Gen. Patraeus’s boss, Admiral William Fallon, opposed the surge in Iraq.

Sent in by Rachael S.

Fallon also called Petraeus “an ass-kissing little chickenshit” (sounds like the Bush administration to me!) The Washington Post reported September 9 on intense conflict within the administration over Iraq. The story quoted a senior official as saying that referring to the “bad relations” between them is “the understatement of the century.”

Why didn’t the Foreign Affairs Committee question Fallon? Please click on this link to read the entire article, then call congress. Demand answers as to why they didn’t interview Fallon. Insist that they take his comments under advisement.

Carl Levin 202-224-6221
Candice Miller 202-225-2106 Washington Office, 586-997-5010 Shelby Office
Debbie Stabenow 202-224-4822

http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39235

The Michigan Budget Crisis

There's a terrific editorial" in today's Free Press on what's wrong with the Michigan budget: the quick answer to that question is one word, "prisons." The more complicated answer is that the Republicans in the State Senate obstinately refuse to admit the fact that the Michigan prison system is dysfunctional and extravagantly wasteful.

Consider these facts, all found in this must-read editorial:

* Michigan spends more on prisons than it does on higher education.

* In 1980 one in 20 employees of the state civil service worked in prisons; today the number is one out of three.

* The incarceration rate in Michigan is, on average, 40% higher than in the seven other Great Lakes states, all of which report lower crime rates.

What's the Republican plan? Same as always: cut funding, outsource, privatize--with absolutely no evidence that these will accomplish anything useful. In fact, one place where privatization was tried, medical services, turned out to be a complete disaster, bringing "national shame," "negligent care," "unnecessary suffering and deaths."

The Free Press editors provide a long list of steps that Michigan could take to make our prisons more efficient: these include re-examining sentencing guidelines, better oversight of the State Parole Board, and more humane treatment of offenders with mental illness. All of these would make for a better and cheaper prison system, and all are opposed by Republicans in the Senate, who routinely spread distorted, deceptive claims calculated to play on people's fears and ignorance.

Michigan faces an enormous budget crisis, and the Republicans in the Senate are doing everything they can to obstruct realistic, humane efforts to address it.

BlueNovember.Org gets SiCKO

On Saturday, September 8, 2007, members of BlueNovember.Org joined many of their St. Clair County neighbors for popcorn and a movie. Not just any movie. They watched SiCKO.

Just two weeks earlier, BlueNovember.Org held a "We're SiCKO Waiting" rally in front of Krafft 8, calling on both theater management and movie patrons to work to get this important documentary shown in our community.

Matt Bieth, Krafft 8 manager, deserves praise and thanks for keeping his promise to contact the owner of Krafft 8 and request SiCKO.

SiCKO is an instrument of truth about more than our disastrous national health care problems; it is a message about how our American culture has been shaped into a construct of millions of MEs instead of one US. Let us now be courageous, work together, and demand change not only for health care, but also for the mentality that got us here in the first place.

Rolling Stone looks at Iraq profiteering Gone Wild

Sent in by Rachael

Although this article is long, it is a must read. It outlines how incompetent, corrupt and greed-driven this administration really is. This should outrage you not only as tax payers but as Americans. This administration is determined to bankrupt our country, and this article is probably just the tip! As the article states, "What is happening in Iraq goes beyond inefficiency and beyond fraud. This is about a business of government being corrupted by profit motive to such an extraordinary degree, that we really need to wonder how we will ever be able to depend on the state to do its job in the future."

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/16076312/the_great_iraq_swindle

What I Would Like to Say to President Bush

August 30, 2007



The Rt. Rev. Charles Jenkins
Episcopal Bishop of Louisiana



Today the President of the United States of America is arriving in New Orleans for the occasion of the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. I do not know his itinerary, but I am glad he has chosen to join us here where the grief, guilt, anger, and frustration of a nation is gathering.



The country knows that the death of this American city, and many who live in it, could occur any day. According to National Geographic, "The Gulf Coast faces 50-50 odds of being hit by a Katrina-size storm this summer." Presumably, the President is also aware of this fact.



Recognizing our vulnerability, not to terrorism, but to the deadly force of severe weather, I would like to ask the President how he plans to clearly demonstrate his calculation of our people's worth and his government's commitment to our safety? The question is one that Providence has put to this President, and it is one of those tests all human beings dread – the kind that determines who you really are.



We already know who faith-based America has proven to be.



These volunteers have not sacrificed for the "safe" above-sea-level neighborhoods or the economically secure residents of this city. They have not given their time, talent, and hard-earned dollars to the recovery of communities that rest securely on higher ground.



The volunteers of this country are still coming in larger numbers than ever to help heal the lives of their fellow Americans – the same vulnerable Americans we saw trapped, suffering and dying on our televisions two years ago this week. And those "looters," "those people down there" as the President has called us, are proving to be some of the most courageous and resilient citizens of this land. Mr.President, did you know that according to a survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 98% of survivors interviewed in the Houston Astrodome following the federal flood said that their faith in God is what had enabled them to survive? I am proud to be one of "those people."



Does the President realize what hundreds of thousands of Americans are saying when they come to gut and rebuild this city block by block with their own bare hands? Does he realize what it means that tens of thousands of volunteers sacrifice personally to finance the purchase of building materials for residents who have yet to receive their Road Home money from the government? Does he hear what young people are saying by the thousands when they come to serve the children of this city as teachers in our struggling second-tier public schools?



It means, Mr. President, that a huge number of Americans love their neighbor as themselves. Not in words alone but in actions. This segment of our society, a segment whose values you claim to represent and share, has already cast its vote in the referendum on New Orleans. We clearly do not believe any of New Orleans or its people are dispensable or undesirable. We stand together in our fight to recognize and cherish the dignity and worth of every citizen of this city, and we believe how the citizens of this city are treated says who we really are as a nation.



We are waiting for a sign from you that you feel the same. And we hope, for your sake as well as our own, that it comes before the next storm. We will not be satisfied by tokenism when our survival is at stake.



This is what the gathering grief and anger of a nation is about this August 29, 2007. The people of this country still honor the social contract between citizens. We need to see clear evidence that our President shares this humanity, conscience, and sense of moral duty.



What forms might this take at this late date when so many of our elders and children have already perished from endless waiting in exile? New Orleans' own Douglas Brinkley, in his article "Reckless Abandonment" published in last Sunday's Washington Post made several excellent suggestions: Get serious Mr. President. Make an impact worthy of the scale of this disaster. Rally corporate America to ante up. Name a high-powered "czar such as Colin Powell or James Baker" to run this show. Create a "Herculean clean-up effort" as we did for Wall Street after 9-11. Invest boldly in the rebuilding. Think "Marshall Plan." Mobilize on the scale of a world power.



The above will at least honor the fact that thousands are investing everything they have left to recover the land and heritage of generations of forebears, and prove you are not choosing inaction as a tactic, hoping we will all soon be washed away. But to become truly a part of the Beloved Community that is forming in New Orleans and throughout this land you must do more.



You must think about the relationship between greed, policy and human suffering. Did you know that 30% of the children in this city are homeless? Did you know teachers are living in shacks without running water? You cannot in good conscience allow HUD to fence off perfectly livable public housing while so many people are in desperate need.



Did you know that faith-based organizations are the ones advancing their meager funds to families for the purchase of building materials because the Road Home has yet to come through with any funds for the repair of their homes? You cannot allow companies like ICF International to receive hundreds of millions of federal dollars in fees, while distributing a meager amount of Road Home funds to residents. Now we hear the department of Health and Human Services is poised to give additional dollars to ICF, the organization that has so profoundly mismanaged the Road Home program. And finally, you cannot allow the State of Louisiana to shirk its constitutional obligation to provide a quality public education to every New Orleans child, by wait-listing children for slots in public school classrooms.



We can be reconciled, Mr. President. New Orleanians are a long-suffering and forgiving people. But to be so you must show us that you see and value our humanity before it is too late.



This column appeared originally on the blog of the Episcopal Bishop of Louisiana.

SICKO waiting for the truth about our health care crisis

On Saturday, August 25, BlueNovember.Org held a We're SICKO Waiting rally in front of Krafft 8 Theater in Port Huron for two reasons.

First, we wanted to remind our neighbors that "those in charge" of local theaters have refused to show "SICKO," an important film about our health care crisis. Incidentally, when we called to ask why they weren't going to show "SICKO," we heard the following excuses: "not enough copies to go around, unpopular, financial failure, decisions about film offerings are not made locally." One young man at the ticket counter did say one thing that was especially interesting. He said, "Management said it was too liberal."

Which brings us to the second reason for our We're SICKO Waiting rally. As for issues of great importance and relevance to all Americans, our health care crisis is right up there with the occupation of Iraq. And to make it a liberals only idea, well, somehow I find that strangely flattering. Liberals will proudly carry the mantle of "health care for all." What better issue to reach out to our biconceptual neighbors? Every single person, no matter what political persuasion, who has been screwed by the gargantuan Corporate-Political-Pharmaceutical-Triad intimately knows there must be a better way.

BlueNovember.Org intended this rally not only to ask for a film; we wanted to start a conversation that might lead to our neighbors finding some common ground.

Update: On Tuesday, August 28, BlueNovember.Org received a follow-up call from Matt Bieth, manager of Krafft 8 Theater. He stated that he had called Mr. Goodrich, Krafft 8 owner, to ask him about the status of getting SICKO. Mr. Goodrich told him SICKO was slated to go to Birchwood Mall's theater. Mr. Bieth explained that he learned from Mr. Goodrich that in smaller markets films are split by distributors between two theater chains. Mr. Bieth stated he did not know why Birchwood Mall theaters chose not to show the film.

The Truth about Iraq

Is the surge working? Are things getting any better in Iraq? Is there any evidence that the continuing loss of American and Iraqi lives is accomplishing anything? If you listen to the White House or the Republicans running for President, you might think that American troops are actually gaining some ground over there, but if you read a stunning op-ed piece in today's New York Times, written by seven U. S. non-commissioned officers finishing up a 15-month tour in Iraq, you'll learn that neocon spin cannot disguise the unavoidable fact that this mess is, incredibly, deteriorating. You'll see that our "allies" are helping plant the bombs that kill Americans; that the violence on the ground is a horrifying web of factions, sectarian hostility, criminal gangs, and ancient animosities; and that the Iraqi people--insecure, economically depressed, frustrated, displaced from their homes--increasingly see American troops as an unwanted occupying army. The authors of this courageous piece conclude, "In the end, we need to recognize that our presence may have released Iraqis from the grip of a tyrant, but that it has also robbed them of their self-respect. They will soon realize that the best way to regain dignity is to call us what we are--an army of occupation--and force our withdrawal."

Should the U.S. Bomb Iran?

The bushies are starting to beat the war drums about Iran again, claiming just the other day that Iran is furnishing sophisticated explosives to Shiite factions in Iraq. Three things beg comment here.

First, should we believe anything this administrations tells us about a Muslim country in the Middle East? Were any WMDs found in Iraq? Were American troops greeted as liberators in Baghdad? Was Iraq ever a threat to the United States? Everything the Bush-Cheney thugs have told us about the Muslim world over the last six years has been either wrong or dishonest, so before we bomb Tehran, let's see some credible evidence, from a source other than the U. S. Army or its hirelings.

Second, there is something profoundly disingenuous about the bushies getting all bent out of shape with their claims about Iran "interfering" in Iraqi affairs. What the hell is our invasion and occupation of Iraq other than the most intrusive interference possible? If there were a civil war raging in Mexico or Canada, as there is now in Iraq, does anyone seriously think the United States wouldn't get deeply involved? Indeed, it's only a short time since the United States was involved--violently, overtly, illegally--in civil conflicts in Nicaragua and El Salvador, which are a lot further from our borders than Iraq is from Iran.

Third, a strike against Iran would play, yet again, into Osama's hands. It's just what he wants most, another U. S. attack on a Muslim nation, even one that has been adamantly opposed to his brand of Sunni extremism. How many Americans--let alone members of Congress--know that Iran is not an Arab nation and that Arab Sunnis and Iranian Shiites are historic enemies. Only another demonstration of Bush-Cheney incompetence could get the Shiites and Sunnis to cooperate.

Congress and the shameful vote

Hello friends,

I wanted to pass this article on by Brent Budowsky. It says it so well, I can't think of anything to add.

Thanks

August 8, 2007
‘Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death’ (Brent Budowsky)
@ 2:12 pm
In today’s edition of The Hill newspaper I wrote an op-ed with the hope of initiating a serious discussion about how much freedom we should give in, in return for how much safety.
In recent days Congress passed and the president signed a new law that significantly increases the scope of domestic eavesdropping without any serious debate considering the magnitude of the issue.
It was done, yet again, in an atmosphere of fear, which in my view is unworthy of the people and Congress of our nation. I am reposting the op-ed here and if others are interested, hope we can begin a serious discussion, and I would be glad to respond to comments, questions and thoughts.
Personally, living and working near the World Bank and White House, I would rather risk the dangers of a terrorist attack than surrender any freedoms. I do not feel one drop of fear and even if I did, it would not matter one whit.
With many years of intelligence experience, I know more than most that some information must be kept secret. But what is happening now is wrong, extreme, out of control and against traditions of American history that have until now been accepted from the left to the right and by leaders in both parties.
Do people understand that terrorists want us to be afraid, and those who promote fear, or suffer from fear, are furthering a major goal of terrorists?
What do you think? My op-ed from today’s paper follows:
‘Give me liberty, or give me death’
By Brent Budowsky
Patrick Henry’s words ring hollow after Congress passed, and the president signed, a law of enormous constitutional and security importance in an atmosphere of fear, without any semblance of serious debate. Again.
While many members of the House and Senate and leading legal scholars did not fully understand this as the roll was called, this law expands the reach of surveillance of American citizens, on American soil, communicating with those “reasonably” targeted while abroad, without protections that have long existed.
How abusive the implementation of this law will be depends largely on the good faith of an attorney general with little remaining credibility.
America deserves the serious debate that has not been initiated from the original passage of the Patriot Act until today, which is this: How much risk to our security should we accept rather than trammeling time-honored constitutional protections that until now have been supported by a near consensus from left to right and all presidents from either party?
Was Patrick Henry right, that our freedoms are so precious that we should not surrender them lightly? Or was he wrong, and we will casually surrender them with every terror scare, before every congressional recess, during every election cycle?
Should these constitutional protections be surrendered so easily and so timidly with procedures more appropriate for an earmark enacted at midnight by members looking at their watches (in the hope of catching a plane home) and at their poll numbers?
Anyone with experience in intelligence knows: Terrorists are aware they will be eavesdropped upon.
While there certainly must be secrecy to protect sources and methods, there is much kept secret today, not from terrorists but from Americans, that challenge first principles of freedom in an age of executive abuse, congressional submission, and fear politics.
We are told we cannot know the number of terror cells, the level of serious training of terror suspects, how many or how few terror cells have been destroyed through these policies.
We are not permitted to know the true gravity or lack of gravity of the threat. We cannot know what actions were taken to alleviate the threat, what previous actions have been deemed illegal in secret judicial rulings, or why high-level officials objected, while our attorney general testified there was no serious dissent and no previous abuse of rights.
The American people don’t know the truth, and most members of Congress don’t know it either. Nor does the free press. Whole swaths of American life on the most important issues of our safety have been aggressively removed from our democratic system by those with a poor history of telling the truth and a clear history of fomenting fear for political ends.
Our security is undermined by treating the American people and Congress like sheep who should not be told secrets that terrorists already know.
Shame on Democratic leaders for lacking the courage to make a fight worthy of the occasion. Shame on Republican leaders for being co-conspirators in the destruction of the people’s House and the great deliberative body as a co-equal branch of government.
Shame on politicians who pander to fear, and politicians who succumb to it. Shame on the media that hype it, and highest level officials who oppose this but still lack the courage to speak out clearly. Shame on all who let this happen in the land of the free and the home of the brave.
Shame on Reid and Pelosi, shame on Boehner and McConnell. Shame on those who act like Soviet Politburo members and try to bully a sedated attorney general, and shame on everyone who knows that leading officials of American justice were prepared to resign en masse, in protest, and do not demand to know exactly why.
When Congress returns and the presidential campaign begins in earnest, the question of the hour should be: Are you for Patrick Henry, or against him?
Budowsky serves on the Advisory Council of the Intelligence Summit and is a contributing editor to Fighting Dems News Service. He handled intelligence issues for Sen. Lloyd Bentsen when the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act was originally passed, and was legislative director to Bill Alexander, then the chief deputy whip of the House.

The voting scams are starting now in California

Tonight I heard an alarming discovery by one of the folks attending the yearly kos convention. It involves an election being held in California next June 08.

A ballot initiative is being held by the law firm that represents the replublican party in California to disburse the electorial votes in a very interesting way that would allow republicans to get a good portion of the electorates even if they did not win the popular vote.

An attempt is being made to keep this quiet and "sneak" it into law. If the word gets out however, they will more than likely let it die as it would not pass and would be costly for them.

Please pass the word, right letters, email, make phone calls. Click on the following link to see the whole article.

http://www.newyorker.com/talk/comment/2007/08/06/070806taco_talk_hertzberg

CC: Church of Christ Pamphlet Throwers

July 25, 2007

Pastor
Church of Christ
756 Seventeenth
Port Huron, MI 48060


This past Saturday, July 21, 2007, our grassroots peace organization, Blue November was holding a peaceful, non-confrontational demonstration against the continued occupation of Iraq. We believe the killing of our soldiers and the killing of innocent men, women, and children in Iraq should be stopped.

We were standing on the corner of Pine Grove and Sanborn with signs calling for the end of the Iraq occupation. Our members included men, women, and children.

A car with several people in it, pulled over, called us communists and other names not to be repeated here and threw a handful of leaflets from your church on the ground.

We had to go into the traffic between lights to retrieve the pamphlets so they wouldn’t litter Sanborn Park and the neighborhood.

It might be good to remind your congregation that we have the right to demonstrate in a public place without menace from others. Having this right is part of living in a democracy, and it is what separates us from communism.


Carolyn Holley
BlueNovember.Org
P. O. Box 595736
Fort Gratiot, MI 48059

Note to our blog readers: This letter was sent to the pastor of the Church of Christ in Port Huron, Michigan, because it is located only a short distance from our rally site, and it is the only Church of Christ in our area. The leaflets thrown at us were stamped "Church of Christ." We have a strict rule of non-confrontational demonstration, so we use this format to air our opinion of this incident.

We have no proof of affiliation between the leaflet throwers and the church, but we wish to publish the facts as we know them to shed light on how some people confuse their religion with our democracy.

Susan Alderman

Liar Liar Pants on Fire

By Rachael Siemen

I don’t think that a Hollywood screenwriter could come up with a better script then what is currently going on with the Alberto “I don’t recall” Gonzales Judicial hearings. Add another black eye in this administration’s belligerent disregard for the law and their utter attempt to undermine the intelligence and the best interest of the American people.

Okay let me try to understand this. Ashcroft ends up in the hospital, hands over authority to his Deputy Attorney James Comey. The warrant less spying program and the administrations use of torture program is about to expire. Gonzo and Andy Card rush to the hospital, not to have Ashcroft sign an extension of the program, (although he had an extension document of the program with him) but to discuss “some other classified intelligence issue.” Now Ashcroft’s wife along with Bob Muller (the head of the FBI) told Comey, not to let Card and Gonzo in the room alone with Ashcroft ………THE HEAD OF THE FBI!!!!!

This makes me pause to ask people where is the outrage? I’m incredulous that Gonzo can sit in front of the Senate with impunity and get away with his blatant lying. On the other hand, he certainly represents the current administration and their weak, inept self-serving policies. Well, I suppose one can say at least he showed up. By the way, where is Waldo? I mean Harriet Miers? Please go to www.democrats.com and contact your representatives to tell them not to stand by and do nothing!

Another good site is www.thefourreasons.org to explore the reasons for IMPEACHMENT!!!

August 18, 2007 - Peace and Justice Rally

Stand up for peace and politics that benefit all people.

Saturday, August 18, 2007

1:00 to 3:00 P.M.
Sanborn and Pine Grove
Port Huron, Michigan

We will be wearing identical peace tee shirts. If you don't already have one, you are encouraged to purchase one for $15.00 to keep, but you may also borrow one and then give it back at the end of our event.

This is a peaceful event. All participants must agree to not impede traffic in any way or engage negatively with passersby.

Candice Miller, Are You Awake?

Everyone should read the latest National Intelligence Estimate: "The Terrorist Threat to the US Homeland. It tells us once again how inept and counterproductive the Bush-Cheney policies on terrorism have been. The US invasion and occupation of Iraq is bin Laden's wet dream, allowing him to expand his organization and solidify his base in northwest Pakistan. US troops actually had al Qaeda on the run by spring 2002, but that's just when the Bush-Cheney junta lost interest in Afghanistan and turned its attention to "regime change" in Iraq. Since then, virtually everything the US has done has helped bin Laden to prosper, reconstitute his command structure, and recruit potential extremists.

Hundreds of thousands of people are dead, hundreds of billions of dollars have been wasted, and the reputation of the US around the world has been tarnished, if not utterly destroyed. What does Candice Miller have to say about this? Her July 2007, "Newsletter" has plenty to say about passports, mileage standards, and Great Lakes shipping. When she gets around to Iraq (in a radio broadcast), she shamelessly repeats the republican mantra that the only problem in Iraq is the inadequacy of the Iraqi government, but--surprise!--she completely dodges the truly important subject of where al Qaeda actually is and what sort of a threat it poses to the US.

The latest neocon con on Iraq is to blame the Iraqis for the chaos brought on by the US occupation. Imagine: you invade a country, wipe out its entire infrastructure, disband its army, stir up ancient sectarian animosities, slaughter untold thousands of civilians, and then pompously complain when a puppet government you've propped up can't deliver electricity or police the streets. Yeah, it's really the fault of the Iraqis that their country is mired in this mess! When Miller and her comrades in deceit repeat this nonsense, they're insulting us and dishonoring the dead.

The True Center of Gravity

Do you sometimes wonder who has more power: Bush or Cheney? Check out the four-part series on Cheney from The Washington Post now available at
http://blog.washingtonpost.com/cheney/

You may even find yourself agreeing with this recent assessment from John W. Dean, a former counsel to President Nixon during the Watergate crisis: "It has long been apparent that Cheney's genius is that he lets George W. Bush get out of bed every morning actually believing he is the president. In fact, his presidency is run by the President of the Senate, for Cheney is its true center of gravity. That fact has become more apparent with every passing year of this presidency, and anyone who thinks otherwise has truly 'misunderestimated' our nominal president and his vice president" (findlaw.com, June 29)

There's ample reason for Cheney to be impeached first.

Candice Miller's "War on Terror"

On Candice Miller's web site, there's a section on issues and a brief page she calls "Global War on Terror." It's a superficial, deceptive parroting of Bush-Cheney lies and distortions, and it's a shame that our Congresswoman is allowed to get away with such nonsense.

Here's the first paragraph:

Throughout much of the past 20 years terrorists have targeted innocent Americans for murder in an effort to undermine our democracy and our commitment to spreading freedom across the globe. It was only when those terrorists attacked us so directly on September 11, 2001 that America finally got a vivid understanding of the evil we face and the lengths they will go in an attempt to destroy freedom.

The facile suggestion that terrorists have focused on Americans in order to "undermine our democracy" and "destroy freedom" is ignorant and just what the Bush-Cheney team wants us to believe (so it's no surprise that the always-compliant Miller is toeing the party line). This argument denies history, culture, and pretty much all of international reality. The idea that Osama and his henchmen sit around and ponder strategies for attacking our Constitution or diminishing our freedoms is laughable. It's convenient and easily digestible and makes a nice sound bite, but it's completely and utterly wrong. Islamic extremists hate the United States for clearly stated reasons: our unwavering, unquestioning support of Israel, the presence of American bases and troops in Saudi Arabia (now removed), and the invasion and occupation of a Muslim nation (Iraq). None of these rationales justifies attacks on civilians, of course, but they are the grievances that Osama and others have repeatedly offered. For Bush, Cheney, and Miller to shout incessantly that "they hate our freedoms" is insulting and dangerous. It's part of an effort to keep Americans from considering complexities--such as whether or not uncritical support of Israel is in America's best interest--and it stokes nothing but fear and reaction.

Here's the next paragraph:

Since that day we have been at war with Islamic extremists. We have taken that war on the offense by toppling the Taliban in Afghanistan, killing or capturing the majority of al Qeada’s leadership and toppling the regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq who had been a longstanding supporter of terrorists. I look forward to the day when the Iraqi forces stand up sufficiently to protect their new found freedom and our brave men and women can return home.

In addition to misspelling "al Qaeda," this builds further on Bush-Cheney deceit. It ignores the fact that the Taliban is still an active, dangerous presence in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. It neatly and dishonestly links al Qaeda and Saddam, who were in fact ideological and tactical enemies. Bush and Cheney have insinuated for years that there were ties between al Qaeda and Saddam. There were none; every terrorist expert in the world knows that, but it's become almost the last resort of the neo-cons still trying to justify their catastrophic misadventure in Iraq. At the end of this paragraph, Miller--or whoever wrote this drivel--calmly looks forward to the day when American troops can leave Iraq. Well, so do a lot of other Americans, but it's clear to anyone not brainwashed by Bush-Cheney propaganda that her primary requirement for this--a viable Iraqi military force--will never exist. The reason it won't is what she and all the neo-cons cannot admit, that the conditions for national unity in Iraq have never existed and what little chance there may have been of building them has been destroyed by the incompetence of the American occupation.

Here's the concluding paragraph:

Here at home we must also remain vigilant because of the knowledge that our enemies want to hit us here at home again. In order to defend against this threat we must give our law enforcement and intelligence gathering organizations the tools they need to make our nation more secure. As has been said, Americans are safer today than we were on September 11th but we are not yet safe.

There are two fundamental horrors embedded here. First, she's implicitly endorsing the illegal, unconstitutional wire-tapping and other forms of surveillance demanded and practiced by the Bush-Cheney team. Like so many of the neo-cons, Miller seems to be willing to surrender the very freedoms she otherwise claims the terrorists are out to subvert. When we docilely give up our liberties, when we allow the various arms of the police establishment to listen to our phone conversations and read our email, are we doing the terrorists' work for them?

And then there's the claim that "Americans are safer today than we were on September 11." The 3591 Americans killed in Iraq sure aren't safer. Our ports and borders are not more secure. The ranks of al Qaeda, as has been repeatedly pointed out, have in fact grown since the American invasion and occupation of Iraq. Just about everything the Bush-Cheney administration has done has served the interest of al Qaeda and Iran (see here). We are not safer today than we were 6 years ago, and the reason we are not is that the Bush-Cheney policies are a monumental failure.

WE ARE ALL IN THE SAME BOAT PEACE RALLY

We must stand up for peace and politics that benefit all people.



Saturday, July 21, 2007
1:00 to 3:00 P.M.
Corner of Sanborn and Pine Grove
Port Huron, Michigan

We will be wearing identical peace tee shirts. These are a different color than last year's "peace sign" rally, but still a simple peace symbol.) You are encouraged to purchase one for $15.00 to keep, but you may also borrow one and then give it back at the end of our event.

This is a peaceful event. All participants must agree to not impede traffic in any way or engage negatively with passersby.

Cheney

Barton Gellman and Jo Becker are writing an amazing assessment of Dick Cheney in the Washington Post. Chapter one appeared on Sunday and chapter two today. This is a must-read effort, the sort of journalism this country has desperately needed for the last six years. Cheney is, if you can believe it, far more insidious than you ever dreamed. If this were a just world, he'd be on trial for war crimes, violation of the U. S. Constitution, advocating torture, to name only a few of the most obvious of his malefactions. The man is truly evil, and if Congress doesn't do something about him and his lackeys (among whom you can count the current President), there's little point in dithering about which candidate you support in 2008.

What Will It Take?

In his characteristically incisive, trenchant fashion, Frank Rich in today's New York Times (subscription required) warns us to be on the lookout for more Bush-Cheney lies about the "surge" in Iraq and any successes claimed for it. For weeks, we've been told that by September there will be signs of progress as the U.S. tries to stabilize the violent neighborhoods of Baghdad and in the provinces, prop up the teetering Maliki government, and train the Iraqi army. But General Petraeus and the other talking heads who defend the Bush-Cheney occupation of Iraq are already starting to play down the September deadline. They know what we know: that the occupation of Iraq is a disaster, a cauldron of civil war and mayhem, and that Bush and Cheney, unless forcefully opposed by Congress, will try to "stay the course" until they hand this mess over to whoever wins the 2008 presidential election. The "surge" cannot change the realities of chaos, sectarian violence, and utter horror brought on by the Bush-Cheney invasion and occupation of Iraq. How many more American troops will die for this insanity? How many Iraqis?

The only hope for minimizing further loss of life and further deterioration (if that's even possible) of the standing of the United States in the world community is for the Congress to say, Enough! The country now knows that it was misled and terrorized into this debacle. We know that the Bush-Cheney "war on terror" has practically nothing to do with the attacks of 9/11. And we won't be fooled when the Bush-Cheney thugs claim that the future of civilization itself depends on extending this occupation into the endless future. The Congressional leadership needs to listen to the people who elected the 110th Congress. We want this occupation to end. Congressmen and -women (are you listening, Candice Miller?) who ignore their constituents will be looking for work come January 2009.

Pork?

At 2300 Krafft Road, in Fort Gratiot, you can see a huge construction project on the north side of the road, just east of where a service road heads to the Mercy Hospital clinic.

It's a common-sense truth of environmentalism that rehabbing old structures is better for the environment than putting up new buildings. There are perfectly useful empty buildings in downtown Port Huron and up and down Pine Grove, all with plenty of room for parking. Instead of retrofitting one of these, the local SSA opted to destroy open space and put a parking lot next to a wetland. A few months ago, a caller to TalkBack aptly recommended the old Sperry department store building for a new SSA office. Or how about the space vacated by Farmer Jack? Either of these would have been a great idea, but a government in hock to developers cannot see obvious good sense.

The new site will be harder to reach for many of the people who need to conduct business with the SSA. The old site was accessible from much of the area via one bus ride. Now people will need to catch a bus downtown and then transfer to another. In the January 17, 2007, Times-Herald, David Wilkinson, spokesman for the General Services Administration, the government's real-estate division, is quoted, "I don't expect it's going to be difficult for people to get out there." That's true only for people who drive their own car and don't worry about the price of gasoline. What about the elderly or disabled who can't drive? It's coldly indifferent to our elderly and disabled not to see that the new site is less convenient than the old one.

This new facility is being constructed by West Second Street Associates, a private company based in Flint. It will receive $411,658 a year, for the duration of a ten-year lease, which will undoubtedly be extended. This firm has similar arrangements with the federal government for facilities in Flint, Detroit, Lansing, and Ann Arbor, among others, as well as sites in Illinois and Florida. Quite a nice little operation!

After this firm completed federal offices in Detroit and Lansing, it took the government to court and demanded cash for construction overruns (over $450,000) and higher monthly lease payments (see here). Will that pattern be repeated in Fort Gratiot? Don't forget, these are our tax dollars. We can apparently put up new buildings we don't need, destroying open space and lining the pockets of developers, but we can't hire enough immigration and customs agents to keep the traffic moving on the Blue Water Bridge. What we need in St. Clair County is jobs, not pork-barrel boondoggles; we especially don't need projects built by a contractor from outside the county.

One wonders who decided that the local SSA office needed new quarters and that the option of refitting an old building (for less money) was not on the table. What was the bidding process, if any? Does West Second Street Associates have a terrific record? Or does it have chummy relations with well-connected government officials?