First I would like to go over a few points in mind; regarding the Constitution.Mr. Bush has waged war without required congressional declarations. He has been spying and wiretapping in direct conflict to the 4th amendment. He has allowed and continues to permit torture and extraordinary renditions that violate the 8th amendment. He has a blatant disregard for shared government, he has no respect for separation of checks and balances that require congress to be involved in domestic and foreign- policy decision making.
Congress has great authority to actively participate in foreign and military affairs. The legislative branch was the first defined branch of government to afford to it the power “to regulate commerce with foreign nations”, “to define and punish…offenses against the law of nations”, “to declare war, grant letters of marquee and reprisal, make rules regarding captures of land and water”, and “and to make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying out execution of foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this constitution in the government of the United States, or in any department or office thereof.”
Then there are the many treaty violations, which effect environment and humanity. There are two that stick our in my mind at the moment with great importance: The Stockholm Convention on eliminating chemicals the international community has agreed upon to be extremely hazardous to human health and environment. The next being of no less importance, the Rotterdam Convention, which controls the international trade of highly toxic chemicals. They are both clear cases of significant failures not only of US leadership but responsible participation in global efforts to protect human life, health and stability. Here is a simple fact to astonish even the most deniable person: the US between 2001 and 2003 exported 28 million pounds of insecticides that are banned here at home. There are also two vital environmental agreements that miserably stand out as non-achievements, first being the failure to ratify the Kyoto Agreement on Climate Change (source: NRDC) and secondly but nonetheless no better, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. I suppose that 4 million people a year dying is not quite important enough as the donations he has received. Now we can also list a few of the repugnant International Law Relating to Nuclear Weapons, which he has such a fondness for in regards to other nations faults.
- International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion.
- Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty
- Non Proliferation Treaty
- Geneva Convention Protocol
- UN Charter
- US Constitution (Source: IEER)
These are but just a few of the outrageous errors of this administration that need rectification and immediately. I recently read a blog that had a list resulting in over 300 major league fouls, I took the time and investigated and to my best knowledge all I could unfortunately find out was that not one was off beat or incorrect.
We have withered through too many years of this ridiculous administration and now it is time to stand up, yell, scream and take our rights back. I would like to one day say to my two children that the errors made are now corrected and we are able to once again take the place we once had in the world as leaders of human rights, foreign relationships and civil rights. I would one day like to say to them, that the Unites States of America has once again joined the rest of the international community in support of no longer enforcing an illegal boycott of Cuba, that we have signed the UN agreement to curb the international flow of illicit small arms, the International Criminal Court Treaty, the Land Mine Treaty, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, UN International Covenant on Economic, Social and Culture Rights, or perhaps the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. That will be the day that I am proud again to be an American!
We are now entering a year of elections and the errors cannot be left unattended, we must find the persons who will not tarnish our names in countries throughout this vast world. We must find the persons to lead, as we the people want. We must find the persons to represent who we are, what we think and know to be correct. There shall not be anymore hidden agendas to support a minority who flaunts its wealth as the majority suffers in its consequences. Let us only hope though, at this moment, that we are able to vote and that those votes count or are counted!
