BuzzFlash
presents Southern Style
by Rebecca Knight
September 27, 2002
Weapons of Mass Distraction
Southern
Style
by Rebecca Knight
"People have to decide to vote in their own self-interest. They've been beguiled by fancy slogans used by the other side."
-- Al Gore
Don't you just love politics! It takes a special skill. The faint of heart should not participate. Some of the arguments are so circular that they end up bordering on the ludicrous. Not so this week. This has been a banner week for political maneuverings.
Al Gore started things off this week with a kick in the pants to the Bush administration regarding their views on attacking Iraq. Gore's speech was nothing short of magnificent in its detail and passionate delivery. One by one Gore went through a long list of common sense points dismantling the essence of the Bush positions. The basic conclusion reached is that there is no urgent need to attack Iraq at this point in time. The Bush administration's demands are self-serving attempts to distract the nation prior to the mid-term elections in November.
The Gore speech was dismissed by the administration as "irrelevant." Try telling that to those of us who listened intently and agreed with almost every point. Try telling that to those of us who celebrated the articulate brilliance of a man who knows his facts and can speak coherently. Try telling that to those of us who understand that a hurried push for war will embroil this nation in more controversy worldwide and might only heighten the danger of terrorist attacks against us.
Right wing pundits jumped on the opportunity to ridicule Gore with their usual glee. What he says does not matter, they said. He is a private citizen and not entitled to have his views broadcast. Oh, yeah? He is a private citizen because of a Bush coup! This gives him even more credibility and clout as a spokesperson for Americans who feel betrayed by an administration appointed to its position, hell bent on destructive policies, bullying their way, and challenging those of us who disagree as un-American.
Democratic leaders such as Senators Daschle, Feingold, Levin, and Graham found Gore's remarks to be very relevant in bringing to the public debate questions that they also are concerned about. Graham stated that as a former vice president and presidential candidate, Gore has "every right to a public voice." Feingold said, "These are the kinds of things that I've been trying to say and to have a party's nominee say. It really does help. He really is in a position to make Democrats feel more comfortable about raising the issues that have to be raised."
And it wasn't just Gore who spoke up this week. Perhaps due to Gore's eloquent and enlightening speech, other Democrats found their voices. When the Washington Post reported that Bush had challenged the Senate as not caring about the security of the American people, Tom Daschle, Robert Byrd, and others exploded in righteous indignation.
Finally! Finally, they stood up to the propaganda. Finally, they had enough of the right's hypocritical whining that to question Bush is un-American. Congratulations to Tom Daschle! He is right. Bush owes us all an apology, which we will never get.
The controversy in the Senate came framed by the debate over the bill creating the new Homeland Security Department. Republicans are chastising Democrats for demanding that government employees who will have their jobs affected by these far reaching changes continue their status as civil servants. They accuse Democrats of playing politics with the nation's security.
Excuse me, but if these employees are already civil servants and the Republicans want to change their status, it is the Republicans who are playing politics. It is the Republicans who are advocating a change under the guise of giving Bush flexibility for assigning employees to different positions as needed. Funny, this flexibility is not in place for workers in the defense department who are also civil service employees. So, if the Republicans are sincerely interested in protecting American citizens, they should drop the pretenses, stop attempting to take away the rights of employees, and pass the bill!
Stop the spinning. We want to get off of this GOP merry-go-round aimed at distracting from the issues that are of critical importance to the average American citizen. Like a stagnant economy, falling stock market, cuts in programs to benefit the needy, cuts in education spending, cuts in environmental programs, proposed reductions in Medicare benefits, corporate corruption, corporate influence on the administration, etc. What about those? Oh, of course the Bush administration does not want those issues brought to public debate because they are evidence of their failures.
The U.S. Census Bureau released astounding numbers recently. The statistics on the Bush economy's impact on Americans are devastating. The poverty rate rose for the first time in eight years to 11.7% - up from 11.3%. The share of income going to the poorest fifth of households declined for the first time in four years to 3.5% - down from 3.6%. The percentage of income going to the richest 20% of Americans rose to 49.8% - up from 49.6%. The number of Americans living in poverty rose to 32.9 million – up from 31.6 million. The unemployment rate has risen from 4% to 5.7%. In the first half of this year 1.1 million Americans lost jobs.
Did you get a $300-$600 check last year, an advance on your tax refund for your 2001 taxes? It certainly helped the working class didn't it?
Do you notice a pattern here? Republicans like to say that Democrats support wealth distribution. These statistics prove beyond any doubt that the Bush/Cheney policies are having a tremendous negative impact on the average hardworking American, while their rich friends are improving their lot in life. Who is practicing policies of wealth distribution?
Remember how Bush criticized Clinton for fundraising on behalf of the Democratic Party? Guess what! Bush has broken all of Clinton's records for fundraising He flies all over the country at taxpayer expense beating the drum for war, manipulating the media, and taking the focus off of his many failures.
Cheney recently requested $100,000 more taxpayer dollars to cover his travel expenses! Just where has Cheney been traveling? When he is not hidden away in his bunker, he is traveling to campaign for Republicans and we are footing the bill.
Notice how Enron, Harken, and Halliburton are not mentioned very much. Notice how the lawsuits against Cheney are almost forgotten. Notice how the lawsuit brought against Florida by the NAACP, settled recently, was barely a topic of discussion in the media.
Of course, Republicans don't want this information to be the focus of the national debate just a few weeks before the mid-term election. They want to keep the country embroiled in a debate about Iraq. We know this for a fact. They have stated it publicly. Karl Rove announced that the war on terrorism was a winning issue at a Republican gathering in Texas several months ago. Another Bush adviser made a statement to the effect that you don't introduce a new product line prior to Labor Day. Suddenly, after Labor Day, Bush starts clamoring for war against Saddam Hussein.
There is one simple question germane to this discussion. WHY NOW? Repeat it frequently. Why now? Why now? Why is it so critical at this point in time to rush into action against Saddam Hussein? When Bush can answer that one simple question with irrefutable facts that explain why he is so determined to talk of war everywhere he goes, perhaps the debate will be validated.
For right now, it is crystal clear that Bush is using "war" talk as a weapon of mass distraction!
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Rebecca Knight is a native Tennessean, who grew up in Nashville, and currently resides in a small town near Nashville. Ms. Knight's political awareness evolved through the civil rights movement, the Vietnam era, the Watergate era, and the cold war. The debacle of the 2000 election increased her sense of responsibility for political activism. You may contact Rebecca Knight via e-mail at tennessee_gal655@yahoo.com.
© 2002 by Rebecca Knight
