Well, I hope you Rethuglicans and other NeoCons are happy with yourselves. Your president authorized the use of torture on prisoners of war (many of them boys under the age 18). And his FBI that is investigating the matter has attempted to cover it up. Add to this the election fraud, false pretenses for war, keeping a Secretary of Defense who could not care less for our men and women in uniform, giving incentives to corporations to ship high-tech jobs out of the country, et cetera, and you have quite the leader on your hands. So, let's just throw a party for all those elections officials who were paid off to install voting machines which could be hacked and would provide no paper record of the vote. Let's give a loud "Hooray!" for those in the FBI, CIA and Pentagon who "play ball," making certain that the plans of this administration are carried out and covered up. You all are real heroes. I can only hope you get what you deserve.
Use this link to put the rss feed from this blog on your site: http://passgo.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Tuesday, December 21, 2004
Saturday, October 30, 2004
More about my head...
Use this link to put the rss feed from this blog on your site: http://passgo.blogspot.com/atom.xml
As I mentioned in my last post, I have hydrocephalus, which you can read more about by visiting http://www.hydrocephalus.org. It is basically an excess buildup of the cerebral-spinal fluid that surrounds your brain. Although I was not diagnosed until I was in my late 30's, I have been living with the condition since birth. The cause of my "hydro" is a sub-arachnoid cycst which blocks the CS fluid from freely flowing between my head and my spinal column. This causes pressure to build up in my head resulting in headaches, balance problems, short term memory deficiencies and other issues. Somehow, for almost the first 40 years of my life, my head compensated for the excess pressure by expanding in size. Many doctors will tell you that is not possible because of the hardening of the "plates" in your head during childhood. Well, they are full of crapola, because I have actual measurements of my head size from childhood until now, and my head has grown quite a bit. And even though my plates have hardened considerably in recent years, they are still somewhat flexible. I know this because since I have had a shunt placed in my head (a common treatment for hydro), my head has decreased in size. (Never again will I use the expression, "I need that like I need another hole in the head." As it turns out, I did need the extra hole.)
As I mentioned in my last post, I have hydrocephalus, which you can read more about by visiting http://www.hydrocephalus.org. It is basically an excess buildup of the cerebral-spinal fluid that surrounds your brain. Although I was not diagnosed until I was in my late 30's, I have been living with the condition since birth. The cause of my "hydro" is a sub-arachnoid cycst which blocks the CS fluid from freely flowing between my head and my spinal column. This causes pressure to build up in my head resulting in headaches, balance problems, short term memory deficiencies and other issues. Somehow, for almost the first 40 years of my life, my head compensated for the excess pressure by expanding in size. Many doctors will tell you that is not possible because of the hardening of the "plates" in your head during childhood. Well, they are full of crapola, because I have actual measurements of my head size from childhood until now, and my head has grown quite a bit. And even though my plates have hardened considerably in recent years, they are still somewhat flexible. I know this because since I have had a shunt placed in my head (a common treatment for hydro), my head has decreased in size. (Never again will I use the expression, "I need that like I need another hole in the head." As it turns out, I did need the extra hole.)
Getting Personal
Use this link to put the rss feed from this blog on your site: http://passgo.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Hi All,
It's been a very long time since my last post. I'm not sure that matters since I cannot be certain that anyone except me reads this Blog. On the chance that there are others out there reading what I write, you have undoubtedly noticed the rather political tone of my previous posts. Well, despite the fact that the elections are days away, I have decided to make a sharp deviation from my previous path and begin discussing my own person. Although I am not at all certain that anyone will be interested in knowing the things that I will be sharing, I feel that it is important for my family, friends and myself that I document the experiences of my life so that we all can perhaps better understand who I am and the relationships we share. Ok, now where to begin...
Well, perhaps I should explain why I have decided to venture down this path of self exploration. Here is how it began. Just hours ago I began thinking about when I worked for Sprint - yes, the telecommunications company. Although I was dismissed from my position there (more about that later), I have mostly fond memories of the people and the work that I did for the company. This reminiscing led to the remembrance of a major project that began when I was there - the building of the current Sprint World Headquarters in Overland Park, Kansas. Well, one thought led to another and eventually I decided that it would be nice to try to get back in contact with some of the people with whom I had worked. Unfortunately, due to a condition I have called "hydrocephalus," I cannot remember most of the names of former friends and co-workers. This makes it rather difficult to contact any of them. 8-)
From this realization came the decision that perhaps I should just put some information about myself out there on the web where someone who might be as curious about me as I am about them could do a search and perhaps find my blog and contact information... and hopefully contact me. Then it occurred to me that most people I have worked with throughout my life have no idea of my condition since I learned of it only months after being dismissed from the company. Anyway, since I don't have addresses, neither email nor postal, for most of these good folks, I have decided to post some information about myself on the web to make it easier for them to find me.
oooo, geez, this post is getting long... ok, well, I'll post more today after getting some sleep. Take life "Head On."
Lon Diffenderfer
diffie1-yahoo-com
(formatting my email address that way
to help keep the spammers away)
Hi All,
It's been a very long time since my last post. I'm not sure that matters since I cannot be certain that anyone except me reads this Blog. On the chance that there are others out there reading what I write, you have undoubtedly noticed the rather political tone of my previous posts. Well, despite the fact that the elections are days away, I have decided to make a sharp deviation from my previous path and begin discussing my own person. Although I am not at all certain that anyone will be interested in knowing the things that I will be sharing, I feel that it is important for my family, friends and myself that I document the experiences of my life so that we all can perhaps better understand who I am and the relationships we share. Ok, now where to begin...
Well, perhaps I should explain why I have decided to venture down this path of self exploration. Here is how it began. Just hours ago I began thinking about when I worked for Sprint - yes, the telecommunications company. Although I was dismissed from my position there (more about that later), I have mostly fond memories of the people and the work that I did for the company. This reminiscing led to the remembrance of a major project that began when I was there - the building of the current Sprint World Headquarters in Overland Park, Kansas. Well, one thought led to another and eventually I decided that it would be nice to try to get back in contact with some of the people with whom I had worked. Unfortunately, due to a condition I have called "hydrocephalus," I cannot remember most of the names of former friends and co-workers. This makes it rather difficult to contact any of them. 8-)
From this realization came the decision that perhaps I should just put some information about myself out there on the web where someone who might be as curious about me as I am about them could do a search and perhaps find my blog and contact information... and hopefully contact me. Then it occurred to me that most people I have worked with throughout my life have no idea of my condition since I learned of it only months after being dismissed from the company. Anyway, since I don't have addresses, neither email nor postal, for most of these good folks, I have decided to post some information about myself on the web to make it easier for them to find me.
oooo, geez, this post is getting long... ok, well, I'll post more today after getting some sleep. Take life "Head On."
Lon Diffenderfer
diffie1-yahoo-com
(formatting my email address that way
to help keep the spammers away)
Friday, August 27, 2004
Welcome to zhe United Fascist States of America!
Yes, my little sleepwalking comrades, you might as well surrender yourself and everything you own to the STATE right now and save yourselves the aggravation of having them take it from you. Why? ... because ONLY the STATE knows best; because ONLY the STATE can protect you from your enemies (and yourself); because ONLY the STATE knows how to educate your (their) children (and teach them to appreciate and swear their allegiance to the STATE; because ONLY the STATE can keep and eye on (or get rid of) those nasty anti-STATE neighbors of yours; because ONLY the STATE can make sure that nobody makes too much money or gets so powerful that he/she can say and do as he/she pleases (especially if he/she is producing goods or creating processes that make us less dependent on the state)... "oh say does that star and sicle banner yet wave?"
Use this link to put the rss feed from this blog on your site: http://passgo.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Use this link to put the rss feed from this blog on your site: http://passgo.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Friday, August 13, 2004
Sleepwalkers REJOICE!! Goss Is Your Man!
Sleepwalkers!
You are getting the CIA chief that you deserve. Read this piece from "The Village Voice" that contains many revealing facts about Mr. Goss.
Food for Thought
In the search for intelligence life, Porter Goss is strictly from hunger
Here's the news that made many people in the Eastern Time Zone heave up their breakfasts at 8:31 this morning: President Bush introduced Porter Goss as the new CIA director.
Bush called Goss a "reformer." The two of them ought to be toast.
How fitting that this is the same House Intelligence chairman Porter Goss who was having breakfast in D.C. on 9-11 with Pakistan's security chief, Lieutenant General Mahmoud Ahmad—who was later revealed to be hijacker Mohammed Atta's bagman.
The Washington Post's Rich Leiby mentioned the breakfast as a cheery aside in a May 18, 2002, puff profile of Goss. Florida senator Bob Graham was also munching with Mahmoud, as the Post and others, including the Asia Times have reported. But why didn't the Post mention the chowdown in its first lengthy stories this morning?
Digest this: The two Floridians wound up running the joint congressional inquiry into 9-11 in their roles as chairmen of the House and Senate Intelligence committees. Not a word of the breakfast appears in Goss-Graham 858-page report. No one's saying that Goss and Graham are necessarily hiding any big thing. But the breakfast, in retrospect, is at least somewhat embarrassing. And is it really such a worthless fact that it merited no mention at all?
And chew on another factoid: This is the same Porter Goss who stood up on the floor of the U.S. House on October 9, 2002, during the crucial debate about whether to authorize Bush to go to war against Iraq, and said, according to the Congressional Record (search under 107th Congress), that the 9-11 attack "was delivered by depraved men."
Two quick questions: Was the Pakistani general too depraved to have another cinnamon roll that morning? Or was he just full?
Goss also said on October 9, 2002:
Saddam Hussein, Osama bin Laden and their radical ilk are at the epicenter of terrorist activity in the Middle East. Nobody doubts that. It is not debatable. President Bush, Prime Minister Blair and others have made convincing cases about the threats the despotic Iraqi regime poses to world peace and stability today—today as well as tomorrow.
And he added:
Iraq has expanded its weapons of mass destruction capabilities against its pledge not to. It still has deadly chemical weapons hidden throughout the country, and it has tried to develop nuclear devices as well. It is certain that Iraq has ties to many Islamic terror groups in the region, including Al Qaeda. Evidence supports Iraq's involvement in the first and probably the second World Trade Center bombing.
So, let's see: Goss, a former CIA agent, ignored studying something that did happen—his breakfast with the bagman of a 9-11 hijacker—while strongly pushing for a war based on a "threat" to our security that didn't exist.
Sure, let's make him CIA director. What the hell. He's been an effective stonewaller and excuse-maker ever since 9-11.
"No smoking gun," he said in 2002, when the Goss-Graham report was released.
It's "not about blame," he said in 2003. Here's his full quote from that rare public hearing of his House panel on 9-11 investigations, as reported by PBS at the time: "None of remarks we're talking about, nor any of history, and this certainly carries over to the 9-11 review, it's not about blame. This is about better protecting the United States of America in the world as it is today."
Keep this in mind: Since 9-11, various probes have found that the hijackers and other Al Qaeda operatives were constantly coming and going through Pakistan before the fateful day.
In the Goss-Graham report, you'll find Pakistan all over the 858 pages, but not a crumb from the 9-11 breakfast. What was talked about? Why was Pakistan's version of a CIA-FBI director in D.C. at that time? Who knew what? And when?
At the time of the attacks, the U.S. had a complex and rocky relationship with Pakistan. During the Reagan era, the U.S. helped finance and arm Arab militants so they could drive the Soviets out of Afghanistan. It's common knowledge that neighboring Pakistan was the base for those militants. And the agency Ahmad ran, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), was often on friendly terms with the Taliban and other Arab militants but on shaky terms with the U.S.
Judge for yourself who's smoking what by going to the Center for Cooperative Research's unparalleled website of heavily annotated 9-11 timelines and essays. Search "Goss" and see what comes up.
The best analysis of this naggingly curious breakfast is perhaps this piece by Michel Chossudovsky, director of the Centre for Research on Globalization, a Canadian outfit that boldly goes where most other probers don't.
It's more interesting than the congressional report produced by Goss and Graham. Or is it? Would you like an after-meal HUMINT?
posted: august 10th at 6:04 pm
Use this link to put the rss feed from this blog on your site: http://passgo.blogspot.com/atom.xml
You are getting the CIA chief that you deserve. Read this piece from "The Village Voice" that contains many revealing facts about Mr. Goss.
Food for Thought
In the search for intelligence life, Porter Goss is strictly from hunger
Here's the news that made many people in the Eastern Time Zone heave up their breakfasts at 8:31 this morning: President Bush introduced Porter Goss as the new CIA director.
Bush called Goss a "reformer." The two of them ought to be toast.
How fitting that this is the same House Intelligence chairman Porter Goss who was having breakfast in D.C. on 9-11 with Pakistan's security chief, Lieutenant General Mahmoud Ahmad—who was later revealed to be hijacker Mohammed Atta's bagman.
The Washington Post's Rich Leiby mentioned the breakfast as a cheery aside in a May 18, 2002, puff profile of Goss. Florida senator Bob Graham was also munching with Mahmoud, as the Post and others, including the Asia Times have reported. But why didn't the Post mention the chowdown in its first lengthy stories this morning?
Digest this: The two Floridians wound up running the joint congressional inquiry into 9-11 in their roles as chairmen of the House and Senate Intelligence committees. Not a word of the breakfast appears in Goss-Graham 858-page report. No one's saying that Goss and Graham are necessarily hiding any big thing. But the breakfast, in retrospect, is at least somewhat embarrassing. And is it really such a worthless fact that it merited no mention at all?
And chew on another factoid: This is the same Porter Goss who stood up on the floor of the U.S. House on October 9, 2002, during the crucial debate about whether to authorize Bush to go to war against Iraq, and said, according to the Congressional Record (search under 107th Congress), that the 9-11 attack "was delivered by depraved men."
Two quick questions: Was the Pakistani general too depraved to have another cinnamon roll that morning? Or was he just full?
Goss also said on October 9, 2002:
Saddam Hussein, Osama bin Laden and their radical ilk are at the epicenter of terrorist activity in the Middle East. Nobody doubts that. It is not debatable. President Bush, Prime Minister Blair and others have made convincing cases about the threats the despotic Iraqi regime poses to world peace and stability today—today as well as tomorrow.
And he added:
Iraq has expanded its weapons of mass destruction capabilities against its pledge not to. It still has deadly chemical weapons hidden throughout the country, and it has tried to develop nuclear devices as well. It is certain that Iraq has ties to many Islamic terror groups in the region, including Al Qaeda. Evidence supports Iraq's involvement in the first and probably the second World Trade Center bombing.
So, let's see: Goss, a former CIA agent, ignored studying something that did happen—his breakfast with the bagman of a 9-11 hijacker—while strongly pushing for a war based on a "threat" to our security that didn't exist.
Sure, let's make him CIA director. What the hell. He's been an effective stonewaller and excuse-maker ever since 9-11.
"No smoking gun," he said in 2002, when the Goss-Graham report was released.
It's "not about blame," he said in 2003. Here's his full quote from that rare public hearing of his House panel on 9-11 investigations, as reported by PBS at the time: "None of remarks we're talking about, nor any of history, and this certainly carries over to the 9-11 review, it's not about blame. This is about better protecting the United States of America in the world as it is today."
Keep this in mind: Since 9-11, various probes have found that the hijackers and other Al Qaeda operatives were constantly coming and going through Pakistan before the fateful day.
In the Goss-Graham report, you'll find Pakistan all over the 858 pages, but not a crumb from the 9-11 breakfast. What was talked about? Why was Pakistan's version of a CIA-FBI director in D.C. at that time? Who knew what? And when?
At the time of the attacks, the U.S. had a complex and rocky relationship with Pakistan. During the Reagan era, the U.S. helped finance and arm Arab militants so they could drive the Soviets out of Afghanistan. It's common knowledge that neighboring Pakistan was the base for those militants. And the agency Ahmad ran, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), was often on friendly terms with the Taliban and other Arab militants but on shaky terms with the U.S.
Judge for yourself who's smoking what by going to the Center for Cooperative Research's unparalleled website of heavily annotated 9-11 timelines and essays. Search "Goss" and see what comes up.
The best analysis of this naggingly curious breakfast is perhaps this piece by Michel Chossudovsky, director of the Centre for Research on Globalization, a Canadian outfit that boldly goes where most other probers don't.
It's more interesting than the congressional report produced by Goss and Graham. Or is it? Would you like an after-meal HUMINT?
posted: august 10th at 6:04 pm
Use this link to put the rss feed from this blog on your site: http://passgo.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Thursday, August 12, 2004
Keyes Becomes Hypocrite
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=5904855&src=eDialog/GetContent§ion=news
Is Alan Keyes giving in to a desire for power? Has he succombed to the power of the Republican National Committee? One has to wonder after the man who once criticized Hillary Clinton for moving to New York to run for the U.S. Senate will now have to make a similar move to Illinois before Election Day in November in order to challenge Democratic candidate Barack Obama for the Senate seat being vacated by Peter Fitzgerald.
Will the Republicans never cease to amaze us with the audacity of their hypocrisy, the boldness of their lies and the brashness of their self-rightousness? How do you come to a place where accusations are so easily assailed upon others with no consideration for how they will be turned back on one's own head? Is it the cameras in the face and the microphones at the mouth that cause the receiver of such attention to believe that somehow the words from his or her mouth set the standards for morality, philosophy, economy, policy, etc. until said person changes his or her mind?
Keyes had impressed me and many other Libertarians with his talk of small government and individual liberties during his bid to become the Republican candidate for President in 2000. However, Mr. Keyes has slipped far away from those ideas since that campaign. His new friends and contacts have made him part of the "political machine," and he can flip-flop on issues like the best of those in Washington, D.C. He is an attentive student of that "machine." I am certain that he and his teachers are proud of his ability to tow the political line.
Use this link to put the rss feed from this blog on your site: http://passgo.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Is Alan Keyes giving in to a desire for power? Has he succombed to the power of the Republican National Committee? One has to wonder after the man who once criticized Hillary Clinton for moving to New York to run for the U.S. Senate will now have to make a similar move to Illinois before Election Day in November in order to challenge Democratic candidate Barack Obama for the Senate seat being vacated by Peter Fitzgerald.
Will the Republicans never cease to amaze us with the audacity of their hypocrisy, the boldness of their lies and the brashness of their self-rightousness? How do you come to a place where accusations are so easily assailed upon others with no consideration for how they will be turned back on one's own head? Is it the cameras in the face and the microphones at the mouth that cause the receiver of such attention to believe that somehow the words from his or her mouth set the standards for morality, philosophy, economy, policy, etc. until said person changes his or her mind?
Keyes had impressed me and many other Libertarians with his talk of small government and individual liberties during his bid to become the Republican candidate for President in 2000. However, Mr. Keyes has slipped far away from those ideas since that campaign. His new friends and contacts have made him part of the "political machine," and he can flip-flop on issues like the best of those in Washington, D.C. He is an attentive student of that "machine." I am certain that he and his teachers are proud of his ability to tow the political line.
Use this link to put the rss feed from this blog on your site: http://passgo.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Thursday, July 22, 2004
BBC NEWS | World | Middle East | Hijack 'suspects' alive and well
BBC NEWS World Middle East Hijack 'suspects' alive and well
Oh, my sleepwalking friends... WAKE UP!!!
They're ALIVE! The supposed hi-jackers of September 11, 2001. They are alive! The United States government is perpetrating a massive cover-up of the actual events of that fateful day. Do you want to know what really happened that day?? Do you really care? DO YOU?!? Then, READ - stop being OUTFOXED and start reading. Don't trust "alternative new" sources? Well, then surely you trust your buddies at the BBC.
If you are willing to look at alternative news sources, then I recommend the following:
Alternet.org
They do an excellent job of reporting what they corporate news agencies miss. They are more left-leaning than I care for, but I'm looking for the truth, so I just filter out the opinion.
Truthout
Probably the most honest, well written, online news journal on the Internet. I have yet to be disappointed by this site.
Prisonplanet.com
For the braver souls among you there is Alex Jones' PrisonPlanet.com. Alex addresses some truly alternative viewpoints on current events. If you keep your eyes and ears open, I promise you will learn some interesting facts.
Oh, my sleepwalking friends... WAKE UP!!!
They're ALIVE! The supposed hi-jackers of September 11, 2001. They are alive! The United States government is perpetrating a massive cover-up of the actual events of that fateful day. Do you want to know what really happened that day?? Do you really care? DO YOU?!? Then, READ - stop being OUTFOXED and start reading. Don't trust "alternative new" sources? Well, then surely you trust your buddies at the BBC.
If you are willing to look at alternative news sources, then I recommend the following:
Alternet.org
They do an excellent job of reporting what they corporate news agencies miss. They are more left-leaning than I care for, but I'm looking for the truth, so I just filter out the opinion.
Truthout
Probably the most honest, well written, online news journal on the Internet. I have yet to be disappointed by this site.
Prisonplanet.com
For the braver souls among you there is Alex Jones' PrisonPlanet.com. Alex addresses some truly alternative viewpoints on current events. If you keep your eyes and ears open, I promise you will learn some interesting facts.
Tuesday, June 08, 2004
The New York Times > Washington > Legal Opinions: Lawyers Decided Bans on Torture Didn't Bind Bush
The New York Times > Washington > Legal Opinions: Lawyers Decided Bans on Torture Didn't Bind Bush
Just more proof, folks, that this president needs to be voted out.
Just more proof, folks, that this president needs to be voted out.
Wednesday, May 19, 2004
KR Washington Bureau
KR Washington Bureau
Hello, again, all you sleepwalkers! After a long battle with my excess cerebral spinal fluid, I now have a piece of metal implanted in my head. (It probably has a some kind of tracking hardware in it, so the Feds can keep tabs on me 8-) ). Oh well, at least my mind is still my own and I can still see through the lies being thrown around by the Bush Administration.
So, what do you make of this one? "The Bush administration helped rally public and congressional support for a preemptive invasion of Iraq by publicizing the claims of an Iraqi defector months after he showed deception in a lie detector test and had been rejected as reliable by the U.S. intelligence agencies."
Ok, so, here we have a known liar being used by the Bushies as a source of information proving the need for us to go to war with Iraq. You know... I know I have a thick skull. I have the MRIs to prove it, but my skull can't be half as thick as that of you sleepwalkers out there. Does President Bush himself have to come into your living room and tell you directly that he is a liar before you can see it? Seriously... what does it take for you to pay attention? Does Cheney have to sleep with your daughter? Does the CIA have kidnap your son? WHAT?!?!!! If it weren't such a crime, it would be laughable.
Really, don't you think it's time to wake up? For the sake of your family and your country... please wake up.
For more info... check out this story:
Surrender, Judith Miller
Hello, again, all you sleepwalkers! After a long battle with my excess cerebral spinal fluid, I now have a piece of metal implanted in my head. (It probably has a some kind of tracking hardware in it, so the Feds can keep tabs on me 8-) ). Oh well, at least my mind is still my own and I can still see through the lies being thrown around by the Bush Administration.
So, what do you make of this one? "The Bush administration helped rally public and congressional support for a preemptive invasion of Iraq by publicizing the claims of an Iraqi defector months after he showed deception in a lie detector test and had been rejected as reliable by the U.S. intelligence agencies."
Ok, so, here we have a known liar being used by the Bushies as a source of information proving the need for us to go to war with Iraq. You know... I know I have a thick skull. I have the MRIs to prove it, but my skull can't be half as thick as that of you sleepwalkers out there. Does President Bush himself have to come into your living room and tell you directly that he is a liar before you can see it? Seriously... what does it take for you to pay attention? Does Cheney have to sleep with your daughter? Does the CIA have kidnap your son? WHAT?!?!!! If it weren't such a crime, it would be laughable.
Really, don't you think it's time to wake up? For the sake of your family and your country... please wake up.
For more info... check out this story:
Surrender, Judith Miller
Wednesday, February 11, 2004
t r u t h o u t - Will the Election Be Hacked?
Use this link to put the rss feed from this blog on your site: http://passgo.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Will Bush Steal Another Election?
You had better plan on getting an absentee ballot if you want your vote against George W. Bush to be counted in this year's election. No joke. If your county will be using the new voting machines, you need to make a fuss and vote by absentee ballot. Please read the above referenced article.
Will Bush Steal Another Election?
You had better plan on getting an absentee ballot if you want your vote against George W. Bush to be counted in this year's election. No joke. If your county will be using the new voting machines, you need to make a fuss and vote by absentee ballot. Please read the above referenced article.
Where Are The Advertisers?
Is it just on my computer? When I look at my published blog, there are never any advertisements in the open space beside Blogspot's logo to the left of the banner ad at the top. There is only a very small link below the ad area that says, "Searches by Google." Do you think maybe that companies are afraid to advertise on my blog? If you are reading this, please tell me what you see in the banner area at the top of the blog by sending an email to diffie1@yahoo.com. Thanks.
And the Doors to Free Speech Just Continue to Be Slammed Shut!
This statement was put out by the Marijuana Policy Project.
The IRS and FEC are considering rulings that could severely restrict the free speech rights of the Drug Policy Alliance and other issue advocacy groups. The proposed rulings are vague in that they do not clearly state exactly which communications would be illegal. This means that the federal government could selectively enforce the rules in order to clamp down on any speech or advertising it does not approve of or considers politically threatening. Even though the Drug Policy Alliance does not endorse or oppose specific candidates for public office, the proposed IRS and FEC actions could hamper our efforts to contact fellow reformers like you about candidates’ stances on drug policy reform issues during election campaigns. Any member of Congress up for re-election could be able to push their legislation into law without hearing the voice of the American people.
The IRS ruling (Revenue Ruling 2004-6) could penalize drug policy reform and other nonprofit organizations that are publicly critical of any elected official who is running for re-election. Non-profit educational organizations like the Drug Policy Alliance cannot work to defeat or support federal candidates, but can educate voters on where politicians stand on certain issues. So long as the Alliance and other organizations do not explicitly call for the defeat or re-election of a politician we do not run afoul of the law. However, Revenue Ruling 2004-6 muddies these regulations to make it illegal for advocacy group to do anything that the IRS determines to be an attempt at defeat or support a candidate for federal office. The change appears minor but in fact makes the regulations more vague, giving the IRS a wide scope to call many advocacy-group actions illegal.
Read the complex IRS ruling.
The FEC ruling (Advisory Opinion 2003-37) could prohibit the Alliance and other organizations from communicating any message - through e-mails, newspaper ads, television commercials or brochures - that “promotes, supports, attacks, or opposes” any candidate for federal office. It does this by re-defining the definition of a “campaign expenditure” to include communications that promote or attack federal candidates. Because the Alliance and similar non-profits are prohibited under existing law from making campaign expenditures, this ruling could make it illegal for us to send you e-mails criticizing the actions of a Member of Congress if they also happen to be running for re-election. Even sending you an e-mail saying that your Senator just voted the wrong way on a bill could become illegal. For instance, Senator Biden first introduced his controversial RAVE Act just a few months before the 2002 elections. Because he was up for re-election that year, it may have been illegal for the Alliance to alert you to the bill had the FEC and IRS rulings been in place then.
Read the complex FEC ruling.
An essential part of the Alliance’s work is to keep fellow reformers informed about the actions and votes of elected officials - whether a move by President Bush to crack down on medical marijuana or a Congressman’s bill to mandate student drug testing. These proposals could severely limit our ability to do this and work to reform America’s ‘War on Drugs’.
Contact your Congressperson and Senator to stop this immediately.
The IRS and FEC are considering rulings that could severely restrict the free speech rights of the Drug Policy Alliance and other issue advocacy groups. The proposed rulings are vague in that they do not clearly state exactly which communications would be illegal. This means that the federal government could selectively enforce the rules in order to clamp down on any speech or advertising it does not approve of or considers politically threatening. Even though the Drug Policy Alliance does not endorse or oppose specific candidates for public office, the proposed IRS and FEC actions could hamper our efforts to contact fellow reformers like you about candidates’ stances on drug policy reform issues during election campaigns. Any member of Congress up for re-election could be able to push their legislation into law without hearing the voice of the American people.
The IRS ruling (Revenue Ruling 2004-6) could penalize drug policy reform and other nonprofit organizations that are publicly critical of any elected official who is running for re-election. Non-profit educational organizations like the Drug Policy Alliance cannot work to defeat or support federal candidates, but can educate voters on where politicians stand on certain issues. So long as the Alliance and other organizations do not explicitly call for the defeat or re-election of a politician we do not run afoul of the law. However, Revenue Ruling 2004-6 muddies these regulations to make it illegal for advocacy group to do anything that the IRS determines to be an attempt at defeat or support a candidate for federal office. The change appears minor but in fact makes the regulations more vague, giving the IRS a wide scope to call many advocacy-group actions illegal.
Read the complex IRS ruling.
The FEC ruling (Advisory Opinion 2003-37) could prohibit the Alliance and other organizations from communicating any message - through e-mails, newspaper ads, television commercials or brochures - that “promotes, supports, attacks, or opposes” any candidate for federal office. It does this by re-defining the definition of a “campaign expenditure” to include communications that promote or attack federal candidates. Because the Alliance and similar non-profits are prohibited under existing law from making campaign expenditures, this ruling could make it illegal for us to send you e-mails criticizing the actions of a Member of Congress if they also happen to be running for re-election. Even sending you an e-mail saying that your Senator just voted the wrong way on a bill could become illegal. For instance, Senator Biden first introduced his controversial RAVE Act just a few months before the 2002 elections. Because he was up for re-election that year, it may have been illegal for the Alliance to alert you to the bill had the FEC and IRS rulings been in place then.
Read the complex FEC ruling.
An essential part of the Alliance’s work is to keep fellow reformers informed about the actions and votes of elected officials - whether a move by President Bush to crack down on medical marijuana or a Congressman’s bill to mandate student drug testing. These proposals could severely limit our ability to do this and work to reform America’s ‘War on Drugs’.
Contact your Congressperson and Senator to stop this immediately.
Bush's Missing Year... Are We Surprised?
From the above referenced article:
Hmmmm, and this:
Ok, so here have some familiar language coming from the Whitehouse stating that if you request the president to release his records of military service, then you are committing a "slanderous attack" and "character assassination." We are also to condemn everyone who requests the president to release such information. Or what? You'll be considered an Enemy of the State, a terrorist? It seems to me that this president is assassinating his own character.
If an Air National guardsman today vanished for a year, military attorneys say that guardsman would be transferred to active duty or, more likely, kicked out of the service, probably with a less-than-honorable discharge. They suggest the penalty would be especially swift if the absent-without-leave guardsman were a fully trained pilot, as Bush was.
Hmmmm, and this:
Democrats have seized on the story of Bush's "missing year," which was first raised in a 2000 Boston Globe article. This week Democratic front-runner Sen. John Kerry called on Bush to give a fuller explanation of his service record. That brought an outraged response from Bush-Cheney '04 chairman Marc Racicot, who denounced Kerry's request as a "slanderous attack" and "character assassination." White House spokesman Scott McClellan also tried to slam the door on the subject, declaiming that Democratic questions about Bush's military service "have no place in politics and everyone should condemn them."
In a sign that the Bush team is taking the issue seriously, on Wednesday Bush's campaign spokesman questioned the integrity of the retired Guard commander who claims Bush failed to show for duty in 1972, citing the commander's recent donation to a Democratic candidate for president.
Ok, so here have some familiar language coming from the Whitehouse stating that if you request the president to release his records of military service, then you are committing a "slanderous attack" and "character assassination." We are also to condemn everyone who requests the president to release such information. Or what? You'll be considered an Enemy of the State, a terrorist? It seems to me that this president is assassinating his own character.
t r u t h o u t - Cheney's Staff Focus of CIA Leak Probe
Hello, again, sleepwalkers and hypocrites! How clear does it have to get. How about "Federal law-enforcement officials said that they have developed hard evidence of possible criminal misconduct by two employees of Vice President Dick Cheney's office related to the unlawful exposure of a CIA officer's identity last year." Read it again, sleepers and hypos... "hard evidence." And this evidence is for a crime that Bush 1 called the "highest form of treason." The law that covers this issue and establishes punishments for it was passed by Reagan in 1982. Now, some of you sleepers out there might begin to listen, but the hypocrites (the one's who called for accountability during the Clinton administration) will begin making some of the most ridiculous excuses you have ever heard or hide their faces.
We were all warned about this stuff. Heck, it was in movies in the late 90's. They even warned of the Patriot Act. Remember "Enemy of the State" with Will Smith and the "Privacy and Telecommunications Act" as it was called in the film? HELLLOOO, PEOPLE! Geez! Register to Vote! Take your country back. DEMAND that the Patriot Act be voted out. DEMAND that your government be accountable for every word, every deed, every cent. DEMAND that your government work for you and not for re-election dollars, perks and payoffs. How long will you wait? Will you wait until they haul your brother in for interrogation for attending anti-war protest? Will you wait until your daughter is arrested for openly supporting medical marijuana? Will you wait until all media, including the Internet state only the State's version of the news? How long? NOW is the time that you and I MUST ACT. Go to InfoWars.com and order some video tapes and share them with your friends. Support a candidate who promises to repeal the Patriot Act and investigate all government contracts for fraud and impropriety. Write to you local newspaper and let them know that you will not sit idle as this administration destroys the Constitution of the United States of America. Sign the petition to censure President Bush. For the sake of your children and this country, do SOMETHING.
We were all warned about this stuff. Heck, it was in movies in the late 90's. They even warned of the Patriot Act. Remember "Enemy of the State" with Will Smith and the "Privacy and Telecommunications Act" as it was called in the film? HELLLOOO, PEOPLE! Geez! Register to Vote! Take your country back. DEMAND that the Patriot Act be voted out. DEMAND that your government be accountable for every word, every deed, every cent. DEMAND that your government work for you and not for re-election dollars, perks and payoffs. How long will you wait? Will you wait until they haul your brother in for interrogation for attending anti-war protest? Will you wait until your daughter is arrested for openly supporting medical marijuana? Will you wait until all media, including the Internet state only the State's version of the news? How long? NOW is the time that you and I MUST ACT. Go to InfoWars.com and order some video tapes and share them with your friends. Support a candidate who promises to repeal the Patriot Act and investigate all government contracts for fraud and impropriety. Write to you local newspaper and let them know that you will not sit idle as this administration destroys the Constitution of the United States of America. Sign the petition to censure President Bush. For the sake of your children and this country, do SOMETHING.
Thursday, January 29, 2004
The Institute on Religion and Democracy
This organization is becoming more openly "Republican" everyday. They are not conservative. They are not independent. They are Republican. Here is why I say this. The definition of a political "conservative" has traditionally meant the following:
- A very limited federal government, including (if not especially) a limited military
- Non-intervention in foreign military actions unless directly threatening the citizenry of the United States
- Strong states rights at the expense of federal control
- A belief that the courts should staunchly defend every persons right to individual liberties (i.e. freedom of speech; freedom from government intervention in religious, family and financial issues; freedom to assemble peaceably)
IRD has backed President Bush despite his policies that expand the federal government's participation into all of the areas mentioned above. It also appears that the IRD cares nothing about the fact that the current administration provided us with misleading and even false information to gain our support for war with Iraq. Nor is it bothersome to them that this administration has run up the largest budget deficit in history, that the president has projected that our troops will remain in Iraq until at least 2006, that the moral of our troops is incredibly low, that the divorce rate among military families is rising, that the suicide rate within the military is near or perhaps now surpassed the all-time high, that recruitment of new enlistees is failing miserably despite the weak economy, continues to be uncooperative in the investigation of the Valerie Plame leak, continues to be uncooperative with the 9/11 Commission and attempts to hide information from that Commission, the list goes on and on.
It is very clear. IRD is NOT conservative. It is not Christian. It is Republican. Even more than that, it is Bush Republican. IRD requires no accountability from this president, makes no demands of this president, questions no motives of this president. IRD says that church leaders should be representative of their congregations. I say that is blasphemous. Church leaders should be representatives of Jesus, Someone whom IRD and our president seem to know very little.
- A very limited federal government, including (if not especially) a limited military
- Non-intervention in foreign military actions unless directly threatening the citizenry of the United States
- Strong states rights at the expense of federal control
- A belief that the courts should staunchly defend every persons right to individual liberties (i.e. freedom of speech; freedom from government intervention in religious, family and financial issues; freedom to assemble peaceably)
IRD has backed President Bush despite his policies that expand the federal government's participation into all of the areas mentioned above. It also appears that the IRD cares nothing about the fact that the current administration provided us with misleading and even false information to gain our support for war with Iraq. Nor is it bothersome to them that this administration has run up the largest budget deficit in history, that the president has projected that our troops will remain in Iraq until at least 2006, that the moral of our troops is incredibly low, that the divorce rate among military families is rising, that the suicide rate within the military is near or perhaps now surpassed the all-time high, that recruitment of new enlistees is failing miserably despite the weak economy, continues to be uncooperative in the investigation of the Valerie Plame leak, continues to be uncooperative with the 9/11 Commission and attempts to hide information from that Commission, the list goes on and on.
It is very clear. IRD is NOT conservative. It is not Christian. It is Republican. Even more than that, it is Bush Republican. IRD requires no accountability from this president, makes no demands of this president, questions no motives of this president. IRD says that church leaders should be representative of their congregations. I say that is blasphemous. Church leaders should be representatives of Jesus, Someone whom IRD and our president seem to know very little.
Monday, January 26, 2004
Tehama County Prosecutor Violates Duty to Uphold California Law
Lynn Strom, Assistant District Attorney for Tehama County (Calif.), violated her duty to uphold state law earlier this month when she invited Federal Prosecutors to take two people into their custody instead of simply dropping her case against 2 people who use marijuana for medical purposes. The two had a doctor's recommendation to use the drug. Under California state law, using marijuana for medical purposes is now legal, even though it is still illegal under federal statutes.
Ms. Strom should be disbarred and removed from her office for failing to uphold California law as she is her sworn duty. She acted as an agent of the Federal government when inviting said agents into a state courtroom. Perhaps her goal is to get into a Federal Prosecutor position. Perhaps she cares nothing about California state law. Or, perhaps, she found a way to hurt those she was prosecuting when she realized that she could not win the case. This is a completely outrageous behavior. I urge everyone in California to write a letter to Attorney Strom and demand that she step down from her position.
Put murderers in jail. Leave pot users alone.
Ms. Strom should be disbarred and removed from her office for failing to uphold California law as she is her sworn duty. She acted as an agent of the Federal government when inviting said agents into a state courtroom. Perhaps her goal is to get into a Federal Prosecutor position. Perhaps she cares nothing about California state law. Or, perhaps, she found a way to hurt those she was prosecuting when she realized that she could not win the case. This is a completely outrageous behavior. I urge everyone in California to write a letter to Attorney Strom and demand that she step down from her position.
Put murderers in jail. Leave pot users alone.
Thursday, January 22, 2004
US Seminar
I must admit, I am intrigued by the Raelians, so intrigued that I am on their mailing list (which is how I received word of this retreat in the Nevada desert). I find their philosophies and goals admirable. However, I find their leader to be a little, ok maybe alot, wacky. First, he renamed himself Rael (as in Israel). His birth name is Claude Vorilhon. In this post, I will refer to him by his birth name. However, he dresses more like someone from a StarTrek episode, which, by the way... take a look at this.
Episode from 1968
Scroll down the page to a small link under "Guest Cast" beside the name Jason Evers. Read about his character. Coincidental? ... maybe. I don't think so.
I think Mr. Claude Vorilhon (Rael) was a huge Star Trek fan. In fact, I am attempting to investigate this supposition. So, if you knew Mr. Vorilhon back in the early 1970's, please contact me at diffie1@yahoo.com. Does this mean that Mr. Vorilhon's philosophy and goals are invalid? No. Many people of genius intellect, which I believe Mr. Vorilhon may very well be, are eccentric. Could he be right about the Elohim? Most certainly. Do I believe that they have asked him to proselytize for them and to build an embassy for them? Nah, I highly doubt it. Where is the evidence? He has presented nothing that has not been spoken of or written about by Sci-Fi writers. Again, there seems to be more evidence of him being a science fiction buff than a connection to the Elohim.
So then, is this about money? I don't think so. I am guessing that Mr. Vorilhon is not getting rich off his excursion as Rael. He charges very reasonable fees for his books, tapes and seminars. If you have ever seen him, he appears to be a very loving and gentle human being. I think Mr. Vorilhon may have been an unappreciated genius who was frightened by the direction our world leaders were taking in the 1960's and 1970's and looked for a way to combat it. Becoming Rael was his answer. Again, this is supposition and cannot be proven by me unless someone were to hand me documents written by Mr. Vorilhon or provide testimony about what they knew of him during those years. Why do I concern myself at all with this man? Good question.
Several of his "position statements," if you will, I find a bit disturbing. For example, he would have us abandon democracy for an oligarchy. Rael would have us be ruled by those who have an intelligence that is at least 40% greater than the average human being. In addition, only those with an intelligence of at least 10% above average would be allowed to vote for their leadership. Hmmm... So we are to "trust" the ultra-geniuses to make the right decisions for the non-geniuses. Let's say those ultra-geniuses decide that non-geniuses (or the majority of the population) should be their slaves. It is not uncommon for people of genius intellect to develop a "god complex." Thanks, but no thanks, Claude.
In addition to "rule by genius," private land ownership would be abolished. This is the most basic definition of communism, which Mr. Vorilhon says he opposes. These ideas sound very Lennonist to me. But then, I'm not a genius, so what right do I have to even speak anyway?
Episode from 1968
Scroll down the page to a small link under "Guest Cast" beside the name Jason Evers. Read about his character. Coincidental? ... maybe. I don't think so.
I think Mr. Claude Vorilhon (Rael) was a huge Star Trek fan. In fact, I am attempting to investigate this supposition. So, if you knew Mr. Vorilhon back in the early 1970's, please contact me at diffie1@yahoo.com. Does this mean that Mr. Vorilhon's philosophy and goals are invalid? No. Many people of genius intellect, which I believe Mr. Vorilhon may very well be, are eccentric. Could he be right about the Elohim? Most certainly. Do I believe that they have asked him to proselytize for them and to build an embassy for them? Nah, I highly doubt it. Where is the evidence? He has presented nothing that has not been spoken of or written about by Sci-Fi writers. Again, there seems to be more evidence of him being a science fiction buff than a connection to the Elohim.
So then, is this about money? I don't think so. I am guessing that Mr. Vorilhon is not getting rich off his excursion as Rael. He charges very reasonable fees for his books, tapes and seminars. If you have ever seen him, he appears to be a very loving and gentle human being. I think Mr. Vorilhon may have been an unappreciated genius who was frightened by the direction our world leaders were taking in the 1960's and 1970's and looked for a way to combat it. Becoming Rael was his answer. Again, this is supposition and cannot be proven by me unless someone were to hand me documents written by Mr. Vorilhon or provide testimony about what they knew of him during those years. Why do I concern myself at all with this man? Good question.
Several of his "position statements," if you will, I find a bit disturbing. For example, he would have us abandon democracy for an oligarchy. Rael would have us be ruled by those who have an intelligence that is at least 40% greater than the average human being. In addition, only those with an intelligence of at least 10% above average would be allowed to vote for their leadership. Hmmm... So we are to "trust" the ultra-geniuses to make the right decisions for the non-geniuses. Let's say those ultra-geniuses decide that non-geniuses (or the majority of the population) should be their slaves. It is not uncommon for people of genius intellect to develop a "god complex." Thanks, but no thanks, Claude.
In addition to "rule by genius," private land ownership would be abolished. This is the most basic definition of communism, which Mr. Vorilhon says he opposes. These ideas sound very Lennonist to me. But then, I'm not a genius, so what right do I have to even speak anyway?
Tuesday, January 20, 2004
What You Don't Know About John Kerry
Here come the NeoCons in full force, NeoConMax, I am mean Newsmax came out with this supposedly damning information on Senator Kerry. Of course, 90% of it has no source material provided with it - a lot of conjecture and generalizations but no hard core facts. I am not certain that Kerry is the person for president, but I am certain that it is NOT Bush. In the Newsmax article, they paint Kerry as being pro-communist, pro-China, etc. However, they seem to forget that the Bush administration has been more Pro-China than any administration in United States history. Despite the human rights abuses, despite strong evidence of their attempts to steal extremely sensitive military technology in recent years, despite their opposition to Bush's war (for which Mr. Bush and Mr. Rove are keeping Germany, France and Russia out of the bidding process), China gets the "RED" carpet from Bush. Gimme a freakin' break.
Sunday, January 18, 2004
Spyware HUB News - Spyware Gator changes name
Gator By Any Other Name Is Still Scumware In My Book
First, I must ask, is there anyone who downloads this software by choice? If so, WHY?!? I can tell you that this insidious program, now known as Claria, has found it's way onto my machine even when I specifically chose to NOT have it installed. That, quite bluntly, should be a felony. It is nothing less than breaking, entering and theft. If someone knocks on my door and I tell them that they are not welcome, but they enter anyway, that is a crime. If they then begin looking around my house and take private belongings, that is theft. How is it that this company is still in business? HOW?!? I have only one guess. They must have connections inside the government. What better way to spy on your own citizens than to create a piece of software under the guise of a marketing company, install a piece of software on the citizen's computer that specifically stores personal information and tracks your computer and Internet usage? Makes almost too much sense. I know that Claria is being sued, but I wonder just how far those suing them will get if the government is behind them. Yeah, I know... conspiracy theories. With the government we have now, can you blame me? Are you awake yet?
First, I must ask, is there anyone who downloads this software by choice? If so, WHY?!? I can tell you that this insidious program, now known as Claria, has found it's way onto my machine even when I specifically chose to NOT have it installed. That, quite bluntly, should be a felony. It is nothing less than breaking, entering and theft. If someone knocks on my door and I tell them that they are not welcome, but they enter anyway, that is a crime. If they then begin looking around my house and take private belongings, that is theft. How is it that this company is still in business? HOW?!? I have only one guess. They must have connections inside the government. What better way to spy on your own citizens than to create a piece of software under the guise of a marketing company, install a piece of software on the citizen's computer that specifically stores personal information and tracks your computer and Internet usage? Makes almost too much sense. I know that Claria is being sued, but I wonder just how far those suing them will get if the government is behind them. Yeah, I know... conspiracy theories. With the government we have now, can you blame me? Are you awake yet?
Friday, January 09, 2004
t r u t h o u t - Bush-Hitler: A Survivor Speaks Out
This story from a survivor of Nazi occupation is gripping. Although my interpretation of recent events does not equal his, the author certainly provides enough correlations for anyone to be suspicious of our current administration. Is the NRA on the right track after all? Should we defend to the teeth our right to bear arms without intervention from the government? I don't know about you, but I'm taking another look.
Tuesday, January 06, 2004
Gore's Speech Becomes More Profound With Every Passing Day...
When Mr. Gore gave his speech on Freedom and Security in Philadelphia 2 months ago, it was (even to who votes Libertarian - like me) profound. I do not think that I have heard such a well reasoned and effective speech on the dueling subjects of "freedom" and "security" from anyone (even staunch Libertarians) in recent years. I recommend that every American who has the attention span to hear it, should hear or watch the speech. It should be required for all high school students. Quite plainly, Mr. Gore's speech ROCKS! It does not lightly skim over the basic problems inherent with a free society, but gets right to the "meat and potatoes" of how we can have a strong defense without trampling the very liberties we cherish and why we must all concern ourselves with these issues. No matter what you thought of the man as Vice President of the United States, you have to respect his deep understanding of our history and form of government. Eloquent, provoking, clear, consistent - well done, Mr. Gore, well done.
Find That Leak! ... not really
PRESIDENT WAVERS ON PLEDGE TO HELP FIND LEAKER
When it was first reported that a "senior Bush Administration official" had
leaked the name of undercover CIA operative Valerie Plame, President Bush
dutifully pledged his full cooperation and assistance with the
investigation. He said, "I'd like to know who leaked, and if anybody has got
any information inside our government or outside our government who leaked,
you ought to take it to the Justice Department so we can find out the
leaker. I have told my staff, I want full cooperation with the Justice
Department."
But with the Justice Department now asking White House staff to sign forms
that could definitively expose the leaker, the President appears unwilling
to uphold that commitment. Specifically, the Washington Post now reports
that the White House "declined to say Monday whether President Bush thinks
his aides should sign the forms that would release reporters from any
pledges of confidentiality" - and thus allow reporters to identify the White
House leaker. (Time magazine reported that Karl Rove, Bush's senior adviser,
was one of a number of top White House staff that has been sent the form by
investigators).
When asked about the President's stonewalling, White House spokesman Scott
McClellan dismissed any inquiries, saying, "That's asking a specific
question about matters that should be directed to the career officials at
the Department of Justice." It was a sharp contrast to his previous comments
attempting to specifically absolve Rove, the Vice President's Chief of
Staff, Scooter Libby, and National Security Council official, Eliot Abrams,
from any responsibility. McClellan also said that "no one wants to get to
the bottom of this more than the President does." But three months ago, Bush
refused to ask his staff to sign the same release form to minimize the
investigation's cost and potential damage to national security. His
apparent reticence to fully support the Justice Department's efforts to
expose the leaker is now raising additional questions.
When it was first reported that a "senior Bush Administration official" had
leaked the name of undercover CIA operative Valerie Plame, President Bush
dutifully pledged his full cooperation and assistance with the
investigation. He said, "I'd like to know who leaked, and if anybody has got
any information inside our government or outside our government who leaked,
you ought to take it to the Justice Department so we can find out the
leaker. I have told my staff, I want full cooperation with the Justice
Department."
But with the Justice Department now asking White House staff to sign forms
that could definitively expose the leaker, the President appears unwilling
to uphold that commitment. Specifically, the Washington Post now reports
that the White House "declined to say Monday whether President Bush thinks
his aides should sign the forms that would release reporters from any
pledges of confidentiality" - and thus allow reporters to identify the White
House leaker. (Time magazine reported that Karl Rove, Bush's senior adviser,
was one of a number of top White House staff that has been sent the form by
investigators).
When asked about the President's stonewalling, White House spokesman Scott
McClellan dismissed any inquiries, saying, "That's asking a specific
question about matters that should be directed to the career officials at
the Department of Justice." It was a sharp contrast to his previous comments
attempting to specifically absolve Rove, the Vice President's Chief of
Staff, Scooter Libby, and National Security Council official, Eliot Abrams,
from any responsibility. McClellan also said that "no one wants to get to
the bottom of this more than the President does." But three months ago, Bush
refused to ask his staff to sign the same release form to minimize the
investigation's cost and potential damage to national security. His
apparent reticence to fully support the Justice Department's efforts to
expose the leaker is now raising additional questions.
Bush's Army of One
Here's an ad that tells it like it is when it comes to Bush and his supposed support of the military. This is one of those points that the Bushite Nationalists hate because there is no acceptable excuse for it. This is what you get under Bush's "compassionate conservatism."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
