You cannot possibly have a broader basis for any government than that which includes all the people with all their rights in their hands, and with an equal power to maintain their rights. - - William Lloyd Garrison It all makes perfect sense until you think about it. That's how a lot of things are in the Bush world. The most recent example came from Mark Quinlivan, a lawyer in the Ashcroft Justice Department. He addressed the annual meeting of the American Bar Association held in August in San Francisco. Individuals invited to speak are supposed to say something interesting. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy demonstrated how that is done. [continues 810 words]
The Essence of Lying Is in Deception, Not in Words. -Modern Painters Although we've been telling the Colombians that it's harmless and some people in the administration probably believe what they are saying notwithstanding ample evidence to the contrary, we are only going to continue using it until a substitute can be manufactured in sufficient quantities to meet our needs. Our needs are to rid the world of cocaine and Colombia is a good place to start. The United States has been engaged in aerial spraying of glyphosate in Colombia for several years in an effort to eliminate the coca plant from Colombia. The effort has not been without its side effects. [continues 853 words]
"Caracas, Venezuela - This country's swaggering leftist leader was ousted by the military last night amid chaos that has shaken the world's fourth-largest oil exporter, ridding the U.S. of a government it considered a political pariah." - - The Wall Street Journal, April 12, 2002, referring to the coup that ousted Venezuelan president Hugo Chvez for 48 hours It is hardly worth mentioning. That explains why as of this writing nothing was written about in The New York Times or the Washington Post. The L.A. Times and the Houston Chronicle as well as the Voice of America thought it newsworthy. They are right. [continues 905 words]
"The struggle to establish civil liberties against the backdrop of these security threats, while difficult, promises to build bulwarks to help guarantee that a nation fighting for its survival does not sacrifice those national values that make the fight worthwhile." -William J. Brennan, Speech delivered to Law School of Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel, December 22, 1987. Just because Attorney General John Ashcroft's Justice Department and its assorted enforcement agencies have been unable to locate the source of the anthrax does not mean they haven't been busy. During October Mr. Ashcroft took steps to remind the country of the agenda that is closest to his heart (after figuring out who the terrorists are and where the anthrax came from). [continues 870 words]
The struggle to establish civil liberties against the backdrop of these security threats, while difficult, promises to build bulwarks to help guarantee that a nation fighting for its survival does not sacrifice those national values that make the fight worthwhile." William J. Brennan, Speech delivered to law school of Hebrew University, Jerusalem, Israel, December 22, 1987 Just because Attorney General John Ashcroft's Justice Department and its assorted enforcement agencies have been unable to locate the source of the anthrax does not mean they haven't been busy. [continues 896 words]
The chief foundation of all states ...are good laws and good arms; and as there cannot be good laws where the state is not well armed, it follows that where they are well armed they have good laws. -- Machiavelli, The Prince We won't make the same mistake thrice - at least that's what one hopes. One cannot, of course, ever be sure. In early March we were treated to lengthy reports about what kinds of helicopters we would be selling to the Colombian government to help it fight drug traffickers. Although formerly favoring the purchase of the Vietnam-era helicopters known as the UH-1H Hueys that cost $1.8 million each, the administration now favors purchasing Blackhawks that cost $12.8 million each. [continues 872 words]
