Last night as we put the finishing touches on an altar for Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) at a local gallery, I stepped back to take in all of our tribute to the spirits of the dearly departed. Photos of the dead, family and friends, lovingly arranged with flowers, candles and items from their everyday lives that we identify with them. Their favorite foods, a musical instrument, an old metal comb. Among those items I had placed an old film camera and a photo of a guy that I had never met. His name was Bradley Will, an American indie documentary filmmaker and reporter. He was killed by government forces in Oaxaca, Mexico on Friday.
While our government bleats on and on about spreading democracy to farthest corners of the globe, how's about a little attention to our own backyard? The only former Spanish colony in the Caribbean that is still a colony after 500 hundred years, more than 100 of those years under the auspices of Ol' Glory. Don't buy the hype about the little brown people being happy about living as second class US citizens because they don't support independence - they only have to look at Cuba to see how vindictive the US can be, Hell hath no fury like a Yanqui scorned. Even Saddam used to get 90% of the vote in Iraq, not because he was beloved but because he was feared. Here's the story as the BBC carried it yesterday. Funny, didn't hear much about it from our media. Wonder why that is...
"Do not go gentle into that good night
Rage, Rage against the dying of the light."
--Dylan Thomas
Great, so now I'm tired and I'm full of rage. Merry Christmas. Tired of being warned before every family gathering to keep my politics to myself. Tired of trying to connect the dots between scandals - (Mariana Islands to Jack Abramoff to Michael Ledeen to Niger docs?) Tired of all my "radical" friends who have either sold out or moved even further onto the fringes of our society - subsisting as neo-luddite hippie anarchists. At least they are happy, but how can they be? Our country is in crisis! Well maybe because it's the holidays, a New Year is approaching, a time when all the world's problems are spackled with hope, draped in garland and forgotten for at least a moment in carols, wassail and merriment.
Just saw a segment on MSNBC with a David B Rivkin, an attorney commenting on the Wooward revelations. He contends that this information has" blown a gigantic hole in the Prosecutor's case" Mr. Rivkin was presented with the lower third ID of "defense attorney". Nowhere was it mentioned his role in politics or a recent WAPO op-ed calling for the end of the Special Prosecutor system. http://www.washingtonpost.com/.... Seems like Mr. Rivkin has an agenda, and his characterizations sound alot like GOP talking points. This is a Trojan Horse hack attack that has been deployed to float conventional wisdom trial balloons.
Anyone else noticed that there are a lot of self-appointed "hall monitors" floating around on this blog nowadays? Citizen patrols who decide on what is and what is not "diary worthy?" I, for one, enjoy reading shorter diaries. Often I don't have time to ingest a novella in order to get someone's point. I like the free exchange of ideas. I enjoy humorous diaries be they satire, farce or the occasional cynical wordplay. That's what democracy is supposed to be about. Yet there are some among us (you know who you are) who feel compelled to comment and belittle the oft-well-intentioned efforts of others. These cyber-poobahs remind me of the condo commandos in South Florida, the ever-present bands of older ladies who are on the lookout for their fellow condo owners who may not be following the letter of the by-laws as they interpret them.
"going to ground" - Into a den or burrow: a fox going to ground, into hiding
It is not a good time to be a republican. What had been called the new era, halcyon days basking in the warm afterglow of an electoral mandate have turned into their worst nightmare. No longer the straight talking outsiders who vowed long ago to clean up DC, today the GOP's arrogant ham-fisted policies and consumate dirty deals are finally out in the open. The smart money always knows when to hold 'em and fold 'em, and there is mounting evidence that potential republican candidates are keeping their hats out of the ring. http://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Campaign/100505.html Seems the Vice President misspoke back in May, the only thing that seems to be in the last throes is the Republican Revolution.
A vindictive elitist who can make you cringe
for the radical right he's on the lunatic fringe
he's the voice of intolerance on Capitol Hill
he's a lying corporate shill
Tom DeLay Tom DeLay
let send the hammer to the slammer
today
Last week, while cleaning out some boxes, I found an old newspaper that was used to wrap some glassware. I started reading; it was like taking a trip in a time machine. Here's the headline, page one, above the fold, culled from a story by Ron Fournier of the AP dated May 2nd, 2001 - in the "Free Lance Star" from Fredericksburg, VA. RESETTING THE SIGHTS - Bush wants missle defense - President says current ABM treaty 'enshrines past' . Intrigued, I read on. This was billed as Bush's first major defense address, given, coincidently, at the National Defense University in DC. The first paragraph of this article is truly chilling - we can clearly see W "on message" months before 9/11. Read on Kossacks, these links are oh so juicy.
Financial favors, sweetheart deals, blatant nepotism, lies, treason and corruption. Let's have our investigative reporters peel this onion already. Those who don't or won't are probably on the take. The time for marching in lock-step with this administration is over. The heady days of furious flag waving are over. The "Embedded Tour of Duty" is over. The patriotic fervor of "jingo journalism" is so over. Over and out. Try this on for size - "Cronygate".
We need the history to fill in the blanks, we need to follow the money, we need to demand nothing less than full accountability. Of course, this requires the media to do it's job! You're either with us or you're with the criminals...
just like Guckert/Gannon, remember him?
As Senator Frist's troubles compound over his "portfolio malfunction" the comparisons are sure to made between the Good Senator and the Domestic Diva, Martha Stewart. There is one important difference. Martha Stewart is a celebrity, Senator Frist is a public servant. The risks for conflicts of interest and insider information abound. The responsibility should not simply be for our government officials to give us the appearance of propriety; we need a fool-proof guarantee. It is time to end this blind trust nonsense and compel government officials to divest themselves completely and put their money where their rhetoric is, in government T-Bills and federal managed 401Ks. Maybe then, blatant self-interest will compel them to manage our economy and debt levels more vigorously.
Did I hear right? Did Bill Frist give up a soundbite yesterday about Katrina's costs being passed on to our children? Did anyone else hear this? If so, we should call him on it. I refuse to saddle my children with debts directly incurred by this country's vast rightwing incompetence. Maybe the majority leader could help pay for disaster relief by donating his capital gains from insider trading.
The antiwar movement has been marginalized, demonized and completely outflanked by the powers that be.
Don't count on the press carrying the antiwar message to the far corners of the land. Corporate-owned media will never legitimize that which threatens their access to the movers and shakers. Sure, a few photos of some outrageous costumes to reinforce the "freak show"public image of the looney left. We will be portrayed as social malcontents, unpatriotic and weak, silly and dangerous.The vindictive junta in DC has already sent the message, your either with us or against us. Nothing will shake their resolve except, of course, a taste of their own medicine.
Final notes for speech: The South will rise again. (use the drawl for regional connection with historical context) Nearly 60 billion dollars (punchier, emphasize the "B" for maximum impact.) Minority owned businesses will thrive (a shout out to the "peeps" in the 9th ward) entrepreneurs will save the day (boomtown for money grubbin' carpetbaggers). Faith based groups will continue their good works.(a wink to my bible thumpin' brethren) Together, we can do it! We've done it before, we will do it again (Pull those national pride heartstrings with your reassuring smirk) We will review emergency planning in every state of this great nation. (don't laugh, don't laugh)
This is classic Rove, cut your critics off at the knees then let the right wing pundits count coup on their broken bodies with your talking points.
Listen, take no solace in current poll numbers. Half this country voted for Dubya. The GOP has their Spin Machine and every branch of the Federal Government. This administration will rise again. Though the horrific images of unimaginable suffering have troubled our national psyche, there will still be more water cooler conversations today about Britney's baby than about what the President may say tonight. Karl and Co. know that score.
We progressives are the life blood of the Democratic Party. They think we have no place else to go. Let us inform the party poobahs in no uncertain terms that we are not to be taken for granted. If the powers that be decide to install a moderate/ quasi conservative as DNC Chair we should leave the party en-masse. Make a really big deal out of it. We could create a coalition of the willing to battle the status quo.
One of the easiest things for people in authority to cop to when the sledding gets tough is being fallible. It humanizes these leaders, brings them a little closer to us, why it even has the distinctive evangelical -"I have sinned" kind of ring to it. This "glass house" defense works like a charm. These confirmation hearings are yet another Democratic exercise in futility, something the party could do en masse in a Saturday morning infomercial. The Futile Workout - and shrug your shoulders, one two, now wring your hands and three and four and point to the left, now point to the right, now curl into a ball, and cower and cower, now shake it off. With far bigger fish to fry, Bushco has us chasing the minnows.
Remember, the fish rots from head down.
As human beings it is so easy for us to view past events as a window to the future. We take the election of 2004 and hypothesize about the "winning formula" for '06 and '08. But this sort of ruminating leaves us hopelessly stuck in the past, and guarantees our party will be out of step with the country when those elections roll around. We Democrats need to paint in broad strokes, anticipating trends, not following them - setting agendas instead of merely reacting to the country's current far right game plan. America isn't conservative or liberal, right or left, our country simply like WINNERS! Real winners know how to take their lumps and persevere. Winners inspire confidence and that confidence is both contagious and self generating. We've got to get Back to the Future!
Real Democrats don't trust pundits or poobahs!
As things go from bad to worse in Iraq, it is now time to blame those who are responsible. The liberals. All of us. Bill O'Reilly said as much this week - Why, if we weren't always whining and complaining about human rights, we could have our troops really kick some A-rab butt, "Hey Osama, who's your Daddy?"
And the neocons nestle all smug in their beds, while visions of terrorists dance in their heads, they scheme and they plot, they distort and they lie, they build up their empire as our children die. And here in the US of A we give a collective shrug, roll our collective eyes and sharpen our collective claws to defend freedom by taking it away from others.
Oh, well... quick, change the channel- there's a biography and an exclusive interview of that guy who was on "The Apprentice".
Now is the Winter of our Discontent, a nation torn asunder by this Son of a Bush.
