GOP Candidates Past and Present and Lies They Tell about Their Military Service (Part II)

In Part I we saw that sometimes the rich and powerful had ways and means to get their sons out of the Draft and harm’s way as the Viet Nam War raged. So Sid Adger, Poppy’s Houston businessman friend, calls former Texas Lieutenant Governor, Ben Barnes who then calls Texas Air Guard Commandant, General James Rose, and (presto) Junior Bush gets an appointment to TANG (Texas Air National Guard). And if that don’t beat all, in addition Bush gets an instant commission as a Texas Reserve Air Force officer just as pretty as you please, and begins to train for flying aircraft for Texas Air Force General Bobby Hughes at Ellington AFB, Houston. No boot camp, no Officer Training School, no ROTC required. You could have knocked me over with Sarah Palin’s brain.

Funny how a rare few have struggles with their conscience over monkey business such as messing with the Draft, and Ben Barnes was no exception after the fact.  Ben Barnes did a national television confession on CBS at the time Dan Rather was being demonized and scourged for one bogus article condemning Bush II for lying about his own military service.  See the source Rather used was not one of 100s of documented and true sources, but the one Rather used happened to be bogus and falsified (Brilliant piece of work, Karl). But nobody listened to Ben Barnes. His confession made Americans non-plused and confused about what all the ruckus was about. No one cared about the overwhelming other sources of evidence that Bush cheated and went AWOL, thanks to Poppy and other high officials who greased the gears and the palms of government. 

Ironic, but Bush’s ongoing torment by the Press would end with a whimper on ONE bogus piece of paper. It would end the heckling of George W. Bush’s going AWOL forever. And Dan Rather was the scapegoat. Even after the Boston Globe and LA Times newspapers had gathered decades of strong evidence that showed Bush to be a complete liar about his service in the Texas Air Guard and the Alabama Air Guard when he got out of the Draft when the Viet Nam War raged. Overcoming this black lie about his military service carried Bush II on to become Governor of Texas and President of the United States. And no one cared about the lie. Or wonted to pursue it. I thought America was running on its rims at the time.

In the Texas Air Guard you were assured of never having to fly missions in Viet Nam because the Draft provided enough cannon fodder for the combat positions in rice patties and ditches of the Mekong Delta when war raged and bullets whizzed by your head in your foxhole. In his Autobiography My American Journey General Colin Powell, on page 148, lamented:

"I am angry that so many of the sons of the powerful and well-placed... managed to wangle slots in Reserve and National Guard units. . . Of the many tragedies of Vietnam, this raw class discrimination strikes me as the most damaging to the ideal that all Americans are created equal and owe equal allegiance to their country."

But you see, that was before Colin Powell accepted the appointment of Secretary of State in the Bush II Administration. What a difference a day makes, eh? It made the good general angry when a Congressman asked him on camera a few years back to explain his obviously split feelings now that he worked for such a privileged son of the powerful as Powell described in his autobiography. It was the grossest form of discrimination possible, or so Powell said in his book. Discrimination in the Draft meant you could get killed, and the rich and powerful should get no breaks or special treatment. The congressman had Powell on the ropes, though, and these were new and different times. The general waxed indignant with: “I’m not going to dignify that with an answer.” Why not? Oh, well. Maybe there is another category of why people don’t tell the truth: maybe it hurts too much.

From this point on the glorious saga of George W. Bush twists and turns from his ascendancy to CEO of Arbuster Oil, then Harken Oil, part-owner of the Texas Rangers, Governor of Texas, and finally President of the United States. Both sides of the political aisle have spent billions of advertising dollars on truths, half-truths, and lies to prop up whatever each side wants the public to believe or not believe about Bush II’s military service and later on, his two terms as President. 

Sometimes it is difficult to sift the truth from the lies. For instance in Bush’s 2000 campaign autobiography, Bush claimed that after completing his training in the F-102 jet fighter, he continued flying with his unit for the next several years. That assertion was a blatant lie, according to records eventually released by the Bush campaign. Bush was grounded and never flew in uniform again after his suspension from duty in August 1972 for failing to show up for a mandatory annual flight physical.

In the same book Bush also suggests that he tried to volunteer for service in Vietnam “to relieve active duty pilots” fighting the war. Egad what a fantasy. In the first place Bush avoided being drafted for active duty so he could avoid the Viet Nam War, not to risk his privileged, young ass getting shot off. Earlier before his star began to rise, he said in a 1998 newspaper interview: “I don’t want to play like I was somebody out there marching [to war] when I wasn’t. It was either Canada or the service and I was headed into the service.”  So which way was it, Dubya, a Billy Bob down at the local ice house or a courageous pilot willing to go into combat to relieve his comrades? His Overseas Duty selection of “Do Not Volunteer” with a bold X in the box for his TANG application, said it all. Bet his pants burst into flames on that one.

Yet Bush’s ego-driven false revisions cannot compare with the fantastic recollections of the late Ronald Reagan. In November 1983, he told Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir during a White House visit that while serving in the U. S. Army film corps, his unit had shot footage of the Nazi concentration camps as they were liberated. He repeated the same tale to Nazi hunter Simon Wiesenthal and other witnesses the next day. Reagan had indeed served in the Army and worked on morale-boosting movies for the War Department. But he had done so without ever leaving Hollywood for the entire duration of the war. Reagan was never in Europe or for that matter out of the USA during WWII. Perhaps Reagan was tripping in his early stage dementia about how he was a WWII hero in Europe and all, but Bush’s phony account of volunteering for air combat to relieve our Viet Nam pilots, to give them a breather, is pure baloney. This premeditated lie is not too far removed from the Major who is presently before the Supreme Court to appeal his one-year sentence for lying recently about receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor.

But Reagan’s strange assertions about reality are truly basket case meanderings. On his way to the White House Reagan told some whoppers. Reagan said he entertained troops in Europe during WWII. But Reagan was never in Europe. But what could it hoit? Might get his campaign kick-started way back when he had hopes of winning some state and national elections. And that was before Teflon was invented. But the little lies might tweak your image into something good, larger than life, stuff that might just get you some votes. But make no mistake, Reagan acted bizarre and out of touch with reality. When the Prime Minister of Israel visited Reagan at the White House, Reagan explained for almost an hour why he was pro-Jewish. It was because during World War II he fantasized that he had visited Buchenwald shortly after the Nazi defeat and made films of that concentration camp. Reagan repeated this story the following day to an Israeli ambassador. But the truth was Reagan was never in Europe; he never saw a concentration camp; he was in Hollywood, making films for the United States Armed Services.

It is a stretch to make sense about Reagan’s concentration camp story. Perhaps Reagan engaged in a bald-faced lie.  But why? What would he have to gain?  Votes? Yes. Popularity during his two terms as president? Of course. Would anybody notice or detect the lie? No. Or if they did Reagan would be forgiven as being old. Generally, that sort of thing carries no weight with a public glued to the Sunday afternoon football game. No one is plugged in. Or no one cares, take your pick. And the Press. Perhaps it had become non-news that during the debates with Mondale that the Social Security Fund was real and alive and separate from the National Budget? It’s not and it’s not. But not much was ever said about Reagan’s senior moments when it came to facts. Remember when Reagan said he would balance the budget by 1984? And deny it later when reminded of his boast?

Should we overlook such inconsistencies when lies prevail on the campaign trail about one’s military service? Are lies told early on likely to mushroom into bigger and more serious lies later on? One’s military service seems sacred enough and should be treated as such. Truth should overrule any lies told, and a candidate, even if he has won a race should be disqualified from that office if he has lied about his military service. As a start, perhaps then American values would not be the object of criticism. GOP, are you listening? You, too, Democrats.

GOP Candidates Past and Present and Lies They Tell About Their Military Service (Part I)

On February 22, 2012 CBS ‘This Morning’ News ran a piece on the Supreme Court hearing a case about lying about military honors and service.  There is a law on the books that makes it a federal crime to lie about any medals or bogus awards claimed, but, in reality, false.  Point in case, if you never received any medals, but you said you did.  The law being argued before the Supreme Court is based upon just such a false claim. 

That’s right, if you did not show courage and valor while falling on a hand grenade to protect your comrades, you can’t say you did.  If you really did not win the Congressional Medal of Honor you cannot say you did!  Or if you never served your country you cannot say you did and claim to be a Veteran. Imagine that.  This law does promise to step on a lot of toes in high places, doesn’t it?  What a bugger.

For clarity let us repeat the premise and the law under scrutiny that has reached the Supreme Court.  Again.  To not be able to speak freely even if what you are saying is a lie, some civil liberties organizations say is a clear violation of free speech under the First Amendment.  Some groups even contend that in the interest of the First Amendment to the Constitution, a person should be allowed to lie about receiving the Navy Cross or the Congressional Medal of Honor, even if totally false, and that right to lie should be protected under the free speech amendment to the Constitution. 

Major Xavier Alvarez told persons in California that he had received the Congressional Medal of Honor and had been a Marine for 25 years.  It was all a lie.  Big fabrication.  He got a year in federal prison for his lie.  He is now appealing to the US Supreme Court.

CBS coverage on lying about military medals and awards

I have always believed in protecting the First Amendment Right of free speech, but this is carrying things a bit too far.  If a person is running for a political office should he be allowed to lie and embellish his military valor (real or imagined) perhaps to garner a winning vote and perhaps to be elected?  Is it in the interest of free speech to allow unchecked, a person to tell bald-faced lies about his military service and winning medals for valor?  When it never happened?  And should he be allowed to campaign on that falsehood, perhaps to fool the voters and get elected to high office? 

 Hey, and what if a person lies about ever serving in the first place, like when Bush II said he served under General Turnipseed, Commandant of the Alabama Air Guard?  Even when the good General himself said he never saw Bush at his command in Alabama?  According to the General who did his flight training in Corpus Christi, he said he certainly would have known about if a Texas pilot like Bush had been assigned to his command.  But the general had no knowledge of Bush’s service in his command in Alabama.  It still appears that Bush was AWOL. And got out of the Draft and foxhole duty in Viet Nam by joining the Texas Air Guard.  And nobody cared whether he had to perform his duties and report for muster during Reserve meetings?  Guess not.  It was not a hot news item then.  And even more obscure today.  But there really is a law on the books about lying about your military service.  Interesting.

In my opinion having to do some prison time for lying about your military service is a bit harsh.  I would favor a stiff fine, but I would be in favor of a punishment for such a dishonor to all the brave servicemen and women who did serve.

All free speech rights under the Constitution must have limitations just as it is in libel and slander offenses.  In exercising free speech there should be no injury to another person or government.  No one or no group should suffer because of the lie. The greatest concern should be the public good.  If you lie and get elected, in my opinion, you have wronged individuals who have instilled their trust in a you, a fiduciary candidate to tell the truth and serve them well.  Everyone knows that politicians lie.  But when it is provable that a politician lied to get elected by embellishing his military service he should be disqualified from that office.  Who knows, if he gets catapulted by those lies to governor or even president, he might just lie again about something big.  Like invading a sovereign country.  Like Iraq, maybe.

Corporations cannot make false claims about their products in order to sell them.  Such lies carry no free speech protection under the Constitution.  So should it be with candidates running for public office.  If it can be proven that they are lying to get elected, or to receive some other favor, they should be prosecuted under the law.

I used to care about Truth.  I even wrote a TPJ Column on Truth back in May of 2009, “Why We Should  Preserve Truth at All Costs”

I wrote another piece on the Master Liar of all time, Joseph Goebbels who helped Hitler ascend to a world power fueled with lies that almost destroyed the human race. 

Hitler’s darling, Joseph Goebbels (Hazardous to Humanity)

I guess one could say I was in my Truth Period back then.  Truth seemed so real and simple, that it was more than easy to believe that everybody wanted it, embraced it, and pursued it.  Thus, when was I ever not living in good faith, in short, embracing truth?  Well, I cannot tell a lie, and everybody can answer for themselves, but I, as 1 human out of (how many is it now?) 7 Billion on the planet as we speak, have been guilty of lying.  Every day.  You know, lies of convenience.  To avoid pain.  Or a painful decision.  Or like in making excuses for not going to have coffee or drinks with the new neighbors, the usual stuff.  In studying the anatomy of a lie we quickly realize, though, that we must qualify the lie and the types of lies of which we speak.  In my book harmless lies told when your business is none of anybody else’s business, all white lies told are fair game.  I would encourage one on such occasions to embellish to his heart’s content.  And one is permitted in telling oneself that it really is not a lie as long as you don’t say that to your inner self or believe it yourself.  Fair enough?  Being about Truth and Lies is a heady business, indeed.

We will not be spending time on lies of no importance, the lies that do not harm another human or race of humans or even city hall the entity that collects our taxes.  For purposes of studying the human race and why it lies like a cheap Persian rug is the topic.  We choose, I think, to lie when we can gain power, money, or position.  We also tend, as a species, to lie to avoid the pain of loss of power, money, and/or position.  There.

We tell our children to be honest, to tell the truth, and to do unto others as you would have them do unto you.  Yet no one, adults or children on the face of the planet seems to be able to perform and live such a simple life.  Truth and preserving it is an arduous task many of our fellow humans consider to be a waste of time.  Why bother, they tend to snark and grouse, that, hey dude, there ain’t no money in it.  Now there’s a truth.  Out of nowhere.

Where lies really take a heavy toll is when rulers of countries abuse their power.  Hitler wantonly killed over 7 million Jews.  Stalin, put to death over 30 million of his countrymen during the purge and imprisoned even more.  Death and imprisonment often follow the big-scale lies perpetrated against fellow humans and countrymen that any given tyrannical leader feels a need to dispatch.  To the other world.  But wait, maybe Hitler and Stalin just got carried away with the sweet smell of power when it came to ruling their respective peoples.  Maybe the horrible end always began with little lies, told with a “wink, wink” and a smile the camera loves.  Perhaps that was the spark that enabled the big lie and destruction to follow.  Stay tuned for Part II where we shall explore how some charismatic presidents sold us the big lie and got away with it Scott free.

How We Humans Lose Our Basic Freedoms and Why We Are Going to the Dogs

This little story is about how we humans give away and then set fire to our basic freedoms as a society, a nation, and a people. But first the destruction begins on a grass roots local level. It begins in our neighborhood.

Once there lived a massive German Shepard dog who whenever he saw me or my wife drive up to our new house, rushed up to the wrought iron fence to bark, bark, bark. Quite a paradox in fact, because we were next door neighbors, actually. He had seen us come and go and stroll about our backyard as we planted flowers, trees, and threw the bouncy blue racquetball for our 15-pound Bichon Frise, Quinn. The big dog barked and tried to get through the iron bars on several occasions to eat Quinn, no doubt about it. Viciously. Threateningly. Slamming his muzzle against cold steel bars.

He was telling us in dog trash talk that he was out to hurt us, given the chance. He had been doing this rush up to the fence and threaten us drill with us for over 7 months at that point. And shucks, we were the epitome of docile, non-threatening, neighbors. You would have thought that by then he might have become bored and regarded us as non-threats to him and his territory. Yet when you tried to befriend and speak softly to him, he snarled and bared his canine teeth all the more and nipped menacingly at the air between you and the iron bars. He wanted to bite you, to scare you, and to put you on notice that he would do you harm if ever got the chance. Even though I had owned many dogs in my 71 years, including 3 German Shepherds, for the first time in my life I had become afraid of a dog.

He wanted to eat our 15-lb. Bichon Frise, Quinn who wanted only to stroll about our own property, unmolested, minding his own dog business, and chasing bouncy blue rubber racquet balls. 

The barking in itself had become a grand annoyance. It was a blatant violation of the rules, deed restrictions, and covenants of our wooded, country subdivision in the woods. 

“No animals, livestock or poultry of any kind shall be raised, bred or kept on any Lot in the Subdivision except that dogs, cats or other common household pets and two (2) horses per acre may be kept on Lots consisting of at least one (1) acre, provided that they are not kept, bred, or maintained for commercial purposes and do not become a nuisance or threat to other Owners.”

But forget all of the above. Those rules are hollow and empty and a private joke laughing matter of Sheriff’s Departments all over America simply because there is no one willing to enforce these covenants and deed restrictions and printed rules of any subdivision from Oregon to Florida. I can sympathize with law enforcement and their larger priorities to chase and apprehend criminals and other more serious matters needing attention where a civilized society lives and breathes. 

So what about the Property Owners Association Elected Officers? One might think that they are elected to office to help homeowners with issues and problems that occur from time to time. You know, to serve us property owners, what? But barking dogs? Think again. Don’t make them laugh; it’s an inside joke, barking dogs, O, Geez, ya know what I mean (wink, wink)? But aren’t the POA Officers supposed enforce the deed restrictions and rules in the By- Laws and Covenants of the subdivision? Well, yeah. But honestly, bottom line is that they will even tell you that they have no power to enforce stuff that is written into by law or onto any official or unofficial paper when it comes to barking dogs. Why they will tell you they cannot even collect past due POA dues from property owner human beings, do you love it? Try Animal Control, the POA will tell you. Tell them you feel threatened by the animal in question, they advise. That you are afraid. But don’t try to put the buck on my desk because I will pass it on and tell you to contact the County Department of Animal Control.

You got to understand. The POA exists to thwart the logical solutions to problems by arbitrarily prohibiting you from building something that just might improve the community and the neighborhood, to wit, a privacy fence NOT in conflict with existing County Building Permit Guidelines, plats, rules, laws, surveys, building deed restrictions, or anything else for that matter. When 2 neighbors agree that a privacy fence just might help or cure a barking dog nuisance problem one of them has and the other one owns why would a local POA try to thwart it? Why would they try to keep it from happening? Public servants, dedicated to the betterment of the community, my ass.

So what about talking to the owner? Tried that. No soap. The owner said that his dog was a part of his family. You mean, like, a dog has the same rights as humans, I asked him? The air-ringing sound of the silence said it all: yes, the dog did have the same rights as humans, it went without saying. But on further investigation, I found that in essence, the dog actually had more rights than us humans. Why he could violate the subdivision rules and animal control agencies within the structure of local, county, and state government, and no one would step up to the plate to enforce any rules, regulations, or laws about nuisance animals that posed a threat to people or a community. Sure, if you jumped through a bunch of hoops, could prove that the dog barked with witnesses or videos as evidence, maybe someone might listen. But bottom line, nobody in the appeal process got all that excited about it. After all it was just a barking dog. But what about human rights? What about us? Must we grin and bear it when we know that the rules have been violated?  That despite written laws on the books a dog can continue to bark our stress levels up to the Stratosphere every day of our lives? What about our human rights? That’s when the other shoe dropped. A dog has more rights than a human!

So a dog then has more rights than a human, and these rights are conveyed from a society that makes the laws then laughs when somebody complains. We fool ourselves into believing that we are rational creatures who make real laws to keep our neighborhoods, our cities, counties, states, and our very nation safe, secure, and environmentally conducive to the pursuit of happiness and then what do we do? We turn right around and we throw it all away. It becomes trash, and we become cardboard people who we created out of indifference and ignorance. We become so puffed up with our unimportance and preserving the bureaucracy that we aren’t even fit for the cardboard shredder that is to be our final and ultimate destination on the road to Dumbassville, USA.

Oh, I know, I know, a barking dog is a small thing, just tune it out. We have become quite good as a people at that. We can tune it out on the smallest level where barking dogs have more rights than people. Or we can tune out how a rogue president like George W. Bush can thrust us into a war with Iraq with cardboard images and drawings of Weapons of Mass Destruction facilities in Iraq as illustrated by the illustrious former General and Secretary of State Colin Powell. Pay no attention to the millions of deaths and casualties. Pay no mind that no Weapons of Mass Destruction were ever found. Pay no attention to the fact that America under the 8 years of George W. Bush as president borrowed and spent an additional $4 Trillion that got added to our National Debt. Shoot, we had to finance the Iraq War and subsequent occupation of a foreign country with boots on the ground for 9 years of self-abuse as a nation and people, dontcha know?

We also tuned it out that National Reserve forces were not trained as combat soldiers nor ever intended to fight in tour after tour of overseas wars. We allowed our president to declare that we had a ‘National Emergency’ what with Iraq pointing nucuylar missiles at American cities, so by George we could and would damn well exercise our right as Unitary Executive to use our State Militias or the National Guard to fight and get blowed up, if necessary, by roadside bombs on the to Baghdad.  So who was to argue with Bush? Not Congress, you can be sure. Those Chickenshits wouldn’t even hold his feet to the fire about declaring the Iraq War to be an ON-BUDGET expense. That way nobody could criticize Bush as scathingly as he deserved to be for starting us down a road of horror that has divided us forever. Humans can see the truth even if it lights unexpectedly on our shoulder like a butterfly. Before Karl Rove tries to crush it. We know that attacking Iraq and occupying the country with our own troops for almost 9 years was probably the biggest travesty the United States ever caused to happen. It was sick.

In Reaganesque speak, you got to ask: “Are we better off?” Did we accomplish anything of real value? Did we bring democracy to Iraq? Did we help the Iraqi people by killing all the terrorists that overran Iraq after we toppled Saddam Hussein? No, no, no, and NO! Did we cause great suffering of 100s of thousands, perhaps millions of human beings? Did we borrow enough money off-budget to destroy our country? Is the ‘End of America’ become a reality as many prophets of doom have warned as they pack their luggage to escape to other world latitudes?

It is a disease of the spirit. Denial and destruction of the truth is the order of the day when it comes to us humans when there is a hidden agenda. Usually when one is following the money one stubs his toe on the hidden agenda, but if so, he keeps on walking, unaware and tuned out. Such hidden agendas give credence to the likes of Glenn Beck and Bill O’Reilly and the rest of the slime talkers that promote the hate of Democrats, Liberals, College Professors, Hollywood actors, Global Warming Advocates, and Muslims, not necessarily in that order. Fox News would have us believe Sarah Palin would be the next Einstein if there were a buck in it for the Mad Hatters of Neoconia. But only with millions of Rupert Murdock and Koch Brothers ad dollars spent on media clips to persuade those flabby minds grasping a controller on the couch that she is a true ‘merican who wants to help all us Billy Bobs evolve to higher branches in the tree of Redneck reasoning, Creationism philosophy, and Anti-Obama political correctness.

In short, we lose our basic freedoms from not paying attention to the right stuff, the truth we all know that lives deep within us and never dies, the truth that we as a people have lost the courage to stand up for and defend. And just for fun do we Americans who forgot to show outrage and protest at invading and occupying Iraq have a clue that, thanks to George W. Bush, we borrowed over $4 Trillion that will haunt and hurt us Americans for the rest of our lives? Do any of us Americans know or care what kind of government Iraq has now after the 9 years of occupation? Do we know that the Bush family just bought 200,000 acres in Paraguay, rich in natural resources, water, minerals, and next door to a 400-man U.S. Marine air base? No extradition allowed from Paraguay. Do the BIG DOGS know something about Armageddon the rest of us don’t?

From your own backyard and neighborhood to the world stage in faraway places like Paraguay, the BIG DOGS seem to rule. We are going to the dogs, I tell you.

Love Thy Neighbor (Yeah, Right!)

“Turn, turn, my wheel! This earthen jar
A touch can make, a touch can mar;
And shall it to the Potter say,
What makest thou? Thou hast no hand?
As men who think to understand
A world by their Creator planned,
Who wiser is than they.” 

Keramos (The Potter’s Song), Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)

 

God’s plans, God’s ways, some clerics and laymen say are mysteries and beyond finding out. God is a mystery. Life is a mystery. Many world religions, Christian, Jewish, Buddhism, and countless other good societies preach that God’s Potter’s hand is ever present and shaping our lives. It is a divine plan, many will tell you and is and has been predestined and ordained from before the beginning of time. We should not question the ways of the Almighty because it is His will, we are told. And we are but His witnesses. Yet in all our ongoing experiential journey as we human creatures live and trod upon this old globe, often we become bewildered as collective deer in the headlights, not knowing where we are or where we are going. We, some of us, do the best we can to grasp meaning from our very existence. Yet as thinking creatures how can we not question the rationale of many historical events written in stone, some in blood that many attempt to explain away as part of God’s plan? All the bones and curls fixed silently in the dust and clay of time once were men and women. These were strewn about the planet over the eons of war and dissonance and deliberate genocidal acts of those in temporary power at a point in time. And the seeker of truth in us all seems to fire the eternal questions, “What are we doing? Why must there be so much suffering? Why should the powerful at any given time in history be able to oppress and cause hurt to the meek and defenseless? Can we stop the madness and disregard for our fellow man? Is might right?” And if truly we are created in God’s image, isn’t our trait to question, to reason a manifestation of His greatest gift of all: Free will?

It has been said that human nature is such that man has little empathy for his neighbor. Instead of following the teachings of Jesus and Buddha, man seems to care little about the welfare of his neighbor, his fellow man. As long as you are happy, well-fed, employed, and feel at peace with your environment, why fret about your neighbor and his well-being? Mind your own business we are told often. Even humans as early as Cain asked, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” 

 

So goes the thinking when mass extinctions of humanity happen at the hand of those in power who cause the deaths of thousands and millions of their own kind. Witness Adolf Hitler and his extermination of the Jews, say, about 7 million during the Holocaust. If you were Jewish your politics was definitely wrong during the Third Reich, and you were tattooed with a number and sent off to death camps like Auschwitz to be gassed and incinerated. 

 

But just when you thought Hitler and the Nazis were good at mass production of death, enter Stalin. Joseph Stalin was much more prolific in the killing of his fellow man, his Russian neighbors to the tune of over 30 million of them during his infamous Purge. Those he suspected of their wrong allegiances and political correctness, he snuffed out like any efficient dictator would. But the witnesses of such mass murder and extinctions seemed to see the unaffected countrymen of Germany and Russia going about their lives with a business-as-usual attitude. As long as German and Russian citizens were not persecuted or their families tortured or killed, they had little to no perceptible interest in the goings-on any more than a Wildebeest does as his neighbor is being eaten alive by a Lion. 

 

Those immune from the ongoing carnage, persecution, or financial destruction of their neighbors seemed to look the other way out of fear, perhaps, or out of lack of empathy for other people who lived just down the block. So it is in America today with more interest focused on the Super Bowl than the plight of neighbors who lost their jobs, and have had to take to living in their cars.

 

Empathy. Even the very word has a hollow sound. It is a word used rarely by most humans who live in America and other major nations and societies about the planet. Making money is the name of the game nowadays. Survival is paramount. And if there’s not enough to go around, guess who gets the hamburger? This phenomenon of me-ism lives even in the bosoms of those who already have more than they could ever use or want. Yes, they seem to want it all when giving up a little could change the planet. So goes it with those rich taxpayers in America who cringe at the thought of having higher taxes levied upon them even though they would go on living in luxury while thousands, perhaps millions of soul might be spared. Recently Warren Buffet 2nd richest man in America said that he believed the rich should be taxed more.    Warren Buffett on Taxes Imagine that.

Richest man in America, Bill Gates, ditto:  

 

It is sad that many of the buzzwords and talking points of survival seem to hinge on many perceived absolutes that we parrot back and forth to our fellow man. And the word “Empathy” is never used when discussing the problem of illegal immigration, for example. Why not? Well, there are rules, laws, you know, about coming to America, and if you are illegal, well, you are deemed to be a second-class human who does not mind breaking our laws. You are an undesirable. Illegals, it is argued, sap our tax dollars to pay for the education, medical care, and welfare of you, your family and other groups of non-Americans who have no right to those funds. So it is further argued. And so it goes. You couldn’t call it caring about your fellow man, of course. So much for Christian charity. No wonder Jesus preached at length about how you were supposed to “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” Or “If a man bids you go with him a mile, go with him two.” The parable of the Good Samaritan seems to curdle the blood of most Christian Capitalists nowadays where you are told to emulate giving, giving, and more giving of the bounties you have gathered in your own life to those fellow humans beaten and battered and lying in a ditch along the road. Perhaps caring about the welfare of your neighbor is the most arduous exercise one can ever take on. Maybe that is why Jesus spent so much time preaching to the masses about giving instead of taking. And whose theme of most of the parables he taught to the masses was about love and giving, not showing contempt and scorn for your neighbor.

 

In studying the gaggle of Republican candidates for president, it is obvious that they are all hat and no cattle when it comes to showing charity for those masses of voters they are trying to fool into voting for them next November. For all their smiles and “trust me” body signals and parables they tell they are out to gut programs that help the common man, the working man. It’s no secret. It is posted all over the Internet, their beliefs, their feelings about and lack of empathy for their fellow man. It shows up as red flags in their voting records and in their stated beliefs that we all have the same opportunities here in America and should just go out, start a company, and get rich. And forget about government help. Of any kind. Just vote for me so I can get on the government dole. While you go out and beat the bushes for a job in the Free Market. And, oh yeah, good luck.

 

Newt Gingrich is for privatization of government programs not to make government more efficient as he contends, but so corporations can rake off big profits off the top as commissions and eventually charge more as Americans forget what they gave away. Newt said he would love to see Social Security atrophy from lack of funding so that it would wither and die on the vine. Newt is looking out for us. Not.

 

Rick Perry wants to privatize everything. He said that Social Security is unconstitutional. As governor of Texas he tried to force feed schoolgirls in Texas a vaccine to prevent uterine cancer. Only thing was, before he was headed off at the pass, Perry was exposed as having a personal interest in the vaccine and the company that produced it. Funny how he was not impeached, but then where you gonna get a vote from Texans that would challenge Perry. And don’t it beat all, this bully ‘em style of thinking comes from a man who advocated that his own state of Texas secede from the Union. Scary. Don’t think Perry is too empathetic about seeing his neighbor prosper or win.

 

Romney smooth out says he thinks government sucks but then vacillates on key points and changes colors like a Galveston Bay flounder to dance better to the tune at hand whatever it morphs into being at any given time. And the more he blends in the more nothing comes out of his mouth. His voting record is clear on helping his fellow man. He wants government to stop having to fund people programs so the “Free Market” can take care of people. Yeah, right. Guess that’s why AARP is so adamantly against privatizing Social Security. His being born a millionaire thanks to his automaker mogul daddy does not seem to register. He thinks all Americans have the same opportunity for success that he did, I’m afraid.

 

Ron Paul. Now here is a paradox of human values and ideas. His head is good on many issues, such as bringing our troops home from foreign soil and to stop borrowing and spending on nation-building. Auditing the Federal Reserve is a good one, Dr. Paul. After all America is an open society, right? But he votes no on every bill about raising minimum wage that winds its way through the halls of Congress. He voted twice for the $2 Trillion Bush Tax Cuts for the Rich. Sarcastically Dr. Paul berates people for wanting government to help them in any way. He chastises them for thinking that government is supposed to take care of them from “cradle-to-grave.” He makes it sound like a sin for a single mother to get some SCHIPS government assistance to help pay for her child’s healthcare and to make it more affordable.

 

Many more points could and should be made about those who are running for public office and have no inclination in helping Americans who live in the greatest military and financial power the world has ever seen. First, by endless borrowing on perpetual wars of invasion, America has borrowed and spent its future down the toilet forever, it seems. The spending went to the Military Industrial Complex that Ike warned us to beware of as it became enmeshed with those in power in Washington. So we not only ran out of money we are in the hole a cool $15 Trillion with no end in sight as to the ongoing borrowing deficits necessary to keep America afloat. Many newsletters on finance send out ominous warnings about doomsday scenarios in the near future. Inflation due to our wanton and indiscriminate printing of more dollars is about to hit America like a giant tsunami. 

 

Obama’s president’s commission on debt reduction got a goose egg for their efforts to reduce spending. It is clear that a combination of raising taxes on the rich cutting spending on people programs for the poor and working man would help us from free falling further, but no one is willing to do that. Grover Norquist has brow-beaten all Congressmen to vow to not raise taxes period. And the Republicans went along with it. They are scared not to.

 

So here we sit as a collective nation, a world all made of the same clay, wondering what we can do to correct the results of a world and nations gone mad with spending money and becoming the biggest debtor nation in history. There is not much empathy for one’s fellow man in these times. It seems to be a world of every man for himself. Of Dog eat Dog. We should have known. We should have turned off the TV and looked into the destruction of America by a thousand cuts. We simply could not force ourselves to believe that Man’s avarice and lack of caring for his neighbor is such a primary driving force in the hearts of humans. 

Are Some Humans More Equal than Others? Part II

Last time I promised to examine some of the finer avarice techniques of super Neocons like Paul Ryan, Scott Walker, Newt Gingrich and the Hammer, Tom DeLay. I admit to being a bit hesitant because it always churns the juices of nausea when I do this drill. However, a promise is a promise so let us start with Newt Gingrich. He has many sins to answer to, but the latest unveiling is that he collected $1.6 million in consultant fees from Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae during a time when the two agencies were under constant attack by Newt’s fellow Republicans. The two companies failed which will end up costing American taxpayers perhaps $500 billion. Yet Newt tucks the $1.6 in his poke and heads on down the road as a major contender running for president of the United States in the 2012 General Election (pregnant pause right about here). What’s wrong with this picture? Was money more important to Newt than his own convictions that he as a professed conservative jawbones about in the Republican debates and every chance he gets? Guess so. He knew Freddie and Fannie were going down the toilet.  But he took the money and ran. But if he did not have a clue that Freddie and Fannie would go down the tubes then is somebody that dumb really make a very good president? Duh. Newt once said he wanted to defund Social Security to the extent that it would wither on the vine. He’s’ truly a great American, eh, Sean Hannity? Wouldn’t you throw your toy football on that note?

Senator Paul Ryan and House Speaker John Boehner are both a simple study in avarice and having no milk of human kindness in them. They want to kill all the social programs they can so the money can find its way into the pockets of the rich (the wealthy poor people who need more money like a hemophiliac needs blood). You know, send the money back where it belongs (wink, wink)? They mean to take from the poor and give to the rich and they make no bones about it. Such strong Neoconistic, me-first beliefs are hardwired into their Neocon mother boards. They want no new taxes, and have joined most all their Republican peers in pledging not to vote to raise taxes as long as they live. Grover Norquist, a non-government, Heritage Foundation Neocon geek sits with the boys in the GOP back room daring all Congressmen not to take the pledge of no new taxes. Wow. Wasn’t Norquist the one who said he wanted to take Social Security and Medicare and all Welfare Programs and drown them in the bath tub? Quite an image, eh? Kinda symbolic of killing something, like in millions of our fellow countrymen (mostly old Americans) who depend upon such programs. But maybe I shouldn’t be so rough on Grover; maybe he is a bit slack in his assessments of cause and effect and maybe did not mean any of his countrymen any harm. You think? If so, read this: Norquist and the K Street Project

The Hammer, nee Tom DeLay, convicted of wrongful use of campaign funds still awaits what is to become of him. He has been sentenced to 3 years in prison but out on $10m bond pending appeal. DeLay was also convicted of money laundering and given 10 years’ time, but it was suspended by the judge and DeLay was given probation instead. DeLay’s biggest crime against the human race, in this reporter’s opinion is that he used monies to affect the REDISTRICTING of Texas Congressional Districts in order to insure the gain of 16 new Republican seats in the US House. Screw the Democrats and the horse they rode in on. Presto change Texas would be even more Republican than ever before. And Washington would gain 16 new powerful Republican votes in the US House of Representatives. Do you love it? 

The Democrats needed for a quorum vote on hacking up the Texas Districts got out of town so the issue would not come to a vote. These devilish state legislators were dubbed the “Killer Bees” in that they would kill voting on redistricting by avoiding being present as a necessary quorum for a vote.  But time ran out on the Killer Bees. They could not stay gone from Austin forever. They lost their attempt to seek a desperate kind of justice, the vote came to the floor when they were present, and (presto) Texas had a bunch of new U.S Congressional Districts. Now there were more known Republicans within those new geographical Texas Districts for the sole purpose of electing Republicans to the U. S. House. 

The National Election that followed saw Republicans gain 16 new House of Representatives seats in Washington, D.C., all from Texas.  Imagine that.  It all came upon us like a bunch of No-See-Ums and no one really noticed, much less understood it all. The whole awful affair changed history in not just Texas but in America, too. The GOP used the Hammer’s little scheme to write and rewrite history, laws, and look the other way when George W. Bush decided to install and invoke the Patriot Act to change what used to be our America basic freedoms. Our loss of the centuries-old right to Habeas Corpus, military tribunals instead of a right to a fair trial, and most of our Bill of Rights became broken cinders. Torture, Wiretapping without a court order, and searching our bank accounts and other former freedoms of privacy became the norm (wink, wink). The Office of President was replaced with the concept of the Unitary Executive. This president could now start wars without Congress’ formal declaration. Just call it a National Security measure and all things became possible. He could simply declare a person to be a military combatant and not deserving of a trial under the American Constitution. Such offenders were tried at military tribunals now. Or these suspects vanished and were sent to Syria for some contract waterboarding with Uncle Sam footing the bill. He could seal and keep from the eyes of the American people many documents and secrets, including the minutes of the Energy Department meetings between Dick Cheney and Ken Lay just 4 days before the collapse of Enron. Presidential pardons of criminals like Scooter Libby became the norm, and no one saw the need to hide the brutal truth that power was the epitome of running the government. The rich and powerful ceased to be afraid of the meek. The Military Industrial Complex became government, itself. They were the big winners. Want to guess who lost?

Could one man do all this? No. It is the efforts of a few who have the means and power to rule and beat the millions of American voters into unaware submission and to giving up their basic freedoms. It is not unlike driving millions of cows down a narrow trail with a stick. So then, if some humans are more equal than others, then might is right? Right? No pun intended. Maybe not morally, but realistically, if you got the power America becomes a country run by elitists who are so sure of themselves that they care little about being noticed. Heck, these days, if you are the Unitary Executive you can refuse to hand over subpoenaed documents by the GAO, i.e., the minutes of the Energy Department meeting mentioned earlier. Just tell them it is a matter of National Security and the GAO will be forced to go away. Or don’t tell them anything, just show them the door. And who’s boss.

Want a private militia? Just wave the presidential wand and you got it. Enter Blackwater. Bush hired them to supplement the Reserve troops he commandeered to fight in combat operations in Afghanistan and in Iraq. But before we get into private militias secretly ordered by the president, what about misusing the State Reserve troops that are supposed to be there under the command of the governor of each state? Don’t have enough regular military bodies to invade Iraq? Not to worry, just declare a National Emergency and (abracadabra) you got uniformed soldiers to go to combat. Forget that State Guard Reserve troops, untrained in combat, are misused by the president to fight wars based upon myths. Forget that Iraq never had Weapons of Mass Destruction as stated, just do it. You got the power. You da man.

Oh yeah. Private militias.  Blackwater soldiers were private mercenaries with helicopters and machine-guns who could take up the slack of a no-draft military whenever more boots on the ground (and in the air) became necessary. But what about the fact that each private militia soldier cost over 5 times as much as a uniformed duly enlisted American soldier? Don’t sweat it, just do it. Pay Blackwater’s owner, Erik Prince, a neat $1 Billion the first year and don’t even flinch. Nobody will notice (power is a great rush, ain’t it)? Congress will cower just like they did every time you asked them to let the United States borrow what turned into $4 Trillion, and they will cough it up. Whata they gonna do, be un-American and not support the troops? We got ‘em by the short hairs so not to worry.

Was it due to the Hammer’s scurrilous use of money and power that changed our lives forever?  No. Those extra U.S. Congressional House seats did not cause all the maladies America sustained during the recent reign of the Neocons. It was a combined effort of a few who got rich by manipulating the American voters. DeLay probably got a Neocon trophy for his diligence toward the cause of helping the rich and powerful become richer and more powerful, though. And enough money to keep him out of jail forever. But consider. Can the efforts of a few truly change the financial and physical well-being of our nation and other nations that we decide to attack and occupy on a Bush whim supported by Colin Powell and artists’ drawings of what he said was reality? 

Are we as Longfellow opined, all made of the same clay? I don’t know. If Evil is a chemical substance found in some humans but not others, I would have to answer NO. But if Evil is a psychological state of mind that makes one human different from another, I would have to answer Yes. I think. It’s confusing.

Bottom line; are some people more equal than others? It seems to be so. In fact, it seems to be an absolute truth.

Are Some Humans More Equal Than Others? Part I

“Turn, turn, my wheel! The human race,
Of every tongue, of every place,
Caucasian, Coptic, or Malay,
All that inhabit this great earth,
Whatever be their rank or worth,
Are kindred and allied by birth,
And made of the same clay.” – Keramos, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)

Every time I have occasion to see this line from this great poem, I pause to ponder its deep meaning. Are we humans all really made of the same clay?  Were the Spanish who ravished the Meso American Indians in the New World really made of the same clay as the Aztecs who inhabited Tenochtitlan now known as Mexico City? Was the gold that Cortez and his soldiers with tin hats astride horses, took from the Indians really in the name of Almighty God and the Catholic Church? Did all the Aztecs that Cortez burned alive with fire truly drive the devil out of the savages that remained? Or was it just an excuse, an elaborate ruse to take by force (because they could) the riches of the Aztecs and blame it on the Indians who were not saved by the same God, the same grace that the European invaders were?

I saw much of this gold in Madrid’s Museo de los Americas. The finery of the Indian goldsmiths was beyond compare, and I am certain my imagination was playing tricks on me as I viewed these elaborate and exquisite pieces of gold art through the thick glass. Some pieces in my mind seemed to be deep and dark with a hint of red. I wondered if the red tint and hue of these gold objects taken were forged together with all the blood rendered in the gold’s capture by the Conquistadors in Cortez’ party of Spanish marauders. Funny how your mind plays tricks like that.

And in essence were the Aztecs and the Conquistadors all “made of the same clay?”

Or was there a significant pecking order defined by who had the most weapons, the most soldiers, and the most power and might to subdue and conquer other members of the human race who were weaker? In short, are the more powerful of the human species better than the meeker humans they seek to conquer and plunder? Shorter still, is might right? Were the Conquistadors, armed with guns, horses, canons, and friars to save the savage souls in the New World, better human beings than the Indians? Were they more deserving of a good life of riches, plunder, and domination than those they attacked and conquered? Are some humans more equal than others? It seemed to be the case when stronger countries throughout the ages exploited other countries for their land, their riches, and for their life’s blood. Many peoples and great nations collapsed as a result aggressor nations who attacked them and took their land and natural resources. Many excuse this historical phenomenon as being the way things are. And will justify it with phrases, like “That was so long ago, much too difficult to think about.” So are the strong and the weak really all made of the same clay? I confess that I do believe in Longfellow’s assertion that yes we are, and will all return to the same clay. But while we are here, it seems undeniable that the gatekeepers of the human race are those with the most power. Every other class of human being shrinks to insignificance when it comes to the power of guns, armies, and gold. 

Today America is the most powerful and richest nation in the world. Despite our burgeoning $15 Trillion Dollar Debt (all caps for such an incredulous amount of debt) many other countries, e.g., in Europe are worse off financially. As our illustrious Fed and Ben Bernanke print more dollars, inflation is growing silently like a cancer to render our purchasing power nil post haste. Yet the world continues to lend us money to finance our ever-growing debt. Why? I truly do not know, but I think it is because they know that we can kick any other countries’ butts if push ever comes to shove, like in a stand-off war (but if nukes explode all bets are off). That is why I believe that countries will continue to buy our Treasury Bonds at close to 0% interest at least for a while. We are perceived as being fully capable of attacking and occupying Afghanistan and then Iraq for years, pay for the wars with borrowed monies we do not have nor can never pay back. 

We don’t see ourselves the same way the rest of the world does. We are viewed as aggressors who will not hesitate to attack another country even on bogus charges of having weapons of mass destruction pointed at American cities. That Conquistador ability to whup ass is why countries support America and want us on their side. With our unmanned drones alone we can do tidy and quick surgical strikes from afar and kill whoever needs killing (black hats of course, propaganda notwithstanding).   The Saudis may hate us for our Westerner ways, but they love us for our protection. Most other countries find it in their best overall interests to befriend us rather than be enemies with America. They have seen our “shock and awe.” With boots on the ground in more than a thousand countries, Trident Nuclear Submarines, and air weaponry superior to all other nations, we are a pretty formidable sight for sore eyes. The only thorn in our side is terrorists who can strike unaware, any place, and at any time. Even though our financial bucket’s got a hole in it we, at present, are to be feared if you mess with America.

Many of the companies Ike warned us about have come home to roost like no-bid vulture contractors. Whenever you got a war to fight (real or contrived) there is the piper to pay. America must use companies who manufacture planes, bullets, guns, sophisticated software for weapons systems, ships, tanks, and food and shelter for our boots on the ground. So many contractors who are paid for services and weapons rendered to Uncle Sam do not have to bid on jobs. There is no competition because there is no bid to compete with. How does that happen? Well, the way it seems to happen is that a corporation or its officers or both make mega donations for the candidate of their choice who holds a seat in Congress and or the White House. The company then convinces Uncle Sam (wink, wink) that they and only they can do a certain job or build a certain airplane, you get the picture? Uncle Sam then says okay, then you get the contract….no bid necessary. Just send us a bill.

What amazes me is that nobody other than former Senator William Proxmire seemed to read the invoices. He thought it ludicrous that Uncle Sam bought half a million hammers for $500 apiece and 400 thousand toilet seats for $600 bucks apiece. I did too. But where was taxpayer outrage at such skullduggery that got America $15 Trillion Dollars in debt? Why was there no outcry from the taxpayer who now has to fear losing his Social Security and Medicare that he has faithfully paid into all his working life by his taxes rendered to Uncle Sam? Nobody remembers Senator Proxmire or his Golden Fleece Award. Nobody raised hell when he expressed outrage at our no-bid contracts given to war corporation cronies of Reagan and the Bushes, either. Nobody cared.  Yet all the members of the Board of Halliburton, and Erik Price of Blackwater notoriety got rich and we the taxpayer funded their exploitation of the American Government, unaware. At least I knew nothing at the time of George W. Bush contracting at 4 times the normal pay per uniformed US soldier the private militia under the exclusive control and beckon of the President. I didn’t think a president had the power to enlist a private militia. Still don’t. Blackwater received a cool $1 Billion the first year George W. Bush used them as protectors of US Embassy personnel in Iraq. Wow. What a cool no-bid contract that was. You got to wonder how much Prince donated to the Bush reelection campaigns each and every year. Were these companies and people who ran and owned them made of the same clay as the Reserve soldier who had to fight these wars of big profit for the no-bid contractors and their candidate of choice who would serve as hatchet man? So was Erik Prince and Blackwater made of the same clay as Billy Bob’s Hunting Club of Del Rio? And I wonder what Erik Prince contributed to the GW Bush reelection campaign each year Prince was owner of Blackwater. Are we all made of the same clay? Are we all equal or are some humans more equal than others?

Just when you thought it would be all better it gets worse. In 2011 Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, Alito, and Chief Justice Roberts ruled that now campaign contributions would be unlimited in terms of how much you could give to one candidate. Wow. That really puts it in our faces. If you got the most money you can buy a vote, moreover a government that is just fine with pushing all the wealth over to the rich side of the room. They don’t even need to hide it now; it’s all legal. You got the money, just run and elect who you choose, bought and paid for, no worries. 

In Part II we will examine the works of Paul Ryan, John Boehner, Scott Walker, Newt Gingrich, and the dethroned “Hammer” Tom Delay and how easy it has become now to screw the working man and take away all his social programs that help him and his family. And (wink, wink) give them social program tax dollars back to their rightful owners: the bloody rich.