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The More Things Change....
What is it about energy independence that's so difficult to get? For those of you tough enough to listen to the State of the Union in its entirety, you could be forgiven for yelling, like Yossarian's dying hospital mate Guisippe in Catch-22, "I see everything twice!"
A tip of the hat to Al Thompkins daily update for reporters, "Al,'s Morning Meeting," on the Poynter Institute's great press site. Thompkins provides us with links to similiar comments by other presidents, with Richard Nixon's "energy independence" kick-off all the way back in 1974.
President Bush said similar things in 2003Bill Clinton urged fuel-efficient homes, cars and renewable fuel development (as he closed his speech) in 1998
Jimmy Carter noted the need to get oil independent in 1980 (Boy -- if you want to read an intense State of the Union speech, read this one!)
Gerald Ford talked about energy independence in 1975
Richard Nixon promised energy independence in 1974
I see everything 30 times these days...
And yes, I did listen to the whole speech, and looked around the room for the camera, with Mr. Fellini behind it....
Maybe it's time to get the country seriously thinking about it. As the old Chinese proverb goes (so they say), "The longest journey starts with one step...."
Chuck in Doha
I notice our President is out saying "miracles of technology are just around the corner," or something to that effect. I guess we'll just have to trust him on that, as he gave zero details. Faith-based energy policy! Yeah Boy!
Chuck in Doha
Dick:
By this column, you mean to say that when the President says "America needs to invest in energy independence", what he really means is "...as soon as we get over our soul-sucking addiction to foreign-based petroleum"---could this be another declaration of false "recovery" from the drug of oil?
The addiction goes far beyond what we inject into our vehicles. Its about how many miles we commute to go to work, or how long a drive it is to get a gallon of milk. What about all the big box marts that need eighteen-wheelers to drive thousands of miles across the country to load boatloads of cheaply made foreign goods to Target and Wal-Mart?
How about all those bedroom communities built out of white and middle class flight from the inner cities, and all those inner cities whose neighborhoods are now too expensive for working class families to afford? Or about all the better public schools in the bedroom communities 30, 40, 50 miles away from major metropolitan areas where the jobs are?
How about the food we eat out of season--the fruits from Central America. We seem to have a need for strawberries in time for Valentines Day to dip into chocolate, even though strawberries are not seasonally ready locally until late March?
The list is endless. We have become accustomed to an unsustainable life because we have disposable income. We have not yet seen the pain of a food or goods shortage, or appreciated seriously the value of goods and produce locally-produced.
We're still caught in the spiral of consumption that has thinned out the ranks of those most vulnerable in our society, leaving only those with the most means access. And our facility to rise economically to the level of those with most access has decreased with loss of quality in education, loss of affordable housing in economically viable areas, loss of an affordable life in America.
Bush's Latest Bamboozlepalooza Alternative Energy this week is the cover it always is. It covers the addiction that has led us to an illegal war, traded our children's economic future away, and sold our government to private corporations for their sole profit. While America is now the heroin patient whose veins and limbs are withering as they increase the dosage. Even as their extremities rot, the need never ever dies.
Well, the headlines in Michigan after Bush's attack in Rochester will not make him any friends. Can we dare hope it translates to other neoCons in this state?
Our culture apparently demands it. Stop and think, alterative technoligies have been around for over 30 years, dating back to Mr Nixon. Wind and solar are nothing new, but there has never been a federal, much less state (that I'm aware of) intitive to switch over.
Suddenly ethnonal is the new darling. That's been around just about as long, mandated in Denver during winter months since the very late 70's. For what it's worth, it served it's purpose too, cleaned up a smog issue that threatened to be far worse than anything LA had ever seen.
So there's not much out there that will "startle" us, what would startle us a a true Federal and State mandate to start investing and implmenting what already have.
Does anybody know why the 'big 3' haven't embraced this?
They have plants closing right and left...shouldn't they be refining the wheel here instead of sending the wheel overseas?
sparrow:
Maybe it's because of something like this:
Ford runs a super bowl commercial where Kermit rides his bike through the woods singing "It's not easy being green" as an ad for the new hybrid Escape SUV.
And then the next day info-tainment commercial raters say it bombed.
Personally - it was one of my favorite spots. But if the mainstream propagandogs slam it for the soul purpose that it's a hybrid - ( real men (football fans) aren't interested in hybrids) - then it's dead in the water. The loudest voice wins, and we're just not loud enough. Or mad enough. Or rude enough. Or whatever it is. Not Fox enough.
Posted by: Carol at February 21, 2006 02:46 PM
Carol, I don't want to be rude!
What I want is for these companys and for the voters to start working together to make things happen.
Ok..so we buy hybrids from imports. But nobody wants to drive an imported hybrid when they can buy one here while helping their own countrymen.
I think it's stupid!
Oh well...guess I'm preaching to the choir here.
Get out of the way torture and Gitmo--Supremes will seek an immediate decision on the rarest of abortions--late term abortions.
http://tinyurl.com/odnkg yahoo news
Posted by: sparrow at February 21, 2006 03:35 PM
Yeah, that's a top priority for the nation right now.
It's election year wedge issue time, kids.
Watch soon for Frist to re-ignite the gay marriage ban amendment at a regurgitorium near you.
These people are disgusting.
This whole port arrangement has ties to the white house.
Bethca this will bring bipartison reaction. (If not, well...)
http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/393375p-333478c.html
Posted by: monkey at February 21, 2006 03:48 PM
Fine..wedge them back. Say, GIVE THOSE FAMILIES and all families who bring kids into this world HEALTH CARE and FOOD and JOBS.
Support what you bring to life. Let them call us socialists--I don't care--I can at least say, "But I VALUE LIFE!"
Posted by: sparrow at February 21, 2006 04:05 PM
THEY won't support that... THEY believe in personal responsibility, handle it yourself, pull yourself up by your bootstraps Mister, dont expect your country to offer you any assistance.
APATHY KILLS
Posted by: monkey at February 21, 2006 04:17 PM
Personal responsibility?
Then let them not only say, "I take responsibility for Katrina's aftermath, and by doing this I will pay for the new houses, new schools, and new businesses to be put in. Because I was responsible and instead I failed my duties."
Value a life no matter what and value the victims of Katrina too.
Posted by: monkey at February 21, 2006 03:48 PM
He already did. Saw it last week. Sorry.
Posted by: sparrow at February 21, 2006 03:35 PM
They have already banned late term abortions. What's new?
THEY won't support that... THEY believe in personal responsibility, handle it yourself, pull yourself up by your bootstraps Mister, dont expect your country to offer you any assistance.
APATHY KILLS
Posted by: monkey at February 21, 2006 04:17 PM
Personal responsibility?
Then, is my lack of health insurance due to my lack of personal responsibility, in this era of ownership society?!?
It's not. It's because the healthcare industry is determined to exterminate me for who I am, for the conditions I have, etc, etc.
Honestly, I don't even know what "ownership" means in this so-called "ownership society."
And I am sorry, Ladytechie and so many others, but all the nice spins you can put on Christianity will NOT convert me back. The Book says someone like me must be put to death, and it means it. I will not believe in, or tolerate, a belief system where my only future is death.
My previous post is not meant to be an attack. We had thoughtful debates on Christianity in the past (and I thank Ladytechie for providing wonderful insights as an Episcopalian herself).
However, the Christian path only leads to death for me.
Posted by: Carol at February 21, 2006 02:46 PM
That's pathetic.
One's manliness depends on how much gasoline you can waste with your oversized truck?
Just what kind of a f'd-up country do we live in?
Real men stay real men, even if they drive puny 3-cylinder subcompacts, as they do in Europe.
I'm with you, Ally.
Only an insecure man would never consider a hybrid because he needs a big truck to make him feel like a big man.
(I'm making that Tim Allen manly man noise now - I just don't know how to spell it).
And, lest we forget....
W aides' biz ties to Arab firm
BY MICHAEL McAULIFF
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Breaking news update: Bush - Arab company port deal should proceed
WASHINGTON - The Dubai firm that won Bush administration backing to run six U.S. ports has at least two ties to the White House.
One is Treasury Secretary John Snow, whose agency heads the federal panel that signed off on the $6.8 billion sale of an English company to government-owned Dubai Ports World - giving it control of Manhattan's cruise ship terminal and Newark's container port.
Snow was chairman of the CSX rail firm that sold its own international port operations to DP World for $1.15 billion in 2004, the year after Snow left for President Bush's cabinet.
The other connection is David Sanborn, who runs DP World's European and Latin American operations and was tapped by Bush last month to head the U.S. Maritime Administration.
The ties raised more concerns about the decision to give port control to a company owned by a nation linked to the 9/11 hijackers.
more: http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/393375p-333478c.html
Thanks, rawstory
Dick and Fe,
Bush pulls out the "advanced energy initiative"
and it's cousins the dog and phoney Snake "oil" show and the "gonna come up with alternative "Fools" every campaign cycle. I heard him say it in '00, again in '02, again in '04, and now in WHAT??? "06"????
It's the same old song and dance routine. Either that or he's only inspired to speak about it on even years.
Fe, you brought up a very valid point. We are spoiled here. A collective "we" as in American citizens. Our disposable income does allow us creature comforts that most of the population of the world does not even have the luxury of being introduced to.
Living way up North as I do, it is the strawberries out of season, and the fresh asparagus and other fruits we may choose to enjoy when our own ground is frozen solid until March. When bored, I can hop in the car and drive 65 miles for the arts and entertainment, and fine dining. I try to be very conscientious about my gas consumption, and try to always get the most out of my trips to the city by combining work, dining, shopping, and entertainment whenever I can, but sometimes that means a long day away - from 7 a.m. until after midnight sometimes to get the most out of my energy dollar. But, as you say, Fe, we are so accustomed to purchasing items that are indeed a luxury, and we wouldn't have them up here as far in the middle of nowhere that we do if it weren't for the many huge trucks pulling double trailers I see every single day on our highways. I regret to say that I grumbled one day at a large supermarket in the city because a pound of fresh green beans was going to cost me $4.00 in the middle of January.
I have also grumbled because our local grocery markets, although they provide a beautiful selection of top grades of beef and very fresh vegetables, don't provide the smorgasboard of choices I had in a much larger city in the West.
And, did you know, that if you own and can operate a computer, you are among the top 1% of the world that can do so?
What can we do to help lessen our appetite? This may be the big reason as to why we can't get people out on the streets. They are still just too comfortable. We will go because we can see down the pike, but to those who are just living high on creature comforts compared to the rest of the world and are ignorant of the reality that lies ahead, it's just not worth it to them, to become aware, let alone involved, and then active.
As my dad says, "America has gotten too fat".
HOWEVER, AND THIS IS A BIG HOWEVER, that does NOT stop conscientous REPRESENTATIVES (notice I did not say politicians)to stop feeding the greedy oil barons, and sincerely and truthfully come up with ALTERNATIVE fuels.
Maybe we are too hard on ourselves for being fortunate enough to live in an industrialized nation and having the level of "wealth" we do have. Maybe we just need to be better stewards of it.
We need to be better stewards of it.
Bush backs Dubai port deal, vows veto
Lawmakers seek more thorough look at takeover by UAE firm
-snip-
"I don't understand why it's OK for a British company to operate our ports but not a company from the Middle East when we've already determined security is not an issue," Bush said.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/02/21/port.security/index.html
And I am sorry, Ladytechie and so many others, but all the nice spins you can put on Christianity will NOT convert me back. The Book says someone like me must be put to death, and it means it. I will not believe in, or tolerate, a belief system where my only future is death.
Posted by: AllyMcLesbian at February 21, 2006 04:51 PM
It most certainly does not. The old testament does, but not the new. It is about Love, Acceptance, and Grace.
Anyway, Ally, we love you here. We ALL love you here.
And this from Kos -
"Bush has never used a veto. Never.
But he finally found something worth expending some of that almost-expended "political capital" on -- protecting the right of the UAE to take over port security.
President George W. Bush said on Tuesday that a deal for a state-owned Dubai company to manage major U.S. ports should go forward and will not jeopardize U.S. security.
Bush told reporters traveling back to Washington with him from Colorado that he would veto legislation to stop the deal from going through.
"After careful review by our government, I believe the transaction ought to go forward," Bush said. He added that if the U.S. Congress passed a law to stop the deal, "I'll deal with it with a veto.""
more here: http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/2/21/155744/260
Careful review? yeah, and I'm the next President of the U.S.. OMG. If this weren't so freaking awful, it would be ..... never mind. Can't actually find any humor in it.
Dear George, you moron...
You dont understand why its ok for a British company to operate our ports, but not a company from the Middle East?
Aren't you the one who keeps saying folks don't understand the post 9/11 world?
And btw, if you're adminstration has determined that security is not an issue, then I know that it is an issue.
Keep defending this decision, Junior.
APATHY KILLS
“This is a private transaction,” said Bush, speaking to reporters gathered on the White House lawn. “This transaction does not jeopardize in any way the security of the country. People who are responsible in the government have reviewed this transaction. This transaction should go forward, in my judgment.
Earlier, on Air Force One, Bush told reporters: “I want those who are questioning it to step up and explain why all of a sudden a Middle Eastern company is held to a different standard than a Great British company. I am trying to conduct foreign policy now by saying to the people of the world, ‘We’ll treat you fairly.”’
"Great British company"... nice one, marble mouth.
Hmmmm.
That's exactly it. The apathy we have been wondering about that is smothering the life out of the people in this nation to their own peril is caused by "comfort".
As a very "religious" person (not spiritual, "religious" - there's a big difference) told me two years ago when I started explaining the evils of the Iraq war and the governmental and media corruption:
Me "and young men and women are dying over there for the economy here"......Her "Well, better some go down or we all go down".
This person has a very hard time with compassion (needless to say), but her attitude shows the big picture here.
I.E. I am livin' pretty high on the hog. DON'T FIX IT UNLESS IT'S BROKEN.
Ideas??
Critics have noted that some of the 9/11 hijackers used the UAE as an operational and financial base. In addition, they contend the UAE was an important transfer point for shipments of smuggled nuclear components sent to Iran, North Korea and Libya by a Pakistani scientist.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11474440/page/2/
"Great British company".
"Don't forget about Poland".
truth:
Unfortunately, the time for better stewardship is long past. We need, at the very least, mitigating stewardship to reverse the trends. THEN, steward AFTER the cleanup is completed.
Gutting the EPA of its power to protect wetlands, bodies of water, air quality, and land use has set us back by decades, with just a few short four years of backdoor dealing by this Administration. Imagine what another three years will do.
Stifling climatologists at NASA because they predicted global warming, putting hands over our ears every time SOMEONE tries to tell us--this is not scientifically proven--as if they are the experts.
Truth, it's not you, I'm ranting because its just all I can take when I see a cartoon clown like Bush talk about Alternative Energy when you know for good darn well he doesn't mean a damn word of it.
Not with everything he's flushed down the toilet, including, from the very beginning, his investors money in Arbusto. Since then, its been one long series of gaffes, failures, mistakes, and disasters after another. Only this time, its not a speculative oil deal. Its the entire planet.
That's exactly it. The apathy we have been wondering about that is smothering the life out of the people in this nation to their own peril is caused by "comfort".
As a very "religious" person (not spiritual, "religious" - there's a big difference) told me two years ago when I started explaining the evils of the Iraq war and the governmental and media corruption:
Me "and young men and women are dying over there for the economy here"......Her "Well, better some go down or we all go down".
This person has a very hard time with compassion (needless to say), but her attitude shows the big picture here.
I.E. I am livin' pretty high on the hog. DON'T FIX IT UNLESS IT'S BROKEN.
Ideas??
Posted by: Truth Shall Prevail at February 21, 2006 05:26 PM
truth:
Hard to say. First that person would have to wake up to the fact that they would prefer someone else die instead of them for their way of life.
Which begs me to ask the question of them: Are YOU willing to lay your life on the line for the way YOU live?
We don't have good enough incentives to create a sustainable infrastructure or economy. Not yet anyway. Something drastic has to happen to change it. Like paying $6 a gallon at the pump.
But the time will come. I imagine us right now at a place of being economically manipulated to consume as much oil as we possibly can, with the biggest tax breaks going to businesses that use SUVs, and smaller tax breaks going to businesses that use fuel-efficient or hybrind vehicles. Look at that example at the barometer of what's to come.
THEY know the oil gig will soon be up. THEY want to have first dibs on the ability to generate revenue on the latest technology in fuel efficiency and alternative fuels. And THEY will make sure that they can also dictate the costs of that alternative energy. Its like trading the heroin for methadone. And its still the same dealer.
Posted by: Fe at February 21, 2006 05:42 PM
Chickenhawks NEVER lay down their life for anything... and they can't shoot straight either.
But the time will come. I imagine us right now at a place of being economically manipulated to consume as much oil as we possibly can, with the biggest tax breaks going to businesses that use SUVs, and smaller tax breaks going to businesses that use fuel-efficient or hybrind vehicles. Look at that example at the barometer of what's to come.
Posted by: Fe at February 21, 2006 05:50 PM
Didn't we already do that, with $100K tax write-offs for SUVs? For anyone who's got a "business" (including me), it was foolish to buy anything other than a Subdivision or an Exploitation, just because of the tax breaks.
That's insanity, and a giveaway to ExxonMobil and ChevronTexaco. And the wrong way to kill off BMW and Lexus (the right way, of course, would be helping Cadillac build something just as competitive, something it hasn't done in a while). Out of principle, for the same $40K that the average Exploitation costs, I would rather be a fool and pick up a luxury car at 30 MPG, or get a hybrid, get 50 MPG, and save $10K.
And to think that even alternative energies will be provided by the same old oil companies, as you pointed out... :/
A few neocons just want me to stop whining, and start buying oil company stocks. It may make financial sense, but it does not make moral sense.
It most certainly does not. The old testament does, but not the new. It is about Love, Acceptance, and Grace.
Posted by: Truth Shall Prevail at February 21, 2006 05:17 PM
Thanks, TSP...
You are right about the Four Gospels, but it's the same old mean trick again once I hit Acts and Romans. :/
And the neocons have a sixth Gospel (of course, the fifth being Thomas, which was thrown out) - the Gospel According to W. >:(
Posted by: AllyMcLesbian at February 21, 2006 06:16 PM
I thought it was Ephesians. I have decided (thanks to Matthew's teachings here on Sundays) that I am not, and will never be, a fundamentalist, mostly because some scriptures contradict each other. I have a few issues with some of Paul's teachings myself. So I just glean from the one's I know are true - the love, peace, and grace part. No one is a mistake - God don't make no junk.
And Dubya's gospel don't count.
Hugs!!!!
HEE hee hee.
Brian Williams socking it to them with the Arab/port issue on the NBC nightly news.
This may be what makes the folk open their eyes!!!
Hope it gets LOTS of mileage!
First that person would have to wake up to the fact that they would prefer someone else die instead of them for their way of life.
Which begs me to ask the question of them: Are YOU willing to lay your life on the line for the way YOU live?
Posted by: Fe at February 21, 2006 05:42 PM
The answer to that question, since I have posed it in a fashion to these people, is an astounding NO. But, the times, they are a'changin'.
This is what I have been standing against here. In every arena.
THEY know the oil gig will soon be up. THEY want to have first dibs on the ability to generate revenue on the latest technology in fuel efficiency and alternative fuels. And THEY will make sure that they can also dictate the costs of that alternative energy. Its like trading the heroin for methadone. And its still the same dealer.
Posted by: Fe at February 21, 2006 05:50 PM
YES, YES, YES, YES, YES.... They want first dibs on the PROFITS...!!! Money is always the bottom line with corporations and the corporate executives. Always.
ONLY if it can be proven that the world's oil reserves are waning (and if that info gets out to the public and everyone, but everyone, knows it) will corporations even begin to start looking for alternative energy sources. If some Joe or Jill Q. Public Schmuck actually invents something that is an economical source of alternative energy, that person will be silenced or bought out....
Excellent article here on the outsourcing of American Ports. Just when you figured THOSE jobs would be unexportable...Bush proves cronyism reaches distant shores too.
http://tinyurl.com/fm36z (Digsby)
And FDL of course too.
http://tinyurl.com/ebatx (FDL)
And of course mine too. (not that mine carries any weight compared to all those other great blogs. But I like my pictures anyway.)
http://tinyurl.com/ze96h (progressiveu)
I have explored some new sites today on the waumpum
My recommendation today is called, "My left Wing" and it has an incredible series about PTSD and other issues for Vets. I hope you'll be able to check it out.
http://www.myleftwing.com/frontPage.do
VENTURING OFF THE GRID
Innovative families save money, gain power with solar, propane, other energy sources
Daniel King, Chronicle Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
Arcata, Humboldt County -- Just past noon on a hazy, raw Sunday a few weeks ago, Linda Parkinson did what few homeowners in this storm-battered region could: She turned on the television.
While most Humboldt County residents were reeling from power outages left by devastating rains, Parkinson had electricity to spare. She cooked a feast for a dozen people, took hot showers and threw video-game parties for her 15-year-old son's classmates.
For 24 years, Parkinson, 49, has lived completely off the electric grid, drawing energy exclusively from solar, propane and other renewable on-site power sources.
She isn't alone. Some 180,000 American homeowners live off-grid, according to Richard Perez, publisher of Home Power magazine. Approximately a quarter live in California, and each year the national number grows 33 percent, according to the publisher's database of known off-gridders and estimates of those unreported.
MORE:
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/02/21/MNGUIHBUPR1.DTL
Iran was not referred to the Security Council for Noncompliance
By Mike Whitney
The public should not be worried about Iran, rather, it should be concerned about the implications of allowing one nation to arbitrarily repeal internationally-accepted treaties and dictate how the world will be run.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12002.htm
on topic- I might point out that it's not seeing the same thing over and over, not necessarily. The first two presidents the header mentions actually tried to do something about our dependence on foreign oil- Reagan, Clinton, and Bush never did. That was one of the few failures of the Clinton years, as I see it.
But way back in the 70's, there were things called vehicle emission inspections, fuel efficiency standards, solar panels on the roofs of houses, "compact cars," and even "sub-compact" cars on the road. Nixon established the EPA, and Jimmy Carter was serious about the environment as well. So I wouldn't put either of their names on the list of presidents who weren't serious about ending our dependence on foreign oil. I remember that the week my husband and I were married, back in August of 1971, we were listening to the radio and heard Nixon start talking about fuel stamps and gas rationing, and it scared us and most other Americans to death. We were afraid we wouldn't be able to travel anymore, and wondered how we would both be able to get to work on the amount of gas the government was planning to allow us-about 15-20 gallons per week, as I remember.
Americans gave up their 1960's gas guzzlers and bought smaller cars- and our country was serious about the environment back then. There was a recycling craze during that decade that there hasn't been since then.
Reagan ended all that. He could spend money we didn't have- he ran up the deficit, and his example showed Americans that they didn't need to sacrifice. After all, they were Americans, and they deserved the biggest and the best. That's what Americans wanted to hear, because, after all, it's always nice to hear that it's perfectly ok to be selfish and wasteful- in fact, that it's your patriotic duty to be so. So, cars got bigger and bigger, and fuel efficiency standards were gutted to the point that they meant nothing at all.
And nothing has changed since then. Reagan didn't care, Bush the first was an oilman, Clinton showed a lack of concern about fuel emissions that bordered on the criminal, and Bush the second is completely owned by the oil industry.
But the first two guys- Nixon and Carter, really don't deserve a bad rap where energy dependence is concerned. They did try. Americans just weren't willing to sacrifice long enough to get the job done, and Ronald Reagan didn't want them to sacrifice at all.
That's one of the reasons old Ron was so lovable.
Gordon Prather: March madness:
How to explain the adoption this week – by a vote of 404-4 – of House Concurrent Resolution 341 "condemning the government of Iran for violating its international nuclear nonproliferation obligations and expressing support for efforts to report Iran to the United Nations Security Council." In particular, what "violations" are they talking about?
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12003.htm
Paul Craig Roberts: Superpower as Global Dependent:
According to Bush and his neoconservatives, the only way to make America safe from terrorists is to force democracy upon the Middle East. Only ideologues completely ignorant of the Middle East could come to that conclusion.
http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts02212006.html
Emergency war supplemental hides millions:
Buried in last week's $72.4 billion emergency supplemental appropriation bill for the war on terror is nearly half a billion dollars worth of military construction.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12013.htm
U.S. Reclassifies Many Documents in Secret Review :
n a seven-year-old secret program at the National Archives, intelligence agencies have been removing from public access thousands of historical documents that were available for years, including some already published by the State Department and others photocopied years ago by private historians.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12008.htm
Molly Ivins | Corruption Goes Unchecked; Congress in Need of Real Reform
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/0221-26.htm
Bush's Mysterious 'New Programs':
Recent developments suggest that the Bush administration may already be contemplating what to do with Americans who are deemed insufficiently loyal or who disseminate information that may be considered helpful to the enemy.
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2006/022106a.html
{{{"Must read."}}}
You've had a long hard day, the news is depressing - have a good laugh!!
http://www.wimp.com/bushcomedy/
This guy is great!!!
NonnyO
U.S. Reclassifies Many Documents in Secret Review
- that article you posted
NPR had a long story on it tonight. Clinton ordered the old Cold War stuff classified, now some fed agencies are declassifying it again.
Most had nothing to do with national security but was merely embarrassing (eg. stupid bureaucratic mistakes). Historians may already have copied some of it, but if you go to read in the National Archives, a lot may be missing now.
NPR also had a marvellous story about Mora - Republican, conservative, 4 star general, lawyer, Naval guy - who has been very concerned about ethics & the rule of law, especially with respect to torture. Whistleblowers brought him info about Guantanamo that was ignored by the Air Force and Army. He tried to do something about it but then Rumsfeld started a group or committee to supposedly be watchdog but it's turned out to be largely cosmetic. Good story.
NPR has also been playing Iraq broadcasts with Ann Garrels, one of two reporters I trust about Iraq, the other being Adam Davidson, business reporter from NPR, but who has spent alot of time there. Ann has been a war correspondant for years and is fearless.
NPR may not be perfect but with the small amount of time I have to follow news, I appreciate it alot.
Linda Enterkin
You are right about Reagan. He undid many good programs in America. He started alot of the crap that's been revived now. When I think of Nixon in China, it seems like he had quite a diplomatic edge over some of the Republicans we've had.
By the way, wonder if Bush is really going to veto if Congress tries to block United Arab Emirates from the ports contract? He's a lame duck but it still seems politically even lamer than expected.
Linda Enterkin
About Ronnie Reagan not wanting Americans to suffer - no matter what it cost
That takes us back to LBJ, who tried to give us guns AND butter. The Great Society and War on Poverty were good programs, but the Vietnam war sucked. Have we finally paid for it yet? By the time we pay for Iraq, I'll be a great great great grandmother.
What does it take to override his veto if he does it? Seems like a lot of folks on both sides of the aisle are upset about this, as they should be.
Maybe enough to override it?
The word 'veto' comes from Latin and literally means I forbid. It is used to denote that a certain party has the right to unilaterally stop a certain piece of legislation. A veto thus gives unlimited power to stop changes, but not to adopt them.
In Westminster Systems and most constitutional monarchies, the power to veto legislation by withholding the Royal Assent is a rarely-used reserve power of the monarch, representative of the monarch, or figurehead president who has replaced the monarch.
United States
Article One of the United States Constitution requires that all bills or other items of legislation passed by both houses of Congress be presented to the President for his approval. If he returns a bill to Congress within ten days (excluding Sundays) of its presentation to him, the bill does not become law. A two-thirds majority of both houses can adopt a law despite a presidential veto. Likewise, if the President takes no action during this period and Congress remains in session it becomes a law as if he had signed it. However, if Congress has adjourned for the session prior to the expiration of the ten-day period and the President does not wish to sign the bill, he may take no action and the bill will be considered vetoed without possibility of override and without the President having to list his objections. This latter practice is called a pocket veto.
(Wikipedia)
The port issue may sink the GOP in 2006...i am trying to figure the upside for this...the only issue i can come up with is the ties Daddy bush has to Arab interests personally and through the carlylse group...Other than that i dont see any reason for Bush to stand in the front of a speeding train...Politics makes for strange bedfellows.
Posted by: Toolmaker at February 22, 2006 12:20 AM
The 'down side' to the port issue is that The Cretin is hoping something of a "terroristic" nature will come through the six ports if the UAE is allowed to own those ports... and it will be his perfect excuse to then somehow connect that with Iran and have his excuse to divert everyone's attention away from UAE to illegally invade Iran. It would be a re-run of what he did regarding Iraq with setting them up. See this link I posted above:
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12003.htm
The House actually passed this nonsense. What's wrong with that picture? They should be concentrating on IMPEACHING that whole Criminal Cabal in the White House!
Toolmaker, NonnyO
UK & Singapore doing multi-billion dollar deals with Dubai, re their ports
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp?Article=135065&Sn=BUSI&IssueID=28328
It's big business. Follow the money.
Let's not make assumptions.
Let's drill down.
http://www.dpa.ae
http://www.dxbcustoms.gov.ae
http://www.dxbcustoms.gov.ae/index_frame.asp
http://portfocus.com/united_arab_emirates/dubai/index.html
http://www.dpiterminals.com
http://www.jafza.co.ae
http://www.jafza.co.ae/content/section1/Dubai_Ports_Authorit
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=3&article_id=22108
http://www.military.com/opinion/0,15202,87787,00.html
http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article344679.ece
Caution - may not be up to date
Chances are they are even richer now.
Windfalls of War - US Contractors in Iraq & Afghanistan
http://www.publicintegrity.org/wow/
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2001/01/22/national1946EST0728.DTL
The Bush cabinet: govt of financial oligarchy
http://www.thefourreasons.org/bush-m16.shtml.html
Bush’s Corporate Cabinet
http://multinationalmonitor.org/mm2001/01may/may01bushcc.html
Bush Has A Cabinet Full of Wealth
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines02/0918-06.htm
Cabinet Is Millionaires' Row
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/01/23/politics/main266421.shtml
The Center for Public Integrity
http://publicintegrity.org/report.aspx?aid=190&sid=200
& just imagine what is not on public record
Gulf Daily News
http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/
The Leading English Language Newspaper in the Middle-East.
http://www.dailystar.com.lb
http://english.aljazeera.net/
http://www.alarabiya.net/english.htm
Middle East newspapers online and news sites in English. ... Information concerning US relations with Middle Eastern states
Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, ...
http://www.world-newspapers.com
Electronic Newspapers and Journals on the Middle http://www.library.wisc.edu/guides/MidEast/midnet.htm
The Middle East's Leading English Language Daily
http://www.arabnews.com/
English-edition daily newspapers, with an emphasis on the Middle East and Asia.
http://www.inkdrop.net/dave/news.html
UK Online Newspapers and International English http://www.thebigproject.co.uk/news/
Haaretz Daily Newspaper Israel
http://www.haaretzdaily.com/
Middle East Times
Independent news weekly about the Middle East Archive for researchers.
http://www.metimes.com/
Middle East Media Guide
http://www.middleeastmediaguide.com/
Posted by: DiAnne at February 22, 2006 12:34 AM
Yes, I did rather assume it is a matter of money.
It was a three month bidding process, UAE got it, and we're just now hearing about it...?
After the daily repetition regarding 'ter-rist' plots, hidden enemies, at least monthly reminders that our ports are still the most vulnerable security issue, ad nauseaum, since 9/11, Dumbya now turns around and says 'trust me, it's okay, these people are our friends'...????? A country that spawned two of the 9/11 hijackers....
Uh huh. Say, incidentally, I have this bridge to sell....
RE: Mora, the outgoing general counsel of the United States Navy and the torture papers/memo...
The Feb. 27th issue of the New Yorker has the complete article NPR referred to here:
http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/articles/060227fa_fact
It's well worth the read to understand how intelligent people of integrity in our government are being shut down for speaking the truth.
And here is the link to the PDF of the 22 page memo Mora submitted on July 7, 2004, to Vice Admiral Albert Church, who led a Pentagon investigation into abuses at the U.S. detention facility at Guantánamo Bay:
http://www.newyorker.com/online/covers/?060227onco_covers_gallery
(And if you get a chance to see the cover on the newstand, you'll get a good chuckle...)
Here's a good site to keep in touch with, started by David Sirota & Nathan Newman.
PLAN - Progressive Legislative Action Network
http://www.progressivestates.org/
PLAN functions as a meeting space for progressive legislators, activists, and citizens. They track legislation in all fifty states, helping to spark change across the country merely by making it easier for people to learn more about how to get good ideas passed into law – and take power into their own hands.
Their blogroll includes many state-specific blogs so that you can truly act locally. They also include action plans for legislators, journalists, & bloggers.
You can also sign up to get info targeted specifically for your state:
http://plan.bluestatedigital.com/page/s/stateside
NonnyO
I'm not for the sale to Dubai, but any country could "spawn" hijackers. UAE has been a very rich country. Like Saudi Arabia or Kuwait, it has a monarchy and they are friends of our administration. The control is in the hands of a rich elite, and there is a large disparity between them and the people. Sound familiar?
I am against it more as an antiglobalizationist than because of terror potential. 24 of 25 biggest ports in the world are NOT American, 30 percent of our ports are foreign. Only 5 percent are inspected and Bush hasn't made it much of a priority. Ask Patty Murray or recall back to John Kerry's position when he was running for president.
Saudi Arabia and China own 30-40 percent of our mortgages. They call the shots.
As for terror, it may be a factor but I think it's one of many and is a primarily a political hot potato, like Terry Schiavo or gay marriage. That may be good, as a split between Hastert/Frist and Bush on something is amazing.
Why did UK and Singapore sell to the Dubai company? They are equally vulnerable. Sounded like the Dubai company was able to beat out companies there, including a big British one.
I'm just saying that people ought to be barking up other trees as well. It's not that this is a safe or sensible purchase, but it's similar to things that happen all the time that people don't seem to notice.
Here is an extensive debate on the port issue, both sides:
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/terrorism/jan-june06/ports_2-21.html
Now what I am really outraged about is that some insurgents blew up the dome of a Shiite mosque. Those are world treasures and cannot be replaced. It would have never happened had we not meddled over there, trying to control the world's oil fields after dabbling in alternative energy sources for at least 3 decades without making a real commitment to change our ways.
Here you can see it. Imagine the outcry if someone blew up Notre Dame cathedral or St. Peter's Basilica. I am not religious until it comes to the great historic architecture of the world.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/terrorism/jan-june06/ports_2-21.html
Reading more, sounds more like the Dubai company acquired the British company and the US admin (ie King George & Condi) wanted to approve the sale.
Exactly how much of the US is actually owned by the US? That is my question. If people have outstanding mortgages that are foreign-owned, then they have foreign-owned houses. We buy foreign cars (I bought German), foreign everything. It's just a fact. Aren't we a debtor nation? If we need help with our wars, can't other countries use our debt as leverage?
By the way, I had someone make a cold call to me the other day from a call center in India, trying to sell me identity theft protection insurance. The poor guy hadn't even had accent reduction training and I could hear other talkers and phones. They didn't even have a way to mask them. I've read that the attrition rate is high in that business there, even though they pay fairly well (for that economy). It's not fun work, if you've ever tried it.
Here is an interesting four-page story about how the Dubai port controversy developed in the media. It would have moved even fsster had it not been for the media coverage given to Cheney's ill-fated hunting trip. (End part is about Cheney, Condi, Scooter rather than the ports but lots of references to media, & interesting - very.)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/blog/2006/02/22/BL2006022200628.html
Well off to work. NPR time.
Posted by: DiAnne at February 22, 2006 09:10 AM
Regardless of whether the Dubai deal is safe or sensible, it's certainly causing a stir on both sides of the aisle. It's a confusing enough concept that the average American can't understand -- even if something similar has been done before -- and does make one wonder about just how secure our ports really are. It gives us some good questions to ask the diehard "security" repubs...like...
"Why not? Some of those al-Qaeda people have probably done much more research on our ports than anybody else." (Courtesy of The Onion)
Madame
I agree - I'm glad it's waking people up!
That's exactly my point - maybe people need to think more about where goods come from, how they get here, who owns them, are they safe.
& if it hits Bush on his perceived strength on the war on terror (politically), so be it! Let's get someone in there who actually knows what they're doing! (We almost did - thanks Ohio voting machines .. )
Posted by: madame defarge at February 22, 2006 08:37 AM
Amazing story from madame's link.
http://www.progressivestates.org/content/10/people
Here are two more places to check for some interesting perspectives & info RE: the Dubai port deal...
Ellen's Blog - Left to speculate and mail it with a Benny stamp
http://ellenofthetenth.blogspot.com/
Daily Kos diary -
UPDATE: Bush Nominated UAE Port Executive To Key Post in January
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/2/21/17336/2076
Chuck in Doha for Fe again:
Here I go, agreeing with you again! And this goes to the leadership thing too in another way. There are two tracks to the energy independence deal. For one, federal government and academia have a huge role to play. This has to do with working to find a long term viable solution to energy generation and delivery.
The other side is ultimate grass-root, and goes to what you were saying, and has to do with adapting our society to live on less energy consumption, which can begin now, but has an awful lot to do with issues like urban planning (in-filling, mass-transit), telecommuting (broadband access), retail commerce (local five-and-dimes rather than mega and mini malls, etc.), forcing utilities to buy-back electricity should a private home or office also be a little "electricity farm," etc. Tons of ways. (Federal has a role too in the way it matches highway funds and CAFE, for example). But at the end of the day, it comes down to how we see our little communities. We need to develop a new, almost aesthetic, conception of what life COULD be like without the freeway commutes and the mega stores and the 4000 sq. ft. McMansions. Like more walking. With the kids. Or biking. Smaller houses with lots of neighbors (easier to clean and find your keys, too). Cars for Sunday drives, not for commutes. And then start acting on that vision at the municipal level. See, conservation doesn't have to be a drag -- it can be a better way of life! It's not about suffering through cold winters, but about designing our lives around a better community. Consume less! Simplicity is beauty!
OK, kind of touchy-feely, I know. And that's where the leadership concepts come in. We should demand leadership in the big, federal areas I mentioned, but on these little things, I think we need leaders that can bring people to see the beauty and potential of living "off the grid."
Hope that made sense.
Chuck in Doha
New thread...
Chuck:
You hit it square on the head. This is what pisses me off about Bush doing another PR tour on Alternative Energy. By everything else he does, he doesn't mean a word of it.
Your model, by the way, is attainable now. What we need to infuse into society is a method of creating sustainable communities, because they not only work on an ecological and economical level, they also work on a socio-economic level. The other thing is that it mitigates isolation and CREATES community.
It really is boiling down to that.
Posted by: DiAnne at February 22, 2006 09:23 AM
How very clever of the major corporations to move their customer service and telemarketers to a foreign country. Not only are they getting around the privacy and protection laws here at home, they are saving a bunch by not having to match social security contributions, and carrying worker's comp and health insurance. They probably save a bunch on the wages, too.