The Surveillance Industrial Complex

Information Technology and weakened privacy laws have diminished our privacy rights and are eroding our freedoms to a point never before seen in this country. Equally as dangerous is how the real and perceived treat of terrorism has given rise to a new and powerful industrial base centered on surveillance technology. Acting under the broad mandate of the “war” on terror, the United States security establishment is systematically expanding its surveillance capacity by pressing into the private sector, in order to monitor and report upon the activities of American citizens. This ongoing push of the Federal Government into our daily lives, spurred by revolutionary developments in communications, computers, databases, cameras, monitor and sensors, is helping to create a nightmarishly Orwellian surveillance society. Even more alarming than the rise of this new Surveillance Industrial Complex is how it has coincided with the massive erosion of our legal and constitutional rights; the very foundations that this country was founded upon.

One obstacle to the government’s goal of monitoring the activities of all of its citizens will likely remain in place regardless of current technological advancement. There will always be many more of us than there are of them and thus the ratio of those watched to those watching will always be dramatically skewed. Unfortunately, Big Brother is aggressively trying to overcome this obstacle by enlisting the services of private individuals and corporations to serve as auxiliary members of its growing surveillance network. This will allow the government…our government to overcome the practical limits on its resources or its State Administrative Capacity. Enlisting corporations and private sector individuals gives the government unlimited access to a virtually endless supply of private data, providing Uncle Sam with detailed insight into our daily lives. It also allows for the development of “Swarm Intelligence” born of distributed surveillance techniques, in which scattered, independent sources of information are developed and pieced together to form the type of Big Picture analysis that the Federal Government could never develop on its own. Having the private sector involved in information gathering and data mining also helps to create and maintain uncertainty in society as to who you can trust with your information, thus amplifying the effects of surveillance on our collective behavior and psychology, while offering the government a path of least resistance for working around what few existing privacy laws remain on the books.

So should it surprise you when it was reported today that our government has been quietly using a system that tracks airline passengers meal choices and seat preferences, using the information to develop secret dossiers including computer generated scores designed to rate each traveler as a potential criminal or terrorist. These scores are currently assigned to those who enter and leave the country and after a computer assesses their travel records, where they are from, how they paid for a ticket, their motor vehicle records, past one way ticket purchases, seating preferences and what they order for lunch. Oh and by the way, you will never know about the content of information on your dossier, you will not be allowed to directly challenge these assessments and the government plans to keep them on file for 40 years. Currently this Automated Targeting System or ATS is the most advanced and invasive targeting system in the world. Now the folks over at Homeland Security say that ATS will dramatically improve our ability to spot criminals, terrorists and other threats. However if you read between the lines…just a little… you will notice how the lines have become blurred. These security and surveillance systems are supposed to be used for the “war” on terrorism not on domestic criminal activity or ambiguous “other threats”. And if you think that this only effects international travelers you had better think again. A similar Homeland Security project called Secure Fly was developed over two years ago for domestic flights, but was temporarily banned by congress until it can pass ten specific tests for accuracy. Once it does, the government will share the data developed from ATS and Secure Fly with state, local and foreign governments and in some cases it will be shared with the courts, congress and select private contractors. It seems as though the only person they will not share your information with is you. Are you scared yet?

Insufficient powers of surveillance was not the problem on 9/11; a congressional investigation into the attacks as well as the report issued by the National Commission on Terrorist Acts Upon The United States (the “9/11 Report”), found that the governments failure to prevent the attacks was as a direct result of fundamental organizational breakdowns in the intelligence community and the governments failure to make effective use of the surveillance powers it already has. However, just as the Cold War brought about the rise of the Military Industrial Complex or MIC, the threat of terrorism is providing a fertile environment for the rise of the equally dangerous Surveillance Industrial Complex or SIC (now that’s funny). So instead of making use of and augmenting the information systems and surveillance apparatus already in place, our government seized the opportunity at hand and realized that there is far more money to be made developing complex, cutting edge technological solutions than there is in simply sorting out and fixing those existing organizational, bureaucratic or basic security problems. Why strengthen the cockpit doors on all airliners or provide professional training for airport screeners when you can have ATS, Secure Fly, Carnivore or ECHELON?

The reality is that there is a massive new infrastructure for everyday background checks on Americans being built right now. Through the Patriot Act, the government has created a system for near-total surveillance of our nations financial system. The Patriot Act also mandates that companies transform themselves into surrogate agents of the government. The truth is that sifting through the lives of billions of people on a daily basis is never going to consistently uncover that one in a million terrorist…ever. These actions have eroded the foundation of American life and American principals, seriously undermining our faith in the integrity of our government while losing friends, prestige and credibility abroad. The problem is that there is no Democratic or Republican answer. As I have said before they are from the same church just different pews. We need a viable, third party…not a fringe party with fringe candidates. We need representation that understands the reality of our situation in the world today and looks to develop policy accordingly. What we currently have is quite the opposite. We currently are trying to force the rest of the world into conforming to our views and policies, stubbornly refusing to admit that our view of the world may be antiquated and flawed. We better stand up and do something now or there will be nothing left of this country so many of our sons and daughters fought and died for and nothing left of this country that any of us will recognize.

Think About it

Fighting a Losing Battle

Recently, the Supreme Court refused to hear a case involving the governments continued assault on our First Amendment rights. The case would determine whether or not reporters have any protection against government-compelled disclosure of their confidential sources and whether the government may ignore these protections based on affidavits built solely on circumstantial evidence. In other words, Federal warrants issued in situations whereas the government lacks anything resembling clear and specific evidence.

At issue is a post 9-11 article discussing possible links between al-Qaeda and two US based charities. The NY Times learned that the government planned to freeze the group’s assets and called the organizations for comment shortly before the FBI raided their offices. The Times refused to reveal its sources and the Justice Department subpoenaed over three weeks of the journalists phone records, which the Times contends would compromise the identity of a number of confidential sources having no connection with the investigation. A NY District Judge agreed with the Times, ruling that it had the right to protect it’s confidential sources. However, the US Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit disagreed, ruling 2-1 that the news organization had no First Amendment protection from the government and it’s desire to review the journalists phone records. Upon appeal the Supreme Court ruled that the case does not rise to the level of seriousness necessary to compel the Courts interests.

Really? I thought that was the Supreme Courts primary function. So when the government…our government continues to ignore specific constitutional protections the Supreme Court is uninterested? The First Amendment specifically addresses that the government shall make no law that will prohibit or abridge the exercise of free speech or that of a free press. Why? Because our founding Fathers recognized the importance of a free press and how it would serve as a powerful check to governmental abuses of power. Those in power don’t like media scrutiny very much and unfortunately those in Washington are trying very hard to negate the power of the press and thereby, the knowledge of the people. Second, this is an example of the government completely ignoring the Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure whereas no warrants are to be issued without probable cause. If nothing else one would think that the rapidly growing split developing between the lower courts governing free speech and First Amendment protections would be enough to warrant attention from the High Court. Don’t get me wrong, I am not implying that the Court is standing on the sidelines oblivious to the impact it has on the subject. To the contrary, I believe that the Supreme Court is speaking volumes by doing nothing. By refusing to review cases such as this, the Court is quietly providing rubber-stamp approval for the egregious and unconstitutional actions of this Administration.

Quietly and without much fanfare our rights are being eliminated. One of my biggest fears is that most people don’t realize that this is not the America that they think it is or that they are led to believe it is. My bigger fear is that once Americans finally do recognize the reality as to what this country has become, the damage will be too severe and our fate sealed.

Think About it

Election Day

Well I did something today that I never thought I would do. I did not vote. Unlike so many people who choose not to vote because they are too busy or apathetic, I withheld my vote out of principal. I know people say that if you don’t vote you forfeit the right to complain about the way things are done. I have said that many times over the years to others who have chosen not to participate in the electoral process. However, never in my life have I been so disenchanted with our government. People in Washington are not interested in helping you or in protecting the future for our children. People in Washington are only interested in staying in Washington…period…end of story. Can you name a candidate that has made an impact…a real impact on global warming or the development of alternative energy? How about curing disease, improving care for the elderly or eliminating poverty? If you are honest with yourself then the answer is no. Now your “leaders” may tell you that the climate in Washington is such that gridlock has come to rule the day. They will state that true progress will only be realized after the Republican incumbents are swept from office and new and inspired Democrats are elected to replace them. That couldn’t be further from the truth. The problem is that there are very few meaningful differences between Republicans and Democrats. In fact I argue that they are of the same church just sitting in different pews.

The reality is that as these political turf wars continue to rage, real and complicated issues are increasingly being ignored. These are real issues with serious consequences that will affect our lives, the lives of our children and the future of humanity. We have to be able to talk to our enemies. We have to be able to admit that our current way of life is contributing to the destruction of the planet. As a nation, we have to recognize that we are the 800 pound gorilla in the room and what we do affects everyone around us. I was taught growing up that dialogue was always the best, most effective option for resolving a dispute. Yet with the world balancing precipitously on the brink of chaos, we refuse to talk directly to those governments our leaders warn are the most dangerous. Those elected to positions of power want to keep you afraid. They need you to be afraid. They want you to digest your news in small, easy to understand sound bites, letting the talking heads inform you only about issues that they want you to know about. We are in a serious governmental crisis…a leadership vacuum swirling at the very heart of our republic. Don’t get me wrong, I still believe that Election Day is all about the democratic process; unfortunately it’s just not about democracy. It is about power not about the populace. If you don’t believe me then ask yourself how on earth has the wealthiest country the world has ever known allowed its government to become so ineffective? How can a country that produced George Washington, Abe Lincoln and FDR elect George W. Bush twice and even consider electing Hillary Clinton? So as you go to the polls today ask yourself; do you truly believe that these politicians really give a flying frog fart about you? Do you really think that they are going to work harder to improve your life or to improve their own? Tell me you believe the person you just voted for cares more about global warming or developing reliable, affordable and renewable sources of energy than they do about their own careers. That he/she is concerned about the threat to drinkable water, breathable air and emerging lethal diseases. Tell me their solutions to the war in Iraq, quelling the rising tensions in the Middle East or the emerging socio-military threat ominously looming in communist China. What is it again that they were going to do about the future collapse of social security, the explosively rising cost of health care, the rapidly growing numbers of people living in poverty at home or about repairing our corrupt legal system. You would hope that the new Republican or Democrat you just elected will jump right on those issues you deem to be most important to you and your family. However, the odds are that the only thing your newly elected Senator or Congressman will do beginning on day 1 is to start planning for his or her own reelection.

The Square Peg and the Round Hole

You cannot eradicate an idea with a gun or a missile. Unfortunately, that is exactly the problem that the United States faces in this war on terror. There are so many reasons why our attempts to broker a long lasting peace in the Middle East has failed to make any meaningful progress. First and foremost is our demand for the emergence of western style democracy in the region. What makes this problematic and is clearly evident in our struggles in Iraq is that we feel that our view of how a country should govern its people is morally superior to the views of another. That my friends is ethnocentrism and is in fact the cornerstone upon which many European powers used to form the foundation for their Colonial efforts in India, Africa and the Middle East. Erroneously the average person believes that the Arab-Israeli conflict is just about Israel and the Palestinians, or Lebanon, or Hezbollah, or Syria, or Iran. Unfortunately, these are just the many manifestations and symptoms of a far larger problem. They do not however, begin to touch upon the nature of illness itself. Regardless of how one decides to view the history of the region, whether through religious texts or secular histories, it is clear that its earliest inhabitants are of Semitic origin. Of course there have been many wars fought over this relatively small strip of the planet and numerous powers have possessed and influenced this volatile region over time. However, the real root of the problem does not exist in ancient history, as many would have you believe. Unfortunately, its roots are very familiar and are much closer to home.

The epicenter of the current problem exists in the more recent history of European colonialism, more specifically French and British colonialism and its aftermath. Post World War I there was a political vacuum created in the region, primarily brought about by the defeat of the Ottoman Empire. The British and the French took little time filling that vacuum and with the Sykes-Picot Agreement of 1916 in place, embarked upon a plan that would create new colonial spheres of influence. Have you ever heard the term divide and conquer? If so do you know what it means historically? It was the British term used to describe its policy for the administration of the Empires colonies. The British thought that if you created new countries with seemingly arbitrary borders, drawn not to include all members of a particular indigenous tribe or people, but to specifically include various tribes and peoples with long histories of hostility and war, then the subjugated “native” population would always be too busy fighting amongst themselves to ever unite and fight their colonial oppressors. So lets take modern day Iraq for example. For the British it was a simple and familiar recipe. Knowing that they would have a terribly difficult time subjugating an all Sunni or Shiite dominated Iraq, the British simply redrew the borders to include a large population of both, sprinkling into the mix a relatively small Kurdish minority for good measure. Finally, they would need to install a monarch then later a brutal, secular dictator to keep the peace. Enter Saddam Hussein. The same can be said for just about every other hot spot in the region. Did you ever wonder why Syria is always involved in Lebanon? It’s because Lebanon was historically part of a larger Syria. Only after a League of Nations mandate gave control of Syria to the French, was the small predominantly Christian coastal region split away and a new country - Lebanon formed.

We don’t have enough time to discuss the British role in the Palestinian conflict and as previously stated I realize that ancient Israelites were probably the first inhabitants of the region. I also know that for a thousand years leading up to the formation of modern day Israel, Arab Palestinians settled, occupied and called the region home. I don’t want to sound unsympathetic but the bones of displaced and subjugated peoples litter history’s long and ever winding road. Here is an idea…ask a Native American how he feels about the Arab Israeli conflict? I wonder where they would stand? There is no doubt that Native Americans were here first and no doubt that they were likewise displaced, murdered and eventually assimilated. Ask yourself how you would feel if all U.S. citizens who are not of Native American descent were forced to leave the country or live under strict Native American cultural traditions or as second-class citizens. I hope you get the point because that is exactly what the British did with the Balfour Declaration and with the creation of a Jewish State in Palestine.

We have to understand the problem in order to fix the problem. A square peg and a round hole will always be a square peg and a round hole. Both remain forever incompatible and forever irreconcilable. To make them fit…to make it work…you will have to change either the peg or the hole. Our elected officials and allies have much to learn from this simple analogy. They continue to ignore the problem as the planet sits precipitously on the brink of a third World War. What we now see developing in the Middle East is a more virulent 21st century version of Pan Arabism. However, the socialist and secular Pan Arab movement of the 1960’s is rapidly being replaced by the emerging ideology of Pan Islamism, which calls for Muslims around the world to unite against all non-Muslim oppressors. What is most troubling to me is that we continue to make all the wrong moves, fanning the flames of radicalism, hate and revenge. We can never hope to solve the problem unless we attempt to deal with it at the most basic level. I can promise you this…until we begin to address the hopelessness and despair that allows a mother to strap explosives to the chests of their children we will never have peace.

Think about it.

Serious Stuff

Well I have got to give the President a little credit with his “axis of evil” bit. I remember first hearing that phrase, used to describe Iran, Iraq and North Korea, in an address to the nation immediately following the attacks of September 11. To the Presidents credit, he appears to have gotten two out of three correct, even though in Iraq we appear to have gone to war with the least threatening of the three. As most of us now know, the war in Iraq has seriously damaged our nation’s credibility and our prestige around the globe. Our unilateral involvement places serious strains on our military, limiting our ability to project military power to other areas of the globe. Take Iran and North Korea as cases in point. Both countries are hostile to the United States and its allies, both countries are developing nuclear weapons programs and the systems to deliver them and both countries continue to snub their nose at the United States because they realize that we are limited in our ability to respond to their emerging threat. Not only do the regimes in North Korea and Iran realize that we currently lack sufficient military strength to threaten them directly, but that we are also hamstrung politically as domestic support for continued military conflicts dwindle and as Russia and China openly counter our efforts in both situations.

North Korea is the latest to challenge the regional status quo, with its well publicized missile launches last week. The North Korean missiles proved to be duds as they fell harmlessly into the Sea of Japan soon after launch and the situation was downplayed by many of the network talking heads and by even the President himself. However, don’t let the jokes on Leno fool you, this is serious. Japan, a country constitutionally prohibited from using war as a tool to settle international disputes, is publicly debating whether it should destroy any new North Korean missiles being readied for launch. The Japanese government was shaken by the North Korean missile launches and is hardening its stance heading into the U.N. Security Councils vote on tough sanctions proposed last week. Although the United States, Great Brittan and France (yes France) support the Japanese initiative, the odds on the resolution passing seem slim. Many feel that though Russia is likely to abstain from voting on the resolution, China will use its veto to keep the resolution from being adopted. To their credit, the Japanese government has taken an uncompromising stand against the North Korean action, refusing to change the resolutions wording despite the growing prospect of a Chinese veto. The Japanese government will not yield on its desire to see strict sanctions placed on Pyongyang. Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso stated on Sunday that “to compromise (our position) because one country (China) has veto power, even though most other countries support us, would send the wrong message.” Absolutely!!! Let China veto the resolution. Maybe then the rest of the world will see China for what it really is and recognize it for the threat to world peace it has become.

The Bush Administration has repeatedly tried to downplay the North Korean threat as it continues to be distracted by the un-winnable war in Iraq. In fact, our own prestige has been so badly damaged world wide, that countries such as North Korea and Iran have now chosen to ignore any saber rattling coming out of Washington because they simply do not fear U.S. reprisal. Sadly they are right. How are we able to conduct a preemptive strike against Iraq, a country found to have no weapons of mass destruction and that posed no threat to this country, while allowing North Korea, a country known to possess nuclear weapons, to launch test missiles aimed at Alaska? We need to demonstrate a similar resolve to that of our friends in Tokyo. Yet the Bush administration feels that a hands off approach to North Korea will force Pyongyang back to the table and that a preemptive strike is too risky and thus not an option. It is my opinion that the risk of inaction will prove to be far greater. The North Korean government will continue to be emboldened by our lack of commitment and resolve to defend a line in the sand we ourselves drew. They will continue to stockpile missiles and nuclear materials, tipping the regional balance of power and pursuing its own interests with impunity. Even worse, North Korea has a long history of selling weapons systems to countries in the Middle East and may even sell them to terrorist groups. All the while Iran watches with interest as the drama unfolds, realizing that if the U.S. will not respond to North Korea, who just launched test missiles at Seattle, it will do little to effect their insatiable desire to develop nuclear weapons and modernize its military.

The Bush Administration seems paralyzed by internal divisions on how to best deal with North Korea and Iran and as a result we have chosen to outsource these issues to other Western countries and regional players. The truth is that North Korea will only modify its behavior when it recognizes that it is in immediate danger. That is why we should position ourselves to eliminate any North Korean missiles readied for launch and destroy the country’s weapons research and development facilities. We should follow up with surgical air strikes on any North Korean infrastructure that would support and enable goods to be transported into the country from China and place a naval blockade on the country further isolating Pyongyang from the rest of the world. We need to demonstrate to the North Koreans just how seriously we take their threats and call their bluff. Folks, I hate to tell you, appeasement never works. It did not work with Hitler and it will not work with the North Koreans or the Iranians. Diplomacy should always be the preferred method for settling international disputes. However, when diplomacy fails to produce the desired result, we must be prepared to use any and all options available to us. You can not offer carrots without the implied threat of the stick. When you offer only carrots, you only offer appeasement and enticements to go further. The truth is if you take care of North Korea you will take care of Iran. You will also send a strong message to Beijing and Moscow that they will no longer influence this country’s foreign policy in Asia or the Middle East. However, if we continue to ignore the issue, we will soon find ourselves with two very real and very serious threats…the type of threats we only imagined we had in Iraq. WMD in the hands of rogue regimes, hostile to the US and its allies, ready and willing to export their technology and ideology to developing countries across the globe.

Serious stuff…think about it.

It's About Time!

All I can say is it’s about time! It appears that Congress is finally waking up to the fact that this President and his administration have seriously crossed the line. In fact it seems that both Congress and the Supreme Court have woken up to smell the coffee. If you are a frequent reader of this Blog, then you are all too familiar with my position on the Presidents unprecedented abuse of executive authority. If you too are concerned about the Presidents assault on the Constitution and Congresses abdication of its constitutional responsibilities, then recent news out of Washington should provide you with some relief.

This week, the Senate Judiciary Committee announced that it was reviewing the Presidents questionable use of signing statements when signing new bills into law. These statements have become a primary tool for the President to subvert his duty and responsibility to uphold U.S. laws passed by Congress. President Bush has issued over 750 signing statements since taking office, often claiming the right not to enforce laws passed by Congress that he feels will infringe upon his presidential authority. This is obviously problematic because the President is responsible for enforcing the laws passed by Congress and to respect the separation of powers as outlined in the Constitution. However, President Bush consistently acts as though he is above the law and his aggressive use of these signing statements is evidence of that fact. For the record, President Bush is not the only executive to have issued signing statements. However, it is the manner in which President Bush uses these signing statements that is unprecedented. In most cases President Bush’s signing statements state that he would refuse to enforce part of a law, specifically if it conflicts with his unprecedented claim of presidential power. These statements are wide ranging and include a congressional ban on torture, affirmative action rules, protections for the integrity of scientific research and the protection of government whistleblowers. These statements and the actions of this administration are in blatant defiance of the constitutional powers granted to Congress and undermine the systems of checks and balances outlined therein. The President is using signing statements as a way around the use of a presidential veto. In fact, this President has not vetoed a single law passed by Congress. If the Congress passes a law that the President does not like, he simply states that he has no intention of executing the law as written. News flash Mr. President, neither the Constitution nor federal law provides you the right to choose which provisions of the laws passed by Congress you will enforce. Civics 101.

Also this week, the House Judiciary Committee adopted a “resolution of inquiry” to formally pursue any and all documents held specifically by the president and attorney general relating to warrantless requests made by the NSA and other Federal agencies to telecommunication providers regarding records of customers calls. House Resolution 819 requests the president and directs the attorney general to submit all documents relating to requests made without warrant by the NSA or other Federal agency to telephone providers…for access to telephone communications of persons within the United States, other than those authorized by federal electronic surveillance statutes. Bravo! The Presidents approval of the warrantless wiretapping of Americans by the NSA violates the unequivocal restrictions on domestic spying as outlined in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and reflects the Presidents determination to ignore the rule of law and the Constitution.


Finally, the Supreme Court ended its term by striking down the administrations use of military tribunals at Guantanamo Bay. The court ruled that the system of military tribunals established by the Bush administration to try detainees violates the Geneva conventions and U.S. law. The administration’s use of these tribunals is consistent with a larger pattern of the President’s abuse of executive power and judicial review of the administrations conduct is long over due. The court ruled 5-3 that the administration would either have to come up with new procedures to prosecute detainees or it will have to release them from military custody. Justice John Paul Stevens, writing for the majority stated that “the tribunals must be understood to incorporate at least the barest of those trail protections that have been recognized by customary international law” and that “the military commission at issue is not expressly authorized by any congressional act.” In a concurring opinion, Justice Stephen Bayer wrote that Congress has not issued the executive a “blank check”, stating that Congress has denied the president the legislative authority to create military commissions of the kind at issue here. The court also establishes that federal courts have jurisdiction to hear appeals involving “enemy combatants” held overseas in military custody. The “enemy combatant” designation, according to the Bush administration, means the suspect can be held without charges in a military prison without the protections of the U.S. criminal justice system, such as the right to counsel. The ruling means that the administration will now have to adopt a military commission system for trying accused terrorists that meets international standards.
These developments are a welcome step in the right direction, as Congress and the Court confirmed at least in part that our country is to be governed by the rule of law not the rule of a man. However, we are not out of the woods just yet. Though Congress is to be applauded for finally confronting the President on his unparalleled grab for power, it too must be held accountable to finish what it started. It must restore the delicate balance of power and the system of checks and balances as outlined in the Constitution and never abdicate their responsibility to the will of one man. I’ll say it again, it’s about time…now keep it up!

Run Forrest...Run!!!

“Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”

-President Thomas Jefferson

Wasn’t it Forrest Gump who coined the phrase stupid is as stupid does? Well if it was good old Forrest who coined that now famous phrase, then Representative Peter King, R-NY and Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez are now the embodiment of it.

Over the weekend, Representative King, the sitting chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, urged the Bush administration to seek criminal charges against all newspapers that reported on a secret, albeit illegal, financial monitoring program used by the administration to trace terrorists called SWIFT. King said that he would encourage Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez to begin an investigation and prosecution of the New York Times- the reporters, the editors and the publisher. King is quoted as saying that “we are at war and for the Times to release information about secret operations and methods is treasonous.” King also charged that the paper was “more concerned about a left-wing elitist agenda than it was about the security of America”. If that isn’t bad enough, Attorney General Gonzalez believes that he can prosecute these journalists for publishing classified information, simply by citing an obligation to national security. Thank you Patriot Act! Attorney General Gonzalez is also on the record as stating that the First Amendment right of a free press should not be absolute when it comes to national security and that he would not hesitate to track telephone calls made by reporters as part of a criminal leak investigation.

Folks, this is what I have been ranting about. This is America remember…the land of the free and the home of the brave? We are witnessing the hijacking of our country and we act as if we are powerless to stop it. America is standing at the edge of a great abyss and most Americans don’t even know what abyss means. When the Attorney General of the United States is on record as saying that the First Amendment right of a free press is not absolute then we have a real problem. If the First Amendment right of a free press is not absolute, then how can the press truly be considered free? One of the most hotly debated issues in this country today is the conduct of the war on terror and it is the responsibility of the free press to publish what they know about our government’s role in it and to provide the American public with what it needs to know in order to participate in the debate. Truth be known, Representative King is nothing more than a right wing thug trying to rally the conservative Republican base and Mr. Gonzalez is a Bush administration hatchet man trying to intimidate and suppress the actions of the media and the public’s right to know. If anyone has an agenda Mr. King it is the President, his administration and those of you in Congress who represent the interests of your party at the expense of those who elected you. Then, you have the audacity to sit there on Fox News and call the report absolutely disgraceful as if you are in some morally superior position to make such a declaration. You sir are absolutely disgraceful and the actions of this administration is criminal.

As I have stated before, we live in a country of law not of men. This is evident when you read the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Ours was designed to be a government of the people, by the people and for the people. Unfortunately that is no longer the case. Today our government is run by professional ideologues and stodgy old bureaucrats. For them it is all about remaining in power and keeping hold of that brass ring. Today politicians like Mr. King are more likely to declare news organizations such as the New York Times traitorous because it publicly reported embarrassing truths, then they are to prosecute government officials who blatantly and routinely break the law and ignore the very constitution they were sworn to defend. Now ask yourself…who is the real traitor? This is a very difficult time and these are very dangerous people. We can not shirk our responsibilities as citizens and blindly accept the actions of this government. Until they change how we elect our government officials, we still wield a very powerful weapon…our vote. However, if things are really ever going to change, then we can not continue to ignore the brutal facts of our reality… it is no longer about us, it is all about them. They patronize us, pacify us and punish us when we get out of line. They talk about doing what is best for America, yet only do what is best for them. Forrest was right; stupid is as stupid does and life can often be like that box of chocolates. However, if we are not able to stem the rising tide of arrogant authoritarianism in this country it might be in our best interest to listen to old Forrest one more time and run.

Think about it.

Calling All Sheep…

It was announced today that numerous federal and local law enforcement agencies across the country are gathering Americans’ phone records from private data brokers without warrant or subpoena. Many of these brokers who often market on the Internet, have broken into customer online accounts and tricked phone companies into revealing personal information, even admitting that their practices violate federal law. The fact that the law enforcement agencies rely on obtaining private information from vendors who openly break the law is disturbing. Legal experts and privacy advocates are very concerned that police actions, bypassing subpoena requirements to obtain private citizens phone records raise serious civil liberty questions.

Experts believe that hundreds of municipal police departments frequently use such services, as do the Department of Homeland Security, The FBI and The U.S. Marshals Service. When are we going to put an end to this? People wake up! This is clearly a violation of the rights and protections provided under the Constitution. This is big stuff and the average American could care less. Why…because the average American has the attention span of a sheep. I’m sorry bahhh its true. These departments continually request information from these companies because they do not have to get a warrant or subpoena. It is a loophole that must be closed. According to Ana Bueno, a police investigator in Redwood City California, her department is requesting any and all information that these companies have regarding cell phone information and account information, including account activity and the account holders address. Can anyone say probable cause? You see the loophole allows the government to circumvent the constitution by purchasing private information that is publicly available, even though the companies providing the data have obtained the information illegally. Congressional investigators estimate that the federal government alone spent over $30 million dollars last year buying personal data from private brokers. These numbers greatly understate the breadth of these transactions since brokers rarely if ever charge law enforcement agencies.

We should feel relieved that congress is set to investigate the matter as the House Energy and Commerce investigations subcommittee plans to begin hearings today. The who is doing what? They might as well let my mother investigate the case, as it would probably get farther than it will in the House Energy and Commerce investigations subcommittee. I’ll bet you a dollar to a doughnut that nothing ever comes of this investigation, it will be business as usual for the government and there is no one but us sheep to blame. Isn’t it obvious that our government, led by President Knucklehead will stoop to any means in order to get what it wants? Taking too much flack over the NSA wiretapping scandal? Purchase the information from criminal agencies. They don’t need a warrant and you don’t have to arrest them. These companies use trickery, impersonation and technology to gather information on phone records or any other private information they think is profitable. James Bearden, a Texas lawyer who represents four such data brokers, compares the actions of the companies in question to the actions of the NSA, which reportedly compiles phone records of ordinary private Americans. Bearden is on record as saying that these companies are being demonized for doing exactly what the government is doing, adding that many of these companies under investigation are partners with law enforcement agencies on a regular basis. James you are wrong, only our benevolent government has the right to illegally initiate and operate programs such as this. Many of the executives summoned to testify before Congress plan to invoke their Fifth Amendment Rights against self-incrimination…if those rights still exist.

It is amazing how it works though. Numerous federal agencies and local police departments have instructed their agents to stop the practice after Congressional inquiries, scattering like cockroaches when you turn on the lights. This practice is pernicious and is an end around the Fourth Amendment plain and simple. Law enforcement agencies are encouraging people in the private sector to commit crimes in order to get the information they want. As I have stated in earlier entries, the NSA and other intelligence agencies routinely ignore the Fourth Amendment protections provided in the Constitution. Their actions are now becoming public and thus a matter of public debate in a critical election year. So they have simply changed their methods.

So the war continues, not on terror but on the Constitution. Not on Islamic fundamentalism but on the fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution. When are we going to wake up? When are we going to say enough is truly enough? When are we going to hold elected officials accountable for their actions and the actions of their minions? Again I assert that average Americans are ignorant sheep and our government knows it, in fact it is banking on it. See the problem with sheep is that as long as they have grass to eat, water to drink and a hillside to roam they are fat and happy. The problem with sheep is that they never worry about tomorrow or the long-term consequences regarding the actions of their sheppard. The problem with sheep is they don’t vote. Are you a sheep?

Think About it.

It's Good to Be a Dick!

We are gathered here today in memory of a great country. A country founded on the principals of freedom, universal human rights and the rule of law. We are here to pay our respects to a fallen country, the land of the free and the home of the brave, because it ultimately succumbed to the ravages of a long and drawn out illness. We saw it coming yet we were in denial. Perhaps had we intervened sooner, the patient could have been saved. Hindsight is a wonderful yet maddening tool. The choices are so clear when they are viewed through the prism of history. You see the price of freedom is eternal vigilance and it was a price that ultimately proved to large to pay. Had we remained eternally vigilant, we would have recognized sooner the abuses of our government and acted accordingly. If we only knew sooner, we could have stopped our elected leaders from trampling upon the very bedrock of our freedoms and draining the lifeblood from our country. Yes, these are very troubling times indeed. Consider the impact of the expanding powers of the President and the executive branch of government. Consider if you will the impact of the actions of this President and the inaction of this Congress. Ponder the reality that we live in a country where we are no longer truly free and that our rights are no longer guaranteed. No, we live in a country where the government can seize evidence without warrant, spy without authority, imprison without charge and kill without cause.

Once again the Administrations disregard for the Constitution and the rule of law is on full display in the developing confrontation over the illegal NSA wiretapping program. As you may know, Senator Arlen Specter, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Intelligence Committee, has been waffling on the subject of issuing subpoenas for telecommunications executives and members of the administration who are involved in the wiretapping scandal. There has been an escalating, public debate between Senator Specter and Vice President Dick Cheney over Congressional oversight of the NSA eavesdropping program and other related domestic spying issues. Last week, Senator Specter in his best attempt at saber rattling, sent the Vice President a strongly worded letter threatening the administration with a “constitutional confrontation” over the issue. Of course Vice Chancellor Cheney responded erroneously by stating that the NSA did not need Congressional approval to run the program, adding though the administration is willing to work with Congress in “good faith”, he didn’t feel there was a need for legislation authorizing the NSA to monitor calls between people in the US and terrorist suspects overseas without court order. Cheney cited that the resolution passed by Congress in the aftermath of 9/11 and the Presidents authority as Commander and Chief give him the power to authorize the NSA program. Wrong again Dick.

The program is clearly in violation of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978, governing wiretaps and counterintelligence probes. Senator Specter has suggested additional legislation requiring the administration to submit the program to a constitutionality review by a secret federal court set up to approve such warrants. Apparently Senator Specter finally developed the resolve to confront the Vice Chancellor only after learning that Dick had been secretly been lobbing fellow Republicans on his committee without his knowledge. According to published reports, Utah Senator Orrin Hatch told Specter that the Vice Chancellor had gone around him in an effort to influence members of the committee to block subpoenas for administration officials and telecommunication executives. Even though the legality of the NSA program and the administrations approval of NSA actions are currently under review, it is clear that the NSA program is in direct conflict with the law as outlined in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. However, the lack of support Senator Specter is receiving from fellow Republican committee members on the issue of subpoenas is appalling and caused Specter to tone down his rhetoric. Obviously the Democrats are crying fowl because they are seeking to politicize the issue rather than confront the legality of it. Regardless, the Senator is waffling on his pledge to fully investigate the NSA program and hold accountable those who have violated the law. What else do you expect from the man who developed the “magic bullet theory” as a plausible explanation establishing Lee Harvey Oswald as the lone gunman responsible for the JFK assignation. Don’t get me started on that. Anyway, it appears that round 1 goes to the Vice Chancellor.

Of course Cheney defended his Senatorial “end around” as completely ethical, stating that it was just government at work…business as usual. That’s funny. When has the word “ethical” and the phrase “government at work” ever been used in the same sentence…that is with a straight face? Cheney stated that by forcing representatives of the telecommunications companies to testify, Congress could inadvertently disclose “extremely sensitive and classified information.” Really? Could it be the extremely classified and sensitive information that the VP is referring to are the names and identities of those ultimately responsible for breaking the law and violating our rights? I can understand can understand your desire to keep that a secret Dick.

Think about it.

Idiots

Representative Mel Watt from the great State of North Carolina is a complete idiot. Equally idiotic is the current leadership of the Democratic Party led by Representative Nancy Pelosi. Mr. Watt is on record implying that the FBI raid on the congressional office of Representative William Jefferson was racially motivated. Mr. Watt, the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, went so far as to say that black voters might ask themselves why action was sought against a “black member of Congress” when there was neither precedent nor rule for it. Watt continued, “you’ve got a whole base of people out there who believe that the Democratic Party takes them for granted” and if action is taken against someone who “is a black member of congress, then our community will legitimately ask what in the world they are doing?” On the flip side you have Nancy Pelosi and her Democratic pals who wish to see Mr. Jefferson resign from Congress or seek to remove him from his position on the House Ways and Means Committee, even though the Congressman has not been indicted of any crime and is presumed innocent until proven guilty. You talk about missing the forest for the trees.

As a refresher, Representative Jefferson is a Democrat from Louisiana. Jefferson is facing a number of Federal charges for accepting over $500,000 in bribe money. While it is true that Mr. Jefferson has not been indicted, two men close to Jefferson have. Brett Pfeffer, a former Jefferson aid, was sentenced to eight years in prison last month for conspiring to commit bribery and aiding and abetting the bribery of a government official (Mr. Jefferson). Vernon Jackson, CEO of iGate Inc., a Louisville based telecommunications company, pled guilty to paying over $400,000 in bribe money to Jefferson. The FBI claims to have videotape of Jefferson taking over $100,000 in bribe money which agents later found stashed in the freezer of his home. The FBI searched Jefferson’s congressional office last month, triggering an outcry from both sides of the political isle that the FBI had encroached upon Congress’ constitutional powers. The President in an effort at damage control, ordered the materials seized by the FBI be turned over to the Justice Department and that the FBI not be involved in the investigation. There you have it, the Readers Digest version. If ever there was an example of the inherent stupidity of our elected officials, this is it. This incident clearly and without question, demonstrates how self-serving our elected officials truly are.

Mr. Watt, you are an idiot because this is clearly not a racial issue. Ms. Pelosi, you are an idiot because it is clearly a bigger issue that the November mid-term election. Mr. Watt, I know that you represent a low income, black constituency. In fact, your district is not dissimilar from the one represented by Mr. Jefferson. I also know that you have been an ineffective leader in Congress and that your ineptness continues to manifest itself by dwindling poll numbers back home. Now I’m thinking, if I were an ineffective black leader needing to reverse voter perception at home, what better way to solidify my base than to play the race card in my own predominantly black district?

Ms. Pelosi, you did a great job criticizing the executive branches power grab immediately after the FBI raid, but your current politically motivated actions are a transparent attempt to ease Jefferson from his position before the November campaign really kicks off. Ms. Pelosi, it is no secret that the Democrats intend to campaign hard and heavy against the Republicans by accusing them of presiding over a “culture of corruption”. Of course you realize that Mr. Jefferson’s continued presence would allow the Republicans to blur the issue in the mid-term election. What a transparent, self-protecting and stupid thing to do Ms Pelosi, even Mr. Watt pointed out that you were acting out of political expedience and that it could eventually blow up in your face.

With all due respect, the issue is about a crooked politician remaining in office and about the executive branch of our government overstepping its legal bounds, further eroding the constitutionally designed separation of powers and its system of checks and balances. For the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus to speak as though this is a race issue is absurd. Hey Mel, the Congressional Black Caucus is by its very definition a racist organization. Established in 1971, the CBC was founded specifically to influence the course of events pertinent to African Americans and to achieve greater equality for persons of African decent in the design and content of domestic and international programs and services. I wonder how the CBC would react to the formation of a Congressional Caucasian Caucus, espousing the same ideals as the CBC only in this case for white Americans? Congressman Watt, if you really want to make a difference do your job. You are an ineffective congressman who is playing the race card because you don’t possess a record of accomplishment that would warrant your reelection. You should be ashamed of yourself. By the way Congressmen Watt, when Ms. Pelosi recently convinced Representative Alan Mollohan of West Virginia to step aside as senior member of the House Ethics Committee after questions were raised over some of his legislative actions, where were you and the Congressional Black Caucus? You get the point don’t you Mel?

Ms. Pelosi, your actions are indicative of just how far our government has veered from its constitutionally mandated responsibilities to the people. You should stand up for issues that are important to all Americans. You are bound by the law to defend and obey the Constitution and the directions it provides. As your party’s congressional leader you should insist on the temporary removal of Mr. Jefferson from any committee he currently is a member of until he is convicted or exonerated of any charges. However, the man is innocent until proven guilty and if memory serves me right, he has not been convicted of any crime to date…hence the word temporary. I know that Mr. Jefferson’s unresolved legal status can have a potentially mitigating effect on your party’s election strategy come November, but he has not yet been charged with any crime. Can you say presumption of innocence or due process? As members of Congress, if you are not going to ensure that these constitutionally guaranteed rights are protected who is? You are both examples of what is wrong with our government. Weak and ineffective people, placed into positions of power and responsibility by an uninformed electorate, whose sole purpose becomes not serving the public good, but serving themselves and their party. For people like Mr. Watt and Ms. Pelosi, this is not really about race, ethics or the Constitution. It is about survival of their species, the promulgation of the political animal. For them and people like them it is more about personal re-election and winning a congressional majority come November. That is what it is really all about. However what is so sad, is that in order to achieve their goals and satisfy their greed, they would gladly sell the rights of the people and the soul of our nation.

Think about it.

Tip of the Iceberg

Here we go again! Brace yourself because another blow to our nations credibility is just around the corner. Members of Congress have quietly been warned about the results of an ongoing military investigation into the mass murder of 24 unarmed Iraqi civilians and a broad attempt to distort the facts and cover-up these atrocities. Last week, senior Pentagon officials finally acknowledged that the preliminary results of an ongoing investigation supports the allegations that U.S. Marines killed 24 innocent Iraqis without provocation. It is believed the massacre took place on November 19, 2005 in the western Iraqi town of Haditha and involved a small number of U.S. Marines who went on a rampage after one of their own was killed by a roadside bomb. Initially, the military refused to acknowledge the possibility that the massacre took place, even ignoring eyewitness reports from Iraqi villagers and compelling evidence collected and presented by Time Magazine. The military was incredibly hostile said Time magazines Aparisim Ghosh. “They accused us of buying into enemy propaganda, sticking to their original story that a roadside bomb killed the Iraqis.”

If Congressman John Murtha is correct, the news of the massacre and its subsequent cover-up will be far more damaging to our war efforts in Iraq and that the political fallout will be much worse than was experienced after the Abu Ghraib scandal. Murtha quotes reports at the “highest level” confirming that the massacre took place without provocation and that there exists a military/government conspiracy to cover it up. Murtha alleges that the Iraqi government was aware of the killings because they made payments to the families for “accidental deaths”. Murtha went on to say that the military initially tried to pin the Iraqi deaths on an IED. Murtha said that a military team was immediately deployed on site to conduct an investigation, but that the preliminary results of the investigation were withheld. "Nobody hears about it. "They don’t tell anybody" Murtha said. "Until March when Time magazine broke the news, nobody realized or recognized what happened.”

Another cover-up. Another tragedy our leaders have tried to sweep under the carpet and hide under a veil of secrecy. How can this continue to happen and what else are we not being told? I speak about the power of a free press, a press that has unfettered access to the halls of power. In this instance, you can see how a free press represents a very real threat to this administration and its conduct of the war. We would not have known about the NSA wiretapping policy, the Abu Ghraib torture scandal or now the Haditha massacre if it were not for the free press. If not for the free press we wouldn't know about the attampted cover-up or that the Iraqi government authorized hush money payouts to families of the murdered Iraqis. You can be sure of one thing, if the Iraqi government was making "accidental death" payouts on behalf of the U.S. military, then people in our military and our government knew about it. They will tell you they didn’t, but I would bet the farm that they did. Published reports state that there are as many as eight Marines from Kilo company of the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment who were directly involved, but that other units knew of what happened because they helped document the aftermath. How do you reconcile the fact that the military documents the massacre in November 2005 and then decided that they are not going to investigate further…that is until the Time article forced their hand. Ask yourself, who decided? Who approved the cover-up? Was it the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs? Think about it, if payouts were made by the Iraqi government to cover-up the actions of the U.S. military and that additional Marine units were brought in to investigate, document and clean up in the aftermath, do you really think that the head of the military would be completely unaware? Really? Do you really think that if the Chairman of the J.C.S had prior knowledge of a massacre that Secretary Rumsfeld was ignorant of the incident? Really?

The massacre of innocent Iraqi civilians is a tragedy. It is an extremely disturbing act and those who are responsible must be brought to justice. All indications point to a small group of Marines who snapped after having just lost a fellow soldier to an IED. It is an immense and inexcusable tragedy but hopefully it is an isolated one. What is potentially more disturbing is the fact that our government refuses to come clean. Though the President issued a statment on the Haditha tragedy, his administration does not feel compelled to address the specifics of issue or to discuss any aspects of the cove-up. This administration wants us to have faith in their actions and confidence in their decision-making. Yet these same officials continue to operate outside the boundaries of U.S. and international law. They condone murder, domestic espionage, torture and who knows what else under the guise of national security. Ultimately these acts are committed in our names. The blood of these innocent men, women and children are on our hands and we must ensure that those responsible are held accountable.

Over the next few months, as details of the massacre and the investigation become public, I caution you not to be lulled to sleep by government double speak and political deal making. Remain informed and do not become distracted, as continuing to allow our elected officials to operate with impunity will only encourage them to continue to do so with increasing frequency. Acts like this will severely hinder our efforts in Iraq and damage our prestige and credibility around the world. Make no mistake, victory in Iraq has to be a political victory, it cannot be won militarily. It will be hard to win the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people, when the actions of a few taint the image of the whole. Just as the prestige of our military continues to suffer in Iraq because of the indignant actions of a handful of soldiers, so to does the prestige of the American people when its government acts with impunity and operates without conscience or restraint. I fear that we have only seen the tip of the iceberg, and if what we see is only the tip, I can only imagine what lurks just beneath the surface.

Think about it.

Memorial Day

“We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies”

“In Flowers Fields” - Moina Michaels 1915

Today is Memorial Day and I have spent the morning reflecting upon its meaning and about what the day truly means to me. Of course I know that the holiday is intended as a day of remembrance for those who died in the service of our country. I also know that as is the case with most holidays, their original meanings and traditions have rapidly faded from our collective National conscience. How profound is the power of reflection…to purposely ponder issues and ideas in an effort to understand the very reason for their existence.

Memorial Day was first called Decoration Day and it was intended to honor those who died in the service of our country. Many towns claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day, though Waterloo, NY was officially given that distinction by President Lyndon Johnson in 1966. Though the origins of the day may remain in question, the intent of the day is not, to honor and remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms in the defense of our nation and its values. Proclaimed by National Commander of the Army, General John Logan in 1868, the first Memorial Day Holiday was celebrated on May 30th of the same year. In post Civil War America, Memorial Day was seen as an opportunity to eliminate divisions, to reconcile the North and the South, and to honor those on both sides of the conflict who gave their lives. However, it was not until immediately after World War I that Memorial Day changed from remembering those who died in the Civil War to honoring all Americans who died in any war. Congress inadvertently diminished the importance of the day when it passed the National Holiday Act of 1971, making all federal holidays such as Memorial Day a three-day weekend. In doing so the day became less about the remembrance of those who died for our freedoms, than it did about backyard barbeques, pool parties and the Indianapolis 500…in other words, it became just another three-day weekend. The government has tried on several occasions to re-educate and to remind Americans about the true meaning of the holiday with little or no success. If we are to remember and honor those who died in defense of this country, I think that we have an obligation to possess a cursory understanding of the history and the significance of the day. We have an obligation to remember those who sacrificed their lives for this country, regardless of political ideology or popular public opinion. For many, today is a day of remembrance and a time to honor those who served and died for this country. For others, the mothers who lost a son; the fathers who lost a daughter; the children who lost a parent, it is a time of profound loss and numbing grief.

We cannot assign blame or view one conflict as being morally superior to another, when honoring those who have defended this nation. Given the current political environment in this country and the growing lack of public support for the war in Iraq, it is easy to forget or to downplay the current sacrifices of our men and women in the armed forces. If you recall, our country turned its back on its veterans who fought in Vietnam, another political quagmire and a hugely unpopular war. Then as now, we hear eerily similar government propaganda in an effort to justify this country’s actions. We hear of a need to stem the tide of a dangerous ideology, then communism and now Islamic fundamentalism, in an attempt to prevent a “domino effect” from taking place. Today, the “domino effect” refers to the threat of Middle Eastern countries falling one after the other under the influence of Islamic fundamentalist. In Vietnam, the “domino effect” referred to the threat of third-world countries similarly falling under the influence of communist ideology. In both cases our government cited the benefits of fighting the enemy "over there" as opposed to on American soil…sound familiar? Ironically, then as now, we were told that we are winning the war and that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. The point is that during the Vietnam War, we at home found it difficult to separate the war from the warrior, as our soldiers…our kids…returned home only to be spit upon. We must guard against the same injustices from happening today. The Iraq War is in many ways as unpopular a War as was Vietnam. However, the Americans troops fighting in Iraq do so at the direction of a misguided politician. It is not for them to decide who our enemies are and are not. They do not decide which country is friend or foe. They are men and women who willingly place their lives on the line every day in service of this country and they deserve our support and our respect. Today many will remember with pride the sacrifices of those who perished in World War II & I and many will honor the dignity of those who died in Korea. They will do so because history has deemed them as morally just wars, clearly pitting good verses evil. However, we can never allow the unpopular politics of a specific war to taint the valor or minimize the sacrifice of the warrior. So today we must equally remember, respect and honor those who fought and died in wars such as Vietnam, Bosnia, Afghanistan and Iraq even if we disdain the politics and the politicians who declared them.

I have never been forced to grieve the death of a family member lost on the field of battle. I have never faced the reality of a son or daughter heading off to war in a far away and foreign land. I realize that I have been shielded from this in great measure by the heroic sacrifices of our men and women in uniform. So today, I remember those who are responsible for the freedoms that I enjoy and I honor those who have died to protect them. I am grateful to those who fight for this country every day, even though I may not agree with the politics that place them in harms way. I do so today with a newfound understanding of what Memorial Day should mean not only to me but also to others. I do so with the hope that today, on this Memorial Day, you will choose to do the same.

So Thats a Hypocrite

President Ronald Regan once said that politics was supposed to be the world’s second oldest profession but he quickly realized that it bore a very close resemblance to the first. Truer words have never been spoken. If you haven’t listened to the news or read the paper lately, you are probably unaware of the growing tension developing between the executive branch of government and Congress. Events over the weekend have prompted leaders from both sides of the isle to express their deep and growing concerns over the increasingly aggressive executive branch, breaching the constitutional separation of powers and further eroding its system of checks and balances.

If you read this blog regularly you know that I am very concerned about this President, our government and the overall direction of the country. You know that I am troubled by the Presidents unrelenting assault on the Constitution and the protections offered under the Bill of Rights. You know that I am also very critical of Congress because it either fails to recognize the dangerously growing abuses of the executive branch or it simply lacks the political will to oppose him. Lou Dobbs was right on the money when he stated in a recent editorial that, “never before in our country’s history have both the President and Congress been so out of touch with most Americans. Never before have so few elected officials and corporate leaders been less willing to commit to the national interest. And never before has our nation’s largest constituent group, some 200 million middle class Americans, been without representation in our nation’s capital.” That really kind of sums it up for me, our wonderfully apathetic, ineffective and self-serving government.

You can imagine my surprise when I heard the news about a growing and united front that was forming in Washington, as members of Congress finally sought to check the alarmingly fast growing and intrusive power of the executive branch. So what was the proverbial straw? What finally caused members of the congressional leadership to cry foul? Was it the information uncovered while investigating the NSA scandal or a certain queasiness that developed during General Hayden’s CIA testimony? Was it the Presidents daily disregard for the Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure and generalized warrants? Could it be the CIA torture camps operated without congressional oversight, or a developing guilt with regard to all the prisoners held in those camps whose human rights are ignored and whose legal rights are denied. Could it be that Members of Congress finally recognize the dangerous precedent that would be set by allowing our military to be deployed on domestic soil? Or could they just be plain tired of a President who feels he is empowered to break the law or circumvent the constitution whenever he sees fit? Nope. Then what did cause this newly united congressional leadership to so publicly express such grave concerns and outrage over the executive branch’s newest unprecedented intrusion?

It was the FBI and a Congressman named William Jefferson. Representative Jefferson, a Democrat from Louisiana, is under federal investigation for allegedly accepting bribes. It seems that the Justice Department has Mr. Jefferson on videotape accepting $100,000 in bribe money and a search of Jefferson’s home uncovered $90,000 of the cash hidden in Jefferson’s freezer. Earlier this month, a Kentucky businessman by the name of Vernon Jackson pled guilty in federal court, to giving Jefferson $400,000 in bribe money to help him promote a high-tech business venture in Africa. Last weekend the FBI took the unprecedented step of raiding Jefferson’s D.C. office, removing documents and other potentially incriminating evidence. Talk about circling the wagons! Congressional leaders immediately condemned the move as an unprecedented and unconstitutional abuse of executive power. In a joint statement released on Wednesday, Republican House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert and House Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called for an immediate return of all documents that were unconstitutionally seized in the raid. The sharply worded statement called last Saturdays FBI search a clear violation of the principal of separation of powers and of the speech and debate clause in Article 1 Section 6 of the Constitution. Speaker Hastert was vociferous in his comments expressing alarm at the raid, “these actions of the Justice Department in seeking and executing this warrant raise important Constitutional issues that go well beyond the specifics of this case. Insofar as I am aware, since the founding of our Republic 219 years ago, the Justice Department has never found it necessary to do what it did on Saturday night, crossing this Separation of Powers line, in order to successfully prosecute corruption by Members of Congress. Nothing I have learned in the last 48 hours leads me to believe that there was any necessity to change the precedent established over those 219 years.” House Minority Leader Pelosi said in a statement that “members of Congress must obey the law and fully cooperate with any criminal investigation but that Justice Department investigations must be conducted in accordance with Constitutional protections and historical precedent.” Here is one for you, even former House Speaker Newt Gingrich called Saturday nights raid, “the most blatant violation of the Constitutional Separation of Powers in his lifetime.” The issue for many revolves around the speech or debate clause I previously mentioned. This clause was intended to shield lawmakers from intimidation by the executive branch, though many legal experts feel that the FBI raid was an intimidating tactic never before used against the legislative branch.

Serious constitutional issues aside, do you recognize the hypocrisy of it all? It’s ok with Congress for the President to violate the Constitution when it only affects average American citizens. Congress is equally culpable when the President illegally wiretap us, eliminates our protections from unreasonable search and seizure and diminishes the governments need to demonstrate probable cause. It has enabled the administration to effectively dilute the power of the Judiciary and our right for judicial review. It passed laws making torture illegal, only to turn a blind eye as the President defiantly declared that he was not bound these laws. To date, Congress has taken a back seat in every instance permitting this President to break or circumvent the law and act with impunity. Maybe that’s why Congressional public approval rates are the only ones that are lower than the Presidents. The sad irony is that given all of these issues, all of these abuses, Congress was finally compelled to act, not in order to protect our rights, but in order to protect its own self serving interests. They are not interested in protecting our rights and liberties…they are interested in protecting their own. Congress had no problem allowing the President to circumvent the law and distort the constitution as long as it did not affect them. Is it a coincidence that immediately after the FBI fired this shot directly across the congressional bow, Congress has suddenly become so concerned about the Constitution, the protection of rights and the rule of law? That it is suddenly so concerned about protecting the provisions of Constitution that it is willing to ignore the fact that Congressman Jefferson is in all probability a criminal. They will have you believe that this issue is bigger than Representative Jefferson and his potential legal issues. They will cite many of the concerns I have just outlined in this entry. What they won’t do is address their hypocrisy. They won’t tell you why they are more interested in the rights of a criminal than protecting us from one. They won’t tell you why it was ok for dangerous precedents to be set limiting our personal rights and freedoms, while refusing to allow similar precedents to be established with regard to their own protections under the Constitution. They might not address these issues...but we can! Do not allow the actions of our elected officials to effect your rights to participate in the political process. No, they may not ever honestly address their hypocrisy, but come November we can address it for them. I encourage you to become informed, to become engaged and to vote your conscience. I firmly believe that every vote counts and that our vote represents the quintessential political capital. I encourage you to spend this currency wisely because there is a politician on every street corner gladly willing to accept it. Remember, politics is the world’s oldest profession.

Think about it.

An Extraordinary Rendition

Extraordinary rendition as a term actually sounds fairly quaint. However, you will see that the government's policy of rendition is in a class all by itself and can hardly be considered benign. Have you ever heard of a man named Khaled El-Masri? If your answer is no, you can be sure that there is a very good reason. Mr. El-Masri is a Kuwaiti born, German citizen. Born in 1963 to Lebanese parents, Mr. El-Masri is a loving husband and father of five. In Germany Mr. El-Masri is a carpenter by trade, but had been working as a car salesman near Neu Ulm. For those who don't know, here's the abbreviated scoop on Mr. El-Masri:

On December 31, 2003, Khaled El-Masri was traveling to Skopje, Macedonia for a holiday. Upon entering Macedonia, El-Masri was detained at the behest of the U.S. government by Macedonian officials, his passport confiscated and he was forcibly taken to a nearby hotel. He remained in that hotel for 23 days. During that time he was never permitted to leave the room as he was continually interrogated about his associates, his mosque, his activities and about meetings that never took place. On the 23rd day, a group of Macedonian men entered the room and forced him to make a video. He was instructed to state that had been treated well and would be flying back to Germany soon. He was then handcuffed, blindfolded and placed into a car. He was taken to a place near the local airport, brutally beaten, stripped of his clothes and forcibly sodomized with a foreign object. The men placed a diaper on El-Masri and clothed him in a jumpsuit, before drugging him and flying him to Afghanistan. There he was held in a notoriously brutal CIA run prison known as the "Salt Pit" where he suffered continual beatings to the head, the soles of his feet and the small of his back. He was held in a small, dank cell without a bed and only a small bottle of putrid water to sustain him. He remained in solitary confinement for 4 months! During this time he was photographed and fingerprinted. Blood and urine samples were forcibly drawn while his requests to meet with German Government officials ignored. El-Masri engaged in a hunger strike for 37 days until a tube was forced down his throat and he was force-fed. He was finally able to meet with two of his American captors, one identified as the prison director, while the other held a higher rank. He was warned that as a condition of his release, he was never to speak of what happened to him. On May 28, 2004, El-Masri was pulled from his cell, blindfolded, handcuffed and placed into a waiting car. He was flown to Albania, where his possessions were returned and he was released.

The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia recently denied El-Masri access to legal justice, because according to the court, the simple fact of holding the proceedings would jeopardize state secrets. What! In his opinion, Judge T.S. Ellis III held that the CIA properly invoked the state secrets defense to dismiss El-Masri's lawsuit. The court acknowledged that, "if El-Masri's allegations are true or essentially true, then all fair minded people, including those who believe that state secrets must be protected and that this lawsuit cannot proceed, and that renditions are a necessary step to take in this war, must also agree that El-Masri has suffered injuries as a result of our country's mistake and deserves a remedy." Unbelievable! The CIA actions violated U.S. Federal law, International law, and universal human rights when they abducted El-Masri, beat him, humiliated him, sodomized him with a foreign object, drugged him and transported him to a secret prison in Afghanistan. Five months later, he was transported to Albania and deposited on a remote hilltop without explanation or charges ever being filed. This court essentially gave the government a green light to continue their horrific and illegal practices without fear of reprisal. The courts decision essentially shields the CIA and other government officials from scrutiny or accountability. The man was kidnapped and held against his will, sodomized and tortured for 5 months, and the government denies El-Masri his day in court on the grounds that the administration can't disclose facts of a case that the rest of the world already knows. Ask yourself why you haven't heard about this? Ask yourself why you don't know about Mr. El-Masri? I wonder incredulously how our government can criticize other nations such as China, North Korea, Iraq or Iran, when it grossly violates human rights in this illegal and heinous manner. Our government is allowing these abuses to take place in the name of freedom and liberty...are you kidding me? These acts of barbarism are unconscionable and this administration must be held accountable. As you ponder this, I have a question for you. Do you feel that the odds are greater that you will be effected by an act of terrorisim on American soil, or that your civil rights will be violated in some way by your own government? I know my answer, what's yours?

Think about it....We really need to think about it.

Rage Against the Machine

For the past week I have tried to provide you with examples of governmental abuse of power. Mostly, I have criticized the President because these abuses are happening on his watch. However, I must reiterate that efforts to remake the government go well beyond the executive branch, as it is clear that Congress is complicit as well. Here is a small example of how it all works; of how our government keeps all of us fat, dumb and happy.

We all know about the NSA wiretapping scandal and about the Bush administration’s not so secret war against the Constitution. We know about the Patriot Act and how it is keeping us safe from terrorist…how it is protecting our national security. Oh how ignorance is bliss. In March of this year, President Bush signed legislation, reauthorizing the Patriot Act. However, did you know that the document Bush signed included an addendum stating that the President did not feel obliged to obey certain requirements of the Act? Specifically, the President stated that he did not feel compelled to notify Congress as to how the FBI was using the Patriot Act’s expanded police powers. So here we have the President of the United States, reauthorizing the Patriot Act and calling it “a piece of legislation that’s vital to win the war on terror and to protect the American people”, simultaneously stating that he was not obliged to follow its requirements. Wow! I bet you didn’t even know that one did you? The President was not happy with some of the new provisions intended to make sure that the FBI did not abuse their special terrorism-related powers to search homes and secretly seize documents. You see, shortly after the conclusion of the official signing ceremony, the White House quietly released a “signing statement” outlining the Presidents interpretation of the new law. In the statement, Mr. Bush said that he did not consider himself to be bound by the new law requiring he tell Congress how the Patriot Act powers were being used. It continued by stating that the President felt he could withhold any information that he deemed dangerous to national security, the deliberative process of the executive, to ongoing foreign relations or the performance of the executive’s constitutional duties. This is a perfect example of President Bush erroneously claiming his constitutional authority to bypass the law! When President Bush authorized the military to conduct electronic surveillance of Americans’ international phone calls and emails without obtaining warrants, Bush claimed that his wartime powers gave him the right to ignore the law. According to the Constitution only Congress has the power to declare war, which by the way it has yet to do, so where did the President get these wartime powers? The same can be said for the illegal actions of the NSA, CIA and the FBI. When Congress passed a law forbidding the torture of any detainee in U.S. custody, the President signed the bill with great public fanfare, only to quietly release another “signing statement” claiming executive authority to bypass the law if he believed using harsh interrogation techniques was necessary to protect national security. The President’s outrageous claims of power, specifically the power to ignore federal law, is in direct violation of the Constitution which clearly charges Congress with the power to write laws and the President the duty to “faithfully execute” the laws passed by Congress.

The scary part is that Congress is not willing to do anything to curb these abuses. In fact, Congress is currently attempting to pass a new law called the “Terrorist Surveillance Act of 2006,” which would authorize the warrantless wiretapping of American residents. The bill allows for the NSA to monitor telephone and email communications without requiring judicial review or court approval. In other words, it would roll back the protections granted all Americans under the FISA. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) is a post-Watergate law, which was specifically enacted to restrict the President’s ability to spy on Americans under the guise of national security! Prior to the Watergate scandal and before the passage of FISA, a Congressional committee called the Church Committee was convened to investigate the NSA and allegations of its illegal domestic surveillance program. The Church Committee discovered that the NSA was in fact monitoring millions of international telegrams and that the agency maintained files on approximately 75,000 U.S. citizens! The findings of the Church Committee led to the establishment FISA, requiring the government to establish probable cause, receive judicial review and obtain a specific warrant before any American could be wiretapped. The Terrorist Act of 2006 would potentially authorize indefinite wiretaps and the electronic communications monitoring of Americans in this country. It would do so without the need for an independent court to determine if the American in question has actually done anything wrong. Under the proposed Act, communications could be monitored for 45 days, giving the administration the option of seeking a court order or notifying a Congressional subcommittee. The subcommittee is not a court and would not have the power to grant or deny approval…how convenient. Under the proposed legislation, court approval for wiretapping would no longer be mandatory as a matter of law and the Fourth Amendment be dammed. Gone is the need for probable cause, as government agents will be allowed to initiate surveillance based on mere suspicion, unencumbered by the need for judicial review or approval. What I find most disturbing is that Congress is willing to pass this legislation without first receiving the basic information it is entitled to regarding the current NSA scandal. I guess that’s good given how the Terrorist Act of 2006 greatly diminishes the need for Congressional oversight. Rather that get to the heart of the issue, as was the case with the Church Committee, Congress would rather move forward with flawed legislation designed to provide political cover for lawmakers through plausible deniability. How can Congress pass legislation such as this, if it does not have a clear understanding of what the administration is doing and why the current law is inadequate? A strong Congress should not legislate anything before it gets the information it needs and it should force the President to explain why he feels that it is necessary to change the current law. This legislation will not only erode the civil liberties of U.S. citizens by eliminating the checks and balances on domestic surveillance. It will also eliminate the protections granted under FISA, making judicial review optional; it will significantly increase the power of the President over Congress and the Supreme Court and it clearly violates the Fourth Amendment’s requirement for probable cause and its protection against the issuance of general warrants. If that isn’t enough, the bill would impose harsh penalties on “whistleblowers”. Anyone making “unauthorized disclosures” about the “terrorist surveillance program” will be fined up to $1,000,000 and imprisoned for up to 15 years. You know if it were not for whistleblowers, neither Congress nor the American people would be aware of the NSA’s illegal surveillance programs now “under investigation”.

The proposed legislation eliminates the need for judicial review and the issuance of specific warrants, waters down the definition of probable cause and allows for the electronic surveillance of American citizens. It imposes strict penalties for “whistleblowers” while offering retroactive protection for lawmakers who prefer to remain ignorant as to specifics of this administrations illegal actions based on the notion of plausible deniability. The proposed law would allow for all of this even though the Constitution clearly does not. I can’t help but to recall the Presidents words as he signed the reauthorization of the Patriot Act? That line about how it is vital to win the war on terror and to protect the American people. The President may feel that he is protecting us from al Qaeda but I wonder who is protecting the rest of us from him?

Think about it.

This was never my intent

I have to be honest; the benefit of maintaining this blog is that it forces me to think. It forces me to view the world through a completely different set of glasses. The original intent of my blog was not to rail against injustice or governmental abuse of power. To the contrary, I have aspirations of being an author and of writing a novel. So I figured what better way to hone my writing skills than to write a little bit every day. I never really intended for my writings to turn so political, even though I have always been somewhat of a political animal. You see I was once very much like the person I referred to in my previous entry as a new friend. I was an ideologue, conforming my thoughts and belief system to fall under a specific political category or label. For my entire life, I considered myself to be an economically conservative, socially moderate Republican. Now how is that for a label? As a person who was comfortable with galvanizing political nomenclature, I was able to categorize others, easily identifying them as political friend or foe. Thus, I was able to discuss or discount their political views accordingly, often without even listening to them speak. Sound familiar?

As I stated in an earlier entry, I voted for President Bush in both elections and I honestly feel that I did this country a great disservice. It’s not that I feel that my one vote put the President into the White House; it’s just that I believe so passionately in our system and I know that ultimately every vote counts. So as I’ve said before, this web log is my penance, it is my attempt to engage people in such a way that they will critically think about the importance of what is going on around them. Because I voted for President Bush and in the aftermath of his war in Iraq, I became disenchanted with the President, his administration and with our government in general. Every article in the paper, every lead story on the news, highlighted some new scandal, some new abuse or some new crime perpetrated by our government in the name of liberty. However, I didn’t look at it in quite that way. The Declaration of Independence clearly states that the government derives its power from the consent of the governed. That said I honestly feel that these acts have not been committed in the precious name of liberty in as much as they have been committed in my name, our names, the consenters. So I will continue to speak out, regardless of political party or where issues may fall on liberal/conservative spectrum. I will continue to speak out because it is my right, it is my duty, and it is my penance. What about you?

Think about it.

I'm a Liberal!!!

"The flames kindled on the Fourth of July, 1776, have spread over too much of the globe to be extinguished by the feeble engines of despotism; on the contrary, they will consume these engines and all who work them" -Thomas Jefferson, 1821

I really love this whole blogging thing. Meeting new friends, engaging in spirited debate and quoting cool stuff from famous people. Here is something funny. I have just read an email that I believe accuses me of being a left-winger. Now that is a first! As always, I appreciate your comments and I look forward to more of them as we continue this journey together. I also love political neophytes who like to label that which they do not completely understand. My new friend questioned my whereabouts when President Clinton was in office, stating that the Clinton Presidency was much more abusive than the current administration. He cites the war in Bosnia, Clinton's sexual proclivity and the fact that the President lied on television as evidence of this abuses. That stuff is just Bush league (no pun intended). I would like to respond to my new friend just for the record. First, I agree with you regarding the war in Bosnia, it was certainly politically motivated as most wars are. Second, it is my understanding that President Clinton was impeached and I believe that he should have been removed from office. Third, all politicians lie on television. Here is a hint; you can always tell when a politician is lying because his or her lips are moving. Is my new friend really defending a President who ignores the limits of executive power so clearly outlined in the Constitution by comparing it to a misguided war in Bosnia? Can you say Grenada? Can you say Panama? Is he really defending the actions of President Bush by comparing it to oral sex in the White House? I must admit that is a tough one, which is the biggest threat to national security, Monica Lewinsky and her famous blue dress, or the complete and utter disregard this President has for the First and Fourth Amendments? You cannot defend the horribly misguided actions of one President, by bringing up dirt on another. Remember, momma always says, two wrongs don't make a right.

Seriously, if we are going to talk about President Clinton why don't we just compare apples to apples? How about the Clinton administration's misguided policies with regard to China and the future ramifications of those policies on the United States? Discuss if you will the magnitude of the Clinton administration's numerous missteps, fumbling and outright appeasement of the Chinese Government and what that means for the future of this country and for world peace. In my humble opinion, the Clinton Administration actually helped to create a new superpower threat, which in time will challenge the United States for economic and military supremacy. It is also my opinion that the Pro-China policies of the Clinton-Gore administration were a disaster for American national security interests. The Clinton administration's loosening of trade restrictions on China dramatically strengthened China's military power through the legal transfers of strategic high-level technologies. Why not discuss the Clinton-Gore fund-raising scandal, where as the Chinese government indirectly and directly influenced the 1996 Clinton-Gore reelection campaign. Expound if you will upon the manner in which the Chinese government funneled over $1.2 million into Democratic Party coffers, purchasing direct access to top officials in the administration. To quote Mao, "The mind of the enemy and the will of his leaders is a target of far more importance than the bodies of his troops." It is clear that the influence of the Chinese government on the Clinton administration made it easier to conduct espionage against the United States, particularly against our nuclear weapons facilities and that loosened trade restrictions enhanced China's massive technology gathering efforts to the point that they were able to acquire hundreds of advanced U.S. supercomputers. The NSA reported in May 2000 that the China Academy of Engineering Physics, the Chinese government's primary nuclear weapons development facility, was using U.S. acquired supercomputers to conduct simulated nuclear detonations. Clinton ignored these reports and his administration sought to further loosen controls on high performance computers to China. Now we begin to compare apples to apples.

The fundamental flaw with arguments such as those made by my new friend is that they fail to address the issues. Right is right and wrong is wrong. As people become indoctrinated into the political process, they allow themselves to be labeled. They identify themselves and others as Democrat or Republican; conservative or liberal; left wing or right wing, and the list goes on and on. Can you say Compassionate Conservative? What does that mean? The funny thing is that most people don't even know what these labels mean. Since when do you have to be right wing in order to be right? Do people really think that any side of the political equation has a monopoly on right and wrong? Here is a unique idea, just make informed decisions. Evaluate the facts and make your determinations on truths, which are based on knowledge and not ideology. My friend, I have been there and I want you to know that it's ok to develop your own thoughts and ideas, even if they don't conform to your self administered labels or your particular party's ideology. It is a truly liberating experience and one that I recommend highly.

I would like to address your remaining concerns. You rhetorically inquired as to my whereabouts during the Clinton administration years. I was waiting for the idea of web logging to be developed. Had the whole blogging thing been available during those years, you would probably have considered me a brother right-winger. As for concerns over rising gas prices and drilling for oil in Alaska, I wonder if you have read any of the recent studies on the impact of increasing fuel mileage standards on all vehicles and the corresponding reductions in the emissions of greenhouse gasses? If you did you would realize that the answer is not in Alaska but in Detroit. We put monkeys in space for crying out loud; you would think that we could design a car that gets 60 miles to the gallon. Greater fuel efficiency means that our vehicles would require less fuel to go greater distances. The corresponding lower demand for fuel will ultimately mean lower prices at the pump (see the law of supply and demand). Finally, burning less carbon-based, fossil fuels in our vehicles will reduce greenhouse gas emissions thereby helping the environment. Did I say environment? I must be a liberal. As you ponder this remember, it is ok to think big picture and still be a Republican. However, if there are people out there who are more afraid of a $3.00 gallon gas than they are about protecting our rights guaranteed under the Constitution, than we have bigger problems than the fact that we elect idiots as Presidents. Apologetically and in closing, I must admit that I find your comparisons of Yahoo and Google cookie caches to the dangers of NSA data mining and domestic surveillance as funny. I am far more concerned with losing my rights and privileges as an American and about our governments continued assault on the constitution, than I am about Google or Yahoo knowing that I like to visit ESPN.com.

Think about it.