DISPATCHESJune 23, 2003
Truth Will Set You Free
Harvey Wasserman in The Free Press lays down very clearly how the massive structure of lies underlying the Bush administration is undermining its existence. This is really a worthwhile read, hopeful, but with strong reasoning to bolster it. Wasserman says that although the Republicans have taken control of all branches of government, the flow of information, capital, are taking control of the voting machines and wiping voters from the voter rolls, they are becoming undermined by the bitter truth about them. "Fear of Firing" Workers unite! John Dean's new column talks about the memos to Texas Governor George W. Bush from Alberto Gonzales, the lawyer who advised him on whether or not to grant clemency to any of the over 150 people who were executed under George W.'s watch, or not-watch. Far more people were executed under Bush than have been executed under any governor in any state since capital punishment was re-legalized in the '70s. In his phony autobiography A Charge to Keep, ghost-written by Karen Hughes, he claimed to thoroughly review each case to see if there were reasons to believe the condemned was innocent, or had not had a fair hearing. The memos suggest otherwise. The lawyer did not even bother to present any information to Bush that would cast doubt on the conviction or the fairness of executing the person. Bush is said to be considering appointing Gonzales to the Supreme Court. The Democrats and the New York Times are pathetically timid about confronting Bush on the matter of lying to trick Americans into supporting a war. No big thing, they seem to think. No need to rock the boat here. I presume they would have loved Hitler, if they'd been in the right place at the right time. Are there any politicians with the courage to stand up for something just because it is right, without doing focus group research for a few months first? The Times is no better than the entertainment rags that clutter the newsstands. It's good for some Sunday morning brain candy, little more. The Democrats are about as relevant as the Elks Club. The Times reports that Democrats are wimping out on confronting Bush. So he lied? Or "exaggerated", as the Times wimpily described it? So a few people got killed? Well okay, tens of thousands, but most of them were Iraqis. Many of them were even in the Iraqi military. How concerned are you going to get about their deaths? The Times should be extremely embarassed about its failure to challenge corrupt politicians, let alone creating an environment where a clown like Jayson Blair could thrive. But instead of mending their ways and trying to rebuild their integrity, they continue to pass on shabby lies to justify unjustifiable actions. Hold on there just a minute! Surely the public is beginning to catch on that this mad rush to privatize everything means that the public interest will be removed as a consideration in every realm of life. The public interest will cease to be an element in the handling of the public's business. The mechanism of accountability will be removed from all the theaters of activity in the society. Now Bush wants to privatize the Federal Aviation Administration. (See The New York Times .) No. This has gone way too far. The Bush junta is enacting its agenda very quickly with the intent of completing the hijacking of the entire country before most of the people wake up to the heist.