For all its ugliness, the Scooter Libby commutation is but a mouse fart in a hurricane.
The fact is that Bush is the most powerful person in the world and in all history. Not only can he make the independent decision, he can bring more weapons to bear and wreak more havoc than anyone who has ever lived. . He needs no approval, suffers no burden to consult. If at Four o'clock tomorrow morning he lifts the red phone by his bedside and orders that Tehran be destroyed, the missiles will be launched, the planes will depart on the designated target within the hour. And it doesn't have to be Tehran. It could be Moscow, Peking, London or Chicago. We may learn of this subsequently, if he permits such communication. . There is no way to stop this between now and tomorrow morning, however treacherous, imbecilic and mad such a prospect appears. . When there was a chance to rise against crooked elections, we didn't do it. . When there was a chance to deprive him of the budget for his war of lies, we gave him everything he asked for without substantive restriction, and financed the slaughter to continue. . When there was a chance to impeach him, we took it "off the table." . What will he do next? Anything he wishes. . And you and I and the fate of the world are in his hands tonight, and tomorrow morning and for as long as it takes us to comprehend this reality and to muster the courage to stop the treachery. . I am past anger at this situation, past disgust at what should be the political opposition, now the majority of both houses of the people's Congress. . What is tragedy beyond an inevitably bad result, or a treacherous situation made hopeless by a regurgitatingly disgusting lack of courage by those vested to oppose it? . Tomorrow morning belongs to Bush, and so do you and I, and so does the world. And thus it will remain while cowards walk the halls of Congress and the streets of America. . And we deserve no better. . ...................Rafe Pilgrim
Rafe Pilgrim, after "a life largely wasted on hard honest work," found himself a jungle of turkey oak, scrub pine and giant palmettos up a dirt road running east of Crystal River, Florida, which neither school busses nor the U.S. Postal Service dare to assay. Sharing a house of his own design with Spanky the cat, Darla a pit bull, and a foundling of mysterious breed named Alfalfa -- all collectively known as Our Gang -- he spends his time "productively: writing poetry, working for peace, and gazing at the sky."
Details:
Central High School of Philadelphia, University of Maryland, Syracuse University, University of Maine, Ursinus College, Air Force Intelligence (Washington D.C., Germany), Ford Motor Company, Philco-Ford Corporation, Eighth Day Gallery, Phi Kappa Phi, Romey Everdell Award for Journalism,(1988), Hole in one (1998), and struggling to find America ever since 2000.
It's like in martial arts, when the opponent pokes you with a finger you grab the finger, and thus control the hand, the arm, and the opponent. That's how it works in politics and public opinion: a small part of the whole becomes the symbol and epitomy (the typical case), and provides entrance into the public mind.
by
Blue Pilgrim (0 articles, 3 quicklinks, 2 diaries, 998 comments)
on Tuesday, July 3, 2007 at 7:26:32 AM
Of what I have seen of the comments on the subject, here and else where, the positive posters conveniently over look one "minor" detail.
That being that if Libby went jail, there is a very good chance he would tell all, and in this case, "all" would include who outed Plame. This would be a total disaster for the MISadministration.
For those that try to compare Libby to Clinton on the charges, Clinton's case involved consensual sex. Libby's involved possible treason.
by
kanawah (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 54 comments)
on Tuesday, July 3, 2007 at 7:41:01 AM
"For those that try to compare Libby to Clinton on the charges, Clinton's case involved consensual sex. Libby's involved possible treason."
Yes, and some of the same people who were saying "it's not about sex, it's about the rule of law" are now saying there was no underlying crime in Libby's case, that he was convicted on a mere technicality. Senator Kay Baily Hutchinson is the first one I caught.
by
Maxwell (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 184 comments)
on Tuesday, July 3, 2007 at 8:47:57 AM
You are most certainly right. The treachery exists at the pleasure of three levels. The first is the incumbent government, who are the originators. The second is the putative politcal opposition, who if not cowardly are content to abide in their fecklessness. The third is the electorate, who either lack the insight they are losing America, or are unwilling to face the risks and work to save America, or who simply do not care. And in this, as in most human endeavor, we will gain the outcome -- however virtuous or tyranical -- that we deserve.
by
Rafe Pilgrim (23 articles, 0 quicklinks, 6 diaries, 26 comments)
on Wednesday, July 4, 2007 at 9:50:28 AM
I really don't think it is fair that you blame all of us. I for one have been calling my representatives in congress and the senate at least weekly. I am really about fed up because no one is holding king george accountable. I guess I see this as george's latest finger to the american people while the rest of the government is on recess.
by
beccy (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 87 comments)
on Wednesday, July 4, 2007 at 12:13:13 PM
