Politico.com published a fascinating interview with the ex-Vice-President the other day in which he staunchly defended the Bush administration policies many believe he orchestrated. Liberal feedback has been furious, mainly concerning his continued attempts at utilizing fear tactics.
On Crooks and Liars I found the following post: Rachel Maddow Show: Glenn Greenwald on Cheney's Fear Mongering. In the video, Greenwald makes a neat parallel between what the Bush Administration apologists keep saying, that he (Bush) kept us safe since 9/11, and the fact that Clinton "kept us safe" for years after the first World Trade Center attack.
On Opinione I found this post: Cheney terrorized Americans more than the terrorists ever did. The video is Keith Olbermann doing his thing, which I sometimes find to be a bit much, but with which I agree totally.
Showing posts with label bush administration. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bush administration. Show all posts
Friday, February 6, 2009
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Opinione: The deafening silence of the press in America
Over on Opinione I discovered a terrific critique of the what's happened in Iraq and continues to happen and how it happened: The deafening silence of the press in America.
I thought it was quite witty to call Cheney Bush's boss, but before the sentence was out, we have a serious inference. Could the fact that these guys had been in the oil business have had something to do with it? And, as il grande principe asks, why wasn't the press more vocal about that?
The results have been tragic for many and very profitable for a few. Some believe the American casualties, dead and wounded, are over 100,000 and the Iraqi numbers over 1,000,000. The profits for politically favored military contractors have been incalculable.
Is this something that can be blamed on the press? Or is this just the way business is done in Washington D.C.? Do you think these appointments, and others like them, will derail the Obama administration into being another train wreck like its predecessor?
What's your opinion?
One of the reasons President Bush and his boss Dick Cheney were able to launch the war in Iraq in 2003, was due to the relative silence of the American press and the lack of investigative journalism into the conflict of interest of two former oil industry executives desire to go to war in Iraq.
I thought it was quite witty to call Cheney Bush's boss, but before the sentence was out, we have a serious inference. Could the fact that these guys had been in the oil business have had something to do with it? And, as il grande principe asks, why wasn't the press more vocal about that?
The results have been tragic for many and very profitable for a few. Some believe the American casualties, dead and wounded, are over 100,000 and the Iraqi numbers over 1,000,000. The profits for politically favored military contractors have been incalculable.
The relative silence of the US press to make an issue of the recent nomination and approval of former defense company lobbyists William Lynn and Michele Flournoy for high-level Department of Defense positions is another example of the diminishing power of the press in America. Similar to the conflict of interest that Dick Cheney had in granting a non competitive defense contract to a company he had been the president of, the recent Congressional approval of former lobbyists in the Pentagon also presents a conflict of interest for the Pentagon and the new Obama administration.
Is this something that can be blamed on the press? Or is this just the way business is done in Washington D.C.? Do you think these appointments, and others like them, will derail the Obama administration into being another train wreck like its predecessor?
What's your opinion?
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Another Guantánamo Survivor
The International Herald Tribune reports on the release from custody of Muhammad Saad Iqbal. His incredible story is now coming to light. Arrested in Jakarta in 2002, he was shuttled around the world to different American-run prisons, aggressively interrogated and ended up spending almost 6 years in Guantánamo. Not unlike the Muslim family we talked about the other day, this guy was arrested for having said something suspicious.
How far should the American Security Forces go to protect us from terrorism? Do you feel like Cheney said last week that it's acceptable to torture people? Wasn't America supposed to be a safe haven from this kind of activity? Weren't we called "The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave?"
One thing occurs to me about this is that it's not only Muslim men who look like Iqbal who have been subjected to this kind of treatment. We've got a long history of incarcerating real Americans who turn out to be innocent, as we've discussed before.
Please leave a comment.
But the full stories of individual detainees like Iqbal are only now emerging after years in which they were shuttled around the globe under the Bush administration's system of extraordinary rendition, which used foreign countries to interrogate and detain terrorism suspects in sites beyond the reach of American courts.
Iqbal was never convicted of any crime, or even charged with one. He was quietly released from Guantánamo with a routine explanation that he was no longer considered an enemy combatant, part of an effort by the Bush administration to reduce the prison's population.
How far should the American Security Forces go to protect us from terrorism? Do you feel like Cheney said last week that it's acceptable to torture people? Wasn't America supposed to be a safe haven from this kind of activity? Weren't we called "The Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave?"
One thing occurs to me about this is that it's not only Muslim men who look like Iqbal who have been subjected to this kind of treatment. We've got a long history of incarcerating real Americans who turn out to be innocent, as we've discussed before.
Please leave a comment.
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