Saturday, December 17, 2005
Who benefits in sudden furor over Bush administration's domestic spying?
As tempting as it may be for many to feel gratification over how George W. Bush is being hoisted upon his own petard for spying on US citizens, the real issues of importance remain studiously avoided.
The newfound "outrage" belies the fact that there was no such congressional outrage when it mattered -- four, five years ago, and every single day since 9/11.
The USA PATRIOT Act, a bipartisan atrocity, has been on the books for four years. The Bush administration's intelligence apparatus has undoubtedly been engaged in domestic spying continuously, with bipartisan approval. Horrendous crimes committed under the pretext of the "war on terrorism," another bipartisan atrocity (that continues to enjoy enthusiastic support), have taken place on a daily basis. The major crimes of the US government, including 9/11, remain unaddressed, or have become the subject of massive disinformation and cover-up.
The only reason why congressional Democrats and other critics of Bush have suddenly emerged from the woodwork, after four years of silence and supplication, is that the Bush faction has screwed the pooch, and badly blown its turn as the New World Order's manager. So the 2006 (s)election year approaches. With it comes another foolish turn at rearranging of deck chairs on a sinking ship, and another year of false hopes and naivete. This foolishness may end in yet another round of defeat and angst, as the Republican forces that control the voting machines will steal more elections, just as they have manipulated every election since 2000, from the US to Iraq. (Or, perhaps the rival faction will be given the machines.) In the end, noise aside, there is no reason for optimism.
Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice and all the rest are being Watergated. They deserve far, far worse. So do the Democrats, most of whom are fully complicit in the destruction of this country.Friday, December 09, 2005
Miami airport shooting: Post-9/11 fear and police state in full flower
On Wednesday federal air marshals shot and killed " threatening airline passenger" Rigoberto Alpizar. According to most accounts, and the desperate pleas of the man's wife, family and friends, Alpizar was likely mentally ill. The killing, which the Bush White House and hawkish Republicans immediately applauded, is " under investigation."
Commenting on the incident, federal air marshal spokesman Dave Adams declared: " We don't have a shoot to kill policy, we have a shoot to take care of the threat policy, and that's what they did." In the post-9/11 " war on terrorism" culture of hair-trigger fear and violence, there is no distinction. A threat is whoever and whatever panicky, testosterone-raged, trigger-happy, racist hotheads with the military hardware would rather blast away than deal with rationally. To hell with laws. Everyone is a " terrorist," or a "Universal Adversary."
