Letters to the Editor
Published Letters: 2149 Editor's Choice: 7
-
@James Elliot
[Read the article: Jamie Kirchick's fantasies of the grave Muslim threat]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]People like Kirchick and the pro-war right-wing movement of which he is a part
I don't think its productive to get in TOO extensive discussions over political labels, especially considering that we now live in a world where Pat Buchannan can and has been labelled a lefty. But Glenn sentence construction above is reather clear. You don't personally need to be right-winger to nevertheless be a member of the pro-war right-wing movement. Joe Lieberman, Joe Klein and for that matter Golden Boy are easily thought of examples of people who identify as being left wing who are nevertheless card carrying members of the pro-war movement.
I thought your effort to enforce particular rules of "rational debate" were misguided because while we're here arguing over the particulars of acceptable discourse, a large, vocal minority of our countrymen are trying to launch a cataclysmic clash of civilizations. It doesn't feel to me as if we have time to sweat the small stuff.
-
Hey guys, I'm back!
[Read the article: Jamie Kirchick's fantasies of the grave Muslim threat]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Did I miss anything?
[looks forlornly over the shattered remains of a discussion thread - shakes head]
Well I can't say I didn't warn them.
In the meantime for GB:
http://www.healthyplace.com/Communities/ocd/sandra/treatment.htm
Please take two of these at bedtime and don''t bother showing up in the morning
-
Its called a hangover.
[Read the article: The endless, meaningless blather from the Washington establishment]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Its easy to forget the exhilaration that the original Iraq invasion inspired among these same people. It was exciting. It was a rush. And God help anyone who failed to jump on the train as it was leaving (Remember the Dixie Chicks). So now we're waking up and discovering that we've pretty much ruined everything we touched. But to admit as much would really reveal just how delusional we were in '03. Hence the endless rolling FU.
-
If he is right
[Read the article: The endless, meaningless blather from the Washington establishment]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]this administration is even more corrupt and hard-hearted than I had imagined.
We are discussing the most execution-happy governer Texas had ever seen. The one who openly mocked a death-row inmate's plea for clemency. And you're just now realizing that this administration has absolutely zero regard for human life if it interferes in any way with their ambitions!
Coming on the heels of Boehner's refering to the death of our soldiers and countrymen as "a small price to pay", I suppose I can understand why this aspect of the Bush legacy is coming into sharper focus, but it's hardly news. The man has no moral compass whatsoever.
-
seems much more paranoid
[Read the article: The endless, meaningless blather from the Washington establishment]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]The right wing seems much more paranoid and deluded today than they did a generation ago.
I don't think they're actually more paranoid. It was just a fortunate coincidence that the Soviet threat seemed sufficiently menacing relative to the vivid nightmares of the war cheerleaders. They after all had a rather large conventional Army, an abundance of nuclear tipped missles and a reasonably long list of reliable client-state allies.
Now if we had gone into Viet Nam motivated by the fear of individuals wearing explosive belts, then the degree of paranoia we were experiencing at the would have been more apparent.
-
value in the war
[Read the article: The endless, meaningless blather from the Washington establishment]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]telling......
-
That pesky Constitution
[Read the article: American war culture in a nutshell]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Empower the Congress (and only the Congress)
To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;
To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two Years;
To provide and maintain a Navy;
To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;
To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions;
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline
prescribed by Congress;
To put it in terms that might be more familiar to our trolls: The Army serves at the pleasure of the Congress and the President in his role as CinC also answers to a Congress that is free to order him to stand down. That they don't have the balls to do so is a separate problem but if your going to swear an oath to defend the Constitution perhaps you should read it first.
-
It might be added
[Read the article: American war culture in a nutshell]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]That the whole reason those safeguards were put in the Constitution in the first place is because our founders had enough experience to realize that without them, precisely the sort of idiocy we're seeing (with the President thinking he's got his own personal Army and is accountable to nobody) was inevitable.
-
Just another example of how far we've shifted.
[Read the article: Michael Mukasey's role in the Jose Padilla case]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I didn't know there were any right wingers still around that really followed the rule of law (as opposed to just claiming to "believe" in the rule of law).
Your incredulousness (as well as Elephantman's spewings)
help illustrate just how far the landscape has shifted. There was a time when being Conservative MEANT being in favor of limited Government, low spending, low taxes, Constitutional originalism and individual freedom. Of course this has always been a matter of lip service but at least self-identified conservatives knew the drill even if they didn't live by it.
Now self-identified Conservatives are at the vanguard of destroying the Constitution and ignoring Freedom. I find it reassuring that there are exceptions to the rule, but while the current authoritarian movement can be called many things, Conservative is not among them.
-
Just for Yucks......
[Read the article: Michael Mukasey's role in the Jose Padilla case]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Let's pretend that a proper defenition of a state of war would include a declaration of the same from Congress. I know that in this day and age it seems quaint but it would help clarify the discussion. It would also put the definition and determination of "enemy combatant" squarely back where the Founders intended.
-
Breaking:
[Read the article: Michael Mukasey's role in the Jose Padilla case]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Bush appointee not a shameless hack
Details at 11:00
-
I wonder why
[Read the article: Michael Mukasey's role in the Jose Padilla case]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]http://www.blackwaterusa.com/
The Blackwater USA website appears to be down.
-
Perhaps Mr. Broder is overdue.....
[Read the article: Limitless wrongness]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]for another one of his famous trips to the heartland.
He'll be quite surprised at the number of lifelong Republicans who nevertheless regard Bush to be the worst thing that's happened to America in their lifetime.