JFK and Thanksgiving: 44 Years Later

JFK and Thanksgiving: 44 Years Later

Thanksgiving this year falls on the anniversary of the assassination John Fitzgerald Kennedy. It was forty-four years ago in Dallas that the direction of this country was irrevocably changed. Changed for the worse. There have been brief periods of hope only to have the downward spiral continue in even steeper rushes to oblivion.

The details of those intervening years matter little. Discussions about those details only serve as a distraction about the real issues of the day. The vast majority of Americans will spend the next two days concerned about gluttony and greed, and the powers in charge couldn't be more delighted. We were running "duck and cover" drills in the years around JFK's killing. Today we have a corrupt war criminal playing games with nuclear war to further line the pockets of the rich. We seem to be running headlong and willingly to World War III.

Three instances of this insanity: One—we invaded a sovereign nation under false pretensions. Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction and had no connection with the 9/11 attacks. Two—the same rhetoric is being used about Iran. Diplomacy isn't even considered an option. Three—"one of our strongest allies in the War on Terror" is a military fascist regime with known and flaunted nuclear capability. This is Pakistan for those not paying attention.

Dissent is now considered unpatriotic and treasonous. Last week on "Fox and Friends" it was openly suggested that the next time members of Code Pink dared to speak out or even show passive silent dissent that "a Tazing would be in order" and "when will these women learn no one cares what they think." I find myself feeling just as helpless about the situation we are in today as I felt about the killing of JFK then.

Code Pink and those on the front line of dissent are about the only things I can feel thankful. I find the majority of politicians, both Republicans and Democrats, to be responsive only to dollars not to the will of the people. I hold little hope that by next Thanksgiving there will be any drastic improvement and have genuine fears of an openly fascist America and/or World War III being fought. Part of being a Proud Liberal is a general optimism that I no longer have the strength to feel. As a small voice in this mess, I will repeat the five positive steps I suggested in my last Blog entry.

1. – Never refer to the Bush administration with deference. They are war criminals and need to be referred to as such.

2. – Resist at all opportunities the occupation of Iraq. Tell your local Congress critters that their continued support for the occupation makes them accomplices in murder. By any legal definition of murder, accomplices are just as guilty as the main perpetrators.

3. – When engaging in discussion with the opposition, do NOT let them define the parameters and terms of the discussion. Remember the great lesson of Orwell's 1984 was that whoever defines the language has already won the argument.

4. – Wear a black armband of mourning. This is especially effective as people are always sympathetic and solicitous. When they ask what or whom you are in mourning for respond, "Are you sure you want to know?" Most will say of course and respond that you are mourning the Constitution and the rule of law; that both are in their death throes because of the criminals currently in charge.

5. – Insist that the best candidate be the one you support not just the one that can win. Elections are not horse races and the bandwagon effect has been a determent to the entire process. Remember the members of Democratic Leadership Conference (DLC) are just Republicans that have labeled themselves Democrats. The 40 percent that voted for McGovern were vindicated in the end when Nixon was finally caught.

These might not accomplish anything. To do nothing is tacit approval of the war crimes being committed in our names. We as patriotic Americans can not remain silent or complacent unless we want to become the "new Germans" of the twenty-first century.


Permanent Backlink to Post

(They're Still) Running the World (on the) Eve of Destruction For What It's Worth

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

JUST SICK AND TIRED OF BEING SICK AND TIRED

JUST SICK AND TIRED OF BEING SICK AND TIRED

I have been neglecting to stay current on my two blogs, at first this was because of a physical complaint of having a case of spring/summer flu. As is often the case with me a bad illness can send me into a deep funk, what is now called a depression. Usually anger and hard work will get me out this depression. The unfortunate thing was the timing of this depression, as it coincided with the caving of the Democrats to Bush's demand for a military spending bill with no conditions or oversights.

Barack and Hillary only voted against the bill after its passage was assured. The fix was in and the moneymakers are still making it hand over fist. The contractors of death and destruction continue to make magnitudes of money more than the average grunt on the front line. The net effect of the so-called surge was to give the Iraqis more targets to shoot and bomb. They have taken advantage of this to kill record numbers of American service men. It is time to admit that we have reached the stage where Bush can longer have his back door draft. Whenever someone tries to say the only way to support the troops is to get them the hell out of harm's way the warmongers answer that the troops knew the risks before signing up. What a load of crap. The average reservist and National Guard had no idea they were going to have extended and multiple tours in a war zone where they are only one of two things: target or killer.

After Nixon started his so-called Vietnamization of the Vietnam War, one the measures taken to deflect criticism of the death toll were to make sure that a tour in Vietnam was voluntary. It is past time to do the same in Iraq. Many soldiers and Marines say they don't need mothers deciding whether they should be in the war zone. So the American thing to do is give them the free un-coerced choice of deployment or not. To do anything less is to become accomplices in forcing people to kill or be killed without their consent. Bush and Cheney lied to get us into this war and by legal definition; the deaths that have occurred are murder. Should we stand by as a population and country and say nothing? NO! Doing so only makes us accomplices in murder.

Permanent Backlink to Post

Living Blue in a Red State Part 2

Living Blue in a Red State Part 2

I saw the following bumper sticker the other day that brought on an instant headache:

I Support President Bush and Our Troops

It is only in a state like Arizona where I live that this bumper sticker would be displayed. The person driving the SUV with the sticker is blind to the impossibility of the statement. Shrub with his veto of the spending bill has proven that he only supports a continuation of the immoral and illegal Iraqi War. He seems to believe his own spin-doctors, Support the War, Support the Troops. So does the person displaying this bumper sticker. These sycophants are incapable of independent rational thought.

Support of this war is the opposite of supporting our troops. Supporting this war will only lead to more deaths and maiming of our troops that are senseless. These numbers are miniscule compared to the hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians that have died and the many more hundreds of thousands that have been crippled, left homeless or left Iraq. Shrub is responsible for bombing Iraq back to the 19th century. HE LIED AND PEOPLE DIED. By any legal definition, this is MURDER. Anyone who aids and abets a murderer is also a murderer. It is past the time to say this is just politics. This is criminal and needs to end.

Fund the troops and stop funding the war, anything else is just a continuation of the criminal enterprise known as the Iraqi War. This is NOT a war on terrorism; it is a terrorist attack on the Iraqi people. Impeaching Bush and Cheney is not enough; they must be convicted, removed from office and then prosecuted criminally. Then the twenty some percent of Americans that are blind sycophants to the Republicans and NeoCons can get back to politics instead of murder.


Link to Original Living Blue in a Red State

Permanent Backlink to Post

IN PLAIN SIGHT:ALTERNATE WAYS TO FUND THE WAR

IN PLAIN SIGHT:ALTERNATE WAYS TO FUND THE WAR

The House of Representatives passed a funding bill for the Iraqi War that included a timetable for withdrawal yesterday. Bush announced that any such legislation would be vetoed because he felt including a timetable is anti troop. He still suffers from the delusion that being against the war is being against the troops. He and his minions have repeatedly stated that refusing to provide the additional funding for the war is tantamount to refusing to support the troops; that any talk of withdrawal is demoralizing to the troops; that any anti-war stance is unpatriotic. Experience has shown that no amount of rational and reasoned discussion can reverse these opinions.

There seems to be a solution to this dilemma in plain sight. We now know that a major demoralizer for the troops in theater is the civilian contractors that have been used in unprecedented numbers during this invasion and occupation. They are not subject to the Military Code of Justice as are members of the armed forces. They are paid a magnitude more than are the regular troops. They decide when and if they wish to serve additional tours. For the administration, there are a number of advantages; causalities are hidden, there is no mechanism of oversight, political patronage can be doled out in the form of secret no-bid contracts.

I wonder why there has not been a proposal to fully fund and support our troops but pull the funding for the civilian contractors. Congress could simply limit money spent in Iraq to the equipping, training, supplying and paying members of the military. Funds for the medical and veterans' benefits should be fully funded. They could put a stop to the profiteering that has been an integral part of this fiasco from the beginning. The administration would not be able to make their political hay out of not supporting the troops. They would be forced to admit to the fact that our military prowess has deteriorated so badly that further persecution of the war would be impossible without the contractors. They would have difficulty explaining why funding just the troops would be far more inexpensive than continuing with the status quo.

Therefore, there exists a solution in plain sight if only we as a democracy have the courage to admit its existence.

There is But One Top Priority

There is But One Top Priority

If I were to list the top 100 things that need doing in America, numbers 1 to 90 would all be the same: GET US OUT OF IRAQ Anything beyond this pales in comparison. The continued loss of life and the extreme human suffering is intolerable. No amount of "surge" will lessen the loss of life or human suffering. We as a country need to have the courage to admit that we are the cause not the solution to the problem. We as a country need to have the courage to admit that we cannot win someone else's civil war. We as a country need to have the courage to admit that we only support Democracies if they are being run "our way." We as a country need to have the courage to admit that we are the biggest hypocrites of modern times.

Bush continues to deny the reality that this immoral, ill advised and illegal war cannot be salvaged. He talks about supporting the only Democracy in the area. The fact is this: Iran's government is far more democratic than Iraq's. Yes, Iraq had elections but no candidate could propose what the vast majority (over 90%) of Iraqis wanted and continue to want; the complete withdrawal of foreign forces from Iraq. Hardliners like Iran's current President were elected as a response to our invasion in Iraq, any number of more moderate candidates in Iran lost the election because they did not oppose the invasion as overtly. Iran's candidates were free to advocate any point of view without interference from any foreign governments; the same cannot be said for Iraq.

The parallels to the Vietnam War cannot be ignored, except that the moral justifications for our involvement in Vietnam far out weighed those in Iraq. The most glaring of these is the fact that one side (the South) of a continuing civil war wanted our participation, in Iraq there was no civil war until the invasion and occupation. On December 31, 1970, the U.S. Congress repealed the entirely fictitious Gulf of Tonkin resolution, which in 1964 authorized a dramatic increase in U.S. military involvement in Vietnam in response to an attack on U.S. forces that later turned out to not have happened. Why cannot the current Congress step up to the bat and do the same with the Congressional resolution that supposedly gave Bush the power to invade Iraq? The basis for that resolution was even more false than the Gulf of Tonkin resolution. No more "but look at how many Democrats voted for it," should even be allowed. Continuing two wrongs still does not make a thing right.

The posturing that is occurring between potential Presidential candidates is repugnant. McCain's argument that withdrawal is wrong because it would admit defeat is right from one point of view; defeat is inevitable because victory is impossible. Senator Clinton's proposed troop level cap is a band-aid on a gushing mortal wound. There are over a hundred civilian deaths acknowledged on a daily basis. U.S. military deaths are severely under reported. Contractors' lives are just as valuable as soldiers are and their deaths are just as much a military death as a soldier's.

We must first GET OUT OF IRAQ. We fail as human beings and Americans doing anything less. Only after this is done is it worth discussing items 91 through 100 on my list.

Still Insane After All These Years

Still Insane After All These Years

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." I have seen this quote attributed to both Albert Einstein and Benjamin Franklin. No matter its true source, it is very true. It’s time we stand up as a country and say, “STOP, THIS INSANITY!” The President has retired with his “war cabinet” to try to determine a new course in Iraq. This same group got us into the quagmire that is Iraq in the first place. Rumsfeld being gone is only a small start. The rest of these incompetents should be on the street looking for real work.

To look to this group for advice is tantamount to saying we want to stay the course. This will only continue in the needless loss of lives, American and Iraqi. Why did the president bother to have a bi-partisan commission look into Iraq, if only to ignore its recommendations? He should apologize to public servants like Sandra Day O’Connor who came out of retirement to serve on the commission. It has served as only a public relations stunt.

The new Congress faces a vital test of its backbone in January. This is not the time for timid action. It is time to inform Emperor George not only do we know he has no clothes but we know he has no clue. We can no longer permit the insane course of the Iraq War to continue.

1984 Kool-Aid Drinkers

I have waited the past ten days for the outcry from rational conservatives, very much in vain. George W. Bush has finally lost it with, “Listen, we've never been stay the course, George (referring to George Stephanopoulos).” I keep waiting for the mass of rational people to stand up and scream, “Mr. President, we are not that stupid!” Even his political opponents seemed overwhelmed by the pure doublespeak.

It is very much like we have become a country of Winston Smith’s. The Bush regime got their torture and detain without charge bill passed with barely a whimper. Now he blatantly contradicts over three and half years of rhetoric and his interviewer is so taken aback that he doesn’t challenge the obvious absurdity of the statement.

Those Republicans and conservatives that believe this line would have been right at home with Jim Jones. He was always looking for someone to mix the Kool-Aid. Any elected officials that want to investigate this bunch would do well to remember the fate of Congressman Leo Ryan at the hands of Jim Jones. This administration has proven they value loyalty above the truth or any other principle. This election is a not just another nice time to try to win it is a necessary win. It is time to give this experiment in democracy another lease on life. Voting for a Republican at any level supports the lies, corruption and just plain evil that have been perpetrated for the last nearly six years. A vote for the current Republican status quo is the same as drinking that 1984 Kool-Aid, CHEERS!

I Never Thought I Would Miss Nixon……Then Again

I saw the following bumper sticker the other day that brought a smile to my lips:

I Never Thought I Would Miss Nixon

What brought the smile was the shear amount of truth in those seven words. Yes, George W. Bush has done what I would have thought impossible. He made me miss Tricky Dick in all his ugly glory. When Nixon was in power, I was firmly convinced that there could never be another President as bad. With Georgie, I have discovered there not only could be as bad but there is worse. Nixon inherited his war, Vietnam; it was a full bore going tragedy when he took office. He also claimed, falsely, to have a secret peace plan. He got many killed needlessly, both military and civilian. Bush is the middle of a quagmire of his own making and insistence that we stay there with him. Nixon had a lust for power but it was tempered by a certain respect for the office of President that Bush rarely even bothers to pretend to have.

Nixon was swept into office on a landslide in 1972. Bush squeaked by in both 2000 and 2004. From these two statements alone, one would assume that Nixon was the one with more absolute power. And one would be wrong. What the driver of the truck with the bumper sticker and I really miss, is a Congress that keeps the system in balance. Congress during the Nixon years was controlled by the Democrats thus preventing the establishment of King Dick. The Republican Congress of the last six years has anointed King George.

I was going to an out of state college in 1972 and had to vote absentee. Absentee ballots had to be witnessed by a notary in those days so a dorm mate and I walked over to the Student Union to get our ballots notarized before mailing. He told me he was voting for Nixon because McGovern was just too radical. I tried to argue that voting for Nixon was a mistake because look at all the bad crap he had pulled during his first term. My friend said not to worry because even though he was voting for Nixon, his Congressional votes were for Democrats to keep Nixon in line. He proved to be right. Nixon resigned before he could be impeached.

The current Congress has nearly abdicated all their power and turned it over to the Executive branch. We now have the closest thing to a unitary Executive that we have ever had in our history. The Patriot Act and the Torture & Detainee Act are America’s first steps analogous to the 1930’s Enabling Acts of Nazi Germany. The country now exists at a critical crossroads. Elections are not football games. It is not a matter of rooting for the winner, it is a matter of if we want the Republic to endure or collapse under the weight of political expediency. Patriots, no matter what their normal political leanings, must examine objectively the actions of this President and this Congress. We don’t vote for President until 2008 but we have the chance in three weeks to decisively affect the Congress. We need a government of three branches not one. We must give up on the idea that our local guy is not as bad as the rest of them, so it doesn’t hurt to vote for him. That attitude and many similar ones is what brought us to this juncture in the first place. We must vote for a change, and the only viable choice is a Democratic Congress before it is too late.

Permanent Backlink to Post

Mark Foley, A Different View: A Misdirection Ploy

I have a different point of view on the Mark Foley scandal. I believe it is one of the greatest misdirection ploys of all time by Rove and the Republicans. Coincidences may happen but rarely do they happen with such good results. You say, “What good results?” Lost in all this discussion about Foley is the fact that Senate Bill 3930, “A bill to authorize trial by military commission for violations of the law of war, and for other purposes,” has gone to the President to sign. Even though Bush got damned near everything he wanted in the bill, his proclivity for signing statements will make up for any perceived inadequacies. Incumbents on both sides of the aisle can more easily deflect criticism about Foley’s peccadilloes than they can defend supporting this reversal of the Magna Carta.

Lost in all this discussion of how this hurts the Republican cause is no critical examination of the timing of this scandal. A month ago, most liberals and Democrats were outraged about ABC showing the crapudrama, “The Path to 9/11.” While ABC made some changes to this piece of propaganda, it still left many with the impression that 9/11 was all Bill Clinton’s fault and Bush was in the clear. Can we believe that ABC changed their stripes in one short month? I say, “NO!” ABC has a stake in remaining in the administration’s good graces. ABC would not have released the Foley story without at least the tacit approval of the White House.

I cannot believe for a moment that Rove and company would have any compunction about sacrificing Foley to pay for this integral part of consolidating Bush’s power. I mean here was a GAY Republican House member just waiting to be outed, why not kill two birds with one stone. Bird one: Deflect attention away the detainee and torture law. Those who voted for the bill are not going to be held to account for their vote as they might have. Most can easily deflect any criticisms cast their way about Foley. Bird two: The albatross that was Foley is eliminated. The Republicans have already claimed the reason Foley didn’t get in trouble earlier was they did not to appear to be “Gay Bashing.” The Republicans are such homophobes they still believe homosexual and pedophile are synonymous. This was the perfect opportunity to look good to their base and fence sitters that they were cleaning “House” of undesirables.

I am now going to ask any that read this to step through the fog of Republican misdirection. It is time to ask this Congress, why what little you did do, was so dismal. I have researched the final roll call votes on the detainee and torture bill. Most members of Congress voted along party lines as might be expected. Many Republicans voting for the bill said they expected reversal by the courts and voted for the bill out political expediency. I guess I am a minority of one that believes this is a violation of their oath of office to defend and support the Constitution. Those who did not vote along party lines deserve special recognition and consideration in three categories:

FIRST CATEGORY: HALL OF BRAVERY
These Republicans had the convictions of their beliefs to vote against this step to tyranny.
In the Senate, 1 Senator:
Chafee (RI)
In the House, 7 Representatives:
Bartlett (MD-6)
Gilchrest (MD-1)
Jones (NC-3)
LaTourette (OH-14)
Leach (IA-2)
Moran (KS-1)
Paul (TX-14)

SECOND CATEGORY: HALL OF SHAME
These Democrats supported this step to tyranny. I would assume from political expediency, with many using the same excuse as Republicans, it would be reversed by the courts. The 12 from the Senate are particularly troubling, since this many defections made any chance of a filibuster nil.
In the Senate, 12 Senators:
Carper (DE)
Johnson (SD)
Landrieu (LA)
Lautenberg (NJ)
Lieberman (CT)
Menendez (NJ)
Nelson (FL)
Nelson (NE)
Pryor (AR)
Rockefeller (WV)
Salazar (CO)
Stabenow (MI)
In the House, 34 Representatives:
Andrews (NJ-1)
Barrow (GA-12)
Bean (IL-8)
Bishop (GA-2)
Boren (OK-2)
Boswell (IA-3)
Boyd (FL-2)
Brown (OH-13)
Chandler (KY-6)
Cramer (AL-5)
Cuellar (TX-28)
Davis (AL-7)
Davis (TN-4)
Edwards (TX-17)
Etheridge (NC-2)
Ford (TN-9)
Gordon (TN-6)
Herseth (SD-At Large)
Higgins (NY-27)
Holden (PA-17)
Marshall (GA-23)
Matheson (UT-2)
McIntyre (NC-7)
Melancon (LA-3)
Michaud (ME-2)
Moore (KS-3)
Peterson (MN-7)
Pomeroy (ND-At Large)
Ross (AR-4)
Salazar (CO-3)
Scott (GA-13)
Spratt (SC-5)
Tanner (TN-8)
Taylor (MS-4)

THIRD CATEGORY: HALL OF SLOTH
These lawmakers come from both sides of the aisle. They couldn’t be bothered with voting on this step to tyranny.
In the Senate, 1 Senator:
Snowe (R-ME)
In the House, 12 Representatives:
Castle (R-DE-At Large)
Cleaver (D-MI-5)
Davis (D-FL-11)
Davis (R-VA-11)
Jackson-Lee (D-TX-18)
Keller (R-FL-8)
Lewis (D-GA-5)
Meehan (D-MA-5)
Millender-McDonald (D-CA-37)
Ney (R-OH-18)
Radanovich (R-CA-19)
Strickland (D-OH-6)

Please examine these “Halls” and give special attention to any of them that represent you. Encourage those in the Hall of Bravery and hold feet to the fire from the other two. I am especially troubled by the 46 Democrats in the Hall of Shame. Even if they win reelection and the Democrats take numerical control of the Congress, are these 46 reliable enough not to cross party lines and give the Republicans the majority on a whim.

PRIMING THE PUMP

In the days before cable news, there was a term for election year tax cuts. It was “Priming the Pump.” The thinking was very simple; give the people a taste of their own hard-earned money, and tell them if they want it to continue they must return the incumbents to office. That particular ploy would not be effective with this regime however, since all their tax breaks have been for the limited numbers of the very rich.

Today’s version of this carries a completely new literal meaning. Prices for gasoline have dropped over a dollar from their highest point in the last year. Gas pumps are literally being primed for the upcoming elections. It appears the thinking goes something like this: If the voter only pays $2.159/gal when he was paying $3.199/gal, he will figure he needs to keep the incumbent in office in order to keep the price low. The problem with the voter thinking that is, he is very liable to find a new meaning to the term “November Surprise.” There are really no guarantees or even promises the prices will stay low.

This downward trend defies the rules of supply and demand. The Alaskan Pipeline in the last 9 weeks has had major problems and the supply of oil from this domestic (meaning cheaper) source has been severely restricted. If anything the price of oil should be going up not down, if it were truly a matter of supply and demand. When this subject first occurred to me, I went and checked to see if we were dumping oil onto the market from the country’s strategic reserve. If their website is to be believed, we are not doing that. The other possibility is that the oil companies and their cartel, OPEC, have decided they could afford to forego their obscene profit levels for a short period to ensure the continuing of the current single party rule.

In my research, I found protestations that the oil industry was just too large for such manipulations. All these protests of impotence came from incumbent Republicans. There is a reason we call OPEC a cartel, they can do whatever they damn well please. If any single member decides to get greedy, the others can flood the market and ruin the renegade’s profit level. If a member decides to undercut his fellow cartel members, he could well find himself without spare parts or transportation. This is not a play nice group. The United States represent their largest single market. It is in their self interest to keep oil friendly politicians in power, even it means not making a billion or two for a couple of months. They can always make up for it in spades on the other side of the election.

I found an alternate theory at http://deconsumption.typepad.com/deconsumption/2006/09/running_on_empt.html

I would like to “restate” what Mr. King said: What this means folks, is that hedge funds and institutional money that “TRACKS THE INDEX” were FORCED TO SELL 75% of their gasoline futures to conform with the reconstituted GSCI. And if anyone hasn’t noticed the timing of the price of the gasoline price collapse…just in time for November’s Mid Term Elections!

So don’t be fooled into believing that potential energy shortages have “magically been solved.” In all likelihood – much of the recent decline in the price of gasoline we have all “welcomed” has been the result of paper tricks being played on what amounts to a wealthy flock of sheep.

No matter who is doing the manipulating;

DO NOT BE FOOLED.

Voting for the incumbents that have screwed us and lied to us in the past only allows them to do it again.

September 20, 1187 - Saladin begins the Siege of Jerusalem

September 20, 1187 - Saladin begins the Siege of Jerusalem.

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Jerusalem_(1187)

At the end of September, Balian rode out with an embassy to meet with the sultan, offering the surrender that he had initially refused. Saladin would not accept this, seeing that as they spoke, his men had scaled the walls and planted their banners. Soon, however, the crusaders repelled their attack. Saladin acquiesced, and the two agreed that the city would be handed over to Saladin peacefully. The sultan allowed a ransom of twenty bezants for men, ten for women, and five for children, but those who could not pay were to be sold into slavery. Balian argued in vain that there were far more people who could not pay, as there were perhaps as many as 20000 refugees from elsewhere in the kingdom.

After returning to Jerusalem, it was decided that seven thousand of the poor inhabitants could be ransomed from money drawn from the treasury that Henry II of England had established there, which was being guarded by the Hospitallers. This money was meant to be used by Henry on a pilgrimage or a crusade, in penance for the murder of Thomas Becket, but the king never arrived, and his treasury had already been used to pay mercenaries for the Battle of Hattin.

Balian met with Saladin again and the sultan agreed to lower the ransom to ten bezants for men, five for women, and one for children. Balian argued that this would still be too great, and Saladin suggested a ransom of 100 000 bezants for all the inhabitants. Balian thought this was impossible, and Saladin said he would ransom seven thousand people for no lower than 50 000 bezants. Finally it was decided that Saladin would free the seven thousand for 30 000 bezants; two women or ten children would be permitted to take the place of one man for the same price.

Surrender of the city

Balian handed over the keys to the Tower of David, the citadel, on October 2. It was announced that every inhabitant had about a month to pay their ransom, if they could (the length of time was perhaps 30 to 50 days, depending on the source). Saladin was generous and freed some of those who were forced into slavery; his brother Saphadin did the same, and both Balian and Heraclius, not wishing to be seen less generous than their enemies, freed many others with their own money. Saladin also allowed for an orderly march away from Jerusalem and prevented the sort of massacre that had occurred when the crusaders captured the city in 1099. Even Heraclius, who disgusted the Muslim chronicler Imad ad-Din al-Isfahani by hoarding all his wealth and the treasures of the church instead of contributing to the ransom of the poor, was escorted
from the city unmolested. The ransomed inhabitants marched away in three columns; the Templars and Hospitallers led the first two, with Balian and the Patriarch leading the third. Balian and his family were permitted to flee to Tripoli.

I note for the sake of those screaming conservatives that say Islam is a violent religion that almost all of the inhabitants of Jerusalem were freed without conversion, sold into slavery or death. Saladin is one of the greatest heroes of Islam, wouldn’t it make sense that if the religion required the sword he would have been one to use it?

Rockey Who?

I am sure almost everyone reading this knows the name Spike Lee. Lee has been twice nominated for an Oscar. His latest project is "When the Levees Broke,” a documentary on the Hurricane Katrina disaster, and the government's response to the crisis. It is presented as "A Requiem in Four Acts.” The documentary is airing on HBO. Spike Lee is no stranger to controversy and many of his films have caused a stir even before their release. Despite the subject matter of this newest project, the Main Stream Media (MSM) virtually ignored Lee in preference to a man named Rockey Vaccarella. Or as I like to call him, Rockey Who? The Bush administration had once again diverted attention away from their monumental mismanagement of the Katrina aftermath with a White House lawn photo op.

From http://shakespearessister.blogspot.com/2006/08/bush-visits-new-orleans-farts-around.html

Bush spoke on the South Lawn of the White House after meeting in the Oval Office with a New Orleans-area man who lost his home in the storm. Rockey Vaccarella, 41, of Meraux in St. Bernard Parish, has been traveling the Gulf Coast region to mark the Katrina anniversary.
"I told Rockey the first obligation of the federal government is to write a check big enough to help the people down there," Bush said. "And I told him that to the extent that there's still bureaucratic hurdles, and the need for the federal government to help eradicate those hurdles, we want to do that."

I wanted to know who this guy was. Here is some of the information I found:

From http://www.attytood.com/archives/003647.html#more

In fact, we had a hunch -- that maybe, just maybe, Rockey Vaccarella had a background himself in GOP politics.

And, whaddya know? Turns out that the earthy Vaccarella -- a highly successful businessman in the fast-food industry -- is indeed a Republican pol, having run unsuccessfully under the GOP banner for a seat on the St. Bernard Parish commission back in 1999. We don't have a good link, but here (via Nexis) is part of his bio that ran in the New Orleans Times-Picayune on Oct. 15, 1999:

ROCKEY
VACCARELLA
PERSONAL
Republican
35. Born in New Orleans. Grew up in Arabi and Chalmette. Lived 11 years in Meraux.
Married, two children.
Graduated from Chalmette High, 1982. Attended St. Bernard Community College.
Director of operations, Lundy Enterprises, as manager of 31 Pizza Hut restaurants and 450 employees. Former general restaurant manager of Popeye's Chicken & Biscuits on East Judge Perez Drive in Chalmette

One of things that Rockey did during his visit to Bush was tell the press he wished Bush could have a third term. A suggestion that Bush feigned embarrassment when made. The MSM never reported anything on Rockey’s past except that “he had lost everything to Katrina.” Many of those 31 Pizza Huts survived Katrina since they were spread over a wide range in the south. He was back at work in a relatively short period.

So you say what the harm is with Rockey having his fifteen minutes of fame. Nothing except it was at the expense of filmmaker Lee. Documentaries are not the big budget productions that dramatic films are. Almost all HBO’s entire promotion budget was spent on plugging “When the Levees Broke” on the HBO networks themselves. The news cycles that would have normally highlighted Lee’s film were supplanted by coverage of Rockey. The film debuted on HBO without the publicity it would have normally had. Yes, the film was critical of the administration’s response to Katrina but instead of trying to correct the mismanagement of the response, the administration instead chose to stifle criticism. Bush and his administration gave a lot of lip service to rebuilding New Orleans last week during the one-year anniversary of Katrina then went about business as normal after leaving town.

Last week during that anniversary, New Orleans had a visitor from one of the countries that suffered from the tsunami. He said he did not understand how his country was able to recover faster and better than the United States. In addition, how the United States helped in his country’s recovery but it looked like America couldn’t help itself. Remember when the Iraq vote took place, remote voting stations were setup over the U.S. for Iraqis living here to vote. When New Orleans had elections, no such accommodations were made for the approximately 400,000 displaced American citizens from New Orleans. If I were more cynical, I might think this is being done on purpose.

American Exceptionalism = H-Y-P-O-C-R-I-S-Y

American Exceptionalism = H-Y-P-O-C-R-I-S-Y

When I was in school, I was told that a hypocrite was someone who told you not do something but did it himself anyway. A hypocrite functioned under the “do as I say NOT as I do” philosophy. Jesus is said to have condemned the Pharisees for being hypocrites. Hypocrites practice hypocrisy. I was taught this was one of the Earth’s lower moral life forms.

From http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07610a.htm
Hypocrisy is the pretension to qualities which one does not possess, or, more cognately to the scope of this article, the putting forward of a false appearance of virtue or religion.

Essentially its malice is identical with that of lying; in both cases there is discordance between what a man has in his mind and the simultaneous manifestation of himself. So far as the morality of the act goes, it is unimportant that this difference between the interior and the exterior be set out in words, as happens in formal lies, or be acted out in one's demeanor, as is true of simulation.

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypocrisy
Hypocrisy is the act of pretending to have morals or virtues that one does not truly possess or practice. … A classic example of a hypocritical act is to criticize others for carrying out some action while carrying out the same action oneself.

American Exceptionalism is the philosophy that states no one else can do something EXCEPT America and those we have chosen. American Exceptionalism is hypocrisy because at its core there is a belief that we can do whatever we want and others must be restricted from similar actions. Under the Bush regime, American Exceptionalism has been taken to new lows.

HAVING NUCLEAR WEAPONS
Ever since the days of “duck and cover,” I wondered why it was okay for America to spend billions on a nuclear arsenal that could destroy the Earth many times over while insisting that other countries should have no nuclear weapons. I was told it was because only the U.S. and its allies could be trusted with such dangerous weapons, despite the fact that we are the only country in history to use such weapons in an attack, twice. The two times nuclear weapons have been used it was on essentially civilian targets. This was a deliberate choice. Some of the scientist involved wanted the bombs exploded over a relatively flat area with a population, so they could quantify the destruction of the bombs. Purely military targets in the mountains and hills were rejected because the chances the data would not be a useful.

YELLOW-BELLIED CHICKENHAWKS
This particular group of people preaches about how great it is for our young people to fight in the war. You will not catch them or their children doing the fighting however. It isn’t the fighting man in Iraq that is getting rich, it is those who send them and would never go themselves.

PRODUCING MORE WMDs
The only WMDs found in Iraq were the inert remnants of poison gas. This has been used by some regime shills to justify our invasion and occupation. The U.S. has recently started to produce chemical and biological weapons again, saying they are needed for defensive purposes. Are they needed so we can sell them to the next Saddam that comes down the pike? If we need them for defense, why don’t other countries?

OPPRESSION AT HOME AND ABROAD
Our government in the last five plus years has illegally wiretapped phones, held prisoners without charge for years, has started a preventive (not even preemptive) war, and so on. They have done these things saying they are in the defense of freedom. How can one defend freedom at the same time as restricting freedom?

CASHING IN ON WAR AND PEOPLE’S SUFFERING
This is how Harry Truman dealt with war profiteers. From http://www.thenation.com/doc/20030512/editors:
When he heard rumors of such profiteering, Truman got into his Dodge and, during a Congressional recess, drove 30,000 miles paying unannounced visits to corporate offices and worksites. The Senate committee he chaired launched aggressive investigations into shady wartime business practices and found "waste, inefficiency, mismanagement and profiteering," according to Truman, who argued that such behavior was unpatriotic. Urged on by Truman and others in Congress, President Roosevelt supported broad increases in the corporate income tax, raised the excess-profits tax to 90 percent and charged the Office of War Mobilization with the task of eliminating illegal profits. Truman, who became a national hero for his fight against the profiteers, was tapped to be FDR's running mate in 1944.
He believed the worst offenders had committed treason. The climate of the current administration would bring investigations into the people who would dare to speak out. They say we fighting for democracy and freedom in Iraq. The sad truth is profit is the major motivation.

RACISM IS CONDONED
The Department of Justice’s enforcement of the civil rights code has dramatically decreased under Bush to the point of near extinction. If a designated enemy is seen as being racist, swift and total condemnation follows. Profiling based on race instead of actions is now the new push. Looking Muslim is considered reason enough for the abuses that used to be visited on African Americans. Trouble is how does one look Muslim?

INDISCRIMINATE KILLING
When the invasion of Iraq started, there was period of thirty days called “Shock and Awe.”

From http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/awe
to awe, (transitive verb) To inspire with fear and reverence.

The majority of shells and bombs used on Iraq during these days were not “smart” bombs. They killed babies as well as Republican Guard troops. This indiscriminate killing was designed to bring fear to the entire country. We gave lip service to “winning the hearts and minds” of Iraqis but our intentions were anything but. This attitude has been carried on through the duration, American troops have broken discipline, and the indiscriminate killing continues.

STEALING ELECTIONS
This is the most glaring cases of hypocrisy. The Bush regime talks about exporting democracy to Iraq and Afghanistan, when it does not exist here at home. Additionally, the democracy in Iraq is a façade; candidates during the elections there were not allowed to advocate the withdrawal of American troops, despite nearly 90% of the population favoring just such a move.

YOUNG LIVES WASTED
This is the most tragic of my points. This includes the dead of the war. This includes the injured of the war, many that come home to find their benefits are non-existent. Soldiers recovering in Army hospitals have been asked to pay for their own food. Those mentally affected find their treatment to be lacking if it exists at all. However, the most tragic part of all this is how the Bush regime uses these young people to garner support for their immoral and illegal war. They have equated support for the troops with support for the war. People do not want to appear to be not supporting the troops so they feel compelled to support the war.

A quick summary:

Having nuclear weapons
Yellow-bellied Chickenhawks
Producing more WMDs
Oppression at home and abroad
Cashing in on war and people’s suffering
Racism is condoned
Indiscriminate killing
Stealing elections
Young lives wasted

Who is the most fascist like, al Qaeda or the Bush Administration?

The motivation for this article is very simple. George Bush has a new term for our terrorist enemies. The term takes the two forms of “Islamofascist” or "Islamic fascists.” In an effort to critically analysis the validity of these terms, I decided to determine just what a fascist is. I had seen this first article before and it immediately sounded like the Bush administration. It seemed to me the only fair thing to do was to compare the administration to al Qaeda and see just who the fascist is.

The following comes from http://www.veteransforpeace.org/The_14_characteristics_030303.htm

The 14 Characteristics of Fascism
by Lawrence Britt
Spring 2003
Free Inquiry magazine

Political scientist Dr. Lawrence Britt recently wrote an article about fascism ("Fascism Anyone?," Free Inquiry, Spring 2003, page 20). Studying the fascist regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia), and Pinochet (Chile), Dr. Britt found they all had 14 elements in common. He calls these the identifying characteristics of fascism. The excerpt is in accordance with the magazine's policy.

The 14 characteristics are:

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism
Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottoes, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.

2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights
Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.

3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause
The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

4. Supremacy of the Military
Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.

5. Rampant Sexism
The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Opposition to abortion is high, as is homophobia and anti-gay legislation and national policy.

6. Controlled Mass Media
Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.

7. Obsession with National Security
Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.
8. Religion and Government are Intertwined
Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions.

9. Corporate Power is Protected
The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.

10. Labor Power is Suppressed
Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed .

11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts
Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts is openly attacked, and governments often refuse to fund the arts.

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment
Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption
Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.

14. Fraudulent Elections
Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.

Copyright © 2003 Free Inquiry magazine
Reprinted for Fair Use Only.

The following is quoted from http://news.yahoo.com/s/ucmg/20060815/cm_ucmg/theislamofascistthreat

THE ISLAMOFASCIST THREAT
By Maggie Gallagher

When the news broke that a gang of terrorists planned to blow up six airplanes, killing thousands of innocent passengers, President Bush took the opportunity for the first time to name our enemy "Islamic fascists." Sen. Rick Santorum R-Pa., among others, has been urging this strategic shift. Terrorism is only a tactic. Would we call World War II the "war on blitzkrieg"? By naming our enemy "Islamofascism," the president suggests our current war is the equivalent of our long, triumphant fights against Nazism and communism.

This made me wonder if I heard correctly. I have heard the term “fascist” many times. In most cases, it was used wrongly to describe almost any dictator. The two terms are NOT interchangeable. Stalin was a dictator but most definitely not a fascist. This “strategic shift” puts the billion and half followers of Islam in a very uncomfortable defensive position. If one were to apply this logic to the situation during WWII, then they would have been Christian fascists. I do not think all the world’s Christians should have been on the defensive because of the actions of Hitler, Mussolini, and Franco. Is this “strategic shift” just a strategy for the upcoming elections? Is it going to cause a dramatic shift in the way we fight the war?

The methodology for my comparison is simple. With each of the fourteen characteristics, I have given al Qaeda and the Bush Administration one of two point values, 0, or 1. Zero means there is little or no similarity. One means there is preponderance of similarities. Each time it will be expressed in the following form: (points this characteristic, running sub-total).

Comparing the adaptation of the 14 Characteristics of Fascism by al Qaeda and the Bus Administration:

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism
Al Qaeda (0, 0); Bush Administration (1, 1)
Al Qaeda is an organization without national identity. The Taliban would have scored much higher, but receiving support from the Taliban does mean that you are the Taliban. I am unaware of any patriotic paraphernalia used by al Qaeda.

The Bush Administration has constantly made use of patriotic paraphernalia. Mottoes like “Fight them there, so won’t have to fight them here.” The American flag is treated with religious fervor. The flag burning amendment is the prefect example of this.

2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights
Al Qaeda (1, 1); Bush Administration (1, 2)
Al Qaeda is an organization that cares little about innocent human life, the ultimate human right.

The Bush Administration has justified many of their violations of the rule of law by citing the need for security. I see nowhere in the Constitution where the guaranteed rights can be suspended because of security needs. The wiretapping that has occurred without warrants and the holding of detainees without charge are prime examples.

3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause
Al Qaeda (1, 2); Bush Administration (1, 3)
Al Qaeda is a terrorist organization that can only justify its actions by blaming its victims. They also do so by attacking their enemies for their own questionable actions.

The Bush Administration had the entire country unified on September 12, 2001. Muslim Americans were condemning the attacks just like any other American. Since then there has been a push for racial profiling. Our enemy is not dumb if racial profiling was put in place ways of circumventing it would be found. This administration has declared illegal immigrants from Mexico terrorists. This is just absurd. These are desperate people looking for a better way of life.

4. Supremacy of the Military
Al Qaeda (0, 2); Bush Administration (1, 4)
Al Qaeda is a terrorist organization that has no military structure. This is one the reasons that defeating them with military force is an impossible task.

The Bush Administration has ignored domestic issues to concentrate on the war in Iraq. They have made use of the military by equating support for the troops with support for war. Once the soldiers have completed their service and have returned to civilian life, they fall into the pit of being ignored by the government that used them.

5. Rampant Sexism
Al Qaeda (1, 3); Bush Administration (1, 5)
Al Qaeda treats women as mere possessions and chattel.

The Bush Administration gives lip service to women’s rights and turns around to condemn abortion. Enforcement of discrimination laws have virtually disappeared. Women in the administration are paraded out like the old Southern racists declaring some of his best friends were colored. This administration is highly homophobic.

6. Controlled Mass Media
Al Qaeda (0, 3); Bush Administration (1, 6)
Al Qaeda has no mass media to control. Their mode of operation depends on the secrecy that comes in operating in cells and in the shadows.

The Bush Administration will tell you that the media has a liberal bias. The facts of the situation are quite the opposite. Bias on radio runs very conservative with the number of conservative talk stations out numbering liberal stations by a factor of four or more. Bias in the print media runs at least 2 to 1 in a conservative bias. The bias on cable is even worse, when some network there tries to give a truly balanced report; the pundits are ready and willing to attack their liberalism. This has been done so often that impartial reporting is nearly non-existent.

7. Obsession with National Security
Al Qaeda (0, 3); Bush Administration (1, 7)
Al Qaeda has no nation to obsess about national security.

The Bush Administration are masters of fear. The raising of the terror alert status in order gain political advantage is just one example. This constant implication that the Democrats would be incapable protecting the country is another.

8. Religion and Government are Intertwined
Al Qaeda (1, 4); Bush Administration (1, 8)
I will concede al Qaeda this point even though they have no nation. Religious fundamentalism is their reason for existence.

The Bush Administration is in office thanks in large part to the pandering to fundamentalist Christians. Their office for Faith Based Initiatives is under staffed and severely under funded. God bless American is used for political purposes not out of heart felt meaning.

9. Corporate Power is Protected
Al Qaeda (0, 4); Bush Administration (1, 9)
Corporate power is the antithesis of al Qaeda. The attack on the WTC was an attack on corporate power.

The Bush Administration has essentially established a government of the corporations, for the corporations and by the corporations. The tax and spend policies of this administration benefits friends of the administration not the people of the country.

10. Labor Power is Suppressed
Al Qaeda (0, 4); Bush Administration (1, 10)
Al Qaeda gets a zero here because they are in a no position to effect labor either positively or negatively.

The Bush Administration has been very successful in keeping the working poor person poor. The middle class labor pool is shrinking away to become part of working poor. Those who make their money through the manipulation of money not through productive labor are the most successful. The administration has been very successful in defining unions as either liberal, socialist, or communist. The most successful union in the country is prison guards.

11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts
Al Qaeda (1, 5); Bush Administration (1, 11)
Al Qaeda gets a one here because the truth and reality that would come with education and the arts would destroy their operation.

The Bush Administration is anti-science. Bush himself has said the jury is still out on evolution and Intelligent Design. Funding for higher education is eroding instead of increasing. Educators who dare to speak out have been dismissed. The attitude expressed to the Arts is dismal. There is an emphasis on the negative minority in the Arts and no acknowledgement of the positive majority.

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment
Al Qaeda (1, 6); Bush Administration (1, 12)
Al Qaeda gets a one here because their view of an eye for an eye without trial.

The Bush Administration has taken police power that is unconstitutional and illegal. Warrantless wiretapping and rendering are the top two examples. Condoning torture is another.

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption
Al Qaeda (0, 6); Bush Administration (1, 13)
Al Qaeda gets a zero here because if they were to discover corruption among the ranks execution would be the least that would happen.

The Bush Administration has taken these two characteristics to new heights. “Heck of a job you’re doing Brownie,” ring a bell? Corruption in the form of no bid contracts in Iraq that are not completed and over billed. Many cases of the fox guarding the hen house. There is currently an attempt to retroactively exempt the administration from prosecution for wrongdoing as severe as war crimes.

14. Fraudulent Elections
Al Qaeda (0, 6); Bush Administration (1, 14)
Al Qaeda gets a zero here because if they do not participate in elections since their power is supposedly God given.

The Bush Administration is so good with smear campaigns that a new term has been coined, swiftboating. The current gerrymandering of districts may no matter what keep control of Congress in Republican hands. In 2000, there was unprecedented involvement by the Supreme Court that ended with Bush essentially being appointed President. In both the 2000 and 2004 elections highly reliable exit polls were inaccurate only when the polls showed Democratic victories then to have the vote count say the Republicans won.

FINAL SCORE:
Al Qaeda 6/14
Bush Administration 14/14

I am well aware that Bush apologists will attack my motivations rather than my analysis. All I am asking for the sake of the country is to look at each point with an open mind.