THE PATRIOT ACT – AN UNBELIEVABLE POWER GRAB

HAVE YOU READ IT? ALL OF IT? You NEED to!

FIRST – in discussing this abomination - perpetrated on us by an ambitious megalomaniac and a large group of wannabes - I discovered right away that very few people have read it, or could cite even ONE facet of it ! So to make it more meaningful to you, here are just a few facts up front: Remember, all these laws are in effect AS YOU READ THIS. All that is required for these horrors to come to life is one man declaring a “State of Emergency.”

This document runs to a million words. The administration actually wants you to believe that all this thought and consideration was put together in ONE MONTH - in its final form, ready for signature and enactment. The WTC towers were hit on September 11, 2001, and the “ready-to-sign” USA Patriot Act was passed by the House on October 12, 2001 and by the Senate on October 23, 2001. I guess we should have known right then what was coming, if they actually put that lie out there as the truth. It will take you almost that long to read it! It’s a mathematical certainty this document could not have been, and wasn’t, conceived, altered, tweaked and written in one month of normal three-day-weeks by the Congress and Senate

An unexpected immediate effect this theft of our liberties had was that immediately, only a month or so after its October 12 passage, a large number of local cities, counties and whole STATES passed resolutions, ordinances, and ballot initiatives in defiance of the act. These resolutions roundly condemned some or all of the provisions of the USA Patriot Act of 2001. (You can identify all of them at bordc.org – click on State – click on your City or area, to find the Contact person in charge of OPPOSING these obscenities. As of last December, there were 416 of them. Note that bordc.org is an acronym for Bill of Rights Defense Committee.)

IF you are one of the few who has read this outrage, then you know what’s coming, but on the chance that you weren’t able to read the whole thing, at least take a look at these so-called “Executive Orders.” I think you will be surprised at the audacity, indeed the boldness of this transparent power grab. Remember, Dillinger had to break the law robbing his banks. This guy is more subtle. He just writes new ones, or totally guts old ones - and for 7 and a half years (!) Americans have either cheered him on, (Boehner, McConnell, Sensenbrenner, et al) or stuck their heads in the sand.

As of December 7 last year, 416 Cities and EIGHT States had enacted laws stating they will not abide by the (un-)Patriotic Act, and put the Government on notice that the Act is Unconstitutional in many (many) particulars. Large cities like Dallas. Chicago, Los Angeles, Denver, New York City etc. et al, have enacted opposition, along with HUNDREDS of small cities. This Grassroots Opposition to the bush monstrosity currently represents more than 85 million people. (!)

Jonathan Turley, Professor of Law at George Washington University and a noted Constitutional scholar, recently said that by his study of this Administration, this crowd has committed at least 143 felonies to date.

One Patriot Act wasn’t enough. The Congress knuckled under and passed his second version, dubbed Patriot Act 2, and these courageous stalwarts even agreed to his order that the sunset provisions slated for 2005 be repealed, which they were. (See Section 110)

*****To save you hours of reading time, I’ve put in bullet form the most heinous aspects of Patriot for you. I’ve added some normal questions of my own to ask, on some of them. You’ll have your own, I’m sure. Consider the following:

When the President – one man – declares we are in a “State of Emergency” – the following go into effect immediately. And remember – oh yeah – when this man declares a “State of Emergency” he can’t even be questioned about it for six months !!

As you read these, bear in mind that NO COUNTRY on Earth can mount an invasion of America. The very worst they can do is launch a missile or crash a plane or deliver some biological weapon. So ask yourself on each one of these unbelievable “Executive Orders”: Why did he enact such (potential) dictatorial control over America ? Do these dictatorial provisions fit the scenario of a one-episode, minor attack? THE EQUIVALENT OF SWATTING FLIES WITH A SLEDGE HAMMER.”

Remember, these are in effect NOW, as you read this !

EXECUTIVE ORDER 10990 allows the government to take over all modes of transportation and control of highways and seaports.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 10995 allows the government to seize and control the communication media.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 10997 allows the government to take over all electrical power, gas, petroleum, fuels and minerals. What? Why is this relevant?

EXECUTIVE ORDER 10998 allows the government to take over all food resources and farms. Why is this relevant?

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11000 allows the government to mobilize civilians into work brigades under government supervision. Like prison work gangs? Why?

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11002 designates the Postmaster General to operate a national registration of all persons ! “Let me see your papers.” (Gestapo)

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11003 allows the government to take over all airports and aircraft, including commercial aircraft. Effectively gutting any opposition travel
i
EXECUTIVE ORDER 11004 allows the Housing and Finance Authority to relocate communities, build new housing with public funds, designate areas to be abandoned, and establish new locations for populations. Auschwitz?
*************
EXECUTIVE ORDER 11005 allows the government to take over railroads.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11051 empowers the Office of Emergency Planning and gives authorization to PHYSICALLY put all Executive Orders into effect immediately.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11310 grants authority to the Department of Justice to enforce the plans set out in Executive Orders, to institute industrial support.
What is meant by “Industrial support? (It means what they say it means.)

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11049 assigns emergency preparedness function to federal departments and agencies, consolidating 21 operative Executive Orders issued over a fifteen-year period.

EXECUTIVE ORDER 11921 allows the Federal Emergency Preparedness Agency to establish control over wages, salaries, credit, and the flow of money, plus control of all energy sources (electric, gas, coal, wind) in any undefined national emergency. This enslaves us. Totally.

**************It also provides that when the President declares a state of emergency, Congress cannot review the action for 180 days.***********

They really thought this one out. They don’t even have to define it – plus he can’t even be questioned on it for six months. Will we all meekly accept this?

Model State Emergency Health Powers Act, which gives governors and public health officials the power to Force individuals suspected of harboring an "infectious disease" to undergo medical examinations.

This is a red herring. If you object, and you’re a leader, and they need to silence you, they “suspect” you of an infectious disease, whereupon you’re picked up, held with no habeas corpus, no knowledge of it to anyone. Silences you, doesn’t it?
Force pharmacists to report any unusual or increased prescription purchases that may be caused by epidemic diseases.

Gives government the power to Preempt existing state laws, rules and regulations, including those relating to privacy, medical licensure, and--this is key--property rights.
PREEMPT existing laws – how is that related to an emergency ???

Mobilize all or any part of the "organized militia” into service to the state to help enforce the state's orders."
A Bold Evisceration of the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, which prohibits using the Army (“militia”) from doing Police work. Posse Comitatus is in the Constitution.

Ration firearms, explosives, food, fuel and alcoholic beverages, among other commodities. Ration? Not defined, but we know what it means !!!

The elected representatives of the American people are rapidly eliminating constitutional rights by enthusiastically signing on and then supporting Patriot I and 2. (Sensenbrenner, Boehner, etc.)

THE ABOVE WERE ALL IN PATRIOTIC ACT I

Consider the powers of Patriot Act II:

SECTION 501 (Expatriation of Terrorists) expands the definition of "enemy combatant" to all American citizens who "may" have violated any provision of Section 802 of the first Patriot Act.

Under Section 501 a US citizen engaging in lawful activities can be grabbed off the street and thrown into a van never to be seen again. The Justice Department states that they can do this because the person "had inferred from his conduct" that he/she was not a US Citizen. (??) Remember Section 802 of the First USA Patriot Act states that any violation of Federal or State law can result in the "enemy combatant" terrorist designation.

SECTION 201 of the second Patriot Act makes it a criminal act for any member of the government or any citizen to release any information concerning the incarceration or whereabouts of detainees. It also states that law enforcement does not have to tell the press or the Red Cross who they have arrested, and they never have to release the names.

THIS TOTALLY GUTS HABEAS CORPUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SECTIONS 301 and 306 set up a national database of "suspected terrorists" and radically expand the database to include anyone associated with suspected terrorist groups. So if your friend opposes their excesses, you can be arrested.SECTION 312 gives immunity to law enforcement engaging in spying operations against the American people. Of course it does.

SECTION 101 will designate individual terrorists as foreign powers and strip them of all rights under the "enemy combatant" designation. Then you’re no longer a citizen.

SECTION 102 states clearly that any information gathering, regardless of whether or not those activities are illegal, can be considered to be clandestine intelligence activities for a foreign power. This makes newsgathering illegal.

SECTION 103 allows the Federal government to use wartime martial law powers domestically and internationally without Congress declaring that a state of war exists. Martial law anytime they need it.

SECTION 106 is bone chilling in its straightforwardness. It states that broad general warrants by the secret FISA court granted under the first Patriot Act are not good enough: and government agents must be given immunity for searches with no prior court approval. This section throws out the entire Fourth Amendment against unreasonable searches and seizures.
****************
SECTION 109 allows secret courts to issue contempt charges against any individual or corporation who refuses to incriminate himself or others. This section annihilates the last vestiges of the Fifth Amendment. This one is a nightmare, forcing us to “tell on” each other, in self defense.

SECTION 110 restates that key police state clauses in the first Patriot Act were not sunsetted and removes the five-year sunset clause from other subsections of the first Patriot Act. After all, the media has told us: "This is the New America. Get used to it. This is forever." You know who in the media says this, and their networks.
SECTION 111 expands the definition of the "enemy combatant" designation.

SECTION 122 restates the government's newly announced power of "surveillance without a court order."

SECTION 123 restates that the government no longer needs warrants and that the investigations can be a giant dragnet-style sweep described in press reports

Note: Over and over again, in subsection after subsection, the second Patriot Act states that its new Soviet-type powers will be used to fight international terrorism, domestic terrorism and other types of crimes. And remember - the government has already announced in Section 802 of first Patriot that ANY CRIME is considered domestic terrorism, wherein you lose your citizenship, remember?

SECTION 126 grants the government the right to “mine” the entire spectrum of public and private sector information from bank records to educational and medical records. This is the enacting law to allow ECHELON and the Total Information Awareness Network to break down any and all walls of privacy. The government states that they “must look at everything to determine" if individuals or groups might have a connection to terrorist groups. As you can see, you are now guilty until proven innocent.
SECTION 127 allows the government to takeover coroners' and medical examiners' operations whenever they see fit. What? Why?

SECTION 128 allows the Federal government to place gag orders on Federal and State Grand Juries and to take over the proceedings. It also disallows individuals or organizations to even try to quash a Federal subpoena. So now defending yourself will be a terrorist action.

SECTION 129 destroys any remaining whistle blower protection for Federal agents.

SECTION 202 allows corporations to keep secret their activities with toxic biological, chemical or radiological materials. Of course it does.

SECTION 205 allows top Federal officials to keep all financial dealings secret, and anyone investigating them can be considered a terrorist.
So much for the first amendment, too.

SECTION 303 sets up a national DNA database of suspected terrorists. The database will also be used to "stop other unlawful activities." It will share the information with state, local and foreign agencies for the same purposes.

SECTION 311 federalizes your local police department in the area of information sharing.

SECTION 313 provides liability protection for businesses, especially big businesses, that spy on their customers for Homeland Security, violating privacy agreements. It goes on to say that these are all preventive measures - has anyone seen Minority Report? This is the access hub for the Total Information Awareness Network. I haven’t seen it.

SECTION 321 authorizes foreign governments to spy on the American people and to share information with foreign governments. What? How can he justify this entry ?

SECTION 402 is titled "Providing Material Support to Terrorism” is a crime. The section reads that there is no requirement to show that the individual even had the intent to aid terrorists. What? Guilty until proven innocent?

SECTION 403 expands the definition of weapons of mass destruction to include any activity that affects interstate or foreign commerce.

SECTION 408 creates "lifetime parole" (basically, slavery) for a lot of crimes.

SECTION 410 creates no statute of limitations for anyone who engages in terrorist actions or supports terrorists. Remember: any crime is now considered terrorism under the first Patriot Act.

SECTION 411 expands crimes that are punishable by death. Again, they point to Section 802 of the first Patriot Act and state that any terrorist act or support of terrorist act can result in the death penalty.

SECTION 427 sets up asset forfeiture provisions for anyone engaging in terrorist activities. In other words, if he (one man) says you are engaged in terrorist activities, and you’re NOT, they can still take your home and business until you prove you’re NOT !

There are many other sections that I did not cover in the interest of time. Those in the 13000 range take control of all the financial mechanism in America. The American people should be shocked by this outrage, this obvious grab at dictatorial power, and, really, should be vigorously demonstrating in the streets until it’s burned !!

*******THE SECOND PATRIOT ACT DWARFS ALL POLICE STATE LEGISLATION IN MODERN WORLD HISTORY. ******************

It is patently obvious by now that these provisions were very carefully crafted in an orchestrated attack on the Constitution, along with a grab for limitless power. How could we think otherwise ?

We know that these things were all written well before the 911 tragedies. Well before. It’s also well known that it was passed immediately following 9-11 without Congress having access to all the contents of the Act. One of the main gossip items, when discussing this crowd, is that he (or Cheney) could actually start a war, most likely attacking Iran, just before the election, so that he could then declare a “State of Emergency” and do away with the election. He could do a repeat of his charade in Iraq: just send thousands of troops, then dare the Congress to cut off the money for them, after a 1000 or so have died.

Who among us thinks the Congress will do that?

My greatest fear is that the American people just might do what a lot of good citizens in Germany did in early 1930. That is to say, not recognize the depth of this character’s megalomania, and also not recognize how much support he has from so many people, and corporations. Just like the other guy did – a hideous caricature of a sick individual in charge of a lot of otherwise really good people - but people who did nothing to resist him until it was too late. (He showed his intentions in 1933, and they didn’t make the attempt to unseat him until July 1944!) That’s why I wanted to make as many of you aware of this power grab known as the Patriotic Act, as I possibly could. Reading it flabbergasted me, I have to tell you !

A great deal is terribly wrong right now, in Washington.

***** You can learn more at bordc.org. The acronym is for Bill of Rights Defense Committee. They are also ramping up a People's Campaign for the Constitution. I hope you'll visit that website and take the pledge to join with us in protection of the Constitution! We need millions more signatures.

To do so, go to http://www.constitutioncampaign.org

Faithfully, in the interest of the American people
See also swungnotes diaries on dailykos.org
swungnotes

AMERICA CAN'T HAVE IT BOTH WAYS

Affordable Necessities or Speculation & “Big Bucks” ?

It’s absolutely more apparent every day in America that a lot of voraciously greedy Americans really are trying to have it both ways: They continue to try to promote the myth that they can allow speculation in the necessities for human life, in order to generate profit, but still keep the cost of these life-giving necessities at an affordable price. No rational person would have a problem with the high cost of any item, be it goods or services, provided the item in question resides in the “want” category and not the “need” category. The distinction is even more stark when the “need” category has to do with human life. Right? Other industrialized countries on earth have no problem with this logic.

But in America, it appears to be the conventional wisdom that you have the right to speculate on the stock performance of a life-giving service, and as long as you and other speculators make “big bucks” on the trading, it doesn’t matter who the resultant pricing hurts. What about the rights of those who are hurt by this activity? Does not their right equal yours? What really is at work here is greed, and a total departure from the origins of America’s morals and ethics. So far, there has been no outrage voiced or presented against the obscenity of electricity deregulation.

Let’s consider electricity. Could you live without it for one day? How about a
week? A month? Of course not. Or water? There have been some efforts
of recent years to privatize normal water delivery for consumers like you and me
but they have met with almost instant reality. Using the Margaret Thatcher
paradigm in Wales, the Bechtel Corporation of San Francisco privatized the
water delivery in Cochabamba, Bolivia a few years ago. That predictably very
quickly met with outrage and mayhem.

Then, more recently in Atlanta (incredible that relatively sophisticated Americans
would fall for it) the effort was made again. The same kind of Thatcher M.O. occurred – the water “company” offered millions to the City Council of Atlanta to obtain the contract, and once the deal was signed, the water company delivered brown water at times and no water at times, repaired no old pipes, and drastically cut the personnel needed. In that case, the two sides settled without a big court fight, but just barely. (See my Blog on this one: WARNING: PRIVATIZATION OF YOUR WATER SUPPLY, March 19, 2008 at inegales.blogspot.com)

So these two necessities of life had been saddled with the burden of added profit, and with water it turned out very badly. But the privatization outrage with electricity continues to this day. This head-in-the-sand method of dealing with corporations continues. We shouldn’t be saddled with sky high pricing for electricity in 2008, because 75 years ago - in 1933 - Franklin Roosevelt handled the identical problem (sky high pricing – gouging, for a necessity of life) and he handled it to the envy of the whole world. He passed a law that would regulate electricity pricing. He also very astutely made it a crime to speculate in electricity on the stock market, and made it a crime for electricity providers to give money to Congresspersons and Senators. AND - as all of you know, for some 70 years the American utility system was the envy of the world.

The operating mechanism in the 1935 law, called The Public Utility Holding Company Act - was that this very humane legislation made it conventional wisdom in this hyper-active capitalist society, that you can’t make a profit off of life’s necessities. You can charge for all your raw materials, your personnel, your upkeep, your cost of production, your repairs, etc. but you can’t charge for PROFIT. There are plenty of other business opportunities to buy shares and make profit. Franklin Roosevelt recognized this very minimal logic in 1933, but today’s power brokers just can’t handle it.

Thus for 70 years we didn’t have any 30 million dollar CEOs at our Utilities.

Then, as is well known, in July of 2005, the great price leveler, and price gouging preventer was overturned, and of course we now have electricity bills so high for families that a lot of them have to choose between paying the electric bill and food. (There are so many documented cases of it that no attribution is necessary.) Deregulation of electricity has produced a lot of income dollars for those who buy stock in electricity providers, to be sure. It has made some of them “big bucks.” But on whose shoulders are the speculators riding? What we now have - we should be adult enough to recognize - is an electricity system that is little more than a playground for power-industry predators, aided and abetted by money-crazy Congress persons. Let’s face it: to be perfectly honest, adult and free of the millennium tool known as SPIN, you will admit that if you as a Congressman accept large amounts of money donations from an industry, you are sure as hell going to vote FOR the industry regardless of any other factor. Aren’t you? Don’t let any apologist for this activity tell you any different. They will try it by euphemism and spin – just ask for Proof. We all agree that spin is the new euphemism for lie.

Okay – that’s electricity and water.

Now ask yourself if you can live without gasoline. All the food you eat is delivered to your neighborhood with gasoline. Fully 99% of us get to work with gasoline. Everything you wear, or cook with, or mow with, or repairs to your house, etc. ad infinitum got to you with gasoline. This one has never been regulated. I frankly think that if the US Congress were to try to regulate the price of gasoline, their bosses (the corporations) would tell them to sit down and shut up. And they’d tell them in no uncertain terms !!

So regulation there is apparently not even going to be discussed. Just thinking about it, however, you can add up the record-breaking profit of the oil companies, and the record bonuses of the CEO and his underlings, and you can arrive at what the price of a gallon of gasoline would be without the burden of these individuals – probably on the order of 20 cents or so per gallon. There is at least one lone Washington insider who seems to have summoned the courage to speak out: On May 1, Senator Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, cited the role of “speculators” on commodities. Then Senate Democrats proposed legislation that would impose higher margin requirements on oil speculators in an effort to dampen the speculation spiral. But watch closely and you will read why these efforts will be soundly defeated, say in a year or less. Mark my word!

Finally, what about insurance? We all know you can NOT drive to work without insurance. If you try, very quickly you will be stripped of your license to drive, or you will not be given a car license plate, without proof of coverage. You are required by law to carry at least liability insurance on your car, so if you DO get into some terrible crash that injures some one, or worse, your insurance coverage can pay for the other party’s damages.

But wait – the law stipulates you must have insurance – but it doesn’t stipulate that it must be affordable. So how does that work? The insurance industry is loaded with profit, like all corporations. We hear about the retiring CEO who is given a golden bonus of $300 million. Really, guys, can we continue to bask in the pipe dream that we can have it both ways?

This will probably cause the repetition crowd to invoke their rote euphemisms. They will brand the idea of eliminating profit from insurance as something awful, and they will use the drumbeat words they’ve had pounded into their skulls. Most especially the republicans. You know what they will say. You know the words they will use.

I offer the strongest answer to them in advance. In the 1930s a group of psychologists finally realized the power of the spoken word, especially the perceived effect on us if delivered with disgust, or official-ese, or threat, and made the most revealing psychological experiment ever made, in my humble opinion. This experiment showed graphically how vulnerable we are to the spoken word, unless we learn how to recognize it, and how to be strong enough to expose it and resist it.

The psychologists took some 3 to 5 year olds, and allowed them to play at recess. When recess was over, they cornered one boy and one girl and accused them of hesitating in the schoolyard, out of sight of the others. The accusations were delivered with an air of disgust, practically a sneer, and it really made an impression on the little ones. At first each one said simply “no” to the accusations, but the accusers continued to ask, making the entire exercise very, very important in appearance to the youngsters. The accusation of doing this apparently heinous act “…out of sight of the others” lent a certain credibility to its wrongful, probably ugly, or nasty connotation. The kids finally broke down and cried from guilt.

Finally, when the elapsed time of the interrogation really began to take its toll on the little ones – it was suggested that if they would “confess” they would be forgiven this time, and both did. Think about it: the sophistication index of these babies was not formed yet, so they couldn’t ask “…What is hesitating?” – in other words they couldn’t demand their normal habeas corpus rights – to know what they were charged with. Are you going to continue to be as innocent as a 3 year-old, in dealing with this government and big business ??? Or are you going to ask (demand) for some proof of their promises and spoken words, and excuses and spins … ?

Here are just a few modern forms of “Have you been hesitating in the back yard?” These are the tools of the repetitive crowd. If they say these things enough times, with the proper officialdom, whether it’s a sneer, or with fear in the voice, history has proven people will accept them, and acquiesce:

“The smoking gun might come in the form of a mushroom cloud.”
“The cost of electricity has gone up due to the increase in the cost of natural gas.”
”Market forces control the cost of liability insurance.”
“The private sector can do it much more efficiently than government can.”
“Buying oil futures is everyone’s right”
“Speculating in commodities is just business”
“Fight ‘em over there so we don’t have to fight ‘em here.”
“He was killed in action defending America, 7 thousand miles from here”
“We have to be the first military in outer space”
“He wasn’t counted as killed in Iraq cause he was killed in a truck accident”
“We show this ugly, porn-ridden filth on TV because the public demands it”
“Health care for all Americans is socialism, and socialism is bad”
“Control of pricing is socialism, and socialism is bad”
“Republicans are better at keeping you safe than Democrats”
“Democrats are soft on Defense” (What about FDR & Kennedy?)
“The huge price of Oil is due to supply and demand” (Analysts report huge inventories)
“Campaign finance donating is just free speech”
“Yes, I accepted $10,000 from Big Oil, but I always vote my conscience”

It’s simple to nullify all these, and the millions of others, by just demanding proof. Think of each one of these, and demand proof, and try to visualize how the perps would prove the statements. You know they couldn’t get it done.

Oh – yeah – and my favorite of all ?

“It’s all perfectly legal.”

This publication is not just a complaint vehicle. Or some smart-ass rambling. It really IS time for us to start thinking of taking back our country from the ever-increasing death grip of big business, legislators owned by big business, drumbeat euphemisms designed to convince the unwary, and the unconscionable expansion of the U.S. military, military thinking, and war as a debate tactic. The fact that 95% of the country’s wealth is owned by 1 or 2% of the people is obscene. Add to that the fact that 94% of all American media (TV, newspapers, radio, movies) is owned by SIX companies, and you can see how truly efficient they have become at mass manipulation by euphemisms & lies.

Ask for proof. Here’s a small example. I gave my son my car, to help him get started. It was a Chevrolet Lumina. On the state transfer document at ”Sale Price” I typed $1. I didn’t intend to allow the State to charge me TAX on a car transfer within my own family. When the clerk saw the $1 sale price, she said the state would therefore assign sme a “Presumptive Value” of the car, and tax me on that figure. I asked her who would be doing the “presuming” as to value. She said the State would. I corrected her, saying the State is a non-human, abstract entity that only exists in the mind, and therefore couldn’t presume anything. She went to Plan B and answered “… someone in the Tax department.“ I asked if he was the world’s recognized foremost authority on used car values and she said no. I told her I happened to know he had worked in Real Estate for several years before his job with the State, and added that his “presumption” would amount to NO MORE THAN an opinion, and therefore my own opinion would have to be equally considered, in order to be in compliance with the 14th Amendment. I added that my opinion would obviously be viewed by any third party as much more cogent than his, since I know the car, and he hasn’t even seen it.

She finally relented, and we went forward with the $1 sale price.

I added this minor episode to show how deep-seated the verbal hood winking of the American population has actually become.

This nation (probably like others, actually) has discovered that it’s perfectly OK to take advantage of your fellow man verbally, if you can. Honesty and fair play have nothing to do with it, if you can convince your fellow American that 36% interest on a loan is OK, then it’s good to go. And if you can make some “big bucks” buying stock in a provider of electricity, and un-regulated pricing, coupled with trading in shares doubles or triples the price to the consumer, that’s perfectly OK too. Just as long as you make some “big bucks.” That’s your right, it says here.

Finally, there is this undisguised penchant for War in America. Some in Europe and elsewhere worldwide have called America a modern day bully. It must be hell to be a bully. The bully always has to be ready – always on guard – to show how tough he is, always ready to do battle, regardless of what other plans he may have had for that time. Bullies that I have known always picked on a smaller target, so as to make the outcome a foregone conclusion. But, as history has a habit of doing, things don’t always work out like they are supposed to – Korea, Vietnam, Iraq - ???

Among the drumbeats we hear from the repetitive crowd is that term “enemy.” You could check it out - it will appear many times in the media every single day.

“We have to be prepared for the enemy”
“For God’s sake don’t talk to the enemy”
“We have to take the fight to the enemy”
“The enemy hates us cause we’re free.” (This one will make you throw up !!)

Why in the world do we not have a Cabinet level entity devoted to peace, negotiation, discussion, comparing each others’ goals and differences, trade, exchange of Orchestras, etc.? If we devoted the exact same amounts of time and dollars to peace and harmony that we devote to war and “enemy” talk, would that change anything? I think the answer is academic. Why doesn’t Germany, England, France, Norway, Sweden, Belgium, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Egypt, etc. etc. spend the same huge amounts of money and time concentrating on the “enemy” as the United States does? Why do we have so many enemies? (Because, they will tell you – ha ha – they hate us ha ha - because – ha ha – we are FREE.) Anyone who swallows this cocaine-induced, megalomaniacal, perverted trial balloon statement really needs to pay attention more, at the very least.

At the risk of repeating myself – we need to start ASKING FOR PROOF.

I remain concerned that some day, somewhere, when America least expects it, some country just may …….

Faithfully, in the interest of the American people
Swungnotes – inegales.blogspot.com

THANK YOU GEORGE

FOR EIGHT FABULOUS YEARS
I know – only 7 and a half, but we trust you


Mr. President I know you agree that when we’re 7 years old, and our teacher shows us a video of some solemn occasion taking place in Washington, the President is always larger than life. At that impressionable age, we’re led to believe he (you) can walk on water, settle all of life’s problems, and particularly in America because we do it so much; “…defeat the enemy on the battlefield.” (Note, at 7 we never wonder why we have so many “enemies” to defeat, but I realize you never had time to tell us. All you said was “…they hate us because we’re free,” but a severely retarded friend of mine asked me “Who is he trying to kid?” I defended you on that one.)

The fact is, we all remain awed by your intellect, leadership, personal courage in combat under fire, and unwavering devotion to the country. So with that beginning, herein a sort of conversational history of your term in office, or a sort of score card on your extensive vision and wisdom, in your own words, for you to savor as you leave office.

Here are some of your predecessor’s offerings, to assure the nation. I know they will seem puerile to you, but they are all samples of Presidential utterings before you rode in from Texas to unite the country.

“We have nothing to fear but fear itself”
“Ask not what your country can do for you …”
“Give me liberty or give me death”
“A nation cannot exist half slave and half free”
“I regret I have but one life to give for my country”

Then moving on in history a bit, we remember:
“It’s not illegal when the President does it”
“I shall resign the Presidency effective at noon tomorrow.”

SO – with those memorable statements by some of America’s past leaders as a guide for you as you leave office next January Mr. President, we humbly offer this tribute to your tenure as Commander-in-Thief.

Let’s start with your term as Governor. We remember you ran on a promise to clean up the air pollution in Texas. You passed a Clean Air bill once you were in office, and some say it wasn’t very strict.

“Oh yes, it was. Very strict. It required the cump-nees to mon-or their discharge of pollutation, even if they had to mon-or it on the weekend. That’s hard.”

Well, some of the companies just simply proceeded as they had always done, and the air pollution in Texas increased!

“Heh-heh-heh. See? Increase! Heh-heh-heh. Positive for Tex-iss.”

Coincidentally, about that time the owners of the Texas Baseball Club wanted to force the citizens of Arlington to pass an increase in the sales tax in order to build them a new stadium. They’d get rich with a new stadium, paid for by others.

“Yeah. Heh-heh.”

Well, they put you in as a partner, cost you nothing, and with your name on their Board, the sales tax initiative passed. You waited a reasonable few months, and then sold your “share” of the Ball Club and the stadium for several – what? – 5 million? Six? Is that right?

“Yeah. Heh-heh.”

Okay. I guess that’s what passes for business practice, huh?

“Yeah. Heh-heh-heh. If you know bid-ness.”

Then when you made it known you were going to run for President, a series of stories came out about your Air Force service. Your performance was rated as poor, and before you were released, you simply left your base and went over to Alabama or somewhere. How did that work? Can members of the service just simply leave when they want to?

“Yeah. Well, my expertise was needed in a p’litickal campaign over there – the guy who was running needed my hep. The Air Force had a lot of other pilots, so I didn’t ness-airily have to stay, fortch-unly.”Heh-heh.”

So what did you do in the campaign?

“I taught the guy some things, you know, how to cam- pain, so as to really promote his cann-acy.””

Did he win?

“No, unfortch-unly his opponent cam-pained every single day, I mean con-stully!! We couldn’t be expected to do that! I guess he wasn’t ade-qua-lly prepared for the tough decision making. Not like me – I’m the de-cider.” But we deaf-ly ran a great cam-pain for him.”

Deaf-ly? You mean you were loud?

“No. We bas-ally campain-ed very well, covered all the bases, so as not to be accused of doing any cam-pain irreg-ularies. Heh-heh-heh. – if you know what I mean.”

But your only experience was with a losing campaign, for Congress. Why did he want your advice and your name on his campaign?

“Heh-heh-heh. If you have to ask, you don’t know bid-ness OR politicks. Heh-heh.”

Well, when you finally got into the White House, your first year was a total waste of time, until September and the WTC catastrophe, right?

“Yeah. Heh-heh.”

Then 2002 was all devoted to convincing the country to go to war with Iraq. Right?

“Yeah. Sure was. WMD, Sodd-am – WMD. Mushroom Cloud. Terra. Heh-Heh-heh. Mobile Germ Warfare labs. Scuds. Fight ‘em over there so we don’t have to fight ‘em over here. Heh-heh-heh- know what I mean?”

Why were you so hell-bent on taking the country to war?

“Well, un-fortch-unly, it was now ab’sly certain that SODD-am had stockpiles of nuc-ular weapons, so we bas-ally had no choice but to mon-or his nu-cular activities very closely. In fact, we mon-ored him con-stally as it turned out, because without close mon-oring, he could deliver a nucu-lar missile toward Israel at any time, which would deaf-ly become a distraction from the Poll results. I wasn’t about to let this neg-ive-ly affect my Poll results at the time. I mean, after the bullhorn, you know, standing on the rubble. A proud moment in American history: the Commander-in-thief Chief rallying the whole nation !!! No American President had EVER done that before. He could also send us one under a mushroom cloud, so we had to act.”

Well – but he didn’t have the delivery capabilities to do that, did he?

“I don’t care about deliveries right now. Don’t change the subject. I’m talking about nucular bombs. Mushroom clouds! A terra strike on us. Stay the course. Terra-ism. It’s my job to proteck the American people, and I’m deaf-enly gonna do my job, do NOT mis-underestimate that. That’s a promise, and you can take that to the Dock.”

You mean to the Bank?

“What?”

Never mind. I understand your resolve, sir, but the facts don’t seem to fit the realities at the time.

“Please – don’t change the subject. I’m talking about the potential for terra here! I’m not gonna let the terra-RISTS strike America.”

I appreciate that. OK – so you rallied the Congress to give you the power to go after the terrorists, and they gave you millions of dollars and weapons and troops to use in Afghanistan, where the perpetrators were holed up. But very quickly, without any consent from Congress, or even advising Congress, you transferred that money to Iraq. It occurs to me that’s illegal, or at the very least, suspect.

“No, when the President does it, that means it’s not illegal, didn’t you know that? And - par-tick-yurly in Wartime.”

But why Iraq? Osama bin Laden was originally from Saudi Arabia and was reported to be in Afghanistan, along with his entire machinery for war. Why Iraq?

“We didn’t need his machinery, we had our own. Hum-vees, really big tanks. Airplanes, National Guard Troops, The Green Zone, trucks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles, we had everything. It was a noble cause. Afghanistan only has Opium, Iraq has oil. But you can get high on either one – heh-heh-heh” little wartime joke. Heh-heh-heh.”

Invading Iraq was a noble cause?

“Of course. Heh-heh-heh. It was a 4-gone conclusion.”

A what?

“You know – a 4-gone conclusion. There were five countries over there to invade and have a war with. Saudi Arabia and Jordan and Syria and Egypt weren’t involved – that’s 4 of them gone, so we hit Sodd-am in Iraq.”

Okay. But when your troops searched, they never found the WMDs What about that???

“Well, you still don’t get it, do you? We didn’t ness-air-ly HAVE TO FIND WMDs – he’s got ‘em.”

But if you never found any … ?

(Interrupting) No, no, no, don’t worry about FINDING, let’s talk about WMDs, Weapons of Mass Destruction, mushroom clouds, nu-cu-lar bombs. He had ‘em – Dick Cheney said that, a number of times.”

Well, you haven’t found any ….

“Not yet. Heh-heh-heh. But I’m gonna stay the course.”

It looks like it. Well, let’s talk about the war. How would you say it’s going?

“Well, things are really improving since the surge. It’s really a hard job, being a wartime Prez-det of the You-Nigh-Stay, because someone is always asking a question about the war. They don’t realize how hard it is. They’re especially bad at sta-stis-stics – when we say the war is 39% better than last month, they just don’t understand.”

Actually, I don’t either.

“That’s why I’m the Prez-det and you’re not. I know what 39% looks like. That’s the percentage of Americans who vote for Prez-det. That favors us – heh-heh-heh. Little political joke – heh-heh. You just aren’t ade-qually prepared for a job this big, and this important, and with the polling activity so phenom-ally high, I have to be on my toes at all times.”

Are you saying your main concern is your rating as President, and not the potential for death and destruction in Iraq? The immeasurable agony and heartache of war places second to your ratings?

“Of course. You really don’t understand, do you? The Prez-det has to be on top of all things, in wartime. I’m a wartime prez-det. The people have to really like me, for the war to go ahead really good, you know, with a lot of guns firing, and cannons, and stealth airplanes dropping bombs, and only a few troops instead of a lot, and a new General to blame when the war goes bad, and asking Congress for 190 billion more in a new supplemental, and if they hesitate, they're not patriotic, they don't SUPPORT THE TROOPS - that's a magic phrase - heh-heh-heh, you know, high-class stuff like that. I mean, with all the addish-ul requirements I have to stay on top of, with all the sta-stis-sticks involved, being a wartime Prez-det is hard !! I mean, I can say cat-e-gor-ally this is the hardest job I’ve ever had.”

Well, what other job have you had?

“See? Gosh I’d hate to be you, and not see the big picture.”

Moving on, how do you think you’ll be viewed by history?

“That’s easy. I will ul-ti-my be remembered as a Prez-det who brought the people of the You-Nigh-Stay together. A compassionate Conservative, a brave Patriot in the Vietnam war, a real churchgoer, a brave Wartime Commander-in-thief Chief, an eloquent speaker, one who ---“

(Interrupting)

Excuse me, an eloquent speaker?

“Of course. Heh-heh. Don’t you remember the bullhorn? People all over the world remember that, they remember even in a stupid place like France. No more French Fries – it’s Freedom Fries. Or even in the Medi-ranian. I call it the MED – heh-heh. Those people remember the Bullhorn. Heh-heh – (then pantomiming his bullhorn speech) ‘AND THE PEOPLE WHO KNOCKED THESE BUILDINGS DOWN WILL HEAR FROM ALL OF US SOON.’ Heh-heh-heh” (Then Pantomiming the huge applause he got after this speech.)

“Then, after my speeches, I will be remembered for my bid-ness savvy – I’m an MBA, heh-heh-heh. Harvard Bid-ness School. In a select group, with an MBA from Harvard. They will remember my tax cuts to the rich – pretty savvy moves those were – I got millions back for – are you ready- CAMPAIGN FINANCE !! Heh-heh-heh. They will remember how I agg-ress-ally went after bin Laden and –

(interrupting)

But he escaped to Afghanistan and then Pakistan, and …

“There you go again – don’t you realize those countries don’t have any OIL ???
God! A number of Sen-ters backed my resolve to forget him and concentrate on Iraq. I don’t even think about him anymore – he’s not even mar-gally important now. Some left-winger ha-bitch-ully brings up his name at Press Conferences, and …..”

How do you answer that?

“Easy, if you know stategery. I just don’t schedule Press Conferences.” Heh-heh-heh.
I always AIR on the side of caution.”

You always what ???

“Air on the side of caution.”

Does that mean you breathe cautiously?

“God, who is sending me people like this? No, I said I always HEIR on the side of caution.”

Does that mean you always have a child carefully?

“Yeah, I think we did that, a couple of times. But you changed the subject first to breathing, then to having children. I per’s-ally need to give you some interviewing tips, and some exercises in the English language.”

BUT - THE VERB ERR RHYMES WITH HER.

“Okay, now you’re into poetry. Whatever. But I AM going to stay the course, and I will ul–ti-my be regarded as one of the best Prez-dets of the You-Nigh-Stay, you’ll see. There will be an as-ter-ik by my name, that defines me as: A Compassionate Conservative who proved he was a Uniter, and who Stayed The Course. It doesn’t get any better than that! Heh-heh-heh.” My programs in-cent bid-nesses to invest.”

Your programs do what?

“Give bid-nesses the incentive to invest in America. The Will to Win. The 11th hour. Grace under Pressure. Come from Behind. The two-minute protocol. Joe Montana. You know, a winning single in the 11th inning. Up San Juan Hill. The flag on Iwo Jima. Pearl Harbor. Bush leadership. World Trade Centers. Conquering Small Pox and Polio. The BullHorn. Little League. Fred Astaire and Ginger. YMOC, Clar-dank, The Prez-da-cy. Sin-der-ella . sikk-ich-uly

I was somewhat shocked to see this continuing, long after I thought he would have stopped it. His eyes had no life in them. The only thing that still resembled him was a smirk, and an occasional chuckle.

I tried to get a word in edgewise while this continued, so we could continue and wind this thing up. But I was never able to do it. It continued well beyond what any of us realized a person could sustain, and his volume dropped markedly as we were leaving. I studied his face carefully, and could see no recognition in his eyes whatever, and there was that ever-present wink with a smile - the wink that is always meaningless. My producers and staff finally all just agreed we had to pack up and get back to the office. The last things we heard, although in a hoarse voice, were

“Star Spangled Banner. Hand over the heart. Pledge of Allegiance, General Petraeus, Medal of Honor, Don Rumsfeld, Breaking the Sound barrier. America on the Moon. Stay the Course. WMD. Terra

In closing, I have to say this was the weirdest interview I’ve ever done. All I can say is, Mr. President, wherever you are, I wish you – on second thought, maybe not. You have a lot to answer for.

-30-

OPEN LETTER TO JOHN McCAIN

You Were Right All Along, John

Hey, John, this is Bob. I’m writing to let you know how right you were all along. You accurately nailed the folly of our ongoing practice of literally financing a lot of parasites in our society, and how to cut them loose. Great stuff! I mean, with literally thousands of them “…Feeding at the Washington Trough,” as you said, it’s a wonder we can call ourselves solvent. With all our real expenses piling up (Iraq, tax cuts, corporate tax cuts, prisoners expenses, building more submarines, etc.) we’ve got our hands full with must do expenses, and don’t need a lot of socialized freeloaders adding to our fiscal burden.

It was really Presidential of you, I have to say, when you had the courage and moral fiber to point out that we simply can no longer afford to finance such idiocy as Socialized Highway Departments. I mean, how goofy can we be, to fall for the idea of a government subsidizing the building and maintenance of our highways? God! You made a lot of friends, John, when you struck that practice down with your edict, which you correctly called Grave Assessment of the Situation, or GAS.

I know, you have other priorities to consider, there’s something new every day it seems. But your response to the charge that you will overuse the practice of signing statements to ignore laws that could inhibit you, was perfect. You simply considered your potential use of signing statements to be minimal procedural practice, and created another great program Defense Initiative (for) Rejecting Trivia, or DIRT. Calling it a national Defense measure will assure passage.

I’ve been waiting for the attacks on you from the media and others, for your correct stance on how we should treat the possibility of war with other nations. You’re absolutely correct, we can’t continue like we’re doing, with the expensive practice of “…Socialized Defense.” I mean, for the government to have to actually pay for a group of soldiers and Marines to go and fight some enemy, is what, Communism? You were right in calling it “Socialized Defense”. And your substitute - sending National Guard troops overseas, paid by their employers - was inspired. Think of the millions we’ll save with that program -– Defensive Unity (by) National Guards, or the DUNG program.

And while we’re at it, I saw your speech on the Economy the other day, which was brilliant. You sure quieted those who say you have no experience or study in Economics, when you pointed out that you have the answer for all money problems: your program you call WAR. Though some scoffed, your program you titled
Worldwide Aconomic Recovery, was brilliant. (I agree with you, we don’t have to sweat things like spelling. It’s not like you have to be flatulent in a number of languages.)

I won’t belabor things any more John, I know how busy you are. I’ll be able to rest as long as I know you’re going ahead with the elimination of things like “Socialized Education” (how arrogant is that, for us to pay for schooling poor people’s kids?) and “Socialized Police Forces”. But John, what I have had some really major concern about, truly, is the idea of “Socialized Medicine.” I know you won’t let it happen, I feel secure in that. The fact that it works flawlessly in Germany, Japan, Sweden, Britain, Canada, Switzerland, Norway, Israel, etc. etc. is beside the point. Like you said recently, what do they know? All that talk about their success with “Socialized Medicine” is pure propaganda. It’s easy to see those countries are bankrupt, because they are countries that don’t have a large standing army, don’t have a Mach 3 fighter plane, or Attack Submarines, and actually buy into the Climate Change myth, so how can they speak authoritatively on anything?

And that left-wing statement that you and 553 other members of the congress and Senate are provided great medical care, is beside the point. I remember your answer was great. You said: “… It’s not “Socialized Medicine” when it’s for the Congress, because the cost is covered in our patriotic program: Government Reply (to) Every Existing Doubt.” GREED - so that subject is above criticism. Right? In addition, you’ve helped make sure that the Insurance companies maximize their profit by authorizing as little care, and accepting as few sick patients, as possible. When they said 75% of the cost of medicine is from “administrative costs,” we found out that what all those administrative costs and mountains of paperwork are for is denying care.

So the system is running good, huh, John? And as for you in the White House, it’s probably comforting for you to know that you will have a good inventory of the countries that match the mold, at least for your lifetime. You know, the Big three? The Los Tres as Bush taught you to say in Spanish? You now have two that fit, besides Iraq, that have:

Huge Oil Deposits
Nuclear Ambitions
They Hate us

So all you have to do, admittedly child’s play, probably, is make sure Hugo Chavez is “discovered” working on a bomb. (He already hates us, that was easy.) Then with Colombia, which is already 2/3 - we should be able to get the conversation going on their bomb ambitions, which will give us enough time to make sure oil is discovered in North Korea.

So it looks like smooth sailing, big guy. Hang tough in the coming election. It looks like either one of the Democratic candidates will be an easy smear. Hillary with her killing of Vince Foster and Barack with that Weather Underground dude – child’s play.

I’ll see you around the campus.

Swungnotes

WHY AMERICA NEEDS A PARLIAMENTARY SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT – NOW

I don’t think you’d get any real opposition from intelligent Americans if you said we desperately need the mechanism to remove a loose cannon from the White House, if we realize we have one. It was widely suggested 200 years ago that the experiment in government being embarked upon by those in the New World – the were calling it Democracy – was fraught with problems. Among the problems with Democracy is the realization that, with this system, sooner or later the citizens will elect an idiot to the highest office.

We have now reached that miserable and untenable position – we have allowed an idiot to occupy the most powerful position on Planet Earth. And this situation is now in its eighth miserable year. True, his party machine stole the first election, the first 4 years, and their fingerprints for a similar theft in 2004 are everywhere. It is therefore abundantly clear, based on the performance of this presently serving idiot, that we need an improved set of guidelines for executive removal.

We – the millions of us in America who defiitely did NOT vote to elect this idiot to the highest office, still have to live (and suffer) with the results of his will. So as not to interrupt the flow of thought with a reading of his crimes at this point, I have listed just some of them at the end. Professor Jonathan Turley of George Washington University has listed 143 felonies perpetrated by this idiot and his minions, since he took office.

These facts are unacceptable. Aren’t they? They are. They’re unacceptable to all of us, and quite frankly, surely they’re unacceptable even to the most ardent, most loyal Republican, those having passed a sanity exam. The founding fathers, with their base of 18th Century values, obviously never suspected that the power of money would intrude so thoroughly into the recipe for good government. If you told Jefferson or Hamilton that candidates would raise and spend over $500 million in a campaign for President, they would declare you daft. They never imagined that the Press would be – or could be – completely transposed from a simple reporting of plain truth, to a very efficient mechanism for thought control. Franklin and Washington never gave so much as a passing thought to using war as the world’s most efficient generator of money. They would have soundly scolded, and just as soundly rejected, anyone who even suggested starting a war unilaterally, and would have swiftly thrown out and incarcerated anyone who did so based on lies.

Yet our present idiot has done just that, and much more, and the idiot-in-waiting is eagerly planning another military “adventure”, his own.

SO – how does a parliamentary form of government differ with what we have? In a presidential system, (what we have) all executive power is concentrated in the president. In a parliamentary system, with a collegial executive, power is more divided. One of the huge stumbling blocks in Washington is gridlock– that phenomenon of the Congress being unable to get any laws passed, due to the different agendas, and members of opposing parties. This is one of the most egregious of all sins for the Congress to subject the citizenry to. It’s obvious it is easier to pass legislation within a parliamentary system. This is because the executive branch is dependent upon the direct or indirect support of the legislative branch and often includes members of the legislature.

This alone is a great incentive for corruption-weary Americans to adopt the superior system of Parliamentary government. However, by far the most pressing reason for America to adopt the parliamentary system of government is its capacity to issue a vote of no confidence - remove an idiot in mid-term - instead of having to suffer with his or her continued gaffes and misdeeds and wars and recessions, and generation of hatred for us by the rest of the world, for a number of years more. As everyone knows by now, Bush sees everything as “good” or “evil,” nothing in between. He has remarked on more than one occasion that he sees himself as being a modern day Abe Lincoln, with the divided country, the war, etc. He would do well to read Lincoln’s take on good and evil, although we know he won’t:

“The true rule in determining to embrace, or reject anything, is not whether it has any evil in it, but whether it have more of evil, than of good. There are few things wholly evil, or wholly good. Almost every thing, especially governmental policy, is an inseparable compound of the two; thus our best judgment of the preponderance between them is continually demanded.” Abe Lincoln, June 1848.

Here are just some of the excesses this person has inflicted on the good people of America, and by extension those of the world, since America’s power is so far reaching. While pondering these outrages, it’s my humble opinion that we should bear firmly in mind how many surrogates it took to assist him in carrying them out, even if the ideas were originally his. All of tho$e individual$ no doubt had a ve$ted intere$t in doing so.


Manipulation of the free press – if they ask tough, he simply eliminates them
Subjugation of the press – prohibiting photos of dead soldiers in caskets
The myth of polls – questions manipulated to achieve predictable outcome
The dishonesty of polls – 1000 people does not a majority position make
Money in politics – a cancer that at present appears forever incurable
Newspeople as rock stars – selected for beauty, paid outrageously, controlled
Forced the world to wait until he’s gone, to fight the imminent perils of climate change
Repeatedly violated the FISA Act – enacted primarily to prevent Bush’s abuses
Detainee abuse at G’TO – some held over 2 years without charges(!)
Abuse of War Crimes Act of 1996 –
Abusing, ignoring Geneva Convention
Trampled on and effectively gutted habeas corpus – the cornerstone of Law
Illegally diverted congressionally-voted funds for Afghanistan over to Iraq
Etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. ad infinitum, apparently.

It is therefore easily seen that if the United States converted to the Parliamentary system we could have prevented all the never-before-dreamed-of excesses of our present-day “Éxecutive Idiot”. There will be those who will ferret out some element in the Parliamentary system that will not set well with ordinary Americans, and that’s fine. But we have the power to adopt the one thing in the parliamentary system that will really work perfectly for us – the power to have a Vote of No Confidence on a ruling idiot, before he or she takes us any further down the slippery slope. We can do that – no one would doubt that we can do that much. After all, America is 219 years old, with Democracy, and Britain is what, 2000 years old, with a Parliamentary government. Any argument that takes issue with the efficacy or fairness of Parliamentarism is thus still born.

Finally, I will close this with the strongest possible reasoning to rid ourselves of this dangerous idiot at the helm of our ship of state. Allow me to pass along the summary rendering of a protracted psychiatric evaluation of George W Bush, by the celebrated team of John P Briggs, M.D. and JP Briggs II, Ph.D. John Briggs MD recently completed 40 years of psychiatric practice in Westchester County NY.


When the Defenses Become the Reality
We have noted in previous articles other prominent defenses Bush employs to cover his feelings of inadequacy: He is a classic emotional bully. Bullies disguise sensations of their own weakness by splitting the weakness off and casting it out of their own conscious awareness - projecting it - onto the consciousness of others. They generate a stream of signals and behaviors that keep others on guard and seek to enfeeble them. Bush's signing statements where he reserves the right not to abide by the law he's just adopted, his foreign policy asserting his right to preemptive strikes, his denial of Habeas Corpus, his fixation on retaining the torture option, his rejection of subpoenas from Congress, his demeaning of people by giving them nicknames - these are all emotional bullying tactics. Friends from his younger days remember that in basketball and tennis games Bush would force opponents who had beaten him to continue playing until he had worn down their will so he could beat them. Bush emotionally bullies his White House staff, making them afraid to tell him any news that doesn't fit his "optimistic" expectations. It’s known that Sr. Staffer Josh Bolton greets Bush each morning with: "Thank you for the privilege of serving."

John P Briggs MD and JPBriggs II PhD 18 January 2007.

Faithfully, in the interest of the American people - Swungnotes

WARNING: Privatization of Your Water Supply …

See my Blog on Privatized Electricity .. Is Water Next?
A Tale of Two Very Different Cities, With Apology to Dickens

It would be hard to compare Wales, Cochabamba, Bolivia, and Atlanta, Georgia. One is from another century, another is dirt poor, populated by farmers and desperately poor people, and the other is very sophisticated, a metropolis of hugely important companies and associations. But an identical heist took place in all three cities, believe it or not. In a recent blog – I pointed out how our home electricity supply has been recently (2005) hijacked by corporate America (de-regulation) with the predictable huge hike in pricing. You know, average home bill $12-15 monthly before deregulation, and up to $300 after and never less than $100 !)

This, then is a red-letter headsup to any and all in America who could fall prey to this theft, especially those of you either on, or close to, a City Council member. Let’s remind ourselves: water, like electricity, is necessary for human life.


First, let’s look at Wales. Plans for the privatization of the water industry in England and Wales were first advanced by the Thatcher Government in 1984, but were abandoned after a public outcry against it. However, they were resurrected soon after the 1987 General Election, after endless lobbying by Thatcher and her crowd. The Water Act of1988 – a Thatcher gem - transformed the Regional Water Authorities into private companies and sold them off. These new companies became owners of the entire water system and properties of the RWAs. The Act gave them exclusive 25-year concessions for sanitation and water supply, protecting them against any possibility of competition. This created private monopolies. The Government took a number of steps to boost the profitability of these companies in addition. A very generous pricing regimen was established, and the companies were given special exemption from paying taxes on profits!! They had a virtual license to print money, which of course has been exploited to the full. The abuses were so blatant that even the Tory supporting Daily Mail once denounced water privatization as the “greatest act of licensed robbery in our history.”

The most noticeable impact of privatization for the public has been the dramatic increase in prices. Wales, strike one.

For us here in America, IF YOU’RE A CITY COUNCIL member, or know someone who is, you will be the first to know when a heist of your city is in the works. The way they’ve done it in the past is to approach the City council members and point out how expensive it would be for the City to repair and replace all the aging metal water pipes in the city. Then the silver-tongues point out how they can do it so much cheaper than the City can, because they, in the private sector, are so much more efficient than the Public Sector. (Note they don’t ever prove that statement, they just say it.)

That’s exactly what happened in Cochabamba, Bolivia in January of 2000. The private water suppliers never replaced or repaired any of the aging Pipes. Four months of that, and the citizens of Cochabamba had enough, and vigorously protested. Predictably, the protests turned violent, in April 2000, resulting in at least five DEAD, 40 injured or wounded, and widespread arrests, with tear gas. Yeah, tear gas. The Bechtel Corporation of San Francisco was involved in some way, along with Aguas del Tunari.

The Bolivian patriot who spearheaded the protests was one Oscar Olivera. Today, (2008) Oscar Olivera's sister, Marcela, claims bullying tactics were used by the Bolivian government to save the water heist, and describes activists' fears that the government “…will definitely try again to privatize the city's water system. (San Francisco Chronicle, February 11, 2001) Cochabamba, Strike two.

Now let’s consider Atlanta. Atlanta, as you know, is the economic and political powerhouse of the deep South. Atlanta is an old city, dating to well before our 1860s Civil War. It obviously had some aging water pipes and infrastructure, like all cities. When it transferred the management of its municipal water system to the private firm United Water, many Atlantans were taken in by the rhetoric of the private water fast talking salesmen, and thought it a new trend. They were satisfied Atlanta would lead the way for many more privatized water utilities in the U.S. That was January 1, 1999.

No one believes that any more.

United Water is and was the American subsidiary of the Paris-based French corporation Suez. Without boring you with too many details, suffice it to say the salesmen pointed out how Atlanta would save some $20 million dollars per year, etc. The overriding facts that Americans need to know, in the year 2008 and beyond, is that, using the template first perfected by Margaret Thatcher in Britain, once the private water suppliers are in control, they

repair nothing (saving money)
drastically cut personnel numbers (to save money)
greatly raise prices – (to make money)

if you can believe the gall of that ! The records in Wales, Cochabamba and now Atlanta all show this is their m.o.

It was no different in Atlanta than it was in Britain or Cochabamba. Proponents of privatization in that city proclaimed loudly that the water department had been a place where, for years, politicians placed their friends and relatives who needed a job, but who had no experience whatever. Thus the water department became a very costly exercise, and very inefficient to boot.

Soon, tales of brown water running from their faucets were heard, and increased. Then, citizens received advisories from the City to - are you ready for this?- “BOIL TAP WATER before use!” These were examples of the “efficiency of the private sector” that had been so proudly articulated in the runup to the deal.

One council member pointed out how she could turn on the faucet and nothing would happen, sometimes for a couple hours. Nothing. Then when it did work, it looked like dirty creek water; it clogged up the filters in your refrigerator, and there's no warning when you're going to get these discolorations."

Then a fire hydrant sprang a leak during a drought and it took ten days for the water company to fix it, but by then the pavement was beginning to wash away.

Atlanta's city government also got a wakeup call when United Water failed to deliver on promises to save the City money. An audit of United Water's performance ordered by the mayor revealed uncollected bills, demands for even more money from the City, and delayed repairs.

Five major bidders spent millions on public relations campaigns, lobbyists and lawyers courting City politicians. In the end, United Water, owned by Paris-based Suez, won with the lowest bid. All of this is a clear testament to the amount of profit available to a private company if they alone provide people with the most important element of all life – again – the most important element of all life. Happily for all in Atlanta, when the Mayor and several councilpersons made the decision to end the contract, they were able to do it without years of million-dollar lawsuits.

Several diehard republicans wanted the travesty to continue, but were vigorously outvoted. Significant among the council members were statements by two on the Council, Howard Shook and Claire Muller.

Shook said” …My inner conservative no longer worships at the altar of privatization,” and Clare Muller said “…I do think that we got a little carried away with the hype of this thing being the silver bullet that would solve all our problems… we went down the wrong path.” (Frank Koller, CBC Radio Feb. 5, 2003)

Why bring all this up now? As a headsup to anyone on a City Council, or with a friend or relative on a City council, because that’s where they start this theft. They paint a doomful picture of the present state of decay of the city’s aging pipes, always metal, and as such rusting and leaking. They point up the cost to repair, which runs into the millions. Then the private companies say they will not only pay for the repair of the pipes and infrastructure, but will pay millions to the city in addition.

You know the rest.

And – as sure as God made green apples, and metal water pipes, there is always a republican or two on any City council who will vote yes for privatization enthusiastically. But, thanks to swungnotes, you can tell them how to get at the truth. Just look up the story on the water grabs in Wales, Cochabamba and Atlanta. Let’s see, that’s 3 strikes, isn’t it?

by swungnotes

WHEN YOU CAN CHOOSE – YOU BETTER CHOOSE WITH GREAT CARE !

(Or, make damn sure your choices are counted, and recognized !!!)

It was in BraveFreeLand that it all started. In BraveFreeLand – BFL, to long time inhabitants – the natives had this strange choosingtime every so often. The way it worked, 39% of them got together every 4 years and chose the Controller who would then, with a lot of pomp and fanfare, go to sleep in an uncolored house – (painted, but not in color). This Controller would then make a lot of rules for the rest of them. I know, it’s strange, but that’s the way they did it in BFL. Thirty-nine seemed to be as high as they could count, on choosing day. Had been doing it for years. Maybe drinking too much on choosing day, or whatever, but 39 was about the best they did. The conventional wisdom was that 39 was the absolute best they could muster because of the NFL in BFL. Easier to concentrate on strange shaped balls than government. Bizarre.

ANYWAY, on this particular choosingday, the 39% who did the choosing decided on a known member of the society to be the new Controller, a man of scientific curiosity. But before he could move to the uncolored house, a group of swindlers persuaded the High Priests to lay down an edict that he would not move to the uncolored house, and would not be the new Controller. The High Priests allowed another contender, who had come in second in the choosing race to move in. How is it possible, you ask? Why? Like the choosers of that day would say, “…That’s a very good question.”

So the new Controller who was not chosen if we can use that term, was known as Cord, Cord Loosh. (It was well known it should have been Cord Lush.) Cord made arrangements to move into the uncolored house. He was always accompanied by an odd cohort, always. The two of them were known as Cord Loosh, and Ditcherell Shamey, “Ditch” for short. They were Loosh and Shamey. Many said Shamey’s name was really appropriate. Not sure what they meant, but that’s what they said. The two of them broke every law in BraveFreeLand once they got into the house. They assembled their own swindlers, and decided to simply acquire all the valuable minerals and ancient artifacts in a faraway land, known as The Rock, because of its many rocky hills, with minerals beneath. And yeah, whether the inhabitants of The Rock liked it or not. See, the people who lived in The Rock didn’t follow this bizarre BFL 39% choosing routine, they just stood around and allowed the person with the most guns to take over and be their Controller. Well, you can see what this arrangement would inevitably produce in the long run. Sooner or later, one of the Controllers would go too far, and sure enough, the current Controller had done just that.

So Cord and Ditch, with the help of a lot of intellectual writers and historians and psychologists realized they could simply take control and ownership of The Rock with euphemisms, as easily as they had done with BFL. Cord, as Controller, would order the soldiers of BFL to bomb and shoot and kill and burn all the people in The Rock even after they surrendered. Including women, old people and little children. See, they had a name for that, it was collateral damage, which was an ancient sanskrit term for ‘…they’re so stupid we’re doing them a favor by killing them.’ This translation was revealed to us by an actual member of the invading BFL army!

Ditch would handle the propaganda, with his arsenal of euphemisms. In order to get this fun time started, Ditch assembled a large group of talkers who he was trainng to lie to the people of BraveFreeLand repeatedly. They took the words of an ancient speech by Herman Goering, he of an ancient tyrannical government. Goering pointed out that “…The people don’t want war, don’t like war, but if their leaders tell them enough times that it is necessary, they will accept it.” And so Ditch’s people did, and so the people of BFL did.

Thus, in secret meetings, (all his meetings were secret) Ditch assembled all his talkers. They came prepared to spend two hours practicing daily. Members of the media were welcome, and a lot of them showed up, and dutifully practiced with the rest. They all took seats facing Ditch at the podium, who looked at them with a crooked smile, and always with his head angled at 30 degrees from the perpendicular. He said the only words he needed: “If you will” and his minions would chant in unison, in 6/8 time:

“…Euphemism baby, don’t mean maybe – always be ready to say
Nash-a-nul Dee-Fense – our very best Pre-tense – from 6000 miles away? Yeah!

“…In the BFL we can go Ka-Boom, and Ka-boom and Ka-Boom and Ka-Boom
We don’t have to bother, just blow up the Father,
burn up the Mother, and any other, and all those still in the womb

“…The people can’t stop us, nor will they try, just scare ‘em with Mushroom Cloud
Ask for 200 billion - I don’t mean million - they’ll give it with heads duly bowed
Be patient, be cool, save your best for last, we’ll hear ‘em chanting in the hallways
Terrorism it was, terrorism it is, terrorism first, last and always

“…We revere the Rove playbook, it covers all matters, of how to corrupt and connive
Rove gave us the “say-hooks” to repeat and repeat, like the buzz in a giant bee-hive
Now we know how to smear, those who fought without fear, in foreign-wars-of-the-past
We just call ‘em all traitors, Democracy-haters, get rid of their ass, I mean F-A-S-T ! “

Well, you can just sort of hear all the other mantras, in your imagination. Ditch held these meetings five days a week, and very soon BFL was inundated with an army of talking heads, all saying the same things, verbatim! It was the human equivalent of a 33 1/3 stuck record.

One of his talkers was a slight woman in spike high heels. She repeated Ditch’s mantra while waving from an airplane:

“Mushroom cloud, and WMD” and (oh God, my feet are killing me) She said the last part to herself.

And Loosh? He said the same stuff, but from his giant podium as Controller. He got through some of the one syllable stuff, but he should have avoided any use of the word mechanical. This one was four syllables. Too much for Lush Loosh. He could only pronounce it “me-chac-inul” and in BFL 600 million ears hurt everytime he said it.

“I can protect you, from me-chac-inul weapons. That’s my job and I IN-tend, to do it
I’ll bankrupt the country if that’s what it takes, and if I do and it hurts, then screw it!”

He always ended with heh-heh-heh. And some times a second heh-heh-heh. No one knew what this meant, and no one else could make that sound, not even Rich Little!

So it was that this theft of the uncolored house, and the controls of government in BFL dragged on and on.

No one stood up to him – except for one old man, not in government, just an old but still very intelligent and obviously passionate person. He was old, and no one knew his real name, they just called him “oldman.” It was said he was a fan of Keefer Sutherland and he longed to solve difficult problems in just one day, so he took that name. Thus it was that Keefe the old man evolved as the only voice in BFL with the intellectual intensity, the humble honesty and the verbal virility (not to mention the altogether alliteration) to stand up to Loosh and Shamey. Keefe had a little cracked megaphone that he found under the seats after an NFL game. He couldn’t afford to see the game, cause the ticket price was six million dollars, and a beer was three hundred and six. An 81-year-old rich woman had used it to be able to shout, “Kill ‘em, Kill the liberals.” The teams playing were the Bears and the Giants. She knew that, but that’s just the way her mind worked.

But whenever he could, KeefeOldman, as he came to be known, would try to point out the incessant use of deceptive euphemisms by Loosh & Shamey and crowd, to deceive the BraveFreeLand people. But it seemed no one was listening. The lawmaking bodies were all afflicted with acute cowardice, or terminal lethargy. The Doctors weren’t sure which, but where Loosh & Shamey were concerned, continued to give in to the most exorbitant and outrageous requests. Always more money for war in The Rock, even though the majority of them publicly stated they were against more of this insanity. So it dragged on.

Then, as the people of BraveFreeLand approached their quadrennial choosingday, things appeared to take a turn for the positive. It was said appeared to, because, midway into the preparation for the choosing, there occurred a split in the unity of those who defied the current criminal “rulers” of BFL. Those who appeared to be destined to bring about a total departure from the cancerous mindset then prevailing, seemed to be quibbling about minutiae, and not concentrating on un-choosing the likes of Loosh & crowd. It was said they could nominate a tree trunk and it would be chosen, but they were quiblling. Bizarre.

There are those who think it will all work out, and Cord and Ditch will be relegated to the scrapheap of history, and incarcerated, but time will tell. See, this arrangement in use in BraveFreeland to choose rulers every so often is a great privilege, but it’s flawed. It’s been suggested that, if the people are allowed to choose the Controller, inevitably, sooner or later, they will choose an idiot. That truism has been around for a couple centuries, but I don’t believe the people were ready to accept the fact they had chosen TWO of them, one brain-damaged, the other a megalomaniac, and both liars, do you?

But … oh, that’s right, the people didn’t choose Cord and Ditch, did they? The 9 high priests did.