I'd like to remind the Democrats who are NOT calling for an investigation into impeachment that they may AGAIN be blindsided. "The party will not seek to impeach President Bush even if it gains control of the House in November's elections," minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (Calif.) told her caucus members during their weekly meeting May 10th "that impeachment is off the table; she is not interested in pursuing it." It's very discouraging to see history repeating itself again -- and so soon!
Ms. Pelosi must not remember Bill Clinton vowing to work with the Republicans to bring back civility and bi-partisan working relationships with both the House and the Senate. He thought President George H.W. Bush deserved a gracious exit, to be able to `retire in peace, leaving the (Iran-Contra) matter between him and his conscience.'
That gesture, however, only emboldened the lawbreakers, who are (once again) in top government positions. Clinton's generosity to George H.W. Bush and the Republicans led to eight years of confrontation and unrelenting hostility. Clinton's tolerance of Reagan-Bush cover-ups was a deadly mistake, and ever since then, with the collusion between the media and the Administration, the public has been denied accurate information about events that are transforming America.
If the full story of Bush the father's secret deals were known, George W. Bush would never have been selected by the Supreme Court. Clinton's `humanitarianism' allowed the coronation of George II, who proceeded to dismantle the legacy of public service to the American people that had been earned by Clinton and the Democratic majority in Congress. Democrats left a balanced federal budget and a huge surplus in 2000; today we're financially (and morally) bankrupt.
The `axis of evil' Iraq, with Iran next: The U.S. has been flying unmanned aerial surveillance drones since 2004. It protects (and generously pays) the Mujahedin-e-Khalq, which the State Department had designated a terrorist organization, to launch cross-border attacks on Iran from within Iraq. American troops are on the border! The U.S. and Israel have repeatedly threatened larger and more open attacks.
These same `spikes of aggression' starting in April 2002 led to massive bombing well before the March 19, 2003 invasion of Iraq that were almost wholly ignored by the mainstream press. Does anyone see this pattern?
Iran has an absolute and "inalienable" right to enrich uranium under Non Proliferation Treaty rules; the sole condition is that the enrichment can only be "for peaceful purposes". The Bush administration has been a chronic violator of the NPT's Article VI requirement that all parties "pursue negotiations in good faith on effective measures relating to cessation of the nuclear arms race at an early date leading to nuclear disarmament." Why such a concern over Iran's perceived violations of the NPT, and no discussion about real violations by the U.S.? Iran proposed in April 2003 to negotiate with the United States on its nuclear program, and wrote to Bush again this April. Neither attempt by Iran to reach out were responded to.
Both the U.S. and Israel possess large nuclear arsenals, and both have attacked other countries in violation of the UN Charter, which Iran has not. Bush asked Iraq to prove that it did not possess any weapons of mass destruction, and is now asking that Iran prove it is not engaging in nuclear enrichment beyond the level needed for power. Using parallel failures to disprove a negative must have come from diabolical Karl Rove's brain. Lie to fuel a patriotic fervor in the run-up to the Iraq invasion, inflate the threat, create the crisis, refuse to negotiate, and don't allow opinions that challenge your own. The same process is being used to start another war, but this time with the threat of possibly using nuclear weapons.
Most of the mainstream media are lap dogs, reporting each utterance from the government without question. Their phones are tapped and their e-mail on display, and have been threatened with losing their licenses from the FCC ..... yeah, they're playing it safe, but at the public's expense. Why is their readership down? Duh!
Read, and think `outside the box' ... (read Mother Jones, Salon, the Progress Report on the American Progress Action Fund site, Cursor and Common Dreams online, listen to radio Air America) ... This is an election year - make the most of it when candidates come looking for your vote! A lot of moderate Republicans are fed up and looking for a home; let's provide them with one, but they must do their part to make it safe and secure.
Let's pool our 'reaching out' efforts to see what works the best.
Barbara (Vermont)