LIES, LIES & GOP LIES

There are lies and then there are GOP lies. Vice President Cheney is, of course, a master of telling the straight-faced lie. He simply makes an outrageous statement and the GOP choir nods their heads in agreement. Ditto with Karl Rove.

President Bush has usally stuck to little lies, like about his service in the National Guard. When it comes to national issues, for example, weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, he blames his staff for misinformation. But recently he inaugurated himself into the big time whopper crowd.

Practically choking on the issue of global warming, Bush begrudgingly gave some credence to the report of administration scientists that it's happening. But we can't do anything about it, he says, because it will cost five million American jobs if we impose pollution controls. Five million. He grabs a number out of the air and proclaims it. Either the planet lives or the American economy suffers, he implies. Where did he get that statistic? No one in the media asked. It just hangs out there in the ether.

Is that net or gross loss of jobs he's assuming? What about the jobs that would be created by retrofitting carbon-belching smokestacks and bringing on line new, green industries to limit the toxins we spew into the air? Has anyone ever done an economic study of the issue?

All the arguments will become moot once Mother Nature really starts her roast. The economic engine of Manhattan isn't going to be able to pump fast enough to keep its commerce from drowning under higher sea levels. A third of Florida will sink underwater, taking down that state's economy. And so on, through all our coastal areas.

But that won't be Bush's worry. He'll be gone. We can only hope that by then Jeb will be President and trying to explain to livid Americans how his big brother stood by and let the nation and its economy go down the drain.

SNOOPING ON MY FELLOW AMERICANS

We pay the CIA and the FBI to snoop on terrorists and criminals. But do they do a good job? Hell, no. After spending millions of dollars and wasting years since 9/ll, they can't even come up with efficient computer systems that effectively sort and analyze data. With the revolving door at the security agencies as disgruntled employees leave for high-paying private sector jobs, the CIA needs more agents in the field and experts in Arabic and other Middle East languages. As for coordinating the efforts of the two agencies, forget it. If one stumbles on a cell in the U.S., it doesn't tell the other. They both act as slow-moving, independent fiefdoms.

But when it comes to snooping on the American public, our technology is fast, cheap and superior--and getting better all the time. Coming soon is a chip that will follow your every move. Sewn into your clothes, embedded in consumer products such as food packaging and tires, and enshrined in your credit card and passport, miniature radio tags can track your life. Any hacker with intent to steal your identity will be able to read off information the tags emit by passing nearby.

The industry which developed Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)tags is pushing hard to avoid any government regulation. It's the same old argument that (any) industry always gives: "Trust us. We don't need regulation. We'll monitor ourselves." Sure, that and $2 will get you on the subway. With the lobbyists on the case, what chance do average consumers have to protect their privacy? Zero to none?

The Bush administration seems to have informally endorsed the tags. The Federal Trade Commission says it won't issue regulatory guidelines, but allow the RFID industry to protect consumer privacy. Coincidentally, some former administration heavy-hitters, including ex Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge and ex Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, have joined boards of companies that produce the tags.

There's no question that American know-how can build a superior product when it tries. RFID tags are dropping in price from $1 each to 5 cents and headed towards less than one cent. These dirt-cheap tags will put your medical records, driving infractions, personal tastes into the public domain. Is this the America we want?

It remains a mystery why industry and government don't devote the same energy and technological genius into building a better spy system to catch the bad guys. They should start with the internet, sabotaging the main lines of communications the Islamic fanatics use to send their nefarious messages.

DEFENDING ILLEGALS

A cluster of self-interest groups keeps defending the so-called rights of illegal aliens in this country. It includes social service groups, the media and employers.

The media endlessly runs the tear-jerk stories of "Juan" or "Juanita" who bravely traveled over miles of desert to reach the American Dream. It softpedals the ripoffs by illegals who come here to game the system. A pregnant Mexican woman "happened" to be visiting relatives in Los Angeles when she gave birth to cojoined twins. The babies immediately became U.S. citizens entitled to expensive (free) operations and medical care far superior to what their home country would provide. Guess who picks up the bills? California taxpayers, courtesy of Medical. The superficial media loves this kind of warm, fuzzy human interest story. A hard look shows that it's really one of greed and self-interest. Who wouldn't choose millions of dollars in free medical care if Americans are foolish enough to provide it? Why don't we bill the Mexican government? And why is the U.S. still giving precious citizenship to children of foreigners who time their kids' birth?

How about those 630,000 criminals that the government estimates are part of the 12 million illegal aliens in the U.S.? They include murderers, rapists and felons. They'll be deported if the feds can find them. But meanwhile they threaten the flimsy argument about how "beneficial" illegals are to the country.

Social services and church groups defend alien "rights," but what right have the illegals got to be in the country in the first place? Should we ignore our laws and borders and let anyone who wants come in? Those groups are not selfless advocates. They need the illegals to justify and perpetuate their own jobs. The groups claim to be doing charitable work, but the American public is picking up the bill. And we can't even claim a charitable deduction on our income taxes.

Probably the worse defenders are the hypocritical employers who claim they can't be responsible for phony documents or made-up Social Security numbers that illegals use to take jobs from Americans. The damage they cause to the economy shows up, for example, in the janitorial segment which used to be manned by Americans in unions earning up to $19 an hour. Today in that employment sector, Hispanics make up nearly one in five janitors and the rate in Southern California dropped to between $8.50 and $11 an hour. Again, greed, not patriotism, motivates employers. Americans are priced out of the jobs when wages drop, unions are decimated and employee health costs are shifted to taxpayer programs. What a bonus for employers who line their own pockets.

The State of Georgia passed a law to start in 2007 to make it harder for illegal immigrants to get jobs and tap into certain public-funded benefits. The media highlights this as a disaster for real estate brokers because Hispanics are hesitating to buy homes.

Defenders of illegal immigration always claim that the aliens are on the whole a benefit to the economy. Yet no one has provided a cost-benefit analysis of the damage done to the economy and the fabric of our society. There are too many self-motivated interest groups pushing against such a realistic analysis.

CATCHING ZARQAWI

The lungs of master terrorist Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi exploded after a 500-pound American bomb fell on his Iraqi safe house. He had a $25 million reward on his head and yet it took years to eliminate him. That other poster boy of evil, Osama bin Laden, is still wandering around the caves of Afghanistan/Pakistan. How come with all our fancy spyware and intelligence resources we can't run down the renegades?

The answer lies in the Zarqawi saga. He made the fatal mistake of blowing up a few hotels in Jordan and that made the locals there upset. So the Jordanian intelligence organization, which knew a lot about homeboy Zarqawi, got into the mix. If it's one thing the repressive states of the Middle East know, it's how to find and eliminate their enemies. Everyone has a folder in the intelligence office files. When the Jordanian spooks set out to trap Zarqawi, they finished the job in less than a year. Of course, the U.S. was the frontman in the clean-up. It's easier to explain to the neighbors, who always root for the terrorists. But the Jordanians pegged Zarqawi's associates and finally tracked one to his lair.

If we are smart, that's the tactic we need to use with the Saudi Arabians, Iranians, Syrians and the rest of those wonderful people in the Middle East. At the same time we're building our own spy network in that explosive region, which will take years, we should enlist the services of their sneaky, repressive, but effective, operatives.
They may use methods that would turn a humanitarian's stomach, but we're trying to eliminate murdering terrorists here. Remember, "it takes a thief to catch a thief"

BUSH MYSTERY

Why do U.S. troops cheer when they see Bush?

He's the one who sent them into Iraq under false premises to lose life or limbs. They are not defending the republic or the Constitution. They are on a fool's errand.

Although the President pretends to support the troops, he sends them into battle without armor. It has been widely reported that concerned families often send their sons or daughters money to buy their own bullet-proof vests. Can you imagine that? Families have to subsidize the U.S. Army. And the vehicles that the soldiers use are the same as the ones that ply California's highways. So when the SUVs arrive in a war zone, the troops scavanger up scrap metal to reinforce the sides. Again, he's sending soldiers to battle without proper equipment.

Back on the home front, the families of some soliders are on welfare. They can't buy necessities on Army pay. What a disgrace.

I'm sure that there are other things the President's bunch has put in place that jeopardize the lives of our young, brave troops. They deserve better.

Despite his attempt to project a macho image, Bush has never been on active duty, never faced enemy fire. His so-called National Guard "duty" was a rich man's joke.
He showed up when he felt like it, which wasn't too often.

Yet the troops cheer when they see him. He's sold them a bill of goods, sent them off semi-protected into great danger and they cheer him. Why?

BYE, BYE, AMERICAN PARKS

Once upon a time Americans could frolic in the nation's 390 parks, monuments, seashore and recreation areas run by the Park Service. They were places where a two-week vacation seemed to stretch into eternity. It was cheap enough, too, for a salaried worker to bring along his kids and grandma.

Families who spent the other 50 weeks cramped together in city apartments surrounded by concrete sidewalks could breathe unpolluted air, see waterfalls cascading down rocky slopes and gaze in awe at the majestic horizon. They could touch the redwood, aspen or pine trees, smell the flowers and grass and catch a glimpse of wildlife from butterfly to bear. This was our precious heritage that stretches back to President Theodore Roosevelt (a Republican, but how different from today's lot that claims the name).

Now restrooms are closed in Acadia National Park, Maine, educational programs at Grand Canyon have been cut by a third, one of six visitor centers at Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, has been shut down. And don't get thirsty in Glacier National Park, Montana. The campgrounds' faucets with drinkable water have been turned off. You won't see very many of those friendly park rangers in the Smokey-the-Bear hats, either. They're on the endangered list, to be replaced by "volunteers."

According to a new report by the federal Government Accountability Office there's not enough money in the parks budget to maintain service levels. And the Bush admininistration is calling for a $100 million CUT for next year from last year's $1.7 billion allocation. Besides that, the parks agency has a $5 billion hole in its maintenance budget. So there you have it, folks. Service is disappearing at the parks. And whatever structures that foresighted earlier administrations put in place: bridges, roads, buildings are all going to fall into ruins. Soon our national parks will be suitable for archaeological digs.

Isn't it wonderful that there's enough money in our national budget to give generous tax cuts to wealthy individuals, but not enough to fund the national parks which give so much delight to so many ordinary Americans?

A POLITICAL ATHEIST

I am a failed Democrat. I lost my faith when George W. Bush, running on empty,. defeated two Democrats in a row. Now I am adrift without a political party.

I tried hooking up with the activist organization MoveOn. At meetings across the country, 100,000 people came up with the three top issues for the elections in 2006 and, especially, 2008. What a lame list: universal health care, reform of the political system, energy independence. And this from people who actually read a newspaper now and then or follow TV news. What can we expect from uninformed voters?

Sure they're all important issues, especially the last one. But life or death of the republic? No way. That honor goes to fighting terrorism. Anyone who forgets that is not going to be around long enough to pull his head out of the sand.
We can clean up the U.S. political process and give everyone free medical care, but if the Islamic terrorists blow up the world we won't live to enjoy them.

No matter how many imams claim Islam is a "peace-loving religion," the facts show otherwise. Muslims are at the center of all the rage exploding across the globe: Bosnia, Darfu, Israel, Iraq, Spain, Britain, Canada. They can't have what the West has--freedom-- so they want to make everyone as miserable as they are. They come to Western countries as refugees and then use violence to force their barbaric way of life on others.The only ace they're holding is the Middle East oil card. So sure, let's go for energy independence. Any thing that dries up their money stream is good. But let's not lose sight of the larger prize: getting rid of the terrorist threat. That will take all the smarts America has and the political will to carry through until the terrorists are crushed.

Does this mean I support Bush's failed approach in Iraq? Of course not. I still remember his administration promising us at the start of the war that Iraq's oil revenues would pay for the country's reconstruction. So far the bill to the American taxpayer is $370 billion and counting. You can buy a lot of health care for that.

As for spying on Americans' phone conversations, he's snooping in all the wrong places. We need more "profiling," not less. Let's make the lives of terrorists in U.S. cells so unbearable they crawl back to whatever nation spawned them. And let's keep our eye on the goal: ridding the world of the terrorist murderers. What U.S. political party is ready to deliver that agenda?

Cassandra: Prophet of the Future

In Greek mythology, Cassandra foretells future disasters, but no one listens. Today's Cassandra speaks truth to those in power and they better heed her warnings.



















Evelyn DeMorgan (British, 1850-1919)
"Cassandra"
Oil on canvas, 1898