Letters to the Editor
djtoth
Published Letters: 289 Editor's Choice: 47
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The President Misunderdeciderates on bin Laden
[Read the article: Dead or alive, more or less]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]In a world of uncertainty, it is good to know the president is unwavering in his search for Osama bin Laden or not. It is only a matter of time until we find the man who is or is not the head of a terrorist command structure, whether the CIA is looking for him or not. The President stands by his words: We want him dead or alive or not no matter what Laura says or what the rest of the world thinks.
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The Bush Doctrine: Postemption
[Read the article: Tastes great, less filling]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Tony Snow is the perfect Spokesperson for George Bush. He is able to make Bush's policies sound as ridiculous as they really are by trying to avoid explaining them. What he does, as any good structuralist critic will tell you, is capture the presidnet's thought process itself rather than the actual thoughts. This is an especially effective technique to describe policies that have required no thought. The central irony here is that Bush established his preemption policy after 9/11, so it is really a post-preemption policy, or as Bush himself might say, a 'postemption' policy. Iraq is the perfect example: Iraq develops a weapons program in the early 1990s which is completely dismantled by the late 90s, and Bush postempts this imminent threat to our national security in 2002. In May of 2003, Bush postempts the end of the war by declaring victory. Cheney, the master mind of the 1% Doctrine, postempts the insurgency by declaring that we are in the last throes of the insurgency. It probably isn't necessary to explain how Bush postempted the Geneva Conventions, the UCMJ, and the Consitution, and other Federal Laws. Like a cat, Bush is crouched in the grass just waiting to postempt North Korea and Iran. The victory banners have already been printed, Karl Rove is ready with the propaganda campaign to use our victory to stamp out liberalism, and the Republican party is poised to postempt the November elections.
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The Real Meaning of Rove's Statement
[Read the article: And who would that be, Karl?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Let's examine Rove's words. "Should" is a way of establishing the pretense of ethical behavior without actually demonstrating ethical behavior. I should be working, but I'm writing a letter to Salon. "Be" of course brings up the key dilemma facing Washington politicians: the meaning of is. "Is" is a 'being verb' not an action verb. "Fired" is what happens when one is not competent; 'imprisoned' is what happens when you leak classified information and endager national security. So what was Rove really saying: Scooter Libby should not be prosecuted since he has already been fired.
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Reputation, Reputation, Reputation
[Read the article: In defense of Ann Coulter]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]In the future it would be helpful if Salon would use the phrase "Plagiarist Ann Coulter" when referring to the former journalist, Ann Coutler.
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Good News and Bad News
[Read the article: On payday, it's good to be Rove]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The good news is that my wife makes more than Karl Rove and received more than three times Rove's increase just to take her current job. The bad news is that we will actually lose money because of the Alt-Min Tax. The good news is that after 40 years of teaching, I make almost twice as much as a low-level White House staffer. The bad news is that after 40 years of teaching I make less now in real terms than when I started.
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American Idle
[Read the article: Who's "quaint" now?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Salon should sponsor a talentless contest in which the loser gets to be the new White House Press Secretary.
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An Important Question
[Read the article: The terrorist in the cornfield]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Does anyone know if the world's largest bottle of Ketchup is on the list?
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Dismantling the Narrative
[Read the article: Novak: Fitzgerald knew, but I'm still not saying]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Novak has not forgotten anything. He is not changing his story. He is part of the Rove propaganda machine that is working to change the narrative. There was no 'plot' to discredit Plame. The 'real' leak by an unamed, 'high-level,' 'non-political operative' was INADVERTANT according to a third party who told Novak after the fact. Novak, who should be on trial for his role in this sordid affair, is attempting to untie the narrative knot but claiming there was no story in the first place. "It was all a simple mistake. I found Plame's name in Who's Who's (under CIA Agents who need outing)." By the time Libby actually goes to trial, the public will have been mollified, and when Bush finally pardons Libby, the public will see it is a noble act.
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A Thousands Points of Light
[Read the article: The people we pay]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]How about an all volunteer White House? Better yet, why don't we save money and contract out the White House to Haliburton and cut out the middle men?
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The Zoolander Strategy
[Read the article: A strategy for victory? Not so much]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Maybe we could start a school for president's who can't read good. Wasn't Bush warned repeatedly about all these things? Haven't both Democrats and Republicans been calling for a real plan for since the beginning of the war? Why did we have to wait four years for the GAO to write the egoogly on Iraq?
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Competency Testing for Politicians
[Read the article: Immigrants = livestock Baghdad = Washington]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Steve King is another example of why we need national compentency standards for politicians. George W. Bush is proof that anyone can grow up and be president, but perhaps we should re-examine this particular aspect of the American Dream in the light of the overwhemingly difficult problems we now face thanks to the overwhelming incompentence of the President and members of congress.
I call my plan "No Politician Left Behind." We treat politicial candidates the same way we treat elementary school children. We make them take tests before they can receive funding for their campaigns, and we punish the politican parties that do meet the standards by withholding public funding. We also make one slight change to the way we vote by adding an additional choice: none of the above. This would force both parties to field qualified candidates.
Here is a sample question:
Given the current situation in the world, which of the following actions would you support:
a. Passing an consitutional amendment making flag burning a federal crime.
b. Stopping World War III
c. Ending the War in Iraq
d. Taking immediate action to reduce COs emmisions
I am sure that most sixth graders could get this right. Just as nearly half the senate has gotten it wrong.
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Flori-duh!
[Read the article: The suicide mission, or Katherine Harris runs for the U.S. Senate]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Of course, Katherine Harris will win the election.