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| February 9, 2006 |
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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. THIS IS PART 2 OF THE FEBRUARY 9, 2006 BUZZFLASH MAILBAG. CLICK HERE FOR PART 1 Subject: Joseph Lowery, Jimmy Carter, Jesse Jackson, et al. Speak Truth to Power
Some mindless conservatives and libertarians (a.k.a. "closet conservatives") who hate being reminded that they’ve been on the wrong side of every civil rights struggle in our nation’s history are upset with those who honored Coretta Scott King's lifelong courage in speaking "truth to power" by themselves speaking "truth to power." I'm sure Jimmy Carter's as well as Joseph Lowery's comments must have elicited Mrs. King's broad smiles from above, along with those all the other saints. As for me, I believe speaking "truth to power" is the right thing to do WHENEVER the opportunity presents itself. Roy Murtishaw Subject: Fitzgerald ? Has and is Fitzgerald playing us for a fool? Karl Rove has resurfaced and seems as cocky and confident as ever! What does he know that we do not? Why hasn't he been indicted? Republican spin meisters are now saying that Libby will not even come to trial! There will be countless witnesses come forward in his defense and witnesses for the prosecution will decide not to testify. Supposedly that's why the Libby trial is being postponed until February! Is Fitzgerald really a man of integrity and honor, or just another bought and paid for crony of the Busheviks? TIME WILL TELL. Lawton Watson Subject: Reinventing Al Gore Yes, yes, it's true. Al Gore, far removed from the responsibility of power, is making some fairly articulate public critiques of Bush. How hard is that, as the nation crumbles? This is no reason to resurrect Al Gore, not without a price. Al rammed NAFTA through a reluctant Congress. Let us never forget that. Only Ross Perot stood between Al and the gutting of environmental and worker protections. And now the illegal immigration problem is peaking, American wages are declining, jobs are racing overseas, and environmentalism is crushed under insane global free trade laws. And Al got this ball rolling. If Al denounces NAFTA and neo-liberalism with the same vigor that he's attacking the biggest loser Presidency in history, I might recover some respect for him. Until that day, Al, you can kiss my lefty ass. Paul Lacques Subject: Al Gore - The Lion King? Might Al Gore become like Simba in the movie "The Lion King" (with Clinton like Mufasa and Torture Chimp like Scar)? Simba, the designated heir to be the rightful next Lion King, is exiled to the jungle while the usurper Lion King claims the throne and then drives the country to the brink of destruction and control by hyenas. After spending much time maturing in the jungle, Simba returns, challenges Scar, and claims his rightful throne and the country is saved. Al Gore has played the parts of the rightful successor, the exile to the jungle, and the matured observer. Will he next play the part of the successful challenger and restorer of the country? Just a thought after seeing the video of the movie with my young daughter too many times! James Hall Subject: Countering mainstream media disinformation about Hugo Chavez To my long list: One of the many disturbing things about our having lost our mainstream media is watching what they are doing to Hugo Chavez, democratically elected president of Venezuela (with no questionable paperless trails, etc. as in our own election). A small group of us is forming a Texas HOV ("Hands Off Venezuela") support group. Our sole purpose will be to oppose U.S. intervention in Venezuela's hegemony, an intervention that grows parallel with oil needs, Venezuela having the fifth largest oil reserves in the world. Our group will do this by meeting periodically to see films -- many are coming out of the things happening in South America -- and educate first ourselves and then others. Most of you will probably agree that had the majority of our people known the true facts about Iraq, they would never have stood behind an invasion. With Iran now in the cross hairs, it's more important than ever that we stop what most of us can see only as the PNAC's intended imperialistic wars. It is vital that WE learn the facts, of course, but also that we make sure the disinformation wars are not influencing our families and friends. Thus, it is not at ALL too early to learn about Venezuela. I'm attaching one piece from the "Venezuela Today" forum and would be happy to forward all such info to whoever wants to learn about the way some of the Latin American leaders, who see that American Free Trade Acts and full capitalism have done nothing for their people, want to do things in their own countries. Contrary to what Donald Rumsfeld and his boss would like us to fear (fear being their main method of controlling us), Venezuela is NO THREAT to the U.S. I can almost personally promise you that hordes of Venezuelans are not going to head across the Gulf to take over Florida. The idea of seeing Chavez and his people as dangerous to us is about as idiotic as what they tried to make us fear earlier -- that Iraq was going to invade the U.S. Further, it is NOT unAmerican to support Venezuelan and Bolivian sovereignty, to feel happiness at their slow successes in alleviating the great poverty that has resulted from doing things in a way that put all their wealth into the hands of a few. The people of South America do NOT want to continue to live that way, and such desire is NO THREAT to the United States, beyond the possibility that some of us may say, "Why can't WE have national health coverage?" If you would like to receive pieces such as the one below, let me know and I'll pass them on. Further, if you are from Texas, preferably near Austin, and would like to join our solidarity group (we are one of hundreds but the only one in Texas), please let me know. We will meet periodically, primarily to watch films, and we hope to see our group grow. If you live in a large city and wonder if there is a Venezuelan support group in your city, I recommend: http://www.USHOV.org Leigh Subject: When A Hypocrite Tells You What You Need To Do There are many times I bite my tongue. But when I hear a hypocrite telling others how they should behave while his actions are the same as those he addresses, I have to say something or my head will explode! We are all hearing the stories on the so-called news about the riots by Muslims that the “news” is saying started over a silly a cartoon. Although the cartoons may have been in poor taste, the story is incorrect. These cartoons ran last year, and nothing of any consequence happened afterward. That is, until the Saudi government called for these deadly protests. That’s right,the Bushistas' friends, the Saudis. The same Saudis that with the Bush crime family and the Bin Ladens own Carlyle Group. But that is NOT what is bothering me right now. What is bothering me right now is that someone from a decades old crime family that illegally wiretaps, spies on Quakers, detains people without due process for years, outs a CIA agent, condones torture, builds concentration camps in the U.S., operates secret prisons all over the globe, is telling others how to act. This hypocrite speaks of the quiet dignity and strong-willed effort to further human rights at a funeral for one of the leaders of the Civil Rights movement, all the while turning a blind eye to those people devastated by hurricanes. This little man is actually telling people how to behave. He claims to be a Christian, but his actions certainly don’t prove it. He claimed to want to end terrorism, but dropped the ball in Afghanistan and lied us into invading Iraq. He tried to associate the 9/11 attacks with Iraq and continues to try to make us believe they are linked, but they aren’t. He says he is making us safer by trampling on the Constitution. He he is systematically cultivating an atmosphere of hatred and intolerance while eroding our civil liberties. He claims to be pro life but as governor of Texas executed more people than ever before. This little man lies so much, someone else has to call his dog. I guess I could go on, but I have proven my point. This little man is a success at one thing: He is a very good hypocrite. Mission Accomplished! KJ Lovell Subject: President Bush is not above the law Dear Fellow Citizen, President Bush admitted to personally authorizing thousands of allegedly illegal wiretaps, and he doesn't plan to stop. Circumventing the Constitution is serious business. This is a big moment. People from across the political spectrum are standing together to protect the rule of law and the principles that are core to our identity as Americans. Can you sign this petition to show Congress that Americans want a thorough Investigation of the president's secret wiretapping program? http://political.moveon.org/ruleoflaw/ Also, if you have a few moments, time that will be well spent, please contact your Senator and Congressman and tell them what you want them to do. President Bush is not above the law. Thank you so much! Best Regards, Alan Dicey Subject: Bush’s Bankrupt Job Formula Every year the Bush Administration proposes tax cuts that favor the wealthy and spending increases. The result is—surprise—the largest deficit in history. As it is unsustainable to continue to grow the deficit indefinitely, I have to assume that Bush is hoping he can change the laws of mathematics or purposely creating a fiscal budgetary crisis. The people in the White House who masquerade as our leaders commonly justify the tax cuts for the rich as important for the nation’s economic growth and the creation of jobs. In the State of the Union “president” Bush said,
Bush later bragged “In the last two and a half years, America has created 4.6 million jobs.” There is a flaw in this Bush claim of jobs created. First, Bush promised that tax cuts in 2001 and 2002 would create jobs and the job market kept shrinking. The economic Policy Institute lists the Bush job creation figure since 2001, as only 2.0 million. Secondly, if we divide the 2.0 million jobs figure with the Bush quoted 880 billion lost tax revenue figure, we get—drum roll!: One job created for every $440,000 in lost tax revenue. That is a record that Bush is proud enough of to boast in the State of the Union. Apparently we as a nation cannot afford the bankrupt Bush job creation figures for long. For a point of reference, after 6 years the Clinton economy created 18 million jobs. As usual, the arguments of the Bush Administration are illogical. I have to assume that the real reason for Bush’s obsession and goal with his tax cuts is to shift the nation’s wealth from the Middle Class and the poor to the very wealthy. Don’t we as a nation deserve a government that will tell us what its real agenda is? Don’t we as a nation deserve a government that proposes economic policies that work? Don’t we as a nation deserve better? It’s our money and it's our country. Gordon Rowlinson [BuzzFlash Note: The $880 billion was over 5 years, the 2 million jobs over two and a half. But your argument probably holds up, anyway.] Subject: Bush Administration Science, Update Buzzers - The clueless George Deutsch in the NASA press trying to censor scientists has been forced to resign. Not only clueless but lying about having a BA from Texas A&M. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/08/politics/08nasa.html Colleen Clark Subject: The World Needs More People Like You Dear BuzzFlash... Your wonderful, truthful Editorials continue to inform and guide the sane half of our country. Thank you for the truth. And I must comment on Barb Blazyk, Blue Soul in a Red State. Barb...your insights and commentary are also a reminder to all progressives that we must all speak our beliefs while there is still the time and opportunity to do so. It is imperative in hopes of bringing to an end this tyrannical right-wing demon. Keep talking, only louder each day. Surely truth and justice must eventually win the day!! Richard Wagner Subject: Attack on Carter Hi friends, Google "President Jimmy Carter" and read the first article "Still No Clue" and see the absolutely vicious verbal attack on President Carter. This is a must! (Chris Matthews allowed Kate O'Beirne to go rabid at will with Rove's talking points). I mean, our one peaceful, anti-war President? This shameless assault on a former President, a Nobel Prize for Peace winner, no less, is scary!!! Of course, Carter's from Georgia where Ralph Reed, "the stealth campaign manager for Dubya, the secret co-Bush's brain in charge of the religious right," is now running for office. Carter is beloved by many there, who applauded his words wildly. As Clinton said, there's a lot of wealth from Blacks in Atlanta (he was referring to helping maintain the Martin L. King, Jr. museum, et al.), but the republicans also want to tap into the Black wealth there, too, but for their own causes. We need to write to President Carter of our support and affection for him! Then work hard, first and foremost, to denounce, pressure and kick out any Dem who joins with any conservative, so as to create a "bipartisan" appearance, which they use against us. I am sick of hearing about "bipartisan," including the surprise "Gang of 14" who aren't Dems, who worked to get all those reicht wing conservatives into lifetime appointments. Period. That means Byrd, Lieberman, etc. That whole list is the beginning of who we all need to work to oust! It makes it look like the Dems are agreeing with the neo-con agenda. I'm also not pleased with Barack "too young, haven't paid my dues, too big for my britches, in awe of myself" Obama or whoever. Our first goal is to "cleanse" our party!!! Let's not forget those "sleeper cells" like Landrieu, Nelson, Pryor, etc. Call Bill Richardson (Gov. NM) and Pelosi, to get Heather Wilson to do the Jeffords Jump. And also target those "moderate" Republicans as "radical stepford wives." When people like Chris Matthews go on full-scale continued assault, unbridled and unchecked on Prime Time television in the National Media on a daily basis against Clinton and Carter with their hate-filled vicious verbal assault, then we are truly "at war," but it is within our own country. *Note: This time at the funeral of the widow of a man who had been assassinated, I didn't hear a negative word against Ted Kennedy. Anybody else notice that? They were too scared, and Rove was shrewd in picking his targeted hateful anti-american propaganda, with this "cheap shot" rhetoric, and leaving Kennedy alone this time. Betsy, Native Texan Subject: mailbag....2/8/06 Leslie, the only part of that thing that I saw....was Jimmy Carter having the cajones, to tell the audience....that "We all know now that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction!"...I went to sleep again...I dread to think of how much I missed. I do hope they show the thing in its entirety again...If anyone can direct me to the complete audio..or video....I would be forever grateful.... Shirley.............St. Louis. PS I would not doubt that Carter did not shake his hand, I am not sure I would. The Clintons are being too soft...but, there is always the chance, that Clinton with his 73 approval rating and Bush with his 37...that they think things will iron out....one would think. Right? But, that 22 amendment worries me, too. Subject: white powder poison we saw that breaking news about some kind of poison in dc. turned out it was a false alarm...................however, that got us wondering what has been going on the past few years in an effort to find that anthrax terrorist who killed 5 people. what has been going on with that? last we heard ashcroft was draining a pond. diane a. Subject: Democrats Have an Important Role in Destroying a Citizen-representing Political System The role of Democrats is to justify a claim of the existence of a dual-party citizen-representing political system while supporting via inaction a transition and consolidation of power in the executive branch with those representing corporate interests. When they cower in the face of outrageous power grabs and unconstitutional actions by Republican operatives, this is not because they are cowardly, but that they are able to read the script and play the part they are hired to act. A BuzzFlash Reader Subject: Not Telling Gee, now there is a Ahead, no matter For an ever-mess- Mockery– a Subject: Using Their Own Tricks Against Them Dear BuzzFlash; I would like to respond to the BuzzFlash Reader whose letter ("Using Their Own Tricks Against Them" 02-08-2006 suggested that we more or less boycott the GOP by boycotting GOP Corporations. I suspect that the Wal-Marts and Exxons might be the LEAST of our worries. The biggest threat to America is the GOP's policy of privatizing EVERYTHING. As I understand it, the government collects taxes from every citizen and spends it ON those very citizens, through various services. This is all legal AND well-regulated: for every instance of abuse and over-reaching, there has been accountability with new regulations created to prevent future abuses. Remember, our system of checks and balances works only because it is PUBLIC. This is where the GOP has a problem. They are like the kid who sees a bright, shiny toy and immediately assumes it's his--and no one can stop him from getting his hands on it. What we American citizens have paid into our country in the form of taxes is the shiny toy the spoiled GOP brat wants his hands on. Privatization will take away locally-controlled municipal services and give us Enron-like corporations to control our electricity, water, phone services, and garbage collection/disposal. Privatizing will take away our non-partisan justice system and give us an entire country of citizens arrested by corporate police, charged with crimes against corporations, tried in courts run by those very same corporations, and held in corporate-run jails. Privatization will take away a basic education for all students and give us Faith-Based Schools providing training for Faith-Based jobs. Privatizing will take away an honorable military and give us Halliburton. Privatization took the professional journalists who would have reported on the threat privatization has on America and gave us FOX; privatization gave us the GOP. So, yes, we need to boycott GOP-friendly corporations, but we also need to be aware that the GOP is privatizing everything we assume belongs to everyone. We need to make sure municipal services are locally-controlled; make sure there are checks and balances on our justice system; make sure education is based on facts, not faith; make sure our military is independent of politics and finally we need to make sure our media is not populated by whores so we can be sure all those other things are protected so future Americans can benefit from them, too. A BuzzFlash Reader Subject: Propriety of Remarks at Coretta King's Funeral Why should we care what the Republican mouthpieces say? Consider the following: ...We know now there were no weapons of mass destruction over there," said Joseph Lowery, who co-founded the Southern Christian Leadership Conference with Dr King more than 40 years ago, "but Coretta knew and we knew that there are weapons of misdirection right down here." Mr. Lowery was described in this UK Independent article as one of the Kings' nearest and dearest; therefore who would know better than Mr. Lowery regarding Mrs. King's thoughts on Iraq, or anything else? More likely, Mrs. King is delighted to see that, even in death her work goes on. Also consider a statement Mr. Bush relies upon frequently: That's the great thing about democracies: you can protest as long as you do it peacefully. Progressives have good reason not to apologize on this matter especially when Republicans NEVER apologize for ANYTHING. SO LET US GET OFF THE GUILT TRIP ONCE AND FOR ALL, stand our ground, and get to the business of resurrecting our beleaguered country. http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article343997.ece Pam Clifford Subject: Rep. Henry Hyde a partisan motivation When Hyde comes out with this crap, someone needs to say really loud that squashing political dissent is a political partisan motivation. They are being allowed to do this because constituents in Illinois aren't doing enough calling to complain about it. Why do they get by with saying anyone who disagrees or wants to investigate anything they do is partisan and anti-American security? They get by with it because not enough people tell them that dissent is the purest form of Americanism. Please, if you live in Illinois, call this partisan hack who isn't running again and can do whatever the hell he pleases and say whatever the hell he pleases. 202-225-4561 Speak up or they assume you agree!!! ABB Karen Webb Subject: Would You Like Fries With That Lashing? Bush and his evil minions scare them with threats of blacklisting and media purging of their dirty little secrets... That's the repiglicans and the dumocrats in congress. Bush has them under his thumb. Gitmo? No lawyer. No charges. No No No No! They have every Tom Dick and Mary under their watchful eye that speaks out against them. Gitmo's in the USA! They are being built by, you guessed it - HALLIBURTON! It's true. Read all about it inside your pc. American citizens on hunger strikes in slave labor camps will be the headlines on Mars. No freedom of the press on earth anymore. WOULD YOU LIKE FRIES WITH THAT LASHING ? Tom Koop Subject: We're Mad as Hell and We Aren't Going To Take It Anymore Oh please - stop all this "we can do better" democratic slogan horsepucky! Democrats should adopt a new battle cry! We're mad as hell and we aren't going to take it anymore! While Hillary allows the swiftboating republicans to take daily swipes at her and frame her as an angry person, she should pick up the flag and lead the vanguard of Americans who are FED UP! We're mad as hell and we aren't going to take it anymore. That's the gospel truth. Just read the BuzzFlash Mailbag, or check out quick votes on media outlet web pages, or in "letters to the editor" of your local newspaper. People are getting mad! We're mad because our children are serving and dying in an elective, pre-emptive war based on lies and deceit. We're mad because Congress no longer is a house that represents "we the people." We're mad because we are being illegally spied upon for who knows what. We're mad because prices continue to go up while our wages and benefits go down. We're mad because our jobs are being exported overseas. We're mad because this administration has shown its incompetence in so many ways, but particularly during and after Hurricane Katrina. We're mad because this administration proposes to cut vital social programs while spending OUR tax dollars for new weaponry to fight an enemy they cannot identify. We're mad because we are less safe today than we were before 9-11 regardless of what the spinmeisters and propagandists tell you on all the nutty talking head shows. We should be proud to shout from the rooftops - you're damn right, we're angry, and we aren't going to take it anymore. We should not be afraid to call the republicans what they are - liars and crooks. We want our country back! Linda Ward Subject: Paging Doctor Mengele There is an article in the New York Times about force feeding at Guantanamo Bay. About “detainees” being strapped into “restraint” chairs and force fed. We have been told that the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay are bad people. So what’s with Herculean efforts to save their lives? “There is a moral question,” the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, Dr. William Winkenwerder Jr., said in an interview. “Do you allow a person to commit suicide? Or do you take steps to protect their health and preserve their life?” Ge, doc, that’s a tough one. Do you strap an unwilling patient into a chair, run a tube into their stomach and force them to ingest whatever goop you are forcing down their throat? Pardon me Doctor Winkenwerder, where did you learn to practice medicine, from Doctor Mengele? There is much that America will have to answer for, in time to come, over the actions we have allowed since 9/11. It would appear that the medical community has a lot to answer for, too. We should all be very disturbed that doctors would engage in such unethical behavior. How can we tell each other that we are the good guys when stuff like this keeps happening? That the medical community is participating in the mistreatment of prisoners is perhaps the most disturbing thing of all. We expect doctors to behave and follow the Hippocratic oath that says “first of all do no harm.” This stuff sure sounds harmful. When you lock somebody up for an indefinite period of time, with no charges and no hope, they might lose some interest in living. Doctor, your little excuse about saving life is pathetic. Dead prisoners from hunger strikes would be bad p.r. That’s the only real concern. Medical personnel who participate in this kind of behavior are despicable. They should be ashamed. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josef_Mengele http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/09/politics/09gitmo.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=login http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josef_Mengele Marjorie L. Swanson Subject: Thank You, Maureen Farrell Dear Ms. Farrell, I just have to write and thank you for the last two series of articles you presented on BuzzFlash, "Tired of Being Lied to? Modern History You Can't Afford to Ignore" and "Top 10 'Conspiracy Theories' about George W. Bush." I'm greatly impressed with your ability to sweep all the pieces of information together, tie them together, and then link to their sources. Those links make for powerful support of your arguments and also make it very difficult for anyone to accuse you of ranting. Until the general population wakes up and sees (and cares about) the festering boil of repression and corruption that is our present government, we will continue to head downhill. Your articles make it very clear that we've already traveled a lot farther down than most people are even faintly aware of. A voice like yours, which unwaveringly sticks to the ugly facts and does not get distracted by side issues, is truly invaluable. I am a fan of Bob Herbert for the same reason. Please keep up your good work. Your words, alone, will be enough for some people. For other citizens, realization won't come until the "immigration centers" that Halliburton is building on US soil are filled with their own friends and family members. Looking forward to your next project. Maureen Farrell Returns: "Top 10 'Conspiracy Theories' about George W. Bush, Part 1" Stu Mathews Subject: The So-Called Intelligence Failure I am sick of hearing this lame excuse of the Democrats who now say, “If I had known the things I know now when I voted I would not have voted to give the President the power to go to war.” That’s a crock of BS! 99% of the “things they know now” THEY KNEW THEN! What revelations are they talking about? EVERY allegation the administration made was being challenged, by knowledgeable people with hard evidence, AND the very Intelligence Agencies that the bush people now are trying to shift the blame onto, at the time they were debating the war powers act. Their vote to authorize the President to go to war was purely an act of simple political cowardice. It was NOT an intelligence failure! The intelligence did NOT support the allegations of the bush administration. Every threat the bush administration used was in dispute by the real intelligence community BEORE we invaded Iraq. The intelligence communities were muzzled by the bush administration; all their reports were filtered through The Office of Special Plans and the White House Iraq Group. Cary Subject: Hillary's Anger Problem? So Mr. Rove plans to portray Hillary as too angry? Hmm.... seems it may be time to revisit the Zell Miller anger-palooza from the the 2004 Republican convention. Mr. Rove was more than happy for Zell's head to explode, if that's the kind of red meat that would rally the troops. Rove knows full well that anger, used intelligently, works like magic. What we need is more of it, from every member of the Congress, from every Democratic governor, targeted with pinpointed, fact-filled accuracy right at the heart of this inept administration, directly at their so-called "strength." The War on Terror? Why, that would be the bull's eye! Shannon in Lexington subject: Good TV I know I should be in full outrage mode all the time, and that every spare minute should be sent reading blogs and learning. But, I have to shut down every now and again to let my blood pressure and heart rate go down. I choose to do this on Tuesday nites. "Boston Legal" is on. This program has gone unnoticed by us. "West Wing" used to be "our" show. Well maybe because it's on late, or maybe something else is on at the same time, no one has been paying attention. Every week, the writers slip in a little issue. This week it was re-districting voting districts. They do it with wit and humor, but they could have had a picture of Tom-the bastard-DeLay on the screen. Check it out. We may have found an additional voice. And Spader is devilishly inscrutable, and Captain Kirk - William Shatner - is absolutely hysterical as the gun-toting right-wing republican losing his mind with age and calling it "mad cow." Congrats to the great writers. They deserve our support. So help spread the word! Konnie Subject: Re-cycling the Bogey-man! Today George resumed his desperate method of recycling the bogey-man. Bush hit the news, along with his spin doctors, using his tired over-used Rovian method of scare tactics. Reverting to 9/11 and now an old threat attack that didn’t happen in October of 2002 on the L.A. Library Tower, Bush news clones ate it up, giving much air time to old news, even mentioning the 2002 shoe bomber. In a speech this morning from the safe haven of the National Guard, Bush’s words of freedom sounded disingenuous and hollow, especially coming from this ineffective Administration that incited world terrorism by his illegal invasion of Iraq. Violence goes on unabated as Iraq’s new government has unresolved issues that could lead to civil war. Osama, Zawahiri, and al-Zarqawi remain free, and four and a half years hasn’t improved the terrorist situation. Bush claimed in his speech this morning, like Cheney before him the terrorists are on the run. Evidence to the contrary shows the Bush Administration living in some alternative world of fantasy and spin. Renewed violent uprising in Afghanistan and Shiites and Sunnis in knock down, drag out fighting on the Iranian border and other incidents prove the Bush strategy effective only in his own mind! Take another look, Rice-Cake! We know according to your plan, you’d like to pin this all on Syria and Iran, but they are not the only behemoths in the bunch, your good buddies, the Saudis, are also inciting riots along with Egypt and others. Despite Bush words, improvements in Iraq remain negligible as electricity, water, and sewage remain BELOW pre-invasion standards. Security issues remain troublesome and Iraqi security forces cannot seem to protect the Iraq infrastructure from an active insurgency. Yet, we continue to pour countless billions into Bush’s losing war as our own citizens see Medicare, student loans and many other benefits cut. Bush’s errors prove to be hardy in a land we invaded because of a “fixed policy” and failure flourishes as the Bush Administration defends the indefensible over and over again! George Bernard Shaw called “the slave of fear: the worst of slaveries” Americans have grown up, we’ve opened the closet door and revealed George’s “bogey-man” and scare tactics useless and outdated. We will not believe the disembodied spirit of an old “replay”! Susan Carr Subject: It Was Refreshing To Hear The Truth. . . It's something George W. Bush hasn't heard in years. Being that he surrounds himself with "yes men" and only allows people who agree with him to attend his rallies. Yes, Bush's feelings may have been hurt, but Cindy Sheehan's feelings were also hurt, when he wouldn't take time out of his busy schedule (fundraising) to meet with her last summer. There's always time for the TRUTH regardless of where you are. Americans are so used to being lied to, that they really find it strange when someone has the nerve to speak the truth. Bush is in favor of everything Dr. King and Mrs. King were against. They believed in non-violence. I have yet to hear anyone point out where Dr. Lowery, or President Carter lied on Bush. That was the time, because Bush was sitting right there, and it was the place, because in the house of the lord the truth should always be spoken. What was totally disrespectful was the way George W. Bush was slouching in his chair. At one point he was leaning over to the side, as if he were sitting at a bar. This man is a poor example of an American President and a poor example of a human being. Kimberly D. we are watching gw's speech right now and it is clear he is just throwing spaghetti against the wall hoping to continue to fool as many people as possible. there are a lot of stupid people who will buy his crap because the media does not point out his lies, fox news even promotes the lies for him. the good thing is, more and more people each day are catching on thanks to the Internet. randi, liz and renee in madison wi Subject: Voter Fraud When I bring up the subject of election fraud, even among my fellow Democrats, no one seems at all engaged. We've been told that it's a tin foil hat issue for so long, most people just don't believe it. They have no problem understanding what happened in the 2000 "selection" of Bush by the Supreme Court, but they can't make the short leap to also stole the 2004 election. And it wasn't just one method in one state. They tried those same tactics in our Gubernatorial race here in Washington state. Because the vote was so close, they tried to claim victory, even though state law allows an automatic recount in such a close race. The Republicans claimed fraud and took every opportunity to stop the vote counting. They harassed the Democratic candidate and even put up billboards urging her to concede. Unfortunately, these tactics worked, in that many voters still believe the Democrats cheated to win. I know from experience that when you have so many new registrations and such record voter turnout, the incumbent doesn't win. And what winning record did George Bush run on? Virtually all his policies, foreign and domestic, were failures. If I hear one more pundit on either side tell me that we have to field better candidates - a successful doctor and attorney, to name a few of the vastly qualified Democratic candidates - and the best they could come up with was GEORGE W. BUSH?!?! Or that we need to figure out what we stand for. I know what my values are and I know that most of the Republicans I see, don't have them. Let's face it, the only way they can keep their power is to steal it. Maybe people were fooled in 2000, but I don't believe they were buying it in 2004. When my sister and her husband, lifelong Republicans, called me up and told me they were voting for John kerry and had watched the Democratic National Convention, it's easy to see they had lost even their base of support. Pundits also say that they used the fear card, but I don't believe even that worked. I truly believe they lost to Kerry by a landslide, as the AP reported on election evening, but the fix was in and they weren't worried. The most unbelievable part of it all is we should be rioting in the streets like the Ukrainians did. We should not let them tell us that exit polls are for informational use only and that before they were correct, but not in recent elections involving George Bush and Company. The implications of this fraud are immense. Everything this career criminal and his cabal of criminals have done in the name of our country is a fraud. Every act of war, torture, ruinous fiscal mismanagement, every crony appointment, spying on Americans - the list goes on and on - every single thing they have done is a lie and a fraud perpetrated on the American public. I would call it a bloodless coup, but thousands have died here and in Iraq and Afghanistan from this administration's unbelievable incompetence and hubris. So it makes me furious when people are unwilling to acknowledge the overwhelming evidence of election fraud. I know why the Republicans are denying it, but why are the Democrats???? Judith Shelby [BuzzFlash Note: Maybe you read our 2-part interview with Mark Crispin Miller? He says: "That refusal to confront the evidence, and to concede that Bush & Co. were not elected, is certainly not based on reason. It’s based, rather, on deep denial and fearful ideology. It’s based on the absurd conviction that it can’t happen here. . ."] Subject: Wave-of-the Hand Republicans BuzzFlash Readers, I have long wondered how Bush supporters can so effortlessly dismiss the most damning of facts with a "wave-of-the-hand." Mark Crispin Miller's analysis explains how. It is brilliant. Don't miss it. http://www.buzzflash.com/interviews/06/02/int06005.html Larry Subject: Cheney Is the "Leakmeister" According to Libby! Just read on "Hoffmania" that Cheney and Bush were the force ordering Libby to leak numerous classified information to the corporate news media in the run up to the pre-empted Iraqi war. This is a major bombshell and should totally destroy the GOP and the Bush cabal, no two ways about it. The Democrats have no excuse now. IS THIS WHAT THE DEMOCRATS HAVE BEEN WAITNG ON FOR SO LONG? Buzz, you should have a special edition and put this out to America now. This is hot! Cheney 'Authorized' Libby to Leak Classified Information (National Journal) Lawton Watson Subject: Reality? On Sept. 20, 2001, G. W. Bush told us Osama hated our freedom of speech. (Then he set up "free speech zones.") Then bush TOLD us OSAMA hated our Freedom to DISAGREE With Each other........... (Then came the outing of Valerie Plame.) Then bush told us Osama HATED our RIGHT to ELECT our LEADERS..........(then came Ohio 2004) And on Sept. 11, 2001, he told us: "Terrorist attacks can shake the foundations of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch the foundation of America." (Is our Constitution not the 'foundation' of America? Then why do you subvert it? ) Don't you find it in the least odd that Osama is still free, yet your Fourth Amendment rights are being "detained," or that your "free speech" is now spoken from behind a fence, or no one ever seems sure just how many votes were cast or counted, or that our Constitution is void of the language G. W. says gives him his authority to spy? Monica Subject: I just got an alert from moveon. This one concerned AOL Dear Buzzers -- The circle is closing in on us. I wrote (and you might have read) an earlier letter about major Internet service providers planning to charge us per email sent and for searches conducted. THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE. PERIOD. Of course, I responded by signing moveon's petition and adding a rather blistering message of my own. As I've said earlier, the neocon strategy is to starve us (relatively) poor progressives off Internet access -- AND help the establishment to spy on us if and when we can afford to use it. Of course, I realize that my email is already being spied upon -- e.g., when I write about my financial situation, I'll get about 40 (I am not exaggerating here; if anything, it's an underestimation. Or, if I mention that I don't have medical insurance, I'll get at least 30 spams. Coincidence? I doubt it. I simply delete the spam without opening it, but SOMEBODY OUT THERE is watching us. Of course, as all of you must, I get totally irrelevant spam, but the proportion of what I've written in what I used to think were PRIVATE emails to spam that doesn't apply to me -- e.g.. "Buy property in Costa Rica for ONLY $25,000" -- has increased dramatically over the past couple of months. I've told AOL that I'll cancel my service if they don't publicly denounce this plan. If any Buzzers out there have an ETHICAL Internet access, please write in. We MUST stop this. As I've said (probably too often), I always feel like Cassandra from Greek mythology, whose prophecies were always correct but never believed before it was too late. Do any of you out there have an Internet connection that you consider trustworthy? If so, please write to Buzz. I'm ready to switch. FAST! Barbara Lee (Barb) Blazyk [BuzzFlash Note: Some liberals choose Earthlink; and G-Mail from Google might be worth a look (the Google motto is "Don't be evil"). We haven't used either so can't make any endorsements.] Subject: Rep. John A. Boehner, The Lobbyist's Friend, Renter, and Whore This message was sent to Rep. Boehner 2/8/2006: 2/6/2006 "Boehner Applauds President Bush’s Calls for Continued Fiscal Restraint." 2/8/2006 "'Hterrya' Applauds Rep. Boehner's Calls for Continued Money (And Housing) from His Pimp/Landlord." Because you live in Ohio, the land of rigged voting machines, you probably won't lose your Congressional seat, although I think you might lose your position as Majority Leader a la Hammer DeLay. What you have done for those of us who are tired of the continual corruption and vice of the NeoCons is to give us a good laugh and the faint hope that you bozos will soon be the minority party. Oh, will that be a day of Thanksgiving to the Lord! Jubilee! Hterrya Subject: Yes, There Is Something We Can Do! This is for Michael DiBari of New Orleans who was lamenting that there was nothing we can do to get the politicians' attention. Mike, start an anti-incumbency campaign in your state. This will get not only the attention of your senators and congressmen but it will get the attention of all of them. Believe it or not, all elected officials watch their numbers very closely, and it scares the hell out of them when their numbers fall even slightly. I am from the state of Maryland, and both of our senators are democrats, as I am. One is retiring and the other is not worth a bucket of spit, she is just collecting a pay check. A BuzzFlash Reader Subject: Dick Cheney Hey Buzz, Just wondered if anybody might have told Porter Goss where to look for the person(s) who seem to leak classified material. Have him check in the VP's office and he won't need to search any further. CBS Highlights CIA Chief’s Rebuke of Damaging Leaks; ABC Skips, NBC Barely Touches (News Busters) Robert V Kinney Subject: Neocon Confusion Sheesh, no wonder our country is so FUBARed with the Bush Mafia in charge. For some silly reason, they seem to be under the impression that when Georgie Rasputin attends a funeral, it's supposed to be about making him look good, and not a memorial in honor of the deceased. The carping and whining that the neocons have made about the "political" overtones at the memorial service for Coretta Scott King is simply unfathomable. They should have known that when you take Georgie out of his bubble and transplant him into the world of reality that most of us live and work in every day, that it may not always be favorable to him. Let's get it straight, neocons: The world is NOT about Bush. The world does NOT revolve around Bush. Most people in the this country, and many overseas, think Bush is a disaster. In other words, we're just NOT into Bush like you are. It's about damned time that Bush get out of his bubble and be a part of the real world. Of course, I may be losing my mind, because this "man" has never been in the real world. George, go back to Crawford, or better yet to Devil's Island. I'll be happy to start up a collection for a one-way ticket to Devil's Island for you. Hell, maybe we could even send a few cows along so you have someone to talk to. Lisa J. Subject: Getting on with It Michael DiBari of New Orleans is absolutely right. The same old same old isn't working for us, so if we the people are to change the world, we've got to forget about politicians, letters to the editor, blogs and such. Instead, we do it ourselves, and, as Michael points out, mass mobilizations (demonstrations, sit-ins, etc.) are proven winners. Doubt that? Well, fifteen or so years ago in Easter Europe (remember those tent cities), how many days of continuous mass mobilizations did it take for totalitarian regimes to fall, Humpty-Dumpty-like? To accomplish same here in America, for starters, how's about us camping round the clock outside the district offices of our respective Congressperson, each of us joining in when and where we're able to? How many days, this time, for our own Humpty-Dumpty to have a big fall? A BuzzFlash Reader Subject: We're Fighting the Escaped Prisoners Over There So ... Hi BuzzFlash, So let me get this straight. Bush keeps saying, as his "excuse" about fighting in Iraq, that "We're Fighting Them Over There So We Don't Have To Fight Them Over Here." Bush's Republican chorus proceed to take their new slogan home and study the words so they can call every news or radio show and say their "practiced quote." Gee, now that the men who blew-up the USS Cole in Yemen have escaped, what is Bush, along with all his followers and the FAUX reporters going to use for "The Revised Phrase"? How about: "We're Fighting The Escaped Al Qaeda Prisoners Over There So They Won't Escape From Our Prisons Over Here"!! Tom Wieliczka Subject: Cheney's Spin Excuse for the Illegal Wiretapping David Niewerth at Orcinus suggests that the evidence is showing that the program of illegal wiretapping was set up BEFORE 9/11. When asked this question in the hearing this week, Gonzales would give no clear answer to the contrary. If this is true, then the whole thing about how the program is part of how the "world changed after 9/11" is just spin--Cheney and Rummy wanted this power back, like they had it in the '70s. A BuzzFlash Reader Subject: Iran's Leader Iran's leader appears to be a man who delights in shocking people. He has fun getting people in an uproar. I can understand that mentality; but he also would probably welcome a war, and never back down for the sheer ego and drama of it. Sherrill Durbin Hi all, I don't know about anyone else, but when Seymour Hersh starts saying it might be a good idea to think about leaving the US, I get pretty scared.
He laughs, but I don't think he's kidding. But there was one section of the interview that also really scared me:
What? Bush doesn’t care about electing a Republican Congress this year?
Well, if he doesn't give a hoot about 2006, that says to me that he really has no more use for Congress and will probably nullify them and therefore couldn't care less if the democrats took over. This is truly frightening. Here we are all frantically talking and working on getting Dems elected this year, and it may be all for naught. I'm getting ready to look into other places. My husband has a small pension and we have an apartment to sell so that leaves several countries, most likely in Latin America, in which it is very easy to get a retirement visa (and more importantly, very cheap to live in). I never thought I would have to seriously start thinking about that. But my husband is having some serious medical problems and through this experience, we are seeing how badly the health care system in this country is falling apart and it is truly scaring me. And we have insurance!!! But I'm really starting to fear for him because doctors don't seem to pay much attention to their patients - they give them about 10 minutes and kick you out. This is because they probably get paid about $.15 per patient by the insurance companies and schedule 100 patients a day. We think my husband may be showing symptoms of MS, and can't seem to get anyone to pay attention and really look into it. It's scaring me to death. I've had doctors refuse to give me so much as an X-ray or CAT Scan because they get paid almost nothing by insurance companies for these procedures. This is so detrimental to all of us. There are so many stories I've heard from ex-pats living in third world countries that the medical care is excellent in many of them, cheap, and most of all, much more compassionate because healthcare isn't a money-making industry like it is here. I've heard story after story about people's good experiences with the medical profession in places such as Mexico, Panama, Honduras, Costa Rica, etc. And in most cases, it's so cheap that people don't even bother with insurance. I never thought I'd think about moving to a third world country for better medical care of all things! Maybe I'm just having a real bad day. But when I hear very credible people like Hersh, Krugman giving dire warnings about the future of this country, I do take them seriously. Except for the fact I would be more than willing to stay and fight if I thought there was really going to be a fight. But so far it doesn't look so good. So can I convince about 10 million of you to take to the streets with me? I really do think it's the only option in stopping these people. Barbara in NYC
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