Letters to the Editor
farbie
Published Letters: 114 Editor's Choice: 2
-
Impeach Bush
[Read the article: Impeach Bush]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Great article, Garrison. Don't think the Repubs will initiate an impeachment, and will have to wait for the Dems to return to power, WHICH AIN"T GONNA HAPPEN UNLESS WE FIX THE ELECTION SYSTEM in this Country!!! The Dems should be pushing their bills to fix the problems created by HAVA, the law that was supposed to fix the "hanging chad" problems of the 2000 election. The biggest problem of all? Electronic voting WITH NO PAPER TRAIL! This is a problem that simply has to be addressed now, before the fall elections. There are may other problems with Elections that the Carter Commission reported on last fall, but, at minimum, we need to fix the paper trail problem immediately! Each voter should get a paper ballot showing his or her selections BEFORE the vote is accepted, and the paper ballots should be used in any recount.
-
Facts Fail?
[Read the article: When facts fail]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Great interview, Tom. No question that Bush has gotten away with murder, figuratively and literally. No question that he has committed at least two major impeachable offenses, going to war on lies, and warrantless spying on Americans. Part of the problem is the mentality of the mainstream media in this country, which, unfortunately, is still under the influence of the years-long right-wing hararangue about the "so-called liberal media." (thank you Jonathan Alter) It's only the last two or three years that has seen a left and center pushback on the SCLM myth, and, mainly, on the Internet, which simply doesn't get into our "consciousness," as defined by television mainstream media. I think left and center needs to make a more conscious effort to create a "left wing noise machine" that calls to task the "right wing" bent of the media. Recent efforts by MOVEON.ORG, and others should help, but it will take awhile to get the balance back towards center, at least. We also need campaign finance reform: simply have the feds finance all federal elections, based on a candidate's ability to get small donations from a large number of voters, and with increased funds available to a publicly financed individual who's running against "rich Joe" who has unlimited resources. There's no constitutional bar (i.e. Buckley v Valeo) to such financing, since it doesn't limit the right of "rich Joe" to spend whatever he wants to get elected. Again, great interview.
-
Re: The Feingold gambit
[Read the article: The Feingold gambit]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I read your comments with keen interest, as I am a relatively new "convert" to the Weblog world. I began using the Web as a source for news, especially political news, after the Iraq invasion in 2003, and became a committed "internet news junkie" during the 2004 campaign. I was not a Deaniac in 2004, but, in retrospect, wished I had joined that bandwagon rather than Kerry's. Kerry's campaign was a microcosm of the problem with the Democratic party: too tepid, too unwilling to take risks on issues, especially the issue of "security." The Democrats' response to Feingold's Censure Resolution is absolutely the WRONG response, especially given the failure of the Republican-led Congress to begin any meaningful investigation of Bush's NSA Wiretapping. Without Feingold's Resolution, the NSA Wiretapping issue would be completely gone from Mainstream Media, and would barely bring a ripple to even online news sources. I have been e-mailing the Democratic Senators daily, and will continue to do so, until they come around to the correct point of view. At minimum, we need a full and complete investigation of the NSA Wiretapping Program undertaken by either the Senate Judiciary or Intelligence Committees, with witnesses giving testimony under oath.
-
BRING IT ON!
[Read the article: Bring 'em home or send a whole lot more?]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Mr. Grieve, you have outdone yourself this AM. Your suggestion about having a real debate on troop levels needed for "victory" in Iraq is precisely what is needed, NOW! When going to the polls this fall, the American people need to choose between "stay the course," which, in reality, means sharply increased troop levels and a probable draft, and phased withdrawal over the next year or so.
John Farbstein
-
What can we do to get the Democrats to move on this?
[Read the article: Democrats may come to regret not opposing Bush on torture]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Dear Mr. Greenwald, I have been reading your articles daily for the last week. (since you replaced Tim Grieve - is he on vacation?) You have been consistently great on the torture bill.
I have written many e-mails, and made at least three phone calls to my Senators, Boxer and Feinstein on this issue. As I put it in my e-mail to the Democratic Party, "What in holy hell is wrong with [the Democratic Party]? They are walking into the SAME trap that Rove set up for them in 2002, which is trying to "look like the Republicans" on the issue of the War on Terror. This has been the case all year, with the dismal support for Feingold's Censure Resolution and the failure to filibuster the Alito nomination.
As you predict in your article today, if the Democrats can't stand for anything, why bother to go out and vote for them?
I am absolutely convinced that if the Democrats were to take a stand, and say "Americans Don't Torture," and filibuster the torture bill successfully, that they would survive the Rovian spin on it. Rove's spin is old, and tired. Yet, if the Democrats don't wake up, and filibuster the bill, he will use it successfully to defeat them at the polls.
Thanks for your great articles. Keep up the good work.
Farbie