December 13, 2005
Change is Not Always Good
When you think of words like government secrecy, it stirs up memories of a “Cold War” Soviet Union. When you think of words like government sanctioned torture, N. Korea, China and a Saddam controlled Iraq come to mind. When you think of words like rampant government corruption you think of a post-“Cold War” Russia, that due to a rapid destabilization of their economy, was run by thugs, crooks and the officials that were overcome by greed.
I never thought that the United States government would fall into the same disgusting pot.
The Bush administrations constant assault on the "Freedom of Information Act."
The seven media organizations involved in the Sunshine Initiative are the American Society of Newspaper Editors, Society of Professional Journalists, Coalition of Journalists for Open Government, National Newspaper Association, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, Radio-Television News Directors Association and the Newspaper Association of America.
The fact that a coalition such as this one even needs to be created, is proof that the First Amendment does not mean what it used to mean. There should not have to be coalitions and initiatives ensuring that our most basic and fundamental right is followed. Then again, a lot of things have happened since Sept. 11 that should never have happened.
After Condoleezza Rice's appearance in front of a panel investigating the 2001 terrorist attacks, the Bush Administration made it clear that they would be open and forthright about what "the people need to know." The problem isn't that the administration lied when they said they would tell America what it needed to know. The problem is, they actually feel justified in holding the information back. It's not that they are making empty promises, it's that they truly believe such a high level of secrecy is good for America.
Consider the following, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence issued a 500-plus page report on intelligence failures in the lead up to the war in Iraq. For weeks, there had been a heated back-and-forth on what needed to stay secret in that report. When it came back from review by intelligence officials, fully half had been blacked out. One senior committee member called that "absolutely an insult... they redacted half of what we had," including many parts "that revealed nothing" and were "everyday, unclassified words." The angry senator: former Majority Leader Trent Lott, Republican of Mississippi.
Bush administrations push for the right to torture foriegn prisoners.
VICE PRESIDENT Cheney is aggressively pursuing an initiative that may be unprecedented for an elected official of the executive branch: He is proposing that Congress legally authorize human rights abuses by Americans. "Cruel, inhuman and degrading" treatment of prisoners is banned by an international treaty negotiated by the Reagan administration and ratified by the United States. The State Department annually issues a report criticizing other governments for violating it. Now Mr. Cheney is asking Congress to approve legal language that would allow the CIA to commit such abuses against foreign prisoners it is holding abroad. In other words, this vice president has become an open advocate of torture
Government corruption and questionable ethics issues under Bush administrations watch:
"Hauled into court alongside Representative Tom DeLay, the Texas judicial system is also on trial."
" Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist remains under investigation by federal authorities for his sale of stock in his family founded hospital chain this year."
"Cheney's 2000 income from Halliburton: $36,086,635
Increase in government contracts while Cheney led Halliburton: 91%
Minimum size of "accounting irregularity" that occurred while Cheney was CEO: $100,000,000 (One hundred MILLION dollars)
Number of the seven official US "State Sponsors of Terror" that Halliburton contracted with: 2 out of 7
Pages of Energy Plan documents Cheney refused to give congressional investigators: 13,500
Amount energy companies gave the Bush/Cheney presidential campaign: $1,800,000"
"On Oct. 28, special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald announced that Libby had been indicted on one count of obstruction of justice, two counts of perjury, and two counts of making false statements. According to the indictment, Libby lied to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agents and a federal grand jury about his conversations regarding the identity of Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operative Valerie Plame with both Time reporter Matthew Cooper and Tim Russert of NBC News."
" A Time magazine reporter testified in the CIA leak case that she alerted Karl Rove's lawyer in early 2004 that the top Bush adviser had leaked information to her colleague about Valerie Plame, according to a first-person account published Sunday in Time."
Is this acceptable?
I remember when we were the "Good Guys." I remember when we were the beacon of light and the safehaven of Democracy.
The Bush administration has failed us. Our government is in the pockets of the wealthy corporations that really run this once great nation.
Tax cuts for the rich takes precedence over programs that help children, the poor and elderly.
The people at the bottom are paying financially for a war that has cost the poor and middle class emotionally as well. Meanwhile the wealthy few not only are not in harms way but manage to profit.
This is not a partisan attack. It is merely an observation from a concerend American.
We need less secrecy, a government that speaks out against torture and ends corruption.
Is this acceptable?
Nope. It’s not. Some republicans want everyone to accept this war without question and under any terms. They don’t realize that for the war to be supported by rationale people (who want to win) some basic conditions must be met.
1. We must be presented a viable plan for winning.
2. We will not sell out the values this country is founded on. We call that losing.
3. We have zero tolerance for failure (e.g. Rummy). We reward competence only.
5. We demand oversight. We will not bankrupt our country.
6. We demand transparency. We have a right to know what’s being done in our name.
For many, this administration is way past its last chance to clean up its act. It is too late.
Don’t cop out and blame the Democrats. Bush had almost universal support at the beginning of this war, and has now lost it, all on his own, because he is too proud to hold his friends accountable, to get international support, and to conduct the war in a manner that would do this country proud.
Posted by: Max at December 13, 2005 03:58 PMExcellent article Andre, as usual.
“It’s not that they are making empty promises, it’s that they truly believe such a high level of secrecy is good for America.”
Make that the World.
Check these out:
European probe backs claims of CIA prison flights
And:
Swiss Lawmaker Investigating Claims of Secret CIA Prison Says He Has Evidence to Back Allegations
By the way Andre, don’t forget Bush’s Procurement Chief, David Safavian’s indictment, and the entire Abramoff scandal which has yet to fully explode.
Posted by: Adrienne at December 13, 2005 04:31 PMAdrienne,
Thank you very much.
I believe that secrecy breeds corruption. This administration has shrouded the government to the point where we are left with more questions than answers and the answers we do get just causeus to ask more questions.
The Freedom of Information Act is seen as the enemy by our government officials, why?
Secret prisons?
The patriot act?
What American citizen in their right mind(no pun intended) would support this all out attack on all that is American, and call those who oppose it un-American?
Happy ChristmaHanukwanzaka.
It’s not just Bush. Every President in my adult life dating back to JFK has expanded the power of the executive and the boundaries of secrecy within which to cloak the exercise of that exanded power.
Reversing this trend will only occur when Democrats and Republicans are given no choice at the polls but to reverse it, in the recognition of their inability to preserve incumbency for their party elected officials. Nothing so motivates politicians like the thought of not being reelected.
As we have seen however, again and again, they make their promises of things appealing to voter’s ears in the runup to elections, and quickly abandon all such impracticalities within months of being reelected. Nothing but a sustained anti-incumbency voting pattern across multiple election cycles will force politicians to walk the talk for their entire term of office, on behalf of the people and this once greatest nation.
Posted by: David R. Remer at December 13, 2005 06:16 PMAndre
We are still the good guys but your view is so blinded by hatred of this administration and its policies that at this point nothing that the president can do or say will change your mind.
David is right:Absolute power corrupts absolutely and not only is American history replete with such power/greed/corruption examples but the entire history of mankind is replete with examples.
Had you been born prior to 1860 you would have been out of your mind watching the new America enslave one race and obliterate another.
Had you been born prior to 1918,pile the above paragraph on and add the fact that women had no vote.
Add in the nationion wide corruption of the first three decades…from Hoover and Coolidge..Harding administrations and the like and you will realize that what you are looking for is Utopia…and unattainable.
I think that you need to re-think your hatred for this administration and put it into historicial context
sicilianeagle,
I don’t know about Andre, but my hatred of this administration is with my eyes wide open.
Just because coruption and secrecy in nothing new to our government, is no reason to support it. At some point we need to say enough is enough and demand better. Will we ever learn from hitory instead of just perpetuating it over and over?
Posted by: JayJay Snowman at December 13, 2005 06:40 PMJayJay
Unfortunately ,no.
Our system prevents the best and brightest from running this country.
Always has,always will.
Instead we have to choose between the incompetent(for the most part) who have chosen politics as a profession or the wealthy who have chosen politics either because they really believe that they are doing something worthwhile or protecting an interest.
Notice that there are no pre-requesites for the Congress in terms of criminal record checks or fiscal responsibility.
The constitution say be a certain age and a US citizen and that’s it.
Clinton can’t practice law now,but if he hadn’t already served twice,he’d be re-elected in a heartbeat
Posted by: sicilian eagle at December 14, 2005 06:14 AMIt’s just the same ol’ rigamarole. No transparency just like sealing the Bush 1 records and the Bush 2 will undoubtedly be sealed also indefinitely.
We had such bright days under Clinton so yes sicilian eagle he would be elected again in such ugly days as these. Once we dems get serious atleast one of the houses are ours and the presidency is a toss up. Lets hope Frist runs that should be fun.
I HAVE A QUESTION GUYS (To all): Who do you think the right wing is going to run after Bush???
Posted by: Novenge at December 14, 2005 09:13 PMsicilianeagle,
I cannot believe that you, of all people have chalked the next 3 years up to,”Hey what can we do?” You have demonstrated your patriotism in your posts time and time again. I have not always agreed with your loyalties but I always knew it was the United States of America that was the driving force behind your support of the President. It is the future good of this nation that needs all of us more than ever. We cannot lose our civil liberties. We cannot lose our ability to hold our government accountable. We(The people) must be the driving force behind our government or we will cease to be the United States, the beacon of light. We will cease to be the good guys. We are on a very slippery slope. We are heading in the wrong direction.
If you don’t believe me, do the research.
Lawmakers(Breakers too)voted Wednesday to cut Federal Aid to education for the first time in a decade. “No Child Left Behind” has now been renamed, “No child who’s Parents Earn More than a Million Annually Left Behind”. It’s longer and not as catchy but more accurate.
The $602 billion measure covers education, health research, medical job training, medicare and Medicaid, Financial Aid, rural health care,State and local health depts., child support enforcement. Come on people who needs medical research?
An education, especially if you’re poor, is so overrated.
What’s really important is the $95 billion in tax breaks for those poor Americans we call “wealthy investors.”
The wealthy in this country can now hold their heads up high, they no longer have to hide in shame thanks to the GOP.
The War in Iraq has cost this country hundreds of billions of dollars and thousands of lives. The Bush administration has decided to stream-line things. He figured the poor and middle class are fighting the war, wouldn’t it make sense to have them pay for it too?
That’s the kind of wisdom and understanding that makes the GOP and this administration so great. “Compassionate Conservatism” at it’s finest.
The President also said on Wednesday that government agencies need to be more “efficient” i dealing with requests for Federal Government information. He left in place the 4 year old policy that restricts access under the Freedom of Information Act. That’s efficiency. You want to know what? No! You want documents pertaining to who? No!
Columnist Bob Novak said on Wednesday, that he is confident that the President knows who the “leak” is in the Valerie Plame case.
He now joins the millions of other Americans who knew this also.
This was the headline that greeted me this morning on the web
“Bush OK’d Domestic Spying”
” President Bush authorized the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on Americans and others inside the United States — without getting search warrants — following the Sept. 11 attacks, it was reported Friday.”
To those of us old enough to remember the cold war, this used to be the main complaint the US would lodge against the Soviet Union-spying on their own citizens for political reasons. In Denver the government kept records on American Friends Service Committee (the Quakers) because they were considered a terrorist group. They were designated as terrorist because of their anti-war stand-Quakers don’t generally build weapons of mass destruction.
This change is our country is definately not a change for the good. How can the administration say that they are promoting democracy in Iraq, when they don’t don’t practice it here?
Andre,
All those things afore mentioned in your piece are now crashing around GW’s ears. Whether McCain on torture or the medias absolute near lambast of the domestic lists including Menonites and Quakers. Gonzalez looks like a man peeing into the wind and a report on CNN has shown a group of Marines going through urban areas in an assault and then dropping a two thousand pound bomb on a house killing 17 inside, 16 of which (as was reported) were women and children. the response from the rather aging Marine commander amounted to a dullwitted “whoops”. Ofcourse CNN tried to spin the story so that the people of Iraq were glad somehow they did that in the name of fighting terror as in the piece they were screaming and crying seeing the senseless bloodshed and digging children and shattered human bodyparts out of the rubble, all while cursing the Americans for their ruthless actions. they ended the piece showing people coming out and greeting Military personel, obviously a piece of unrelated footage to help the Pentagon procure a positive image. So I guess they don’t get bombed the way we bombed Al-Jazeera in Baghdad.
Bush has just let the military run amock and this is how we do things, dropping bombs and firing RPG’s on tight civillian urban environments and neighborhoods in our bogus war on terror. The truth will hit home soon. Will we be appauled at our military’s maneuvers in urban areas? undoubtedly yes.
the target they were going after in the CNN story were two snipers on a rooftop what they did was fire a rocket killing 17 and creating more insurgeants to eventually fight.
So the republicans have painted a few schools and put in a sewage line or two. While we are dropping bombs in urban neighborhoods. Maybe that’s why there have only been 2000 american deaths, we fight like Bushified pussies with White phosphorous and rpg’s from helicopters on mere hand fulls of people armed only with guns.
Posted by: Novenge at December 16, 2005 06:52 PM
