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| December 29, 2005 |
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The BuzzFlash Mailbag The opinions expressed in the Mailbag are not necessarily those of BuzzFlash. More reader opinion is at "Contributors." You can write to Mailbag at http://www.buzzflash.com/contact/mail.html. Guidelines for submissions are at BuzzFlash FAQ #18. Subject: No Surprise Here "Voter Fraud in Iraqi Elections" Omigod! The Bush administration must be appalled! Oh. No, wait a minute, on second thought ... Phil in Vermont [BuzzFlash Note: The Sunnis are crying foul - Iraqi Parties Try to Lay Foundation for Broad Coalition (NY Times/goupstate.com); meanwhile, U.N. validates Iraqi voting (UPI).] Subject: Animosity between Kurds, Arabs dates to seventh century. Obviously, no one told Bush. 12/29 Another little tidbit: the Turkish have slaughtered more Kurdish - about 20,000 - than Saddam ever did but the last time I looked, nobody suggested invading Turkey. Rosamond Subject: I Thought the 9/11 Terrorists Were from Saudi Arabia Something that has perplexed me to no end is how come 3 years later no one in the media or congress has pursued the connections that the 9/11 terrorists had with Saudi officials and the royal family? Why is it that while all American flights were grounded there was a plane flying all over America picking up Saudi Nationals when it has been determined that Saudi Nationals in America were actively supporting the terrorists who killed three thousand Americans. Why were we all so gullible to be led into war with Iraq when we knew that the Saudi government was responsible and was supporting them? Makes me think that the biggest scandal and truth will never be heard because we worship at the crotch of Saudi oil. I just do not get it... A BuzzFlash Reader [BuzzFlash Note: Lots of questions and allegations here, but we don't have all the answers. Here's one report, from CBS in 2003: Bush Won't Reveal Saudi 9/11 Info.] Subject: Who's Complicit Each and everyone who allows this here been there done that, same old same old; which are the how and the why we're where we're at right now on a dead-end straight ahead. Everybody's complicit in this because, like it or not, "That's just the way it is," turns out to be precisely what the status-quo is made out of. And each and every day that goes by without we the people doing something about said status-quo costs us lives; the exact number of lives varying from place to place, depending upon one's sex, pigmentation, income, nationality and faith. Meaning we've somehow come to tolerate the sacrifice of human beings (other than me and mine, of course), be it through war, poverty and budget cuts or by way of what's left-over (residuals of a sort) from the genocide of Native Americans and from the kidnapping and enslavement of Africans. Don't want to be an accomplice to murder no more? Just change the world. A BuzzFlash Reader Subject: Best headline Your best headline of the year - we only make it worse when we panic when they fear monger. Alex Subject: You Fell for Big Pharma's Lies The hidden message in the the Antidepressants May Spur Brain Cell Growth 12/28 article is "take them: they'll make you smarter." You didn't bother to check out whether the study was funded by Big Pharma, which it might well be; likewise for the Journal of Neurochemistry. I don't have the wherewithal to look these things up--I expect BuzzFlash to have it, however. I found this out at the Journal of Neurochemistry web site: one of its board members is I. J. Reynolds of Merck Research Laboratories. You know, that company that Rumsfeld worked for, and Quayle got those rushed FDA approvals for. In the first place, one study proves nothing. In the second, there is no proof that SSRI-stimulated "increased . . . density of nerve impulse-carrying axons in the frontal and parietal lobes of the neocortex and part of the limbic brain" means that people will thereby become smarter, or even less depressed. It could just as easily account for the negative effects of SSRIs, such as mania, aggression, and suicide, all of which are well documented and the subject of several successful lawsuits. And have they done a study on the effects of other amphetamine-like compounds, or even caffeine? How about marijuana? And how does this compare with, say, doing mental exercises in promoting neuron growth? Not only that, but the article encourages people to visit the site of the American Academy of Family Physicians, which is loaded with drug ads. Gee, wonder how that came about? Psychiatric drugs are minimally helpful, not better than placebos in the long term, and extremely dangerous when taken for a long time--especially when you try to quit taking them (that's not called "withdrawal," it's called "discontinuation syndrome"--but ask anyone who's had the misfortune to run out of their crazy meds how it feels). DON'T do this to people who believe that BuzzFlash wouldn't post anything that isn't tracked and investigated. It's a real disservice. A BuzzFlash Reader [BuzzFlash Note: Hey, it's just one study. We post stories of interest; readers must draw their own conclusions and pursue more facts. We did find an interesting site about brain functions: http://www.memory-key.... We also found the story's source (Johns Hopkins) which says the funding came from the National Institutes of Health. And Rumsfeld was president and CEO of Searle, makers of Aspartame, not of Merck.] Subject: Democrats Have Best Record for Americans Big Dave form Queens, you are correct. A + The Democrats in Washington seem to be deep in a forest and cannot see values shining each day. D are shining lights for all the people. SAMPLE: 84 good things done by Democrats -- Can anyone name ten for Republicans? Credit for this information goes to my friend, a great mind, and his terrific site Ray Dubuque—www.liberalslike Christ.org 1.civilian conservation corps 2. public works adm.--works progress adm 3. unemployment relief act 4. national industrial recovery act 5. national housing act 6. federal communications act 7. national labor relations act 8. fair labor standards act (min wage & max hours laws) 9. GI bill of rights 10. social security act 11. Tennessee valley (power) authority 12. rural electrification act 13. full employment act 14. permanent school lunch program 15. integration of armed forces 16. veterans emergency housing act 17. public health service act 18. national housing act 19. marshall plan 20. peace corps 21. aid to dependent children program 22. small business investment act 23. establishment of arms control and disarmament agency 24. consumer drug protection laws 25. equal pay act 26. manpower development and retraining act 27. clean air act 28. mental health and mental retardation act 29. college and vocational education act 30. civil rights act 31. voting rights act 32. mass transportation act 33. omnibus poverty act (office of economic opportunity, vista, job corps and public assistance programs) 34. war on poverty 35. head start (for pre-school children) 36. land conservation fund 37. permanent food stamp program 38. appalachia regional development act 39. elementary and secondary education act 40. higher education act 41. older Americans act (medicare and medicaid) 42. law enforcement assistance act 43. immigration reform act 44. freedom of information act 45. fair housing act 46. housing and urban development (low income housing ) 47. clean water restoration act 48. coal mine health and safety act 49. child protection 50. federal ethics code 51. civil service reform 52. creation of superfund (cleanup of toxic waste) 53. secretary of health joseph califano(fight tobacco health threat) 54. voting rights act extension 55. highway and mass transit funding bill 56. civil rights restoration act 57. head start expansion 58. Americans with disabilities act 59. major tax increase on the wealthy to fight deficits created by Reagan and Bush 60. family medical leave act 61. attempted to extend/or improve health insurance coverage for millions of Americans 62. restoration of democracy to haiti 63. restoration of peace to bosnia 64. promotion of peace in south Africa 65. promotion of peace in northern Ireland 66. promotion of peace in Israel and Palestine 67. increases in minimum wage 68. promotion of spending on inner-city schools 69. opposition to abolition of safety net for the poor 70. protection of social security and medicare 71. promotion of justice for victims of racism 72. protection of children from cancer inducing tobacco industry 73. constantly frustrated efforts to enact thorough campaign finance 74. appointment of many minorities and women to cabinet positions 75. resolution of long-standing black farmers discrimination issues 76. leadership role in nato’s campaign to stop ethnic cleansing in kosovo. 77. major efforts to challenge the dangerous proliferation of guns in America 78. americorps 79. pay their way party—1960 to 1980—National Income grew 418%--Debt grew 210% 1980 to 1992National Income grew 102%--Debt grew 300%. Democrats pay their way-Republicans party of spend and borrow-our kids pay Tomorrow. 80. party for strong defense—carter increased defense spending by 50%--Clinton spent 273 Billion per year to Reagan’s 249 Billion per year. Nixon-Ford cut Army troops by 41% and Reagan-Bush cut by 11% 81. Party of Integrity---Reagan had more(137) charged with crimes than cumulative total for all presidents of 20th century. 82. vacation with pay 83. trade union schools—forerunner to community colleges 84. worker retirement pensions http://www.liberalslikechrist.org/politicalmenu.htm (View pages 1-5) please copy and send to D spokespersons Fight with good things. Clarence Swinney Subject: Bush Is Allegedly Reading Books?? Even "Allegedly" Is Too Kind Dear Buzzers -- Sorry, but I just read an article in "Capitol Hill Blue" (capitolhillblue.com) about our troops -- who were granted "emergency leave" to celebrate the holidays (oops! I'm sorry: I guess the politically correct term is "Christmas") -- with the stipulation that they propagandize in favor of the war in Iraq. That included, via specific instructions from the brass, "informing" their families/friends/neighbors, AND contacting their hometown newspapers with the "good news" that we're "winning the fight" and (once again) "need to stay the course." Good thing I hadn't eaten breakfast when I read this; I would have lost it. Pentagon propaganda program orders soldiers to promote Iraq war while home on leave The thought of Bush's actually READING a book (other than "My Pet Goat") is so absurd that I'd laugh if I didn't want to cry. WHEN will our country wake up and, as Ann Landers used to say, "smell the coffee"?? To prostitute our troops into lying, when they, better than any of the rest of us, know how deep the Iraqi quagmire is, goes beyond disgusting. It reaches the level of impeachability. However, the Dems (at least the DLCer's) are still licking their fingers and holding them up to the wind -- and staining their noses black from the ink on the MSM articles claiming that the *$$h*le-in-Chief is gaining in the polls (can't you just hear Hillary, asking herself, "Hmmm. Maybe I'd better wait until I see which position I should take ..."?). I'll believe that Bush is (a) reading a book, and (b) telling the truth when regarding (a) he gives me a written summary and analysis -- written while he's locked in the oval office, with no coaching -- and regarding (b) he provides a credible (and coherent) explanation of all his lies (which, of course, is impossible. Since point b is much more critical than point a, I expect little ... or nothing. Or worse. Another "engineered" terrorist attack? Wouldn't surprise me at all, especially as we approach the 2006 elections. I realize, of course, that we Buzzers (especially those of us who are hanging on, financially, by our fingernails) are putting our butts on the line at much greater risk than members of Congress. That, of course, makes me even more furious. If we (especially those of us who sign our names to our messages) take the risk, at much greater stakes, why the BLEEP can't THEY?? Barbara Lee (Barb) Blazyk Subject: Congressional Crooks, Criminals and Cretins It seems that not many people in this country have a high regard for the United States House of Representatives. With their poll numbers hovering at or below 30 percent, it would seem we elect and send off to Washington D.C. a bunch of clowns we absolutely disrespect. That would suggest that the American voter is getting precisely what they deserve. Corruption runs rampant throughout our system, while the majority of Americans are more concerned with the next episode of Desperate Housewives than what is happening in Washington. A disinterested and ignorant population is a gift that never stops giving to elected officials. We hear that some elected officials are worried about the midterm elections in November. Not to worry people. The pinheaded public will have long forgotten today’s scandals and be deep in football season. Or NASCAR or something really important. Take Congressman Dana Rohrabacher of the 46th District of California for instance: his rant on television about Bush’s disregarding of the law to spy on people in the U.S. was pure theater. According to this cretin, all that mattered was that Bush was trying to keep us safe. Rohrabacher was elected with 61.8% of the vote in his district in 2002. No doubt Congressman Rohrabacher will be reelected by his constituency. He said we don’t need to follow our laws. He said that the president can break the law all he wants as long as he keeps folks out there in television land safe. A congressman advocating the breaking of the law. Californians who voted for this moron got what they deserved. But then look at what they chose for Governor. Rohrabacher has skimmed close to the edge before and had been accused of influence peddling but that’s not a crime in Washington, that’s a way of life. Fellow Republican and former Representative Bob Barr was flabbergasted by Rohrabacher’s remarks on The Situation Room on December 16th. Barr remarked, "Here again, this is absolutely a bizarre conversation where you have a member of congress saying that it’s okay for the President of the United States to ignore U. S. law, to ignore the Constitution, simply because we have an undeclared war. The fact of the matter is the law prohibits—specifically prohibits—what apparently was done in this case, and for a member of Congress to say, oh, that doesn’t matter, I’m proud that the president violated the law is absolutely astounding." (link to Daily Kos account here: Republican Representative is Proud of Violations of Federal Law) Marjorie L. Swanson Subject: Relationship of Bush to Bin Laden The satirical letter of Big Dave from Queens was quite thought-provoking. Consider this scenario. Let us say that Bin Laden had been captured in 2002, after the invasion of Afghanistan. At that point the case of the hijacked airplanes running into the world trade center would have been closed. The so-called criminal mastermind would have been captured, tried and put away. There would have been a true sense of closure. Instead of continuing the pursuit of Bin Laden, at this point, there was a shift to the overthrow of the secular regime of Saddam Hussein. Somehow removing Saddam Hussein from power was made to seem to be a part of getting the people behind the world trade center destruction. Mr. Bush and his associates manufactured a link, although Hussein was clearly an enemy to Bin Laden. It appears that Mr. Bush and his associates did not really care that much about bringing the perpetrators of the world trade center's destruction to justice, they were more interested in other geo-political considerations. Jay Raskin Subject: Message to whomever may be reading this (and I don't mean BuzzFlash readers): Keep on reading, keep on spying, keep on eavesdropping, keep looking in all the wrong places for signs of terrorism (but, of course, please continue to ignore Osama). And have you noticed something? No one has stopped talking, writing, shouting, protesting, challenging you - in fact, it's getting a little louder, isn't it? This is America. We won't stop speaking our minds. You must be crazy if you think we will. The tide is turning. I'd say you've definitely overreached. Anyway, hello to BuzzFlash and BuzzFlashers. And Happy New Year to all - you too Georgie, Dick and Donny. Barbara Hecker in New York City Subject: He Broke the Law What is with all the discussions about Bush's spying on Americans without a warrant? It is against the law. He broke the law. No damn arguments and no damn excuses apply. He broke the law. After we accept the first point of this conversation, that Bush broke the law, then fine, we can have a nice long chit-chat about civil rights and any other topic you choose. You can call me a Wimpy Liberal and I can call you a Rethuglican and all will be as usual. God knows no Americans hate an external enemy half as much as they hate each other. I expect to hear of some loonies trying to secede from the Union at any moment. (We should have let them go the first time.) But the why would they secede? Jefferson Davis sits in the White House. And so on and so on. Just another little Conservatives hating Liberals and Liberals hating Conservatives chinfest. Except, he broke the law. Support your Republican pals all you want to. Claim he was just making America safe. Say, claim, protest, shout, yell, scream or anything at all else you feel like doing. Just admit that he broke the law. Bush broke the law and no one in this country is supposed to be above the law. He swore to uphold the Constitution. He broke the law. He told everyone back in 2004 that wiretaps were always used only after a warrant was issued. Bingo, he broke the law and he lied about it. Are these the values the Republicans brag about? They support a president who breaks the law. Kick and scream and beat your tiny little fists on the table and drum your tiny little heels on the floor. He broke the law. ACLU Ad: The President Lied to the American People and Broke the Law (12/29/2005) Marjorie L. Swanson Subject: MATT TAIBBI unloads on Bush Up until now this president's solution to everything has been to stare into the cameras, lie and keep on lying until such time as the political problem disappears. And now, unable to comprehend that while political crises may wilt in the face of such tactics, real crises do not, he and his team are responding to this first serious feet-to-the-fire Iraq emergency in the same way they always have -- with a fusillade of silly, easily disprovable bull**it. Bush and his mouthpieces continue to try to obfuscate and cloud the issue of why we're in Iraq, and they do so not only selectively but constantly, compulsively, like mental patients who can't stop jacking off in public. They don't know the difference between a real problem and a political problem, because to them, there is no difference. What could possibly be worse than bad poll numbers? The Magical Victory Tour: While Iraq burns, the president keeps playing the same old song RollingStone has brought back their cutting edge political commentary and analysis. Klinenberg and Frank explore "Looting Homeland Security" or how BushCo have turned disaster response into a slush fund of corporate welfare and no bid contracts. I am a reader of BuzzFlash and suspect that like-minded readers might find these articles interesting. jonny bakho Subject: Talking Here's what I sent the Portland Oregonian:
So here's a probable conversation at the White House: P: "Dick, do you think we should get a court order to put a wiretap on these Quakers to see if they're terrorists?" V: "Naah! Just do it." P: "Well, we talked about it." V: "Yep, just like we said we would." And to think that some are calling the President a liar. Philip S. Crosby
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