Conflicting interests

Scientist: White House Restricting Info On Climate

There's a significant departure of thought when someone mentions the word: "environment.."

Why??

Because it's become a political tug-of-war and most Americans have become numb to that fact.. There was a barrage of statements for global warning, against global warning and nothing really made much sense.. In fact, it's gotten so incredibly political - both sides of our political parties have continually tried to spin the reports to whatever policy they are trying to administer..

And that's where I have a problem..

...moreover, I'll definitely concede that it's not just a Bush problem - because Clinton apparently tried to get the leading expert in global warming to sign off on reports that made the issue of global warming "worse than it was.." Jack Hansen is that authority who refused to sign off on Clinton's version of the report.. Conversely, Rick Piltz co-wrote a report telling of the dangers of global warming and found his draft to be severely watered down and less threatening..

Officially, this administration is "looking into it.."

Officially, this administration pulled out of the Kyoto agreement which would have significantly slashed the emissions of gases into the atmosphere that is a contributor to global warming.. I say contributor because honestly - I do not know what is valid and invalid when it comes to figuring out if the whole "global warming" thing is a bunch of hooey or not.. I do know this though: it's serious enough for me to go: "maybe we should be taking a serious, candid look at this problem..."

But that's not happening..

In fact, it's 180 degrees differently because the man James Hansen reports to is Phil Cooney, the Chief of Staff of the Counsel on Environmental Quality.. Cooney, ironically: "He's a lawyer. He was a lobbyist for the American Petroleum Institute, before going into the White House,"

Read that again: he's a lobbyist at the head of the Counsel of Environmental Quality..

That's like putting a wolf in charge of security at a hen house....

Which raises the issue of politics getting involved in certain issues to begin with.. I don't approve of the cavalier attitude that this administration bestows in most of their decisions: intelligent design, unilaterally invoking privileges and other policies that are unconstitutional, re-writing laws and imposing their own moral beliefs on Americans when we should have the freedom of expression, the freedom of choice and the freedom of saying what we want to believe in...

Because this administration wants the media to show the "flowery" news - there is an under-reported story of a large ice shelf in Antarctica that is about to collapse sending world-wide water levels to exceed a depth of 1 meter.. That doesn't sound like a lot, but what Jack Hansen and his colleagues are reporting is that we're approaching critical periods in the process that will make it virtually impossible to fix later on.. It's not as though we're going to be able to "re-freeze the caps" and bring things back the way they were.. No.. We're incapable of doing that.. But we can slow that process and let nature make adjustments as she sees necessary..

I realize the counter-argument: that this would happen as it is.. Basically saying: nature is going to do it - regardless if we're driving our SUV's and sending greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.. Even if that's a valid position, the argument refuses to acknowledge that man has made a considerable contribution to the depletion of our atmosphere.. The political stance in this argument is to assure people that "we're not damaging the environment which is why we don't need standards to control emissions and cleaning the air and water around us.." There's a great deal of corporations that back this initiative because it they had to install controls that limit the emissions they can release -- then that cuts into their profit margin..

Profit versus habitation..

And this is why politics should have no place in "big picture" decisions like global warming.. It's a world concern, a world problem and it's going to take a world solution.. We rely on our scientists to give complete and verifiable conclusions on the world around us.. Whether it's medicine, food, water or the environment.. We need to make scientists to be able to exist without the boundaries of political ramifications or juxtaposed by the environmental or oil-industry lobbyists..

Hansen seems like he knows what he's talking about.. He's not swayed by public opinion or the politics that try to steer his report in one way or the other.. That seems to me - to be the most reliable source of information because he carries no bias.. When he can give his professional opinion, realizing it will be met with scorn and no support - I admire that.. Because he's trying to tell the truth - and we're all not listening because .... you guessed it, politics also has a way to control what we hear, what we read, and what we see.. Corporations now run our news programs, our radio stations and our print media.. And they have a vested interest too ... and if they start reporting things that do not follow along certain lines, then they no longer have jobs, they no longer can report, because they have been fired from their positions..

The good..

The bad..

The ugly..

We shouldn't be afraid to tell the truth - which means we should have the required safeguards to insure that people can report truthful, relevant, exact information to the populace.. Everything can't be seen through rose-colored glasses, nor should we always focus on the "happy news" like Bush wants us to see..

Sometimes we have to see the darkness so that we can make better choices to see the light..

Looking beyond life...

I just can't do it..

President Bush recently asked Americans to "look beyond the bloodshed" for the greater good of the people of Iraq..

I'm sorry - I can't look beyond the 2,319 sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, sisters, and brothers that have died as a result of an error..

Look beyond the bloodshed??

I can't look beyond the 100k Iraqi men, women and children that have lost their lives in this conflict so far..

Look beyond the bloodshed??

How can I do that?? How am I supposed to do that?? Am I supposed to believe that the Iraqi people are better off now - than what they were going through under Saddam's rule?? What if they aren't better off?? What if they don't have electricity, running water, jobs, schools, and security in knowing that they will not be blown up tomorrow or the next day??

How is it that I'm supposed to look beyond the bloodshed towards the future, Mr. President?? What am I looking beyond towards?? A civil war?? Further American hostilities?? Another 9/11-type attack?? More privacy laws stripped so the government can know what I'm doing watching COPS on TV or by monitoring the movies that appear in my Netflix queue??

How is it that I'm supposed to be looking towards a future that has been completely been diverted by someone who honestly, truly believes that he can tell me how to think, what to believe, and what to say?? This is a better alternative to looking at the bloodshed that continues and will continue thanks in part to President Bush's comment that "some other President will be responsible for getting the troops out of Iraq..."

His actual quote: "That, of course, is objective, and will be decided by future presidents and future governments of Iraq."

He's going to let other generations deal with the mess he started.. He's basically bowing out of it which confirms what a lot of other people have said that President Bush has had no exit strategy from Iraq.. He's washing his hands of it, and saying "someone else can deal with it.." And if we have a President who has thrown in the towel for the last 3 years of his presidency and absolves his responsibilities so "the next guy can take care of it??" What kind of president sends our troops in harms way without an exit strategy?? What kind of president leaves the responsibility of having an exit strategy for the next President who is elected into office?? What kind of president doesn't take the world as a whole and doesn't try to fix the error that he did??

Even after confessing that he had made a mistake by going into Iraq, he remains adamant that we need to remain in Iraq.. On this issue, I do agree in part - but we should not be there alone.. Our troops deserve the best support possible to remedy this conflict as quickly as possible.. We're losing life over there - and I cannot be one of those sheep that wantonly follows this President off the cliff..

I'm sorry Mr. President, I will not look beyond the bloodshed..

I will not look beyond your error that has attributed to the death of 2,319 American lives and tens of thousands of Iraqi people..

I will not look beyond the civil war that was initiated as a direct result of "Operation Iraqi Freedom"

I will not look beyond the intelligence debacle and the endless pursuit to instill your values upon the American people in the name of fear, in the name of values, and in the name of righteousness..

I will not look beyond the isolationism that you continue to employ by not having a multi-national involvement in the building and security of Iraq..

Your policy is flawed..

Your intent may have been admirable at one point in our history, but you lack the resolve to consider any and all options on the table..

Start by getting the support and guidance of the UN..

Start by getting more nations involved in the rebuilding process..

Start by finding Bin Laden like you promised and make him responsible for what happened to the 2,986 lives that were lost on 9/11..

Start by removing the supposed Constitution that was drafted by OUR think tanks and let the Iraqi people draft one to THEIR liking..

Start by not making this an American effort, but a global effort..

Start by convening world leaders to a Terrorism Conference so *really* address the issues of terrorism instead of making it a "you follow us, we'll lead the way" kind of approach..

Start by holding your word that any country that was found to have any dealings with 9/11 that they will be held accountable. If it's just rhetoric then come out and say it's so - disavow the comment and keep to telling the truth..

Start by putting the safeguards and security at our borders, our chemical and nuclear plants, critical areas of our infrastructure..

Start by dismantling Homeland Security and then completely redesign it to accomplish actual security instead of being a vehicle to spy on Americans and an incompetent responder when there is a crisis..

Start by taking responsibility and firing those people who have contributed to the debacle of the Ports deal, the Plame leak, the India nuclear policy just to name a few...

Start by leaving God to being a personal, spiritual journey instead of a politically motivated platform.. All of us can be moral without needing to make it a law that we adhere to the standards of one religion over another.. Let's not become religiously intolerant..

Finally - let's fix what has been broken.. There's so many things that this administration has done - and a lot of people don't understand what has been at play the last couple of years.. The Republicans have lauded themselves as "fixing" what happened from the previous administration.. With what I've seen thus far, I'm completely unimpressed with their performance so far.. They move the scales and adjust the figures so that it covers the downward sloping numbers on the economy, on unemployment, on Medicare and on the budget..

I'm not sold on supporting a Republican, but I am completely sold on getting this current Republican out of office and trying to right the wrongs..

No one will forget 9/11 or the 2,983 lives that were lost that day..

No one will forget the 2,319 American lives or the thousands that are lost currently in Iraq..

No one will forget the reasons we were told we went to war and no one will forget the coverups and silenced media that have been threatened to straighten up their reporting, or be incarcerated..

This is the President we're supporting and I still believe there are better options.. We need a strong country that can tell the difference between errant intelligence and solid intelligence.. We need a strong country that has very strong diplomatic ties and a country running less on the "cowboy attitude.."

Let's fix it..

Let's fix it now..

The hidden truth of "political capital..."

I first heard President Bush laud his "political capital" after an apparent interview he did on CNN:

"And it's one of the wonderful -- it's like earning capital. You asked, do I feel free. Let me put it to you this way: I earned capital in the campaign, political capital, and now I intend to spend it. It is my style. That's what happened in the -- after the 2000 election, I earned some capital. I've earned capital in this election -- and I'm going to spend it for what I told the people I'd spend it on, which is -- you've heard the agenda: Social Security and tax reform, moving this economy forward, education, fighting and winning the war on terror."

I intend to spend it..

Wikipedia defines it as: "Political capital is the quality of public figure's favorable image among the populace. Also, his current standing among other important personalities (who are usually in government) is important. It is thought of as a commodity which must be spent wisely in pushing for an issue which may not be as popular unless advocated by someone popular."

Bush had every opportunity to unite this country and make solid decisions about its future.. Instead, he remained "tried and true" to his own course - believing that he had every republican in his hip pocket -- until the Dubai fiasco -- until the India nuclear pact -- until the squandering funds for Katrina...

I intend to spend it..

Now people are waking up.. Even politicians who once believed to be sleeping in the bed of the oval - are now waking up.. People are, for the first time, seeing exactly what this President has done to our country, to shaking the stability of the world and putting our nation further at risk..

I intend to spend it..

When you map out several, if not most of the decisions laid forth by this administration, and you see those that benefited the most: the close friends, the businesses that have close ties to this administration, everything.. He spent political capital like you would give a child $1000, walk them into a toy store and tell them to "use your money wisely...."

The advice to spend political capital wisely has been forgotten by this administration and as a result - everyone believes that not only is he a lame duck President, but he's taking the country in a precarious direction.. FINALLY people are taking notice and it's showing in his poll numbers, in his ties and relations to senators and representatives.. People are FINALLY waking up for the slumber that has kept most of us up constantly for the last 6 years..

"We're in trouble, Captain.. The iceberg is *still* directly ahead of us.."

Any political capital that this President has ever had - has run completely empty due to his inept decision making and a spin machine that has run out of cycles.. His staff is very very exhausted - and if you had to do this much spinning and contorting - I would be very tired myself...

Worried about the message??

Bush is coming out saying that he's worried about the message the port deal sends to the rest of the world??

He has his Treasury Secretary saying that we don't want the US to be isolationists??

And his nephew is speaking out that opposition to the port deal is "ignorant and offensive??"

Wow..

This is blissfully ignorant - agreed young Bushie!! Your uncle, the man you claim has such heralded values - *IS* ignorant my little feeble-minded friend.. If we're so worried about the precedent this sets, if we're trying to avoid being isolationists and if we need to be less ignorant and offensive - then your uncle needs to leave the White House.. Because he has burned every European bridge that we have had since the last World War - and further more, by keeping every contract at home "where it belongs" -- guess what, Mr. Snow -- it's the policies of this administration that has ALREADY made us isolationists...

And what about Bush's continued pledge to protect our country from "the war on terror??" Let's not forget that it was *this* President, this *man* who set forth the irretractable statement on the heels of 9/11:

In his November 11th radio address: "Any government that tries to pick and choose its terrorist friends will be regarded by us as a supporter of terrorism."

He targeted Saddam Hussein..

"Bush admits Saddam did not play a role in 9/11.."

and we're worried about the message??

He recently made an unprecedented, highly irresponsible act by securing a nuclear arms agreement with India.. Why is this of any consequence?? Because India has been held in check without the nuclear option for the last 40 years when they attempted to secretly manufacture nuclear weapons and was punished as a result.. Yes, India has had the bomb for quite sometime now -- but now it's legitimized, accepted by Bush as "welcome to the party - please, have a martini.." A nuclear bomb in that region sends a very CLEAR message to the surrounding nations: that the United States believes that the nuclear non-proliferation agreement is subject to whoever wants to play.. Without any enforcement, eh - who gives a crap.. The UN is trying to piece together some sort of stance on Iran - and Bush's unilateral, irresponsible decision has basically gutted any enforcement option.. He pushed the hand instead of being patient..

Bush never consulted with the world-wide nuclear committees that oversee nations that seek to develop nuclear technology..

Bush never consulted with members of Congress about what the ramifications are for allowing India to do this..

Bush never got anything in return from India.. He never asked for anything.. No assurances.. No agreements.. No moderation, nothing.. He unilaterally recognized India as a valid nuclear partner in the world.. Considering that India has drastically benefited from the outsourcing of American jobs within the last 6 years -- maybe this was the final stake to "insure" that America has an ally in the region.. Because he's done nothing but totally screw up the middle east - and once Iran starts moving forward with their plans -- then the precedent Bush makes with India paves the way for Iran to continue to build their bomb..

For those keeping score - the world just got a LOT more dangerous..

What about that message, George?? Why is Bush peeling back all of the peace accords that Ronald Reagan worked so hard to keep?? Reagan held the peace - Bush is selling it at the highest bidder..

Bush has no foundation to question how the Dubai port fiasco sends whatever message around the world.. His actions since 9/11 is of a maverick cowboy who has no understanding of truth or basis of fact.. He's arrogant.. He's a detriment to the safety and security of the United States because UAE had a strong, a very strong connection to the hijackers of 9/11.. We reward this country by giving them access to our vital ports?? What happened to the line in the sand?? What happened to punishing those nations who had a hand in 9/11?? What happened to all of that -- rhetoric??

Snow has no foundation to presume that the port deal will make us isolationists.. Bush successfully made us completely isolated when he invaded Iraq by shunning all of the major players that *do* have significant parts to play in the role of terrorism.. We shunned France.. We snubbed Germany.. We gave the finger to the Russians and even disavowed ourselves from NATO, the UN and any other organization that was preaching: patience.... Message to Snow: "Don't talk about isolationism when your boss already has isolated us...."

To the little Bushie: take a page from your other relatives and stay out of politics.. Want to talk about "ignorant and offensive.." Think Abu Ghrab, think of ignoring the warnings of the planes hitting the targets, think of not finding WMD, think of giving your uncle some of your classtime so that he can learn how international cooperation *actually* works, think of the best way it is to protect our country and punish those who had significant dealings with the attack of our country on September 11th.. But my biggest advice to nephew Bush: aspire to be better than your Uncle because if you're looking to him to be your role-model, then I'm looking forward to nuclear winter when you're running the country..

It must be so incredibly comfortable living in ignorance and contrived facts...