Tough sledding

"These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country, but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.

"BritainThis president, with an army to enforce her his tyranny, has declared that she he has the right (not only to tax, but) "to BIND us in ALL CASES WHATSOEVER," and if being bound in that manner is not slavery, then there not such a thing as slavery on the earth. Even the expression is impious, for so unlimited a power can only belong to God." - Thomas Paine, The Crisis Papers

With the self-immolation of the Republican Party, many liberal pundits are whooping and hollering for joy. Personally, I don't think Middle American is buying into the celebration, because they know that the scorched-earth social policies of the Repugs will take decades to repair, even if this president doesn't throw us all into a dark pit somewhere.

Especially troubling are the economic policies - out-sourcing, tax cuts, environmental sellout, etc. - that have left behind massive debt, a shrunken middle class, and a job-poor environment, all dumped on the Democrats to clean up - as they will - but at some cost, probably involving new, higher taxes. (You can already hear the "fiscal conservatives" screaming about that). And that's only assuming that they can get anything remotely resembling real fiscal reform past this president.

And while we're on the subject of jobs out-sourcing, let's not forget that the Democrats gave us that big "swooshing sound of jobs being sucked south," in the form of NAFTA.

The core issue of civil rights - habeas corpus - followed closely by privacy issues, will take a major fight to reaffirm, and that's going to be an uphill battle, unless and until it makes it to the Supreme Court, and quickly. Judge Stephens may step down - he's the oldest - and that would give the Senate a place to make a real stand, with a real, moderate jurist, and again only if they can muster the courage to fight the President to a standstill.

But even among the Dems themselves, issues divide the party, as evidenced by their voting history on some very critical issues:

· Vote to confirm John Roberts to the Supreme Court: Republicans (56-0) -- Democrats (22 -22)
· Cloture vote on Sam Alito's nomination to the Supreme Court: Republicans (54-0) -- Democrats (19-25)
· Vote on Authorization to use military force in Iraq: Republicans (48-1) -- Democrats - (29-21)
· Cloture vote on Bankruptcy Bill: Republicans (55-0) -- Democrats (14-30)
· Cloture vote on nomination of Priscilla Owens to appeals court: Republicans (55-0) -- Democrats (25-18)
· Torture/detention bill: Republicans (53-1) -- Democrats (12-33).

Remember those 'signing statements'? Bush is still guided by Gonzales' and John Yoo's truly bizarre reading of the Constitution. This is an especially troubling problem, requiring a truly concerted effort by Congress to take back their prerogatives, hell, the responsibilities mandated to them by the Constitution; no small feat, given their past performance and inclinations.

Speaking of which, when was the last time you heard Senator Hillary Clinton say Word One about Congressional responsibility in handing over duties and responsibility to the executive when it comes to the so-called "unitary executive"? Or a peep out of that new kid on the block, Barack Obama?

Whatever the outcome in November, it's gonna be tough sledding for a good while

Update: Link added to 'signing statements'

Alexander Hamilton, Federalist Neo-con

As anti-democratic scumbags go, neoconservatives have deep roots in American politics. And you thought they were the brain-fevered invention of Francis Fukuyama and Irving Krystal, drip-filtered through the neo-Platonism of Leo Strauss? Hell no; these guys are actually living, breathing monarchist fossils whose real political father in America is none other than Alexander Hamilton.

Hamilton was a plotter, would-be military coup d'etat leader, and pre-emptive war monger extraordinaire. XYZ affair? He did it. Theft of presidential elections? Check his ballot-ink-stained hands. Back stabber? Just ask John Quincy Adams.

He may have co-authored the Federalist Papers, but he was also the author of the Federalist party, the forerunner of today's power-hungry Republicans, was a demagogue and a libelist, and an "Angloman," as a monarchist was termed circa 1789.

To verify his creds as a proto-neoconservtive, a simple checklist should suffice:

Hamilton compared with neoconservatives :

Bank of the United States.................IMF, WTO
Pre-emptive war ..............................Check
Authoritarian Executive ....................Check
Standing army ...................................Check
Massive federal debts ......................Check
Excessive military expenditures .......Check
Alien and Sedition Act .......................USA Patriot Act
Quasi-war with France .....................Iraq/Iran/Islam
Invasion of Florida ............................Afghanistan/Iraq

A Jeffersonian in Philidelphia reported early in February [1800] that "at no time ... that I can remember since 1776" have so many concluded that opposition to the national government "is a duty and obedience a crime."

The calendar advances, but a neo-con is still a thug.

Burn down the House

The country is in the advanced stages of moral decay. The Military Commissions Act is not a law at all; it is an expression of Congress’ intention to carry out war crimes against defenseless victims in their charge. The men who supported this bill should be held accountable for its inevitable and appalling consequences. - Mike Whitney

My jaw dropped when I saw the vote of the "detainee" bill just passed by both the House and the Senate, especially the scurrilous votes by the turncoat Democrats, especially Fuerher-worshiping Sen. Joe Lieberman.

It was only to be expected, I suppose, as the Democrats have basically disappeared on every issue that involves defending the Bill of Rights, from allowing Paleolithic judicial appointments to this present mockery of the Constitution with its arbitrary suspension of habeas corpus. Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA)- who first pretended to oppose the bill, then turned around and voted for it - issued a mealy-mouthed statement claiming that the Supreme Court would excise the "bad" parts later. Well, asshole, instead of leaving it to the other guys, why didn't you excise the bad parts when you had the chance?

Tom Paine and Patrick Henry aren't spinning in their graves, they're pounding on their coffin lids. Timothy McVeigh, of course, has already made his opinion known, but sadly, I see no burning torches or outraged citizens in the streets.

Now - and this is no consolation - if you had been paying any attention at all, you would know that this has been coming for a long time. It's just the latest installment of the softening up process leading to the utter subjugation of the American people (with the help of the bought and paid for ignoramouses we keep electing), who are obviously not America's real leaders:

David Ray Griffin says: "Part of the reason we call the Nazi and Stalinist regimes evil, of course, is that many of their victims were killed deliberately. Do American leaders realize what they are doing?

"There is evidence that they do. For example, in 1947, George Kennan, who was Director of the Policy Planning Staff in the U.S. State Department, said in a "top secret" memo:

"We have about 50% of the world's wealth, but only 6.3% of its population . . . In this situation, we cannot fail to be the object of envy and resentment. Our real task in the coming period is to devise a pattern of relationships which will permit us to maintain this position of disparity without positive detriment to our national security."*

Reading between the lines, as Plato encouraged the elites to do, a disinterested observer might regard this as an evil statement. George Kennan - speaking from his catbird seat as an advisor to the Eastern Establishment authoritarian oligarchy - no doubt thought his statements quite reasonable. Kennan wasn't referring to you and me, though; he was referring to the 2% of Americans who now hold 90% of America's wealth, and it is their security he's referring to.

The escalation techniques of tyranny are quite old and well known - it's just that the American people have suffered from an abysmal educational system for too long, and stullified themselves with material luxury for so long, and most of our citizens are a generation or more removed from the immigrants who had first-hand experience of political oppression, including torture, indefinite confinement, and assassination, for them to understand what is happening to their country right now, today.

At this rate, they'll be experiencing the results of the suspension of habeas corpus, with no-knock, warrantless searches, and subsequent waterboarding first hand and all too soon.

So, at this point I say, forget about voting this November 6th; let's just burn down the fucking House.

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*George F. Kennan, "PPS/23: Review of Current Trends in U.S. Foreign Policy." First published in Foreign Relations of the United States, 1948, Vol. 1, 509-529, it has been reprinted in Thomas H. Entzold and John Lewis Gaddis, eds., Documents on American Policy and Strategy, 1945-1950 (New York: Columbia University Press), 226-28; the quoted passage is at 226-27.