New Madness

Thanksgiving is over (maybe there is a god) and the madness of Christmas begins.
I don't happen to celebrate either holiday but if I did I would be thankful for every time I open a can without pain, bend over and can stand straight again or walk to the mailbox. It's those little things in life I love. I am grateful every time it rains and the roof does not leak, every time I can take a hot shower or turn the thermostat up to a comfortable temperature. Let me not get started on how wonderfully fortunate I feel for every single meal to which I am able to sit down . You see everyday is a day of Thanksgiving for me. My home is fully equipped with electricity so the lights work, the heat works, the TV works, the PC I am typing on works. My phone works too. I have everything I need.

Many people of the world cannot say these things. Sadly in Iraq, they do not even have clean water to drink forget the showers. Oh my! The air and the land has been fouled with depleted uranium, millions are homeless and the savagery continues with no end in sight. Those who still have homes have become accustomed to the sight of the dead on the streets outside their doors. Worse still are the injured they dare not offer assistance. Is this the freedom we sought to bring them? Is it any wonder they hate us?

The bottom line is clear. The Iraqi people are not now nor have they ever been a concern for George W Bush and his cronies. This is about the oil. More than that it is about controlling an oil rich region. Now they have set their sights on Iran. More death, more destruction, more human suffering, more plundering, pillaging and more madness.

While the oppressed of the world suffer needlessly, Americans ponder what junk they will buy from China to appease one another and assure themselves they are loving Christians. If I wanted to buy a Christmas gift for someone I think it might be a book. Something from Molly Ivins or Bill Moyers. Maybe Howard Zinn or Noam Chomsky. Perhaps a nice massage to help one focus on a bit of introspection. As it is the greatest gift I have to give is to share what I know and help Dennis Kucinich win the election.

Yes the time has come for America to educate itself about the world and spirituality. America has become a culture of greed and facades. I miss the old days when people really had values. I am old enough to recall them you see. Time we recognize the suffering of others in this old world, the one we have all but destroyed to satisfy our endless needs. We really are our brothers keepers after all. We are all members of the human family and as such we owe a debt to the world to be fair, honest, caring and just plain good world citizens.

So how do we do this? I know how we don't do it. We don't do it by dropping bombs. We do it the Jimmy Carter, JFK, MLK, Ghandi way. There are no winners in war and armed conflict. Every soldier who has ever fought a war knows that. Thousands of American and Iraqi families can tell you that no soldier who participates in war is uninjured. Those 18 years olds we sent to Iraq will never be the same kids they were before. The entire nation of Iraq will be old, sick, bitter, unhappy and have a good solid case of PTSD not to mention the birth defects that result from DU. Dick Cheney, GW Bush, at times like this I wish I believed in hell for there would surely be a special place there for you and Rummy and Wolfowitz and the rest who engineered this horror. I am angry and I curse you. May you rot before you die.

Letter From Iraq
By Jennifer Cecere

Please think of me in the morning,
When you rise to start your day.
Think of me when you do your job
For I am so far away.
They sent me here to fight a war
And I really don’t know what it’s for
But my days and nights are full of gore
Please think of me.

Please think of me in the evening,
When you turn your TV on.
Think of me as you watch the news
Remember I am gone.
Please know that I am wracked with fear.
I wish so much that I was there
With you where all my thoughts were clear.
Please think of me.

Please think of me in the desert,
Where the heat is so hard to bear.
Where my greatest wish is a shower,
In a place where there’s never a care.
It’s the simple things I miss so much,
A drive to the store, McDonalds for lunch
A lottery ticket bought on a hunch
Oh, think of me.

Some days are harder than others
It depends on how things go.
Like when they kill my brothers,
And my spirits sink so low
I sit down and cry,
I wish I could die,
And I know it was all for lies.
Think of me.

The things that I see are so awful.
There is never a beautiful sight
It’s all very grim and woeful
And the future does not look bright
I see babies die, I hear mothers cry
I hear fathers vow revenge.
They pick up their guns
For we’ve killed their sons
And the nightmare never ends.

Too Short to Be President?

Dennis Kucinich is NOT too short to be President.

James Madison was a mere 5'4". He was a fine president. Queen Victoria was 5' 0" and Barbara Boxer, power house that she is 4'11" tall. Is there such a thing as too short to be president?

Don't get me started on looks. I have two words to say about that. Richard Nixon.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/zach-kanin/does-height-matter-in-pol_b_73129.html

This and That

The Debates
After watching the Democratic debates I have come to the conclusion that Joe Biden is a pompus ass. Chris Dodd is a jerk. Obama is a twirp. Richardson is a Teddy Bear. Hillary is a shame. Edwards, eh, he's not bad. I could live with him in the WH. BUT, Dennis, now Dennis is the Bomb! MHO for what it is worth. I want Dennis in the WH in '08. There you have it.

Tazers
By now you have seen the video of the Polish non-English speaking immigrant who waited 10 hrs for his mother to meet him and in the end was tazered and killed by the police in Vancouver, BC, CA. In 10 hours no one was able to determine that the man needed some assistance? WTF? What are these people on? What planet is this? Don't people help each other anymore? Here is a man with no weapon who has not threatened anyone. He is lost, alone, unable to speak the language, just deplaned from his very first flight ever. He is tired, scared, anxious. This is not rocket science. Did no one in the airport notice this man in the baggage area for 10 hours? Of course he threw things. He was no doubt in a panic. So what do the police do, they taze and kill the man. He is tazed, on the floor writhing in pain, and they taze him again. Good grief. Then someone holds him down by putting his knee on the mans neck. Hello! Ever hear of breathing? I worked on some of the most dangerous psych units in this county. We did take downs all the time. We did not have tazers. We were trained to do a take down without harming anyone. Most of us were women, small women. If we could do it so can the police. It strikes me as sadistic somehow to repeatedly taze a person and even worse to kneel on a persons neck. The police departments need training in take downs. What is more, if the police cannot responsibly use their weapons they need to not be police. A tazer is a weapon. Supposedly non-leathal but people die from them too often to suit me. These same schmoos cannot find bomb parts in luggage. I am slapping my forehead here. How about you?

Tired of people being killed in the interest of safety.

Pakistan
Oh My Dog! Negroponte is being sent to Pakistan. I would bet the farm people will begin to die now. That seems to be his history. They don't call him Death Squad John for nothing.

Thought of the Week

Americas Disgrace

Our treatment of veterans is a national disgrace. It is not new either. We have been abandoning those who have fought for us since the Revolution.

Homelessness in America

The word is out, 25% of the homeless are veterans of the US military. I am not surprised when I consider the reason that many joined the military in the first place. Many of these people could not find work (compliments of outsourcing), they still can't, of course. Of those who had jobs before they were sent to Iraq, many find their jobs are not there anymore, which btw is illegal. Then there are the men and women with PTSD who have become unemployable by this horrible fiasco Beelza-Bush likes to call a war. There are the maimed as well. Kinda hard to work for the phone company without legs. Bush had the audacity to have himself smilingly photographed with some of the disfigured on Veteran Day. What did he have to smile about. He should have wept knowing that he was the cause of their problems. Instead he smiles with glee as if he enjoys being in the presence of those with missing limbs and faces burned beyond repair. What happens to the men and women, throw aways to Bushco, after they learn to walk on their new legs and get to go home. Do they have homes? Do they have families? If they do have families, will those families be able to cope with the PTSD, the physical limitations, the health problems heaped on these veterans? Living with someone with PTSD can be the most difficult and demanding situation ever. I know, I tried it. I failed. I nearly lost my life. Yet Jr. Bush smiles happily.

Bye Bye Blackwater

The Iraqi government is about to issue a new law ending the immunity of Blackwater and the approximately 8,500 contractors in Iraq. "The title of a letter sent by the interior ministry - and obtained exclusively CBS News - says it all: "Removing the legal immunity." Until now, security firms like Blackwater have operated under a grant of immunity issued in 2004 by the then-top American in Iraq, L. Paul Bremer. "

Paul Bremer, what a joke that guy is. The first thing he did in Iraq was to get rid of law enforcement there. To add insult to injury he uses private contractors like Blackwater to guard himself against the ensuing dangers. He btw was replaced with John Negroponte. What does that tell you about his job? Since Negroponte came along so did the death squads. Hmmm they seem to have followed him from South America.

Blackwater, Dyncorp, Triple Canopy and all the rest will not be missed. Though I cannot help but wonder what kind of chaos will ensue getting them out of there.

A Last Some Good News

Happily, Lt. Watada will not be tried again for refusing to participate in war crimes. On Nov. 8, the Honorable Bejamin Settle issued a preliminary injunction preventing the double jepaordy trial. Thank You Judge Settle.

During the initial trial the army shoot itself in the foot by disallowing crucial testimony. Is anyone surprised?

read the entire article: http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/111107A.shtml

TO PROTECT A WAR CRIMINAL

Sad Day For America

I am both sick and unhappy to read that by a 53 to 40 vote, Mukasey has been confirmed as our new Attorney General. What is most disturbing, over and above his background, is the fact that he cannot say water boarding is torture. He cannot admit that it is illegal. He cannot say those things because if he did he would obligate himself to accuse Beelza-Bush and his henchmen of war crimes. So it appears that once again we have an AG who thinks it is his job to protect the Chimp in Chief over and above our constitution.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/110907J.shtml
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071109/ap_on_go_co/senate_mukasey;_ylt=AiW0iTe7JUJrjgRIaFsnq0Os0NUE

"Six Democrats joined 46 Republicans and one independent in approving the judge, with his backers praising him as a strong choice to restore morale at the Justice Department and independently oversee federal prosecutions in the final months of the Bush administration.
Thirty-nine Democrats and one independent opposed him."

"He felt that he could not make that pronouncement without placing people at risk to be sued or perhaps even criminally prosecuted," said Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, the ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

What has this country become?

GO DENNIS

A nationwide poll shows Dennis Kucinich in the lead in 47 states. I think he is unstopable this time.

It seems to me that Americans are ready for an FDR type Democrat.

This gives me hope. Hope is something I have not felt for some time.

Thought of the Week

Have you done something this week to help turn our country around?

Torture The Topic De Jour

Rudy the Skull is either stupid or really does not want to be president. His idiotic comments about torture should be his total undoing. He is clearly unable to empathize with others and cares nothing about the eithical behavior of this country. Sound Familiar?

"His hyperbole is an insult to all American soldiers who have had to endure real torture," said retired Marine Sgt. Maj. Paul Chevalier, chairman of McCain's New Hampshire Veterans Advisory Committee.

"They talk about sleep deprivation," Giuliani told Iowa voters two weeks ago. "I mean, on that theory, I'm getting tortured running for President of the United States. That's plain silly."

Silly? Did he say silly? Not a word I would choose when speaking of sleep deprivation. I am not talking about getting to bed late and being up again early. That is nothing compared to this: "Orson Swindle, a McCain friend and fellow prisoner in Vietnam, says he underwent sleep deprivation for up to 20 days, and considered that torture." There are many forms of torture. Sleep deprivation is just one.

This brings me to water boarding. (Naturally we have to talk about water boarding.) Water boarding, according to those who have experienced it brings one to the brink of death. DEATH! The victim is then brought to life again and the process is repeated until they either tell all or actually do die.

BUT, what if you haven't anything to tell? Make something up? Such a dilema. What would you do?

It is time that this country made a move back to the way things were when our prisoners were treated well. When German POWs were held here in America, they did not attempt to escape. Why would they have wanted to go back to the front when they were not tortured, ate well and treated like human beings? It has not been our history to condone torture. Even George Washington during the Revolution found torture and maltreatment deplorable. Soldiers were admonished to treat prisoners kindly.

Don't misunderstand me, I know it has happened in the past even as far back as the Civil War. The thing is, it was always considered criminal behavior in this country. Now I hang my head in shame at the very idea that our government not only condones torture but encourages it.

KUCINICH YOU DA MAN

I am so proud of Dennis Kucinich today I am busting my buttons. Wow! What a courageous and sincere man. He is truly a modern day hero.

By now you have probably heard that he has succeeded in getting the votes to bring impeachment of Dick Vadar aka Cheney to the table. Way to go Dennis.

To my surprise most of the votes came from Republicans. Are they begining to wake up to the truth or is this a political manuver? I am not smart enough to know.

Bush vs Veterans

Senator Patty Murray urged President George W. Bush to approve legislation he has threatened to veto that would pay for veterans' programs including treatment for war wounds and mental health.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/110407Y.shtml

Einstein on Religion

(Einstein) wound up in old age being irrelevant on both the religious and scientific front. His God was too impersonal for the religionists; his physics was too idealistic for the scientists (idealistic in the sense that Einstein never abandoned his belief in a non-random creation). What's so heartening about him today is that Einstein never adopted the arrogant small-mindedness of contemporary atheists like Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens, neither of whom evinces the slightest awareness of the quantum revolution that occurred a century ago. Without a shadow of arrogance Einstein wrote, "What separates me from most so-called atheists is a feeling of utter humility toward the unattainable secrets of the harmony of the cosmos." I remain amazed that his beliefs are dismissed while those of much lesser minds earn general acceptance. Quite rightly, Einstein thought that atheists are slaves to the religious tradition they hate and hold such a grudge against traditional religion that "they cannot hear the music of the spheres."

Read the whole blog:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/deepak-chopra/einsteins-god-or-the-ho_b_63545.html

Kucinich

Rumsfeld memos corroborate targeting of Iran, Kucinich charges


Rumsfeld memos corroborate targeting of Iran Thursday, November 01, 2007 WASHINGTON, D.C. – Public disclosure of private memos from former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld provides further evidence, from the highest level, that the Bush Administration has been targeting Iran for aggression for longer than previously acknowledged, Democratic Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich said today.Rumsfeld, one of the architects and chief advocates of the war against Iraq, wrote in one memo, "Iraq is only one battleground," according to revelations in today’s Washington Post. In other memos, termed “snowflakes” by Administration officials, Rumsfeld wrote of the need to "keep elevating the threat," and "link Iraq to Iran," according to the newspaper account. Further, the Post reported, Rumsfeld argued, “…if we fail in Iraq, it will advantage Iran," in an April 2006 memo. “From the Oval Office on down, this Administration has been targeting Iran as the next domino it wants to topple,” Kucinich said today. “They used lies and deceit to take this nation into war, and they have been fabricating justifications to launch a second war against Iran. The criminality of these actions must be addressed by the Congress of the United States of America.”Congressman Kucinich, (D-OH), introduced Articles of Impeachment against Vice President Richard B. Cheney earlier this year for his role in laying the groundwork for the Iraq war. In recent weeks, Kucinich has argued that not only Cheney, but also President Bush and other top-ranking members of the Administration must be held accountable for possible crimes under the Constitution, the UN Charter, and international treaties.“The Congress has abrogated its responsibility to hold this President and his Cabinet accountable for the deaths of thousands of brave U.S. military men and women and more than one million innocent Iraqi civilians,” Kucinich said. “We have a moral obligation and the Constitutional authority to end this war and stop the President from bombing this nation into another war with Iran.”“The Congress is not doing its duty, and the other Presidential candidates are failing to exhibit leadership in addressing this threat of yet another war,” Kucinich said.It is possible that the impeachment resolution may reach the House floor as soon as next week.

More Power for the President

Germany 1932 Reduex

I never dreamed I'd see the day,
Americans would ever live this way.
In fear and dread, our freedoms gone.
We dare not mention what is wrong.

What happened to the First Amendment?
Why does congress sit still for this?

http://www.libertynewstv.com/Documents/execorder.htm

From Buzz Flash

GOP HYPOCRITE OF THE WEEK


LEARN MORE
Thursday, November 01, 2007

Richard Curtis
We have some advice for the macho-posturing Republican males. If you don't want people to think you are gay, a cross-dresser, adulterer, transsexual, or a child molester, you better become a Democrat or Independent.Because at the fast pace of sexual perversity being exposed among elected Republican officials -- almost all of whom are invariably publicly and sanctimoniously opposed to gays and adultery -- it's kind of de facto questionable whether any white GOP male who claims to be for "family values" is not a "pervert."Yes, a now resigned state representative from Washington State got himself in a cross-dressing, fellatio, male sex for hire "tight spot" the other day in Spokane, where not too long ago the Republican mayor was uncovered as a sexual harasser of his male employees.Our mind is dizzy with recent tales of right-wing debauchery. While Curtis has indeed taken it to a new level of tabloid sensation, the pattern is the same: repression and hypocrisy.
Read More >>>http://gophypocrites.com/2007/11/hyp07044.html
For More Than 180 Headlines

Corp Watch

http://www.warprofiteers.com/img/original/protest%20lobby%2010-11.jpg

Iraqi Parliment Votes to End Blackwaters Immunity

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/103107B.shtml

"The Iraqi government's decision followed reports that the State Department had promised Blackwater guards immunity from prosecution in its investigation of the shootings. On Tuesday, the State Department confirmed that some Blackwater employees questioned in connection with the shootings had been granted a form of immunity in exchange for their statements.
The draft law canceling the private security firms' immunity was written by the legal adviser to Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki. It would overturn a measure known as Order 17, dating from the administration of L. Paul Bremer III.
Under the version approved by the cabinet, foreign security companies would have to meet several criteria, including a requirement that all their weapons be licensed by the Iraqi Interior Ministry. Their equipment, including helicopters and armored vehicles, would have to be registered with the appropriate Iraqi agencies and all foreign employees would have to obtain visas from the Iraqi Foreign Ministry.
Currently, many contractors in Iraq, including those who work for security firms, enter the country without regular visas because they have badges that say they work with the Defense Department or another agency either of the United States or of a country in the American-led coalition. The Iraqi government previously accepted the badges rather than requiring visas.
"This decision does not just cover Blackwater; it will cover all the foreign security firms operating in Iraq," said Thamir Ghadban, the chairman of Mr. Maliki's council of advisers. "This law will protect Iraqis and Iraq's sovereignty."

Quote of the Day

"Mercenaries are disloyal and disunited. They have nothing other to keep them in a battle but a meager wage which is just about enough to make them want to kill for you...but not enough to make them want to die for you."

Machiavelli, as translated by John Cale.