Some things bear repeating...

Today the President 'pledged' to 'urge Congress'... Ack! Sometimes the political rhetoric is hard to swallow. What is it about our government, which willingly sends hundreds of billions of dollars around the world, but leaves Americans to sink or swim, do for themselves, and make it on their own?

With an economic disaster looming on the horizon, Georgie voiced 'empathy' for those Americans about to lose their homes, but promised the economic changes would be 'a soft landing'. Huh? Tony Snow, Press Secretary, stated 'There will be plenty of time for backseat driving'. Again, huh? Is that another new 'buzz phrase' (like 'the blame game' phrase made popular during the Katrina disaster) which is intended to stop criticism of, and accountability from, Georgie Jr.? Oh, wait... Georgie has already said that 'history will judge him', so we're really not allowed to critique his performance (or lack of) during his administration. How convenient. Do all future Presidents get this 'free ride' too?

Our current Prez, of course, has a long history of not having to deal with the consequences of his actions (or lack of). Unfortunately, we, as a country, won't enjoy the same luxury.

HUH?

$50 Billion?

In his State of the Union address he said 'we' have to control spending. Now, he's asking for $50 Billion more for Iraq (to continue funding 'the surge'). $50 Billion! That's in addition to the money already budgeted for the war (about $460 Billion), and in addition to the $147 Billion of 'supplemental funding' previously requested. Is the man insane? Is Congress insane? Or are 'we' insane for allowing this to continue? (Answer: All of the above.)

What will it take - honestly - before we stand up and say "No!" to this insanity?

Aah! Technology!

After a few frantic days reading and studying books on vlogging and embedding video I logged on to try my hand at what (I think) I've learned, and... Surprise, Surprise. Blogger has added a video upload feature. Amazing! (Thank you, Bogger!)

No Child Left Behind?

Perhaps a more accurate phrase would be ‘All Children Left Behind’. The President has budgeted $30 billion to cover healthcare for America’s children for the years 2008 through 2012 – an amount which would not cover the costs of the children currently enrolled in the program, let alone allow for those that will be added over the years.

Priorities. It’s the same amount ‘added’ to his aid package to Israel, and the cost (conservatively) of waging the war in Iraq for two and one half months.

Conclusion: Foreign Aid – Ok. War – Ok. Healthcare for America’s children – No way.

Way to go Georgie boy. If ever our 'do nothing Congress' wanted a cause to fight for, might I suggest they look at this issue.

News Notes

President Putnin announces Russia has resumed strategic bomber flights during joint Russian/Chinese military exercise.

U.S. military suggests/recommends considering the Draft. "It's worth a look." top adviser says.

Tours of duty in Iraq continue to be extended.

U.S. Military suicide rate highest in 26 years.

Fed cuts interest in effort to aid Wall Street.

Whew!!

I stopped at a local watering hole on the way home. It was hot and a cold beer sounded good. The tavern was dark and cool, and nearly empty. I took a seat at the rear of the narrow bar, close to the television. CNN.
In just a few minutes, as if some unheard signal had sounded, the bar began to fill. I assumed it was the ‘just off of work crowd’. The stools and tables filled up quickly.
“Mind if we sit with you?”
I looked up to see a young couple, drinks in hand.
“Sure. Have a seat.”
They dropped down on the chairs opposite me and introduced themselves. After a few moments of awkward small talk their eyes turned to the television. Wolfe Blitzer in the Situation Room.
“So, what do you think of this war?” I asked.
“We support the troops.” the young woman replied.
“What’s that?”
“We support the troops.” she repeated, her partner nodding in agreement.
It’s a phrase I hear a lot, but don’t understand. “What does that mean?”
They stared at me, wide-eyed, but silent.
“I mean, specifically, what does it mean when someone says they support the troops?”
Silence.
“Well… Regardless of, you know… Regardless of what someone thinks about the war, you still have to support the troops.” the young man answered. This time the young lady was nodding her agreement.
I decided to nod in return. “But, what does that mean?”
Silence. Their faces flushed slightly as they looked at one another then back to me.
“Just curious.” I sipped at my beer.
“Do you support the troops?” the young lady asked, a bit defensively.
“Yes. I do. I definitely do.”
The woman’s eyebrows arched high on her forehead and she gave me a look that reminded me of the look my Grandmother would give me when I was a child. It was a combination “I told you so/There you go then” look. And, of course, if was accompanied by another slow nodding of her head.
“That’s why I think they should come home. Tomorrow. If not sooner.”
They stared at one another then back at me. They both frowned.
“You agree, don’t you? I mean, you said you supported the troops. Right?”
“I don’t know about that.” The young man looked thoughtful. “I mean…” He sighed.
“When we say we support the troops we mean that they should be given everything they need.” the woman interjected.
“Right.” the young man said.
“I agree. And what they need most is to come home.” I replied.
The young man grinned. “Just like that, huh? Just pack up and leave?”
“Pretty much.” I signaled the bartender for another round.
“But if we just leave… All those soldiers would have died in vain.”
“Soldiers never die in vain.” I replied. “They die following orders. They die defending themselves and their fellow soldiers. They die fulfilling their oath. They die doing what their country has odered them to do. But, they never die in vain.”
“But if we just… leave, then… What was the point of going over there in the first place?”
“Exactly. Good question. What was the point of going over there in the first place?” I asked.
“Oh, well…” He waved his hand in the air as if shooing a fly away. “I don’t get into politics. One side says this the other side says that…” He sighed again. “It’s confusing.”
“You can’t tell who’s telling the truth.” the young woman chimed in. “It is confusing. It gives me a headache.”
“I know.” I replied. “That’s why I think we need to bring our troops home now. Until we figure it out.”
“You know, I don’t think we’ll ever know the truth; never figure it out. It’s politics, you know?”
“Well, we can’t leave them there forever.”
“I don’t want to talk about this anymore. It’s depressing.” the young lady remarked.
I noticed an iPhone jutting up from her purse. “So what do you think of the iPhone?” I asked.
“I love it!” she exclaimed.
“It is fantastic!” her partner agreed.
They pulled their phones out and showed me the features. Their fingers moved quickly and I watched as they showed me pictures, browsed the internet, and tried to teach me about the operation of the sleek, shiny phone.
“It is impressive.” For some reason I began to grow depressed.
Three thousand six hundred plus Americans are dead. Tens of thousands wounded, maimed. Hundreds of thousands of Iraqi citizens dead. Twelve billion dollars a month spent on a war to which many are, sadly, indifferent.
I sipped at my beer and watched the young couple show me yet more features on their phones. It is a pretty slick gadget. I shook their hands, settled up with the bartender, and headed for home. I watched the pedestrian traffic as I strolled through the City. There was little that indicated we were a country at war, or that our government was spending us into an economic disaster. When did we become so casual, so cavalier, about something as devastating as war?
I thought of a blog post by a young soldier in Iraq. Basically, he just described his day. Tired, hot, always on edge. Never enough sleep. Scared and wanting to come home. Fiercely proud of his fellow soldiers and hoping no more buddies would be killed or injured. A hell of a situation to send a young man into. A hell of a situation to keep him in while we try to decide what we should do.
If Chelsea Clinton or the Bush girls were there, or even one of Romney's sons, would they still need to think much longer about what to do or how to do it? Doubtful.
We have abused those courageous enough to serve. Our government has abused them and betrayed them, and we as a nation have allowed it to happen. By our silence and indifference and fear we have allowed an ignorant cowboy and his cronies to have their way. We have allowed them to run roughshod over the Constitution and our civil liberties, wage war, and destroy our standards of morality by illegal imprisonment and the use of torture.
We should all be ashamed. But we should also all stand up and, finally, say “Enough.”

Wake up.

Perhaps instead of asking the Candidates what they will do, we should ask what they have done. Do the Senators and Congressmen need to be President before they get to work? What have Clinton and Obama done while in the Senate to address the issues they discuss now on the campaign trail?
It is an enormous mistake for Democrats to assume the last election was simply a message sent to Republicans - it was a message to all self-serving 'public servants'. Granted, I voted against Republicans during the last election. But I intend to vote against certain Democrats in the upcoming election (Pelosi being chief among the Dem's who will not get my vote). Americans are just sick to death of our inept government (Republican and Democrat alike).
At times I feel like I'm living in a foreign country. Where has America gone? We have no [mainstream] free Press, diminishing civil rights, and an economic disaster [if not collapse] looming on the horizon; yet all I hear are politicos debating the same issues they've been debating for decades. How can anyone take any of them seriously?
George Bush and Company have done almost irreparable damage from which I'm not sure we can ever truly recover; damage both domestically and internationally. These are, indeed, dangerous times we live in, and it's high time we held our elected officials accountable for both their actions and inaction.

Running on empty

I recently shared my frustrations regarding the (mainstream) Press and the Bush administration with Helen Thomas, the incomparable UPI Journalist and White House Correspondent. Thought I'd share her response.

"Everything you say is true and more so; but I honestly believe the people will wake up and the shamed press will begin to do its job again; we have been taken by the pigmies; the right wing talking heads and a president who could care less about the u.s. constitution, but I believe there is always hope and we should all be in the streets again; bush has had an easy ride. To this moment he will not say why he went to war, killed so many people, because whatever the reason it is unacceptable-don't despair but I agree we're running on empty now" - helent

Truly, she is wise beyond her years.

Democracy

So, is Democracy dying in America? I wonder.

When did we (America) become so - complacent? Indifferent? Uncaring? It frightens me sometimes. Really, it does. I truly think our country may be broken - and possibly beyond repair. (Not that anyone is really trying to repair it.) The Democrats in D.C. are equally as bad (and culpable) as the Republicans. Both are self-serving; more concerned with reelection than doing their jobs. I think the only difference between the two parties - that I can see - is that Democrats sex scandals usually involve women.

Journalism

C-Span's recent broadcasts of Bill Moyer and Dean Baquet were interesting and thought provoking. The broadcasts were also depressing. The future of a 'free and unbridled Press' seems bleak. Of course, I'm referring to 'old media' - internet reporting seems the logical progression and is without restriction (at least at the moment).
As a younger man - part of the generation who opposed the Viet Nam war, received the right to vote at 18, and fought for Civil Rights - I valued the investigative, fact based, unbiased reporting of dedicated and ethical Journalists. That was when 'news' actually was news and not packaged entertainment or propaganda disguised as news. And news consisted of, as [Dragnet] Joe Friday would say, "The facts, M'am. Just the facts."
I fear for the younger generation. They have grownup without the advantage of a true free Press - also, diminishing civil liberties and an apathetic, self-serving government.

(Continued at the expanded blog - see blogroll.)