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- garthwaited, on 10/12/2007, -5/+45The following is a quick bullet-point summary. This is article is a great example of what journalistic blogging is all about:
Widespread Warnings
Yet, every step along the way, the Bush administration and its allies have bullied their domestic critics. Americans who raised questions before the war were sneered at as “cowards,” “dupes” and “traitors.”
Fanned Fears
These domestic fears have been fanned by government claims of last-minute police actions to stop new acts of al-Qaeda terrorism, which later turn out to be over-hyped public relations stunts.
NSA Wiretaps
The NSA program has raised concerns because Bush is asserting that his presidential powers during the “war on terror” trump the Fourth Amendment’s protections against unreasonable searches and seizures. The eavesdropping is being conducted without court oversight in apparent violation of the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Security Act, passed in response to the COINTELPRO scandal of the 1970s.
Expanded Powers
Not only does the law grant the Secret Service new powers of arrest, but it also increases fines and penalties for individuals who “willfully and knowingly … enter or remain in any posted, cordoned off, or otherwise restricted area of a building or grounds where the President … will be temporarily visiting.”
Beyond expanding powers for the DNI and the Secret Service, Congress also is moving to grant the President more authority over the National Guard.
War on Iran?
If the U.S. does launch an attack, it seems clear that the terrorism threat faced by Americans at home and abroad will dramatically increase. For such reasons, many observers argue that an attack on Iran is unlikely.
But Gardiner points out that not making sense won’t limit what the Bush administration does. “The ‘making sense’ filter was not applied over the past four years for Iraq, and it is unlikely to be applied in evaluating whether to attack Iran,” Gardiner writes.
It also could be that “making sense” means something different for the Bush administration than it does for average Americans. - jonesin, on 10/12/2007, -3/+26Wow, a comment that disagrees without offering any substantial reasoning. How utterly neoconservative of you.
- broncoboy7, on 10/12/2007, -1/+22Ok, but what should me, the average citizen, do about it?
- pintomp3, on 10/12/2007, -0/+20the minimum, vote. but since it's corporations that are influencing our politicians more than what citizens want, we need to start boycotting companies that use their influence to the detriment of the public. we need to vote with our dollars
- pintomp3, on 10/12/2007, -2/+20i hope people start to realize it's the latter. this administration poses a serious threat to the american public and the world at large. underestimating them is dangerous.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+20"War is Peace
Freedom is Slavery
Ignorance is Strength"
http://tmh.floonet.net/books/1984/1984toc.html - dirka, on 10/12/2007, -2/+19I think I'm gonna be sick...
- GhostCow, on 10/12/2007, -0/+15My personal suggestion would be to join the Free State Project and move to New Hampshire. If worse comes to worse, you're just a few miles from Canada anyway... Not to mention that it also has ports you can leave from.
http://www.freestateproject.org - Zippo, on 10/12/2007, -3/+18The Bush administration has lied to the people, raped the economy, conquered a country for no solid reason, made the middle east even more unstable, drowned a population in fear to keep them in ignorance and control, and made Islamic terrorism go from bad to worse. And they've actually made a healthy profit off it to boot.
And Clinton nearly got impeached for a blowjob. Am I the only one who sees a problem here? - justz00t, on 10/12/2007, -1/+16Well if you a able bodied adult it might be a good idea to take up gun ownership and target practice. This sort of thing is exactly why the 2nd amendment exist.
A last resort to retake or government if it travels to far down the roads of tyranny and fascism.
Not to mention our duty as a americans - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -3/+17"Losing the War, Winning a Police State: Managing the American Public?"
Big Brother loves you.
Big Brother is always watching you, but be not afraid as Big Brother is your friend.
You can feel the love of Big Brother when you gaze upon his face.
http://www.cafepress.com/patriotboy/334355 - wvdavis, on 10/12/2007, -3/+162008 can not get here soon enough.
- labmouse42, on 10/12/2007, -3/+16@Zippo
"And Clinton nearly got impeached for a blowjob. Am I the only one who sees a problem here?"
Absolutely. Modern day neo-conservative movement, with members including Cheney, Wolfowitz, and Rumsfeld, have pushed their agenda for a Project for a New American Century. They have tossed away the views of conservatives -- a movement historically believed to encourage less governmental control -- and pushed for a heavily centralized government focused on world control.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_for_a_New_American_Century
The PNAC Web site states the group's "fundamental propositions", which are
* "American leadership is good both for America and for the world"
* "such leadership requires military strength, diplomatic energy and commitment to moral principle"
* "too few political leaders today are making the case for global leadership."
These are the same people who tried to impeach Clinton instead of helping him fight terrorism. These people do not care about the American public, they only care for their own power . - repran, on 10/12/2007, -0/+12Mod parent up - this is exactly the right question and could come at no better time.
- mww2, on 10/12/2007, -0/+12Stay informed. Vote. Talk to your neighbors.
- Bhima, on 10/12/2007, -2/+13I’m surprised it took this long, for both the American public to begin to notice and for these christian reconstructionists to consolidate their power.
I’ve been outraged for the better part of 10 years as I watched more and more American people devolve towards fundamentalist & extremist views; in fact I followed them in extremism myself. The outrage I feel against these people as they assert their agenda by any means available to them increases with each one of their devious exploits uncovered:
The sneaky way they push creationism into public schools;
Their masterful manipulation of the public’s irrational fear of terrorism;
Their subtle twisting of the English language, during hurricane Rita remember “White men find, Black men loot”;
Their near constant assault upon the constitution… whether it is to ban gay marriage or to allow the executive branch to ignore laws at will;
Their indecent push to assert “Family Values” which include Hate, Prejudice, Deceitfulness, Malfeasance;
The constant barrage of legislation based on their own christian sect’s thinking
Where are the moderate christians? Why don’t they step up to these members of their own community and tell what they are doing is wrong? My own sister takes her children to the nearest church because she wants them to have “the social exposure”. She wouldn’t stand up to their bizarre objections to Halloween because She didn’t want “to offend them”. She doesn’t object to their onerous and vile statements against gays because she is not gay. She is largely immune to their political protestations because she is not political. So she sits on the sidelines as extremist christians convince themselves to become more extreme, more fundamental and she says and does nothing; which is obviously interpreted by these people as to mean acceptance and approval.
The end result? She must carefully assess all of her christmas decorations to ensure none have overtly pagan overtones.
What’s the difference between these christian reconstructionists and the Iranian Islamic Oligarchy?
How in any way are these ideals consistent with the founding ideals of the United States of America?
How is possible that these people accept the level of Malfeasance in “their” public officials they do? With my own ears I heard a christian woman speak highly of Ralf Reed Jr. (at the time the local was covering his malfeasance nearly 24 hours a day) and said in as many words it was OK that he was involved in these Jack Abramoff scandals because “He was a good christian man”… So it’s OK if you lie & steal as long as you’ve accepted Jesus as your lord & savior.
Is there is nothing that can be done to remove these evil christian reconstructionists from power in the US?
It's not voting thanks in large part to Diebold. It's not civil dissidence or disobedience thanks to the new laws enacted to combat the “War or Terror”.
And it damn sure isn’t taking up arms, anyone delusional enough to think the weapons available to “A well regulated militia” in the United States puts that militia on par with even their local highway patrol (much less the paramilitary outfits the US government employs) will be labeled a terrorist in short order and jailed for a lifetime of lifetimes… - oldnumberseven, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10What kind of chap says in many speeches that we are in a clash of civilizations, and fighting for our very way of life, the right to be Americans, then data mines and spies on Americans, makes good capitalist companies, who have to answer to their stockholders, complicit, trades your freedom for a theater of security, plays right into everything Bin Laden wants, compares Bin Laden to Hitler, then will only commit one hundred and fifty thousand troops to this fight. What rot.
Bush is not God on the throne, just another political boss with more hair tonic than brains. (thank you Cohen bros. for the line.)
You chaps crack me up. America entered WWII December 7, 1941, and and by September 2, 1945, Japan surrendered. Four years, gentleman, four years. September 11, 2001 to September 16, 2006. Five years, and nothing to show for it. The only good Republican to lead a war was Lincoln. He *****-canned the Generals who couldn't perform, and poured on the men and material needed to win. What do we get with Bush? Constant failure at every obstacle, no worries if you don't perform, your job is safe, Hell, if Bush had any guts he would tell the nation he has cocked us all up for many years, and *****-can himself. Hell, if the democrats were smart they would lose these elections and let the Republicans clean up after their own disaster. Of course, they could ***** it up so much that we will have nuclear war with Iran. But play on, gentleman, play on chaps, play on busy bodies, I am sure this nation can survive Bush and your sniping.. - conna, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9I wonder if impeaching AND prosecuting Bush would be enough to thwart off any more attacks against the US. Assuming that the US pulls out of the Middle East of course.
- Bhima, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10@ReinMasamuri: I suggest you reread my post. I *am* rather viscous because christian reconstructionists are viscous. I am calling a spade a spade…
I am not preaching tolerance because tolerance of evil is tantamount to condoning evil. I will not condone the slide of an otherwise perfectly good nation towards fascism, theocracy, or totalitarianism.
And as I said early I accompanied these people in their journey towards extremism and now I will not tolerate them… in fact I am casting about for an effective means to combat them. - Shabadoo, on 10/12/2007, -1/+9Ah yes, straight to the source:
“Look for, ‘We’re not winning.’ Please show me. Well, the President says we’re winning".
- Tony Snow, summarizing the NIE.
As the GOP has demostrated and made abundantly clear, they can't be trusted as the source of anything. I wouldn't believe them if they told me water was wet. - illynova, on 10/12/2007, -4/+11NakedSnake:
So lying about the reasons for war in the State of the Union speech to Congress, the United States and the world is somehow "more-legally-acceptable-because-Saddam Hussien-is-a-really-bad-guy" than perjury? - fredrated, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9@rogerbannister
Dude you gotta stop drinking from the toilet. - solu, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6you won't have anything to prosecute him for after the current bush garbage legislation passes which retroactivley pardon's bush and his subordinates for violating geneva convention 3.
- DocDEB, on 10/12/2007, -2/+8Vote in November and take away the administration's Republican majorities in the House and Senate! This will effectively castrate GW and the gang. For the next two years he and his boys will be kept busy fending off investigations. It won't get us out of Iraq any quicker unless funding for the war is cut and I doubt that will happen until after 2008 but it just might keep GW from really ***** us in Iran.
- ScornForSega, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Hmm... 300+ diggs and 30 hours since the story was posted and it's not marked as inaccurate yet.
Did the Neocons take a day off? - GhostCow, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7"2) The report contradicts itself. It says their are more terrorists yet theyhave lost almost all of their capacity to do anything other than minor car bombings and suicide bombings."
It doesn't seem like they've ever been able to do much more than that. 9//1 was either enabled or perpetrated by the US Government, so that doesn't count.
and while your last point is very much correct, I still feel that the US war on Iraq has made it easier for them to rally people than otherwise.
Not to mention all the other things it's been used as a reason for.... - steinbeckgirl, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4 What can people do about it?
Well here's what I did. I volunteer to help out the candidate where I live, anyone can make a few calls. Put signs in your yard to provoke conversation. Know your facts. I work with people who support Bush but when you call them on it, they can't even explain why they do, throw some facts their way. Teach your kids the Bill of Rights and Constitution, make them go with you to volunteer. My son is 12 ( I know, had him young) and he has actually went to school and gotten into debates with kids who think Bush is the second-coming. Of course they had no clue what they were talking about, they had only watched Path to 9/11 with their parents and were now experts. I make my son read the paper every day, this way he at least stays up on current events instead of always the latest video games. We need to prepare the next generation and provoke conversation with our friends and neighbors. Unfortunetly, I have also lost a lot of respect for people afterward once I heard why they vote the way they do (abortion, guns, etc). Lastly, sell stock in corporations in which you don't believe in. - labmouse42, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7Yet can you deny these things have occured in the past few years?
Widespread Warnings
Fanned Fears
NSA Wiretaps
Expanded Powers - raygar40, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4 I love my country, so I suggest build a wall keep out all those foreigners out, Next we need to cut down all those religions that don't make sense. also we need great police like the Nazi SS to keep the country secure, Hitler had some good ideas.. if this not done I am afraid we will lose our freedom.
- MrBlackthorne, on 10/12/2007, -5/+8NakedSnake:
The Clinton analogy is laughable at best. Clinton lied about something that a) in no way affected his ability to lead the nation, and b) was a personal engagement that should have been keep private to begin with. I'd lie about it, too. It was nobody's business except Bill, Hillary, and Ms. Lewinsky's. But the GOP saw the affair as an opportunity to sully Clinton's reputation, and they exploited it, wasting a whole lot of my tax dollars in the process. The investigation had nothing to do with anything except the GOP playing dirty, as they have proved to be so adept at.
Bush, on the other hand, is wasting a WHOLE LOT MORE of my tax dollars thanks to his lies, and he's not being investigated for anything. If the Democrats have a problem with this, they have a reason to; LOTS OF PEOPLE ARE DYING EVERYDAY BECAUSE OF IT. OUR NATIONAL SECURITY IS AT RISK BECAUSE OF IT. The whole thing sounds criminal to me. - floorman56, on 10/12/2007, -4/+7Aaaaa the morning anti Bush ---U.S. rant. Just as timely as my morning dump and both smell just as bad.
Mod me down if you agree - labmouse42, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Talk to your friends and neighbors.
Vote.
Get involved in local politics. - BeefBaron, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Its just a matter of time before someone marks this topic inaccurate. Who can guess how long?
Place your bets! - pytro, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Get the facts. Hardcore News is good for your innocent mind/eyes.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQBLsoOngA0 - ReinMasamuri, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3They're not breaking the law. You have to be a uniformed member of a military to be covered by the Geneva Convention
- steinbeckgirl, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3baklazhan- I think those of us who have seen it coming for 6 years have used a lot more than one source to form our opinion. In fact, I'd venture to say that what we see happening now is a lot less opinion and more like fact...call it what you want, it's fact to me. How is Labmouse dugg down??
- ubuntu12345, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Think back. How did you feel on September 12th?
- alexpapa, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Unfortunately America does not seem prepared to listen to the advice of its supporter who respectfully disagree with the neocon way but still love what America stands for, what it has done for them in the past, what promises it holds for the future... I feel very frustrated today because of that and very unhappy with the theory of "you are with us or against us" because the world is shades of gray not the oversimplified "model" of black and white, good and evil, us and them... I understand how you felt on 9/12; I felt that way too and my immediate reaction back then was to wipe Afghanistan off the world map. It is only later that I realized that my response was driven by Fear... As Frank Herbert wrote in Dune:
"I must not fear. Fear is the mind killer. Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn my inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain."
- Litany Against Fear of the Bene Gesserit, Dune, Frank Herbert
Politics is the life of the City. It is something that must be in the hands of citizens, not parties and lobbyists. Gandhi used to say "you must be the change you wish to see in the world". - aweraw, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3It certainly wouldn't hurt anyone, bar George W Bush, doing so.
Gather the pitch forks men! - oldnumberseven, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3"As for Iraq itself, the way I see it is they could have hundreds of little cells with hundreds of little crusades to recruit for terrorism. Or we could have one major crusade, and have them all in one place.
I know I'd rather kill hornets while they're all in their nest than one at a time."
You will be wondering where the U.S. Army is when we go to war with Iran, and they have 150,000 American hostages sitting in the Iraqi desert. Your strategy works both ways you see. - labmouse42, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1@theoldestnoob
Ah, thanks for the clarification. :D
I will be sure to use the correct terms in reference to that from now on. - positron, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1@roger
Want to support the war?
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/19_03/military_enlistment.pdf - wvdavis, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4@ justz00t - Being retired Navy I support the 2nd Amendment right 100% as I do the rest of the Constitution. However, wasn't it violence that got us in this position in the first place?
- ReinMasamuri, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3Confused, hurt, angry, sad, upset, quesy, and most of all in shock.
- ScornForSega, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Heh, a few hundred million into Diebold's pocket and "OMG 53 million write in votes for W!"
- Bridgetown, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2You should be worried about the leaks. Seems we are at war with ourselves. United we stand. The leakers should be put away. The elected people should roll their sleeves up and get to work. Real work. Real debate. Real solutions.
This is not hollywood. This is the US Government. We better wake up. - AHIGHERGOD, on 10/12/2007, -5/+6Nice typing, *****.
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
- Ben Franklin - rationalist, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1reainmassamuri:
"The sneaky way they push creationism into public schools;"
Alot of people BELIEVE in creationism. If you believe in Darwinism, so be it. But to tell me that my belief is wrong period is not only conceited, its intolerent."
You seem confused about the most basic principles underlying the American Way. The criteria for publicly funded science teaching is not the popularity of a belief. If it were, we would be teaching kids about cow mutilation and alien abductions instead of Newtonian physics; we would be teaching that crystals heal, tarot cards fortell the future and our lives are governed by the constellations. You seem a bit young to have children, but, if you did, would you want your tax dollars supporting such science teaching?
The criteria for publicly funded science teaching should be the validity of the science, determined by the standard scientific method.
By all means, teach Biblical tales of creation in a comparative religious class - or in a privately funded religious school. But to teach creationism in a public school science class is not "tolerance", it is precisely the thing you pretend to be so concerned about - the intrusion and limitation of MY rights, and the rights of all tax-payers.
It also happens to be, and has been uncontrovertably and repeatedly judged by our judiciary branch to be, unconstitutional. Do you believe in Constitutional democracy? You quote Jefferson, but I wonder if you actually support his beliefs. You talk about competing rights, yet invert the meaning of the principles of noninfringement and minimalist law - particularly when you, in classic Orwellian fashion, seek to portray basic principles of civil liberties as "taking away your rights".
What you are advocating, in fact, is not "tolerant" or "inclusive" at all - rather, you wish to impose *your* values on everyone else - values that apparently include an unconstitutional intrusion of religion into publicly-funded matters of state, as well as unconstitutional violations of civil rights.
Why don't you just come clean and state, for the record, whether or not you:
A) believe in constitutional government
B) support the Bill of Rights - all ten Amendments.
Then we'll see if your quotes of Jefferson are sincere or disingenuous. - ISAACHKIP, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Think there'll be a 2008 presidential election? The way things are going, I can see the suspension of elections in the name of National Security! American Revolution II, the sequel, is coming...
- theoldestnoob, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3@labmouse42
Clinton was, in fact, impeached. Twice. Impeachment is just a formal declaration of charges. He was acquitted on both charges. The only other president ever to have been impeached was Andrew Johnson. -
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