Plus ca change...

Rolling Stone published a devastating article yesterday, written by Mark Boal. It illuminates the activities of a so called "kill team" of US Army soldiers stationed in Afghanistan. It could just as easily be detailing the activities of US soldiers stationed in Vietnam, during that deeply unpopular war. It lays bare the savagery that ensues as a result of war, war designed and planned by University graduates, but fought by semi-literate, mis-educated "children." Can we really expect nineteen and twenty year olds to have any lasting conception of the pain and suffering that they cause when taking life unnecessarily? Perhaps. History shows us, repeatedly, that this is not the case. At any rate, the article is a must read...

Welcome back

Well, after a lengthy absence, I'm back. Our small world has changed, and I'm looking forward to adding my commentary to the general stream. An article at Wired online caught my eye today, written by Noah Schachtman. It discusses the full scope of the failed anthrax investigation carried out by the FBI and the US Postal Inspection Service. I say failed, because the investigation yielded no arrests or convictions, ruined the reputation of one innocent scientist, and seemingly harried another into the grave. I leave it to you to decide for yourself the efficacy of the investigation, but I have a couple comments. Firstly, I find it very interesting that while the FBI availed itself of assistance from USAMRIID, and Fort Detrick, the US military did not have a role in investigating the crime. The article refers repeatedly to the various scientists and researchers at USAMRIID who assisted the FBI's investigation, yet they seem to all be civilian contractors. There is no mention of any help, or investigative prowess from actual Army reseachers. The civilians have access to anthrax so they can better prepare antidotes, but this attack utilized weaponzied anthrax, and only classified military programs could have anything to do with that. Secondly, the lead FBI investigator, Edward Montooth, asserted that "you're never gonna know a single cause or motive for why it was done." That is an astonishing statement for a sworn federal officer to make. Establishing motive is the basis of criminal investigation, and the FBI has singularly failed to understand why this crime was perpetrated.

The Legacy of Bush the Younger... As told by Tara Hill

This article appeared today online at CNN.com...

That an African-American could or would waste breath extolling the virtues of any member of the Bush clan, but in particular of Bush the Younger is absolutely astonishing. You compare the legacy of President Clinton, a Rhodes scholar, with Bush, a man who could barely speak the English language? You allow that the debacle in Iraq was at the very least, a "miscalculation" and yet you still believe that he "delivered on the moral front?" Seriously, how can that possibly square? Thousands of your own men and women killed or maimed, tens to hundreds of thousands of other people's sons and daughters killed or maimed or displaced, all in service to a war that the world knew was wrong, and that Americans "suddenly" discovered was wrong in 2006. There will be no legacy for Bush. He is and was an embarrassment, first to the state of Texas, then to your country as a whole. The "moral standing" of the United States has never been brought more low by a President. You sling mud at Clinton, but if you will remember any stain he left on the Presidency was only in the minds of conservative reactionaries. Governments around the world joined together in mocking the puerile attacks by the Republican party. And, it was no less a "luminary" than Newt Gingrich himself who recently admitted to pursuing and engaging in an affair while he was leading the impeachment proceedings against President Clinton. Whatever you think you know, Ms Wall, you do not. Whatever Bush and his cabal have told you, you are misinformed. Whatever purported attack that Bush's handlers are spending much energy to leak into the news, that would show the "greatness" of Bush, forget it. Doesn't exist. If an attack was thwarted, I have no doubt the progenitors were more upset with US military action in Iraq, Somalia, Ethiopia, Iran, Pakistan, and/or Indonesia, than any incursions into Afghanistan. The hornet's nest has been stirred, and violently shaken. Bush, as a direct result of his stunning lack of mental capacity, has put the world on a course to global war. In global wars, minorities die in great numbers. That is a fact of history. Why is any time being wasted on a defense of such a President? Perhaps because, the time will soon be with us when Bush is forced to prepare a defense...

Cheney's Bid for Justification

This, is what I'm talking about. Cheney just threw it right in the face of every weak, spineless Democrat who was elected in the 2006 landslide to "clean up Washington" and has done precisely... Nothing! Cheney, Bush II, Rumsfeld, Rove, even Bush I (that's right, I said it) are laughing at the American people, and Congress and the Senate, with its supposed oversight. What Cheney is saying is directly linked to Arianna Huffington's post about accountability. Where is it?

RIP Michael Connell

This is a story that we all should be tracking very closely. There have been many instances of "untimely" death in the blood-stained pages of history, but this is happening right in front of us. At the very least, let us be aware... R.I.P. Mike Connell.

Who could have known...

Great article. This is a concept that I've struggled with for a long time now... The same mistake over and over. Except, in certain cases, we have to assume that "mistake" is not the correct word. The correct word would be "theft" or "lie." You hit on every aspect of the problem. If there's a problem (financial meltdown, illegal and immoral wars, torture of detainees) usually there is a response. The response sometimes results in the criminal or civil trial of a couple dudes or dudettes and the major players disappear into the ether. That can only happen over and over due to willful ignorance. Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said repeatedly that impeachment of Bush II is "off the table" and that the nation should move forward and not spend time mired in the past. We hear that one all the time; "We need to look forward and not back." Listen, all that humanity possesses is history. We experience the present and hope for the future, but we own the past. That is the only wellspring of experience and judgement that we have, so to ignore history and only "look forward" is a ridiculous concept. What is to prevent Obama or the next five Presidents from implementing policies every bit as destructive as Bush II's if Bush II is not held accountable? I'll tell you... Nothing. It's all about accountability.

The incoming Sheriffs have a duty to investigate and and prosecute, and begin the hard work of drafting new regulations for the financial industry that actually work, redefine US war policy so that it actually helps to defend America, make sure that FEMA helps people REGARDLESS of color, etc. A large part of that would be parading war criminals through the streets in a scene reminiscent of "Judgement at Nurenberg." A sitting US vice-president has admitted to approving the torture of detainees. We already know that there has been at least one death as a result of the torture policies. That blood is on Cheney's hands, among others. History (yes remember history class? this is what they were trying to teach you... always the same s**t, different epoch) may judge the US experiment in democracy as a farce, given the unlimited power of its few leaders to implement personal belief as public policy, and face virtually no retribution when those policies fail or result in tragedy. Why is there no accountability? I am seeing story after story now about all the wealthy folk who lost money to Bernie Madoff. That story shouldn't even be reported. The labor force of America, which is its only true wealth, is being decimated and has been under attack for decades. Equity has been wrung out of their hands and replaced with debt, and ever increasing work hours in a manner that has been systematic and informed. If you've actually been fortunate enough to make a large pile, then KEEP IT! Why are billionaires investing in funds solely designed to earn more money? By that I mean, did people believe in the companies that they were investing in? Did they know what the companies manufactured or provided services for? Ever visit the R&D units that their money was supposedly supporting? Investigate the companies' new products? No they didn't. They didn't care where there money was, as long as it was earning more money. Why would Spielberg's charity need or want to INVEST? No one's answering that question.

The chance for a new beginning was lost in 2006. The democrats were elected to power with the mandate to do something. They've done precisely nothing. If Bush II and his cabal can safely escape Washington, then I guarantee that in the next decades, everything we're going through now, will rear its head again. No oversight and no accountability means dishonesty, venality, and unbridled ambition, yesterday's watchword for "greed."

History...

The remarkable power of life...