The Bush Watch - Chapter 2

[Miulang]

Re: The Bush Watch - Chapter 2

The following story documents 11 leaks of Valerie Plame's identity to the press. I hope the American public keeps remembering this fiasco even though the press and the White House would like for everyone to forget it.

Miulang

[Miulang]

Are we our own worst enemy?

Even though this article was written specifically to lament the fact that the nation is demoralized and its own worst enemy in its struggle to be everything to everyone, I find many kernels of truth in it, too, that relate to the struggle of the citizens of Hawai'i.

In the following excerpt, replace "country" with the word "Hawai'i and its people" and "community" with "islands" and I think you'll see what I'm getting at:

"...When a community (the islands of Hawai'i) is attacked (by rampant immigration and high costs of living) it resists ferociously. Human behavior differs little from a colony of insects. The community (the islands of Hawai'i) buzzes with intense activity to defend itself and strike at the enemy (i.e., the tepid reception many "haoles" get upon moving to Hawai'i). It offers the lives of its strongest members (the keiki o ka 'aina) to overcome the aggressors,

When the community is attacked from within however, confusion rather than resistance dominates and the traitors can succeed where no external force could have had a chance. The subtle attacks of the traitors eat away at the fibers of society. Ties break. Confusion, anger, frustration and rage spreads in all directions with no concentrated resistance. The people struggle against each other in order to defend the bits and pieces, the values and privileges, that they have some control over. Traditions tumble under ever greater campaigns of corruption and bombardments of lies. Propaganda covers the devastation with claims of defending the traditions. The country's (Hawai'i's)vital organs, its basic premises and laws, are distorted and destroyed in the name of saving the country. Finally, rulers stand where leaders once stood and the patriots find themselves refugees in their own country (Hawai'i nei).

It's terrifying and very painful for the patriots. Living in a country ruled by people who threaten rather than defend our interests leaves us vulnerable to the slings and arrows of outrageous tyranny. Our strength for survival sickens over and our patriotism pales. Denial infests the communal soul. What's the choice? Appeal for justice to those who have ravaged her?

It's difficult enough accepting the fact that Americans are enemies of America. This difficulty becomes nearly insurmountable when the enemies are the most influential of Americans who control the machinery governing and administrating the country and command the channels of information that shape our perspective and define our values...."

Miulang

[Miulang]

Re: The Bush Watch - Chapter 2

Interesting that the Environmental Protection Agency decided at the last minute to delay publicaton of the 2006 fuel efficiency ratings for new cars until after the Energy Bill was passed by Congress.

A copy of the report was leaked to the NYT and described how car manufacturers were more interested in making cars faster and with more powerful engines than they were in making more fuel efficient cars and that some new cars used more gas than those built in the 1980s.

"...a copy of the report, embargoed for publication Wednesday, was sent to The New York Times by a member of the E.P.A. communications staff just minutes before the decision was made to delay it until next week. The contents of the report show that loopholes in American fuel economy regulations have allowed automakers to produce cars and trucks that are significantly less fuel-efficient, on average, than they were in the late 1980's.

Releasing the report this week would have been inopportune for the Bush administration, its critics said, because it would have come on the eve of a final vote in Congress on energy legislation six years in the making. The bill, as it stands, largely ignores auto mileage regulations.

The executive summary of the copy of the report obtained by The Times acknowledges that "fuel economy is directly related to energy security," because consumer cars and trucks account for about 40 percent of the nation's oil consumption. But trends highlighted in the report show that carmakers are not making progress in improving fuel economy, and environmentalists say the energy bill will do little to prod them.

"Something's fishy when the Bush administration delays a report showing no improvement in fuel economy until after passage of their energy bill, which fails to improve fuel economy," said Daniel Becker, the Sierra Club's top global warming strategist. "It's disturbing that despite high gas prices, an oil war and growing concern about global warming pollution, most automakers are failing to improve fuel economy." ..."

A couple of weeks ago, it was also reported that alternative fuels like ethanol cost more to produce (because of the energy required to distill the ethanol from corn) so that it was almost better to just use the gasoline in cars.

Miulang

[Miulang]

Army closing down 13 bases in Germany

If any of you have friends or ohana in the US Army who are currently stationed in Germany and you were saving up your kala to go visit them so you could have a guided tour of Europe...better hurry...they may be headed home soon (but will probably be redeployed somewhere less safe than Germany).

"...Eleven bases in and around the Bavarian city of Wuerzburg will be handed over to the German government by September 2007, the Army's European headquarters in Heidelberg said. Two more bases near Wuerzburg will close and be handed over in subsequent years.

The Defense Department said the changes will affect about 6,100 soldiers and 11,000 family members as well as about 1,000 Army civilian employees and 1,000 civilians employed locally...."

Next stop...um, Azerbaijian?

Miulang

[Miulang]

"Intelligent Design" and George Bush

The President has decided that the American public school system isn't messed up enough; now he's advocating that schools teach "intelligent design" as well as evolution in their biology classes.

This is going to make for some pretty spirited debating among educators.

Miulang

[Miulang]

Coming soon to your neighborhood...martial law?

OK people, prepare for the drill. No going out of your house after the sun goes down or risk getting jailed or worse. Must carry identity papers on your person at all times. Must be willing to be searched and questioned if caught in places where you shouldn't be. Be prepared to be jailed if you object.

According to this story, the White House and the Pentagon, have created secret plans to mobilize military troops if there are terrorist attacks in this country.

"... The classified plans, developed here at Northern Command headquarters, outline a variety of possible roles for quick-reaction forces estimated at as many as 3,000 ground troops per attack, a number that could easily grow depending on the extent of the damage and the abilities of civilian response teams.

The possible scenarios range from "low end," relatively modest crowd-control missions to "high-end," full-scale disaster management after catastrophic attacks such as the release of a deadly biological agent or the explosion of a radiological device, several officers said.

Some of the worst-case scenarios involve three attacks at the same time, in keeping with a Pentagon directive earlier this year ordering Northcom, as the command is called, to plan for multiple simultaneous attacks.

The war plans represent a historic shift for the Pentagon, which has been reluctant to become involved in domestic operations and is legally constrained from engaging in law enforcement. Indeed, defense officials continue to stress that they intend for the troops to play largely a supporting role in homeland emergencies, bolstering police, firefighters and other civilian response groups.

But the new plans provide for what several senior officers acknowledged is the likelihood that the military will have to take charge in some situations, especially when dealing with mass-casualty attacks that could quickly overwhelm civilian resources.

"In my estimation, [in the event of] a biological, a chemical or nuclear attack in any of the 50 states, the Department of Defense is best positioned - of the various eight federal agencies that would be involved - to take the lead," said Adm. Timothy J. Keating, the head of Northcom, which coordinates military involvement in homeland security operations.

The plans present the Pentagon with a clearer idea of the kinds and numbers of troops and the training that may be required to build a more credible homeland defense force. They come at a time when senior Pentagon officials are engaged in an internal, year-long review of force levels and weapons systems, attempting to balance the heightened requirements of homeland defense against the heavy demands of overseas deployments in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. ..."

There's just once eeency flaw in this plan: if the first responders are to be the police and the firepeople, where are the troops to back them up supposed to be coming from? Most of the reservists, who really truly should be functioning in that role, are off fighting an illegal war in Iraq. I guess we'll all have to go out and buy guns to protect ourselves from those terrorists.

Miulang

[Fondoo2]

Re: The Bush Watch - Chapter 2

wow I was really hopeing this thread was about something else...since it's about "President" Bush well thinking about him just makes my hippie hair fall out..

[Miulang]

The mental unraveling of the President...

Sounds like the Prez is growing as paranoid as Richard Nixon during his last days of the Presidency:

"...President George W. Bush’s increasingly erratic behavior and wide mood swings has the halls of the West Wing buzzing lately as aides privately express growing concern over their leader’s state of mind.

In meetings with top aides and administration officials, the President goes from quoting the Bible in one breath to obscene tantrums against the media, Democrats and others that he classifies as “enemies of the state.”

Worried White House aides paint a portrait of a man on the edge, increasingly wary of those who disagree with him and paranoid of a public that no longer trusts his policies in Iraq or at home.

“It reminds me of the Nixon days,” says a longtime GOP political consultant with contacts in the White House. “Everybody is an enemy; everybody is out to get him. That’s the mood over there.”

In interviews with a number of White House staffers who were willing to talk off the record, a picture of an administration under siege has emerged, led by a man who declares his decisions to be “God’s will” and then tells aides to “fuck over” anyone they consider to be an opponent of the administration.

"...Aides who raise questions quickly find themselves shut out of access to the President or other top advisors. Among top officials, Bush’s inner circle is shrinking. Secretary of State Colin Powell has fallen out of favor because of his growing doubts about the administration’s war against Iraq.

The President's abrupt dismissal of CIA Directory George Tenet Wednesday night is, aides say, an example of how he works.

"Tenet wanted to quit last year but the President got his back up and wouldn't hear of it," says an aide. "That would have been the opportune time to make a change, not in the middle of an election campaign but when the director challenged the President during the meeting Wednesday, the President cut him off by saying 'that's it George. I cannot abide disloyalty. I want your resignation and I want it now."

Tenet was allowed to resign "voluntarily" and Bush informed his shocked staff of the decision Thursday morning. One aide says the President actually described the decision as "God's will."

"...But the President who says he rules at the behest of God can also tongue-lash those he perceives as disloyal, calling them “fucking assholes” in front of other staff, berating one cabinet official in front of others and labeling anyone who disagrees with him “unpatriotic” or “anti-American.”

“The mood here is that we’re under siege, there’s no doubt about it,” says one troubled aide who admits he is looking for work elsewhere. “In this administration, you don’t have to wear a turban or speak Farsi to be an enemy of the United States. All you have to do is disagree with the President.”

The White House did not respond to requests for comment on the record..."

I think it's time for Laura to slip Dubya some Prozac or Xanax; chill him down a little before he starts hallucinating that everyone in the US of A is out to get him.

Miulang

[Kilinahe]

Re: The Bush Watch - Chapter 2

That would all be side-spittingly hiarious if it weren't so terrifying.

[Glen Miyashiro]

Re: The Bush Watch - Chapter 2

That article's a year old. I wonder what he's like these days.

[Miulang]

Re: The Bush Watch - Chapter 2

That article's a year old. I wonder what he's like these days.

How about one year crazier and more paranoid? When Patrick Fitzgerald finishes his investigation of the Plame leak in a few weeks (unless the Prez and his chronies can figure out a way to silence the guy) and everyone finally figures out that Karl Rove was the leaker and Dubya is obligated to get rid of that scheming, evil SOB, then his moral fortitude (and chief puppeteer) will no longer be at his side to advise him. Watch him fall apart---fast.

Miulang

[Glen Miyashiro]

Re: The Bush Watch - Chapter 2

Sounds about right.

[Miulang]

Of H.L. Mencken, Morons and the White House

Could famed journalist H.L. Mencken be turning in his grave today, knowing that his prophecy of a moron inhabiting the White House has come true?

"...A reader very recently acquainted me with the above H.L. Mencken quote. And how very prophetic an observation it has proven to be: a reporter predicting a moron in the White House, a moron insinuated therein by the perfect democratic actions of the “plain folks of the land,” and foreseeing it all some eighty odd years before it came to pass.

Mencken wrote the words in 1920 as part of a larger piece. Here’s the passage in context:

The larger the mob, the harder the test. In small areas, before small electorates, a first-rate man occasionally fights his way through, carrying even the mob with him by force of his personality. But when the field is nationwide, and the fight must be waged chiefly at second and third hand, and the force of personality cannot so readily make itself felt, then all the odds are on the man who is, intrinsically, the most devious and mediocre — the man who can most easily adeptly disperse the notion that his mind is a virtual vacuum.

The Presidency tends, year by year, to go to such men. As democracy is perfected, the office represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. We move toward a lofty ideal. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron. ..."


Miulang

[Fondoo2]

Re: The Bush Watch - Chapter 2

hey well when your the Prez you can just say "Let them eat Prozac"
http://www.illinoisleader.com/news/newsview.asp?c=21203

[Miulang]

Re: The Bush Watch - Chapter 2

Interesting historical note about the Pre-Depression era (The Mississippi River overflowed its banks that year too). Are we in the same boat today?

"In 1927, the Democratic Party had died and was awaiting burial. As depression approached, the coma-Dems, like Franklin Roosevelt, called for balancing the budget.

Then, as the waters rose, one politician finally said, roughly, "Screw this! They're lying! The President's lying! The rich fat cats that are drowning you will do it again and again and again. They lead you into imperialist wars for profit, they take away your schools and your hope and when you complain, they blame Blacks and Jews and immigrants. Then they push your kids under. I say, Kick'm in the ass and take your rightful share!"


Huey Long laid out a plan: a progressive income tax, real money for education, public works to rebuild Louisiana and America, an end to wars for empire, and an end to financial oligarchy. The waters receded, the anger did not, and Huey "Kingfish" Long was elected Governor of Louisiana in 1928.

At the time, Louisiana schools were free, but not the textbooks. Governor Long taxed Big Oil to pay for the books. Rockefeller's oil companies refused pay the textbook tax, so Long ordered the National Guard to seize Standard Oil's fields in the Delta.

Huey Long was called a "demagogue" and a "dictator." Of course. Because it was Huey Long who established the concept that a government of the people must protect the people, school, house, and feed them and give every man or woman a job who needs one.

Government, he said, "We The People," not plutocrats nor Halliburtons, must build bridges and levies to keep the waters from rising over our heads. All we had to do was share the nation's wealth we created as a nation. But that meant facing down what he called the "concentrations of monopoly power" to finance the needs of the public.

In other words, Huey Long founded the modern Democratic Party. Franklin Roosevelt and the party establishment, scared senseless of Long's ineluctable march to the White House, adopted his program, called it the New Deal, and later The New Frontier and the Great Society...."

Miulang