Angie
9th June 2002, 13:11
Commentary by A. E. Summar. Website source (http://appallingsilence.gossimer.net/).
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"Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind. And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded by patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader and gladly so. How do I know? For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar."
--Julius Caesar
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All right, I admit it: I hate George W. Bush and everything he stands for. I hate the Resident because he is provably a liar and a thief; because of his tireless lust for power and because he is a diplomatic nightmare, too arrogant to heed world opinion or protect international alliances. I hate Dubya and I would be dishonest and a fraud if I didn't make this clear from the very beginning.
In my lonely sojourns through the depths of online alternative journalism, I constantly find new evidence of Bush's personal shortcomings: his problems with drug abuse, his notable lack of academic achievement, his tenuous grasp of the English language. I have learned of his family's connection to organized crime and the Nazi party. The Bush family has as many proverbial skeletons in its closet as the Gottis. These things matter in defining Bush's character--but they are limited as evidence of Bush's failings now. In all honesty, I myself have indulged in such personal smearings of the man, mainly because to do so is mildly gratifying, even if it is, admittedly, cheap.
Lately, however, Bush's ignorance, inarticulate jabberings, and past frat boy excesses seem virtuous compared to his political behavior, which has been at once predictable and outrageous. To state it frankly, he is out of control.
Put aside the fact that Bush is more interested in protecting his corporate financiers than protecting the planet. Put aside the fact that Bush's administration has set a precedent in its secrecy and devious manipulation of the September 11 attacks. Put aside Bush's unwillingness to acknowledge that endless warmongering only further endangers American lives. Put these things aside and focus on just one important fact: never before has a United States president demanded such absolute power. Never before has a president been so unwilling to seek the truth behind a national tragedy. Never before has an administration been so blatant in its contempt for American taxpayers.
Bush's latest disclosure has me at once horrified and in awe: his proposal to "reorganize" (read: centralize) the alphabet soup of federal law enforcement agencies was formed entirely in secret. In fact, gloats mainstream whorenalist Dana Milbank for the Washington Post:
"The proposal was designed largely by just four of President Bush's most trusted senior aides, meeting for 10 days in a bunker-style, secure conference room beneath the White House."
Excuse me? Four of his most "trusted senior aides"? Then where the hell was Congress? Perhaps Bush owns an abridged version of the United States Constitution, but in my copy Article I, Section 1 is pretty specific:
All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives.
Nowhere in the Constitution is the president allowed to form his own legislative body; hence, the creation of the Office of Homeland Security and the subsequent appointment of Tom Ridge as its director was illegal. Similarly, Bush's ultra-secret proposal for a cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security is, if possible, even more illegal. The manner in which it was casually leaked at the last minute is equally confounding:
"White House officials figured that the element of surprise would give their proposal a better chance of success. Early leaks, they said, would have allowed opponents, particularly committee chairmen who stand to lose authority under the proposal, to gain the initiative."(Milbank)
So what they're telling us is that in order to avoid the normal processes of democratic debate, dissection, and revision of a new legislative proposal, the Bush regime intentionally withheld vital information from Congress, the senior officials slated to surrender their jurisdiction to the new DHS conglomerate, and the lapdog media. And of course, I'm sure this was in no way intended to distract the populace from the Congressional investigation of September 11 (which will certainly be nothing but a whitewash anyway).
In theory, the country has seen such secrecy in the past; under Nixon, Ford, and Bush I (whose reign really included the Reagan years). There is, however, a crucial difference this time around: post-9-11 America is a vulnerable nation of ostriches. We are unwilling to face the truth however persistently it may slap us in the face. The corrupt and abnormally servile media cartel has shown its stripes as a mere propaganda regurgitator of which Goebbels would be proud.
Before our very eyes, a small but infinitely powerful cabal of corporate hustlers is busily dismantling American dignity, safety, prosperity, and most of all, freedom. As in 1940's Germany, American soldiers are "just following orders" while they commit atrocities against women and children. Americans, like Hitler's "good Germans", are thirsty for vengeance and enthralled by US military might. We cannot accept these things, however, without paying the ultimate toll: the abandonment of our basic humanity.
Yes, I hate what Bush II has done to my country. I hate his smug hypocrisy, his unacceptable lack of brainpower, and that nasty gleam in his eye every time someone asks him about civilian casualties in Afghanistan or mentally retarded death row inmates in Texas. And I am justified in this hatred. You see, I love this country and the republic that it could be. Hating Bush is more than acceptable; in today's America, it is a patriotic duty.
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Note: The website source shows the article, with links frequently attached to certain points the writer is making. Worth a look at that version if you're looking for more information.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind. And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded by patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader and gladly so. How do I know? For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar."
--Julius Caesar
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
All right, I admit it: I hate George W. Bush and everything he stands for. I hate the Resident because he is provably a liar and a thief; because of his tireless lust for power and because he is a diplomatic nightmare, too arrogant to heed world opinion or protect international alliances. I hate Dubya and I would be dishonest and a fraud if I didn't make this clear from the very beginning.
In my lonely sojourns through the depths of online alternative journalism, I constantly find new evidence of Bush's personal shortcomings: his problems with drug abuse, his notable lack of academic achievement, his tenuous grasp of the English language. I have learned of his family's connection to organized crime and the Nazi party. The Bush family has as many proverbial skeletons in its closet as the Gottis. These things matter in defining Bush's character--but they are limited as evidence of Bush's failings now. In all honesty, I myself have indulged in such personal smearings of the man, mainly because to do so is mildly gratifying, even if it is, admittedly, cheap.
Lately, however, Bush's ignorance, inarticulate jabberings, and past frat boy excesses seem virtuous compared to his political behavior, which has been at once predictable and outrageous. To state it frankly, he is out of control.
Put aside the fact that Bush is more interested in protecting his corporate financiers than protecting the planet. Put aside the fact that Bush's administration has set a precedent in its secrecy and devious manipulation of the September 11 attacks. Put aside Bush's unwillingness to acknowledge that endless warmongering only further endangers American lives. Put these things aside and focus on just one important fact: never before has a United States president demanded such absolute power. Never before has a president been so unwilling to seek the truth behind a national tragedy. Never before has an administration been so blatant in its contempt for American taxpayers.
Bush's latest disclosure has me at once horrified and in awe: his proposal to "reorganize" (read: centralize) the alphabet soup of federal law enforcement agencies was formed entirely in secret. In fact, gloats mainstream whorenalist Dana Milbank for the Washington Post:
"The proposal was designed largely by just four of President Bush's most trusted senior aides, meeting for 10 days in a bunker-style, secure conference room beneath the White House."
Excuse me? Four of his most "trusted senior aides"? Then where the hell was Congress? Perhaps Bush owns an abridged version of the United States Constitution, but in my copy Article I, Section 1 is pretty specific:
All legislative Powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and a House of Representatives.
Nowhere in the Constitution is the president allowed to form his own legislative body; hence, the creation of the Office of Homeland Security and the subsequent appointment of Tom Ridge as its director was illegal. Similarly, Bush's ultra-secret proposal for a cabinet-level Department of Homeland Security is, if possible, even more illegal. The manner in which it was casually leaked at the last minute is equally confounding:
"White House officials figured that the element of surprise would give their proposal a better chance of success. Early leaks, they said, would have allowed opponents, particularly committee chairmen who stand to lose authority under the proposal, to gain the initiative."(Milbank)
So what they're telling us is that in order to avoid the normal processes of democratic debate, dissection, and revision of a new legislative proposal, the Bush regime intentionally withheld vital information from Congress, the senior officials slated to surrender their jurisdiction to the new DHS conglomerate, and the lapdog media. And of course, I'm sure this was in no way intended to distract the populace from the Congressional investigation of September 11 (which will certainly be nothing but a whitewash anyway).
In theory, the country has seen such secrecy in the past; under Nixon, Ford, and Bush I (whose reign really included the Reagan years). There is, however, a crucial difference this time around: post-9-11 America is a vulnerable nation of ostriches. We are unwilling to face the truth however persistently it may slap us in the face. The corrupt and abnormally servile media cartel has shown its stripes as a mere propaganda regurgitator of which Goebbels would be proud.
Before our very eyes, a small but infinitely powerful cabal of corporate hustlers is busily dismantling American dignity, safety, prosperity, and most of all, freedom. As in 1940's Germany, American soldiers are "just following orders" while they commit atrocities against women and children. Americans, like Hitler's "good Germans", are thirsty for vengeance and enthralled by US military might. We cannot accept these things, however, without paying the ultimate toll: the abandonment of our basic humanity.
Yes, I hate what Bush II has done to my country. I hate his smug hypocrisy, his unacceptable lack of brainpower, and that nasty gleam in his eye every time someone asks him about civilian casualties in Afghanistan or mentally retarded death row inmates in Texas. And I am justified in this hatred. You see, I love this country and the republic that it could be. Hating Bush is more than acceptable; in today's America, it is a patriotic duty.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Note: The website source shows the article, with links frequently attached to certain points the writer is making. Worth a look at that version if you're looking for more information.