "war." One can only conclude that the Democrats, one way or another, have been castrated.

Republicans, like Arlen Spector, are making noises about questioning Bush's claim to absolute power. But will they really try to do anything about it? Doubtful in the extreme. Let's face it, the long planned fascist takeover of the U.S. is about to be realized. The major Democrats are apparently in on the scheme and the rest of us, the peasants, will have no choice. Minimum wage? Ha ha. Universal Health Care, hee, hee. Environmental protections? Don't make me laugh. Rebuilding Iraq and New Orleans? Can't afford it, it might take away some taxes from the obscenely wealthy. Unions? No way. Civil rights? Not in a time of endless "war." Afghanistan? Oh, yeah, I remember that place. Is it a country or what? We still have to get rid of that pesky Social Security. We'll continue to work on it behing the scenes, in secret, where our best work is done.

Today it was announced that there will be no funds included in the budget for rebuilding Iraq. Why should we have to rebuild Iraq anyway? Besides, we've already paid out billions to Halliburton and others to rebuild it. And yes, it's true that the military has banned soldiers' blogs. We don't want anyone to see all those unpleasant things. Is this a great country or what?

On INN World Report today there was an absolutely marvelous discussion by Professor Mark Crispin Miller about how the Republicans blatantly stole the 2004 election. His book on this subject will be coming out (fairly soon, I hope) and leaves no doubt about what happened: pre-election, election, and post-election. I wonder if anyone will be interested. The 2004 election was a long time ago and Lost will be starting again soon. Oh, well.

A fresh start

Thank heavens the holidays are over. Perhaps something important may happen this year. I would like to begin the year going back to some basics:

"It is with the help of the commodity concept that the mechanism of the market is geared to the various elements of industrial life. Commodities are here empirically defined as objects produced for sale on the market...
"The crucial point is this: labor, land, and money are essential elements of industry; they also must be organized in markets...But labor, land, and money are obviously not commodities; the postulate that anything that is bought and sold must have been produced for sale is emphatically untrue in regard to them...Labor is only another name for a human activity which goes with life itself, which in its turn is not produced for sale but for entirely different reasons, nor can that activity be detached from the rest of life, be stored or mobilized; land is only another name for nature which is not produced by man; actual money, finally, is merely a token of purchasing power which, as a rule, is not produced at all, but comes into being through the mechanism of banking or state finance. None of them is produced for sale. The commodity description of labor, land, and money is entirely fictitious."
Karl Polanyi, The Great Transformation

Thus the operation of a "free market system" over time, subject to no rules or restraints, would eventually self destruct, because inevitably the labor (people) and the land (environment) would be slowly destroyed and money would become irrelevant. A few enlightened countries, such as Norway and Sweden, for example, understand this and regulate the market so as to protect both their people and the environment. But in other countries, such as the U.S., for example, those in charge of regulating the market, being interested only in power and profit, regulate to insure only these interests and the people and environment suffer. Is this not exactly what has been happening over time in the U.S.? Here they even want to commodify (privatize) our water and air!

Eventually, in a system like this, when conditions begin to be unbearable for the people and their environment, they revolt and demand controls on the market that will benefit them rather than the corporations. Is this not precisely what has been happening in Venezuela, Bolivia, and other South American countries? Is it not what happened in the 1920's and 30's in the United States? It is not happening here in the U.S. yet again, but it inevitably will if the existing conditions being dictated by the wealthy and the corporations do not change. And, of course, they are exceedingly resistant to change and will do anything to stop change from happening. Hence the secrecy, the lies, the spying, the violations of civil liberties, the nonsensical main stream "news," the deliberate "dumbing down" of the electorate, the utter stupidity of TV programming, and so on.

The American Democracy we have been so proud of in the past is under attack by the current Bush/Cheney administration. Now they are claiming dictatorial powers that are not supported by our Constitution or our laws. They must not be allowed to get away with it. Let us make sure that we do indeed have a Happy New Year and not a repeat of last year.

Happy New Year to all

Motherdear: You must be joking. But thank you just the same. Good to hear from you.

I must say that the end of 2005 has left me more or less speechless. What more can one say about the runaway criminality of the Bush/Cheney administration, the rampant corruption in our current political system, the unspeakable horrors of Bush's totally unnecessary and immoral "war" in Iraq, the suffering of the victims of Katrina apparently now more or less abandoned by the administration, the secrecy and constant stonewalling and lies of Bush/Cheney and their cronies, the very near fascist takeover of the United States, and the shame of the current administration in the eyes of the entire world? Justin Raimondo has said that 2006 will be a year of revelations. I hope so. But I sincerely hope we can go a lot further than mere revelations. How about some real jail time? Some justice?

When I was a boy my father (may he rest in peace) never received anything for Christmas other than Lucky Strike cigarettes and neckties. Now that I am old and no longer either smoke or wear neckties all I receive are socks and books. One of the books I received (that I asked for) which I have now read is a biography of Stepin Fetchit (Lincoln Perry) by Mel Watkins. Most of you probably don't even remember Stepin Fetchit. I only remember him as a minor character actor who portrayed "the laziest man in the world." He was, of course, a shiftless, lazy "darky" who bumbled and created a notorious black stereotype. He was also, I learned, an accomplished dancer. As his career began in silent pictures and then continued on for a time with "talkies" I confess I did not see much of them or him. I was not aware, for example, that he was in fact a genuine "star" right up there with W.C.Fields and Charlie Chaplin. He was for a time the highest paid black performer in the U.S. (no doubt the world), had a huge following, owned a fleet of expensive cars, thousand dollar suits, and promoted himself shamelessly. He was a good friend of Jack Johnson and later of Muhammed Ali. Of course as the civil rights movement began to develop and naturally took an extremely dim view of his characterization of blacks his star faded. He kind of faded away and died broke. Watkins, who did not have a lot of information to work from, has done a very credible job. If you have any interest in the early years of Hollywood, and especially of the treatment of black entertainers at that time, I think you would enjoy this book.

Let us all look forward to a much better year. So Happy New Year to everyone. Be of good cheer and hope for the best.

What?

According to a Harris poll reported in the Wall Street Journal, 22% of Americas still believe that Sadam Hussein helped plan 9/11. Twenty six percent still believe there were WMD's at the time we attacked Iraq. Twenty four percent believe that at least some of the hijackers were Iraqis. Actually, this is a great improvement from a few months ago when these percentages would have been much higher. But doesn't it make you wonder where these people have been all these months? They not only don't connect to the web, they apparently don't connect to anything anywhere. What I find even more disturbing, however, is the fact that some 40 to 41% of the public still supports Bush/Cheney. These supporters must be the hardcore "base" of the Republican party. Now, most of these people must know better. They must know what the charges against Bush/Cheney are, they must know there are increasing calls for impeachment, they must know that many of us believe Bush/Cheney have blatantly acted illegally, and so on. But still they support them. The only thing I can conclude from this dismal situation is that Republicans are proud of their war criminals and are willing to support them no matter what the facts. For them loyalty to country is irrelevant, loyalty to party, no matter what, is important. Such is the siren song of power and greed.

As I said previously, I hate this time of year. One of the things I hate the most is that virtually all television programs think they have to review the past year. Weren't the disasters of the past year bad enough the first time? Why do we have to relive them all? Who wants to wallow around further in the disaster of Katrina, the obscenity of Falluja, the sickness of Schiavo, the tsunami? It's not that I think these events were unimportant, it's because they were so terribly important that I don't need further reminders of how terrible they were. I remember them. And I won't forget them. And what about the things that are not reviewed, that have seemingly completely disappeared from our collective memories? What, for example, happened to Sibel Edmonds? Gannon/Guckert? Posada? All of the things that were simply stonewalled until they have been pretty much forgotten. This is one of the major strategies of the Bush/Cheney administration - just stonewall, stonewall, refuse to turn over anything, obfuscate, delay, lie, invoke national security, etc., etc. until everyone just gives up and forgets. Will this ever catch up with them? Apparently not if the Democrats have anything to do with it. They let them pull off this dishonest business time after time. Probably because they know they might be complicit in it.

Is it not interesting that Chalabi who received less than one percent of the vote in the recent Iraqi elections has been put in charge of the Iraqi oil fields? I guess the Iraqis must have done that because they felt sorry for him?

Justin Raimondo thinks that 2006 is going to be the year of revelations, because, of course, there are finally going to be trials where evidence will be presented and the full extent of Republican criminality will be exposed. I sincerely hope he is right but I'm not going to believe it until I see it. Just remember, Republicans control virtually everything. I wouldn't be surprised to see them run Ken Lay for president (after he wins his "Dumb CEO" defense). After all, he couldn't possibly be any dumber than what we have now.

"Capitalism turns men into economic cannibals, and having done so, mistakes economic cannibalism for human nature."
Edward Hyam

Happy Christmas/Holidays/New Year - Bah, Humbug

I truly dislike this time of year. No, I'm not a Scrooge or a humbug or a cheap guy who just doesn't want to spend money. It's just that nothing happens for a period of two to three weeks. In the University context the whole system might as well just shut down completely from about 10 December until January 5th. There is nothing but shopping, parties, absences, parties, shopping, more shopping, and so on. It is not quite so bad in ordinary society but it is certainly bad enough. I don't care if they call it Christmas, Holidays, Hannukah, or whatever, it is still the same dreary period of inactivity (other than shopping). And the music! How many times are we supposed to listen to the same Christmas Carols over and over again. And the modern Christmas music is so insipid it offers no relief whatsoever (Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, I saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus, even Jingle Bells pales after the ten thousanth repetition). I like Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. But that's enough. I'm willing to take the first day of the year off but that is absolutely enough. More importantly, even though there are monumental political problems that desperately need attention, these are simply ignored while everyone indulges themselves in this holiday madness. I don't care if Mommy is Kissing Santa Claus or the night is silent or holy, I want to know what is happening in Iraq and Korea and Taiwan and Bolivia and Venezuela and Africa and even the Arctic Circle. Nature doesn't stop for the holidays, does it? The world, politically and physically is busily coming apart and we are concerned with killing trees and slopping down mulled wines and egg nog (ugh). So I do say, passionately, Bah, Humbug.

If you watched Democracy Now today you will have heard all about the sweetheart deals the big Corporations have been working out with the Federal Government. If this doesn't make you sick there is something wrong with you. And, of course, this is our biggest problem at this moment in our history - we are being controlled by and subservient to a relatively small number of huge Corporations that effectively control not only the U.S. but the world. They don't even pay any taxes to speak of! It takes us right back to the days of the railroad and mining and timber "Robber Barons." People had to take to the streets and demand justice. This may happen again, especially if the present administration doesn't finally get defeated. But with Democrats and Republicans both in the same conspiracy to maintain the present status quo the future looks bleak. If it's true that you get the government you deserve we're in big trouble. When do we get to see the next episode of Lost?

Does anyone even care anymore?

Bush/Cheney, having been caught red-handed breaking the law and violating the Constitution, and having no reasonable excuse other than a blatant power grab, have had to lay down the gauntlet. In the simplest terms possible, they are claiming that the President has unlimited, unchecked, dictatorial powers during wartime. He is above the laws and, indeed, according to them, he IS the law. This would seem to ignore the obvious fact that we are not truly at "war." Congress never declared war on Iraq. In fact, the "war" on Iraq is no more legitimate than the "war on poverty," or the "war on drugs." He has for an argument the fact that his legal advisors, Gonzales, and Yoo, have told him so. But as both of them are obvious toadies willing to tell him anything he wants to hear this will probably not wash when it comes right down to it. I am no lawyer, and not even a student of the Constitution, but I know there is nowhere in American law or the Constitution anything that gives the President dictatorial powers anytime at all, including at times of war (which we are not in at the moment in any case). This is a claim that is absurd on the face of it.

There is no doubt whatsoever in my mind that this is true. The crucial question, however, has to do with whether anyone cares enough anymore to do anything about it. It doesn't seem to me that much is likely to happen. Democrats may complain (but who listens to them anymore), a few Republicans may pretend not to like it (but probably won't do anything about it), and the American Public will simply go back to Lost (a good description of where most of them are - lost in a sea of television nonsense and credit card debt). I hope I am wrong about this as it is a matter of absolutely monumental significance to the American political system.

There is a piece on Buzzflash today discussing a program where Russert is interviewing Brokaw and Koppel. I must say they come across about as intelligent as your normal fourth grader. Among other things they claim that Clinton would have gone to "war" just as Bush did if he had been President at 9/11. Does anyone believe that Clinton would have attacked and invaded Iraq because the problem was Osama bin Laden? I find the claim so ridiculous as to not be worthy of comment. Clinton may have had his problems, and he may have done things he should not have, and he may have even been overly militaristic, but he was/is not stupid like our present so-called Commander-in-Chief who might have qualified as a dogcatcher somewhere in Texas. I swear most of our "hot-shot" television anchors and reporters are nothing but yes-persons who are willing to just parrot back anything they are told by this criminal administration. They are just as responsible for this obscene, disgusting, illegal, immoral, unnecessary "war" as Bush/Cheney/Rice/Rumsfeld and the rest of the neocons.

Will justice be done in 2006? Don't count on it but do pray for it.

Worse by the day

Watch 'n Wait: I was wrong. The Seattle underground was not the result of an earthquake. It was basically the result of a fire. In 1889 a huge fire destroyed most of Seattle. They wanted to rebuild. But Pioneer Square was an area where there was a small island and water (a kind of wetland, I guess). So they decided to build 8 or more feet higher on fill. But they were so impatient they decided to build first and fill second. So most of the buildings sunk their first floor into the ground which created the underground.

Portland was different. They apparently had buildings whose basements were connected by tunnels. These were used by white slavers and others who shanghaied sailors. I guess they must have been built deliberately for these purposes.

New York underground is a result of more normal features, like the subway system, the sewers, wiring, and etc. I don't really know much about any of this but all you need to do is google Seattle underground, Portland underground, New York underground and etc. There is a ton of information on New York underground.

In the Seattle Post Intelligencer there was an article by Stewart M. Powell that suggests why Bush went the route of warrantless spying. In 2003 and 2004 the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court refused on 173 occasions to give Bush the warrants he requested. This was far more rejections than those of the previous three or four Presidents combined. Obviously the rejections were because Bush could not demonstrate "probable cause." In other words, the Secret Court simply refused to rubber stamp his requests so he simply went ahead without their approval. He clearly broke the law big time. I'm not so sure the Republicans will be able to just sit this one out. But I don't know, they seem to be proud enough of their war criminals to keep on supporting them. Unless something very strange happens I think this will be the end of the Republican Party for years to come. At least the very conservative Barrons has apparently figured this out.

John McCain, who I am beginning to believe might be somewhat demented, has suggested that when it comes to Intelligent Design v.s. Evolution "the students should be allowed to decide." Actually, I don't think he is demented. I think he wants the nomination so bad he is willing to do and say anything. Would you want a president who has been filmed actually hugging Bush? Personally, I hope the Republicans will nominate Santorum.

Somewhere I saw a report that bombings in Iraq have increased fivefold in recent weeks. Can anyone explain to me why continuing to bomb Iraqis, especially innocent civilians, at this point in time, is in any way either justified or productive? What is the point? What might be gained by this apparent insanity? Are they bombing Iraq in order to save it (from the horrible Iranians)? I'm sorry to be so dense, but I just don't get it. The "war" is over. The Iranians won. Our Army has been pretty much decimated, our "advanced" weapons of "shock and awe" pretty much useless. We are going to have to withdraw with the neocons "pipe" dreams of empire down the tube. Why do we have to be such poor losers? The enormity of their crimes is such that I doubt the damage Bush/Cheney and the neocons have done can be overcome even in a century.

The Gathering Storm?

Watch 'n Wait: Good question indeed. I don't know the answer but I think in the Seattle case it may have to do with earthquakes. I'm going to look into it.

I always loved this Churchill title. I think (and hope) it may be applicable to the present circumstances. I cannot imagine that after the first of the year there will not be massive "explosions" of one kind and another.

We already know and anticipate some form of action with respect to DeLay, Abramhof, Frist, Rove, Libby, perhaps Cheney, and who know what all else. Republicans may try to downplay Bush's illegal wiretaps but I don't think they will escape this time. And there is always the Iraqi situation which will almost certainly dissolve into a civil war (if, indeed, it is not already that). The Iraqis will want us to leave but Bush/Cheney will not want to give up all that control of oil and the Middle East - should be truly interesting.

Now we have Governor Bill Richardson claiming that his phone may have been tapped while he was discussing things with the Koreans (in the U.S., not on international phone lines) and the conversations turned over to Bolton. Now that's interesting!

We also now have Representative John Lewis saying that he will support impeachment proceedings if they arise. And there is more and more mention of impeachment these days, even in the MSM. I don't think impeachment in this case is possible or even practical. However, it could lead to resignations. If Bush/Cheney had any sense of decency or interest in the welfare of the U.S. they would resign now. But of course they have no sense of decency and could care less about the U.S.

At the same time they claim to being outlawing torture (ha ha) they are also doing away with habeas corpus. This is truly vile. In fact probably the most horrible development in the history of the U.S. And of course it is really designed to protect the torurers not the tortured. I cannot believe that our Congresspersons and Senators will allow this. God help us if they do.

Powell has said there is nothing wrong with Bush's warrantless spying, but why didn't he get the warrants. Am I missing something? Isn't that what the controversy is all about? As far as I know no one is questioning his right to spy, provided he gets the warrants. But he didn't. Just couldn't be bothered with the paperwork. It strikes me that we have pushed insanity in government about as far as it can go. Look forward to a happy 2006 when some minimal form of justice might actually reappear.

And oh yes, there is the Alito matter. From what I have seen so far there is no way on earth he should be appointed to the Supreme Court. But that doesn't mean he won't be, such is the level of idiocy that exists in our current administration. And given that idiocy, plus all of the developing scandals, plus Alito, plus Iraq, plus the coming elections, can you imagine anything at all of a positive nature occurring in the months to come? Bush/Cheney should be forced to resign for the good of the country. NOW!

Happy Holidays

It appears to me that nothing much is going to happen until after the holidays (as usual). So Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. Morialekafa will return on Monday the 26th. Eat and drink and be of good cheer, and be prepared for god knows what next year.

Ghouls and Wimps

It seems clear to me that we need some new terms to describe what is going on in American politics at the moment. Republicans are no longer all conservatives but many are neoconservatives, and neoconservatives are not really conservatives but radicals. Democrats are no longer automatically liberals but now have many who are considered Republican-Lite. That is, they are not liberals at all. Liberal/Conservative, Democrat/Republican, just don't cut it anymore. So I suggest we call the two presumably opposed groups what they really seem to be: Ghouls and Wimps.

The Ghouls, at the moment in the majority and holding all the power, are in favor of cutting 40 or so billion dollars from the national debt. They want to do this by taking money from the poor and middle class by cutting programs that help them. For example, medicaid. Whereas at the moment if a family of three has an income of $17,000 per year and now pays $3 for an initial medical exam, the Ghouls think they should have to pay somewhere between $20 and $120. Similarly, students who depend upon loans to pay their way through college should now have to pay higher inerest rates on their loans. Never mind that for the first time in history American students are falling behind other countries with respect to their educations and abilitites. After all, who needs bright, creative, intelligent people anyway? We can always hire them from India, Pakistan, and Japan.

The Ghouls are not without compassion. They are very concerned that wealthy people, especially those with incomes only hovering around a million a year, are unduly suffering from their taxes. So the 40 billion in cuts is designed to balance the approximately 100 billion in tax cuts for the obscenely wealthy. Is this not truly compassionate? Is it not fiscal conservatism?

The Ghouls also are big on torture. When challenged on this by one of their own they did everything they could to insure they could continue to torture with impunity. Eventually they had to pretend that they wouldn't do it anymore but, of course, wink, wink, they know what is really going on.

Ghouls also believe it is perfectly allright to spy on innocent Americans as long as their Ghoul in charge says it is okay (because Ghouls do not have to obey the laws). They also think it is fine that they can imprison anyone they wish for no reason at all for the rest of their life with no recourse to any form of justice whatsoever. This is regarded as a perogative of the Ghoul in charge. Ghouls are also allowed to lie constantly about everything because - well, because they are Ghouls.

Wimps pretend to oppose most of the things Ghouls do. But they are very careful not to upset the Ghouls in any way. So if the Ghouls say we should go to "war" the Wimps say we need more troops (they don't want to appear wimpy). When the Ghouls want to rob the poor to fund the rich the Wimps usually go along (they don't want to appear to be obstructionist). When the Ghouls tell one outrageous lie after another the Wimps don't want to call attention to it (it might cause trouble). The Wimps know how corrupt and dishonest the Ghouls really are but don't dare say anything because they are complicit in much of the dishonesty and don't want to "rock the boat." It doesn't seem to matter how outrageous the behavior of the Ghouls, how illegal or unconstitutional, how disgusting, how criminal, or how obvious the crime, Wimps simply will not challenge it. Isn't that what Wimps are for?

Absurdities

Does anyone but me ever reflect on the absurdities of American culture and politics. Doesn't it strike you as absurd that in the election for President of 2000 one of the candidates was probably the most qualified candidate for the Presidency there ever was, whereas his opponent was a known loser, not at all qualified to become President, but who then actually became President. He wasn't really elected, of course, but, rather, appointed by a dishonest, illegal, and unconstitutional Supreme Court. This doesn't change the fact that this was absurd, to say the least.

How about going to "war" against Iraq because the towers were attacked by someone else? Iraq had nothing to do with it, was not even remotely involved, but was singled out for attack anyway. Is this not absurd?

The national debt is at an all time high. So what do Republicans do? They pass more tax breaks for the wealthiest people in the world. People who already have more money than they could ever use in probably hundreds of years. In order to finance this they actually take money from the poor. Is this not absurd?

Some forty million people in the U.S. have no health insurance. Does Congress worry about this? No, not at all. They worry about homosexuals marrying, women having rights, and flag burning. Is this not absurd?

The Bush/Cheney administration stays in power because of corporate power and the backing of religious fundamentalists. These two groups having nothing in common. Corporations could care less about homosexual marriages and abortion and the fundamentalists are too stupid to realize they are being conned. Is this not absurd?

The Bush/Cheney administration is about to implode. It has proven to be so corrupt and incompetent that many of the major players are in trouble: Rove, Libby, Abramhof, DeLay, Frist, etc., etc., etc. So what is the Republican "base" concerned about? Christmas, that's what. We should refuse to shop at any store that emphasizes "holidays" rather than Christmas. Is this not entirely absurd?

Bush, Rice, and others are insisting that we do not torture at the same time Bush/Cheney are trying to block an anti-torture amendment sponsored by McCain. Is this not absurd? They managed to compromise with McCain with an absurd pretense that they are not going to torture anymore.

Bush argues repeatedly that we must "stay the course" in Iraq. To do otherwise would dishonor those who have already died. So we must insist on further deaths to honor the already dead. Is this not totally absurd.

I could go on but I am being pressed by family to get off the web so they can conduct more important business. So Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, and whatever.

"...a goddam piece of paper"

Doug Thompson of Capital Hill Blue reports that during a meeting of Republicans discussing the Patriot Act Bush said, "I don't give a goddam, I'm the President and Commander-in-Chief. Do it my way...Stop throwing the Constitution in my face. It's just a goddamed piece of paper." This was apparently confirmed by at least three witnesses.

So there you have it. That's what your President thinks of the U.S. Constitution. Is it any wonder he violates it whenever he feels like? And of course he has toadies like Gonsalez and others who tell him he can do so because he is all powerful, citing very questionable interpretations of the law. By now it appears quite clear that he did overreach his authority when it comes to spying on American citizens. According to John Dean, who knows something about abuses of power, Bush has admitted to an impeachable offense. And there is more and more talk about impeachment. John Conyers has also suggested that Bush/Cheney be censured for what they did about 9/11. Bush knows he is in truly hot water, witness his attempt to silence the New York Times about this.

But will anything really happen? Are our Corporate masters fed up enough with Bush/Cheney to agree to finally take some action against them - like, maybe, force them to resign? After all, what else can possibly go wrong for this incompetent, criminal administration? Or will the Republicans, once again, close ranks and protect their war criminals and incompetents. This latest outrage against the Constitution and American law may be the straw that breaks it (god, how I hope so). Bush now has both feet firmly planted in do-do. Will he come out once again smelling like a rose? How much more is the American public willing to take?

Did he or didn't he?

Did Bush act legally when he secretly authorized the NSA to spy on American citizens? He, of course, insists that what he did was legal (you could hardly expect him to claim otherwise). But many others, including John Dean, think he not only acted illegally but has admitted to an impeachable offense. Both Democrats and Republicans have called for an investigation. As Bush apparently called a meeting on December 6th with officials from the New York Times, specifically to try to get them not to run the story, he may have suspected or known that he had acted illegally. Apparently Bush thinks he can do whatever he wants because Gonzales and others have led him to believe that as Commander-in-Chief he has the authority to do anything he wants. While I am not a lawyer I am positive there is nothing in the Constitution or American law that allows a President to override the law whenever he wishes. It is clear that Bush has acted above and beyond the law all along. Note his claim that he can lock up prisoners for as long as he wants, with no rights whatsoever, and so on. Indeed, this is why they are treating Padilla is such a ridiculous fashion - they fear that if it goes to the Supreme Court they will be told that they do not, in fact, have such authority.

This latest almost surely illegal activity aside, can there be any doubt that Bush/Cheney should be impeached? Can anyone be ignorant of the enormity of their war crimes? The unbelievable misery they have brought upon the people of Iraq and also on the people of the U.S.? And for what? So Bush could be a "war president?" So we could control the Middle East? So we could "spread democracy?" So Cheney's oil companies could become even more filthy rich?

If you want to see the future look to South America. Evo Morales, the first indigenous President of Bolivia. Chavez in Venezuela. Progressives in Brazil and Argentina. They are going to break with the colonial traditions that have kept them subservient to the U.S. for so many years. Their people for the first time are going to actually benefit from their own natural resources rather than having them stolen by the powers that be. Viva Morales! Viva Venezuela! Viva Socialist states like Norway and Sweden! Death to imperialism! There is hope for the world in South America if not in North America.

Bush/Cheney and the neocons are war criminals. There is no doubt about this. They deserve to be punished for their crimes. But will that happy day ever come? Doubtful. Remember, in their world, might makes right. Black makes white. Up makes down. Lies equal truth. We do not torture. Iraq had WMD's. We are more safe now. Things are going well. The national debt doesn't matter. The rich deserve more money. God is on our side. We, alone, are good. The rapture is coming soon. Hoorah!

Ho-hum, another speech - and an essay

Bush gave another speech. From the Oval Office. Big deal. Apparently he said we are winning the war in Iraq. As usual I didn't watch or listen. Quite frankly, the sight or sound of him makes me sick. I doubt we are winning. I don't even know what winning in Iraq might consist of unless being able to control their country and resources. I think the relatively large turnout indicates that the Iraqis think this is the only way they can get us out. Powell said earlier today (or yesterday) that America will have a presence in Iraq for years to come. Of course we will. That was/is the plan. Can't let all that oil go unguarded. No mention, of course, of Bush's illegal spying on American citizens. This will be ignored and just fade away like all the rest of his transgressions. As virtually nothing seems to be happening other than more lies here is another essay.

Save the…

Save the whales! Save the gorillas! Save the elephants! Save the bull trout! Save the caribou! Save the salmon! Save the pygmy rabbits! Save the prairie dogs! Save the orangutans! Save the wolves! Save the orcas! Save the chimpanzees! Save the baby seals! Save the wild horses! Save the sage hens! Save the grizzly bears! Save the puffins! Save the tigers! Save the Panda bears! Save the spotted owl! Save the wolverines, the lynx, and the bobcats! Save the Condor, the Brown Pelican and the Albatross! Need I mention the Borax Lake Chubb, the Bliss Rapids Snail, the Lost River Sucker and the Wyoming Toad? How about the thousands of other endangered species?
I can’t honestly say that I have been solicited for funds to save all of these creatures, but I certainly have been for many of them. In some cases I actually donated money for what I believe to be worthy causes. But it has made me think about it. Why should I, a mere individual, have to feel responsible for the potential disappearance of species? I pay taxes. Why didn’t/doesn’t the Government take care of this sort of thing? How is it they have been so irresponsible and allowed things to deteriorate so badly? Why haven’t they looked after the planet better than they have?
Consider what Europeans set about doing when they first arrived in the “New World.” They slaughtered the Passenger Pidgeon into extinction very quickly. They attempted to do the same thing to the Buffalo (and almost succeeded). They did away with the wolves so successfully we have recently had to reintroduce them from Canada. The Grizzly Bear, too, was virtually eliminated, as were coyotes, prairie dogs, wild turkeys, alligators, eagles, hawks, and virtually everything else that moved; gunned down and trapped with such unbridled mindlessness and savagery as to be almost impossible to understand. And it was not just the animals and birds and fishes that suffered this onslaught, the indigenous people did likewise. Whole Indian tribes were decimated, wiped out, if not by force of arms, by the use of smallpox and other diseases. In most cases the motive for this was, of course, to take over Indian lands and resources. But in many cases it was a question of “the only good Indian is a dead Indian.” Even the children were slaughtered, “nits make lice.”
Even now we are struggling with the effects of this unprecedented attack on the environment and everything in it. Save the Salmon! Save the Cod! Save the Burbot! Save the Forests! Save the Great Lakes! Everywhere we look we are being asked to help repair the sometimes irreparable damage we have done to our environment and the creatures that try to survive in it. How can one explain this apparently insatiable blood lust to destroy virtually everything with no concern for the future or the consequences?
I suggest this has been the case historically (and continues even now) because Europeans brought with them to the “New World” a totally unprecedented ethos. This ethos came about primarily because of two basic building blocks or developments in European thought. The first of these came from the bible: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.” Notice here that man is not only to have dominion over the earth but also to subdue it.
The second building block, not entirely unrelated to the first, was the belief in a “Great Chain of Being.” That is, all creatures constituted a kind of ladder leading from the lowest to the highest, the highest, of course being white European males (unhappily this belief is still quite widespread).
The result of these two belief systems was the tendency by Europeans to hold the rest of nature, particular the flora and fauna, and, indeed, anything “below” themselves, relatively speaking, in contempt. There was such abundance in the New World they felt they could subdue at will, and did. They seemed to believe there was no end to this abundance. It was estimated that at the time Europeans arrived in what is now the United States there were 50 million buffalo. In a relatively short period there were no more than a few hundred (at most). They killed wantonly, took just the hides and the tongues, and, in fact, in many cases just shot them for sport.
This was unprecedented because of the lack of respect. American Indians killed, to be sure, but they had respect for the animals, and rituals and ceremonies to keep them healthy and prolific. Cynics might argue the Indians didn’t kill them all simply because they didn’t have enough people or the technology but this cannot be true. Europeans didn’t kill indiscriminately because there were too many Europeans, they killed just because they had the means, but also because they had a belief system that told them it was their right to do so. Following Max Weber’s The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, we might entitle a book on this subject, The European Ethos and the Rape of Mother Nature.
And notice this was not peculiar to the Americas. The same pattern was followed wherever Europeans spread in the “Age of Exploration:” in Australia, Tasmania, South America, the Middle East, the Far East, and Africa. Wherever Europeans went, following their ethos, they destroyed: the animals, the forests, the indigenous peoples, whatever they wished. This still continues and, of course, is not a topic that can be dealt with here. It would require volumes: tomes of misery, rape, arson, destruction and death, shameful acts of greed and pillage, excused as “the white man’s burden.” It continues.
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King George?

Watch 'n Wait: I believe you are right. The neocons are leading us into WW III. I am not so sure they are doing this "unavoidably." I am not in the least surprised to learn that NSA has been illegally spying on U.S. citizens.

The big news is, of course, that the NSA, at Bush's discretion, has been (presumably) illegally spying on U.S. citizens within the borders of the U.S. There seems to be some confusion over whether or not what he ordered was truly illegal. But as near as I can tell it was. Somewhere I read there is a legal mechanism for doing what he wanted but that he couldn't be bothered to use it, preferring instead to bypass it entirely. This certainly fits with his previous behavior that indicates he does, in fact, think he has Kingly prerogatives (he can jail people indefinitely on a whim, etc.). If, as some claim, this was illegal, then he has committed (and admitted to) another impeachable offense. The circumstances leading up to, and his pre-emptive invasion of Iraq, are certainly impeachable enough. But apparently Republicans are determined to protect their war criminals no matter what. And with an absolutely wimpy Democratic Party going along with the war crimes it appears there is little we can do about it. Fact is, we no longer have two different political parties so there is no real opposition party. They all suck from the same corporate teats. There were, for example, 1,052 supoenas for the Clinton administration. There have been 3 for the Bush/Cheney administration. That is, of course, because they returned honesty and dignity to the White House.

I have not read Jimmy Carter's new book on American Values. I saw a brief excerpt on the web. Apparently we (that is, the U.S.) is holding many children in prisoner camps, children as young as eight (8) years of age. They are not allowed lawyers, nor even allowed to see their mothers. Rumsfeld is apparently well aware of this and the policy is that age makes no difference. Rumsfeld and his ilk are no less than absolute monsters. I hope I live long enough to see them all in jail where they clearly belong.

I wish Fitzgerald would either indict Rove or not. I can't stand the suspense. I can't help but believe he may be going to indict more than just Rove. How I hope so!

I like Feingold. I don't care if he is Jewish or not. But I do care if he is an uncritical supporter of Israel, no matter how much land and water they try to steal from the Palestinians. Until Israel is curbed there will never be peace in the Middle East. And now that they are threatening Iran we may, indeed, be looking at WW III. If Israel is stupid enough to attack Iran let them do it without any support from the U.S. Disaster in the making. And a U.S. administration stupid enough to get sucked into it, if not actively striving to bring it about.

Does Bush have a death wish?

Suzie Creamcheese: Thank your for your comments. I have been a fan of George Monbiot for some time. I think he is consistently very insightful and well worth reading.As far as touting my book, The Cham Stones, I have to confess to having a financial problem that leads me to do things I don't really want to do - like trying to sell my book on my blog. The fact is, in spite of my advanced age, I have a 20 year old son who is attending an out of state University. The tuition is expensive. As a retired University Professor I am not wealthy, complicated by the fact that I am living too long and outliving my retirement benefits. So I am trying to leave no stone unturned, so to speak. It does make me feel like an (ugh) American, which of course I am (but under present circumstances I would prefer not to be). But back to business.

In an interview with Brian Williams of NBC Bush apparently said the following: "I remember the day we committed the troops, or I committed the troops, there's no 'we' to it. I committed the troops to combat in Iraq. And I left here (the Oval Office), walked out the door, walked around that South Lawn with my trusty dog Spot,just thinking about the consequences."

Is he really unaware that he is confessing to having committed a war crime? Can he possibly be that out of touch with reality? I fear so. As near as I can tell he must basically want everyone to know that he, George W. Bush, is a very important person who can order "wars" or whatever he wants. I guess Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice, et al, had nothing to do with it. I think he must have stopped listening to Rove. I refuse to even comment on his "trusty dog Spot."

Well, Bush and McCain seem to have arrived at some agreement about torture. They have apparently agreed that everyone will abide by the Military Code. Of course the Military Code is being revised so no doubt it will still allow for torture but under another name. So McCain gets his victory (which will help him in his quest for the Presidency) and Bush gets credit for being flexible. If you believe any of this dreck let me sell you some nonexistent property.

The Senate, much to their credit, has blocked the renewal of the Patriot Act, or at least some of its more objectionable features. Perhaps there is hope after all.

It now turns out that Bush signed a secret document to allow spying on U.S. citizens, even though such a things was/is illegal. I gather this is going to be investigated by Congress (ha ha).

I guess the most interesting development of all has to do with the latest argument from the anti-evolutionists that if people are merely animals, and animals wrote the Constitution, the Constitution must be irrelevant. At least I think that is what they are saying. I must confess that everything these people say is so far fetched and ridiculous my tiny brain is not able to cope with it. The bible is literally true? The earth is only 6000 years old? People existed contemporaneously with dinosaurs? The Grand Canyon is a result of the flood? The Rapture is imminent? George W. Bush communicates with and was sent by God to spread democracy around the earth? Intelligent Design is as useful and believable as the theory of evolution? Why do I not believe any of this? Because I am a disgusting atheist who is determined to take the Christ out of Christmas. If there is a Christ in Christmas nowadays he has to be hiding somewhere in a cash register.

Bush boasting of war crimes?

Let me try to get this straight. Attacking a sovereign nation that is no threat to you is clearly recognized as a war crime. Iraq was clearly no threat to the U.S. Bush "pre-emptively" attacked Iraq anyway. He has now accepted the responsibility for doing just that. So why does that not make him a war criminal? As I have repeatedly pointed out, torture is a war crime, hiding prisoners from the Red Cross is a war crime, using white phosphorous on people is a war crime, war profiteering is a war crime, killing civilians is a war crime. Bush/Cheney have clearly been involved in all of this. Then, ipso facto, they are war criminals. Bush has just now said again he will pre-emptively attack others if he feels like it (semi-happily, at least, Rumsfeld having destroyed the army, he probably can't do this). He did say that Rumsfeld has "done a heck of a job." He certainly has, if you think losing a "war" and ruining an army is the way to go.

Now all hopes seem to ride on the Iraqi election. This election can never be seen as legitimate as it is held while the country is being occupied, there is so much violence candidates couldn't even campaign, there are so many candidates most people don't even know who they all are, most Iraqis will vote however their religious leaders tell them to, and so on. As the Bush/Cheney administration's goal is to have permanent bases in Iraq it will be most interesting to see what they will do if even this puppet government asks them to leave (which is apparently a possibility). If Bush/Cheney would come right out and say the U.S. has no intention of having permanent bases in Iraq it would make an enormous difference. But have you heard them say anything like that? Not yet, and you're not likely to either. They will have to be literally thrown out.

We have had no snow for almost two weeks. There is still a little on the ground. The temperature has hung somewhere between 5 and 25 degrees for days. It is miserable. However, tonight is clear and there is a full moon so large you feel you might actually reach out and touch it. Magnificent! We are now engaged in the annual Kill-a-Tree-for Christ" festivities. We did not murder one of our own trees this year. My wife took the easy way and actually purchased a tree at great expense from one of the lots that sell trees this time of year. When I protested that the tree was obscenely expensive she replied that she bought it from a poor woman who was watching the lot while her husband was out cutting more trees. She was probably watching the lot from the comfort of the cab of her fairly new Ford 250. She did not say where her husband was cutting the trees. I am pretty suspicious about all of this but the tree is up, decorated, and ready to be inundated with mostly useless presents. It's the American way. So Happy Holidays everyone wherever and whomever you are. I hope you all get copies of The Cham Stones.

Today at Sandhill

Sandhill. That is what I have decided to call our "estate" (house plus garage and couple of outbuildings) here in North Idaho. A more accurate description would be sand pile. But sand pile just does not have the same connotation of gentility and English upper classness that Sandhill does. You know, like Yasna Polanyi, Sandhurst, Windsor, etc. Of course we have no servants, peons, peasants, slaves or stuff like that. But Sandhill will have to do. So what went on today at Sandhill?

First, my wife, for some reason known only to the supernaturals that deal with females, bought a bar of soap so large that you have to hold it with both hands. Have you ever tried to shower with a bar of soap that has to be held in both hands?Then our dryer gave up the ghost (so to speak). Actually, she just wore it out what with 24 hour usage every day. It cost me forty bucks to be told it didn't work and we would need a new one. Sigh. Then the deer were in the garden (happily they can't do much damage this time of year). Haven't seen our flock of wild turkeys for the past couple of days. Maybe too cold for them. At least they aren't pooping on our deck at the moment.

But moving on to more national problems and developments. A man in Georgia (I think Atlanta) was having trouble getting subway (or bus) tokens out of the token machine. A man standing there offered to help by giving him a token. The recipient of the token, being a decent sort, paid him the $1.75 the token was worth, at which point the good samaritan was arrested (apparently individuals can't sell tokens). Not only was he arrested, he was brought to trial. I do not know what the outcome was. But the prosecutor apparently said, "the law is the law."

In another development, it appears that a father has his two year old daughter here in the U.S. with him and wants to keep her here. This is apparently not against the law in the sense that he has illegal custody or something. The problem is, she was not born in the U.S. and therefore they are going to deport her (even though the father wants to keep her). Apparently they believe she may be a threat to the U.S. Remember, the law is the law. Bureacracy knows no common sense.

Then it was announced that the U.S. mint is going to bring out new one dollar coins with the likenesses of past presidents. Having brought out dollar coins twice before that failed miserably they are going to try again. But like before they are not going to stop printing one dollar bills which insures the new coins, like the others, will fail to be used. Canada, of course, being light years ahead of the U.S. in common sense, stopped printing one dollar bills when they introduced the one dollar coins and voila, they are used successfully in Canada (along with the perfectly sensible two dollar coins). I suspect the U.S. does this on purpose as it has the effect of taking money out of circulation to be saved in piggy banks instead.

Now, on the more important matters. John McCain, as you know, has introduced a bill to ban torture and degrading treatment of prisoners anywhere at anytime. He wants to insure that the military, FBI, CIA, and everyone else has to follow the Army Military Code on such matters. Cheney and the White House are opposed to his bill and have done everything they can to defeat it, including the threat of a completely unprecedented veto. But now they have come up with a easier solution - they have rewritten the Army Manual! Clever, no? McCain is not going to like this. Stay tuned.

The best for last. In his fourth speech on Iraq Bush has announced that he is responsible to declaring "war" on Iraq as a result of bad intelligence. This has produced oohs and aahs all over the place. Wow! Bush has admitted he declared war because of faulty intelligence. To me this represents a confession of war crimes. The Intelligence was not faulty, at least not all of it. They knew, for example, that the Niger yellowcake claim was not true. They also knew the aluminum tubes were not for nuclear projects. They knew Sadam was not a threat to the U.S. as they had inspectors right there on the ground telling us there were no WMD's. They also knew that after 12 years of constant overflights and sanctions Iraq could not possibly have been a threat. They had virtually the entire world telling them not to go to "war" because it was not necessary. But Bush wanted to prove he was a "War President," and began this totally illegal, unconstitutional, immoral, and unnecessary war anyway. It doesn't even matter whether the intelligence was wrong or not. The pre-emptive attack on a sovereign nation that was no threat to us was a war crime, plain and simple. The intelligence was indeed "fixed" to bring about the desired result. Bush/Cheney, of course, deny they exaggerated or lied about the intelligence. What else would you expect? The enormity of this criminal activity seems to escape the Republican Party that continues to protect them. Shame!!

Tomorrow the Iraqis vote for the first time for a "democratic" administration. A vote under the supervision of the U.S., an occupying power, with control over the candidates and the election. What do you think will happen if the new Iraq administration asks the U.S. to leave and give up their idea of permanent bases there? It should prove to be most interesting.

Even better! According to Robert Novak (granted a comple jerk), Bush must know who the leaker was. Novak seems pretty certain of this. Now, if Bush does indeed know the identity of the leaker why does he not come forward and say so. Why does he not fire the individual? Why did he lie when he said he didn't know, but wanted to, and would punish whoever it was? My guess is Bush knew from the very first who the leaker was. He claimed he didn't and went on to say he didn't think anyone would ever know, etc. He lied. Big time. Am I the only one who thinks this is really important? Is this miserable excuse for a President never going to be held accountable for anything? Even his consistent, persistent, even pathological lying? Has the U.S. gone completely mad? I fear so.

"meddling"

"Removing Sadam Hussein makes this world a better place and America a safer country." So speaks George W. Bush. And he says if he had to do it again, he would. I fear he believes this. It is possible that taking out Sadam Hussein MIGHT HAVE made the world a better place. But, looking at what has happened in Iraq, what is happening in Iraq, this is more than merely doubtful. Indeed, I believe it is the case that only 44% of Iraqis think they are better off now than under Hussein. A somewhat larger percentage thinks the U.S. should get out of Iraq, the sooner the better. As far as making America a safer country, nothing could be more nonsensical. If anything we are clearly less safe than we were before.

Condi Rice says that Iran keeps "meddling" in Iraq. According to my dictionary, meddling means, "interfere in or busy oneself unduly with others concerns." I guess meddling would not quite cover what the U.S. is doing in Iraq. Let's say violent pathological rape is more like it, a little more serious than meddling. When it comes to the U.S. I don't quite know what to make of meddling. Are we merely meddling in Lebanon? Syria? North Korea? Palestine? Venezuela? Chile? Ukraine? Uzbekistan? etc., etc. Does it not occur to any of the pea-brained neocons that it is really not our business to be constantly interfering in the affairs of everyone else on the globe? Who or what gives us the right to insist on spreading democracy around the world at the point of a gun? Nothing, of course, except for the fact that we think we have the guns to do it. But as Vietnam and Iraq have taught us, it takes more than guns. We will fail in Iraq just as we failed in Vietnam. It is inevitable.

The attempt on the part of the White House to roviate Murtha seems to have collapsed entirely. Indeed, we aren't hearing much about roviating anyone these days. It appears that the American public has now become totally fed up with this indecent, incompetent, criminal administration. It is collapsing in front of our eyes, but not fast enough to suit me.

This Republican administration would collapse much sooner if it were not for the support it is getting from Democrats: those spineless, cowardly, ineffective, timid, useless opposition figures that seem to think they have to outmachismo Republicans in order to prove they are not soft on defense. If Democrats would unite behind Murtha and Dean and actually become a genuine opposition party they would almost certainly be able to take over the Senate, if not the House. If they can't get their act together we should rename them the Pansy Party and start a meaningful third party. The time might finally be ripe.

What a hopeless bunch of both Democrats and Republicans we have managed to field. Time for entirely new teams.

A useless death

Well...in slightly less than three hours from this very moment Stanley "Tookie" Williams will be put to death (unless some truly extraordinary event occurs). I believe this is very wrong. Do I believe this because I think he is not guilty of the murder he has been charged with? No, quite frankly, I believe whether he is guilty or innocent of those murders is basically irrelevant at the moment. I have no idea if he is guilty or not. Do I believe he should get a reprieve because he has tried to turn his life (such as it is) around, written anti-gang books, and such? No, I don't think writing a few books makes him any the less guilty or innocent and should have nothing to do with the issue of life and death. Do I think his life should be spared because he has so many celebrities and others supporting him? No, I think that, too, is irrelevant. Do I think he should be spared because he has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize several times? No, remember that even George W. Bush has been nominated. Being nominated, in and of itself, is basically meaningless. I think he should not be put to death because it is, at this point in time, utterly pointless. What conceivable benefit results from his death at this time? He has been on death row for 25 years. He is not going to be pardoned and set free unless, somehow, it might be shown that he was, in fact, innocent (which seems highly unlikely). He cannot harm the broader community in any way and he might, in fact, be able to contribute some some positive input into the problem of gangs and gang violence. The only reason for his execution that I can see is revenge. But if revenge is the only motive why have we waited for 25 years? Twenty five years on death row seems to me clearly harsh and unusual punishment. At this point in time I don't care if the evidence against him was overwhelming or not. No useful purpose is being served by taking his life. There is also the question of whether a so-called civilized society should even have a death penalty in the first place. Note that most other countries abandoned the death penalty long ago and think we are little more than barbarians for continuing it. I don't know Stanley Williams, I don't even know much about him, I have no idea if he was truly guilty or not, but I do know that killing him for the basest of human motives, revenge, is not something to be condoned. I wonder, does the Gropenfueher not want to be accused of favoring another bodybuilder? I see no other reason for this decision.

The present administration is refusing to allow the Red Cross access to some of their prisoners. They claim these prisoners are not subject to the Geneva Convention and do not have any rights. Thus they can be held in secret for presumably as long as they live with no access to a lawyer, no visits from anyone, no way to challenge the authority under which they are being held. Do you believe that any human being anywhere, under any circumstances, for any reason whatsoever, should be able to be held indefinately with no rights at all? I don't. I think anyone who does is simply a monster. We seem not to lack for monsters at the moment.

How long?

How long is the Republican party going to continue to support and defend the war criminals in their midst? The pre-emptive "war" on Iraq was clearly a war crime. Torturing is a war crime. Hiding people from the Red Cross is a war crime. War profiteering is a war crime. Killing civilians is a war crime. Using white phosphorous on individuals is a war crime. Rendition is a war crime. Can anyone deny that the Bush/Cheney administration is not guilty of all of these, and more? It seems to me this is quite clear. It is also quite clear that lying to Congress and the American Public to start a "war" against a sovereign nation that is no threat to you, if not a war crime, is certainly impeachable. So why do Republicans continue to support and defend these criminals? Does that not make them complicit in war crimes? Do they really believe they can escape unscathed from what they have done? Don't they realize this is a cancer that will eventually totally destroy their party if they don't take some action against it? Or is it just me that thinks this? Maybe that's it. I am just out of touch with reality. They didn't really do all of these terrible things. It is all just my imagination.

I guess it is all my imagination that DeLay, Frist, Abramhof, Rove, Libby, et al, are all in trouble one way or another. The "war" in Iraq is really going well. Osama bin Laden is no longer a person of interest, New Orleans is being efficiently rebuilt, the national debt doesn't really matter, global warming is just an urban myth, the price of gasoline is going to return to 35 cents a gallon soon, the Iraqis are going to have a democratic government, we do not torture, and god is still talking with George W. Bush so all is well.

Is it just my imagination, too, that the world comes to a stop on friday and then starts up again on monday? I remember once seeing that a notice appeared one day on the bulletin board of some girl's school that said, "tomorrow is cancelled due to lack of interest." That is what I think goes on now in American culture: "the week-end has been cancelled due to lack of interest."

I also remember seeing graffiti once on the bathroom wall of a very strange bar that read, "help save Peter Rabbit, please help." That is how I feel at the moment.

Still negotiating?

Apparently the White House is still negotiating with McCain over torture. Doesn't this strike anyone but me as utterly ridiculous? How could anyone negotiate torture? I guess what this is all about is trying somehow to protect the already known torturers from being punished? I guess that figures, as no one else in this totally incompetent administration has ever been held accountable for anything. As this torture business leads all the way to the Pentagon and the White House you can bet they are trying to cover their butts.

Isn't it curious that there was no mention of the Nobel Prize for literature whatsoever in the MSM but there has been coverage of the Peace Prize. Think it had anything to do with Pintner's passionate political speech? Naw, that would be too obvious (except that CNN and the other big News Organizations obviously don't care what the public thinks about anything). They obviously prefer we do not think at all. Hence the absolute trivia they try to pass off as news. And, of course, there is little or no news on week ends. Once, when I lived for a time on the Kona coast, I ritually tuned in the morning news. It usually consisted of something like Auntie Sweetie's son ran over another chicken this morning, and stuff like that. But one morning they actually started off by saying, "there is no news this morning." I liked that.

It is 14 degrees Fahrenheit. There is ice and snow. The sky is clear and there are many stars. It is quite beautiful but not very comfortable. This evening I gave my first ever book reading/signing (The Cham Stones). There weren't as many people as I might have wished (I hope because of the cold and a couple of other competing events) but it went well and we sold some books. Actually, it was quite enjoyable and there were some good questions.

I guess I am one of the few people who look forward to monday. It seems to me the world comes back to life on monday. And I hate days when there is no mail. I saw a heading on Buzzflash, "Americans hate Cheney." Amen.

"It is not fit that you sit here any longer!...you shall now give place to better men."
Oliver Cromwell to Parliament, 1654

The Nobel Prize?

Suzie Creamcheese: I never thought about the attack itself as opposed to the target. I think the problem with that, for me, is that the attack is the humanicide. I do not believe "they" are interested in attacking our freedoms. I think they are more interested in their own freedoms. Freedom from U.S. meddling in their affairs, trying to control their countries (read oil), freedom from having U.S. troops on their soil, and such things. Similarly, I don't think it is difficult to understand why they "hate" us. Much has to do, of course with the Israeli/Palestinian problem and the U.S. unconditional support for what is not much more than Israeli theft and genocide. Keep thinking, apparently no one else is.

Harold Pintner won the Nobel Prize for Literature. He apparently gave an impassioned political speech (I was not able to hear it) in which, among other things, he suggested that Bush/Blair should be tried for war crimes (at least Blair as Bush never signed the War Crimes Act (or whatever it is called). I believe he is absolutely correct. My wife, who was on the computer early yesterday morning, told me this story was all over the alternate news sources. This inspired me to force myself to watch CNN for the next two hours. What I suspected would be true proved to be true. There was no mention of Pintner's speech at all, let alone his statement on war crimes. Not only that! There was no mention of the Nobel Prize! What there was, however, was a virtually endless discussion of Mariah Carey and the Grammy awards. When they paused from this for a few moments they told us over and over again about the shooting in Miami. This was truly amusing as they made a point of telling us they didn't yet know much of anything about it. Wouldn't you think they might wait until they did know something about it? Not CNN. Once they get a story, any story, no matter how local and/or petty, they stick with it 24/7. There was nothing about the Nobel Prize or Pintner's speech in our local (and only) major newspaper either. I don't necessarily think this was a deliberate omission. I think they have never heard of the Nobel Prizes or, if they have, they think they must be something for foreigners.

American culture. American values. Is in any wonder we have a mental midget as President, Mr. Evil as Vice-President, and an absolute babbling old fool as Secretary of Defense? My mother used to say, so many years ago now, "there's no fool like an old fool." How appropriate. I won't even mention Condi Rice who has now completely destroyed any credibility the U.S. might have had left (actually none, so I guess she didn't really do that much damage).

Now there is a rumor that Cheney has become such a liability he might be forced out after the New Year, resigning for his health. Don't believe it. He'll never resign and it might be more likely he will get rid of Bush than vice-vera. It is also rumored that Rumsfeld might retire (he denies it) to be replaced by - can you believe it - Joe Lieberman. I guess this proves that intelligent design is alive and well somewhere in the galaxy - certainly not here.

"We do not torture." This reminds me of a scene in For Whom the Bell Tolls, when one of my favorites, Akim Tamiroff, repeats in his drunken state "I do not provoke." It all reminds me of that quintessential American credo, "Get rich, sleep till noon, and screw 'em all." Help!

The Peace Tunnel

Morialekafa is going on a Fool's errand to Seattle and will not be back on the web until friday, the 9th. Sorry.

Suzie Creamcheese: I'm not certain you understand my position. There is (1) killing in self defense (understandable and acceptable), there is (2) killing in warfare (understandable and acceptable but only under condition 1, above. There is killing for personal or monetary gain (understandable but totally unacceptable), there is genocide (understandable but totally unacceptable under any circumstances), and then there is what I call humanicide (not understandable and completely unacceptable under any circumstances). You seem to think that humanicide is understandable if not acceptable because it is motivated by hate and the wish to destabilise. But that is exactly why I think it is more properly defined as humanicide. One could argue, for example, that attacking the White House or the Pentagon, and perhaps by extension even Wall Street, was motivated by revenge. Revenge implies that somehow you were wronged and are now seeking redress. But you cannot argue that the innocents killed in the towers were guilty of wronging the attackers. And as the unfortunates that happened to be in the towers were totally innocent of anything, and constituted nothing but a random collection of human beings (in this case from 70 different countries) this can only be interpreted as an act of humanicide. That is, killing a mass of human beings for no reason other than simply wanting to kill them. That is, in the cases of killing in self defense, warfare, personal or monetary gain, and even genocide, there is an actual target that is in some sense meaningful at least to someone. In the case of humanicide there is no meaningful target other than the willfull destruction of human beings just for the sake of it. I don't know if this makes sense to you. Somehow it does to me. In any case, I appreciate your comments and it does stimulate me for further thought on the subject.

The "Reverend" Sun Myung Moon thinks we should build a 51 mile long "peace" tunnel under the ocean to link Russia to the United States. This can obviously be dismissed as another absurd idea from the man who thinks he is somehow "god." But why, you might ask, is Neil Bush, George's younger brother, apparently on board? I guess they want to award the no bid contract to Halliburton.

A poll in DeLay's home turf indicates that he has only 36% support whereas any generic Democrat has 49%. Don't count your chickens until they hatch. And do not under any circumstances become overconfident. There is always Diebold and rampant illegalities lurking in the background.

Negotiating torture?

In our local newspaper this morning there was an article about the fact that the White House was "negotiating" with McCain over torture. I also saw references to this negotiating on the web. What the hell are they talking about? Negotiating over torture? What form do these negotiations take? McCain sponsored an amendment (or rule, or whatever it was) that there would be no torture. NO TORTURE! None. This passed the Senate 90 to 9. So what is there to negotiate? Is the White House arguing that we ought to be able to torture some people only? Or, perhaps, they are arguing that certain techniques can be used but not others? Maybe torturing is acceptable on tuesday, thursday and saturday but not on other days? I guess they could be negotiating the definition of torture. They could be, I suppose, negotiating over where people could be tortured - like here, or Poland, or Romania, Egypt, or wherever, as long as it is not in the U.S. I have to admit, I do not understand how they could be negotiating torture.

If they are negotiating with McCain, what does that say for him? He wants no torturing. At least that is what he got the Senate to agree to. So why is he now negotiating. I guess it wouldn't have anything to do with how bad he wants to become president? And he obviously wants it bad. How else would you explain photographs of him actually hugging George W. Bush? How about supporting the teaching of Intelligent Design? How about his support for Bush's ridiculous "war?" At the moment it looks to me that McCain desperately wants to be the Republican candidate for president in 2008 and is willing to do anything not to upset the ultra-right Republican base. I can see no other explanation for his behavior in the last year or two. This is certainly not the McCain of the 2000 campaign. McCain, who has always been a warmonger (even worse than Bush) has now revealed himself as a shameless opportunist willing to go to any length to become president. And he may very well succeed as he is about the only Republican candidate that (1) is not in legal or ethical trouble, (2) has cross-over appeal to independent and some democratic voters, (certainly not for me), and (3) is a genuine war hero as opposed to a Cheney/Bush slacker. I believe he would be a disaster as president and would keep us involved in endless war just as Bush/Cheney and the neocons wish (have to continue to support the obscene military/industrial budget no matter what).

The 9/11 attacks on the trade center and the pentagon are the perfect example of humanicide (see morialekafa 8-26-04 on humanicide). Three thousand people died, people from 70 different countries, and including more than 200 Muslims. The attackers had no idea who would be killed, had no reason to target them other than the fact that they existed, had no grudge against them, no excuse for what they did other than to just plain and simply kill large numbers of perfectly innocent people, including children. This was not war, not genocide, not self defense, not for personal or monetary gain, just not rational in any sense of that term. It was humanicide, the deliberate killing of large numbers of random human beings for no reasonable motive. Given what they apparently wanted to achieve it might have made at least some kind of sense to attack the pentagon or Wall street where at least the victims might have had some direct (however remote) connection to the ills they were complaining about. Those who perished in the trade center were truly innocents, especially the children. As I previously suggested, humanicide is a relatively recent phenomenon which I believe probably began during WW II. Unhappily, it seems to be spreading.