Bush to announce a "National Strategy for Victory in Iraq" tommorow.

This from Thinkprogress.org

Scott gaggled on AF1 and yes, he gave a preview of tomorrow’s speech on the war. Among the hightlights [sic], the WH will be releasing an unclassified “National Strategy for Victory in Iraq.” He said they hope to have it out by 6:30 a.m.

Question: Shouldn’t we have had a “National Strategy for
Victory in Iraq” before the war started?

The answer? Of course!

Some people may want to say "better late then never," but after 2,100+ dead Americans, thousands more wounded and scarred for life, with missing limbs and constant nightmares, not to mention tens of thousands of Iraqis killed and wounded, can Bush be forgiven for such a disaster?

Don't you wish you lived in Texas?

Well, probably not if you have kids, grandchildren or care about the future generations of America:

The state's highest civil court ruled that using property taxes to pay for education amounts to an unconstitutional statewide property tax. It says lawmakers must repair quickly the $30 billion education funding system.

By a seven-to-one vote, justices ruled Texas must find a new way to fund schools by June 1 or classrooms will remain closed in the fall.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10153612/


Property taxes are not a progressive tax and are far inferior forms of taxation for public services than income taxes. However, Texas is now in crisis mode. The second most populated state must figure out how to pay for its (horrid) educational system or public school won't exist come fall. Seeing as how Texas doesn't have an income tax of any kind, it seems that it will have to create one before June 1.

Sharon Leaves Likud

Ariel Sharon, the Prime Minister of Israel, has left the party he helped create. He didn't think it was possible to negotiate peace as a member of Likud. He asked Israel's President to dissolve the Knesset (Israel's Parliament) and have elections in March.

While I applaud this move, I question whether it will be possible to negotiate peace with any political party that has Ariel Sharon as its head. However, with his Gaza pull-out and clues that hint he would be willing to abandon at least some West Bank camps, perhaps he's had a change of heart?

This quote from the today's front page Boston Globe article:

Israeli analysts say Sharon is betting that a centrist consensus is building among voters who are skeptical of peace talks with Palestinians but support withdrawing from occupied territory as long as Israel sets the terms itself.

While this is far from a perfect withdrawl and there doesn't seem to be many optimists in Israel or Palestinian territory, at least it looks as though some progress can be made. There probably won't ever be a happy ending, but hopefully there will be an ending to this decades-long struggle that will allow most things to normalize. A party formed by someone who has historically been a hawk will have difficulty in creating a legitimate peace process, but it is a start in the right direction.

What is Bill O'Rielly Thinking?

Here's the words of a true American:

"[I]f Al Qaeda comes in here and blows you up, we're not going to do anything about it. ... You want to blow up the Coit Tower? Go ahead."

Seriously, it's a good thing we have people like Bill O'Rielly around. What would we do without his efforts to blacklist Americans who had the audacity to be against an immoral and corrupt war? (www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/the-bill-oreilly-blackli_b_10823.html)

To be fair, people deserve to hear the full statements Bill O'Rielly made before we make judgement: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/the-bill-oreilly-blackli_b_10823.html

They sound so much scarrier when heard in full. Good ol'Bill needs to be fired for these statements. They are undemocratic to the core, rude and should not be acceptable at Fox News. First, there are republicans in San Francisco. San Francisco is a diverse city full of all sorts of people, not just gay, anti-military pot smokers; in condemning the city of San Francisco, he's also condemning the type of people he deems "American."

Secondly, America is all about diversity in opinion. I'm sure some of you would critique me in saying this as I am condemning Bill O'Rielly, but the truth is Fox News is it's own corporation. It has the right to deem what is appropriate to say or do on it's own employees. Bill O'Rielly, in his statements, not only speaks for him but also the entirety of Fox News.

America is a diverse country. Not every city is filled with the same people, who do the same things. Some cities are going to be more progressive than others. Some places are more accepting than others. Some places are predominantly filled with a population that values life - all life, not just those of Americans who agree with Bill O'Rielly. San Francisco is free to be anti-military if it wants, but it has no more power than Boston or Saint Louis in determining whether or not troops will be there. That decision is decided by the representatives in government of the entire population.

One would hope that Bill O'Rielly would realize that and stop saying such horrible statements. If he claims to care about Americans and want a safe America, he should want it for ALL Americans, not just those like him. And for heaven's sake, blacklisting is an evil practice. One would hope Americans don't long for the McCarthy era...

US using Chemical Weapons in Iraq

Read this Boston Globe Article

The Pentagon admitted to using White Phosphorus munitions in Iraq in defeating insurgents in Fullujah, a highly populated city in Iraq. These weapons are for all intents and purposes chemical weapons: once they make contact, they burn the skin and in some cases can burn all the way to the bone. The only way to treat such a wound is by submerging the victim underwater; however, that victim cannot take their wounds out of the water or the burns will continue. Isn't that interesting? Trained medical staff have to remove the white phospherus wounds... somehow I doubt American forces were attending to their victims.

An Italian newspaper broke the story, but the credibility seemed questionable. However, the Pentagon has subsequently admitted to using the weapons in Fullujah, although it claims it was not used against civilians. However, in such a massively populated area such as Fullujah, how could the Pentagon be sure? While White Phospherus isn't on the official list of banned chemicals, it's use against civilians IS banned - except, convienantly, the US refused to sign that portion of the treaty.

The only feasible reason that White Phosphorus isn't entirely on the banned substance list of chemical weapons is because it has a perfectly reasonable use: it can brightly light up the sky, which has a multitude of uses. However, this country should be wary of using chemical weapons - one of the two primary reasons (lies) this administration invaded Iraq.

The American people should be ashamed we have a President who would allow the use of such tactics, especially when those tactics were used in such heavily populated areas. Imagine if such horrid weapons were used against Americans? Imagine if American soldiers, fighting in foreign lands, were subjected to white phospherus munitions - imagine their skin burning in the arid deserts of Iraq, with no water to submerge themselves in to hope that medics could quickly come to their aid and heal their wounds? Imagine feeling the pain as the chemical weapons burned all the way to the bone? There may be worse pains in this world, but it is one I'm glad I've never felt.

Impeach President Bush. America is quickly losing all our friends across the world. We are becoming morally bankrupt. We can fix it, but President Bush will never be a part of the problem. He allows corruption to run rampant in his administration, invades a country with false intelligence, misleading this country into war. He allows the military to use sick, inhumane chemical weapons in densely populated civilian areas. President Bush is no friend to humanity and we must demand our elected body to free America from his evil grasp.

In Theatre Company Musical

I decided to try out for the UMD Theatre Company Musical this fall and auditioned for the villian, a role I was lucky enough to get.

Consequently, I haven't updated this blog as often as I normally would - not because I don't have the time to write the occasional paragraph or two, but because I haven't had enough time to keep up with the news.

However, I will try to keep the blog updated every couple of days for the rest of the semester and then in mid to late December I should be back to posting daily. Keep checking back though for my latest updates on all of the current news and a my ideas on how to create a more hopefull, progressive future for America.

Return of the Jedi - I Mean Democrats

The Democrats have shown a little life in winning two tough Governor races in New Jersey and Virginia. While New Jersey is a "blue state" the democrats have been reeling there because of scandals, so it was a boon to see the state have confidence in a democrat. Virginia, hopefully, has represented an open-mindedness of the people from the "red states." It may show that they are dissapointed in the men and women they have elected who have allowed people of the likes of Bill Frist and Tom Delay come into power and fill leadership roles. Today's Republican Leadership aren't just wrong on their politics, they're wrong in the way they are running government. The people are sick of it and today's results are just a sample of what is to come if Bill Frist, Scooter Libby, Karl Rove, George Bush and Tom Delay are the best Republicans can come up with.

Prince Charles and Camilla's Visit to the US

With all the media glitz and glare this visit has been given by CNN and the rest of the main stream media, I thought it may be important to remind people that we ditched the English royalty in the late 1700s. What would our founding fathers think of us paying such media fanfare to lackluster despots? Here's what Thomas Jefferson thought in our Declaration of Independence:

We... solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiances to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved.

I'm guessing Thomas Jefferson would have been just a tad bit dissapointed to see crowds of people waiting to recieve Prince Charles and Camila; waiting to cheer them on. He would have been dissapointed to see CNN dedicate hours of their time towards covering this event.

Today's reality may be different than the Declaration of Independence's reality. British royalty no longer hold real political power; the British are again our friends; and the Paparazzi, not our government, have half the world's population worshipping the British crown (so how could we blame Americans?).

However, the truth behind Thomas Jefferson's words still ring loudly. There is no place in America for despots to be cheered by crowds of hundreds as they tour our country. It is the antithesis of the American idea and dream. Prince Charles and Camilla are not some idols to look up to; they didn't earn their place in society, they were born into it. It's one thing to be born into money and just be lucky, it's completely different to expect crowds of people - in a foreign country - to cheer them on wherever they go as if it were a genetic right. During the American Revolution, crowds of people likely would have hung them on a noose rather than cheered them on. They were born despots, Kings or Princes, the overlord of a people; at least we elect ours! If the British like their crown, that's fine, but over 200 years ago we rejected it; let's not revert.

If today's British Royalty wish to visit America, that's fine, but it isn't an important enough event to warrant hours of time dedicated to it on one of the few TV news networks. People shouldn't be following them around like sheep, as if Charles were their Prince and Camilla their soon to be Queen. After all, this is the land of the free, where all people are created equal.