New law will increase gas prices!
calde...@yahoo.com
starving us with biofuels, or jacking up gas prices for no good
reason. Things will not get better by just getting rid of Bush. We
need to get mushy brained Democrats to realize we have to produce more
oil of our own and use nuclear power, not just invent idiotic schemes
that create bigger government but produce no net energy gain.
http://www.businessandmedia.org/articles/2008/20080515172437.aspx
Senators Warn Bill Could Spike Gas $1.50 to $5 a Gallon
Inhofe, Sessions blast massive costs of global warming legislation.
By Jeff Poor
Business & Media Institute
5/15/2008 5:44:34 PM
Worried about gas prices hitting $4 a gallon and beyond? Imagine
if they were $6, $7 or even $8 a gallon. Those levels are a certain
possibility should Congress pass cap-and-trade legislation, which
could face a vote in early June.
Oil is trading at record levels, in excess of $120 a barrel.
Leading Republican Sens. James Inhofe (Okla.) and Jeff Sessions (Ala.)
both told the Business & Media Institute (BMI) energy prices would
drastically increase if the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act (S.
2191) is signed into law.
“The studies show it would be directly affected, would be a $1.50
a gallon, in addition to what it is today,” Inhofe, the ranking
Republican on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said
to (BMI).
Inhofe spoke at a press conference at the National Press Club in
Washington, D.C. on May 15 to introduce the “We Get It!” campaign – a
program founded by evangelical Christians that question the merits of
global warming alarmism. According to Inhofe, the bill will make it to
the floor of the Senate on June 2.
“So now I think we need to concentrate on what it will cost the
American people,” he said during the press conference. “To try to put
it in a perspective people understand, if we had ratified, according
to the Wharton School of Economics, the Kyoto Treaty, back five years
ago, it would have cost about – between $300 and $330 billion – that
was the range they had. This bill that’s up today is $471 billion –
far more than that. And the question is, what do you get for it?”
Sessions, a member of the Senate’s Committee on Energy and
Natural Resources, went a step further. He cited sources that suggest
the increase could be as much as $5 a gallon.
“[L]et me tell you what’s heading down the tracks,” Sessions said
to BMI on May 14. “In a few weeks, we expect that the cap-and-trade
legislation that’s been voted out of Sen. Barbara Boxer’s (D-Calif.)
Environment and Public Works Committee will be on the floor and
according to the Environmental Protection Agency it will increase gas
prices by $1.50. The National Association of Manufacturers says it
will increase it as much as $5 per gallon.”
Sessions proposed that money should be spent on energy investment
versus a regulatory bureaucracy to enforce the provisions of the
Lieberman-Warner bill.
“So instead of actually coming forward with any idea about what
to do about rising prices, we’ll soon be voting on a bill that has
already passed committee, has some Republican support, that would
surge the price of energy, create a bureaucracy – and I just don’t
think is the right thing to do,” Sessions said. “I’d rather spend our
money in investing in the new the technologies, helping get nuclear
power online, improving batteries, researching cellulosic ethanol.
Let’s spend our money on that without creating cap-and-trade
bureaucracies that have not worked in Europe.”
According to the Energy Information Administration, the average
price of a gallon of gas in Europe ranges from $8 to $9 a gallon.
Gas prices have been one of the most reported news stories of the
past several years. Reporters have repeatedly warned of prices
approaching the levels Inhofe and Sessions warned about. However,
journalists have consistently complained about oil company profits,
not taxes, making gas prices higher.
On NBC’s May 15 “Today,” host Matt Lauer interviewed ExxonMobil
(NYSE:XOM) CEO Rex Tillerson. Lauer quizzed Tillerson on oil
companies’ profit margins and higher gas prices, but Lauer didn’t ask
Tillerson about the potential impact Lieberman-Warner would have on
the price of gasoline.
“Well, the problem we have right now, and fortunately we have
several months before the election, to make sure the American people
know that this is a supply problem that is causing the gas prices to
go up,” Inhofe said to BMI. “You know the Democrats, right down party
lines – they do not want to drill in ANWR, they do not want to drill
offshore. They don’t want the tar sands. They don’t want more energy.
And they don’t want refinery capacity.”
The Senate defeated a measure to drill in ANWR on May 13. The
vote, an amendment to another bill, was killed by a vote of 42-56,
largely along party lines. Only one Democrat voted for the amendment,
Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), and five Republicans voting against it.
Inhofe blamed Democratic policies going as far back as the Clinton
administration.
“The Democrats are the reason we have high prices at the pumps,
and we’re not going to be able to alleviate that until we start
producing again in America,” Inhofe added. “And I knew this was
happening way back, well 10 years ago, when President Clinton vetoed
the bill that would have allowed us to drill in ANWR. I said on the
Senate floor that day 10 years ago that in 10 years we would regret
this. It’s now 10 years later
Phil Hays
> Worried about gas prices hitting $4 a gallon and beyond? Imagine
> if they were $6, $7 or even $8 a gallon. Those levels are a certain
> possibility should Congress pass cap-and-trade legislation, which could
> face a vote in early June.
Those prices are certain regardless of anything Congress may or may not
do. And that is in real or inflation adjusted dollars.
It will be amusing to watch Congress (Republican or Democratic) try to
explain it.
It would have been better if the USA had put a $1 per liter tax, or more,
on gasoline years ago. Then we might be driving cars that made more sense,
living in housing that made more sense, and commuting distances that made
more sense.
--
Phil Hays
Lloyd
wrote:
> Our leaders are idiots. They are either getting us into useless wars,
> starving us with biofuels, or jacking up gas prices for no good
> reason. Things will not get better by just getting rid of Bush. We
> need to get mushy brained Democrats to realize we have to produce more
> oil of our own and use nuclear power, not just invent idiotic schemes
> that create bigger government but produce no net energy gain.
>
> http://www.businessandmedia.org/articles/2008/20080515172437.aspx
>
> Senators Warn Bill Could Spike Gas $1.50 to $5 a Gallon
> Inhofe, Sessions blast massive costs of global warming legislation.
>
Next time, pick 2 Senators with more than half a brain each.
> By Jeff Poor
> Business & Media Institute
And also pick an objective, mainstream news source.
> 5/15/2008 5:44:34 PM
>
> Worried about gas prices hitting $4 a gallon and beyond? Imagine
> if they were $6, $7 or even $8 a gallon. Those levels are a certain
> possibility should Congress pass cap-and-trade legislation, which
> could face a vote in early June.
>
> Oil is trading at record levels, in excess of $120 a barrel.
> Leading Republican Sens. James Inhofe (Okla.) and Jeff Sessions (Ala.)
> both told the Business & Media Institute (BMI) energy prices would
> drastically increase if the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act (S.
> 2191) is signed into law.
>
And their expertise is what?
> “The studies show it would be directly affected, would be a $1.50
> a gallon, in addition to what it is today,” Inhofe, the ranking
> Republican on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said
> to (BMI).
>
What studies?
> Inhofe spoke at a press conference at the National Press Club in
> Washington, D.C. on May 15 to introduce the “We Get It!” campaign – a
> program founded by evangelical Christians that question the merits of
> global warming alarmism. According to Inhofe, the bill will make it to
> the floor of the Senate on June 2.
>
> “So now I think we need to concentrate on what it will cost the
> American people,” he said during the press conference. “To try to put
> it in a perspective people understand, if we had ratified, according
> to the Wharton School of Economics, the Kyoto Treaty, back five years
> ago, it would have cost about – between $300 and $330 billion – that
> was the range they had. This bill that’s up today is $471 billion –
> far more than that. And the question is, what do you get for it?”
>
> Sessions, a member of the Senate’s Committee on Energy and
> Natural Resources, went a step further. He cited sources that suggest
> the increase could be as much as $5 a gallon.
>
> “[L]et me tell you what’s heading down the tracks,” Sessions said
> to BMI on May 14. “In a few weeks, we expect that the cap-and-trade
> legislation that’s been voted out of Sen. Barbara Boxer’s (D-Calif.)
> Environment and Public Works Committee will be on the floor and
> according to the Environmental Protection Agency it will increase gas
> prices by $1.50. The National Association of Manufacturers says it
> will increase it as much as $5 per gallon.”
>
And banning CFCs will lead to economic ruin. Banning lead gas will
bankrupt the economy. We've heard this tired old song before.
> Sessions proposed that money should be spent on energy investment
> versus a regulatory bureaucracy to enforce the provisions of the
> Lieberman-Warner bill.
>
Translation: Give more tax breaks to the oil companies.
> “So instead of actually coming forward with any idea about what
> to do about rising prices, we’ll soon be voting on a bill that has
> already passed committee, has some Republican support, that would
> surge the price of energy, create a bureaucracy – and I just don’t
> think is the right thing to do,” Sessions said. “I’d rather spend our
> money in investing in the new the technologies, helping get nuclear
> power online, improving batteries, researching cellulosic ethanol.
> Let’s spend our money on that without creating cap-and-trade
> bureaucracies that have not worked in Europe.”
>
> According to the Energy Information Administration, the average
> price of a gallon of gas in Europe ranges from $8 to $9 a gallon.
>
And how is that relevant?
> Gas prices have been one of the most reported news stories of the
> past several years. Reporters have repeatedly warned of prices
> approaching the levels Inhofe and Sessions warned about. However,
> journalists have consistently complained about oil company profits,
> not taxes, making gas prices higher.
>
So maybe Inhofe and Sessions are out of the mainstream. Oh wait, we
already know that.
> On NBC’s May 15 “Today,” host Matt Lauer interviewed ExxonMobil
> (NYSE:XOM) CEO Rex Tillerson. Lauer quizzed Tillerson on oil
> companies’ profit margins and higher gas prices, but Lauer didn’t ask
> Tillerson about the potential impact Lieberman-Warner would have on
> the price of gasoline.
>
> “Well, the problem we have right now, and fortunately we have
> several months before the election, to make sure the American people
> know that this is a supply problem that is causing the gas prices to
> go up,” Inhofe said to BMI.
The supply is ample.
>“You know the Democrats, right down party
> lines – they do not want to drill in ANWR, they do not want to drill
> offshore. They don’t want the tar sands. They don’t want more energy.
> And they don’t want refinery capacity.”
>
First, Jeb Bush banned drilling offshore. Secondly, McCain also
opposes drilling in ANWR. Why aren't these 2 attacking Republicans?
> The Senate defeated a measure to drill in ANWR on May 13. The
> vote, an amendment to another bill, was killed by a vote of 42-56,
> largely along party lines. Only one Democrat voted for the amendment,
> Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), and five Republicans voting against it.
>
> Inhofe blamed Democratic policies going as far back as the Clinton
> administration.
>
Uh, what was gas when Bush took office?
V-for-Vendicar
<calde...@yahoo.com> wrote
> Our leaders are idiots. They are either getting us into useless wars,
> starving us with biofuels, or jacking up gas prices for no good
> reason. Things will not get better by just getting rid of Bush.
Then what you clearly need is $10 a gallon gasoline.
That is what you are asking for isn't it?
V-for-Vendicar
"Phil Hays" <inv...@dont.spam> wrote
> It would have been better if the USA had put a $1 per liter tax, or more,
> on gasoline years ago. Then we might be driving cars that made more sense,
> living in housing that made more sense, and commuting distances that made
> more sense.
But. But. But. But. But. that would be pure communism.
Fucking AmeriKKKan assholes.
Steve Thomas
<Just...@ExecuteTheBushTraitor.com> wrote:
> <calderh...@yahoo.com> wrote
People never want to pay more for anything. Just by asking such a
stupid question makes you a
MMMMMMOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Steve Thomas
<Just...@ExecuteTheBushTraitor.com> wrote:
> "Phil Hays" <inva...@dont.spam> wrote
If Americans are such assholes, and Bush is running the country into
the ground, and you hate capitalists/America , why are you so hung up
on impeachment, you should want a 3rd Bush term. Your arguments are
contradictory wich makes you a
MMMMMMMMMMOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
V-for-Vendicar
"Steve Thomas" <misled...@aol.com> wrote
> If Americans are such assholes, and Bush is running the country into
> the ground, and you hate capitalists/America , why are you so hung up
> on impeachment, you should want a 3rd Bush term.
Lets be clear... Impeachment, followed by a short trial and then a public
execution.
Third term? What makes you think I don't?
V-for-Vendicar
> Then what you clearly need is $10 a gallon gasoline.
>
> That is what you are asking for isn't it?
"Steve Thomas" <misled...@aol.com> wrote
> People never want to pay more for anything. Just by asking such a stupid
> question makes you a
> MMMMMMOOOOOOORRRRRRROOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Under RepubliKKKan rule, people get all the lies they tollerate and then
some.
$10 a gallon gasoline coming to an AmeriKKKan pump near you.
Steve Thomas
<Just...@ExecuteTheBushTraitor.com> wrote:
> "Steve Thomas" <misledrks...@aol.com> wrote
>
> > If Americans are such assholes, and Bush is running the country into
> > the ground, and you hate capitalists/America , why are you so hung up
> > on impeachment, you should want a 3rd Bush term.
>
> Lets be clear... Impeachment, followed by a short trial and then a public
> execution.
And what would you charge him with?
>
> Third term? What makes you think I don't?
You just said you want him executed, and impeached "NOW." You want
him to do his third term on death row? Thats stupid, but it comes
from you and we all know your a
MMMMMMMMMOOOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Steve Thomas
<Just...@ExecuteTheBushTraitor.com> wrote:
> > Then what you clearly need is $10 a gallon gasoline.
>
> > That is what you are asking for isn't it?
>
>
> > People never want to pay more for anything. Just by asking such a stupid
> > question makes you a
> > MMMMMMOOOOOOORRRRRRROOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
>
> Under RepubliKKKan rule, people get all the lies they tollerate and then
> some.
Can you name an honest DemoKKKrat? We know ya wont because your a
MMMMMMMMMOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
>
> $10 a gallon gasoline coming to an AmeriKKKan pump near you.
Is this before or after we bomb Iran?
ayatollah obama
wrote:
The correct title for S.2191 should be *How to Make Al Gore A
Billionaire* or *if a cow farts, you gotta pay*
Since algore and maurice strong are heavy into carbon credits with
their companies, this will make them lots and lots of money!
SEC. 2101. allows for the sale of carbon credits. Damn, Enron would've
loved this! Remember Enron, they did all their scam shit while Klinton
was prez, Bush had to clean up the fiasco.
This country is fucked. This and HR.2421 should establish the central
planning committee of the old Soviet Union. This thing tells how and
when you can plant things.
SEC. 2602. ESTABLISHMENT OF CARBON MARKET EFFICIENCY BOARD.
What the fuck is this??? the new Central Comittee.
Jeez, you socialists are really intent on destroying this country. You
think you have a mandate! but after two years of this crap, you will
be out on the streets. Like I said before, you don't care how you get
control, just so long as you do.
I guess *green weenie* companies like starbucks, microsoft, ad nauseum
will be able to sell their carbon credits to the big polluting
factories and oil refineries. And you wonder why no new refineries
have been built here in over 30 years.
------
DemonCraps.... Making the lives of poor people even more miserable
DemonCraps.... Save a planet, Starve a Nation
V-for-Vendicar
> Lets be clear... Impeachment, followed by a short trial and then a public
> execution.
"Steve Thomas" <misled...@aol.com> wrote
> And what would you charge him with?
Treason.
V-for-Vendicar
> Third term? What makes you think I don't?
"Steve Thomas" <misled...@aol.com> wrote
> You just said you want him executed, and impeached "NOW." You want
> him to do his third term on death row?
Correct. Either shit or get off the pot.
V-for-Vendicar
> $10 a gallon gasoline coming to an AmeriKKKan pump near you.
"Steve Thomas" <misled...@aol.com> wrote
> Is this before or after we bomb Iran?
Are you suggesting that RepubliKKKans are going to give AmeriKKKa a third
gift of war just before they leave office.
If so, then RepubliKKKans will be ensuring that they are never elected
into office again.
Do it.
V-for-Vendicar
"ayatollah obama" <osama.obabm...@gmail.com> wrote
> How Al Gore Became a Billionaire
Is AL a Billionaire already?
And here with all of Bush's War Mongering he has lost money during the last
7.5 years.
Is there anything BUSH has done other than Jenna that isn't a Complete
Failure?
Steve Thomas
<Just...@ExecuteTheBushTraitor.com> wrote:
> > Lets be clear... Impeachment, followed by a short trial and then a public
> > execution.
>
>
> > And what would you charge him with?
>
> Treason.
HAAAAAAAAAAA, and the evidence is???????????? Keep in mind
stupidity does not = treason which makes you a
MMMMMMMMMMMOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Steve Thomas
<Just...@ExecuteTheBushTraitor.com> wrote:
> > Third term? What makes you think I don't?
>
>
> > You just said you want him executed, and impeached "NOW." You want
> > him to do his third term on death row?
>
> Correct. Either shit or get off the pot.
Haaaaaahaaaaaaaahaaaaaaa your even dumber than i thought but your
still a
MMMMMMMMMMOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Steve Thomas
<Just...@ExecuteTheBushTraitor.com> wrote:
> > $10 a gallon gasoline coming to an AmeriKKKan pump near you.
>
>
> > Is this before or after we bomb Iran?
>
> Are you suggesting that RepubliKKKans are going to give AmeriKKKa a third
> gift of war just before they leave office.
Im hope so. If its the only way to stop them from getting nuclear
weapons, im all for it.
>
> If so, then RepubliKKKans will be ensuring that they are never elected
> into office again.
>
Demokkkrats will fuck it up somehow, and if you dont know that
your a
MMMMMMMMMOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> Do it.
V-for-Vendicar
"Steve Thomas" <misled...@aol.com> wrote
> Keep in mind stupidity does not = treason
Is that your defense? Not guilty by reason of stupidity?
I am unaware of any crime for which that is a valid defense.
Can you provide us with an example of one?
Steve Thomas
<Just...@ExecuteTheBushTraitor.com> wrote:
> "Steve Thomas" <misledrks...@aol.com> wrote
Never said that was his defense. Im still waiting for you to lay
out the evidence of treason. If there is no evidence to prove your
case he wont need a defense. You cant convict someone without proving
the crime. You cant seem to lay out the evidence for treason because
your a
MMMMMMMOOOOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
V-for-Vendicar
> Correct. Either shit or get off the pot.
"Steve Thomas" <misled...@aol.com> wrote
> Haaaaaahaaaaaaaahaaaaaaa
I see that you are still constipated.
You have been repeatedly told to remove your head from your ass.
Ted Rall
ARREST BUSH
Tue Apr 29, 7:57 PM ET
Bush Confesses to Waterboarding. Call D.C. Cops!
NEW YORK--"Why are we talking about this in the White House?" John Ashcroft
nervously asked his fellow members of the National Security Council's
Principals
Committee. (The Principals were Vice President Dick Cheney, National
Security
Adviser Condoleezza Rice, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Secretary of
State Colin Powell, CIA Director George Tenet and Attorney General
Ashcroft.)
"History will not judge this kindly," Ashcroft predicted.
"This" is torture. Against innocent people. Conducted by CIA agents and
American
soldiers and marines. Sanctioned by legal opinions issued by Ashcroft's
Justice
Department. Directly ordered by George W. Bush.
An April 11th report by ABC News describes how CIA agents, asked by previous
presidents to carry out illegal "black ops" actions (torture and killings),
had
become tired of getting hung out to dry whenever their dirty deeds were
revealed
by the press. When the Bush Administration asked the CIA to work over
prisoners
captured in Afghanistan, Pakistan and elsewhere, Director George Tenet
demanded
legal cover. The Justice Department complied by issuing a classified 2002
memo,
the so-called "Golden Shield," authored by Office of Legal Counsel Jay
Bybee.
"Enhanced interrogation techniques"--i.e., torture--were legal, Bybee
assured
the CIA.
Tenet was a good boss, a CYA type. He wanted to protect his agents. So he
got
the Principals to personally sign off on each act of torture.
"According to a former CIA official involved in the process," ABC reported,
"CIA
headquarters would receive cables from operatives in the field asking for
authorization for specific techniques." Can we beat up this guy? Can we
waterboard him?
The Bushies weren't otherwise known for dwelling on details. Osama was in
Pakistan; they invaded Afghanistan instead. Two years later, he was still in
Pakistan. They invaded Iraq. Bush and his top officials still found time to
walk
through every step of torment a detainee would suffer in some CIA dungeon
halfway around the world.
"The high-level discussions about these 'enhanced interrogation techniques'
were
so detailed, [Bush Administration] sources said, some of the interrogation
sessions were almost choreographed--down to the number of times CIA agents
could
use a specific tactic. These top advisers signed off on how the CIA would
interrogate top Al Qaeda suspects--whether they would be slapped, pushed,
deprived of sleep or subjected to simulated drowning, called waterboarding,
sources told ABC news."
Bush knew.
Not only did he know, he personally approved it. He likes torture.
"Yes, I'm aware our national security team met on this issue," he confirmed.
"And I approved."
When the U.S. signs a treaty, its provisions carry the full force of U.S.
law.
One such treaty is the U.N. Convention Against Torture, of which the U.S. is
a
core signatory. As Philippe Sands writes in his new book "Torture Team:"
Parties
to the... Convention are required to investigate any person who is alleged
to
have committed torture. If appropriate, they must then prosecute--or
extradite
the person to a place where he will be prosecuted. The Torture Convention...
criminalizes any act that constitutes complicity or participation in
torture.
Complicity or participation could certainly be extended not only to the
politicians and but also the lawyers involved..."
George W. Bush has publicly confessed that he ordered torture, thus
violating
the Convention Against Torture. He, Cheney, Rumseld, Rice and the other
Principals must therefore be arrested and, unlike the thousands of detainees
kidnapped by the U.S. since 9/11, arraigned and placed on trial.
Because the torture ordered by Bush and his cabinet directly resulted in
death,
they must additionally be charged with several counts of murder. Fifteen
U.S.
soldiers have been charged with the murders of two detainees at the U.S.
airbase
at Bagram, Afghanistan in 2002. They were following orders issued by their
Commander-in-Chief and his Principals.
One of the Bagram victims was Dilawar, a 22-year-old Afghan taxi driver. "On
the
day of his death," reported The New York Times on May 22, 2005, "Dilawar had
been chained by the wrists to the top of his cell for much of the previous
four
days. A guard tried to force the young man to his knees. But his legs, which
had
been pummeled by guards for several days, could no longer bend... Several
hours
passed before an emergency room doctor finally saw Mr. Dilawar. By then he
was
dead, his body beginning to stiffen. It would be many months before Army
investigators learned a final horrific detail: Most of the interrogators had
believed Mr. Dilawar was an innocent man who simply drove his taxi past the
American base at the wrong time."
At least four detainees have committed suicide at the torture camp created
by
George W. Bush after 9/11 at Guantánamo Bay. Twenty-five more made 41
unsuccessful attempts to kill themselves. The conditions of their
confinement--ordered by Bush and his Principals--constitutes torture. It no
doubt prompted their deaths.
If George W. Bush were an ordinary citizen, there can be little doubt that
he
would face a long prison sentence for the scores of acts of torture he
authorized both specifically and generally. Four of the seven white
hillbillies
charged with the kidnap-torture of a black woman in Logan County, West
Virginia
are now in jail for at least the next ten years.
If Bush weren't president, he would face murder charges. The maximum
sentence in
a federal murder case is death.
If Bush and his co-conspirators are not above the law, if the United States
remains a nation where all citizens are equal, they must be arrested and
indicted. But by whom?
The Supreme Court has never resolved the question of whether a sitting
president
can be arrested by civilian authorities. Even if he were charged and
convicted,
many legal experts say he could issue himself a pardon.
However, leaving the presidency in the hands of an self-admitted torture
killer
is unacceptable. Congress could ask a U.S. Marshal to arrest Bush as part of
impeachment charges. But the ultimate outcome--removing him from office a
few
months before the end of his term--seems woefully inadequate given the
nature of
the charges. In any case, Democrats have already said that impeachment is
"off
the table."
Bush could be extradited to one of the countries where the torture and
murders
were committed--such as Afghanistan or Cuba. But he could claim immunity as
a
head of state.
There is, however, a person who could begin holding Bush and the others
accountable for their crimes.
She is Cathy L. Lanier, the 39-year-old chief of D.C.'s Metropolitan Police
Department. Chief Lanier, take note: you have probable cause to arrest a
self-confessed serial torturer and mass murderer within the borders of the
District of Columbia. He resides at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Go get him.
History is calling, Chief Lanier. Your city, and your country, needs you.
(Ted Rall is the author of the book "Silk Road to Ruin: Is Central Asia the
New
Middle East?," an in-depth prose and graphic novel analysis of America's
next
big foreign policy challenge.)
V-for-Vendicar
> Are you suggesting that RepubliKKKans are going to give AmeriKKKa a third
> gift of war just before they leave office.
"Steve Thomas" <misled...@aol.com> wrote
> Im hope so. If its the only way to stop them from getting nuclear
> weapons, im all for it.
I'm hoping so too. It will mean the end of the RepubliKKKan party for all
time.
V-for-Vendicar
"Steve Thomas" <misled...@aol.com>
> Never said that was his defense.
Sure you did. You are just too stupid to remember.
Bush Death Watch: Countdown!
It's official: Less than one year until history slaps Dubya to the
curb.
Can you feel the tingle?
By Mark Morford, SF Gate Columnist
It's just that kind of feeling, that sense of hesitant, embryonic
optimism, the sense that says, oh my God, we as a culture and a
smash-mouthed, war-hammered society really are fast approaching
something
possibly, potentially, heart-achingly new and different and - because
it
cannot get any worse - just a little bit better.
Here is my suggestion: Mark your calendars, set your watch, program a
celebratory ringtone well in advance, because the countdown has
officially
begun.
It is now less than one calendar year until the next presidential
election. It is less than one year until the country finally takes a
deep
breath and flexes its atrophied muscles and opens its bloody,
Cheney-punched mouth and lets it be known to the world, to the
universe,
to its own numb and dejected soul just exactly how unwell it has felt,
how
much pain has raked its heart, lo, these past seven (eight, by then)
years, by ushering in an entirely new political era, as we all exhale
a
massive sigh of long overdue relief that - praise Jesus, Allah, Buddha
and
the devil all at once - the long national nightmare of George W. Bush
is
finally over.
It is now safe to imagine. It is now becoming increasingly easy to
actually dare to think that, in less than one year's time, Dubya will
begin packing his bags, jamming into his Spongebob duffel his map of
the
world coloring book, English-to-English translation dictionaries,
mangled
pocket edition of the U.S. Constitution, Bibleman action figure set
and a
"Mission Accomplished!" sweatshirt, and heading off to face his
destiny as
one of the bleakest, most morally repellent chapters in all of
American
history.
You think maybe it's too soon? Too early to let the tingle of
positivism
and hope take hold? Far from it. After all, the signs of decay and
utter
GOP desperation keep pouring in. For example, it has now been
officially
recorded in history what everyone already knows: Bush is nearly
exactly as
unpopular as Richard Nixon was at his lowest point, and no president
in
history has had as long a streak at the bottom of the job-approval
rankings as Dubya. Heckuva job, Bushie!
What's more, the glorious collapse of the evangelical Christian right
marches on apace, as Pat Robertson, now a dejected, lonely widower
after
the death of secret boy-toy husband Jerry Falwell, has officially
endorsed
pro-choice, pro-gay, thrice-married, massively unbalanced moral pit
bull
Rudy Giuliani for president, which is a bit like a militant vegan
endorsing Hot Dog on a Stick for the title of Lord of the Food Court.
Desperate times indeed.
But wait, it gets better. While it's easy to focus on Shrub and Cheney
and
to gleefully, achingly imagine their dreary march out of office on
that
happy day, it is also vital and heartwarming to note that this time
next
year will also mark the demise of an entire army of toxic leaders,
federal
department heads, gay-bashing appointees and misogynist directors of
every
stripe and scandal and spittle, a simply huge array of right-wing
Bushies
who are still entrenched in all manner of powerful federal bureaus and
organizations and policy-making bodies.
It's true. Despite how a huge hunk of hideous GOP policymakers lost
their
seats during the last congressional election, plenty more appointees
are
still around to poison the well. From Kevin Martin, the lackey who
oversees the FCC, to noxious Idahoan and rabid anti-environmentalist
Dick
Kempthorne of the Department of the Interior, to anti-choice
Republican
Mormon knucklehead charity scammer and Department of Health and Human
Services overseer Mike Leavitt, and on and on - in a year, all on
their
way out.
Oh, and one more deserves special attention. Because one year from now
will also be the glorious political end of one Dr. David W. Hager, the
rabid evangelical Christian gynecologist (I know, so wrong) who
currently
advises the FDA on women's health issues and who was largely
responsible
for delaying the approval of Plan B, opposed RU-486, is in fact
against
all contraception, stem-cell research, premarital sex, and (quite
naturally) women's choice, and whose own ex-wife claims he anally
raped
her, over and over again, in her sleep.
Intelligent women nationwide still shudder that this man is allowed
anywhere near a living vagina, much less permitted to touch and probe
and
offer advice. But there is one noteworthy aspect to Hager; he is the
perfect incarnation of the Christian right's view of women as
subordinate,
lesser-intelligent sluts who cannot control their own bodies and
therefore
need men, God, and the government to do it for them. Hager is a deep
shame
to the male gender, and his return to the private practice of ruining
the
sex lives of unfortunate women in Kentucky cannot come soon enough.
But why write this column now, so far in advance of Bush's limp-tailed
departure? Simple enough: Because it will take a full year to get
ready.
It will take every month and every week and every single day from the
moment you read this until November 2008 to compile, to gather, to
list
all the names and all the horrors and all the deeply entrenched
policies
that are still clawing at the face of America as a result of Bush's
reign,
to fully get your mind around just how deep is the disease and how
widely
it has spread, so we may begin to excise the policies one by one like
the
malignant tumors they so very much are.
What, too strong? Not even close. Go read up on Hager, and get back to
me.
Ah, but perhaps you are one of the jaded ones, the non-believers, that
certain type of political bitterball who says, oh please, what does it
matter, they're all criminals and cretins and powermongers anyway, no
matter which party or president they work for? Get rid of BushCo and a
new
slew of cronies and cretins take their place, and who can tell the
difference?
To which I say, well, yes. But also, no. Sure, the system is corrupt
and
lopsided and full of backstabbing and backslapping and backroom
deal-making. So what? Has been since the first cavemen voted to see
who
gets to run the mammoth hunt.
Truth is, it's just far too easy to let the ennui wash over and not
give a
damn, to lump all politics into a phlegmball of nasty negativity and
be
done with it, thus entirely disregarding the efficacious issues, the
things that truly effect change and affect lives and improve or
degrade
the health of the planet. Outrage fatigue is simply unacceptable.
Intellectual apathy is the refuge of the lazy and the spiritually
malnourished. Do not let it happen to you.
Now is the time. The coming year will slide by rather quickly and the
feeling of urgent change and upheaval will only build and it doesn't
really matter if it's Hillary or Obama or Edwards leading the shift,
because no matter who gets the nod, they will require - from me, from
you,
from anyone who professes to care - a roiling tidal wave of
progressive
momentum behind them to help them cleanse and haul away the
overwhelming
mountain of moral fecal matter Bush has left behind.
Mark your calendar. Set your ringtone. Take a deep breath, feel the
wave
build, and then dive the hell in. Right now, it's the only option that
really matters.