--- Matthew and Julie Bos wrote: > On 9/28/02 3:30 AM, "Doug" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > > "This is not how a great nation should debate > issues of war and peace. > > To question people's patriotism for simply raising > questions about how a > > war is to be fought and won -- to say that anybody > who doesn't support > > the president's particular policy on national > security is against > > national security -- is not only insulting, it's > immoral." > > http://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/27/opinion/27GEPH.html?tntemail1 > > To accuse only the Republicans of politicizing the > war exposes the polarity > of your views on the matter. I have a question for > you. Why should the > interests of a labor union dictate matters of > national security? Is it in > the best interests of the US to have a union dictate > labor rules in the > Dept. of Homeland Defense? Cool thing to read > before replying: > > http://miller.senate.gov/speeches/09-25-02-Homeland-Floor-speech.html > > Why in the name of homeland security do we want to > take power away from the > President that he possessed on 9/11? Power that > Jimmy Carter had. Power that > Ronald Reagan had. Power that the first President > Bush had and power that > Bill Clinton had. Have we lost our minds? <snip>
I finally found time to read these articles. Disturbing, on many levels and issues, and I am still personally offended by those in this administration who equate 'questioning' with 'un-American' (athough 'stupid or blind' is also offensive). That both sides are 'playing politics' should be no surprise to anyone - manuvering for advantage and making use of whatever topics/issues are at hand is an 'honored' and long-standing tradition. "Have we lost our minds?" No. Our trust, however, is another matter. The trust of other nations is understandably thin, when a policy of 'no first strike' is changed to 'strike if we think you might be dangerous.' When a wealthy nation pressures a poorer one to pay more than it can afford for something because it benefits a big corporation - which coincidentally has made $$ contributions to American politicians: http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/special/enron/1218209 "The $3 billion power plant, located south of Bombay, was built as India began to open its heavily state-run economy and allow foreign firms greater investment opportunities. The nation's biggest foreign investment by far, the plant was highly controversial from the start. It drew opposition from environmentalists, Indian nationalists and even the World Bank. The project is "not economically viable," Heinz Vergin, the World Bank's country director for India, wrote in April 1993, rejecting a request for a bank loan." (Both the Clinton and Bush administrations were involved in the India-Enron deal; possible Taliban connections are also stated:) http://www.monitor.net/monitor/0202a/enrontimeline.html "June-Oct 2000: Maharashtra government allies demand scrapping the project because of the cost of the power it produces. Early 2001: Vice President Cheney held several secret meetings with top Enron officials, including its Chairman Kenneth Lay. These meetings were presumably part of Cheney's non-public Energy Task Force sessions. A number of Enron stockholders, including Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Trade Representative Robert Zoellick, became officials in the Bush administration. In addition, Thomas White, a former Vice Chairman of Enron and a multimillionaire in Enron stock, currently serves as the Secretary of the Army. February, 2001: Vice President Cheney's energy task force changed a draft energy proposal to include a provision to boost oil and natural gas production in India. The amendment was so narrow that it apparently was targeted only to Enron's power plant in India. March, 2001: Laila Helms, the part- Afghan niece of the former CIA director and former U.S. ambassador to Tehran Richard Helms is described as unofficial Taliban representative in Washington. Ms Helms brought Sayed Rahmatullah Hashimi, an adviser to Mullah Omar, to Washington.after the Taliban had destroyed the ancient Buddhas of Bamiyan. Hashimi met the directorate of Central Intelligence at the CIA and the Bureau of Intelligence and Research at the State Department. April, 2001: An Enron memo, which Lay gave Cheney during their one-on-one meeting, makes eight energy-policy recommendations. Seven out of eight recommendations were adopted in the administration's final energy plan." I do not think the above, and the current situation in Iraq - with its oilfields, are unrelated. On a more positive note, here are two articles about the recent elections in Morocco, including how a group of American women helped coach Moroccan women (King Mohammed decided more women should hold seats in Parliament) in running for office: http://www.komotv.com/stories/20507.htm http://abcnews.go.com/wire/World/ap20020929_734.html http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-2046767,00.html Debbi Speak Up Maru __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? New DSL Internet Access from SBC & Yahoo! http://sbc.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
