Control: The Failure of Leadership, The Facade of Representation and The Use of Force

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Thursday December 22, 2011 · 3:18 PM PST

2011/12/22 · 15:18

It has been a very long time since I posted a diary on Daily Kos. I was never a prolific diarist (and that’s an understatement). But, after wearing out a lot of shoe leather campaigning in 2008, the let-down of post election political reality left me too cynical to be very constructive. Occupy Wall Street was the reenergizing jolt that got me active again. It probably goes without saying, but I’ll say it anyway – this diary speaks for no one but me. I’ve marched, faced rank and file of riot police, spoken on the “people’s mic” and even been interviewed on the local news in NYC. So, although I’m certainly no spokes-person for anything, I have seen what’s going on up close.

In the past few months, I have witnessed the “authorities” repeatedly finding ways to limit and crush dissent. Just as appalling, police have forcibly interfered with efforts by credentialed reporters to cover dissention – especially while their fellow officers arrest peaceful protesters (for an example, see ENOUGH! here on DK).

EGNY

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Tuesday September 23, 2008 · 8:23 PM PDT

2008/09/23 · 20:23

TO: US Taxpayers

FROM: Wall Street

RE: Try Not to Screw This Up!

Dear Taxpayers:

You have probably heard about the big, scary financial crisis on Wall Street. Well, we’re here to say, "be afraid, be very afraid." Call your representatives in Congress and tell them to vote for the $700 billion bailout package. NOW!

EGNY

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Thursday August 21, 2008 · 5:27 PM PDT

2008/08/21 · 17:27

I don’t often feel compelled to write to politicians, nor am I naïve enough to think that anything I can say to the Obama campaign will prompt reconsideration of their policy on holding the Bush administration accountable. Nonetheless, for some reason this one was clearly going to bug me until I did it. So, a few days ago, I sent this letter (below) to the Obama campaign.

The point: Congress (and apparently the Obama campaign, as expressed by legal advisor Cass Sunstein) have made a short term, political "cost/benefit" assessment about holding Bush administration officials accountable for their crimes. They all seem to have decided that the cost is too high, the benefit too small. For everyone’s sake, I suggest they recalculate with an eye on the mid-to-long-term costs of NOT holding these criminals accountable.

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Control: The Failure of Leadership, The Facade of Representation and The Use of Force

Wall St. to Taxpayers: Try Not to Screw This Up!

Open Letter to Obama Campaign: Why Holding the Bush Admin. Accountable For Crimes is Necessary