The Cheney Story

I guess you all know that the big story for the past few days is Dick the Slimy's shooting of a friend while quail hunting. This is good for Republicans because, of course, it keeps everyone's attention away from the genuinely serious problems like Iraq, warrantless spying, the Plame affair, DeLay, Frist, Abramoff, etc., etc., etc. There are as always many questions about this shooting affair. One speculation is that Cheney may have been drinking before hunting. And maybe they were shooting too late in the afternoon and the light wasn't what it should have been. Perhaps the victim just asked for it as he failed to tell them where he was. Perhaps whoever was supposed to be directing the hunt wasn't doing his/her job? Perhaps the victim was much closer to Cheney than has been claimed (some don't believe the tiny 28 gauge shotgun could have done that much damage at 30 yards)? The only information we have comes from Cheney and his friends so how would anyone know what truly happened?

There are, however, some serious questions that it would be good to have answers for. Did Cheney, who admitted to having one beer, have more than one? Remember, this is a guy who was kicked out of Yale for drinking beer rather than studying. And, he has the distinction of having had two DUI's. Makes you think doesn't it? Is this perhaps the reason the local sheriff was not allowed to question him? The Secret Service did not allow it when the sheriff turned up to do it. Why?

Another suggestion is that Cheney was trying to keep a lady friend out of it. It seems that Pamela Whittelford, Ambassador to Switzerland and Lichtenstein, was one of the three quail hunters. It is said by some that Lynne Cheney does not approve of Dick's relationship with said lady. I have no idea if there is anything to this or not. But I think there is a good question that might be asked. What was Ms. Whittelford doing there as one of only three hunters? Do they commonly invite female hunters on these trips? Why her? Is she a renowned quail hunter? A real aficionado? Is she a close friend of the victim? The owner of the ranch? Or merely a friend of Cheney's? Personally, I don't care. But I would certainly like to know why the sheriff was not permitted to interview Cheney at the time. And I would also like to know why it took almost 24 hours before all of this started to be made public. Is it really because Cheney is so arrogant he doesn't think he has to be responsible to anyone. I think he is that, but I don't think that explains the delay.

I guess people think the Muslims around the world are rioting and destroying American stores and restaurants because they are upset about some cartoons. While the cartoons may be a convenient explanation there is obviously much more to it than that. They hate what we have done to them and have been doing to them for many, many years. This is an opportunity for them to express their pent-up rage and they are taking advantage of it big time. The publication of the cartoons was a deliberate act of provocation aimed at the Muslims in Denmark. This is not a question of the right of free speech versus Muslim fundamentalism. Muslims, contrary to what the MSM tries to peddle, are not simply a bunch of raving fanatics who cannot bear the idea of free speech. They have been truly offended in ways that go far beyond cartoons. It is long past time we arrived beyond pip, pip, old chap, white man't burden, brown skinned children, bringing civilization (democracy), and the like. We need some genuine respect for each other. But don't expect any respect for anyone from Bush/Cheney (except for their corporate masters).