FROM THE JAZZMAN CHRONICLES: DISSEMINATE FREELY.
SIX WEEKS TO ELECTION DAY
By Jack Random
“Every American needs to believe this: that if we fail here in this environment, the next battlefield will be in the streets of America.” Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez.
Six weeks before the presidential election, the only doubt that remains about the failure of the war in Iraq resides on Pennsylvania Avenue in the nation’s capital. The reality of failure in Iraq, the keystone of the neo-conservative Bush Doctrine on foreign policy, has settled in the gut of every military analyst in the world yet it remains an enigma to the American electorate. Where are the embedded reporters now to record the carnage and indiscriminate destruction, to document the failure of the war they so enthusiastically promoted?
The dark secret that is apparently kept from our president’s ears and closely guarded by a corporate media is this: The continued occupation of Iraq can only continue to drain our resources as it continues to claim the lives of men, women and children, soldiers and civilians, who did nothing to deserve the fate of a violent and premature death. We will not succeed in securing America’s oil supply. We will not succeed in installing a puppet government. We will only succeed in uniting our enemies. Is this what the president meant by “catastrophic success”?
Six weeks before the election, we are confronted with the political reality that the president still leads in most of the wildly fluctuating polls and that our collective fate is not in our own hands. It is rather in the hands of a complicit media, a media that have failed every test of social responsibility in this chain of historical events, and in the hands of those hopelessly uninformed swing voters in the battleground states of Missouri, Florida, Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, Ohio, Tennessee, Arkansas, New Mexico, et al. As a citizen of an uncontested state, my vote will have no impact. As a voice without access to the critical voters, I have no say.
Why should we press on? We press on because we believe in democracy and in a democracy, the people must be engaged. We press on because we would not forgive ourselves if we did not. We press on because we made a vow during the Vietnam era that we would never be complacent if our leaders ever again took us to war for false and immoral reasons. We will continue to speak out because there is no viable option. We will continue to assert truth to power before and after the election because some things must not be left unsaid.
Our government, having lost every stated rationale for war, would have us now believe that they cleverly lured our enemies onto the battlefield of Iraq. How clever is it to lure your enemies into their own back yard? How clever is it to commit our soldiers to a country surrounded by enemies, where even our “friends” oppose us, where our troops are overextended and the supply of insurgents is endless? Such an assertion would be laughable if it were not so tragic.
But we have rid the world of Saddam Hussein and that alone makes the war worthwhile. What was Saddam Hussein on the eve of invasion besides a ruthless dictator? He was a toothless tiger who posed no threat even to his closest neighbors. He was defeated in war and utterly disarmed. No nation on earth was more effectively or publicly contained that Saddam’s Iraq. If dictatorship alone is just grounds for military invasion, then we had better be prepared to go to war not only with Syria, Iran and North Korea, but also Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Russia, China and a baker’s dozen of African nations. Is this what the president has in mind? Then let him say so openly and allow the people to vote on a future of endless war.
Thanks to our government’s disastrous policies, Iran and North Korea are now openly defiant, Turkey is threatening to withdraw cooperation, Vladimir Putin has all but rescinded democracy in Russia, and any chance of a true international alliance has blown away with the latest hurricane winds.
We are nearing the end of a long and bitter fight to alter the nation’s course by electing a new president. The media complain that this election is characterized by dirty politics and partisan attacks. From my perspective, given the circumstance and the stakes, this has been the most tepid political campaign imaginable.
This administration is one of the most destructive and ineffective governments in our history. It has impoverished the already poor, diminished the middle class, and enriched the already rich by engineering the greatest turnaround (from surplus to deficit) of the nation’s fortune ever. It has neglected the basic needs of the people, dismantled the social safety net, and stripped away all government oversight to protect the profits of corporations. As if his domestic failure was not enough (or perhaps because it was not enough), the president has committed this nation to a disastrous war and that is the bottom line. You do not rehire a CEO when he has bankrupted the company and you do not retain a Commander-in-Chief when he has led you into an ambush.
I for one will not allow this election to pass without stating what I believe is the plain and honest truth: There is innocent blood on the president’s hands. In the end, it does not matter why. The president has thrust the nation to the precipice of endless war.
Lieutenant General Ricardo Sanchez (who resigned after the Abu Ghraib disgrace) was right for all the wrong reasons. We have failed in Iraq and the next battlefield is on the streets of America. It is not, however, a battle against terrorists. It is a battle for the heart and soul of American democracy. We have it in our power to end the reign of George the Terrible. If we do not stop him now, the blood will be on our hands as well.
Jazz.
Sunday, September 19, 2004
Thursday, September 16, 2004
ABSOLUTION
FROM THE WAR CHRONICLES: DISSEMINATE FREELY.
By Jack Random
To initiate a war of aggression is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime, differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.
The Judges of Nuremberg.
America clings to the belief that she is absolved from all sin, all crimes against humanity, all acts of unconscionable violence and equally unconscionable indifference by the simple recycling of leadership every four to eight years. We are not to be held accountable for our past behavior because the names of those who reside on Pennsylvania Avenue have changed.
It is of no consequence that the leading players in the current White House are the same individuals who committed those crimes under previous administrations. The fact is, regardless the changing cast, American foreign policy since World War II is a continuous line of intervention, self-serving unilateralism, and utter defiance of international law and universal principles of equity and human decency.
The world community has long understood and detested American foreign policy. The people of the world have long understood that a changing of the White House guard does not produce a change in America’s behavior in the world. It is only a matter of degree. Ronald Reagan and the elder Bush were the hammers of foreign policy. Presidents Carter and Clinton may have provided a brief respite in the brutal prosecution of American policy but they did not (perhaps could not) change the path that would inevitably lead to the critical impasse we now face.
What is now happening in the world is the realization that its people can no longer endure. The problem is not that the world fails to see the Bush vision. The problem arises from the fact that they see it all too clearly.
The entire world was listening in hushed silence when our vice president declared “forty years of war” in the wake of September 11. They understood what Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld meant when they suggested that the tragedy of that momentous event could be seen as an opportunity to resume the war on Iraq. They understood that those in charge of the Bush administration’s foreign policy were cold warriors longing to return to the games of international warfare, subterfuge, corruption and intrigue.
Blessings on Jacques Chirac, for though the French had undeniable interests in the region, France stood to gain immeasurably more by caving to American interests in open defiance of her own people. If we believe in democracy then France and Germany were the world’s champions in the United Nations effort to prevent the war. You cannot in good faith advocate democracy while dragging your people into war against their will. Trying to achieve democracy through invasion is like trying to achieve tolerance through intimidation. It is a fallacy and a lie. You cannot champion democracy while lying to your people to win their approval.
If you still do not believe your government lied to you, then read its own statements in the weeks and months following September 11, 2001. There was and is no connection between the events of that horrific day and the regime in Baghdad. The alleged meeting between Iraqi officials and Al Qaeda agents never happened. There was no Iraqi connected Al Qaeda training camp at a specified location in northern Iraq. That Iraq openly supports the cause of occupied Palestine is unquestioned and that is the only connection to “terrorists” this White House has documented.
The administration had to resort to fabrication and falsehood because it failed utterly and completely to make its case for war. What they failed to achieve through diplomacy, however, they attempted to achieve through bribery and intimidation. Against this background of failure and disgrace, America saw fit to demand that the United Nations fall into line or withdraw from international relevance. Nothing could be further from the truth. If, under these circumstances, the United Nations had yielded to American demands it would then have proclaimed its own irrelevance. Like the United States Congress, it would have abdicated its right and lawful duty in world affairs.
If we but examine the American case for war without passion or patriotism we will arrive at the same conclusion the rest of the world already recognizes. America repeatedly noted that Saddam Hussein used chemical weapons against Iran and the Kurds (“his own people”) decades before but considered it irrelevant that America knowingly and deliberately allowed corporations to provide chemical precursors and biological elements to Iraq with the clear intent of employing them as weapons.
America condemned Iraqi use of chemical weapons – as it did publicly in the aftermath of the Iran-Iraq war – but it is not to be acknowledged that America protected Iraq from the sanctions of the United Nations. Saddam Hussein was America’s man in the Gulf region and Donald Rumsfeld was on the scene to seal the deal with a handshake.
America claimed that Saddam Hussein openly defied the United Nations for twelve years, yet for eight of those years a successful inspection regime disarmed massive quantities of chemical and biological weapons and dismantled the Iraqi nuclear program. More arms were destroyed in this period than during Gulf War I or the subsequent bombings and no lives were lost in so doing. In the second Gulf War, countless lives were saved by those years of “doing nothing,” of defiance and UN failure to act.
We should not forget that the American government (whose president was in political trouble) in fact orchestrated the discontinuance of the inspection process. The ensuing four years of inactivity were in large part the legacy of Ken Starr and a right wing conspiracy – although the president can hardly be absolved.
America claimed that the United Nations did nothing for twelve years yet the UN sanctions – which the US alone continued to support and prosecute – resulted in over a million Iraqi deaths. All the while America fought against the Food for Oil program and all proposals to restructure the sanctions so that they targeted weaponry instead of food and medicine.
America claimed (rightly) that Saddam Hussein was guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity yet America alone refuses to sanction the International Court of Justice. The truth is: America would stand trial as Saddam’s accomplice.
As we stood on the precipice of war, the advocates of the Bush Doctrine argued that we had to go to war because our troops were in place and they could not wait much longer. If ever there was a reason for justifiable war this did not rise beyond the level of contempt. It seems to me our soldiers could have learned to persevere in the deserts of Kuwait and Bahrain in the hope that war could be averted but we had beat the drums of war so long and so loudly (they argued with the curious passion of a child that has lost his favorite toy) that we could not fail to act now! What would become of our prestige, our credibility, and our weight on the world stage?
One thing we can readily agree on without trepidation is that neither the cost of maintaining our troops nor the collective credibility of Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice was worth the blood of a single American soldier – no less thousands of innocent civilians. Let them eat diplomatic crow and let our soldiers be spared.
Recall: in a last ditch effort to justify the irrational and reclaim their self-proclaimed prominence in international affairs, the warmongers threw up their hands and demanded: What would you have us do? Nothing? Would you allow Saddam Hussein to go about his business? Surely, if he was not developing weapons before the threat of war, he will do so now!
There are in fact many things that could have been done to further contain and disarm this monster of our own creation though doing nothing would have been preferable to the path of destruction we have pursued.
As former Senator Gary Hart suggested, we could have expanded the No Fly Zone to include all of Iraq and continuously monitored his activities. We could have increased the number of inspectors and provided them with all the equipment and intelligence they needed – as required by Resolution 1441. We could have maintained a force in the region while withdrawing most of our troops so that cooperation could be measured without the threat of an imminent attack. We could have restructured the sanctions so that the Iraqi people were no longer denied essential commodities – drinkable water, food, and medicines – while the Iraqi government was denied the materials of war. As an assurance of good will, America could have pledged, in the event of war and occupation, that the United Nations would assume control of Iraqi oil. Finally, we could have sanctioned the International Court of Justice and submitted our case against Saddam Hussein.
All these actions could and should have been taken with United Nations approval and support. The UN behaved admirably in this crisis. They stood the high ground between the world’s superpower and the world’s people. Under the constant pressure of American demands, the United Nations alone was positioned to make an informed judgment as to what should happen next. The United Nations alone had the authority to act where no nation has attacked another. If the time for war with Iraq had come, the United Nations would have known it and acted responsibly.
If the time for war did not come then we should all have been eternally grateful for the crisis would have been defused, diplomacy would have won the day, Iraq would have been disarmed peacefully, and the world would not have been hurling toward four decades of unending war and violence under the banners of freedom and security.
Jazz.
By Jack Random
To initiate a war of aggression is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime, differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.
The Judges of Nuremberg.
America clings to the belief that she is absolved from all sin, all crimes against humanity, all acts of unconscionable violence and equally unconscionable indifference by the simple recycling of leadership every four to eight years. We are not to be held accountable for our past behavior because the names of those who reside on Pennsylvania Avenue have changed.
It is of no consequence that the leading players in the current White House are the same individuals who committed those crimes under previous administrations. The fact is, regardless the changing cast, American foreign policy since World War II is a continuous line of intervention, self-serving unilateralism, and utter defiance of international law and universal principles of equity and human decency.
The world community has long understood and detested American foreign policy. The people of the world have long understood that a changing of the White House guard does not produce a change in America’s behavior in the world. It is only a matter of degree. Ronald Reagan and the elder Bush were the hammers of foreign policy. Presidents Carter and Clinton may have provided a brief respite in the brutal prosecution of American policy but they did not (perhaps could not) change the path that would inevitably lead to the critical impasse we now face.
What is now happening in the world is the realization that its people can no longer endure. The problem is not that the world fails to see the Bush vision. The problem arises from the fact that they see it all too clearly.
The entire world was listening in hushed silence when our vice president declared “forty years of war” in the wake of September 11. They understood what Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld meant when they suggested that the tragedy of that momentous event could be seen as an opportunity to resume the war on Iraq. They understood that those in charge of the Bush administration’s foreign policy were cold warriors longing to return to the games of international warfare, subterfuge, corruption and intrigue.
Blessings on Jacques Chirac, for though the French had undeniable interests in the region, France stood to gain immeasurably more by caving to American interests in open defiance of her own people. If we believe in democracy then France and Germany were the world’s champions in the United Nations effort to prevent the war. You cannot in good faith advocate democracy while dragging your people into war against their will. Trying to achieve democracy through invasion is like trying to achieve tolerance through intimidation. It is a fallacy and a lie. You cannot champion democracy while lying to your people to win their approval.
If you still do not believe your government lied to you, then read its own statements in the weeks and months following September 11, 2001. There was and is no connection between the events of that horrific day and the regime in Baghdad. The alleged meeting between Iraqi officials and Al Qaeda agents never happened. There was no Iraqi connected Al Qaeda training camp at a specified location in northern Iraq. That Iraq openly supports the cause of occupied Palestine is unquestioned and that is the only connection to “terrorists” this White House has documented.
The administration had to resort to fabrication and falsehood because it failed utterly and completely to make its case for war. What they failed to achieve through diplomacy, however, they attempted to achieve through bribery and intimidation. Against this background of failure and disgrace, America saw fit to demand that the United Nations fall into line or withdraw from international relevance. Nothing could be further from the truth. If, under these circumstances, the United Nations had yielded to American demands it would then have proclaimed its own irrelevance. Like the United States Congress, it would have abdicated its right and lawful duty in world affairs.
If we but examine the American case for war without passion or patriotism we will arrive at the same conclusion the rest of the world already recognizes. America repeatedly noted that Saddam Hussein used chemical weapons against Iran and the Kurds (“his own people”) decades before but considered it irrelevant that America knowingly and deliberately allowed corporations to provide chemical precursors and biological elements to Iraq with the clear intent of employing them as weapons.
America condemned Iraqi use of chemical weapons – as it did publicly in the aftermath of the Iran-Iraq war – but it is not to be acknowledged that America protected Iraq from the sanctions of the United Nations. Saddam Hussein was America’s man in the Gulf region and Donald Rumsfeld was on the scene to seal the deal with a handshake.
America claimed that Saddam Hussein openly defied the United Nations for twelve years, yet for eight of those years a successful inspection regime disarmed massive quantities of chemical and biological weapons and dismantled the Iraqi nuclear program. More arms were destroyed in this period than during Gulf War I or the subsequent bombings and no lives were lost in so doing. In the second Gulf War, countless lives were saved by those years of “doing nothing,” of defiance and UN failure to act.
We should not forget that the American government (whose president was in political trouble) in fact orchestrated the discontinuance of the inspection process. The ensuing four years of inactivity were in large part the legacy of Ken Starr and a right wing conspiracy – although the president can hardly be absolved.
America claimed that the United Nations did nothing for twelve years yet the UN sanctions – which the US alone continued to support and prosecute – resulted in over a million Iraqi deaths. All the while America fought against the Food for Oil program and all proposals to restructure the sanctions so that they targeted weaponry instead of food and medicine.
America claimed (rightly) that Saddam Hussein was guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity yet America alone refuses to sanction the International Court of Justice. The truth is: America would stand trial as Saddam’s accomplice.
As we stood on the precipice of war, the advocates of the Bush Doctrine argued that we had to go to war because our troops were in place and they could not wait much longer. If ever there was a reason for justifiable war this did not rise beyond the level of contempt. It seems to me our soldiers could have learned to persevere in the deserts of Kuwait and Bahrain in the hope that war could be averted but we had beat the drums of war so long and so loudly (they argued with the curious passion of a child that has lost his favorite toy) that we could not fail to act now! What would become of our prestige, our credibility, and our weight on the world stage?
One thing we can readily agree on without trepidation is that neither the cost of maintaining our troops nor the collective credibility of Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice was worth the blood of a single American soldier – no less thousands of innocent civilians. Let them eat diplomatic crow and let our soldiers be spared.
Recall: in a last ditch effort to justify the irrational and reclaim their self-proclaimed prominence in international affairs, the warmongers threw up their hands and demanded: What would you have us do? Nothing? Would you allow Saddam Hussein to go about his business? Surely, if he was not developing weapons before the threat of war, he will do so now!
There are in fact many things that could have been done to further contain and disarm this monster of our own creation though doing nothing would have been preferable to the path of destruction we have pursued.
As former Senator Gary Hart suggested, we could have expanded the No Fly Zone to include all of Iraq and continuously monitored his activities. We could have increased the number of inspectors and provided them with all the equipment and intelligence they needed – as required by Resolution 1441. We could have maintained a force in the region while withdrawing most of our troops so that cooperation could be measured without the threat of an imminent attack. We could have restructured the sanctions so that the Iraqi people were no longer denied essential commodities – drinkable water, food, and medicines – while the Iraqi government was denied the materials of war. As an assurance of good will, America could have pledged, in the event of war and occupation, that the United Nations would assume control of Iraqi oil. Finally, we could have sanctioned the International Court of Justice and submitted our case against Saddam Hussein.
All these actions could and should have been taken with United Nations approval and support. The UN behaved admirably in this crisis. They stood the high ground between the world’s superpower and the world’s people. Under the constant pressure of American demands, the United Nations alone was positioned to make an informed judgment as to what should happen next. The United Nations alone had the authority to act where no nation has attacked another. If the time for war with Iraq had come, the United Nations would have known it and acted responsibly.
If the time for war did not come then we should all have been eternally grateful for the crisis would have been defused, diplomacy would have won the day, Iraq would have been disarmed peacefully, and the world would not have been hurling toward four decades of unending war and violence under the banners of freedom and security.
Jazz.
Sunday, September 12, 2004
INFANT NATION
FROM THE WAR CHRONICLES. DISSEMINATE FREELY.
By Jack Random
What could be more pathetic than the incessant lament of privileged white men condemning preferential treatment on the basis of race, if not the lament of successful black men and women who appear to have severed themselves from their cultural and ancestral roots?
It is symptomatic of a greater problem shared by all of America and consistently exploited by its congressional, judicial and executive leadership: Americans have pathologically short memories.
From an historical perspective it is undeniable: In the great expanse of recorded time, America is but an infant nation. Given this simple and unquestionable observation our behavior in the world suddenly comes into focus. As an infant nation our behavior is as predictable as the salivation of Pavlov’s dogs.
Consider the psychological profile of an infant: An infant knows only the moment. Yesterday is ancient history. An infant remembers only the blow that struck, never the blow that preceded it. An infant believes that the universe revolves around her and only her. An infant’s emotions run no deeper than unconditional love and uncompromised rage. When an infant is harmed he strikes back. He is incapable of understanding the complexities of circumstance. To the infant there is no history. There is only now. The infant seeks immediate gratification and blind vengeance. There can be no middle ground. The infant believes that the soft stroke of the moment is eternal love and a terse rebuke cannot be differentiated from utter hatred. The infant relies on simple labels in place of a reasoned response to interpret events. In the voice of her parents “bad” becomes a moral imperative.
I submit that we are an infant nation. We believe what we are told. We rely on push button logic in place of reason. Our leaders create and offer labels that become the triggers to a guttural response. In the McCarthy era, those labels related to the Cold War enemy: communist, socialist, Marxist, red. In the era of mass media we are given a broader array of push button triggers: radical, liberal, Hollywood left, conspiracy theorist, tree hugger, anarchist, actor, extremist. The purpose of these labels is to short circuit the logical process and supplant it with a conditioned reaction based on raw emotion. Thus, when the environmentalist is called a tree hugger, the conditioned response labels her un-American. When the activist is called an extremist, he is labeled unpatriotic.
Our leaders rely on the assumption that Americans have short memories and, to a large extent, the assumption is correct. On the matter of Vietnam, Americans tend to consider it ancient history though the world will tell us it was only yesterday. When we consider it at all, we lament that our soldiers were not well received or that we lost the war. Any reasoned analysis of that tragic, misbegotten war must conclude that the patriots were those who fought against an unjust war. It was the massive protests of the left – not the passive submission of a silent majority – that shortened the war and saved countless American and Vietnamese lives. Yet our leaders would have us believe that protest in a time of war is unpatriotic. Nothing could be more infantile.
Though history tells us that our leaders have habitually misled us when war or military action was involved, we continue to believe that they tell us only the truth. When our president proclaims that he has proof positive of the cause for war yet refuses to reveal it, we are expected to accede. We are expected to go along. We are told that our forces fight only for democracy when, in fact, our government has always preferred to support military dictatorships and right wing despotism. Yet we are expected to accede. We are told that we have always fought for peace though we have planted the seeds of war, creating circles of violence all over the world, with the intent of overthrowing and replacing the governments of sovereign nations. There is no corner of the planet where American interests have not attempted to exploit internal conflict.
I submit we are an infant nation. Once a year we are pledged to remember our soldiers who have died in war but we have never acknowledged the dead of our adversaries: four million Vietnamese, Laotians and Cambodians, four to five thousand Afghanis, one million Iraqis, uncounted thousands of Nicaraguans, Argentineans, Salvadorans, Columbians, Panamanians, Indonesians, on and on. We have given a solemn oath never to forget the three thousand Americans who died in a horribly misguided act of terror yet we are blind to the horrors we have wrought in nations less powerful than our own. We cry out for vengeance yet we fail to see that we are creating an endless cycle of violence that was, in fact, instigated by our own intervention in foreign affairs.
Does it matter that Iraq had nothing to do with the terrorist attack? If this is about creating a model of democracy for the region, let us not forget that we have already conquered, occupied and promptly forgotten a nation in the region. If we wish to create a model of democracy let us do so in Afghanistan. Let us rebuild a country we have devastated. If this is about weapons of mass destruction, let us first look to our own stockpiles. Let us next look to North Korea and Pakistan. Without oil in the equation it defies reason to attack a nation already defeated in war.
But we are an infant nation. We cannot be expected to find the path of peace. It is difficult to make peace. It requires true compassion built on a foundation of knowledge, tolerance and understanding. It requires digging deeper than hatred and characterizing those who oppose us as evil beings devoted to evil deeds. It is much easier to cry vengeance, to paint everything in black and white, to raise the flag and set the blinders: God, country, rock and roll! It is much easier to make war – unless you are chosen to fight it. It is a crime against humanity that those who must fight and die in war are those least capable of understanding why: the poor, disadvantaged and poorly educated.
I submit we are an infant nation and infants never see the faults of their parents. George W. Bush is the perfect president for this endless “war” on terror. He has little knowledge of world history. He has little understanding of world dynamics. He is incapable of compassion because he clearly believes his own platitudes. He believes that Osama bin Laden and his followers were born hating America. He believes in the Holy War. He believes in the Crusades. He believes that “evil doers” hate us because we are free, because we have McDonalds and Sunday football and wealthy oil companies that hand deliver the American dream to the sons of CIA directors. He does not know what his father did in the Middle East when he was in charge of intelligence. He does not know what his father bargained to make his son Commander In Chief.
I submit we are an infant nation led by an infant king. Jeb had the brains but W had the attributes that counted. He does not ask questions. He does not need nor can he profit from lengthy explanations. He is a “bottom line man.” He was never trained to think for himself. He had no interest in history or international affairs. Point him the way, tell him what to say, watch him swagger, wink and stammer. George W is the man of the hour. George W is the answer to the question: Why didn’t anyone notice when Ronald Reagan’s mind slipped away? The answer: He was not necessary to the policy-making government.
I submit we are an infant nation and nothing is more dangerous than a child who believes he can bend the world to its knees.
I submit we are an infant nation but we are showing signs of growing up. There are times when even a child can rise to the occasion. We are no longer so easily fooled. We are slowly finding the courage and independence required to question our elders, to question the policies of our government. Even now, only two years after the tragedy of September 11, many of us have found our voices. We demand a concrete reason before we destroy another country in the name of democracy. We question the validity of a policy of preemptive strike. We question the doctrine of perpetual world supremacy. We question the motives of a government dominated by oil interests. We question the need for innocent civilian deaths. We question the need for sending our soldiers to war – perhaps to die in combat, perhaps to die from chemical, biological or plutonium poisoning. We wonder why we have lost the trail of Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda. We wonder why we no longer seem to care.
It may well be that we as a people are growing up faster than our leaders thought possible. In the Enron scandal, the energy crisis, the election frauds, the tax relief scam, the deregulation schemes and so many other disturbing events, we have peeked behind the curtain that hides the real workings of our government. The more you say it is not about oil, the more we are certain it is.
It is the enduring shame of our government that a popular uprising of unprecedented proportions could not stop the relentless march to war but it will be our shame if we do not stop the march to empire. They lied to justify this war just as they lied to justify Vietnam. If the people do not heed the lesson, they will surely lie again. Ultimately, our leaders must have our consent to continue on the path of destruction.
There will likely be an election between Iraq and the next invasion. If we fail to defeat this president, we will have sanctioned the Bush push to empire. Only a small child could believe that this cause is truly righteous. Let us not be fooled again. Let 2004 be the year America grew up.
Jazz.
By Jack Random
What could be more pathetic than the incessant lament of privileged white men condemning preferential treatment on the basis of race, if not the lament of successful black men and women who appear to have severed themselves from their cultural and ancestral roots?
It is symptomatic of a greater problem shared by all of America and consistently exploited by its congressional, judicial and executive leadership: Americans have pathologically short memories.
From an historical perspective it is undeniable: In the great expanse of recorded time, America is but an infant nation. Given this simple and unquestionable observation our behavior in the world suddenly comes into focus. As an infant nation our behavior is as predictable as the salivation of Pavlov’s dogs.
Consider the psychological profile of an infant: An infant knows only the moment. Yesterday is ancient history. An infant remembers only the blow that struck, never the blow that preceded it. An infant believes that the universe revolves around her and only her. An infant’s emotions run no deeper than unconditional love and uncompromised rage. When an infant is harmed he strikes back. He is incapable of understanding the complexities of circumstance. To the infant there is no history. There is only now. The infant seeks immediate gratification and blind vengeance. There can be no middle ground. The infant believes that the soft stroke of the moment is eternal love and a terse rebuke cannot be differentiated from utter hatred. The infant relies on simple labels in place of a reasoned response to interpret events. In the voice of her parents “bad” becomes a moral imperative.
I submit that we are an infant nation. We believe what we are told. We rely on push button logic in place of reason. Our leaders create and offer labels that become the triggers to a guttural response. In the McCarthy era, those labels related to the Cold War enemy: communist, socialist, Marxist, red. In the era of mass media we are given a broader array of push button triggers: radical, liberal, Hollywood left, conspiracy theorist, tree hugger, anarchist, actor, extremist. The purpose of these labels is to short circuit the logical process and supplant it with a conditioned reaction based on raw emotion. Thus, when the environmentalist is called a tree hugger, the conditioned response labels her un-American. When the activist is called an extremist, he is labeled unpatriotic.
Our leaders rely on the assumption that Americans have short memories and, to a large extent, the assumption is correct. On the matter of Vietnam, Americans tend to consider it ancient history though the world will tell us it was only yesterday. When we consider it at all, we lament that our soldiers were not well received or that we lost the war. Any reasoned analysis of that tragic, misbegotten war must conclude that the patriots were those who fought against an unjust war. It was the massive protests of the left – not the passive submission of a silent majority – that shortened the war and saved countless American and Vietnamese lives. Yet our leaders would have us believe that protest in a time of war is unpatriotic. Nothing could be more infantile.
Though history tells us that our leaders have habitually misled us when war or military action was involved, we continue to believe that they tell us only the truth. When our president proclaims that he has proof positive of the cause for war yet refuses to reveal it, we are expected to accede. We are expected to go along. We are told that our forces fight only for democracy when, in fact, our government has always preferred to support military dictatorships and right wing despotism. Yet we are expected to accede. We are told that we have always fought for peace though we have planted the seeds of war, creating circles of violence all over the world, with the intent of overthrowing and replacing the governments of sovereign nations. There is no corner of the planet where American interests have not attempted to exploit internal conflict.
I submit we are an infant nation. Once a year we are pledged to remember our soldiers who have died in war but we have never acknowledged the dead of our adversaries: four million Vietnamese, Laotians and Cambodians, four to five thousand Afghanis, one million Iraqis, uncounted thousands of Nicaraguans, Argentineans, Salvadorans, Columbians, Panamanians, Indonesians, on and on. We have given a solemn oath never to forget the three thousand Americans who died in a horribly misguided act of terror yet we are blind to the horrors we have wrought in nations less powerful than our own. We cry out for vengeance yet we fail to see that we are creating an endless cycle of violence that was, in fact, instigated by our own intervention in foreign affairs.
Does it matter that Iraq had nothing to do with the terrorist attack? If this is about creating a model of democracy for the region, let us not forget that we have already conquered, occupied and promptly forgotten a nation in the region. If we wish to create a model of democracy let us do so in Afghanistan. Let us rebuild a country we have devastated. If this is about weapons of mass destruction, let us first look to our own stockpiles. Let us next look to North Korea and Pakistan. Without oil in the equation it defies reason to attack a nation already defeated in war.
But we are an infant nation. We cannot be expected to find the path of peace. It is difficult to make peace. It requires true compassion built on a foundation of knowledge, tolerance and understanding. It requires digging deeper than hatred and characterizing those who oppose us as evil beings devoted to evil deeds. It is much easier to cry vengeance, to paint everything in black and white, to raise the flag and set the blinders: God, country, rock and roll! It is much easier to make war – unless you are chosen to fight it. It is a crime against humanity that those who must fight and die in war are those least capable of understanding why: the poor, disadvantaged and poorly educated.
I submit we are an infant nation and infants never see the faults of their parents. George W. Bush is the perfect president for this endless “war” on terror. He has little knowledge of world history. He has little understanding of world dynamics. He is incapable of compassion because he clearly believes his own platitudes. He believes that Osama bin Laden and his followers were born hating America. He believes in the Holy War. He believes in the Crusades. He believes that “evil doers” hate us because we are free, because we have McDonalds and Sunday football and wealthy oil companies that hand deliver the American dream to the sons of CIA directors. He does not know what his father did in the Middle East when he was in charge of intelligence. He does not know what his father bargained to make his son Commander In Chief.
I submit we are an infant nation led by an infant king. Jeb had the brains but W had the attributes that counted. He does not ask questions. He does not need nor can he profit from lengthy explanations. He is a “bottom line man.” He was never trained to think for himself. He had no interest in history or international affairs. Point him the way, tell him what to say, watch him swagger, wink and stammer. George W is the man of the hour. George W is the answer to the question: Why didn’t anyone notice when Ronald Reagan’s mind slipped away? The answer: He was not necessary to the policy-making government.
I submit we are an infant nation and nothing is more dangerous than a child who believes he can bend the world to its knees.
I submit we are an infant nation but we are showing signs of growing up. There are times when even a child can rise to the occasion. We are no longer so easily fooled. We are slowly finding the courage and independence required to question our elders, to question the policies of our government. Even now, only two years after the tragedy of September 11, many of us have found our voices. We demand a concrete reason before we destroy another country in the name of democracy. We question the validity of a policy of preemptive strike. We question the doctrine of perpetual world supremacy. We question the motives of a government dominated by oil interests. We question the need for innocent civilian deaths. We question the need for sending our soldiers to war – perhaps to die in combat, perhaps to die from chemical, biological or plutonium poisoning. We wonder why we have lost the trail of Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda. We wonder why we no longer seem to care.
It may well be that we as a people are growing up faster than our leaders thought possible. In the Enron scandal, the energy crisis, the election frauds, the tax relief scam, the deregulation schemes and so many other disturbing events, we have peeked behind the curtain that hides the real workings of our government. The more you say it is not about oil, the more we are certain it is.
It is the enduring shame of our government that a popular uprising of unprecedented proportions could not stop the relentless march to war but it will be our shame if we do not stop the march to empire. They lied to justify this war just as they lied to justify Vietnam. If the people do not heed the lesson, they will surely lie again. Ultimately, our leaders must have our consent to continue on the path of destruction.
There will likely be an election between Iraq and the next invasion. If we fail to defeat this president, we will have sanctioned the Bush push to empire. Only a small child could believe that this cause is truly righteous. Let us not be fooled again. Let 2004 be the year America grew up.
Jazz.
Tuesday, August 31, 2004
COLD WAR RESURRECTION
FROM THE WAR CHRONICLES. DISSEMINATE FREELY.
By Jack Random
In the weeks preceding our preemptive strike on Iraq, our president begrudgingly appealed to the United Nations, inspectors reentered Iraq and they were greeted by a great deal of cooperation. In the days before the invasion, Iraqi officials were destroying the Al Sammoud missiles (marginally in violation of the 1991 disarmament accords). The destruction of the missiles (perhaps their only line of defense against the forces amassed on their borders) was not enough to ward off the attack. With the benefit of hindsight, there was nothing the Iraqis could have done. The entire process was a façade, a war dance, and a prelude to the inevitable.
We now know the invasion of Iraq had nothing to do with weapons of mass destruction. We know the war was not related to Al Qaeda or the war against terrorism. We know it was not in retaliation for the attack of September 11, 2001. Well into the occupation, as our president has supplanted Ariel Sharon as the most despised leader in the Arab-Islamic world, we are left wondering why. Through the process of elimination, there are two interrelated reasons: First, the importance of oil to an oil president. Second, a vision of the world by so-called “neo-conservatives.”
Let us understand what this vision really is. It is a vision of endless war. It is the vision of a nation so obsessed that the preparations for the next war are in place before the first missile is fired. As vice president Dick Cheney said in the wake of September 11, it is a commitment to forty years of war – a prediction that deliberately and cynically parallels the duration of the Cold War.
To appreciate the scope and horror of this vision, we must revisit the four decades between the end of World War II and the fall of the Soviet empire for these Bush visionaries are the philosophical descendents of the Cold Warriors.
At the onset, understand that the Cold War was never cold. It cost the lives of over 100,000 American soldiers and literally millions of the indigenous peoples of Asia (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines), Latin America (El Salvador, Nicaragua, Chile, Cuba, Columbia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Argentina, Panama, Grenada, the Dominican Republic), Africa (Zaire, Libya, Angola), the Middle East (Lebanon, Iran, Iraq) and elsewhere. The American Cold Warriors recruited, trained, armed and financed the terrorists that now plague much of the world.
The Cold War is a legacy of death, destruction and oppression in the name of freedom. Its culmination was Vietnam, a nation upon which we unleashed a destructive force unrivaled in world history. Yet the Vietnamese did not surrender. They are arguably the bravest people known to humanity, having survived the successive invasions of foreign powers and the most awesome military force on earth.
The great lesson of Vietnam was not only that we were wrong, that we sacrificed millions of lives for an abstraction (Communism and the Domino Theory), but that we could not conquer a people without winning their hearts and minds. We were not the liberators we were supposed to be. We were conquerors. As Daniel Ellsberg put it, we were not on the wrong side; we were the wrong side.
How strange it was, then, after the conclusion of the first Gulf War, for an American president to proclaim that “the specter of Vietnam” had been “lifted forever.” It was clear the American government had not learned the lesson of Vietnam. Perhaps these right wing ideologues secretly lament that we did not drop the big one on Saigon. Perhaps they believe their own propaganda: that the Cold War led to the collapse of Communism.
When the Soviet Union fell it was, above all, a lesson in economics. A state sponsored economy, under an oppressive and corrupt government, was not strong enough to support a system that dedicated more than half of its wealth to military spending. We are now in a position to learn whether or not a free market economy, under an increasingly oppressive and corrupt government, is capable of supporting a similar imbalance between domestic and military spending.
There was a time when our economy was predominantly industrial. Much of that industry – manufacturing, oil and steel – could be directed to the war effort. War was therefore considered a boon to the economy. The new economy, however, is increasingly based on technology. While technology can and does serve the military, its greater application is in the service and information fields. Only a fraction of the new economy benefits from perpetual war and many of them reside in the government, counseling our oil wealthy president. The economy as a whole will suffer from a prolonged economic slump and an alienated world market. In the new economic world order, peace and good will are our best allies.
The Cold Warriors of the Bush administration yearn for war at all costs to the general populace. Having disproved the Domino Theory, they wish to test a new theory of free-market dominance and an American controlled New World Order, but if they are wrong, it may well result in economic collapse.
The Cold Warriors desire an enemy that will rival the propaganda value of the Communist beast. In the war on terror, they will be the ones to determine who is a terrorist and who is not. It is already clear they have decided that Palestinians are terrorists. They are lining up potential enemies throughout the Arab world. Who will be next? Syria? Iran? Libya? Or will we shift hemispheres and resume our Latin American operations? Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil, Cuba?
It is not for those who oppose the war machine to defend those nations destined for invasion or subversion (though many are worthy of defense) any more than it is incumbent on the proponents of war to defend such allies as Pakistan, Israel, Columbia or Saudi Arabia. It is rather for us all to recognize that the vision the Bush administration is offering is a nightmare of unending destruction.
The Iraqi invasion was not a battle of virtue or principle. It was a prelude to decades of war. It was not a war for democracy. It was a war for dominance. In the vernacular, it is a war America can never win for we lost the battle for hearts and minds at its inception. America has neither the right nor the means to control the resources of the planet. America cannot and should not impose its will on the peoples of the world for the people will never submit.
We must finally come to terms with the fact that we are but one nation and that our wisdom is no greater and our god is no greater than that of any other nation. Though we have come to possess power and wealth beyond the world’s imagining, our greatest strength has always been our virtue.
As a nation, we have never had to face the full consequences of our actions. As a people, we have been protected by our government and its propaganda machine. To this day, there are those who believe that a crazed gunman killed our most promising president. To this day, there are those who believe that the Vietnam War, the bombing of Cambodia, and the invasions of Cuba, Panama and tiny Grenada were justified. To this day, there are those who refuse to believe that America sponsored and trained terrorists in the Middle East, Latin America and throughout the world. To this day, there are those who believe that the genocide on our own soil was the manifestation of a Christian god.
Unless we finally come to terms with the crimes of our past we cannot begin to understand the dangers we now confront. We are a nation that desires empire. Those who have studied history already know how it ends. This is the vision of the Cold Warriors as it was the vision of the ancient warriors of Rome. This is their collective promise to the world: An endless cycle of violence, where every act of terror is answered by another, where every voice of dissent is considered treason and every nation that opposes is considered an enemy. Is it any wonder the world has risen against us?
Wake up, America. Wake up before these lords of war and avarice steal our nation’s soul. We are still a free nation of proud and virtuous citizens. Now, at the time of greatest need, let us rally that pride and steady our resolve to change the course of history. Americans have no desire to control or dominate the world. Let us elect new leaders who share our vision, who will bury the doctrines of first strike and world dominance, and who regard our fellow beings in this world with respect and tolerance.
Jazz.
By Jack Random
In the weeks preceding our preemptive strike on Iraq, our president begrudgingly appealed to the United Nations, inspectors reentered Iraq and they were greeted by a great deal of cooperation. In the days before the invasion, Iraqi officials were destroying the Al Sammoud missiles (marginally in violation of the 1991 disarmament accords). The destruction of the missiles (perhaps their only line of defense against the forces amassed on their borders) was not enough to ward off the attack. With the benefit of hindsight, there was nothing the Iraqis could have done. The entire process was a façade, a war dance, and a prelude to the inevitable.
We now know the invasion of Iraq had nothing to do with weapons of mass destruction. We know the war was not related to Al Qaeda or the war against terrorism. We know it was not in retaliation for the attack of September 11, 2001. Well into the occupation, as our president has supplanted Ariel Sharon as the most despised leader in the Arab-Islamic world, we are left wondering why. Through the process of elimination, there are two interrelated reasons: First, the importance of oil to an oil president. Second, a vision of the world by so-called “neo-conservatives.”
Let us understand what this vision really is. It is a vision of endless war. It is the vision of a nation so obsessed that the preparations for the next war are in place before the first missile is fired. As vice president Dick Cheney said in the wake of September 11, it is a commitment to forty years of war – a prediction that deliberately and cynically parallels the duration of the Cold War.
To appreciate the scope and horror of this vision, we must revisit the four decades between the end of World War II and the fall of the Soviet empire for these Bush visionaries are the philosophical descendents of the Cold Warriors.
At the onset, understand that the Cold War was never cold. It cost the lives of over 100,000 American soldiers and literally millions of the indigenous peoples of Asia (Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines), Latin America (El Salvador, Nicaragua, Chile, Cuba, Columbia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Argentina, Panama, Grenada, the Dominican Republic), Africa (Zaire, Libya, Angola), the Middle East (Lebanon, Iran, Iraq) and elsewhere. The American Cold Warriors recruited, trained, armed and financed the terrorists that now plague much of the world.
The Cold War is a legacy of death, destruction and oppression in the name of freedom. Its culmination was Vietnam, a nation upon which we unleashed a destructive force unrivaled in world history. Yet the Vietnamese did not surrender. They are arguably the bravest people known to humanity, having survived the successive invasions of foreign powers and the most awesome military force on earth.
The great lesson of Vietnam was not only that we were wrong, that we sacrificed millions of lives for an abstraction (Communism and the Domino Theory), but that we could not conquer a people without winning their hearts and minds. We were not the liberators we were supposed to be. We were conquerors. As Daniel Ellsberg put it, we were not on the wrong side; we were the wrong side.
How strange it was, then, after the conclusion of the first Gulf War, for an American president to proclaim that “the specter of Vietnam” had been “lifted forever.” It was clear the American government had not learned the lesson of Vietnam. Perhaps these right wing ideologues secretly lament that we did not drop the big one on Saigon. Perhaps they believe their own propaganda: that the Cold War led to the collapse of Communism.
When the Soviet Union fell it was, above all, a lesson in economics. A state sponsored economy, under an oppressive and corrupt government, was not strong enough to support a system that dedicated more than half of its wealth to military spending. We are now in a position to learn whether or not a free market economy, under an increasingly oppressive and corrupt government, is capable of supporting a similar imbalance between domestic and military spending.
There was a time when our economy was predominantly industrial. Much of that industry – manufacturing, oil and steel – could be directed to the war effort. War was therefore considered a boon to the economy. The new economy, however, is increasingly based on technology. While technology can and does serve the military, its greater application is in the service and information fields. Only a fraction of the new economy benefits from perpetual war and many of them reside in the government, counseling our oil wealthy president. The economy as a whole will suffer from a prolonged economic slump and an alienated world market. In the new economic world order, peace and good will are our best allies.
The Cold Warriors of the Bush administration yearn for war at all costs to the general populace. Having disproved the Domino Theory, they wish to test a new theory of free-market dominance and an American controlled New World Order, but if they are wrong, it may well result in economic collapse.
The Cold Warriors desire an enemy that will rival the propaganda value of the Communist beast. In the war on terror, they will be the ones to determine who is a terrorist and who is not. It is already clear they have decided that Palestinians are terrorists. They are lining up potential enemies throughout the Arab world. Who will be next? Syria? Iran? Libya? Or will we shift hemispheres and resume our Latin American operations? Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil, Cuba?
It is not for those who oppose the war machine to defend those nations destined for invasion or subversion (though many are worthy of defense) any more than it is incumbent on the proponents of war to defend such allies as Pakistan, Israel, Columbia or Saudi Arabia. It is rather for us all to recognize that the vision the Bush administration is offering is a nightmare of unending destruction.
The Iraqi invasion was not a battle of virtue or principle. It was a prelude to decades of war. It was not a war for democracy. It was a war for dominance. In the vernacular, it is a war America can never win for we lost the battle for hearts and minds at its inception. America has neither the right nor the means to control the resources of the planet. America cannot and should not impose its will on the peoples of the world for the people will never submit.
We must finally come to terms with the fact that we are but one nation and that our wisdom is no greater and our god is no greater than that of any other nation. Though we have come to possess power and wealth beyond the world’s imagining, our greatest strength has always been our virtue.
As a nation, we have never had to face the full consequences of our actions. As a people, we have been protected by our government and its propaganda machine. To this day, there are those who believe that a crazed gunman killed our most promising president. To this day, there are those who believe that the Vietnam War, the bombing of Cambodia, and the invasions of Cuba, Panama and tiny Grenada were justified. To this day, there are those who refuse to believe that America sponsored and trained terrorists in the Middle East, Latin America and throughout the world. To this day, there are those who believe that the genocide on our own soil was the manifestation of a Christian god.
Unless we finally come to terms with the crimes of our past we cannot begin to understand the dangers we now confront. We are a nation that desires empire. Those who have studied history already know how it ends. This is the vision of the Cold Warriors as it was the vision of the ancient warriors of Rome. This is their collective promise to the world: An endless cycle of violence, where every act of terror is answered by another, where every voice of dissent is considered treason and every nation that opposes is considered an enemy. Is it any wonder the world has risen against us?
Wake up, America. Wake up before these lords of war and avarice steal our nation’s soul. We are still a free nation of proud and virtuous citizens. Now, at the time of greatest need, let us rally that pride and steady our resolve to change the course of history. Americans have no desire to control or dominate the world. Let us elect new leaders who share our vision, who will bury the doctrines of first strike and world dominance, and who regard our fellow beings in this world with respect and tolerance.
Jazz.
Sunday, August 22, 2004
THE GREAT DESTROYER
FROM THE WAR CHRONICLE, DISTRIBUTE FREELY.
Better weapons lead to better and better weapons,
until the earth is a grenade with the fuse burning.
William Burroughs
Cities of the Red Night
THE GREAT DESTROYER
What kind of a nation reacts to an act of terror as we have?
In response to a vicious and brutal attack, we mercilessly destroyed one nation (the poorest of the lot) for harboring the terrorists while allying ourselves with those nations that supplied and supported them. We could have as easily bombed ourselves for financing and supplying Al Qaeda, the Mujahadeen, and every other Islamic fundamentalist militant group who served on the front lines in our war against the Soviet beast.
Did we not promise never again to forget the destruction we have wrought and have we not forgotten? We have left Afghanistan with a government confined to its capitol. We have left their country in the hands of the very same war lords who made the Taliban acceptable to a people ravaged and broken by war.
Did we not promise never to forget those responsible for knocking the twin towers down and have we not forgotten? Osama bin Laden is alive. Al Qaeda is regrouping even in the very same region where we were supposed to have routed and destroyed them. But we have turned our attention elsewhere. We prefer to fight old enemies, enemies we can face on a battlefield, in wars we can televise from beginning to glorious end.
What kind of a nation uses a terrorist attack to justify declaring war on three sovereign nations, however ruthless or despicable their leaders may be, having no relation and bearing no responsibility for the destruction we have suffered? Can we look at ourselves in honesty and candor and reflect that this is the behavior of an enlightened nation? Are we in truth the great liberator our president proclaims or are we the great destroyer, an avenging angel, champion of the cause of vengeance? Do we carry the torch of liberty or the hammer of wrath? Do our friends and allies welcome us or do they fear not to welcome us?
Place yourselves in the shoes of our adversaries if only for a moment. You are living in Kabul. Your country is decimated, its economy in tatters. You cannot find work or housing, medical care or schools for your children. You cannot leave the boundaries of the city for fear of landmines or warlords or parties still loyal to the Taliban or Al Qaeda. America has spent tens of billions destroying your country but offers only a fraction to rebuild it. An American reporter approaches you to ask how you feel about your liberators. You reply that you love America but in your heart there is no love. You fear America and do not wish to rouse the anger of its government.
Imagine now that you are living in Baghdad. You have suffered under the rule of a tyrant but you know that America helped place him in power, supplying him with the instruments of terror and oppression, and helped keep him in power for as long as the oil fields remained open to western control. You have watched half a million of your children die from the American war and its aftereffects and you cannot bring yourself to blame it all on Saddam. When the conquering army marches into your city you cheer and smile and pray that your suffering has come to an end. But within you is deepest, darkest doubt. America has never brought good will or good fortune.
Imagine living in Korea, Iran or Venezuela. Do you pray for American intervention? Do you welcome the great liberator or do you fear her wrath?
It might so easily have been different. We could have responded as an enlightened nation. The world was united in its good will toward us. Americans were ready to be challenged. Instead of challenging the world to brace itself for unending war, our president could have issued the greatest challenge of the new millennium: He could have challenged us to transform our economy from oil dependency to a solar, wind and hydrogen based economy. No longer would we need our troops on the holy lands of Saudi Arabia. No longer would we consume most of the world’s finite resources. No longer would we claim the right to poison the world’s air, pollute her waters, and destroy her ozone layer. We could have weaned ourselves and much of the world from the inevitable catastrophe of nuclear energy.
Of course, we would have had to go after Al Qaeda as well but we might have listened when the Taliban offered to present the accused to an international court of justice. We would still have faced many hardships but Osama bin Laden would not be free and Al Qaeda would be isolated and inoperative. America would not have to stand alone (with none but borrowed and dependent allies at her side) in her crusade against terror.
But is this just a dream? Is it as impossible as it seems? There is no escaping the fact that a different path could not have been chosen as long as the same corporate interests that direct us toward war and oil dependency are in control of our government. Despite our best intentions and desire for peace, the people are paralyzed by a notion of patriotism that requires our support in times of war regardless of circumstance.
Clearly, the path to a more enlightened nation begins by striking down the dual dogmatism of false patriotism and blind faith in corporate dominated governance. Our economy is dependent on fossil fuels because our government is financed by the profits that fossil fuels provide. We could long ago have achieved oil independence. We need only the desire to make it so.
For the time being, we must fight against the forces of war. We are not a war loving people. The dirty underside of war is rarely observed before it slips into the pages of history. It is popular now to lament the plight of Vietnam veterans but when their story was immediate, when the suffering was living history, America’s silent majority did not want to acknowledge it. We yearned for ribbons and parades but we did not wish to hear why so many of our children are disillusioned, disturbed and disengaged. Even now, as we lament our forgotten soldiers, our mourning cries ringing through the nightmares of history, we have all but forgotten those who served in the last war. The Gulf War Syndrome is more than a soldier’s bad memories. In the shadows of the forgotten where no cameras are trained, ten thousand have died and one third of those who served are seriously ill.
The time for our passion, our sympathy and outrage, is before the suffering begins. We must rise in one voice to challenge the path of war. But as we do so we must not forget that the path to enlightenment begins with a change in government. To free our nation of oil dependency and all the bloody entanglements it demands, we must free our government of the same. We must elect individuals whose only interest is the welfare of the people they represent. Only then will the price of war be too high to pay. Only then will peace have a chance.
Jazz.
JACK RANDOM IS THE AUTHOR OF THE JAZZMAN CHRONICLES (CROW DOG PRESS) AND GHOST DANCE INSURRECTION (DRY BONES PRESS). HIS COMMENTARIES HAVE BEEN POSTED BY DISSIDENT VOICE, ALBION MONITOR, COUNTERPUNCH, TRINCENTER, GLOBAL RESEARCH, AND BEATLICKS.COM. HE HAS BEEN PUBLISHED BY HAIGHT ASHBURY LITERARY JOURNAL, LYNX EYE, AIM MAGAZINE, AND MOBIUS.
Better weapons lead to better and better weapons,
until the earth is a grenade with the fuse burning.
William Burroughs
Cities of the Red Night
THE GREAT DESTROYER
What kind of a nation reacts to an act of terror as we have?
In response to a vicious and brutal attack, we mercilessly destroyed one nation (the poorest of the lot) for harboring the terrorists while allying ourselves with those nations that supplied and supported them. We could have as easily bombed ourselves for financing and supplying Al Qaeda, the Mujahadeen, and every other Islamic fundamentalist militant group who served on the front lines in our war against the Soviet beast.
Did we not promise never again to forget the destruction we have wrought and have we not forgotten? We have left Afghanistan with a government confined to its capitol. We have left their country in the hands of the very same war lords who made the Taliban acceptable to a people ravaged and broken by war.
Did we not promise never to forget those responsible for knocking the twin towers down and have we not forgotten? Osama bin Laden is alive. Al Qaeda is regrouping even in the very same region where we were supposed to have routed and destroyed them. But we have turned our attention elsewhere. We prefer to fight old enemies, enemies we can face on a battlefield, in wars we can televise from beginning to glorious end.
What kind of a nation uses a terrorist attack to justify declaring war on three sovereign nations, however ruthless or despicable their leaders may be, having no relation and bearing no responsibility for the destruction we have suffered? Can we look at ourselves in honesty and candor and reflect that this is the behavior of an enlightened nation? Are we in truth the great liberator our president proclaims or are we the great destroyer, an avenging angel, champion of the cause of vengeance? Do we carry the torch of liberty or the hammer of wrath? Do our friends and allies welcome us or do they fear not to welcome us?
Place yourselves in the shoes of our adversaries if only for a moment. You are living in Kabul. Your country is decimated, its economy in tatters. You cannot find work or housing, medical care or schools for your children. You cannot leave the boundaries of the city for fear of landmines or warlords or parties still loyal to the Taliban or Al Qaeda. America has spent tens of billions destroying your country but offers only a fraction to rebuild it. An American reporter approaches you to ask how you feel about your liberators. You reply that you love America but in your heart there is no love. You fear America and do not wish to rouse the anger of its government.
Imagine now that you are living in Baghdad. You have suffered under the rule of a tyrant but you know that America helped place him in power, supplying him with the instruments of terror and oppression, and helped keep him in power for as long as the oil fields remained open to western control. You have watched half a million of your children die from the American war and its aftereffects and you cannot bring yourself to blame it all on Saddam. When the conquering army marches into your city you cheer and smile and pray that your suffering has come to an end. But within you is deepest, darkest doubt. America has never brought good will or good fortune.
Imagine living in Korea, Iran or Venezuela. Do you pray for American intervention? Do you welcome the great liberator or do you fear her wrath?
It might so easily have been different. We could have responded as an enlightened nation. The world was united in its good will toward us. Americans were ready to be challenged. Instead of challenging the world to brace itself for unending war, our president could have issued the greatest challenge of the new millennium: He could have challenged us to transform our economy from oil dependency to a solar, wind and hydrogen based economy. No longer would we need our troops on the holy lands of Saudi Arabia. No longer would we consume most of the world’s finite resources. No longer would we claim the right to poison the world’s air, pollute her waters, and destroy her ozone layer. We could have weaned ourselves and much of the world from the inevitable catastrophe of nuclear energy.
Of course, we would have had to go after Al Qaeda as well but we might have listened when the Taliban offered to present the accused to an international court of justice. We would still have faced many hardships but Osama bin Laden would not be free and Al Qaeda would be isolated and inoperative. America would not have to stand alone (with none but borrowed and dependent allies at her side) in her crusade against terror.
But is this just a dream? Is it as impossible as it seems? There is no escaping the fact that a different path could not have been chosen as long as the same corporate interests that direct us toward war and oil dependency are in control of our government. Despite our best intentions and desire for peace, the people are paralyzed by a notion of patriotism that requires our support in times of war regardless of circumstance.
Clearly, the path to a more enlightened nation begins by striking down the dual dogmatism of false patriotism and blind faith in corporate dominated governance. Our economy is dependent on fossil fuels because our government is financed by the profits that fossil fuels provide. We could long ago have achieved oil independence. We need only the desire to make it so.
For the time being, we must fight against the forces of war. We are not a war loving people. The dirty underside of war is rarely observed before it slips into the pages of history. It is popular now to lament the plight of Vietnam veterans but when their story was immediate, when the suffering was living history, America’s silent majority did not want to acknowledge it. We yearned for ribbons and parades but we did not wish to hear why so many of our children are disillusioned, disturbed and disengaged. Even now, as we lament our forgotten soldiers, our mourning cries ringing through the nightmares of history, we have all but forgotten those who served in the last war. The Gulf War Syndrome is more than a soldier’s bad memories. In the shadows of the forgotten where no cameras are trained, ten thousand have died and one third of those who served are seriously ill.
The time for our passion, our sympathy and outrage, is before the suffering begins. We must rise in one voice to challenge the path of war. But as we do so we must not forget that the path to enlightenment begins with a change in government. To free our nation of oil dependency and all the bloody entanglements it demands, we must free our government of the same. We must elect individuals whose only interest is the welfare of the people they represent. Only then will the price of war be too high to pay. Only then will peace have a chance.
Jazz.
JACK RANDOM IS THE AUTHOR OF THE JAZZMAN CHRONICLES (CROW DOG PRESS) AND GHOST DANCE INSURRECTION (DRY BONES PRESS). HIS COMMENTARIES HAVE BEEN POSTED BY DISSIDENT VOICE, ALBION MONITOR, COUNTERPUNCH, TRINCENTER, GLOBAL RESEARCH, AND BEATLICKS.COM. HE HAS BEEN PUBLISHED BY HAIGHT ASHBURY LITERARY JOURNAL, LYNX EYE, AIM MAGAZINE, AND MOBIUS.
Thursday, August 19, 2004
JAZZMAN CHRONICLES, Volume II: THE WAR CHRONICLES: PREFACE.
JAZZMAN CHRONICLES
VOLUME II
THE WAR CHRONICLES
BY JACK RANDOM
CROW DOG PRESS
MODESTO CA USA
Publisher’s Cataloging-in-Publication
Random, Jack.
Jazzman chronicles. Volume II / by Jack Random.
p. cm.
LCCN 2003100136
ISBN 0-9727656-1-1
1. United States -- Civilization. 2. United States — Politics and government. 3. Political participation – United States. I. Title.
E169.1.R36 2004 306.2’0973
QBI33-1137
JAZZMAN CHRONICLES
VOLUME II
The War Chronicles
For Sadie
CONTENTS
I. PREFACE: WAR & PEACE.
II. THE GREAT DESTROYER.
III. COLD WAR RESURRECTION.
IV. INFANT NATION.
V. ABSOLUTION.
VI. MEDIA, WAR & PROPAGANDA.
VII. CODE OF SILENCE.
VIII. THE NEW ENEMY.
IX. AMERICAN HEROES.
X. THE CONDUCT OF WAR.
XI. THE LESSONS OF WAR.
XII. AVIEW FROM AFAR.
XIII. THE PEACE CANDIDATE.
XIV. THE WAR PRESIDENT.
PREFACE: WAR & PEACE
In the hearts of people today there is a deep longing for peace. When the true spirit of peace is thoroughly dominant, it becomes an inner experience with unlimited possibilities. Only when this really happens – when the spirit of peace awakens and takes possession of men’s hearts – can humanity be saved from perishing.
Albert Schweitzer
It is the nature of war that it outweighs all other concerns. While I believe that the long-term solution to the systemic problems we face as a nation depends on numerous reforms – most critically, the defeat of the major party system – everything must now yield to the antiwar movement.
In the next election, we confront the possibility that the Bush Doctrine of preemptive strike and perpetual superiority will face no political constraint. Imagine what might have happened if this president had not faced a second election. A reinstatement of the draft becomes a distinct possibility. Expansion of the war on terrorism becomes a certainty. The once unthinkable first use of tactical nuclear weapons becomes a viable military option.
There are many reasons to oppose this president – corruption, incompetence, intolerance, indifference to the poor, the environment and the oppressed. None of these compares to the prospect of four more years of an expanding “war on terror.” Study your history: What this president sets in place will not be reversed by succeeding administrations – be they Republican or Democrat. The strategies of intervention and subversion, under the name of the Cold War, were passed on from generation to generation, from president to president, and the likelihood that it will be different with this war is a dismal proposition. It must be stopped now.
The election is about war. There is no other issue. It is not about the economy. It is not about unemployment. It is not about Medicare or Social Security. It is not about democracy or civil liberties. It is not about gay rights, abortion rights, judicial nominees, affirmative action and racial equity. It is not about fair trade. While all these issues are important, they pale by comparison to the policies of war.
The coming election is about young men and women dying on foreign lands. It is about war without end. It is about a philosophy of dominance that promises decades of war. It is about old men and women, who will never see the battlefield, sending young men and women to their last days on earth. Until the soldiers have come home and the Bush Doctrine is forever buried in the desert sands of Arabia, there is no other issue.
These Chronicles have no other ambition but to stop a war machine led by a president obsessed with the dream of glory. There is no more glory in Iraq than there was in Vietnam. These Chronicles are about pounding home the truth and etching it in the American psyche before it is lost to the government propaganda machine. These Chronicles are about changing the course of history.
Jazz.
VOLUME II
THE WAR CHRONICLES
BY JACK RANDOM
CROW DOG PRESS
MODESTO CA USA
Publisher’s Cataloging-in-Publication
Random, Jack.
Jazzman chronicles. Volume II / by Jack Random.
p. cm.
LCCN 2003100136
ISBN 0-9727656-1-1
1. United States -- Civilization. 2. United States — Politics and government. 3. Political participation – United States. I. Title.
E169.1.R36 2004 306.2’0973
QBI33-1137
JAZZMAN CHRONICLES
VOLUME II
The War Chronicles
For Sadie
CONTENTS
I. PREFACE: WAR & PEACE.
II. THE GREAT DESTROYER.
III. COLD WAR RESURRECTION.
IV. INFANT NATION.
V. ABSOLUTION.
VI. MEDIA, WAR & PROPAGANDA.
VII. CODE OF SILENCE.
VIII. THE NEW ENEMY.
IX. AMERICAN HEROES.
X. THE CONDUCT OF WAR.
XI. THE LESSONS OF WAR.
XII. AVIEW FROM AFAR.
XIII. THE PEACE CANDIDATE.
XIV. THE WAR PRESIDENT.
PREFACE: WAR & PEACE
In the hearts of people today there is a deep longing for peace. When the true spirit of peace is thoroughly dominant, it becomes an inner experience with unlimited possibilities. Only when this really happens – when the spirit of peace awakens and takes possession of men’s hearts – can humanity be saved from perishing.
Albert Schweitzer
It is the nature of war that it outweighs all other concerns. While I believe that the long-term solution to the systemic problems we face as a nation depends on numerous reforms – most critically, the defeat of the major party system – everything must now yield to the antiwar movement.
In the next election, we confront the possibility that the Bush Doctrine of preemptive strike and perpetual superiority will face no political constraint. Imagine what might have happened if this president had not faced a second election. A reinstatement of the draft becomes a distinct possibility. Expansion of the war on terrorism becomes a certainty. The once unthinkable first use of tactical nuclear weapons becomes a viable military option.
There are many reasons to oppose this president – corruption, incompetence, intolerance, indifference to the poor, the environment and the oppressed. None of these compares to the prospect of four more years of an expanding “war on terror.” Study your history: What this president sets in place will not be reversed by succeeding administrations – be they Republican or Democrat. The strategies of intervention and subversion, under the name of the Cold War, were passed on from generation to generation, from president to president, and the likelihood that it will be different with this war is a dismal proposition. It must be stopped now.
The election is about war. There is no other issue. It is not about the economy. It is not about unemployment. It is not about Medicare or Social Security. It is not about democracy or civil liberties. It is not about gay rights, abortion rights, judicial nominees, affirmative action and racial equity. It is not about fair trade. While all these issues are important, they pale by comparison to the policies of war.
The coming election is about young men and women dying on foreign lands. It is about war without end. It is about a philosophy of dominance that promises decades of war. It is about old men and women, who will never see the battlefield, sending young men and women to their last days on earth. Until the soldiers have come home and the Bush Doctrine is forever buried in the desert sands of Arabia, there is no other issue.
These Chronicles have no other ambition but to stop a war machine led by a president obsessed with the dream of glory. There is no more glory in Iraq than there was in Vietnam. These Chronicles are about pounding home the truth and etching it in the American psyche before it is lost to the government propaganda machine. These Chronicles are about changing the course of history.
Jazz.
Thursday, August 12, 2004
TORO! THE CHALLENGE OF HUGO CHAVEZ
By Jack Random
Hugo Chavez, the embattled leader of the Bolivarian movement and president of Venezuela, faces a referendum on his presidency this Sunday. In the balance lies the immediate and foreseeable future of democracy in Latin America.
Given the revelation that the Bush administration has contracted ChoicePoint of Atlanta to gather dossiers on the citizens of Mexico, Brazil, Nicaragua, Argentina and Venezuela, it is clear that when the president speaks of fighting for democracy it has less to do with the ideology of our founders than with the manipulation of democratic institutions as practiced in Florida 2000 (see Greg Palast, Venezuela Floridated, August 10, 2004).
In April 2002, the administration failed in a thinly disguised coup directed at Chavez. In March of this year, they directed their efforts against Jean Bertrand Aristide of Haiti in a successful coup. Aristide accused the administration of forcibly removing him from office and deporting him to the Central African Republic. Secretary of State Colin Powell dismissed Aristide’s account as absurd though he did not feel compelled to document that absurdity. Even in the American version, this was an intelligence operation. If Aristide’s accusations were false, the record would have proven so.
When all but the Congressional Black Caucus (the only mainstream political body to challenge the Florida disenfranchisement) fell silent, Hugo Chavez stepped forward. He not only accused the CIA of a coup in Haiti and an attempted coup in his own country, he issued a warning of retaliation. The threat was not as idle as one is tempted to believe. Venezuela owns ten percent of all American oil imports. With the price of oil at a record high, the Saudis have already boosted production in support of their allies in the White House. It is doubtful they can do much more. If Venezuela were to cut supply and demand fair compensation (they currently get a 16% royalty), even the anticipated capture of Osama bin Laden might not be enough to win reelection.
Now that the beast of global dominance has thundered over poor little Haiti (even as it digs deeper in the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates), Hugo Chavez takes his stand in the ring, taunting his monstrous nemesis: Toro! Bring it on!
At the time of Aristide’s deposition, Chavez was only days away from securing a Caribbean community alliance to defend the Aristide government. On the heels of failure in Afghanistan and Venezuela, in the wake of the disaster in Iraq, it is clear the administration is emboldened when it should be restrained. They will stand democracy on its head in pursuit of its stated objectives: military dominance and control of vital resources.
Chavez has not only been defiant in the very face of danger, he has been phenomenally resilient. In political terms, he has risen from the dead. He has rallied the support of his people, the working poor and the disenfranchised. He has led the resistance to globalization, which is nothing more than a corporate license to exploit second and third world nations. Given the events in Haiti, the people of Venezuela and throughout the region are no longer fooled by American rhetoric. They recognize the heavy hand of central intelligence. In some ways, the opposition has made Chavez stronger than ever. If he can stand up against American-sponsored insurrection and corporate invasion, it emboldens others to stand with him.
Despite the “victory” over poor and defenseless Haiti, the administration is losing the war in Latin America. We are over-extended and over-exposed. When the self-appointed hemispheric protector is more feared than any perceived enemy, the people will not rally to America’s cause. Mindful of our tortured history throughout the region, they are answering the call to rally against it. Everywhere where democracy exists (Brazil, Canada, Spain, Britain, Mexico), the people have delivered the same message: No to the war, no to an American empire, no to globalization, and no to corporate rule.
On Sunday, the people of Venezuela will stand up to be counted. They will not be bruised and bullied into silence. They will not be barred from the polling place. They have stood with Chavez this far and they will stand with him again. The only thing that can deny them is corruption and fraud sponsored by the enemies of democracy. I do not believe they will stand for that either.
Viva Chavez!
Jazz.
Hugo Chavez, the embattled leader of the Bolivarian movement and president of Venezuela, faces a referendum on his presidency this Sunday. In the balance lies the immediate and foreseeable future of democracy in Latin America.
Given the revelation that the Bush administration has contracted ChoicePoint of Atlanta to gather dossiers on the citizens of Mexico, Brazil, Nicaragua, Argentina and Venezuela, it is clear that when the president speaks of fighting for democracy it has less to do with the ideology of our founders than with the manipulation of democratic institutions as practiced in Florida 2000 (see Greg Palast, Venezuela Floridated, August 10, 2004).
In April 2002, the administration failed in a thinly disguised coup directed at Chavez. In March of this year, they directed their efforts against Jean Bertrand Aristide of Haiti in a successful coup. Aristide accused the administration of forcibly removing him from office and deporting him to the Central African Republic. Secretary of State Colin Powell dismissed Aristide’s account as absurd though he did not feel compelled to document that absurdity. Even in the American version, this was an intelligence operation. If Aristide’s accusations were false, the record would have proven so.
When all but the Congressional Black Caucus (the only mainstream political body to challenge the Florida disenfranchisement) fell silent, Hugo Chavez stepped forward. He not only accused the CIA of a coup in Haiti and an attempted coup in his own country, he issued a warning of retaliation. The threat was not as idle as one is tempted to believe. Venezuela owns ten percent of all American oil imports. With the price of oil at a record high, the Saudis have already boosted production in support of their allies in the White House. It is doubtful they can do much more. If Venezuela were to cut supply and demand fair compensation (they currently get a 16% royalty), even the anticipated capture of Osama bin Laden might not be enough to win reelection.
Now that the beast of global dominance has thundered over poor little Haiti (even as it digs deeper in the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates), Hugo Chavez takes his stand in the ring, taunting his monstrous nemesis: Toro! Bring it on!
At the time of Aristide’s deposition, Chavez was only days away from securing a Caribbean community alliance to defend the Aristide government. On the heels of failure in Afghanistan and Venezuela, in the wake of the disaster in Iraq, it is clear the administration is emboldened when it should be restrained. They will stand democracy on its head in pursuit of its stated objectives: military dominance and control of vital resources.
Chavez has not only been defiant in the very face of danger, he has been phenomenally resilient. In political terms, he has risen from the dead. He has rallied the support of his people, the working poor and the disenfranchised. He has led the resistance to globalization, which is nothing more than a corporate license to exploit second and third world nations. Given the events in Haiti, the people of Venezuela and throughout the region are no longer fooled by American rhetoric. They recognize the heavy hand of central intelligence. In some ways, the opposition has made Chavez stronger than ever. If he can stand up against American-sponsored insurrection and corporate invasion, it emboldens others to stand with him.
Despite the “victory” over poor and defenseless Haiti, the administration is losing the war in Latin America. We are over-extended and over-exposed. When the self-appointed hemispheric protector is more feared than any perceived enemy, the people will not rally to America’s cause. Mindful of our tortured history throughout the region, they are answering the call to rally against it. Everywhere where democracy exists (Brazil, Canada, Spain, Britain, Mexico), the people have delivered the same message: No to the war, no to an American empire, no to globalization, and no to corporate rule.
On Sunday, the people of Venezuela will stand up to be counted. They will not be bruised and bullied into silence. They will not be barred from the polling place. They have stood with Chavez this far and they will stand with him again. The only thing that can deny them is corruption and fraud sponsored by the enemies of democracy. I do not believe they will stand for that either.
Viva Chavez!
Jazz.
Thursday, August 05, 2004
THE WAR THAT WASN'T
By Jack Random
Of all the manipulations of the Bush propaganda machine, one of the most dangerous was the assertion that the tragedy of September 11, 2001 was the first volley in a war of the ages. While politicians have a predisposition to dramatize all events, the tragedy of that horrific day required no dramatization. This was an assertion with implications far beyond the typical media sound bite. It redefined the event in a manner that would serve a preconceived policy of preemptive war and global dominance. It served to prepare the nation for a state of perpetual war.
In times of war, measures can be taken that would be unthinkable at any other time. Bloated military spending, record deficits, job loss, declining wages and draconian laws can be rationalized. Dissidents can be silenced, harassed and detained without reasonable cause and entire classes of American citizens can be confined to concentration camps. In times of war, fundamental rights can be suspended or denied.
The war in Afghanistan was questionable, the war in Iraq indefensible, but the war on terrorism, like the drug war and the cold war before it, is not a war at all.
For the purposes of international law and international codes of conduct, war has a very specific meaning. It describes an armed conflict between states or nations; Al Qaeda is neither. It is an outlaw organization without status or legitimacy. To define it as an enemy in war is to give it a level of legitimacy it does not deserve. It empowers an organization of criminals and rallies to their cause others who share nothing with Al Qaeda except a grievance – real or perceived – against the United States of America.
This nation would have been far more secure had we attacked the problem of international terrorism with the sword of international justice. The president has squandered an opportunity to form a united front against a common enemy and, in so doing, divided the world into “us and them” for decades to come.
If the war in Iraq ended with the fall of Baghdad, then this nation is no longer at war. We are an occupier of one nation and an occupier-by-proxy of another. Not long ago, the president sent his emissary to the United Nations in an attempt to win for the occupation what he could not win for the invasion. He failed. The president was right though he was clearly insincere. It is time to return to the United Nations – this time with open arms. In the interest of our soldiers and our nation’s security, it is time to give up control of Iraqi oil. It is time to give up control of the contracts. It is time to give up control of the occupying forces. It is time to end this constant state of siege and the public terror alerts that serve no purpose save to maintain a level of fear in the electorate.
We are not a nation at war. We are confronted with a problem that much of the world has long endured. It cannot be eliminated with bombs and missiles. It can only be contained through the decisive actions of nations with a common cause. It can only be defeated when the root causes of discontent are effectively addressed.
The war with terrorism is over. It is the war that never was. Let us now elect a president who can declare the peace.
Jazz.
Of all the manipulations of the Bush propaganda machine, one of the most dangerous was the assertion that the tragedy of September 11, 2001 was the first volley in a war of the ages. While politicians have a predisposition to dramatize all events, the tragedy of that horrific day required no dramatization. This was an assertion with implications far beyond the typical media sound bite. It redefined the event in a manner that would serve a preconceived policy of preemptive war and global dominance. It served to prepare the nation for a state of perpetual war.
In times of war, measures can be taken that would be unthinkable at any other time. Bloated military spending, record deficits, job loss, declining wages and draconian laws can be rationalized. Dissidents can be silenced, harassed and detained without reasonable cause and entire classes of American citizens can be confined to concentration camps. In times of war, fundamental rights can be suspended or denied.
The war in Afghanistan was questionable, the war in Iraq indefensible, but the war on terrorism, like the drug war and the cold war before it, is not a war at all.
For the purposes of international law and international codes of conduct, war has a very specific meaning. It describes an armed conflict between states or nations; Al Qaeda is neither. It is an outlaw organization without status or legitimacy. To define it as an enemy in war is to give it a level of legitimacy it does not deserve. It empowers an organization of criminals and rallies to their cause others who share nothing with Al Qaeda except a grievance – real or perceived – against the United States of America.
This nation would have been far more secure had we attacked the problem of international terrorism with the sword of international justice. The president has squandered an opportunity to form a united front against a common enemy and, in so doing, divided the world into “us and them” for decades to come.
If the war in Iraq ended with the fall of Baghdad, then this nation is no longer at war. We are an occupier of one nation and an occupier-by-proxy of another. Not long ago, the president sent his emissary to the United Nations in an attempt to win for the occupation what he could not win for the invasion. He failed. The president was right though he was clearly insincere. It is time to return to the United Nations – this time with open arms. In the interest of our soldiers and our nation’s security, it is time to give up control of Iraqi oil. It is time to give up control of the contracts. It is time to give up control of the occupying forces. It is time to end this constant state of siege and the public terror alerts that serve no purpose save to maintain a level of fear in the electorate.
We are not a nation at war. We are confronted with a problem that much of the world has long endured. It cannot be eliminated with bombs and missiles. It can only be contained through the decisive actions of nations with a common cause. It can only be defeated when the root causes of discontent are effectively addressed.
The war with terrorism is over. It is the war that never was. Let us now elect a president who can declare the peace.
Jazz.
Wednesday, August 04, 2004
AMERICAN MERCENARIES
CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY
By Jack Random
“This is our situation and who will may know it. By perseverance and fortitude we have the prospect of a glorious issue; by cowardice and submission, the sad choice of a variety of evils: a ravaged country, habitations without safety, slavery without hope, our homes turned into barracks and bawdy houses for Hessians, and a future race to provide for whose fathers we shall doubt of. Look on this picture and weep over it! and if there yet remains one thoughtless wretch who believes it not, let him suffer it unlamented.” Tom Paine – The American Crisis I.
A nation with a righteous cause and the support of its people would never resort to mercenary forces to supplant its legitimate military. The horrid events at Abu Ghraib pointed out the role of private contractors in critical positions of power and influence in the Iraq war. We learned than some 20,000 hired guns are in Iraq and their legal status is somewhere between limbo and blanket immunity. Among them are highly trained black operations specialists from Blackwater USA, former thugs from the terrorist units of former Chilean dictator Pinochet, former apartheid security forces from South Africa, and an assortment of special operations units from the United Kingdom. Some wear uniforms and others do not. Some operate under the banner of intelligence while others appear to operate independent of any chain of command.
It is clear that the use of mercenaries is in part designed to enable our military to avoid accountability. Like civilians and enemies, we do not count dead and wounded mercenaries. It has also been suggested that it is a cover for the obvious fact that we do not have sufficient forces. I would push the accusation a step further: It is a means of forestalling military conscription until after the presidential election. In the end, it does not matter. Both the draft and the use of mercenaries are crimes against humanity and give testament to an immoral cause.
It is the mark of a conquering army whose cause is so dubious it cannot raise an adequate army of volunteers and whose ambitions are so expansive that the need for soldiers is insatiable. The invading armies that rely on corporate warriors are universally resented and despised both for their brutality and for the hypocrisy of hiring others to carry out duties that traditional military personnel cannot or will not do. It carries a high price in both money and prestige. If the American people are committed to this war, why are there not enough volunteers to fight it? It is one thing to support our president; it is another to die for him.
It is an axiom of war that if there are not enough soldiers to fight, then that war should not be fought. It is as true now as it was in the days of the American Revolution, when Great Britain hired an army of indentured warriors from Germanic overlords to supplant British regulars. It was a measure of cowardice and a sign of weakness. The Hessians did not face the same problem as the British Redcoats: there was no reluctance to kill their brethren. They faced a different problem: they had no passion, no conviction, no commitment to the cause or loyalty to its leadership. They were unwilling to sacrifice life or limb for a monarch who thought no more of his hired subjects than of his cattle or sheep.
Recall Tom Paine’s American Crisis papers. His account of the Hessians paid by a corrupt King to kill British colonialists on American soil so roused the righteous indignation of Americans that it helped to raise a colonial army at a time when that army could hardly be fed, clothed and supplied with arms. There is something fundamentally offensive about hiring a third party to do your dirty work. There is something demonic about individuals and corporations that kill for money.
Is this the crusader’s gift to the world: killing machines to the highest bidder? Soldiers without cause or loyalty, who answer to no commander, who are accountable to no authority, are no better than mafia hit men.
Is this what America has become: the biggest thug on the block, putting out contracts on selected enemies, cornering markets for our corporate partners, defying the rule of law, handing out bribes and kickbacks, and letting the foot soldiers pay for the crimes of the overlords?
If the people do not awaken soon our beloved nation, birthplace of democracy, defender of liberty, refuge to the oppressed and weary, will have become the essence of what our ideals have always opposed. The Soviet beast – an authority of force alone, a ruthless oppressor, a power defiant of law and moral restraint, and the evil empire of Reagan’s nightmares – is dead. Shall we now replace that monster with its American equivalent?
We have so offended the nations and citizens of the world that they can no longer distinguish between our terrorists and theirs. This crusade of endless war must be brought to a close. These crimes against humanity must be brought to justice. This doctrine of war that gave them birth must be buried now and forever.
Jazz.
By Jack Random
“This is our situation and who will may know it. By perseverance and fortitude we have the prospect of a glorious issue; by cowardice and submission, the sad choice of a variety of evils: a ravaged country, habitations without safety, slavery without hope, our homes turned into barracks and bawdy houses for Hessians, and a future race to provide for whose fathers we shall doubt of. Look on this picture and weep over it! and if there yet remains one thoughtless wretch who believes it not, let him suffer it unlamented.” Tom Paine – The American Crisis I.
A nation with a righteous cause and the support of its people would never resort to mercenary forces to supplant its legitimate military. The horrid events at Abu Ghraib pointed out the role of private contractors in critical positions of power and influence in the Iraq war. We learned than some 20,000 hired guns are in Iraq and their legal status is somewhere between limbo and blanket immunity. Among them are highly trained black operations specialists from Blackwater USA, former thugs from the terrorist units of former Chilean dictator Pinochet, former apartheid security forces from South Africa, and an assortment of special operations units from the United Kingdom. Some wear uniforms and others do not. Some operate under the banner of intelligence while others appear to operate independent of any chain of command.
It is clear that the use of mercenaries is in part designed to enable our military to avoid accountability. Like civilians and enemies, we do not count dead and wounded mercenaries. It has also been suggested that it is a cover for the obvious fact that we do not have sufficient forces. I would push the accusation a step further: It is a means of forestalling military conscription until after the presidential election. In the end, it does not matter. Both the draft and the use of mercenaries are crimes against humanity and give testament to an immoral cause.
It is the mark of a conquering army whose cause is so dubious it cannot raise an adequate army of volunteers and whose ambitions are so expansive that the need for soldiers is insatiable. The invading armies that rely on corporate warriors are universally resented and despised both for their brutality and for the hypocrisy of hiring others to carry out duties that traditional military personnel cannot or will not do. It carries a high price in both money and prestige. If the American people are committed to this war, why are there not enough volunteers to fight it? It is one thing to support our president; it is another to die for him.
It is an axiom of war that if there are not enough soldiers to fight, then that war should not be fought. It is as true now as it was in the days of the American Revolution, when Great Britain hired an army of indentured warriors from Germanic overlords to supplant British regulars. It was a measure of cowardice and a sign of weakness. The Hessians did not face the same problem as the British Redcoats: there was no reluctance to kill their brethren. They faced a different problem: they had no passion, no conviction, no commitment to the cause or loyalty to its leadership. They were unwilling to sacrifice life or limb for a monarch who thought no more of his hired subjects than of his cattle or sheep.
Recall Tom Paine’s American Crisis papers. His account of the Hessians paid by a corrupt King to kill British colonialists on American soil so roused the righteous indignation of Americans that it helped to raise a colonial army at a time when that army could hardly be fed, clothed and supplied with arms. There is something fundamentally offensive about hiring a third party to do your dirty work. There is something demonic about individuals and corporations that kill for money.
Is this the crusader’s gift to the world: killing machines to the highest bidder? Soldiers without cause or loyalty, who answer to no commander, who are accountable to no authority, are no better than mafia hit men.
Is this what America has become: the biggest thug on the block, putting out contracts on selected enemies, cornering markets for our corporate partners, defying the rule of law, handing out bribes and kickbacks, and letting the foot soldiers pay for the crimes of the overlords?
If the people do not awaken soon our beloved nation, birthplace of democracy, defender of liberty, refuge to the oppressed and weary, will have become the essence of what our ideals have always opposed. The Soviet beast – an authority of force alone, a ruthless oppressor, a power defiant of law and moral restraint, and the evil empire of Reagan’s nightmares – is dead. Shall we now replace that monster with its American equivalent?
We have so offended the nations and citizens of the world that they can no longer distinguish between our terrorists and theirs. This crusade of endless war must be brought to a close. These crimes against humanity must be brought to justice. This doctrine of war that gave them birth must be buried now and forever.
Jazz.
Sunday, August 01, 2004
BRADY BILL BOGUS
A RESPONSE TO NATIONAL SECURITY BY MICHAEL SECORE
Hi. I found your flyer in the city, and am enjoying your site. I must, however, point out a small discrepancy in some information contained in one piece. While it is a small point, it is something that is very powerful and has the potential to shape people's opinions. Here is the line which I refer to: "We are constantly warned that terrorist cells are operating within our borders yet the president has done everything in his power to rescind the ban on automatic weapons (the Brady Bill). "
I can say with confidence that the Brady bill did not have to do with automatic weapons. It did, in fact, have to do with certain aesthetic features of certain rifles in production. It was a lame effort to appease those who fear because they are told to. There were 5 basic points which were identified as constituting an "assault" rifle. These included a separate handrip, a bayonet or lug to mount one, a flash suppressor, a high capacity magazine of more than 10 rounds, and a folding stock. The combination of more than 2 of these features was their definition of an "assault" rifle.
If you would like to refer to a piece of legislation that put a restiction on automatic weapons for the civilian market, please see the National Firearms act of 1934. http://usgovinfo.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/26/ch53.html
I had the displeasure of sitting home during the summer of 1994 and watching c-span live when the Brady bill was debated and passed. It was a truly digusting display of self-serving corporate and political agendas, as well as a sad example of ignorance , both by the legislators and the public at large. The end of the Brady bill is something to simply ignore as we did the creation of it. noone will notice a difference in their daily lives without it, just as they noticed no change when it passed. The Brady bill basically failed to do anything to prevent any sort of crime. There is no true evidence to support its effectiveness, as it did not stop any criminals. Criminals don't purchase their guns legally. It did, however, interfere with a number of purchases by people who were lawfully entitled to purchase firearms.
I would like to compliment your publication for doing something to help change the state of things. I do feel that it is important to state the facts accurately, though. That said, keep up the good work!
-Michael Secore
PS Here is another link I found while researching this topic that may interest you
http://www.jpfo.org/GCA_68.htm
Hi. I found your flyer in the city, and am enjoying your site. I must, however, point out a small discrepancy in some information contained in one piece. While it is a small point, it is something that is very powerful and has the potential to shape people's opinions. Here is the line which I refer to: "We are constantly warned that terrorist cells are operating within our borders yet the president has done everything in his power to rescind the ban on automatic weapons (the Brady Bill). "
I can say with confidence that the Brady bill did not have to do with automatic weapons. It did, in fact, have to do with certain aesthetic features of certain rifles in production. It was a lame effort to appease those who fear because they are told to. There were 5 basic points which were identified as constituting an "assault" rifle. These included a separate handrip, a bayonet or lug to mount one, a flash suppressor, a high capacity magazine of more than 10 rounds, and a folding stock. The combination of more than 2 of these features was their definition of an "assault" rifle.
If you would like to refer to a piece of legislation that put a restiction on automatic weapons for the civilian market, please see the National Firearms act of 1934. http://usgovinfo.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/26/ch53.html
I had the displeasure of sitting home during the summer of 1994 and watching c-span live when the Brady bill was debated and passed. It was a truly digusting display of self-serving corporate and political agendas, as well as a sad example of ignorance , both by the legislators and the public at large. The end of the Brady bill is something to simply ignore as we did the creation of it. noone will notice a difference in their daily lives without it, just as they noticed no change when it passed. The Brady bill basically failed to do anything to prevent any sort of crime. There is no true evidence to support its effectiveness, as it did not stop any criminals. Criminals don't purchase their guns legally. It did, however, interfere with a number of purchases by people who were lawfully entitled to purchase firearms.
I would like to compliment your publication for doing something to help change the state of things. I do feel that it is important to state the facts accurately, though. That said, keep up the good work!
-Michael Secore
PS Here is another link I found while researching this topic that may interest you
http://www.jpfo.org/GCA_68.htm
Saturday, July 31, 2004
SEA TO SEA
REFLECTIONS OF A JOURNEYMAN ON THE WAR CHRONICLES
BY DAVID BRUNER
Hey Jack,
was given your cd WAR CHRONICLES at a postapocalyptic newnation party in
Brooklyn over the weekend.
have been itching to get my self to one of the celebration/parties organized
by complacent.org among others.
found m self thirsting and opted for the more accessable cup of earl grey
instead of the mob at the beer counter.
where upon this cd was proffered by a kindred soul.
so cool in its printed page origami cover and underground current.
all the way, now, to Kingston, NY where I finally listened to it.
it engenders instantly images of a video accompaniment.
it needs to be on radio. via pirates.
wonder if how much it would take for wkze to play it at midnight? at noon?
Thank you for the clear, positive-energy innoculation.
David
BY DAVID BRUNER
Hey Jack,
was given your cd WAR CHRONICLES at a postapocalyptic newnation party in
Brooklyn over the weekend.
have been itching to get my self to one of the celebration/parties organized
by complacent.org among others.
found m self thirsting and opted for the more accessable cup of earl grey
instead of the mob at the beer counter.
where upon this cd was proffered by a kindred soul.
so cool in its printed page origami cover and underground current.
all the way, now, to Kingston, NY where I finally listened to it.
it engenders instantly images of a video accompaniment.
it needs to be on radio. via pirates.
wonder if how much it would take for wkze to play it at midnight? at noon?
Thank you for the clear, positive-energy innoculation.
David
THE HYPOCRITICAL OATH
THE CONTRADICTIONS OF GEORGE W. BUSH
By Jack Random
In a moment of candor during the presidential debates, candidate George W. Bush expressed the opinion that America should not be engaged in “nation building.” His team of foreign policy advisors spent months preparing their candidate. Was the president unaware that the Bush Doctrine would be a prescription for nation building or was this just the first in a series of contradictions and inconsistencies which, taken together, would draw a portrait of hypocrisy? When he placed his hand on the bible to take his oath of office, was it an oath of allegiance or oath of deception?
In its justification for war in Iraq and Afghanistan, the administration proclaimed the right and duty to strike anywhere at any time before a threat to this nation’s security emerged. Nations across the globe shuddered at the prospect of the awesome power of the American military unleashed upon the world without the constraints of international law and universal conventions of warfare. For the first time in history, a nation was overtly claiming exemption to the cardinal rule of international behavior: the prohibition against wars of aggression.
Few were persuaded that America’s motives were purely or primarily humanitarian but, in the ever-shifting rationale for war (imminent threat, sponsorship of 9-11, connections to Al Qaeda, liberation, democracy – anything but oil), the administration has raised the bar of mendacity to new heights. Even as they accuse their opponent of inconsistency, the contradictions of George W. Bush are without precedent.
In the State of the Union Address, the president pledged $18 billion to the battle against AIDS. He later tied AIDS funding to his anti-abortion agenda and protection of the pharmaceutical industries monopoly on prescription drugs. Only a trickle of funding has been implemented. Was this a change in policy or did the president know all along that it was an empty promise?
In promoting his education reform package, the president promised to leave no child behind. Subsequently, he has severely under-funded his own program, advocated public funding of private education, leaving every other child behind in ill equipped and financially strapped public schools. Was this a shift in policy or was the initial promise a cynical smokescreen?
Perhaps the candidate’s most salient message in his campaign for the White House was his pledge to be “a uniter, not a divider,” yet his administration has alienated much of Europe, the United Nations, and Islamic peoples all over the world. He refuses even to meet with opposition leaders in Congress. The nation is as divided as it ever has been as the administration peddles fear and delivers wedge issues to increase the divide. It would be difficult to imagine a more devoted effort to break down national unity than the Bush administration has delivered. If the president was sincere in his pledge of unity then his position has clearly changed.
In his pre-conceived rush to war, the president promised the United States Congress that he would work with the United Nations and that he would go to war only as a last resort. The Secretary of State proceeded to present the most blatantly false case for war ever to grace the chamber of the Security Council, the president assembled a coalition of the coerced, the inspections process was slandered and undermined, and the president went to war as scheduled on the anniversary of his father’s invasion. Was the president sincere and, if so, when was his policy reversed?
When the 9-11 Commission was proposed by Congress, the president opposed it. When the Families of 9-11 insisted, he shifted his position and implemented a policy of non-cooperation, suppression, resistance and, finally, politicization of the Commission itself. He has said he wants the truth but he has blocked the path in every conceivable way. Now, as it becomes clear he has not taken the necessary measures to prevent another catastrophe, he fails to support the commission recommendations. Where is the consistency? Where is integrity?
On September 13, 2001, the president stood at ground zero and swore that he would bring the people responsible to justice. Clearly, the subsequent focus on Saddam Hussein was a major shift in policy. We lost the trail of Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden when we turned our attention to the invasion of Iraq.
John Kerry’s flaw is that he has played ball with too many administrations. He played ball with Bill Clinton on welfare reform. He played ball on Free Trade. He played ball with the Bush administration on education reform. He played ball on the policy of regime change and the abdication of congressional war powers. Too often, he was fooled by disingenuous politicians. He was not alone. As a senator, he embraced the role of power broker. It is in fact fortunate that he has changed his brokered positions. Hopefully, he has learned from his mistakes. If he is to be faulted for supporting policies not entirely consistent with his own, it is a message to all other members of congress: do not compromise for the opposition will use it against you.
What is the president’s excuse? Was he misinformed and misguided by his own advisors? Why then has he not learned from his mistakes? His steadfast refusal to acknowledge mistakes, errors in judgment, inconsistencies in policy and positions, is not a virtue that grants him redemption; it is the ultimate condemnation.
We have a president who believes he has led the country wisely and well. He has united the world against us. With his free trade and corporate tax incentives, he has delivered jobs to third world nations at slave labor wages while replacing good American jobs with low-wage, unskilled labor jobs. (If the trend continues, there may be no middle class left.) He has promised prescription drug benefits and delivered a Ponzi scheme for the pharmaceutical industry. The economy has stalled and monetary policy (reduced interest rates) has already run its course. He has delivered our soldiers, National Guard and Reserves, into a war we can never win in a part of the world brimming with resentment of our policies and our wars. He has made the enemy stronger while weakening our alliances.
The president’s positions and policies are in constant flux because he has failed in every endeavor he has undertaken. Even now, as the “coalition of the willing” dissolves in the desert sand, he proclaims himself an internationalist, preempting the policy of John Kerry, and believes we will not recognize the contradiction.
“Fool me once…”
There is nothing more dangerous than a leader who can never be wrong.
Jazz.
By Jack Random
In a moment of candor during the presidential debates, candidate George W. Bush expressed the opinion that America should not be engaged in “nation building.” His team of foreign policy advisors spent months preparing their candidate. Was the president unaware that the Bush Doctrine would be a prescription for nation building or was this just the first in a series of contradictions and inconsistencies which, taken together, would draw a portrait of hypocrisy? When he placed his hand on the bible to take his oath of office, was it an oath of allegiance or oath of deception?
In its justification for war in Iraq and Afghanistan, the administration proclaimed the right and duty to strike anywhere at any time before a threat to this nation’s security emerged. Nations across the globe shuddered at the prospect of the awesome power of the American military unleashed upon the world without the constraints of international law and universal conventions of warfare. For the first time in history, a nation was overtly claiming exemption to the cardinal rule of international behavior: the prohibition against wars of aggression.
Few were persuaded that America’s motives were purely or primarily humanitarian but, in the ever-shifting rationale for war (imminent threat, sponsorship of 9-11, connections to Al Qaeda, liberation, democracy – anything but oil), the administration has raised the bar of mendacity to new heights. Even as they accuse their opponent of inconsistency, the contradictions of George W. Bush are without precedent.
In the State of the Union Address, the president pledged $18 billion to the battle against AIDS. He later tied AIDS funding to his anti-abortion agenda and protection of the pharmaceutical industries monopoly on prescription drugs. Only a trickle of funding has been implemented. Was this a change in policy or did the president know all along that it was an empty promise?
In promoting his education reform package, the president promised to leave no child behind. Subsequently, he has severely under-funded his own program, advocated public funding of private education, leaving every other child behind in ill equipped and financially strapped public schools. Was this a shift in policy or was the initial promise a cynical smokescreen?
Perhaps the candidate’s most salient message in his campaign for the White House was his pledge to be “a uniter, not a divider,” yet his administration has alienated much of Europe, the United Nations, and Islamic peoples all over the world. He refuses even to meet with opposition leaders in Congress. The nation is as divided as it ever has been as the administration peddles fear and delivers wedge issues to increase the divide. It would be difficult to imagine a more devoted effort to break down national unity than the Bush administration has delivered. If the president was sincere in his pledge of unity then his position has clearly changed.
In his pre-conceived rush to war, the president promised the United States Congress that he would work with the United Nations and that he would go to war only as a last resort. The Secretary of State proceeded to present the most blatantly false case for war ever to grace the chamber of the Security Council, the president assembled a coalition of the coerced, the inspections process was slandered and undermined, and the president went to war as scheduled on the anniversary of his father’s invasion. Was the president sincere and, if so, when was his policy reversed?
When the 9-11 Commission was proposed by Congress, the president opposed it. When the Families of 9-11 insisted, he shifted his position and implemented a policy of non-cooperation, suppression, resistance and, finally, politicization of the Commission itself. He has said he wants the truth but he has blocked the path in every conceivable way. Now, as it becomes clear he has not taken the necessary measures to prevent another catastrophe, he fails to support the commission recommendations. Where is the consistency? Where is integrity?
On September 13, 2001, the president stood at ground zero and swore that he would bring the people responsible to justice. Clearly, the subsequent focus on Saddam Hussein was a major shift in policy. We lost the trail of Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden when we turned our attention to the invasion of Iraq.
John Kerry’s flaw is that he has played ball with too many administrations. He played ball with Bill Clinton on welfare reform. He played ball on Free Trade. He played ball with the Bush administration on education reform. He played ball on the policy of regime change and the abdication of congressional war powers. Too often, he was fooled by disingenuous politicians. He was not alone. As a senator, he embraced the role of power broker. It is in fact fortunate that he has changed his brokered positions. Hopefully, he has learned from his mistakes. If he is to be faulted for supporting policies not entirely consistent with his own, it is a message to all other members of congress: do not compromise for the opposition will use it against you.
What is the president’s excuse? Was he misinformed and misguided by his own advisors? Why then has he not learned from his mistakes? His steadfast refusal to acknowledge mistakes, errors in judgment, inconsistencies in policy and positions, is not a virtue that grants him redemption; it is the ultimate condemnation.
We have a president who believes he has led the country wisely and well. He has united the world against us. With his free trade and corporate tax incentives, he has delivered jobs to third world nations at slave labor wages while replacing good American jobs with low-wage, unskilled labor jobs. (If the trend continues, there may be no middle class left.) He has promised prescription drug benefits and delivered a Ponzi scheme for the pharmaceutical industry. The economy has stalled and monetary policy (reduced interest rates) has already run its course. He has delivered our soldiers, National Guard and Reserves, into a war we can never win in a part of the world brimming with resentment of our policies and our wars. He has made the enemy stronger while weakening our alliances.
The president’s positions and policies are in constant flux because he has failed in every endeavor he has undertaken. Even now, as the “coalition of the willing” dissolves in the desert sand, he proclaims himself an internationalist, preempting the policy of John Kerry, and believes we will not recognize the contradiction.
“Fool me once…”
There is nothing more dangerous than a leader who can never be wrong.
Jazz.
Wednesday, July 28, 2004
INDEPENDENCE DEFERRED
THE CASE FOR ADVOCATING KERRY
By Jack Random
“The American nation has been cheated out of self-government by a system that allows itself to be bought and sold to the highest bidder. There is no democracy where the only candidates are those who have already signed the party loyalty oath.” Jazzman Chronicles, Volume I.
There is no stronger advocate of the Independence Movement (third party and independent candidates) than the author of the Jazzman Chronicles. It is the first cause and primary motivation for my entry into the forum of American political discourse. I believe – as Tom Paine, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and even the aristocratic John Adams believed – that party politics is a scourge on democracy and the greatest enemy she will ever confront. I believe that the only means of securing true democracy in America is to break down the stranglehold of the major parties on the political process. I believe that Republicans and Democrats are no longer ideologically or qualitatively distinct and that both are controlled by the same corporate interests.
Believing as I do that a reaffirmation of democracy is dependent on the success of the Independence Movement, how then can I arrive at the conclusion that now is the time for deference?
I condemn with little compassion the philosophy of so-called progressives who decry all votes for independent or third party candidates as meaningless. One could as readily dismiss all votes for Republicans and Democrats as meaningless for, on the grander scale, they only perpetuate the status quo and no action is required for such a result. I hold this as a fundamental truth in the core of my being and still I advocate deference.
There is such a thing as a greater wrong.
I am against not only the war and occupation of Iraq; I am against the policies that have produced the most dangerous acceleration of American imperialism in history. We are confronted with a doctrine that has already declared forty years of war. Now that declaration is being transformed into a war of the century. Shall we remain ideologically pure as uncounted thousands of innocent dead are transformed into uncounted millions and generation after generation falls beneath the shadow of that fateful September morn?
There is such a thing as a greater wrong.
I appeal to you as a member of the human race. The current administration has unleashed a plague upon the earth. It is our solemn and united duty to eradicate it while there is still time. We cannot conquer Rome in a single day but we can stop this administration in its tracks. If we continue down the path of divisiveness, we will not only render ourselves powerless once again, we will give credence to the tired cliché: the left always destroys itself.
A banner at the protests in Boston reads: NO TO BUSH, KERRY, NADER. Is this the logical conclusion of the antiwar movement? Is this where we have arrived? Shall we advocate boycotting the election? Is there some other choice that evades me? Where are our candidates for Congress? Where are our candidates for City Council? Where are our benefactors? Why is there no National Independence Convention? Have we retreated to some imaginary realm where those who are most pure are delivered roles of leadership?
I agree wholeheartedly with Howard Zinn when he argues that those who do not live in battleground states are free to vote for whomever they choose without fear of consequences. I have come to recognize, however, that it is a dangerous line. To split our advocacy according to geography, however well founded in fact, is self-defeating. Common citizens (and I count myself among them) wish to believe that their votes matter. They desire something and someone to vote for, not a pragmatic rationalization. If we cannot offer them a clear, well-reasoned alternative (and this time we cannot), then we must advocate the candidacy of John Kerry.
Swallow hard. Do whatever you must do to acknowledge the political reality of the day: John Kerry is infinitely better than George W. Bush. Securing a Kerry presidency is the logical next step toward achieving our objectives: An end to the war and occupation, progress in the Middle East, a more enlightened foreign policy, an improved economy for the working class, an end to the erosion of civil liberties, greater tolerance for all communities, better education for all our children, a return to the separation of church and state, media reform, electoral reform, environmental protection, and the development of alternative energy resources.
While John Kerry is not the solution to systemic failure, while he is not the answer to America’s greatest needs, he is the man of the hour and his success will move us forward on all fronts.
There is such a thing as a greater wrong.
We are called upon to defer the cause, not to sacrifice our souls. We are called upon to swallow our pride, not a poison pill. We are called upon to compromise in order to move the cause forward, not to bury it. We are called to move – if only temporarily – from the cause of Independence to the cause of peace. We are called to the greater good.
When we have delivered the White House, we will stand before the new president and demand to be heard.
I give you this solemn promise (which is nothing more than the promise I give myself): When George Bush is defeated and his doctrine of war is permanently etched in the annals of archaic thought, I will be among the first to take to the streets in protest. My voice will cry out as never before:
Bring the troops home now!
End the occupation!
Independence now and forever!
Jazz.
The War Chronicles (Jazzman Chronicles, Volume II) is now available at City Lights Books SF and Amazon.com.
By Jack Random
“The American nation has been cheated out of self-government by a system that allows itself to be bought and sold to the highest bidder. There is no democracy where the only candidates are those who have already signed the party loyalty oath.” Jazzman Chronicles, Volume I.
There is no stronger advocate of the Independence Movement (third party and independent candidates) than the author of the Jazzman Chronicles. It is the first cause and primary motivation for my entry into the forum of American political discourse. I believe – as Tom Paine, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and even the aristocratic John Adams believed – that party politics is a scourge on democracy and the greatest enemy she will ever confront. I believe that the only means of securing true democracy in America is to break down the stranglehold of the major parties on the political process. I believe that Republicans and Democrats are no longer ideologically or qualitatively distinct and that both are controlled by the same corporate interests.
Believing as I do that a reaffirmation of democracy is dependent on the success of the Independence Movement, how then can I arrive at the conclusion that now is the time for deference?
I condemn with little compassion the philosophy of so-called progressives who decry all votes for independent or third party candidates as meaningless. One could as readily dismiss all votes for Republicans and Democrats as meaningless for, on the grander scale, they only perpetuate the status quo and no action is required for such a result. I hold this as a fundamental truth in the core of my being and still I advocate deference.
There is such a thing as a greater wrong.
I am against not only the war and occupation of Iraq; I am against the policies that have produced the most dangerous acceleration of American imperialism in history. We are confronted with a doctrine that has already declared forty years of war. Now that declaration is being transformed into a war of the century. Shall we remain ideologically pure as uncounted thousands of innocent dead are transformed into uncounted millions and generation after generation falls beneath the shadow of that fateful September morn?
There is such a thing as a greater wrong.
I appeal to you as a member of the human race. The current administration has unleashed a plague upon the earth. It is our solemn and united duty to eradicate it while there is still time. We cannot conquer Rome in a single day but we can stop this administration in its tracks. If we continue down the path of divisiveness, we will not only render ourselves powerless once again, we will give credence to the tired cliché: the left always destroys itself.
A banner at the protests in Boston reads: NO TO BUSH, KERRY, NADER. Is this the logical conclusion of the antiwar movement? Is this where we have arrived? Shall we advocate boycotting the election? Is there some other choice that evades me? Where are our candidates for Congress? Where are our candidates for City Council? Where are our benefactors? Why is there no National Independence Convention? Have we retreated to some imaginary realm where those who are most pure are delivered roles of leadership?
I agree wholeheartedly with Howard Zinn when he argues that those who do not live in battleground states are free to vote for whomever they choose without fear of consequences. I have come to recognize, however, that it is a dangerous line. To split our advocacy according to geography, however well founded in fact, is self-defeating. Common citizens (and I count myself among them) wish to believe that their votes matter. They desire something and someone to vote for, not a pragmatic rationalization. If we cannot offer them a clear, well-reasoned alternative (and this time we cannot), then we must advocate the candidacy of John Kerry.
Swallow hard. Do whatever you must do to acknowledge the political reality of the day: John Kerry is infinitely better than George W. Bush. Securing a Kerry presidency is the logical next step toward achieving our objectives: An end to the war and occupation, progress in the Middle East, a more enlightened foreign policy, an improved economy for the working class, an end to the erosion of civil liberties, greater tolerance for all communities, better education for all our children, a return to the separation of church and state, media reform, electoral reform, environmental protection, and the development of alternative energy resources.
While John Kerry is not the solution to systemic failure, while he is not the answer to America’s greatest needs, he is the man of the hour and his success will move us forward on all fronts.
There is such a thing as a greater wrong.
We are called upon to defer the cause, not to sacrifice our souls. We are called upon to swallow our pride, not a poison pill. We are called upon to compromise in order to move the cause forward, not to bury it. We are called to move – if only temporarily – from the cause of Independence to the cause of peace. We are called to the greater good.
When we have delivered the White House, we will stand before the new president and demand to be heard.
I give you this solemn promise (which is nothing more than the promise I give myself): When George Bush is defeated and his doctrine of war is permanently etched in the annals of archaic thought, I will be among the first to take to the streets in protest. My voice will cry out as never before:
Bring the troops home now!
End the occupation!
Independence now and forever!
Jazz.
The War Chronicles (Jazzman Chronicles, Volume II) is now available at City Lights Books SF and Amazon.com.
DAVID WENT TO CANADA...& JOHNNY GOT HIS GUN
by Jack Random
www.dissidentvoice.org
July 17, 2004
David went to Canada, Dick received a college deferment, Charlie was granted conscientious objector status, George joined the National Guard, Sam was classified 4-F, and Johnny got his gun (see Dalton Trumbo’s Johnny Get Your Gun).
We all remember what happened to Johnny. He was shot down in Nam, a victim of the Tet Offensive, reduced to the unending nightmare of a living, thinking mind trapped in a body paralyzed to the eyes. He learned to communicate by blinking and by blinking he communicated the horror that was his life.
To those who believe that military conscription is the answer to our growing need for soldiers: There never was and never will be an equitable draft. Those who believe that the inequities of the past can be corrected by legislative means have lost contact with reality. The wealthy and elite will never serve involuntarily and those who volunteer will serve in a manner their wealthy and elite parents demand.
The heroism of John Kerry and John Fitzgerald Kennedy belies the greater truth: The commanders of our military forces are neither fools nor morality’s slaves. They know who butters the bread and who stands between them and promotion. They will not send the prodigal sons and daughters of the ruling class to glorious death on the battlefields of foreign lands.
Johnny got his gun because he was nobody’s son, because he had no pedigree, because he had no connections to members of congress or secretaries of state, and because no one bothered to tell him the truth. No one bothered to tell him there were alternatives. Johnny got his gun because Johnny was a common boy who would never grow into a common man. Johnny got his gun because his life did not matter and his name was not on the social register.
Military conscription is a crime against humanity. Rationalizing the morality of an equitable draft is like condoning slavery or forced prostitution if it can be applied to all victims without prejudice. How is it easier to compel a child to kill than to force a child into hard labor or acts of depraved sex? It is an abomination and one that any mother understands by gut instinct.
Future generations will look back on this practice in wonder and amazement at how primitive this culture was, at how callously we sent our young and innocent souls to their ends, at how carelessly we threw away the best of our species, and how cruel we were to condemn the powerless to horrors beyond belief.
Johnny got his gun and 58,000 of his brothers came home in a box. The Vietnamese did not require conscription yet millions of their Johnnies died by our conscripted hands. Hundreds of thousands of Johnny’s brothers came home with broken bodies and hundreds of thousands more came home with broken hearts, broken minds, broken spirits, and souls shattered by the gruesome realities of war.
Will we send our Johnny off to war once again? Will we add our Mary to the parade? Will we explain to them why they must march? Will we explain why they must die? Will we ask them if they have a different mind? Will we disdain them if they do?
There is no greater scourge on society than to have condemned its own children to the hell of war. There is no greater shame a parent can bear than to have sent a child to the killing fields. There is no child that can understand or forgive such betrayal. There is no medicine that can heal such deep wounds.
Cry, America! Weep for your children! For as sure as votes go uncounted in Florida, your children will be compelled to war.
The people who now hold the reigns of power in this nation have begun to change their tune. When once they spoke of decades of war, now they speak of centuries. If we do not stand up to them now, we are condemned to mourn forever. If we do not stop them while there is still time, our great grandchildren will curse our remains.
We know the way to right this wrong, to end this nightmare and to settle this war on terror. It does not require greater armies and greater weapons; it requires greater understanding. It does not require commanders and warriors; it requires diplomats and peacemakers. War itself is the curse of human kind. We must find a better way.
We have no business in Iraq. Let us withdraw and make amends as best we can. Let us devote our resources, our genius, our devotion and raw effort to the development of alternative sources of energy.
If America harnesses the power of the sun, the power of wind and running water, and the power of ingenuity, there is no limit to what we can accomplish. If we no longer need the remains of dinosaurs, Johnny will not need a gun.
And Johnny’s mother will not need to cry herself to sleep.
Jazz.
[The War Chronicles is at City Lights SF and Amazon.com.]
www.dissidentvoice.org
July 17, 2004
David went to Canada, Dick received a college deferment, Charlie was granted conscientious objector status, George joined the National Guard, Sam was classified 4-F, and Johnny got his gun (see Dalton Trumbo’s Johnny Get Your Gun).
We all remember what happened to Johnny. He was shot down in Nam, a victim of the Tet Offensive, reduced to the unending nightmare of a living, thinking mind trapped in a body paralyzed to the eyes. He learned to communicate by blinking and by blinking he communicated the horror that was his life.
To those who believe that military conscription is the answer to our growing need for soldiers: There never was and never will be an equitable draft. Those who believe that the inequities of the past can be corrected by legislative means have lost contact with reality. The wealthy and elite will never serve involuntarily and those who volunteer will serve in a manner their wealthy and elite parents demand.
The heroism of John Kerry and John Fitzgerald Kennedy belies the greater truth: The commanders of our military forces are neither fools nor morality’s slaves. They know who butters the bread and who stands between them and promotion. They will not send the prodigal sons and daughters of the ruling class to glorious death on the battlefields of foreign lands.
Johnny got his gun because he was nobody’s son, because he had no pedigree, because he had no connections to members of congress or secretaries of state, and because no one bothered to tell him the truth. No one bothered to tell him there were alternatives. Johnny got his gun because Johnny was a common boy who would never grow into a common man. Johnny got his gun because his life did not matter and his name was not on the social register.
Military conscription is a crime against humanity. Rationalizing the morality of an equitable draft is like condoning slavery or forced prostitution if it can be applied to all victims without prejudice. How is it easier to compel a child to kill than to force a child into hard labor or acts of depraved sex? It is an abomination and one that any mother understands by gut instinct.
Future generations will look back on this practice in wonder and amazement at how primitive this culture was, at how callously we sent our young and innocent souls to their ends, at how carelessly we threw away the best of our species, and how cruel we were to condemn the powerless to horrors beyond belief.
Johnny got his gun and 58,000 of his brothers came home in a box. The Vietnamese did not require conscription yet millions of their Johnnies died by our conscripted hands. Hundreds of thousands of Johnny’s brothers came home with broken bodies and hundreds of thousands more came home with broken hearts, broken minds, broken spirits, and souls shattered by the gruesome realities of war.
Will we send our Johnny off to war once again? Will we add our Mary to the parade? Will we explain to them why they must march? Will we explain why they must die? Will we ask them if they have a different mind? Will we disdain them if they do?
There is no greater scourge on society than to have condemned its own children to the hell of war. There is no greater shame a parent can bear than to have sent a child to the killing fields. There is no child that can understand or forgive such betrayal. There is no medicine that can heal such deep wounds.
Cry, America! Weep for your children! For as sure as votes go uncounted in Florida, your children will be compelled to war.
The people who now hold the reigns of power in this nation have begun to change their tune. When once they spoke of decades of war, now they speak of centuries. If we do not stand up to them now, we are condemned to mourn forever. If we do not stop them while there is still time, our great grandchildren will curse our remains.
We know the way to right this wrong, to end this nightmare and to settle this war on terror. It does not require greater armies and greater weapons; it requires greater understanding. It does not require commanders and warriors; it requires diplomats and peacemakers. War itself is the curse of human kind. We must find a better way.
We have no business in Iraq. Let us withdraw and make amends as best we can. Let us devote our resources, our genius, our devotion and raw effort to the development of alternative sources of energy.
If America harnesses the power of the sun, the power of wind and running water, and the power of ingenuity, there is no limit to what we can accomplish. If we no longer need the remains of dinosaurs, Johnny will not need a gun.
And Johnny’s mother will not need to cry herself to sleep.
Jazz.
[The War Chronicles is at City Lights SF and Amazon.com.]
Saturday, July 24, 2004
NATIONAL SECURITY
THE 9-11 COMMISSION REPORT
By Jack Random
“I don’t believe anybody could have predicted that they would try to use a hijacked airplane as a missile.” Condoleeza Rice, National Security Advisor. [1]
“The attack will be spectacular and designed to inflict mass casualties against US facilities or interests. Attack preparations have been made. Attack will occur with little or no warning.” CIA Intelligence Briefing to the White House, July 2001. [2]
“I believe the President should be able to hold the July and August briefings in confidence so as to enable him to do the best job for the American people.” Lindsey Graham, US Senator R-SC. [3]
“I think it’s disgraceful that no one will take responsibility for these events. With all that evidence for years about planes being used as weapons, why didn’t they think of this? It’s really shameful.” Stephen Push, Families of September 11. [4]
______________
Are we winning the vaunted War on Terror or, in the twisted terminology of our Secretary of Defense, are we slogging through the muck? Is the leadership of George W. Bush making the world safer for Americans at home and abroad or is the world a more dangerous place for all its inhabitants?
The answers to these critical questions are all too clear to any objective observer. We are not winning the War on Terror when 130,000 of our soldiers are trapped in the crossfire of Iraq. We are not winning the War on Terror when military conscription is the only means of moving our military agenda forward while the enemy has more volunteers than operations to engage them. We are not winning the War on Terror when the president’s reelection strategy is keyed to maintaining a high level of fear in the electorate. What else could explain the fact that his administration has done so little to protect our ports, railways, subways, nuclear facilities, chemical plants and, indeed, our commercial airlines from attack by handheld missiles? What explanation do they offer for these lapses? We have expended our resources on a misbegotten war, a misguided occupation, and record-breaking tax cuts for the ultra elite.
Americans cannot travel anywhere in the world without worrying that we will be shunned, derided, or even targeted by foreign terrorists.
Are we safer now, Mr. President?
We are constantly warned that terrorist cells are operating within our borders yet the president has done everything in his power to rescind the ban on automatic weapons. He has successfully fought back all efforts to close the gaping loophole on gun show purchases, the loophole that allowed two disturbed kids from Columbine High to amass a stockpile of deadly weapons. While he presses on relentlessly in his attack on civil liberties – freedom of speech, the right to assemble in protest, the right to privacy, freedom of the press, habeas corpus, freedom from unreasonable search and seizure, and the right to confront one’s accusers in a court of law – he goes the extra mile to uphold the right to bear arms. It seems the only article in the Bill of Rights this president values is that singular phrase in the second amendment. Terrorists must be comforted that within this country they are free to purchase truckloads of weapons, cash on demand, without the inconvenience of having to register the transactions.
Are we safer now, Mr. President?
The 9-11 Commission Report, limited as it may be, is sufficient to raise questions that were once unspeakable – if not unthinkable. They are spoken now at dinner tables in Des Moines, at barber shops in Brooklyn, at storefront cafes in Portland and Duluth, and at barbecues in Austin, Texas.
Though it is only a whisper beneath the roar of political posturing, the most stunning and obvious finding of this investigation, no matter how it is spun or tortured by partisan analysis, is that this tragedy could readily have been avoided. Condoleeza Rice notwithstanding, the warnings were powerful and plentiful while the response was muted and dumb. Negligence in this historical context is the mildest of terms.
It is for others to revisit the facts and events preceding 9-11. It is a fertile ground for conspiracy theories and those who dismiss them outright do so to the nation’s detriment. It is sufficient to conclude that our leaders failed spectacularly to protect their people. Members of both major parties obsessed on bitter partisanship, including a ludicrous impeachment process, when they ought to have done their jobs. The Clinton administration lobbed missiles at milk factories when they ought to have reformed the intelligence community. The Bush administration, in its obsession with daddy’s war and daddy’s arch nemesis, clearly lost focus, dismissing direct warnings, dismantling counterterrorist agencies, and ultimately allowing the family of the prime suspect to leave the country without minimal questioning.
When members of both administrations protest that they did all they could to prevent a tragedy that virtually everyone in the intelligence community knew was coming, they are not to be believed. They failed to heed the warnings. They failed to take corrective measures when obvious lapses in security and intelligence occurred. Astoundingly, they failed to sound the alarm when known terrorists entered this country to take flight lessons. Incredibly, given the level of forewarning, they failed to secure the cockpit doors.
We are not likely to learn the full extent of these failures in our lifetimes. What concerns me now is that we are repeating the same pattern. Our leaders are once again embroiled in partisan spin and political gridlock. While measures have been taken to prevent the last attack, we have neglected to secure our most vulnerable targets. Despite all the sound and fury, the administration’s focus is less on terrorism than on the political opposition.
What concerns me now is that the administration’s next failure may alter the outcome of the next election. They have announced their fear that the enemy may wish to repeat what happened in Spain last March. In that horrific event, the innocent citizens of Madrid were made to suffer for the complicity of their government in the war on Iraq. Many believe the attack resulted in the defeat of the ruling party. What happened in Spain, however, is unlikely to be repeated in America. When Al Qaeda struck Madrid, the Asnar government immediately pinned the blame on a Spanish separatist group. They lied to the people and that lie combined with the government’s support for an unpopular American war led to its defeat.
If Al Qaeda were to strike in America before the November election, the probable result would be markedly different. The administration would not blame the Skinheads of Topeka. They would return to the pulpit of the War on Terror and the people would rally to the call. If the terrorists strike now it will not be because they wish to defeat George Bush. It will be because their hatred for America has grown so deep they no longer care. They no longer distinguish between Republicans and Democrats, peacemakers and warmongers, or Americans and their government.
I pray that we will not have to suffer the unthinkable again. I fear for the world that would follow. I worry that this president’s last, best hope for reelection is his repeated failure.
Have we done everything we can to prevent another terrorist attack? No, we have not.
Is there anyone out there who feels safer now?
Jazz.
1. Condoleeza Rice. White House Press Briefing 5/16/02.
2. CIA Briefing to the White House. Newsweek 5/1/03.
3. Stephen Push. Reported online ParaPolitics Forum.
4. Lindsey Graham. Congressional Hearings on 9-11 (ParaPolitics Forum).
The War Chronicles is available at City Lights SF & Amazon.com.
By Jack Random
“I don’t believe anybody could have predicted that they would try to use a hijacked airplane as a missile.” Condoleeza Rice, National Security Advisor. [1]
“The attack will be spectacular and designed to inflict mass casualties against US facilities or interests. Attack preparations have been made. Attack will occur with little or no warning.” CIA Intelligence Briefing to the White House, July 2001. [2]
“I believe the President should be able to hold the July and August briefings in confidence so as to enable him to do the best job for the American people.” Lindsey Graham, US Senator R-SC. [3]
“I think it’s disgraceful that no one will take responsibility for these events. With all that evidence for years about planes being used as weapons, why didn’t they think of this? It’s really shameful.” Stephen Push, Families of September 11. [4]
______________
Are we winning the vaunted War on Terror or, in the twisted terminology of our Secretary of Defense, are we slogging through the muck? Is the leadership of George W. Bush making the world safer for Americans at home and abroad or is the world a more dangerous place for all its inhabitants?
The answers to these critical questions are all too clear to any objective observer. We are not winning the War on Terror when 130,000 of our soldiers are trapped in the crossfire of Iraq. We are not winning the War on Terror when military conscription is the only means of moving our military agenda forward while the enemy has more volunteers than operations to engage them. We are not winning the War on Terror when the president’s reelection strategy is keyed to maintaining a high level of fear in the electorate. What else could explain the fact that his administration has done so little to protect our ports, railways, subways, nuclear facilities, chemical plants and, indeed, our commercial airlines from attack by handheld missiles? What explanation do they offer for these lapses? We have expended our resources on a misbegotten war, a misguided occupation, and record-breaking tax cuts for the ultra elite.
Americans cannot travel anywhere in the world without worrying that we will be shunned, derided, or even targeted by foreign terrorists.
Are we safer now, Mr. President?
We are constantly warned that terrorist cells are operating within our borders yet the president has done everything in his power to rescind the ban on automatic weapons. He has successfully fought back all efforts to close the gaping loophole on gun show purchases, the loophole that allowed two disturbed kids from Columbine High to amass a stockpile of deadly weapons. While he presses on relentlessly in his attack on civil liberties – freedom of speech, the right to assemble in protest, the right to privacy, freedom of the press, habeas corpus, freedom from unreasonable search and seizure, and the right to confront one’s accusers in a court of law – he goes the extra mile to uphold the right to bear arms. It seems the only article in the Bill of Rights this president values is that singular phrase in the second amendment. Terrorists must be comforted that within this country they are free to purchase truckloads of weapons, cash on demand, without the inconvenience of having to register the transactions.
Are we safer now, Mr. President?
The 9-11 Commission Report, limited as it may be, is sufficient to raise questions that were once unspeakable – if not unthinkable. They are spoken now at dinner tables in Des Moines, at barber shops in Brooklyn, at storefront cafes in Portland and Duluth, and at barbecues in Austin, Texas.
Though it is only a whisper beneath the roar of political posturing, the most stunning and obvious finding of this investigation, no matter how it is spun or tortured by partisan analysis, is that this tragedy could readily have been avoided. Condoleeza Rice notwithstanding, the warnings were powerful and plentiful while the response was muted and dumb. Negligence in this historical context is the mildest of terms.
It is for others to revisit the facts and events preceding 9-11. It is a fertile ground for conspiracy theories and those who dismiss them outright do so to the nation’s detriment. It is sufficient to conclude that our leaders failed spectacularly to protect their people. Members of both major parties obsessed on bitter partisanship, including a ludicrous impeachment process, when they ought to have done their jobs. The Clinton administration lobbed missiles at milk factories when they ought to have reformed the intelligence community. The Bush administration, in its obsession with daddy’s war and daddy’s arch nemesis, clearly lost focus, dismissing direct warnings, dismantling counterterrorist agencies, and ultimately allowing the family of the prime suspect to leave the country without minimal questioning.
When members of both administrations protest that they did all they could to prevent a tragedy that virtually everyone in the intelligence community knew was coming, they are not to be believed. They failed to heed the warnings. They failed to take corrective measures when obvious lapses in security and intelligence occurred. Astoundingly, they failed to sound the alarm when known terrorists entered this country to take flight lessons. Incredibly, given the level of forewarning, they failed to secure the cockpit doors.
We are not likely to learn the full extent of these failures in our lifetimes. What concerns me now is that we are repeating the same pattern. Our leaders are once again embroiled in partisan spin and political gridlock. While measures have been taken to prevent the last attack, we have neglected to secure our most vulnerable targets. Despite all the sound and fury, the administration’s focus is less on terrorism than on the political opposition.
What concerns me now is that the administration’s next failure may alter the outcome of the next election. They have announced their fear that the enemy may wish to repeat what happened in Spain last March. In that horrific event, the innocent citizens of Madrid were made to suffer for the complicity of their government in the war on Iraq. Many believe the attack resulted in the defeat of the ruling party. What happened in Spain, however, is unlikely to be repeated in America. When Al Qaeda struck Madrid, the Asnar government immediately pinned the blame on a Spanish separatist group. They lied to the people and that lie combined with the government’s support for an unpopular American war led to its defeat.
If Al Qaeda were to strike in America before the November election, the probable result would be markedly different. The administration would not blame the Skinheads of Topeka. They would return to the pulpit of the War on Terror and the people would rally to the call. If the terrorists strike now it will not be because they wish to defeat George Bush. It will be because their hatred for America has grown so deep they no longer care. They no longer distinguish between Republicans and Democrats, peacemakers and warmongers, or Americans and their government.
I pray that we will not have to suffer the unthinkable again. I fear for the world that would follow. I worry that this president’s last, best hope for reelection is his repeated failure.
Have we done everything we can to prevent another terrorist attack? No, we have not.
Is there anyone out there who feels safer now?
Jazz.
1. Condoleeza Rice. White House Press Briefing 5/16/02.
2. CIA Briefing to the White House. Newsweek 5/1/03.
3. Stephen Push. Reported online ParaPolitics Forum.
4. Lindsey Graham. Congressional Hearings on 9-11 (ParaPolitics Forum).
The War Chronicles is available at City Lights SF & Amazon.com.
Monday, July 12, 2004
CRUSADE FOR DEMOCRACY
“We think the Americans are not looking out for the interests of the Iraqis. The elections they most care about are the ones in America.” -- Abu Hasan al-Ameri.
Of all the lies and deceptions the administration has asked the electorate to accept, perhaps the most insidious is the Crusade for Democracy in the Middle East.
In the Middle Ages, one might have expected the Crusaders for Christianity to faithfully represent the morality of Christ. History records that they were in fact antithetical to Christian values. They not only failed to establish a Christian Kingdom in the Middle East, they left an indelible mark of shame that forever stained western relations to the Arab-Islamic world.
Now, as the most non-secular president in history lays claim to champion the cause of democracy, we are compelled to demand evidence that he is faithful to the cause.
Where was the president’s support for democracy in Haiti when his agents orchestrated a coup to depose a lawfully elected leader? Where was his love for democracy when his clandestine representatives failed to depose Hugo Chavez of Venezuela? Where is the president’s allegiance to democracy in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, where the will of the people is ignored in favor of heavy-handed and unqualified support for Ariel Sharon’s oppressive and faltering regime? What evidence of true democracy has emerged in Afghanistan, where a handpicked president is wholly dependent on international security forces and cannot stray from his palace in safety? Where is the president’s support for democracy in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, where governance is by the iron hand of despotism, aristocracy and hereditary succession? Indeed, where was the president’s love of democracy in the election of 2000? In Iran, they vetted the candidates for a general election. In Florida, they vetted the electorate.
The Grand Old Party is the party of the most egregious gerrymandering to deny equal representation in the history of the republic, yet its leader expects us to believe that he is chosen to defend and promulgate the principles of democracy. He must pardon his subjects if we remain skeptical.
We do not believe that the president is democracy’s champion. We do not believe that his crusade is in behalf of the American people. We believe that his constituents are the new aristocracy: the economic elite. We believe that he has led this nation to war, spilling the blood of Americans and Iraqis alike, in order to fatten the pockets of those who already possess more than they could ever need.
“Again and again and again: The more you say it is not about oil, the more certain we are that it is.” (Jazzman Chronicles, Volume II: The War Chronicles.)
In early June, the president gave a promise to the world that, if delivered, would mark the end of the American occupation and the beginning of democracy in Iraq: the transference of “full sovereignty.”
Though it has scarcely been two weeks since the secretive transference ceremony, it is time enough for an initial assessment. Has the president made good on his word? Has he delivered the sovereignty of Iraq to the Iraqi people?
In a previous Chronicle (The Sovereignty of Iraq 6/6/04), this writer proposed four fundamental conditions of sovereignty: 1) No undo American influence on the selection of Iraqi governing officials, 2) Iraqi control of Iraqi oil, 3) Iraqi authority over government contracts, and 4) Iraqi control of military forces.
Even before the impromptu ceremony, it became clear the president was less than a man of his word. The new government would not be granted control of the military. They would be allowed to request withdrawal of occupying forces but those forces would be under no obligation to do so. Further, the Iraqi government would not have authority to alter existing contracts. Sovereignty denied the new government would be retained by Halliburton, contracted mercenaries and American generals. As for the oil, while the new oil minister makes a great show of proclaiming control, when the contracts are signed, sealed and delivered, how is Iraqi control anything but nominal?
The failure of the administration to deliver on these essential conditions of sovereignty is sufficient to dismiss the American effort as disingenuous and deceptive. When one considers the nature of the new government, however, that dismissal rises to a level of condemnation for blatant hypocrisy.
The first thing to understand about the new Iraqi Interim Government is that its power is concentrated in the office of the Prime Minister. Even when a National Assembly is selected, its role will be advisory. The president and vice presidents have a right of approval in some cases but their roles are essentially symbolic.
So, who is the new Prime Minister of Iraq and how was he selected?
Curiously, thought the United Nations was initially granted control of the selection process, Dr. Iyad Allawi (who is not a real doctor), was not the choice of UN Special Envoy Lakhdar Brahimi. He was certainly not the choice of the Iraqi people (polls indicate less than 5% support). A powerful Iraqi exile, Prime Minister Allawi’s primary qualifications for head of state appear to be his extensive connections with British and American intelligence (MI-6 and CIA). He figured prominently in a failed 1996 CIA-backed coup and likely contributed to the misleading intelligence used to justify the invasion.
There are more questions than answers regarding the background of this man (replete with rumors of assassinations, sabotage and terrorism). What is certain is that he is very well connected, well financed and protected by powerful organizations. He has invested a small fortune in lobbying and public relations within the United States of America.
Our president speaks fervently about freedom of choice. We must now demand of the president: Given freedom of choice, would the Iraqi people choose a man who is at best an asset of the Central Intelligence Agency to lead their country to democracy?
The president has failed utterly to deliver his promise. Now that Prime Minister Allawi has proclaimed the right to impose martial law and the intent to bring back the same security forces that terrorized dissidents under Saddam, it is clear that he is less interested in building electoral support and more interested in imposing order with an iron fist. Allawi’s colleagues in the new government have strange notions concerning the democratic process:
Oil Minister, Ibrahim Bahr al-Uloum: “We must keep out of the conference (to select a national assembly) … anyone who does not believe in the new democracy, who has anti-progress ideas. That will not be allowed.” -- SF Chronicle 7/7/04.
It seems the oil minister has learned from the Republican operatives in Florida.
Vice President, Ibrahim Jafari: “Martial law is the only way to protect the democratic process.”
It seems our president could learn from Jafari.
There will be no sovereignty in Iraq as long as oil is in the equation. Where there is no sovereignty, there can be no democracy. The war within Iraq will go on, the occupation will continue, and democracy will remain a desert mirage.
Jazz.
Of all the lies and deceptions the administration has asked the electorate to accept, perhaps the most insidious is the Crusade for Democracy in the Middle East.
In the Middle Ages, one might have expected the Crusaders for Christianity to faithfully represent the morality of Christ. History records that they were in fact antithetical to Christian values. They not only failed to establish a Christian Kingdom in the Middle East, they left an indelible mark of shame that forever stained western relations to the Arab-Islamic world.
Now, as the most non-secular president in history lays claim to champion the cause of democracy, we are compelled to demand evidence that he is faithful to the cause.
Where was the president’s support for democracy in Haiti when his agents orchestrated a coup to depose a lawfully elected leader? Where was his love for democracy when his clandestine representatives failed to depose Hugo Chavez of Venezuela? Where is the president’s allegiance to democracy in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, where the will of the people is ignored in favor of heavy-handed and unqualified support for Ariel Sharon’s oppressive and faltering regime? What evidence of true democracy has emerged in Afghanistan, where a handpicked president is wholly dependent on international security forces and cannot stray from his palace in safety? Where is the president’s support for democracy in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, where governance is by the iron hand of despotism, aristocracy and hereditary succession? Indeed, where was the president’s love of democracy in the election of 2000? In Iran, they vetted the candidates for a general election. In Florida, they vetted the electorate.
The Grand Old Party is the party of the most egregious gerrymandering to deny equal representation in the history of the republic, yet its leader expects us to believe that he is chosen to defend and promulgate the principles of democracy. He must pardon his subjects if we remain skeptical.
We do not believe that the president is democracy’s champion. We do not believe that his crusade is in behalf of the American people. We believe that his constituents are the new aristocracy: the economic elite. We believe that he has led this nation to war, spilling the blood of Americans and Iraqis alike, in order to fatten the pockets of those who already possess more than they could ever need.
“Again and again and again: The more you say it is not about oil, the more certain we are that it is.” (Jazzman Chronicles, Volume II: The War Chronicles.)
In early June, the president gave a promise to the world that, if delivered, would mark the end of the American occupation and the beginning of democracy in Iraq: the transference of “full sovereignty.”
Though it has scarcely been two weeks since the secretive transference ceremony, it is time enough for an initial assessment. Has the president made good on his word? Has he delivered the sovereignty of Iraq to the Iraqi people?
In a previous Chronicle (The Sovereignty of Iraq 6/6/04), this writer proposed four fundamental conditions of sovereignty: 1) No undo American influence on the selection of Iraqi governing officials, 2) Iraqi control of Iraqi oil, 3) Iraqi authority over government contracts, and 4) Iraqi control of military forces.
Even before the impromptu ceremony, it became clear the president was less than a man of his word. The new government would not be granted control of the military. They would be allowed to request withdrawal of occupying forces but those forces would be under no obligation to do so. Further, the Iraqi government would not have authority to alter existing contracts. Sovereignty denied the new government would be retained by Halliburton, contracted mercenaries and American generals. As for the oil, while the new oil minister makes a great show of proclaiming control, when the contracts are signed, sealed and delivered, how is Iraqi control anything but nominal?
The failure of the administration to deliver on these essential conditions of sovereignty is sufficient to dismiss the American effort as disingenuous and deceptive. When one considers the nature of the new government, however, that dismissal rises to a level of condemnation for blatant hypocrisy.
The first thing to understand about the new Iraqi Interim Government is that its power is concentrated in the office of the Prime Minister. Even when a National Assembly is selected, its role will be advisory. The president and vice presidents have a right of approval in some cases but their roles are essentially symbolic.
So, who is the new Prime Minister of Iraq and how was he selected?
Curiously, thought the United Nations was initially granted control of the selection process, Dr. Iyad Allawi (who is not a real doctor), was not the choice of UN Special Envoy Lakhdar Brahimi. He was certainly not the choice of the Iraqi people (polls indicate less than 5% support). A powerful Iraqi exile, Prime Minister Allawi’s primary qualifications for head of state appear to be his extensive connections with British and American intelligence (MI-6 and CIA). He figured prominently in a failed 1996 CIA-backed coup and likely contributed to the misleading intelligence used to justify the invasion.
There are more questions than answers regarding the background of this man (replete with rumors of assassinations, sabotage and terrorism). What is certain is that he is very well connected, well financed and protected by powerful organizations. He has invested a small fortune in lobbying and public relations within the United States of America.
Our president speaks fervently about freedom of choice. We must now demand of the president: Given freedom of choice, would the Iraqi people choose a man who is at best an asset of the Central Intelligence Agency to lead their country to democracy?
The president has failed utterly to deliver his promise. Now that Prime Minister Allawi has proclaimed the right to impose martial law and the intent to bring back the same security forces that terrorized dissidents under Saddam, it is clear that he is less interested in building electoral support and more interested in imposing order with an iron fist. Allawi’s colleagues in the new government have strange notions concerning the democratic process:
Oil Minister, Ibrahim Bahr al-Uloum: “We must keep out of the conference (to select a national assembly) … anyone who does not believe in the new democracy, who has anti-progress ideas. That will not be allowed.” -- SF Chronicle 7/7/04.
It seems the oil minister has learned from the Republican operatives in Florida.
Vice President, Ibrahim Jafari: “Martial law is the only way to protect the democratic process.”
It seems our president could learn from Jafari.
There will be no sovereignty in Iraq as long as oil is in the equation. Where there is no sovereignty, there can be no democracy. The war within Iraq will go on, the occupation will continue, and democracy will remain a desert mirage.
Jazz.
Wednesday, June 23, 2004
NADER, KERRY & THE ANTIWAR MOVEMENT
“For those of us who believe…that the two party system is corrupt beyond redemption, the prospect of supporting a Democrat is agonizing … and yet, John Kerry versus George W. Bush is something akin to Hubert Humphrey versus Genghis Khan. Such is the nature of war.”
Jazzman Chronicles, Volume II: The War Chronicles.
Barring an “October surprise,” (or perhaps despite it) members of the antiwar movement hold the key to the outcome of the next election. The Bush-Cheney machine is breaking down. Ironically, they appear to be as inept at repair and maintenance as they are at foreign policy. Ironically, they are running out of gas well short of the finish line.
It is not the time for an open assault on the policies of Democratic candidate John Kerry but it is time to reconsider the role of independent candidate Ralph Nader. It is hardly a dark secret that we are discontent with the war policies of Senator Kerry. The idea that we “cannot fail in Iraq” is as tired as the latest appearance of the band of brothers. The admonition against a “cut and run” approach is more appropriate to a football game than a foreign policy. Senator Kerry should mind Einstein’s admonition that folly is repeating the same pattern of behavior while expecting a different result. We have lost in Iraq and no declarations of resolve or pipedreams of internationalization will alter that solemn fact. What remains to determine is the cost.
Either John Kerry does not believe that an antiwar candidate can win the presidency or he has painted himself into a corner. Given the record contributions he has collected and his steady climb in presidential polls, he has every reason to stay the course. Given the rising sentiment against the war, however, the Senator would do well to consider the distinct possibility that he cannot win without the antiwar movement.
Already the more impassioned of our numbers have begun zeroing in on the Senator’s policies and who can blame them? He has seemingly done everything in his power to alienate us. He has issued a call for more troops in Iraq. He has groveled at the feet of John McCain. He has refused to disavow military conscription. He has taken a stand against Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. He has backed away from criticizing the Bush coup in Haiti. If we were to rely on his campaign to inform us on the issues of the day, we would never know there is a war going on for the Senator scarcely mentions it.
Enter Ralph Nader to deliver a well-earned rebuke: There is a limit to our patience and pragmatism. If the good Senator has no ear for our message, if in fact he demands that we vote for a policy of escalation, he will leave us in a quandary like the soldiers in Baghdad.
We have listened to the lamentations of Democrats too long. It becomes a drone like elevator music before Pink Floyd. Ralph Nader did not lose the 2000 election, the disenfranchisement of black Americans did. Why not drone about that? Ralph Nader did not run the most inept presidential campaign since Walter Mondale. Why not drone about that? Would Albert Gore be president today if Ralph Nader had not run? We will never know. My informed opinion is that the fix in Florida was in. Republican operatives were primed and ready to pull as many votes out of the hat as needed. The fact that the Democrats chose to dispute the results based on hanging chads rather than high treason is a scandal equal in proportion to the Republican disgrace. But why drone on about the past?
Ralph Nader is right. We all know it. When he speaks, he speaks our views. When he strikes out against the war machine, he does not pull his punches. He is against the war and the occupation. He favors a scheduled withdrawal of our troops. Most importantly, he is right on target when he claims that he is the only practical means of influencing the Democratic party and its candidate.
Realistically, for most Americans, a vote for Ralph Nader is not evidence of political lunacy. For most Americans a vote for Nader will have no more influence on the election than a vote for Bush or a vote for Kerry. If you live in California, New York or Texas, you can vote freely or not vote at all and it will have no impact on the outcome of the election. In fact, if you live anywhere outside the estimated fourteen or fifteen “battleground” states, your vote is as meaningful as a vote in Moscow. As the Republicans in Florida were so fond of reminding us: We do not live in a democracy. We live under a representative system so corrupted that political parties game it as Enron and El Paso Gas gamed the electrical power system.
For most of us, the only hope of influencing the direction of our nation resides in a vote for independent, third party or mainstream antiwar candidates (that rarest of breeds) in every race from city council to Senator. In congressional elections, we may actually find some success. The major parties have gerrymandered districts to such an extreme, concentrating progressive voters in Republican states and conservative voters in Democratic states, that they are vulnerable to the challenges of true progressives and true libertarians, respectively.
So where does all this leave us in the presidential election?
We must continue to support John Kerry as an alternative to the Bush war machine but, as we do so, we should also support Ralph Nader as he pushes Kerry to assume an antiwar stance, to open his thinking to the possibility of withdrawal, to oppose the draft, the Bush doctrine and the Wolfowitz approach to the war on terror.
Until John Kerry gives us something to vote for we must regard him with the same indifference that Albert Gore inspired in 2000. We are not naïve or stupid and we will not be taken for granted. We are counting on the Kerry campaign to hear our voices. We are imploring the Democrats to embrace the cause of peace. If they fail us, we will still make John Kerry president but we will also make him a one-term president.
Jazz.
FREE COPIES OF THE WAR CHRONICLES NOW AVAILABLE.
Jazzman Chronicles, Volume II: The War Chronicles.
Barring an “October surprise,” (or perhaps despite it) members of the antiwar movement hold the key to the outcome of the next election. The Bush-Cheney machine is breaking down. Ironically, they appear to be as inept at repair and maintenance as they are at foreign policy. Ironically, they are running out of gas well short of the finish line.
It is not the time for an open assault on the policies of Democratic candidate John Kerry but it is time to reconsider the role of independent candidate Ralph Nader. It is hardly a dark secret that we are discontent with the war policies of Senator Kerry. The idea that we “cannot fail in Iraq” is as tired as the latest appearance of the band of brothers. The admonition against a “cut and run” approach is more appropriate to a football game than a foreign policy. Senator Kerry should mind Einstein’s admonition that folly is repeating the same pattern of behavior while expecting a different result. We have lost in Iraq and no declarations of resolve or pipedreams of internationalization will alter that solemn fact. What remains to determine is the cost.
Either John Kerry does not believe that an antiwar candidate can win the presidency or he has painted himself into a corner. Given the record contributions he has collected and his steady climb in presidential polls, he has every reason to stay the course. Given the rising sentiment against the war, however, the Senator would do well to consider the distinct possibility that he cannot win without the antiwar movement.
Already the more impassioned of our numbers have begun zeroing in on the Senator’s policies and who can blame them? He has seemingly done everything in his power to alienate us. He has issued a call for more troops in Iraq. He has groveled at the feet of John McCain. He has refused to disavow military conscription. He has taken a stand against Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. He has backed away from criticizing the Bush coup in Haiti. If we were to rely on his campaign to inform us on the issues of the day, we would never know there is a war going on for the Senator scarcely mentions it.
Enter Ralph Nader to deliver a well-earned rebuke: There is a limit to our patience and pragmatism. If the good Senator has no ear for our message, if in fact he demands that we vote for a policy of escalation, he will leave us in a quandary like the soldiers in Baghdad.
We have listened to the lamentations of Democrats too long. It becomes a drone like elevator music before Pink Floyd. Ralph Nader did not lose the 2000 election, the disenfranchisement of black Americans did. Why not drone about that? Ralph Nader did not run the most inept presidential campaign since Walter Mondale. Why not drone about that? Would Albert Gore be president today if Ralph Nader had not run? We will never know. My informed opinion is that the fix in Florida was in. Republican operatives were primed and ready to pull as many votes out of the hat as needed. The fact that the Democrats chose to dispute the results based on hanging chads rather than high treason is a scandal equal in proportion to the Republican disgrace. But why drone on about the past?
Ralph Nader is right. We all know it. When he speaks, he speaks our views. When he strikes out against the war machine, he does not pull his punches. He is against the war and the occupation. He favors a scheduled withdrawal of our troops. Most importantly, he is right on target when he claims that he is the only practical means of influencing the Democratic party and its candidate.
Realistically, for most Americans, a vote for Ralph Nader is not evidence of political lunacy. For most Americans a vote for Nader will have no more influence on the election than a vote for Bush or a vote for Kerry. If you live in California, New York or Texas, you can vote freely or not vote at all and it will have no impact on the outcome of the election. In fact, if you live anywhere outside the estimated fourteen or fifteen “battleground” states, your vote is as meaningful as a vote in Moscow. As the Republicans in Florida were so fond of reminding us: We do not live in a democracy. We live under a representative system so corrupted that political parties game it as Enron and El Paso Gas gamed the electrical power system.
For most of us, the only hope of influencing the direction of our nation resides in a vote for independent, third party or mainstream antiwar candidates (that rarest of breeds) in every race from city council to Senator. In congressional elections, we may actually find some success. The major parties have gerrymandered districts to such an extreme, concentrating progressive voters in Republican states and conservative voters in Democratic states, that they are vulnerable to the challenges of true progressives and true libertarians, respectively.
So where does all this leave us in the presidential election?
We must continue to support John Kerry as an alternative to the Bush war machine but, as we do so, we should also support Ralph Nader as he pushes Kerry to assume an antiwar stance, to open his thinking to the possibility of withdrawal, to oppose the draft, the Bush doctrine and the Wolfowitz approach to the war on terror.
Until John Kerry gives us something to vote for we must regard him with the same indifference that Albert Gore inspired in 2000. We are not naïve or stupid and we will not be taken for granted. We are counting on the Kerry campaign to hear our voices. We are imploring the Democrats to embrace the cause of peace. If they fail us, we will still make John Kerry president but we will also make him a one-term president.
Jazz.
FREE COPIES OF THE WAR CHRONICLES NOW AVAILABLE.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)