Here’s one of those increasingly rare instances when the NYTIMES reminds us why it was once a great newspaper:

December 31, 2007

Editorial

Looking at America

There are too many moments these days when we cannot recognize our country. Sunday was one of them, as we read the account in The Times of how men in some of the most trusted posts in the nation plotted to cover up the torture of prisoners by Central Intelligence Agency interrogators by destroying videotapes of their sickening behavior. It was impossible to see the founding principles of the greatest democracy in the contempt these men and their bosses showed for the Constitution, the rule of law and human decency.

It was not the first time in recent years we’ve felt this horror, this sorrowful sense of estrangement, not nearly. This sort of lawless behavior has become standard practice since Sept. 11, 2001.

The country and much of the world was rightly and profoundly frightened by the single-minded hatred and ingenuity displayed by this new enemy. But there is no excuse for how President Bush and his advisers panicked — how they forgot that it is their responsibility to protect American lives and American ideals, that there really is no safety for Americans or their country when those ideals are sacrificed.

Out of panic and ideology, President Bush squandered America’s position of moral and political leadership, swept aside international institutions and treaties, sullied America’s global image, and trampled on the constitutional pillars that have supported our democracy through the most terrifying and challenging times. These policies have fed the world’s anger and alienation and have not made any of us safer.

In the years since 9/11, we have seen American soldiers abuse, sexually humiliate, torment and murder prisoners in Afghanistan and Iraq. A few have been punished, but their leaders have never been called to account. We have seen mercenaries gun down Iraqi civilians with no fear of prosecution. We have seen the president, sworn to defend the Constitution, turn his powers on his own citizens, authorizing the intelligence agencies to spy on Americans, wiretapping phones and intercepting international e-mail messages without a warrant.

We have read accounts of how the government’s top lawyers huddled in secret after the attacks in New York and Washington and plotted ways to circumvent the Geneva Conventions — and both American and international law — to hold anyone the president chose indefinitely without charges or judicial review.

Those same lawyers then twisted other laws beyond recognition to allow Mr. Bush to turn intelligence agents into torturers, to force doctors to abdicate their professional oaths and responsibilities to prepare prisoners for abuse, and then to monitor the torment to make sure it didn’t go just a bit too far and actually kill them.

The White House used the fear of terrorism and the sense of national unity to ram laws through Congress that gave law-enforcement agencies far more power than they truly needed to respond to the threat — and at the same time fulfilled the imperial fantasies of Vice President Dick Cheney and others determined to use the tragedy of 9/11 to arrogate as much power as they could.

Hundreds of men, swept up on the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq, were thrown into a prison in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, so that the White House could claim they were beyond the reach of American laws. Prisoners are held there with no hope of real justice, only the chance to face a kangaroo court where evidence and the names of their accusers are kept secret, and where they are not permitted to talk about the abuse they have suffered at the hands of American jailers.

In other foreign lands, the C.I.A. set up secret jails where “high-value detainees” were subjected to ever more barbaric acts, including simulated drowning. These crimes were videotaped, so that “experts” could watch them, and then the videotapes were destroyed, after consultation with the White House, in the hope that Americans would never know.

The C.I.A. contracted out its inhumanity to nations with no respect for life or law, sending prisoners — some of them innocents kidnapped on street corners and in airports — to be tortured into making false confessions, or until it was clear they had nothing to say and so were let go without any apology or hope of redress.

These are not the only shocking abuses of President Bush’s two terms in office, made in the name of fighting terrorism. There is much more — so much that the next president will have a full agenda simply discovering all the wrongs that have been done and then righting them.

We can only hope that this time, unlike 2004, American voters will have the wisdom to grant the awesome powers of the presidency to someone who has the integrity, principle and decency to use them honorably. Then when we look in the mirror as a nation, we will see, once again, the reflection of the United States of America.

UUA President Sinkford’s Holiday Message

20 Dem Senators Vote to Continue Funds for Bush War

Akaka (D-HI) Baucus (D-MT) Bayh (D-IN) Carper (D-DE) Casey (D-PA) Conrad (D-ND) Dorgan (D-ND) Inouye (D-HI) Johnson (D-SD) Landrieu (D-LA) Levin (D-MI) Lincoln (D-AR) McCaskill (D-MO) Mikulski (D-MD) Nelson (D-FL) Nelson (D-NE) Pryor (D-AR) Rockefeller (D-WV) Salazar (D-CO) Tester (D-MT) Webb (D-VA) What’s with these people?  McCaskill, Tester, and Webb all courted progressive support and were against the war.  Yet they continue to give Bush the billions he needs to drag this out until the end of his term; i.e., if he decides to step down, which is not a done deal with these whackos. The one thing we don’t need is DINA’s voting with the Repugs to keep this insanity going.  ”Won’t get fooled again!”…you wish. 

Judge Orders Hearing On CIA Tape Destruction

MAHMOAD ABDAH V. GEORGE W. BUSH(U.S. Dist. Ct., D.C., Dec. 18, 2007) – A federal judge ordered a hearing to discuss the allegations raised by attorneys representing Guantanamo Bay terror suspects regarding the CIA’s reported 2005 destruction of “at least two videotapes documenting the interrogation of two suspected al Qaeda operatives in the agency’s custody.” Read more…

World Wildlife Fund/Toys for Tots

Adopt an animal from the World Wildlife Fund, and you will get a cute plush toy version of your animal. Every donation you make to WWF helps save some of the world’s most endangered animals from extinction and supports WWF’s conservation efforts. We think this is a fabulous way to encourage conservation efforts, by encouraging a love of animals in children! And if you can’t think of a good benefactor for your stuffed owl, wolf, chimpanzee, or polar bear, you can donate your stuffed toy to a needy child through WWF’s toys for tots program. $50 from World Wildlife Fund

Truthiness–Humor–At the Pearly Gates

At the Pearly Gates

 

Einstein dies and goes to heaven.

 

At the Pearly Gates, Saint Peter tells him,

 ”You look like Einstein, but you have NO idea the lengths that some people will go to sneak into Heaven.

Can you prove who youreally are?”

 

Einstein ponders for a few seconds and asks,”Could I have a blackboard and some chalk?”

Saint Peter snaps his fingers and a blackboard and chalk instantly appear.

 Einstein proceeds to describe with arcane mathematics and symbols his theory of relativity.

Saint Peter is suitably impressed.

“You really ARE Einstein!” he says. “Welcome to heaven!”

 

The next to arrive is Picasso.

Once again, Saint Peter asks for credentials.

 Picasso asks,

“Mind if I use that blackboard and chalk?”

Saint Peter says,

“Go ahead.”

Picasso erases Einstein’s equations and sketches a truly stunningmural with just a few strokes of chalk.

 

Saint Peter claps.”Surely you are the great artist you claim to be!”

he says.

“Come on in!”

Then Saint Peter looks up and sees George W. Bush.

Saint Peter scratches his head and says, ”Einstein and Picasso both managed to prove their identity. How can you prove yours?”

 

George W. looks bewildered and says,

“Who are Einstein and Picasso?”

Saint Peter sighs and says,

“Come on in, George!”

 

***

Thanks to Toni S. 

 

Sen. Mike Gravel

From the Pentagon Papers to rolling papers:

Say No to More Money for the War

This week, Bush told Congress to pass the $190 Billion appropriations bill to fund the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Click here to tell Congress you do not want them to pass it. Without promises to reconcile with the Iraqi and Afghan people, promises to support the troops after their return from combat, and clear benchmarks to assure their safe return, we cannot allow this money to be spent. As people of faith, we know that every dollar spent to kill is an affront to our morals. And every dollar spent on war is one less we can spend on education, health care or infrastructure upkeep. 

Project Sunlight-NY

Project Sunlight

Currently, Project Sunlight allows you to search data related to a Elected Official, campaign finance, legislation, lobbying activity, registered corporations, recipients of state government contracts, corporations and charities. The website also offers educational videos on relevant laws, an educational glossary, and basic information on how state government works. In order to access these materials, go to the “information” option on the homepage. You can do so by clicking here or go directly to available educational videos by clicking here.

Sign the American Lawyers Defending the Constitution statement

I don’t know about you, but I am tired of living under an administration that does not respect our Constitution or the laws of the land. For this reason, I just joined more than 60 law professors and other passionate legal professionals in signing the statement below, calling for hearings before the U.S. House and Senate Judiciary Committees to investigate whether the Bush administration has violated the Constitution and federal laws.

In a recent speech, former Governor Mario Cuomo decried the actions of the Bush administration and called on lawyers to take action. He said, “If not the lawyers, then who? If not now, when?” This captures the spirit of the “American Lawyers Defending the Constitution” campaign perfectly.

Please read the statement below and then add your name by visiting the following link.

 

Message to House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy from American Lawyers Defending the Constitution

We are lawyers in the United States of America. As such, we have all taken an oath obligating us to defend the Constitution and the rule of law from those who would violate and subvert them, and to hold wrongdoers accountable. We believe the Bush administration has committed numerous offenses against the Constitution and may have violated federal laws. Evidence exists that it has illegally spied on Americans, tortured and abused men and women in its direct custody, sent others to be tortured by countries like Syria and Egypt, and kept people in prison indefinitely with no chance to challenge the bases of their detention. Moreover, the administration has blatantly defied congressional subpoenas, obstructing constitutional oversight of the executive branch.

Thus, we call on House Judiciary Chairman John Conyers and Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy to launch hearings into the possibility that crimes have been committed by this administration in violation of the Constitution, federal statutes, and international treaties.

 We call for the investigations to go where they must, including into the offices of the President and the Vice President. Should these hearings demonstrate that laws have in fact been broken by this administration, we support all such legal and congressional actions necessary to ensure the survival of our Constitution and the nation we love.

Click on the following link to sign the statement.