"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."
- Martin Luther King, Jr.
Concerning the possibility of occupying Baghdad & installing a "puppet regime" in 1991:
"How long would we have to stay there to keep this regime in power? How effective would it be if it were perceived as the puppet regime of the United States military? It gets to be a very difficult, a very nebulous, a very long, drawn-out kind of commitment, what I would describe as a quagmire. We have absolutely no interest in getting U.S. military forces involved inside Iraq."
- Former Secretary of State Dick Cheney
"Let us beg to differ / As we set aside our differences / And assemble our own army / To disarm this weapon of mass destruction / That we call our president / For the present."
- Eminem, "Mosh"
"The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions, that I wish it always to be kept alive."
- Thomas Jefferson
" "The President is merely the most important among a large number of public servants. He should be supported or opposed exactly to the degree which is warranted by his good conduct or bad conduct, his efficiency or inefficiency in rendering loyal, able, and disinterested service to the nation as a whole. Therefore it is absolutely necessary that there should be full liberty to tell the truth about his acts, and this means that it is exactly as necessary to blame him when he does wrong as to praise him when he does right. Any other attitude in an American citizen is both base and servile. To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public. Nothing but the truth should be spoken about him or any one else. But it is even more important to tell the truth, pleasant or unpleasant, about him than about any one else."
- Theodore Roosevelt, on criticizing President Wilson during WWI - May 7th, 1918 - Kansas City Star
For some fool reason, we have plans to go to the Strip tonight. Us, and 300,000+ tourists. We're dumb.
This year ends on a mixed note. We have an administration slow, if ever, to respond to human tragedy. This must be based on the conservative view that the poor and downtrodden somehow deserve their fates and that the wealthy need not assist them. In any case, our contribution to the tsunami relief is up to $350 million due to the pressures of the world against our vacationing leader. Dramatic scenes of the devastation to the land there available here.
Other failures. Missile defense is still a sham. Violence in Iraq escalates. The fight to screw the American people on Social Security, tax "reform", and various civil rights will continue into next year.
With all that, let's hope for a better year nonetheless. To all those in danger across the world, our thoughts are with you. To the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, keep your heads down and come home soon. To those here at home, wherever that may be, Happy New Year and best wishes for a better tomorrow.
And Brenda and Brent, have a great wedding day from the both of us.
Comments