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| July 7, 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. Subject: Get on the Bus, Gus: SWIFT Gives Me Nightmares ... Re: The NYT story on SWIFT There can be no question in any reasonable person's mind that the American public has a right to know when its government, whose only legitimate reason for being is to protect the American people, has overstepped its bounds by engaging in clearly unconstitutional behavior to the obvious detriment of the American people and without their consent. Maybe that's why I have this recurring nightmare... We're all on this beautiful red, white, and blue American tour bus. It's a required field trip for our class in American Government. The driver looked ok when we boarded the bus but we've only seen the back of his head since. He asks us which way we want to go and we tell him to just go straight but he veers sharply to the right and speeds up. We ask him where we're going and he says, "Trust me, I know where I'm going and I'll get you there safe." Next thing we know, we're careening down the road going twice as fast as the 60 mph speed limit. Along the way, we learn that the bus is stolen, the driver has a fake license his rich dad got for him, he doesn't know how to shift gears because he was AWOL from driver's ed class, and ... surprise, surprise! he's totally out of his mind. Turns out he doesn't believe we have any right or need to know where he's taking us. He says that he's the decider, that God made him the Driver-in-Chief, that the bus is on a mission from God, and therefore he has the right to run down and smite any evildoer who gets in his way. In addition, he says he unnerstands our kuncern, umm, he really does, uhhh, and he wishes he kud tell us, uh ... umm, where we're goin' but, uh, he just cain't, uh, kuz it's a matter of nashnal sekurity and would put the kuntry at risk, ya see? I'm the driver so I gotta drive, he says. We screech past a police car and I think now surely our bus will be stopped and the driver arrested. But our driver winks and waves at the police car. No pursuit follows. With a smirk on his face, our driver informs us that that was his little brother driving the police car, heh, heh, heh. Feeling nauseous, I head for the emergency exit at the back of the bus. Better to bail now and take my chances ... then I wake up. The radios is on and I hear - WMD! ... Terrorism! ... Iran ... all options are on the table ... July 5 deadline ... can't allow Iran to get nuklar weapons ... ARGH! When will this nightmare end? Carolyn Subject: The Meaning of Bush's Birthday to Our Generation George and I share a generation -- he's just a few months older than me. So here's what his turning 60 means to me -- whenever I meet an American male of my own age, a brief but inescapable thought goes through my head somewhere in the first few minutes: "I wonder what you were doing in 1967." That would be the year my best friend from college died on the battlefield in Vietnam -- he had dropped out of college and was drafted. He was a conscientious objector -- a perfect reason for him to be assigned to the Medevac squad -- one of the most dangerous specialties around. That would be the year George was kegging at the DKE house in New Haven while his dad was arranging for his National Guard position -- one that was sure to keep him stateside. That would be the year that no one, NO ONE who was male and my age thought of anything other than how they were going to get out of going to Nam. I remember, when weighing my options, being told by draft counselors that I might be able to stay out of the war, but that I should assume that, even if I were successful, I'd never be able to run for public office. So here, 40 years later, and we have a war administration of Republicans, men of MY generation, NONE of whom experienced the shock and awe of Southeast Asia, and ALL of whom seem to have been very experienced in avoiding combat while still being able to run for office (most likely because they didn't have draft counselors -- they had CONNECTIONS). Oh yeah -- they also have been able to destroy the credibility of those politicans who had put themselves in harm's way like Max Cleland and John Kerry. That's what Bush's turning 60 means to me. Regards, BC, A BuzzFlash Reader Subject: Called Schumer's Office Hey ya, I called Chuck Schumer's office and asked about the Conn. democratic primary. All I got from some aide was that Schumer can't speculate about the primary until it's over. Basically a load of crap!! So sick of the democrats. WAKE THE HELL UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Sandra Williams Subject: Schumer I made that call to Senator Schumer's office and was told that "The Senator has taken a good position in Supporting Senator Lieberman." The nerve ... BuzzFlash is right, Democracy and the will of the people don't mean a lot to some Democrats. I'm appalled. Marie Goodwin Subject: Administration Attacks on The NY Times In the hyperbole of Bush’s War against the NY Times and the Press generally, one essential fact is continually forgotten. Bush had many many effective ways to expose bad guys and wrongdoing besides warrantless searches. The Press has exactly one. Perhaps someone should mention that fact. Charles Hillestad Subject: Gaza and the Warsaw Ghetto same place different time while the world stood by genocide live A BuzzFlash Reader Subject: Osama Bin Laden Dear BuzzFlash; Without explanation, the GOP has closed the unit that was charged with finding Osama Bin Laden. Are we to believe that this special unit was closed because Porter Goss did a bad job? That's what the GOP-controlled media has been saying. Or does that mean they found or killed him a year ago prior to the unit being closed, but have decided to wait to disclose this information at a more politically opportune time? Are they going to drag out OBL, or his remains, closer to the 2006 election? BTW, if the GOP tampered with the recent Mexican election, would that have any effect on the http://www.nascocorridor.com? The GOP have no higher priority than the GOP. Not the country, or the troops, just their own damn greedy worthless party. ACCOUNTABILITY IS DEMOCRATIC A BuzzFlash Reader Subject: Forgotten Sacrifice, F. John Duresk (Washington Post) How well he writes it.....How sad it is. Shirley .. St. Louis Subject: Rush Limbaugh: I Was Targeted (Newsmax) Regardless of the fact this proves once again that Rush is the whiniest man in radio, I just had to point out this bit of this silly article.
WHAT IN THE HELL is drug addict Rush doing with this kind of access to Bush and Chertoff??????? S W Subject: Killer Nation With our present regime in place, it's impossible to accept even the slightest possibility that mankind just might have managed at least some modest advances in sanity and simple decency. Jorge Hersch's July 6th AntiWar.com piece, "Nuking Iran Is Not Off the Table" at http://www.antiwar.com/orig/hirsch.php?articleid=9255 will surely help its reader realize that with Bush et al. things can and most likely will get worse, whatever yesterday's outrage may have been. Paranoid, perhaps, but don't forget that even paranoids have enemies. Friends ask me how I can detest so much the thugs we collectively call our regime, but I don't, really, because the word and its synonyms are all too inadequate. Subject: The Mystery of Kenneth Lay To start with...there is a little oddity about his life. He was born In Texas County, Mo...about 10 miles from where I lived. The county seat of Texas County....is Houston, it is also the largest county in Missouri. Okay...I doubt that there was a true Buzzer who did not think it strange that Kenneth Lay died at at the age of 64, and no one knew he had ever had a heart condition. And I also doubt that we...us...the American public...will ever, ever know the results of his autopsy. The second thought was...is this Kenny's way of getting himself out of this world to go to the Cayman Islands and enjoy all that money he ripped off the poor people of Texas? I saw people interviewed in Texas today...who felt no remorse at all...just that he got off easy! This is one funeral I intend to watch for. The paper says, like Bush says, that he is a Christian...how do they describe being a Christian? My teachings in church were much different than they! In 1999, Lay donated $1.1 million to MU to fund the Kenneth Lay Chair in Economics; the position was never filled. A spokesman for the University...said no decision had been made about what to do with the donation. Last fall, Lay ask the University to redirect the money to the victims of Hurricane Katrina...but, in Feb. before any decision had been made...an attorney for Lay requested the money for his legal bills...the school rejected both requests. All this, with a father who was a poor Baptist Minister...who sold farm equipment on the side just to get by. Secondly, I do not wish Geedubya any kind of happiness...for his birthday...for christmas or for his life. And, yes, I completely understand the Nintendo as a gift. And...I hope some reporter...the next time this idiot mentions the Global War on Terror...if they would just once, ask him what...what, global war on terror? No need to find the bin Laden terrorist? It amazes me to know so many real humans...most with much more education than I have...who cannot see the lies!! It is sadly, getting to the point, where I really have trouble respecting them...that bothers me...because many of them are related to me. Shirley ... St. Louis Subject: Bushco Steals Yet Another Election, Just Not Here It seems that the bushco and GOP aren't happy with the prospect of a progressive candidate winning the Presidential election either here nor in Mexico. So they meddle in the election in Mexico, making sure that the voices of about 3 million people are silenced and their votes not counted. Yet there is not outrage about voting problems here in this country. At least none that gain much attention. We all know what happened in 2000 and again in 2004. If you have an ivy league education and stand on the throats of poor to enrich yourself, you can do damn near anything you want. KJ Lovell [BuzzFlash Note: Just spreading some more democracy, Bush style.] Subject: Mean Age!! Buzz, I googled the mean age of American Soldiers killed in Iraq.
I'm curious, does anyone have updated research on it? That was the last I read.
Unfortunately, that seems to ring true. Especially on W's birthday. Akhil Bhardwaj Subject: Joe Lieberman Joe Lieberman and Barbara Boxer have just done me a favor. I now understand why 90% of our Democratic representatives can not separate themselves from the Republicans. You cannot be separate when you are much the same. Apparently women can join the old boy network in DC, where you do not represent the citizens of this country, you represent yourself and you seek as much money and power as you can gain for yourself. This is true right down to the janitor in the White House. All it takes is some sort of job in DC and you become the decision maker. We citizens used to at least (sometimes) have a vote. Now Barbara Boxer et al. have decided it does not matter who the Democrats in Conn. want as their representative. If they choose someone other than old drinking buddy, Joe, then let's help him run as an Independent, doesn't matter if it splits the party, and elects a Republican. They will show these pushy citizens who has the power. Then these insulting **** (you name it) have the gall to send me dozens of mailings asking me for money. I am so FED UP, so many times it gets past believing. No wonder George thinks he is king, the others are not far behind him. The Lieberman Hostage Scenario: Barbara Boxer Explained (R J Eskow/Huffington Post) What the Hell Is Barbara Boxer Thinking? (Huffington Post) Edith M. Conrad Subject: What’s Left But the Lies? When Conservatives run out of substantive arguments or facts they resort to lies. More lies, bigger lies, and by getting the MSM stenographers to repeat them, someone will believe. That someone being the conservative base. Base is what they are. Hateful, nasty folks who follow their leader with a cult-like devotion that is truly frightening. Frightening because they get one vote per person just like rational, intelligent people. These folks don’t think for themselves and don’t want to. Much easier to let someone else tell you what you think and follow along like good little sheep. One reward is that old pseudo-religious benefit of being able to feel superior because “you” are the good Christians and everyone else is the lion. Feeling victimized is a common trait among conservatives. They really are sad little drones. And more dangerous to the American way of life than any outside enemy. The lies are so insidious it is hard to believe that anyone would believe them. In this country, a man who served his country and was awarded medals for service in a war zone was vilified ; his service questioned and denigrated. While the weasel who used family connections to stay out of harm’s way is touted as a “war” leader. Conservatives have lied and lied some more, and by sheer repetition, some of those lies have made it into common knowledge as facts. Let Howard Dean tell you about how his cheerleading at a rally with hundreds of people yelling with him was turned into a demented scream by the media. Then it was played over and over until it is now part of the culture as “truth.” Everyone, everywhere in this country who is a “real” Patriot, not some slogan slinging idiotic conservative patriot, needs to refuse to let those lies continue. Every time you let someone tell one of those lies without refuting it you help their cause. Every time you let some idiot spout one of the Rovian lies as a fact you become one of their enablers. Arguing with fools is a thankless task. It is unpleasant to have to interact with these morons on any level at any time. But the alternative is to let the lies go unchallenged. John Kerry learned, to his ruin, that not confronting lies immediately and forcefully will bring you down. And that’s what it will to do a free and great nation. Marjorie Swanson Subject: Bush's War on Terrorism; Elections Practically all TV channels have imposed the images of W this morning declaring his intention of doing the right thing: continuing his war on terrorism until it is won. Such a war will only end when every human on earth is dead. The Bushites are pursuing it on the basis that anyone who disagrees with them is a terrorist. This war is a maniacal Rovian-devised political ploy which is chewing away like termites at the very foundations of America's greatness. We must not allow one more election to be stolen. Toward that end, we should all ask questions of our county officials regarding voting machines and procedures now. Check with the County Clerk, the Voter Registrar, the election commissioners. Remember all the things that went wrong in Florida and Ohio especially. Find out if the counting of ballots is under the supervision of a county employee or if it is controlled by a Diebold or ESS representative. Let them know they are being watched! A BuzzFlash Reader Subject: Steve King - Kingwatch.org A new muckraking website, www.kingwatch.org is now online. KingWatch exposes the terrible things that Iowa congressman Steve King says and does in our name. The site was put together by a team of private citizens in King's 5th Congressional district. The site is not controlled by any political party and does not accept advertising of any kind. Did you know that Steve King is the darling of the cockfighting lobby? Or that King wants to personally build -- and profit from -- an anti-Mexican wall? You can go to www.kingwatch.org and watch King build a cardboard model of "his wall" from the podium on the floor of the House of Representatives. Prog Dem Subject: "Sheriff of Racism" Article (Crooks and Liars) Regarding the story you link to regarding Sheriff Jack Strain stating that anyone with dreadlocks or chi-wee hair in his town would be visited by the sheriff's department, this comment was made in direct response to a question about a multiple homicide that took place in the town. According to witnesses, one of the gunmen had dreadlocks, and the other had short, tight braids (ie, chi-wee hair).
This is not necessarily a case of a racist cop profiling blacks, but a cop trying to track down murder suspects based on witness description. I don't really think painting him as a bigot based on that one comment is appropriate. Jeremy Henderson Subject: To Serve Man? A TV 'Newsmagazine' show the other day had a feature on Dick Cheney's personal preferences when he stays at a hotel. It read like the list of a celebrity's must-haves on the road. Items that the most powerful man in the world needed in his room included 4 cans of Diet Sprite and a couple of bottles of Perrier. He insists that the room's thermostat be set at 68 degrees. He must have at least a queen-size bed if not a king. And the room TV must be set to FoxNews. Items that were omitted from the story included the portable defibrillator and the freshly-killed human heart in a cooler lest The Dick, or His Penisness, as he is fondly known, requires an immediate transplant. Also omitted were the interrogator's tools- scalpel, ice pick, car battery and jumper cables, should the Torturer-In-Chief be required to extract information from one of the maids or the concierge regarding his thermostat being negligently set at 69 degrees. Another item unmentioned was the portable altar he uses to worship the Lords of Darkness from whom he gathers his Evil Powers. Equally laughable was this week's news that George Bush, the Demander-In-Chief, has a portable toilet flown around with him for executive defecations. Excrement in the News (Paul Krassner/Huffington Post) Apparently, the Secret Service is concerned that the First Feces could get into the wrong hands. Their concern is legitimate, as a microbial-level examination of excrementum regis would reveal that W is a botched Florida A&M experiment involving the unsuccessful cloning of a psychotic baboon. This tragic lab accident also produced JEB -- Johnny Empty Brain. We also learned this week that Rush Limbo takes Viagra to compensate for his ED (Empty Dick) condition. It seems that all the most vocal conservatives are genitally-impaired. Except, of course, for Ann Coulter, who is known by her intimate friends as the 'Donkey Diva.' Amicusbriefs Subject: An open letter to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation I would like to thank you first off for taking a moment to read my words. While I do not travel in the world of billionaires, I hope that my words will at least carry some value to you. I would also like to congratulate your foundation on the recent decision by Warren Buffett to contribute a vast amount of his fortune to you, that's also the topic of my letter today. Your foundation now has the ability to do a lot of good the world over. I think that Mr. Buffett will probably be the first in a long line of people to start giving large amounts of money to your foundation, as it will have the capacity to deal with the larger donations. Who knows, maybe even the Waltons will feel a need to throw a few hundred dollars of their vast wealth your way. Now that you have all this extra money, I am sure the biggest question is how best to spend it and reap the largest benefit for the largest group of people. I racked my brain wondering what the greatest good could be with that kind of money, but I don't really have any experience with donations larger than $50. Still, I knew that there had to be something that could be done and I felt I could come up with an answer. So, I set my mind to looking for things that needed to be fixed in the world that would help a lot of people. I made a list of things going on that cause a lot of problems all over the world and things that will happen if the world stays on its present course that will just make things worse. My list included the war in Iraq, which kills many people each day, leaves many more displaced, and severely hampers the lives of returning soldiers who suffer not only physical wounds, but mental wounds as well. We also have a huge military budget that is used to defend our country from the continuous attacks that may occur or could occur, depending on which lie the government goes with each day, because of how little peace is sought in the world. Then we have the skyrocketing price of oil, which will make it harder and harder for families to make ends meet and will slowly put more and more families below the poverty line. Even with this list so far, it leaves out the future problems of global warming, which could be so bad that a billion people could be displaced, worldwide famine could lead to larger numbers of deaths from starvation, and an even larger loss of life from new diseases. How in the name of God could you find a way to take on each one if these and know that you are leaving just as destructive a group of problems untouched? I thanked my lucky stars that I didn't have to decide how best to spend the money and I could leave it up to you to decide. Then it occurred to me that all of these things seem to have one common denominator. So I went back and looked at the potential causes to these problems, and that's when I made a startling discovery. We didn't go into the war in Iraq until George W. Bush was in office. We also didn't start that war as a means of spreading peace throughout the world. That is obvious from how we are now attempting to start a problem with Iran and to a much lesser extent a few issues with North Korea. We also do all we can to support Israel no matter what they do to stir up problems in their area of the world. We can't even begin to think about lowering our military budget if we have to worry about fighting wars in two countries and plan for a potential conflict in at least one more. There is no way that the cost of oil is going down if Bush has to make sure all his people in the oil industry are going to get paid for putting him and Dick in power. The environment? Kyoto might as well be a group of people advocating selling our planet to aliens who need to build a new parking lot as far as Bush is concerned. It looks like the root of many problems happens to be our current administration. Their greed could be what we can use to make the difference our world needs. The way I see it, if you give George and Dick about $2 billion tax free, and all they have to do is walk away and take everyone with them, then we can elect someone to take their place. Throw in another billion to have a clean, transparent election. Then maybe another billion to help with the reeducation of confused republicans like O'Reilly and Limbaugh, it could take more as republicans may not be for welfare, but they will take free money. We spend $4 billion to get America back on track. We could then get Kyoto signed and ratified, pull our troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan, pay our UN dues and continue working for peace in the world, and maybe even work on alternate fuel sources that would help erase our addiction to oil and help save the planet. In closing, I hope maybe this helps you find some good ways to spend all that money and make a better world for the children of tomorrow. I think you may also find a lot of Americans willing to lend a few dollars to the cause as well. Also, let me know if you need someone to work full time on this idea. I think it can work and am willing to devote whatever time it needs to assure that it works. Your friend in freedom and our future, Chris Mullett |
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