I pledge allegience to the flag of the United States of America
and to the Republic for which it stands
One nation, under God, indivisible
with liberty and justice for all.
Our Oh so sacred pledge of allegience.
Yes, I'm back. I would like to apologize for my absence recently. I know in these days of turmoil a clear voice needs to be heard. I must admit, I have been struck dumb by the bizare nature on this "war". I cannot fathom why we need to see what is happening in Iraq 24 hours a day. It desensatizes you to the horror of it. I found myself watching the bombing of Bagdad one day and was fascinated by the cloud a bomb had left behind and the paper falling from it like confetti in a ticker tape parade. I could not believe my own ability to detach myself from this scene and analize it so technically. I did not and still do not like the fact that I was able to do this. It doesn't feel good. How much more will people who are behind this war be able to do this. And they won't feel bad about it. They probably pop some popcorn and kick their shoes off to watch it. Just like a movie. I have heard people state that they feel very surreal watching it. I have had chest pains just listening to it. My anxiety level is extremely high over this. I turn the TV off and play Mario Party with my kids. It's much more fun, and no one gets killed.
As you noticed, I began with the pledge of allegience. Let's break that down a little. Why would we pledge ourselves to a piece of cloth to begin with. It has no DNA, it does not bleed, it has no feelings. I know it is supposed to be a symbol of our freedom. But, as we no longer have any freedoms (please refer to the PATRIOT ACT), it doesn't matter much anymore does it.
And as for the Republic for which it stands. That too has gone to hell in a hand basket while we all slept. Some of us tried to stem the tide of this particular change, but the overwhelming apathy of both the electorate and the elected was too much for us. We could not stay the course. Those who did not care outnumbered those of us who did. Don't take offense. This is a sad but true fact. Those of us who vote are supporting those of you who don't. So, if you are dissatisfied with the government, TOUGH! This situation is of your own making because you chose to do nothing when you could have changed the outcome.
We are no longer a nation, we are 50 small states, forced to fend for ourselves, yet required to pay homage to a government that does nothing for us, but everything to line there own pockets. We have a leader who has striped us of our budget surplus and drove us into the depths of the largest deficit in our history as a country. You do realize we will eventually have to pay it back. Where do you thinik that money will come from? Out of your paycheck and mine. I can predict how it will come down. After this nightmare Republican regime is ousted, the Democrats who get stuck with this mess will have no choice but to raise taxes. Then when the next election comes around the Republicans will use the tax increases to bludgeon the Democrats back into submission. The only way this stops is for people to remember why we needed the tax increases in the first place. Because the Republicans are notorious for spending money we don't have and leaving the Democrats to clean up the mess.
I say have the guts to clean up after yourselves. You are adults after all. Start acting like it and take responsibility for your faults.
Under God? I don't think he likes us much right now, do you? You can't blame Him can you? I surely don't blame Him. People are messy. People in power should just walk around all the time with a bib on and broom sticking out of their asses! That way they don't have to break a sweat when they clean up there messes.
I can't think of a nation more divided right now. The hawks are circling the White House. Can the Vultures be far behind? What is it that makes men want to kill each other? I just don't understand. If Dubya wants a war that badly, why don't he and his cronies pick up guns and go fight themselves. And leave our young men and women alone. In the Viet Nam era, he joined a force that would keep him at home and even then he went awol twice and nothing was done to him. It all in who ya know, you can't tell me it's not. Any regular schmo would have landed in levenworth. He didn't even get a slap on the wrist. How can the soldiers of today feel good about being sent to die when he sidestepped it himself before. How can they be expected to obey his orders when he disobeyed the orders of his superiors. He is not a glowing example to say the least. I could not and would not be proud to fight for him. Nor would I be proud of any country that elected such a man to the highest political office attainable.
We have no liberty, referrence the afore mentioned PATRIOT ACT. This act snuck through congress when we were still all paranoid over 9-11. Just three weeks after the incident. There was not nearly enough lag time to think clearly. Half the congressmen never even read the whole thing before voting fore it. I was always told to read the fine print before signing anything. This also ties into the justice for all part as well. Do you realize the PATRIOT ACT enables the government to search your premises and download your harddrive without a warrant? Also it allows the FBI, CIA and meriad other government agencies to arrest you, completely wipe out any record of your existence, and hold you captive for two years if they think you are involved in an act of terrorism. They just have to think it, they don't have to prove it. They will lock you in a cell and hold you without due process for two years. And according to this ACT it is completely legal. This has totally anialated half the ammendments to the constitution. So much for freedom or justice.
And here's another thing. What is the last line of the Star Spangled Banner? Land of the free and home of the brave? Free. Yeah, right. Just last week the government interogated 11,000 (yes that's 1-1-0-0-0) American citizens of Middle Eastern decent. People who were brought here to get away from the tyrany in the Middle East decades ago by their parents. People who were BORN here! Muslims all. But this is not a holy crusade. Billy Graham's own son, who is also a minister and should know better, stated that Islam is evil! I liked Billy Graham, but if this is how he raised his son, I won't subscribe to his brand of Christianity! What ever happened to Christian tolerance? What ever happened to turning the other cheek? And interogating your own citizens? What's next? Internment camps like they did to the Japanese-Americans in World War II? Have we not learned a damn thing in the last 60 years? Stop all this bullshit will ya! Since when are our citizens guilty until proven innocent? This is not the America I know and love. I WANT IT BACK! I CAN'T STAND WHAT YOU HAVE DONE TO MY BELOVED HOMELAND, GEORGE! WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE TO DESTROY EVERYTHING THIS COUNTRY WAS BUILT ON.
Originally, people came to these shores to practice the religion of their choosing without political intervention. That's what this country is supposed to be about. Now our government tells us not to persecute the Muslims in this country, then they proceed to round up 11,000 of them and interogate them for terrorism ties. George, isn't this a little bit hypocritical? NO, IT'S A LOT HYPOCRITICAL! I am ashamed of my own country and I thought that would never happen. I don't know why I thought that though. I remember one fourth of July my mom hung a Nazi flag on our house with a sign across it that said "it could happen here!" I'm just glad she died before she witnessed it. It would have killed her.
Looking at this story, I realize how I got to be such a radical. One of the best trates my mother gave me. GOD SAVE AMERICA!
Natalie Maines, lead singer of the Dixie Chicks told a London audience she is "ashamed President Bush is from Texas". I'm ashamed he comes from our country. I'd go so far as to say I'm ashamed he is our President. He is alienating us from every other country on the face of the earth. His isolationist attitude is going to hang us out to dry. You cannot be self sufficient in a Global Economy. The whole structure requires that everyone participate. If one does not, it all falls down like a house of cards.
What is wrong with this country? This is one of the few countries where you can disagree openly with your government without recrimination. In fact, it's part of our freedom. So, why are so many turning on those of us who have the guts to speak out. If you have a forum that allows you a voice, I think it is your obligation to use that voice for the betterment of all. I for one, take this obligation seriously.
You must realize that even when we win this war, and it's a given that we will, it will set in motion a chain of events that will bring about the demise of the greatest nation on earth, and change the face of the world forever. Not in a good way, I'll bet. In essence, we will win the battle (Iraq), but ultimately, lose the war (the future). AT WHAT PRICE MR. BUSH?
Even Ted Kopel called the summit Bush and Co. had this past weekend is nothing but a smoke screen. Since they've already said there's no way now that their resolution will pass in the Security Council. So what the Hell were they talking about? Maybe they went out to the links to work on their PUTZ!
Well, here it comes. This is now Monday, March 17, 2003. Tonight our illustrious leader declares war on the world at large. If we win handily, what or who will be the next target? If you think it will stop with Iraq, you don't know the person in charge as well as you think you do. I understood the Gulf War. At least it was under the pretext on protecting an invaded nation. But this is over weapons nobody can find and no one is really sure existed as all. I don't find this a clear reason for war. We have become WAY to paranoid for anybody's good. It will come back to bite us in the ASS!
I do not blame our troops, they are only following orders, whether they agree with them or not. It's their job. They really don't know what's behind all of this. I blame their Commander and Chief. He and his inner circle are the only ones who know why they are laying their lives on the line. And some of us who can see through the smoke and mirrors know and say more than the Administration would like. I think old George should pick up a gun himself and go fight his war and leave our YOUNG men and women out of it.
If we invade Iraq under these baseless claims, we will be no better than Saddam Hussein himself. We have not been provoked into this war. It has nothing to do with September 11, 2001. I take offense to Mr. Bush suggesting otherwise. And the families of those who died in the 9-11 attacks shouldn't want their loved ones memories being tainted by this war. There were no Iraqis involved in 9-11 and Mr. Bush has yet to find a definite paper trail from the terrorists back to Iraq. Yet he insists on injecting the words "NINE ELEVEN" into every speech he gives on the impending war. That's because he knows it's the only thing that will make most of the lemmings in this country patriotic about the war.
I choose to dissent against the possibility of war in hopes that PEACE breaks out!
I'm sitting here drinking sickeningly sweet cappuccino and falling asleep. How can this happen with all that sugar and caffeine? By all scientific evidence, I should be running around my house talking a mile a minute. Yet all I can think about is a nap. Maybe it's because I got up at 5:30 a.m. and stayed us when I usually go back to sleep between 6:30 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. It is now 10:47 a.m. I've been up 5 hours when normally I would only be up 3 hours. I'm short 2 hours sleep. That's it.
I have to go to the bank or I would take a nap now. I have to go to the store too. Maybe I'll take one after lunch and before I have to pick up the kids from school at 3:15 p.m. Ha, ha, ha.
I am the luckiest woman on earth. I have a husband who is a custodian at a High School. He hates the way I sweep, mop and vacuum. So he does it. He used to do my bathroom too, until my son learned how to clean one at camp. He came home and asked to clean ours! We even bought him his own cleaning supplies. And make no mistake, we mustask to borrow them. He's very posessive about his Windex! My daughter has a thing for emptying trash cans. They must have gotten this from Dad, "cause I hate to clean. This leaves me a lot of time to wash clothes and dishes. And it's a good thing too. These three people dirty more clothing and dishes than any army I've ever seen.
I have this laundry basket that has 3 sections in it. One for white clothes, one for colors, and one for darks. This is not a hard thing. Yet, my brain damaged family can't figure out what goes where. If they take off something grey, look in the basket, it ends up in the whites. They take off something white, look in the basket and see something grey in the colors slot, they put the white thing in the colors with the grey thing. When did grey stop being a color? They're makin' me nuts!
Well, let me see, it is now 4:43 p.m. I still haven't gotten the nap. And it's not lookin' good for later either. I have dishes to wash, clothes to wash, dinner to prepare, clothes to separate and fold and put away. What do you think? 1:30 a.m.? Yeah, that's what I think too. It's gonna be a long night.
March 10, 2003 --- One week to war. What an appropriate month to start a war --- March! Well, seven days to go. Are ya gettin' excited out there? Oh boy, we're gonna kill somebody!
I feel like I'm wathing a "Bugs Bunny" cartoon. "Of course, you know, this means war."
Now we know what that "W" really stands for.
Have you taken a good look at George's ears. With those ears George could be a cartoon character for all we know. Judge Doom!
We went from "Bugs Bunny" to "Roger Rabbit" in on stroke of the pen. Or we could call him the "March Hare". But this ain't Wonderland.
THAT'S IT! He has a wild hare up his ass!
Please, somebody give this man a fleets enima before he decides to hire Steven Bochco to do "War - The Musical!".
His timing would be a little off though. Broadway's on strike. Too bad it's about money and not a war protest. At least that would have been worthwhile. I can't believe these people are striking over how many people are in the orchestra pit when so much more important stuff is going on. Actually, it puts into perspective what we are about as a nation. GREED! They are just following their leader, after all. That's what this whole war is about - GREED!
George wants it all. He wants to be able to say who gets what in the world. "If you behave like I want you to, then we'll feed your people." I say: "Let my people go!" Control - George wants it! I've never seen someone so small be so power hungry - not even Napolean!
I was reading an article yesterday where a German Official likened George to a "Dictator". George is , of course, screaming for his head. Wouldn't you think Germany would know a dictator when they saw one? After all, they had the worst one, so far, in modern history. I guess that's just one more thing George wants to be the best at.
I figured it out. He wants to succeed so bad that he tries too hard, and that's what screws things up. Either that, or, he really is as dumb and he looks. God help us!
Earlier there was a woman in Germany's cabinet that came out and said George was acting like Hitler. When their Chancellor was re-elcted he didn't bring her back on board. George was pissed because she wasn't fired when she made the statement. I sure hope George doesn't nead my site! He'll be separating my head from my shoulders, just like Henry VIII. Isn't it amazing how you can link George with every evil ruler that ever lived and it fits like an iron fist in a velvet glove?
I haven't seen anyone so Hell bent on taking over the world since "Pinky and the Brain". But which one is he? Notice how we slipped right back into cartoons again? "George W. Bush - The Cartoon Network Years", what a great title. That's one for his Presidential Library!
Anybody see the press conference on Thursday night? Something's been buggin' me ever since. Is it me, or was George using a teleprompter to answer the questions he was being asked. EVERY time he was asked a question, he would hesitate, look down, and say "um" like he was scanning a text for the answer. The pauses weren't for effect either. They were more like awkward, uncomfortable pauses. He even made a joke about the whole thing being scripted down to who he called on and in what order. And he not only didn't call on the most senior press member, who, out of courtesy, always gets a question, and who happens to be a woman, but, I don't recall him calling on ANY women. There were some there, I saw them. He not only showed bad mannors, he displayed issues with dealing with women in general. Could this stem from a domineering mother? Old Babs looks like she could crack the whip pretty well.
Just like nothing is sacred in his persuit of oil, so, nothing is sacred to me when it comes to him, even his "rents". Face it, folks. Pop looks like a happy idiot and Mom looks like a decendant of Attila the Hun. That's one angry looking woman, even if she does wear comfortable shoes. So let's see, George looks like Dad and Acts like Mom. Someone said something dispairaging about George once and I swear I saw flames shoot our of the womans eyes on national TV!
I have this picture of George in my head. He's sitting at his desk in the Oval Office. In one hand he has the "Hot Line". The other is poised over a big red button. The caption reads: "What. Me worry?" Take a look at his face and picture it. All he needs is the freckles. He is the guy from "Mad Magazine". The key word here being "Mad".
I may be a little nuts. But George is mad. Completely and certifiably mad. I can see him dancing lightly down the hallways of the White House laughing like Frank Gorshin in "Batman".
At a press conference the other day, Ted Kennedy said, "the biggest threat to peace lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue". I'm so glad to see at least one Politian has the balls to stand up to Attila the Shrimp. 50% of Americans, 100's of other countries and 10 thousand Elvis fans can't be wrong.
You've been a lovely audience. Thank you, and Good Night!
All we are saying is give peace a chance
ALL WE ARE SAYING IS GIVE PEACE A CHANCE --- JOHN LENNON
Hey now it's time for you and me
Got a revolution Got to revolution
Come on now we're marching to the sea
Got a revolution Got to revolution
We will take it from you
We will and who are we
We are volunteers of America --- JEFFERSON AIRPLANE
The Eastern world, it is explodin',
Violence flarin', bullets loadin',
You're old enough to kill, but not for votin'.
You don't believe in war - but what's that gun you're totin'?
An' even the Jordan river has bodies floatin'.
But you tell me, over and over and over again, my friend,
Ah, you don't believe we're on the eve of destruction.
Don't you understand what I'm tryin' to say,
An' can't you feel the fears I'm feelin' today?
If the button is pushed, there's no runnin' away,
There'll be no one to save, with the world in a grave.
Take a look around you, boy, it's bound to scare you, boy.
An' you tell me, over and over and over again, my friend,
Ah, you don't believe we're on the eve of destruction.
Yeah, my blood's so mad feels like coagulatin',
I'm sittin' here just contemplatin',
I can't twist the truth, it knows no regulation,
Handful of senators don't pass legislation,
An' marches alone can't bring integration
When human respect is disintegratin',
This whole crazy world is just too frustratin'.
An' you tell me, over and over and over again, my friend,
You don't believe we're on the eve of destruction,
No, no, you don't believe we're on the eve of destruction.
Barry McGuire - 1965 - Lyrics by: P. F. Sloane
Does anyone besides me feel frightened by the fact that these lyrics, all from the 60"s and early 70's, are more relevent today than they were thirty some years ago. Songs popularized in, what we thought at the time, was the single most unsettled period in the history of our nation. Those of my generation know and remember the upheaval and unrest that marked the changing times in our country. I see us coming full circle. What I don't see, is all those hippies, who are now yuppies, who marched and protested all the wrongs of the 60's from the Vietnam War (they can call it what they like, it was a war) to the fight for civil rights coming out and protesting the war for oil and finance. They would rather turn tail and hop in their SUV's and Lexus's and beat feet to the bank or their broker to make sure their 401k is still intact.
If you are that scared for the safety of your "things" then, believe me, you need to stand up and be counted. Take a stand against the rape of our national pride, our economy, our characters, and our FREEDOMS! This administration is stripping us of all of it. If you think I'm kidding, you need to surf the net and find a copy of what some are calling The Patriot Act 2. It is a draft of what the White House has in store for us. If it passes, you can kiss the 14th amendment goodbye!
I gotta tell you, folks, I'm scared to death! Not of Saddam Housein, not of Kim Jong Il, but of George W. Bush. He "Bush"whacked us to get "elected", excuse me "selected", and if he has his way over this Iraq thing, we may all die.
Let me ask you this. Which do you think would piss terrorists off more? Coming after them, or sitting back and just monitoring things, and taking action only when something is being planned against us? If we do this thing, they will come knocking on our front door. There hasn't been anything going on here since 9-11-01. If we stir them up, it will be disasterous.
I really don't know how to get through to my peers. You have to wake up and get involved. You have to tell your elected officials in Washington what you want them to do. Contrary to common opinion, your Senators and Representatives are there to do your bidding and must vote what the majority of their constituants want. That is why it is important to contact them on a regular basis, even if it's just to let them know you are watching. They tend to behave themselves better when they know we are paying attention.
And that's another thing. We got this way because my generation has quit paying attention to the government. We don't vote (please excuse me from this statement, I'm 47 and I have missed 1 election since I was 18, and that was a primary), we say it doesn't make any difference, we say our vote doesn't count (if you don't vote, it surely won't count). Imagine if you will for a moment, all of us going to the polls and voting our conscience. Imagine what we could accomplish. There is power in numbers. If you want to make a difference register to vote, run for office yourself. Don't think you can't get elected. All you need to start is a simple petition, which is available through your party affilliation or the board of elections in your county. If you get the required number of signatures, your name goes on the ballot for the office you wish to run for. It's simple! If you have a lot of friends who are registered with the same party as you, and who live in the district in which you are running, you pretty much have it made. The number of signatures needed varies from area to area. Just ask when you get your petition.
And above all, I can not emphasize enough, register, and VOTE, VOTE, VOTE!!!
You cannot affect change without voting for it. My generation has gotten lazy and sloppy where our elections are concerned. We, collectively, are to blame for the state of our nation. Not me personally, I didn't vote for the man, or his henchmen!
We can affect a REVOLUTION in our country by voting into office those who hold our same views and morals. Then make them live up to their campaign promises by staying on top of what they are doing. This is easier to do today with all the electronic media available to us. You can E-mail your Senators and Representatives daily. It takes a couple of minutes. In the time it takes to take a dump, you could dump on your elected officials about the latest legislation. That's power! And it's kind of fun knowing your opinion is being heard by people who can do something about it. If they blow you off, keep at them. And never hesitate to remind them how they got there and how quickly that can change in the next election. It's all about the votes to them. Now do you understand why it's so important to vote. The same place you go to contact your congressmen, is the same place you go to check on his/her voting record in congress. Find out what they are voting for and against, and make an informed decision about what you wish to tell them.
This administration is coersing us into living in fear. Out of one side of thier mouths they tell us to relax and live our lives. Out of the other side they say to rush out and buy rolls of heavy plastic and duct tape. How is this in any way normal? I'd rather live my life fearlessly than die in fear. Our leader professes to have such great faith in God. Then why does he feel we need to eliminate the leader of another country to feel safe? Shouldn't God be providing that feeling of safety through faith? I know He does that for me. Maybe, like most of the rest of us, He just doesn't like George. After all, I try not to communicate with people I don't like. Don't you?
Homeland Security in action: A 60 year old man in New York state is arrested when he refused to remove a tee shirt that said"Give Peace a Chance" on the front and "No War With Iraq" on the back. If you think this is crazy, please read the draft of the Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003. This legislation would allow the government to do just what they tried to do to that 60 year old man. And they want to do it by making you disappear for 2 years, locking you up somewhere without due process and without ever charging you with any crime. This is in direct opposition to your civil liberties and the 14th amendment.
The other thing that annoys me no end is that polititians and broadcasters alike think that actors should not get involved in protests or speak out against this war. I was under the impression that each and every one of us had the right to speak out against our government when we disagree with it's actions. The last time I checked, the actors who are speaking out are United States citizens with all the rights of the rest of us. Just because they are in the public eye, they don't have a say. That's crap! The government doesn't want them saying anything BECAUSE they are in the public eye, and people might actually listen to them and find out they are right. It seems to be okay for the gossip rags to take their most minute initmate lives and plaster it all over the front page. It's okay to talk about the actors, but they're not allowed to talk about the government. Then they say they are going to blacklist these actors. Oprah disagrees about what will happen to the women in Iraq and she spoke out against the treatment of women in Afghanastan. They gonna blacklist her. I don't think so. Did we learn nothing for the McCarthy era!
These are the things that frighten me. Not some madman in the Middle East with weapons (maybe) that reach 93 miles past their own borders! How is he gonna hurt us? Personally, I don't think he had any interest in us at all until George brought his name up in the State of the Union address of 2002. This war has been a long time in the making. George has held this grudge since daddy failed to get Saddam the first time. This war is, in part, to save face for his family. I don't find that a good enough reason to go to war. SUCK IT UP, GEORGE!
To contact your congressmen you can call the U. S. Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121. Give them your zip code and they'll transfer your call to your representative.
To E-mail your Senator, go to www.senate.gov/contacting/index_by_state.cfm
To E-mail your Representatives, go to www.house.gov/writerep/
Or you can write: Office of (your Senators name), United States Senate, Washington, DC 20510; or Office of (your Representatives name), United States House of Representatives, Washington, DC 20515.
These addresses and E-mail addresses and phone numbers may be of great importance in the coming days, weeks, months, maybe years. Keep them close and use them as often as you deem necessary. Your neighbors and fellow Americans may thank you for this later. And please don't keep them to yourself, pass this information on to your friends and neighbors. Tell them to do the same thing I told you. You can affect a revolution in this country in 2004 without shedding a drop of blood or firing one bullet. Just by pulling a lever.
Let's take a look at George's accomplishments since assuming the throne. We'll take a look at want he has done in the last 2.5 years. He has been at least prolific without a doubt. And he's very decisive. I question his ability to make good decisions, but at least he doesn't back down when he makes a decision. Unfortunately, that may not be a good thing.
Listed below are several of his accomplishments. The statistics come directly from "Stupid White Men" by Michael Moore. This is a book I recommend highly. Thank you Michael for you humor and innate wisdom. All commentaries on said accomplishments are my own. Feel free to make your own judgements on the sanity of these decisions.
In the past 2.5 years George W. Bush:
* Cut $39 million from federal spending on libraries - Now some libraries are being forced to close due to lack of funding. Most of these are in the inner cities where illiteracy is at it's highest.
* Cut $35 million in funding for advanced pediatric training for doctors - That's right. Your child could die because his/her doctor couldn't get the training he/she needed to make a clear diagnosis. Apparently, your President doesn't think your children are important. Maybe that's because he knows he's going to have us all blown up.
*Cut funding for research into renewable energy sources by 50% - That means we're half as likely to find an energy source to replace oil before it runs out (oil is not a renewable energy source by the way). That shouldn't surprise you if you know that he and half his cabinet are oil men.
* Delayed rules that would reduce "acceptable" levels of arsenic in drinking water - Isn't it comforting to know there's actually an "acceptable" level of a DEADLY POISON in the water you drink every day. Yeah, drink more water every day, it's good for you. NO! DRINK BEER! IT'S SAFER!
* Slashed funding for research into more fuel efficient , cleaner burning cars and trucks by 28% - So, we're a quarter less likely to get cars that get 50 miles to the gallon or trucks that get 20.
* He has revoked rules strengthening the power of government to deny contracts to companies violating federal laws, environmental laws, and OSHA regulations. - Not for nothin', but, WHAT THE HELL! He's worried about Homeland Security? We're already not safe here, and it's his fault!!
* He has allowed Secretary of the Interior, Gale Norton, to request suggestions for opening up National Monuments for foresting, coal mining, and oil and gas drilling. - I don't know how I feel about Mount Rushmore as a strip mine? Or Yosemite over run with crazed Lumberjacks? Yes I do know. Not even over my rotting corpse! We already have a pipeline in the tundra - let's not screw anything else up!
* Broke his campaign promise to invest $100 million per year in rain forest conservation. - Or was that his idea when he proposed development of a hydrogen powered car, to put moisture back into the atmosphere?
* Reduced the Community Access Program by 86%. This program coordinates care for people with no health insurance among public hospitals, clinics and other healthcare providers. - George W. "Scrooge"? - If they're going to die, let them be about it and decrease the surplus population." -- Charles Dickins - "A Christmas Carol"
* Voided the proposal to increase the publics' access to information about what could happen in a chemical plant accident. - Keep in mind this was before September 11, 2001. Apparently, we don't need to know if that gasious cloud hanging over us is going to kill us. I love a good surprise, don't you?
* Cut funding for the Girls and Boys Clubs of America programs in public housing by $60 million. - What's a few more gang members, drug addicts or dealers to him? It's not his neighborhood.
* Pulled out of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol agreement on global warming, signed by 178 other countries. - Not surprising for a man who refuses to believe there is a hole in the ozone layer bigger than the one in his head. Maybe he'll see the light when they have to pick him up in a boat off the roof of the White House.
* Rejected the international accord to enforce the 1972 treaty banning germ warfare. - Isn't this the exact thing he "claims" to be going to war with Iraq over? OOPS!! We can have our war toys, but nobody else is allowed to. Where does the UN stand on that! Why aren't they demanding we get rid of our biological and chemical weapons. If you think we don't have them, you need to take the blinders off.
* Cut $200 million from workforce training programs for dislocated workers. - If you lose your job, there's no money to retrain you to get another job! And we wonder why the jobless rate is so high? Do the math Mr. Bush.
* Cut $200 million from the Childcare and Development grant, the program that allocates childcare to low-income families when they are forced from welfare to work. - They change welfare so you have to get a job after a certain period of time and get off welfare. That's a good thing, don't get me wrong. These jobs are notoriously entry level jobs, which translates to minimum wage pay. Then they tell you they're not going to subsidize your childcare so you can go to work and you can't afford to pay for it on your own. So, you either have latch-key children or you go back on welfare. That makes sense, doesn't it?
* Eliminated prescription contraceptive coverage for federal imployees (but Viagra is still covered). - So government employees (I'm assuming that includes the military) and their dependants aren't allowed to protect themselves from pregnancy. But, the "men" in their lives have free reign over "getting it up". There's always "rubbers". They even have ones with "spermicide". That's supposed to kill the sperm in case the rubber leaks or breaks. I have a 12 year old that's living proof of how well that doesn't work! Are we sure he's not Catholic? Maybe he should be.
* Cut $700 million in funds for public housing repairs. - That's great. Cut the budget by depriving an already dignity deprived population of the most basic of sub-standard decent living conditions. Take funding away from some of the most delapidated dwellings in America. There's the American Dream in action. Or, should I say the American Nightmare.
* Cut half a billion dollars from the Environmental Protection Agency's budget. - "I'm sorry we can't afford clean air and water for the next 4 years -- I need it ALL so I can blow up the world." Thank you. Thank you very much!
* Overturned workplace ergonomics rules designed for the protection of workers' safety and health. - So go ahead, don't bend your knees and lift heavy objects, it's okay, the government says so. And use that computer all day without a break. All that repetative hand motion won't give you carpal tunnel, which is caused by all that repetative hand motion. Besides, even if you do get carpal tunnel syndrome, your company's workmans' compensation insurance doesn't have to pay for it, because the government says it's not a work related illness. Every doctor you talk to tells you that it is. But, hey, what do they know. Ther're only MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS! They can't possibly know more than the government about a MEDICAL condition.
* Abandoned his campaign pledge to regulate carbon dioxide emmissions, the major contributor to global warming. - A.) Now we know how good his word is. B.) As we've already, proved he doesn't believe there is global warming, he obviously sees no use in lowering the amount of carbon dioxide we spew out. Come on, you know that's his line of thinking. "If I say I don't believe in global warming, then I can get away without making good on my promises over carbon dioxide."
* Prohibited federal aid to international family planning organizations providing abortion counseling, referrals or services with their own funds. You can't use your own money to promote abortions for people the world over who need them or you don't get any of our money. Maybe I wanted my tax dollars to go there! I'm sure it says somewhere in the Constitution that the government isn't supposed to tell the private sector what to do. Yet it does that very thing every day. Not only within our country, but, it tries to do the same thing to other countries. As if we have any authority beyoud our borders!
* Nominated a former mining company executive, Dan Lauriski as Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health. - Okay, he's an executive. You think he's ever been down a mine shaft? And he's management. You think he's going to care about the safety of the people who do go down there if it's going to cost something? Take the tour buddy, then make your decisions.
* Appointed Lynn Scarlett, and skeptic of global warming and opposed to stricter air pollution standards, as Undersecretary of the Interior. - Thank God she's not the top dog! We'd all need gas masks and not because of chemical or biological warfare either.
* Approved controversial plan of the Interior Secretary to auction off areas close to Florida's eastern shore for oil and gas development. - Giving a whole new meaning to "Shell" oil. Oil rigs on the horizon. What a great tourist attraction. Not to mention it will do wonders for the sea creatures. And black sand looks great, but not when it sticks to everything in sight, especially the aquatic birds.
* Plans to allow oil drilling in Montana's Lewis and Clark National Forest. - Is nothing sacred to this man? Not even our History?
* Threatened to shut down the White House AIDS office. - Great! If I ignore it, it must not exist! This sounds very much like an ostrich.
* Decided he no longer needed guidance from the American Bar Association for federal judicial appointments. - God knows he knows more about the law than the Bar. After all, he was in jail for drunk driving. Hey, wait a minute. That would make him more knowledgable about the law AND the bar.
* Denied college financial aid to students convicted of misdemeaner drug charges (though convicted murderers are still eligable). - Don't smoke pot and get caught or you won't be able to further your education. But, hey, if you kill your parents, that's all right by us, come on in.
* Allocated only 3% of the amount requested by the Justice Department in the ongoing battle against "Big Tobacco". - That's the big bucks there. You think they'll get any concessions from the industry with that kind of money?
* Pushed through his tax cut, of which 43% goes to the wealthiest 1% of Americans. - His friends and relatives got most of the tax cut. We go diddly!
* Signed a bill to make it harder for poor and middle-class Americans to file for bankruptcy, even when it's because of overwhelming medical bills. - He gives a big tax break to the rich, while allowing the poor to drown in debt, because they don't have enough money to pay their bills. Ah, the Republican party line. Robin Hood in reverse!
* Appointed to the office of Personnel Management an affirmative action opponent. - He already has his Token "Niggas" after all. Nice job, "Whitey".
* Cut $15.7 million from programs for child abuse and neglect. - Well, I guess if it's good enough for his girls, it's good enough for the rest of us. I guess that's why they drink. If that's not abuse and neglect, I don't know what is.
* Proposed ending the "Reading is Fundamental" program, which gives free books to poor children. Why should poor children be able to read better than him? Good thing it was only a proposal.
* Wants to develope "mini-nukes", designed to attack targets that are deeply buried, a violation of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. - He must want to get at Saddam really bad. He thinks we should be allowed to do anything we wish to militarily and the rest of the world should shut up and obey. George - it's a global community - everybody has a say.
* Tried to reverse regulation protecting 60 million acres of national forest from logging and road building. Okay, George, quick science lesson. We breathe out what trees need and they give off what we need to breathe. No trees = no breathable air = no people ... including you. It's a simple concept. And God did it that way for a reason!
* Appointed John Bolton, an opponent of nonproliferation treaties AND the United Nations, as Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security. - He's supposed to control everything he doesn't believe in. So that's why we're out of control. And who could possibly be against the United Nations. Eleanor's coming back to haunt you, buddy.
* Made Monsanto executive, Linda Fisher, deputy administrator of the E.P.A. - Monsanto is one of the biggest polluters in the country. 'Nough said about that.
* Nominated Michael McConnell, a leading critic of the separation of church and state, to a federal judgeship. - Yet, we still have people trying to take the "Pledge of Allegence" out of our schools. Our children don't get any moral training in school now. To these people I say: Remember Madaline Marie O'Hare. She had prayer removed from our schools, and she died of her convictions.
* Nominated civil rights opponent Terrence Boyle to a federal judgeship. - George seems to be taking us on a nostalgic walk back to the civil war days. Did all those battles mean nothing? Don't go there George.
* Canceled 2004 deadline for auto makers to develop prototype high mileage cars. - And then gas prices went through the roof. If you think it's about saving the Iraqi citizens from the mass murderer that is their leader, think again. That is only how George and Co. are trying to justify it to the American community. A war contrived by Big Oil and the Imposter to the Throne on the verge of an ELECTION YEAR when our economy is crumbling. Smoke and Mirrors! There's a lot more going on here folks, and it ain't got diddly to do with FREEDOM! "Wag the Dog"!
* Named John Walters, and ardent apponent of prison drug treatment programs, as drug czar. - Lock 'em up, but don't treat the problem that put them there. Most inmates are jailed for crimes they committed while on drugs or while trying to appropriate money to get drugs. This genious wants to put them back on the street without fixing the problem that caused them to be there in the first place. Most of them will get out at some point. If you're that far gone that you are committing crimes to support the habit, it ain't that easy to "Just Say No"!
* Appointed oil and coal lobbyist J. Steven Giles as Deputy Secretary of the Interior. - Someone who lobbied to strip the environment of all its assets put in charge of that very same Environment. That doesn't sound too good for the trees and oceans.
* Named Bennett Raley, who has called for the repeal of the Endangered Species Act, as Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Water and Science --- Aargh! Help! What was the man thinking? My Bad.
* Proposed to ease the permit process for constructing refineries and nuclear and hydroelectric dams, including lowering environmental standards. - It's conceivable that we could all be glowing in the dark, courtesy of George W. Bush.
* Proposed the selling of oil and gas tracts in the Alaska Wildlife Preserve. - And this isn't going to mess with the Wildlife?
* Missed all the signs that pointed to catastrophe concerning September 11, 2001. They had the information. They either chose to ignore it or couldn't figure out what the hell it was they were looking at. That makes our leader either incredibly stupid, incredibly niave or incredibly arogent! Either way, it ain't good for us.
* He is forcing us into a war nobody in the world wants over imaginary weapons nobody seems to be able to find. Show us your proof! Where are the documents? Let the American public see the pictures. In spite of what you believe, We the People are compassionate, articulate, and intellegent. If we are presented with the facts and not lied to in any way, we can come to the right conclusion all by ourselves. If you have irrefutable proof in black and white, show us and we'll be behind you. In other words, sir, put up or shut up!
* Took a $50 billion budget surplus and created a $287 billion defecit in 2.5 years, heading for a 1.8 trillion defecit within 10 years. Zigfried and Roy ain't got nothin' on him. The magical disappearing budget surplus!
These last three are all mine as they are post 9-11-01.