Thursday, October 04, 2007

Fifty Years Ago


A Russian scientific and engineering achievement jolted America out of a rut and started the world on a new course to explore the heavens.

Today we learn that our Attorney General who just resigned approved of secret legal memos condoning torture. I link to Digby instead of the NYT because she has the proper outrage. Join Democrats who are joining the American Freedom Campaign:
"We are Americans, and in our America we do not torture, we do not imprison people without charge or legal remedy, we do not tap people's phones and emails without a court order, and above all we do not give any President unchecked power.

"I pledge to fight to protect and defend the Constitution from attack by any President."
Fifty years ago we worried that Russia would conquer us and whoever was ruling us would set up torture camps and disregard the Constitution and Bill of Rights. Silly us, Fascism always comes wrapped in the flag and carrying a Bible. You might want to see also these articles about the dark Blackwater mercenaries and their Christo-Republican ties.

Someone asked me the other day what to do about the coming foolish unnecessary war with Iran. My only answer was to buy stockpiles of food and gasoline, gold and bicycles.

Those who pay attention to this administration are coming to the same conclusion, and here - an attack on Iran is inevitable and a disaster. We are being eased into a limited strike for national security reasons and then we will have dead American soldiers and then we will get a successful appeal to unite and strike again at the enemy.

BTW, just for my critics, I know Iran is bad but us attacking Iran is what every enemy of the United States wants us to do. Attacking Iran makes as much sense as us nuking China in the Korean War, or invading Cuba, or nuking North Vietnam, all actions urged by the militant far right at the time. Actions that would have been disasters. We won the Cold War by being smart and successful and inspiring the world to be more like us. We are losing Iraq because no one wants to be like what we have become and Iran will be Iraq multiplied ten-fold.

More history blogging soon. A whole lot of smiles and cheers at city hall when Jack Douglas was sworn in as the new Mayor in Pasadena. I told you there was a reason Manlove did not announce his resignation there.

PS, Wolcott reminds me I am on the wrong side of this issue financially. Writers who advocate war, even when spectacularly wrong like Jeffrey Goldberg and many others, are always richly rewarded.

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