Letters to the Editor
Published Letters: 146 Editor's Choice: 12
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We are at more than one crossroads
[Read the article: "America at a Crossroads" veers to the right]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I watched last night's episode, and am watching tonight's offering right now. I agree that the offerings so far exhibit an underlying colonial bias, but there is information there, and depending on what one already perceives, the series can still be a valuable resource.
Last night's segment traced the history of "Al-Kaida" and the "Muslim Brotherhood," and predicted they will attack "America" again. Several "CIA" and "experts" of various kinds were interviewed (or at least they talked to anonymous interviewers ala Ken Burns), and made various criticisms and predictions, but the analysis was pretty shallow.
The most shallow aspects of what I have seen are that "Al-Kaida" must be "defeated," and that "America" has an overseer role on this planet. As long as world population grows unchecked, there will be widespread frustration and suffering. Fundamentalist religion or fanatical political movements will inevitably step into the vacuum to provide hope, meaning, identity, and association. "Defeat" one "Al-Kaida" and another will arise.
The idea - actually not so much an idea as a habit - that "America" has an overseer role on this planet is not only criminal in nature, but is futile. This habit has reached its culmination in the entirely criminal Bush regime. For a number of reasons - economic, social, political, ecological, logistical, practical - the era of the "American" empire is over. Whether Bush gets his invasion of "Iran" or not, it matters little. The empire is over. We have other concerns.
Chief among those concerns is Global Warming. As we will be seeing on an increasing basis every year, the idea of empire was a luxury. It was a luxury of the criminal elite in this country, and a quick way to become a member of the criminal elite was to become a theorist of empire, ala Henry Kissinger, Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Perle, and their ilk. It will be interesting to see what the fast track to the elite will be as the planet heats up. We can trust that PBS will let us know.
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We do not live in a black and white world
[Read the article: The private war of Chuck and Tom Hagel]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]This is a really moving story. The most touching is the part about the Hagel brothers' upbringing. It is amazing that they did so well after such a start in life.
I still have a hard time believing that senators - except Russ Feingold and a few others - could not see that the Bush gang was lying us into war. The world they live in is a strange one indeed. Chuck Hagel's "conservatism" is also a mystery. The key word in that part of the story is "ambition."
A tale for another day is Hagel's part-ownership in the voting machine company that counted the votes in his two Senate victories (read about it here: http://www.commondreams.org/views03/0131-01.htm). We do not live in a black and white world. Hagel can be honorable in condemning the "Iraq" "war" and still be a vote fraudster. As we get closer to his candidacy for president, maybe the truth will emerge. I would not vote for him no matter who his opponent is, except maybe Joe Lieberman.
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Fool me ten times, well, you can't get fooled again
[Read the article: Red State Update: Everybody's mad at George Tenet]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I hope I've fallen for the "Video Dog" enticements for the last time. In the realm of video usability, this one ranks as probably the worst. Every last time I "click here to play" I end up waiting and waiting for nothing.
Though putting videos on the Web is not rocket science, for some reason this feature calls for rocket science to actually see the video that is heralded. Not being a rocket scientist, I vacate the page, and go back to reading.
I'm sure to the insider this feature is simple. Enjoy it to your heart's content. I'll stick with YouTube.
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Fat chance
[Read the article: Condi Rice never looks back]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I don't think we need to be concerned about the political future of Condoleeza Rice. She is a key member of a criminal gang that illegally and with malice aforethought seized control of the Federal Government. As long as this criminal gang fails in its attempt to bomb and invade Iran, justice may yet be served.
The real test here is of us, the citizens of the United States of America, in our ability to recognize and properly respond to the presence of a criminal organization at the top of our governmental structure. Bush, Cheney, Rice, and the all-too-numerous other sociopaths that operate the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of our Federal government really don't amount to much as human beings, and will fade from the scene shortly. What does matter is the future of the planet, of life on the planet, and if our system can survive such criminality.
I actually think of Bush as a blessing in disguise. What if he were brilliant, an evil mastermind who schemed successfully to hold the entire world at bay, to institute a crony capitalist police state that would be beyond our present imagination?
We are lucky he is an inarticulate, bumbling incompetent. His perfidy has ruined it for the power elite that backed his reign of stupidity. We may actually get a real democracy thanks to him. All hail George W. Bush, idiot king! Pose again for another photo op! Ride a motorcycle! A hot air baloon! Go bungee jumping! Dress up as an astronaut! Wear a Patton outfit! A football uniform! Biker! Indian chief! Cowboy! Construction worker! Policeman! Make a disco album!
It has been surreal, but if we are lucky, we will have learned a great lesson from having had this regime in power. If we want to survive as a country and as a species, we can never let this happen again. Never!