Throwing the Lap Dog a Bone

We have a problem.

I'm not talking about the obvious problem of government's refusal to get the oil and gasoline prices under control. Notice I chose to use the word 'refusal' instead of something a little more negotiable like 'hesitation'. Word selection is intentional. Our government is refusing to take real action on this issue. But, that's not what I want to talk about.

I'm not talking about the insane profits being reported. Not Chevron's announcement of a 49% increase in quarterly earnings (source: CNN Money), nor Exxon's announced record 1st quarter net earnings of $8.4 BILLION (source: Washington Post), nor British Petroleum's or Shell's record profits of $19.3 BILLION and $22.94 BILLION, respectively (source: BBC News).

I'm not talking about the proposed changes being debated in Congress. According to a Wall Street analyst, the profit tax on oil company profits won't impact gasoline prices:

Wall Street analysts discounted the likelihood of congressional action against oil companies. "As someone in the industry for more than 25 years, I've seen it before," said Fadel Gheit, an oil company analyst at Oppenheimer & Co. "Penalizing oil companies does not lower prices at the pump. If we have a windfall profits tax, it will just create another moneybag for the government. It will not increase oil production by one barrel. It will not lower gasoline prices by one cent or alter our dependence on OPEC countries."
Source: Washington Post

I'm not talking of President Bush's disengenuous request for renewal of the effort to raise the mileage standards for vehicles. If the past is proof of the executive and legislative branches' commitment to reducing the dependency on oil by making vehicles more economical, forget about it.

But neither Congress nor the administration has shown much interest in raising passenger car standards, which were set in the 1970s and haven't changed since 1985. In March, the Bush administration said it would raise average fuel economy standards by 1.9 miles a gallon for sport-utility vehicles, pickups and vans for models in 2008 through 2011, a long-awaited move that environmentalists said was too modest.
Source: Washington Post

I'm talking about the $100 bone thrown to the lap dog which is the average American. Apparently, the Senate GOP leaders believe the average American is so naive as to take a deal where $100 in cash today is more important than the long-term reduction in the price of gasoline. This attempt at what in nothing less than a bribe reveals the mindset which is prevalent in Washington. Display to the citizenry the appearance of action, perhaps even provide a little something with which to entertain themselves, and the citizenry will feel as if their interests have been served.

Nothing could be farther from the truth. The American public is not being served, it is being played.

I'd like to say this really jerks my chain, but then I don't have one. Do you?

Tagged: Current Affairs, News, News and Politics, Opinion, Politics.

Changing Face on Media Relations

With today's announcement of Fox News commentator Tony Snow as the replacement for White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan, it is evident the Bush administration feels it necessary to have a spokesman with a stage presence. Snow's experience with the camera, his previous stint within the White House with the senior Bush's presidency, and journalist skills will serve him well.

Selecting a familiar face to deliver the administration's messages is a calculated and wise move. Not only is Tony Snow a familiar face in one of the most widely watched news channels, he is capable of managing the relationship with the audience, which is what ultimately counts. He also understands there is a gap which must be bridged between the Bush administration and journalist.

"President Bush hates responding to the press, hates responding to political enemies -- he thinks it's beneath him," Snow said on Fox News in March. "He's got a stubborn streak." What the president needed, he said, was "a series of vigorous defenses" of his position.
Washington Post

In order to kick-off the relationship building process with the media, he may need to start with restating his previous positions and framing them within the context of where he stands today.

Dee Dee Myers, a press secretary in the Clinton White House, said that if Bush wants smoother relations with journalists, "Tony has stature. He understands how the press works from both sides. He has a big personality, and that can be helpful." But she noted that Snow has "a long paper trail" and would have to defend policies he has criticized.Washington Post

Speaking of media presence...

Over at this blogger's site, I found an interesting analysis of the factors at play in the effort to corrupt the messages of serious researchers into areas which some very powerful groups would prefer not be critically analyzed. The article, The Destruction of the 911 Truth Movement, presents information on how major alternative news sites, the likes of Jeff Rense, and discussion forums, the likes of Above Top Secret, are used to assimilate, or disparage those which can't be assimilated, researchers with either a significant following or serious message which must be "handled".

Control of the media will determine which messages actually get delivered and what is contained therein.

Tagged: Current Affairs, News, News and Politics, Opinion, Politics.

Megalomania and Ponerology

megalomania  n.

1. A psychopathological condition characterized by delusional fantasies of wealth, power, or omnipotence.

ponerology n.

1. A division of theology dealing with evil; theological doctrine of wickedness or evil; from the Greek: poneros -> evil'.

Earlier this week President Bush declared himself "The Decider".  As I read those words, the above two words immediately came to mind.  I have provided the definitions above, and a few thoughts below...

Positions of power are full of individuals of the above types.

Study the types well.

Educate yourself in their ways.

Understand their purpose and aim.

They do not act in our best interest.

Protect yourself with knowledge.

And, remember these from Musashi Miyamoto's The Book of Five Rings...

• Think of what is right and true.
• Understand the harm and benefit in everything.
• Learn to see everything accurately.
• Become aware of what is not obvious.
• Be careful even in small matters.
• Do not do anything useless.

Tagged: Current Affairs, News, News and Politics, Opinion, Politics.

FBI: Federal Bureau of Intimidation

Not long after columnist Jack Anderson's funeral, FBI agents called his widow to say they wanted to search his papers. They were looking for confidential government information he might have acquired in a half-century of investigative reporting. USA Today

Yesterday, we read about how the FBI is attempting to obtain the personal files of investigative reporter Jack Anderson under the pretext it will help the government's case against two former lobbyists for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). The lobbyists, Steven Rosen and Keith Weissman, have been charged with disclosing classified information.

Interestingly, the FBI is expanding the scope to remove any documents discovered during the search which may be stamped "secret", "confidential", or may be otherwise classified. Smells to me very much like a fishing expedition to attempt to identify individuals, sources or contacts, who may have helped Anderson obtain access to information revealing unethical, illegal, or less than flattering activities of certain powerful figures.

Mark Feldstein, a George Washington University journalism professor and Anderson biographer. Feldstein said he was visited by two agents at his Washington-area home in March.

Feldstein, who is writing a book about Anderson's relationship with Nixon, said the attempt is part of the "greatest assault on the news media since the Nixon administration."

"On the one hand, I think it's really disturbing to have the FBI come knocking at your door, demanding to look at things you've been reading. It smacks of a Gestapo state. On the other hand, it's so heavy handed to be almost ludicrous," Feldstein said. Washington Post

Today, another Washington Post article more accurately reports, albeit via the comments from Kevin Anderson, Jack Anderson's son, the more troubling aspect of this demand from the FBI:

Kevin Anderson said agents were "duplicitous" about their "true objective . . . to whitewash Jack Anderson's papers and attempt to remove from history embarrassing documents."

Here we see firsthand attempts at rewriting history, erasing all evidence of the truths, facts, and events as they occurred. Under the cover of the search for security leaks compromising national security, the true objective of silencing patriots and honest citizens who would reveal corruption, unconstitutional, and criminal behavior, will now be sought.

Any document can be classified and excluded from revelation under the guise of protection of national security, at the discretion of anyone with the power to apply the classification, and thus sweep under the rug any act or decision they choose.

Criminal acts and abuses of power would never be revealed. Everyone would continue to believe what a clean house the intelligence, military, executive, and legislative communities maintain.

Technorati Categories: Current Affairs, News, News and Politics, Opinion, Politics.

Rockers Speak Out

Today, Neil Young joins the ranks of rockers speaking out against the policies and actions of the Bush administration. Seems that interviews aren't making out to the public, so might as well let the lyrics do the talking for you...

"I raise my hand in peace ... I never bow to the laws of the thought police ... I take a holy vow ... to never kill again ...

"In the big hotels ... in the mosques and the doors of the old museum ... I take a holy vow ... to never kill again."
from Living With War

Other artists who have spoken out include Steve Earle, Willie Nelson and the Rolling Stones.

According to CNN:

Veteran rocker Neil Young has recorded a protest album featuring an anti-Iraq war track with "a holy vow to never kill again" and a song titled "Let's Impeach the President," the singer said on Monday.

The New York Times reports on Neils' renewed activism:

Neil Young, who has periodically touched on political themes during a four-decade career, plans to release a hastily recorded new album ruminating on the war in Iraq and directly calling for the impeachment of President Bush.

The 10-song album, "Living With War," will probably represent Mr. Young's most overtly partisan work since the song "Ohio," recorded and quickly released by the group Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young as a response to the Kent State shootings in 1970.

I am finding more songs on the radio, specificaly the alternative radio stations, taking a stand against either the Bush administration or the Iraq war. System of a Down and Pearl Jam have songs critical of the war. Again, from the NY Times article:

The album comes at a time when major record companies and radio stations appear to have developed a degree of comfort with bluntly political material. The latest song from the band Pearl Jam, "World Wide Suicide," which accuses the president of taking soldiers' sacrifices for granted, recently logged three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard modern-rock airplay chart. And Green Day's 2004 album "American Idiot" which addresses themes of alienation but also includes lyrics like "Sieg Heil to the president gasman," has emerged as a blockbuster, selling more than 5.4 million copies so far, according to Nielsen SoundScan data.

Green Day's web site is www.greenday.com.

Neil Young's web site is www.neilyoung.com.

Pearl Jam's web site is www.pearljam.com.

Rolling Stones' web site is www.rollingstones.com.

Steve Earle's web site is www.steveearle.com.

Willie Nelson's web site is www.willienelson.com.


Technorati Categories: Current Affairs, News, News and Politics, Opinion, Politics.

Spring Cleaning in Washington

With Spring comes change. New life where only death or deep slumber existed.

Let the change start with the removal of Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of State.

An Opinon piece in the Washington Post today reports on the high level of dissatisfaction with Rumsfeld within the ranks and the risk associated with allowing him to stay in his position. Yet, Bush's continued support for Rumsfeld, despite Rumsfeld's poor performance and continued criticism, is raising serious doubts about the president's ability to make sound decisions based on facts. The steadfast support Bush exhibits is not viewed as commitment, it is a realization of his stubbornness. A captain must know when to change course or risk crashing his ship.

Rumsfeld has lost the support of the uniformed military officers who work for him. Make no mistake: The retired generals who are speaking out against Rumsfeld in interviews and op-ed pieces express the views of hundreds of other officers on active duty. When I recently asked an Army officer with extensive Iraq combat experience how many of his colleagues wanted Rumsfeld out, he guessed 75 percent. Based on my own conversations with senior officers over the past three years, I suspect that figure may be low.
...
Rumsfeld is a stubborn man, and I suspect the parade of retired generals calling for his head has only made him more determined to hold on. But by staying in his job, Rumsfeld is hurting the cause he presumably cares most about. The president, even more stubborn than his Pentagon chief, is said to have rejected his offer to resign.
David Ignatius, Washington Post

The New York Times reports :

"Are the floodgates opening?" asked one retired Army general, who drew a connection between the complaints and the fact that President Bush's second term ends in less than three years. "The tide is changing, and folks are seeing the end of this administration."
David Cloud and Eric Schmitt, New York Times

The public no longer buys the lies used to support the invasion of Iraq. And, to continue to believe the players which got us into this mess, makes fools of us all.

One who cannot see the reality of the situation, one who believes the lie because the truth is too painful or embarassing, lives a life dissociated from reality. The wife who fails to believe her husband is cheating on her, even though coming home late from work she can smell the perfume on his clothes. The proud parents who fail to believe their son or daughter may have a drug problem, even though the grades have slipped, the appearance has changed, and a different personality has replaced the one they loved. The citizen who once thought their country could do no wrong, only to find out they've been continually lied to and manipulated.

Spring is here and the time to clean house has come.


Technorati Categories: Current Affairs, News, News and Politics, Opinion, Politics.

Flight 93 and the Making of a Patsy

The case to try and sentence Zacarias Moussaoui for his involvement in the 9/11 attacks has taken a long time to bring to court. Enough time for just about anything to happen. Even the unlikely, but not impossible, following scenarios:

• Apply interrogation techniques to "convince" Moussaoui of his involvement and role in the attacks.


• Silence, by pay-off or intimidation, those who witnessed Flight 93 being shot down.


• Re-create or alter the flight cockpit and data recorder data.

Anything is possible.

The truly sad and unforgivable side to this trial is the pain the families have to continue to endure reliving the day they lost their loved ones. And for what? To send some guy to his death who may or may not have been involved?

From today's Washington Post article:

The trial seemed an afterthought yesterday amid the drama of the recording. Prosecutors rested their case for the execution of Moussaoui, the only person convicted in the United States in connection with the attacks on the trade center and the Pentagon. The defense will now begin its case, and Moussaoui is expected to take the stand again as early as today.

In the trial's first phase, Moussaoui testified that he had planned to hijack a fifth plane and crash it into the White House on Sept. 11 with a crew that included shoe bomber Richard Reid. The jury found Moussaoui eligible for the death penalty and will decide whether he should be executed or spend his life in prison.

When the jury found Moussaoui eligible for the death penalty, it became evidently clear to me that emotions would overtake logic and reason in this trial. Now, after publishing the recordings, and reading the reactions in the courtroom, there is no doubt justice will not be served by dispensing the utlimate form of punishment on this man.

The government is throwing the public a bone! The real perpetrators of the 9/11 attacks have not been caught and will likely not be caught. Killing Moussaoui will appease many people, making them feel like at least one person was held accountable for the actions which forever changed this country. Although temporarily gratifying, the feeling will fade as more people begin to notice the disinformation campaigns.

Moussaoui is not the only patsy, there are 29 other patsies in Spain for the Madrid bombings.

Justice will truly be served when the real perpetrators are found and proven guilty in a court of law. Governments are replacing the real actors with stand-ins and hoping the audience doesn't catch on.


Technorati Categories: Current Affairs, News, News and Politics, Opinion, Politics.