Congratulations to Rep. Pete Starks. Finally, a Democrat with the courage to call a spade a spade. Respect and authority should never be considered "rights" of any office, even the Presidency. They must be earned by appropriate behavior, something George Bush has rarely manifested.
Ultimately, using the word "partisan" as a pejorative derives from a major flaw in our decidedly dysfunctional democracy: namely, the idea that freedom of speech means that different viewpoints are all equally worthy. Some issues are, of course, open to compromise. Others, including lying to justify war, torturing and spying on American citizens are contemptible, and should be condemned and prosecuted, as provided by the constitution. The failure of Democratic leadership to do their duty is inexcusable. Starks' frustration is entirely understandable.
Adequate healthcare is a basic human right. Denying it to children in order to demonstrate his "relevance" is just one more demonstration by Bush of his unsuitability for office. Thank God at least one Democrat has given voice to the feelings of many, if not most Americans.
Friday, October 19, 2007
Sunday, October 7, 2007
Apology
Just got another letter published in the Progressive Populist, 10/15 issue. My fourth in four months; every other issue!!! The text of the letter follows:
My friend Mick Finn (his real name), a disabled Vietnam vet, has an idea that seems well worth sharing with as many others as possible. He notes that a certain percentage of us knew with considerable certainty that Bush’s War on Iraq was a lousy idea from the beginning. Let’s be conservative and say we were 15% of the country. The polls now tell us that around 70% agree with us.
Mick’s idea is that the 55% or so who have finally gotten the message should acknowledge that they were wrong and then offer their humble apologies for questioning our patriotism at the time. Ok, we know a couple of the Democratic candidates for President have done so already, but that still leaves a lot of folks with egg on their faces. Why not emulate South Africa and begin the process of reconciliation with heartfelt apologies?
While we’re at it, maybe we could get the same consideration from those who bought Reagan’s Social Darwinist scheme a quarter century ago and bequeathed us a horrifically dysfunctional society. Many of us were immediately crying “wolf” at the prospect of trashing the Progressive Tax laws, deregulation, cowboy militarism and shredding the social safety net. By now, anyone who thinks any of that was ever a good idea is either mentally challenged or consciously evil. These so-called “Conservative” ideas were and are both impractical and immoral. The unregulated marketplace will always yield the worst kind of Social Darwinism, by maximizing its rewards to those who need and deserve them least. The result is nothing less than a Eugenics scheme, designed to give an insensitive and uncaring minority an enormous advantage over the rest of us through as many generations as possible. Their attempt to repeal the Inheritance Tax speaks for itself.
My friend Mick Finn (his real name), a disabled Vietnam vet, has an idea that seems well worth sharing with as many others as possible. He notes that a certain percentage of us knew with considerable certainty that Bush’s War on Iraq was a lousy idea from the beginning. Let’s be conservative and say we were 15% of the country. The polls now tell us that around 70% agree with us.
Mick’s idea is that the 55% or so who have finally gotten the message should acknowledge that they were wrong and then offer their humble apologies for questioning our patriotism at the time. Ok, we know a couple of the Democratic candidates for President have done so already, but that still leaves a lot of folks with egg on their faces. Why not emulate South Africa and begin the process of reconciliation with heartfelt apologies?
While we’re at it, maybe we could get the same consideration from those who bought Reagan’s Social Darwinist scheme a quarter century ago and bequeathed us a horrifically dysfunctional society. Many of us were immediately crying “wolf” at the prospect of trashing the Progressive Tax laws, deregulation, cowboy militarism and shredding the social safety net. By now, anyone who thinks any of that was ever a good idea is either mentally challenged or consciously evil. These so-called “Conservative” ideas were and are both impractical and immoral. The unregulated marketplace will always yield the worst kind of Social Darwinism, by maximizing its rewards to those who need and deserve them least. The result is nothing less than a Eugenics scheme, designed to give an insensitive and uncaring minority an enormous advantage over the rest of us through as many generations as possible. Their attempt to repeal the Inheritance Tax speaks for itself.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Privatization
Testimony today from Eric Prince, the founder and CEO of Blackwater: chilling, disturbing, but hardly surprising. Bush's Privte army, his Janissary (go ahead and look it up!), is but a single instance of an extremely dangerous phenomenon that is a cornerstone of the Class War the economic elite have been perpetrating on the rest of us for nearly three decades. Privatization is a euphemism for instiitutionalized white collar crime. And it is hardly limited to our beloved country. Post-communist Russia and China have set all-time world records for theft of public assets. Multi-nationals have bought and privatized water companies and other public utilities around the world. Privatization of Iraq's oil wealth was one of, if not the only motivation for the War on Iraq in the first place, and only a complete fool could believe that Rumsfeld and his fellow Neo-cons were unaware (despite their public pronouncements about a new, streamlined, hi-tech army) that the lion's share of the war's expenses would have to be paid, with minimal accountability, to private corporations.
History will note that the current era makes the Teapot Dome scandals look like chump change; only the late Nineteenth Century privatization of the National Railroad system and the monopolization of the Industrial Revolution by a handful of rapacious "robber barons" (with the support of well-paid Government officials) provides a historical comparison to the present transfer of public wealth to a privileged few. And history will be almost as critical of the failure of those who knew and know better and have failed to make ANY effort to fight back. What opposition? Don't know about you, but I have not been "represented" by ANYONE in our so-called Representative Government for many years.
Time for real change! Not just more articles and books (Fantasy Baseball), because one cannot reason with those who are mentally ill behind money and power. Again, if Martin Luther king Jr were still here, he would be organizing massive civil disobedience, no matter the consequences. Enough is enough!
History will note that the current era makes the Teapot Dome scandals look like chump change; only the late Nineteenth Century privatization of the National Railroad system and the monopolization of the Industrial Revolution by a handful of rapacious "robber barons" (with the support of well-paid Government officials) provides a historical comparison to the present transfer of public wealth to a privileged few. And history will be almost as critical of the failure of those who knew and know better and have failed to make ANY effort to fight back. What opposition? Don't know about you, but I have not been "represented" by ANYONE in our so-called Representative Government for many years.
Time for real change! Not just more articles and books (Fantasy Baseball), because one cannot reason with those who are mentally ill behind money and power. Again, if Martin Luther king Jr were still here, he would be organizing massive civil disobedience, no matter the consequences. Enough is enough!
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