The corruption is a result of the American public's apathy and unwillingness to hold, not just the officials who are in charge of these projects, but the media that covers for them. I don't have the answers, but think that it is going to take a concerted effort of informing the media, day in and day out, of these and other stories, that are not being covered. I also feel that sites like this one, as they become more popular with those of us frustrated with the lies of commission and omission by the MSM, will begin to attract those former TV news believers who are weary of the yelling and over talking that passes for political commentary.

I know it is not easy to keep the faith, but that is what we are charged with here. I really appreciate the high level of commentary and awareness I see here, and know that we are the ones who are making the greatest difference in bringing this country and this planet to Peace.

I honor and respect so many of you, and wish you great peace, harmony and joy. Keep laughing til they start to wonder what is so funny.

May Peace Prevail on Earth,
St. John

Korn, Don't you think it is time to do America a favor and stop taking vacations? If you cared about America you would stop burning up all that gasoline and jet fuel. Those poor kids in Georgia can't even go to school because of you people.

BTW, John McCain has a better chance at becoming President than Bill Frist. Why doesn't he get any press?

Dave,

Keep doing what you are doing. You are motivation to persue truth.

You are a rare commodity, and one this country seriously needs.

Our media seems to have taken a few steps back from the really serious issues of our time, in favor of innundating us with the same film day after day after day.

I started my day with MSNBC and saw Hurricane, hurricane, hurricane, hurricane, (cindy sheehan arrested and man handled in front of the White House) Hurricane, hurricane, hurricane.

Then I checked out CNN.......same.

This is not News, this is Snews (spun news).

Pablum for the masses.

Am I the only one who has noticed that Fox broadcasting seems to be at war with itself?????

Anyone watch Arrested Development???? Watch a few episodes of Fox News, then catch Arrested Developement. It's a very conflicted network.

I continue to believe that the American public is not as stupid as our leaders seem to think. It's not easy, but I do.

I watch C span a lot. Saw the Cindy demonstration, both my sons were There. It was massive, peaceful, and united for one cause. Both sons called and told me they were in the midst of "a sea of humanity". They both took pictures.

I watched C span the next day and saw a small band of yea sayers desperately trying to make a couple of hundred "demonstrators" look like a couple of hundred thousand. It was weak, and sad.G. Gordon Libby, of watergate fame was a featured speaker. Nuff said?

The fat lady aint even doing scales yet.

It ain't over.

Mr. David Corn,

"He is supposed to be president, not FEMA director"

You nailed it. Another good post.

Nothing surprising to find abuse of power in an illegal and criminal enterprise. There is more money missing than is accounted for in Iraq. More and bigger emergency spending bills digging all of us into a deeper hole.

This will continue. The yes people that surround the Coward from Crawford have convinced him he is right. God speaks through him so if anything goes wrong it is Gods fault. These neocons believe war and suffering will bring them closer to God.

I still ask, what are we going to do with a neochronic super-majority? How do we tackle the same old lies, the same retread slogans about "sour grapes," "it’s not a perfect system," and "the people have spoken" after the 2006 election?

Thanks

Kirk

When their cronies get caught, they cover up for 'em. Here's another example slipped under the table on us.

Demotion of a Prosecutor Is Investigated

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 - The Justice Department's inspector general and the F.B.I. are looking into the demotion of a veteran federal prosecutor whose reassignment nearly three years ago shut down a criminal investigation of the Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff, current and former department officials report.

Leave Cindy alone. She speaks for many.

She lost a child, what has this stupid war cost you?

THERE WERE NO WEAPONS OF MASS DISTRUCTION, besides the Bush Administration.

For a Republican, he spends like there is no tomorrow. I find it difficult to believe that Republicans are even behind this wing nut.

FEMA needs to go back to what it was, so does the National Guard.

We saw what sending the guard to Iraq cost us as a Nation.

Who made that call?

When?......Why?

Speaking of corruption, I think this column by Frank Rich of the NYT is a good one.

David, I think your next book should be the outiing of all of the corruption of this administration - put out right before the election.

Have a great day everyone.

Here's another good one...

Demotion of a Prosecutor Is Investigated

If you were listening to Thom Hartmann on his widely syndicated radio
program today, you know he was breathing fire in opposition to John
Roberts. You also know from your own experience that the primary toll-free
telephone number for Congress (877-762-8762) is mysteriously and
suddenly out of commission with just a fast circuit busy signal (try it
yourself), even in the middle of the night. Yes, Thom thought that was
extremely odd also, especially with so many of us calling to declare our
strong opposition to John Roberts.

WHAT WE MUST NOW DO is create a permanent record of this situation and
use that to generate even more messages and phone calls to the Senate
in the next 24 hours. If you are a member of any BLOGS go to ALL of
them overnight and start a new thread or article, and/or leave a comment
on an existing one. In your own words there are three simple key points
we need to make in any order you like:

1) Whether we have in fact overloaded the primary toll-free number with
our calls or whether someone deliberately cut the line to slow down the
calls, it is in FACT down now.

2) There is a growing ground swell of opposition to the stealth
reactionary Roberts that can no longer be ignored.

3) To take action there are two alternative toll-free numbers still
working, 888-818-6641 and 888-355-3588, plus an action page that will give
you all the direct phone and fax numbers of your own senators,
http://www.millionphonemarch.com.

A lot of grist for the mill today David! Yes indeedy, the neocon dream seems to be turning into a nightmare of epic proportions. I saw a photo of bush yesterday that screamed "DRUNK!" If he's back on the bottle even he knows the end is near.
Robb, haven't heard much from you lately, been missin the good comments. It does seem strange that the number is down. But honestly I have given up trying to get through to those traitors. When they stop even sending form letters in acknowledgement of my letters, e-mails and faxes I realize they don't give a shit what we the people think. They couldn't even be bothered to show up at the DC protest that had been planned way in advance, they let AIPAC scare them away with threats of political retribution. I wonder, is that even legal? I wonder, can they be voted out, or has the "Diebold" been cast?

Hey Dave, back from ANOTHER vacation??? (hehe)

Well, one thing you missed, was Cindy Sheehan over at your buddy, Daily Kos, calling Hurricane Rita "some wind and rain" and whining that it was stealing HER coverage.

Of course....ODDLY....right after that, she decides to lay down on the sidewalk in front of the White House and get arrested....and AMAZINGLY...does NOT want to be bailed out?!?!!???!?

Hey Sal-

I have not had a lot of time of late to post, so I just lurk now and then. That post was something sent to me, so I just pasted it verbatim. I am probably as cynical as anyone, but I keep signing petitions and forwarding stuff and trying to do my little bit. I keep getting form letters back from Lindsay Graham politely saying he appreciates my comments but is going to continue voting for all of Bush's insane appointments and policies. DeMint, the other senator, and my representative don't bother to answer at all. I think that things are unfortunately going to have to get a lot worse before enough people get mad and active enough to get results on the election fraud and other issues. Even so, with people like Pelosi and Clinton rattling the sabers as loudly as the neocons, it is hard to imagine there will be much change even if Democrats gain a majority. It would really be a dissapointing shame if the balance of power shifted in '06 and nothing really changed.

Regards to all who post here -

Robb, given the dem behavior that is exactly what I expect. But since bush has tipped this country into bankruptcy the dems will have to tighten the purse strings, there is no more leeway for BS spending, especially if they don't pare that war machine down.

BTW, where does David say he was vacationing? I know he travels a lot for his work, lots of people do.

Hey David, There was a itsy bitsy get together of a few anti-bush people in Washington this weekend....in case you missed it. I realize being anti-Bush may not be something you want to support...ooops...that's right, you are anti-Bush! I know the fact that a coupla hundred thousand ordinary people from all over the country came to the nation's capital to protest, virgil, lobby, get arrested and march against the Bush administration is pretty small potatoes compared to some other stories of the day...but hey...how about a word or two? You can go here in case you missed it...and you certainly might have if you watched anything but the Lehrer Newhour last night: http://greyhairsblog.blogspot.com/

In the spirit of St. John's post, where he encourages us to laugh.

And in answer to favorite Songs of Protest, of which is difficult for me to chose just one.

I offer:

The Folk Song Army - Phil Ochs

One type of song that has come into increasing prominence in recent months is the folk song of protest. You have to admire people who sing these songs. It takes a certain amount of courage to get up in a coffee house or a college auditorium and come out in favor of the things that everybody else in the audience is against, like peace and justice and brotherhood and so on. But the nicest thing about a protest song is that it makes you feel so good. I have a song here which, I realize, should be accompanied on a folk instrument, in which category the piano does not, alas, qualify. So imagine, if you will, that I am playing an 88-string guitar!

We are the folk song army,
Every one of us cares.
We all hate poverty, war, and injustice
Unlike the rest of you squares.

There are innocuous folk songs, yeah,
But we regard 'em with scorn.
The folks who sing 'em have no social conscience,
Why, they don't even care if Jimmy Crack Corn.

If you feel dissatisfaction,
Strum your frustrations away.
Some people may prefer action,
But give me a folk song any old day.

The tune don't have to be clever,
And it don't matter if you put a couple extra syllables into a line.
It sounds more ethnic if it ain't good English
And it don't even gotta rhyme... (excuse me: rhyne!)

Remember the war against Franco?*
That's the kind where each of us belongs.
Though he may have won all the battles,
We had all the good songs!

So join in the folk song army!
Guitars are the weapons we bring
To the fight against poverty, war, and injustice.
Ready, aim, sing!

Yeah well, I told you I couldna' stop at one; being one of those kids whose parents took me to see the Weavers, ya know, Pete Seeger, Lee Hays, Ronnie Gilbert & Eric Darling when I was around 4 years old.

So, I may have heard a protest tune or two in the interim. Hell, I seen protest songs sung in actual protest, not just target singing.

I saw Peter, Paul & Mary on the steps of the U.S. Capitol, John Lennon in the streets of NYC, etc.

But, I gotta say, well, there is one thing I miss about the old protests, as opposed to the new protests.

There was somethin' in the air back then...

So I offer:

Talking Vietnam Pot-Luck Blues
(Tom Paxton)

Well when I landed in Vietnam
I hardly got to see Saigon
They shaped us up and called the roll
and off we went on a long patrol
Swappin' lies, swattin' flies,
firing the odd shot here and there

Captain called a halt one night
And we had chow by the pale moon light
A lovely dinner they planned for us
With a taste like a seat on the crosstown bus
Some of the veterans just left theirs layin' in the can
For the VietCong to find
Said it was deadlier than a land mine

Well naturally somebody told a joke
and a couple of fellows began to smoke
I took a whiff as a cloud rolled by
And my nose went up like an infield fly
Captain, he's a blonde fellow, went to Yale looked up at
me and said "What's a matter with you, baby" (you're supposed to
sound very ghetto at this point)

Well I may be crazy, but I think not;
I swear to God that I smell pot!
But who'd have pot in Vietnam?"
He said, "Whaddaya think you been sittin' on?"
These funny little plants....
Thousands of them.
Good God Almighty!
Pastures of plenty!

So we all lit up and by and by
The whole platoon was flying high
With a beautiful smile on the captains face
He smelled like midnight on St. Marks Pl.
Crackin' jokes, cleaning his weapon,
chanting something about Hari Krishna, Hari Krishna

Well the moment came
as it comes to all
That I had to answer nature's call
I was stumbing around in a beautiful haze
When I met a little cat in black pj's
He had a rifle, BF Goodrich sandals,
Looked up at me and said "What's the matter with you, baby"
(sounding just like the captain)

He said we're camping down the pass
And smelled you people blowing grass
And since, by the smell, you're smoking trash
I brought you a taste of a special stash
Straight from Uncle Ho's victory garden
We call it Hanoi Gold.

So his squad and my squad settled down
Passed some lovely stuff around
All too soon it was time to go
Captain got on the radio
Said hello headquarters, headquarters
We have met the enemy and they have been smashed.

***********************

Whooops, My Apologies to both Phil Ochs and Tom Lehrer.

It was Tom Lehrer who wrote "Folk Song Army." I just got confused in my haste to share a number, as it were. Ah, well.

Phil gave us many others, this is one of them:

Oh, I'm just a typical American boy from a typical American town
I believe in God and Senator Dodd and a-keepin' old Castro down
And when it came my time to serve I knew "better dead than red"
But when I got to my old draft board, buddy, this is what I said:

CHORUS
Sarge, I'm only eighteen, I got a ruptured spleen
And I always carry a purse
I got eyes like a bat, and my feet are flat, and my asthma's getting worse
Yes, think of my career, my sweetheart dear, and my poor old invalid aunt
Besides, I ain't no fool, I'm a-goin' to school
And I'm working in a DEE-fense plant

I've got a dislocated disc and a wracked up back
I'm allergic to flowers and bugs
And when the bombshell hits, I get epileptic fits
And I'm addicted to a thousand drugs
I got the weakness woes, I can't touch my toes
I can hardly reach my knees
And if the enemy came close to me
I'd probably start to sneeze

I'm only eighteen, I got a ruptured spleen
And I always carry a purse
I got eyes like a bat, and my feet are flat, and my asthma's getting worse
Yes, think of my career, my sweetheart dear, and my poor old invalid aunt
Besides, I ain't no fool, I'm a-goin' to school
And I'm working in a DEE-fense plant

Ooh, I hate Chou En Lai, and I hope he dies,
Onething you gotta see
That someone's gotta go over there
And that someone isn't me
So I wish you well, Sarge, give 'em Hell!
Kill me a thousand or so
And if you ever get a war without blood and gore
I'll be the first to go

Yes, I'm only eighteen, I got a ruptured spleen
And I always carry a purse
I got eyes like a bat, and my feet are flat, and my asthma's getting worse
Yes, think of my career, my sweetheart dear, and my poor old invalid aunt
Besides, I ain't no fool, I'm a-goin' to school
And I'm working in a DEE-fense plant

The Voice of the White House

September 25, 2005: It now appears that all of the carefully laid plans of Karl Rove to establish a voting bloc that would guarantee Republican control of this country for decades to come have come a cropper. Bush was to be put forward as the candidate of the Religious Right because that group is organized and fanatic but even they are having serious doubt about the persona of Bush. Business supported him because he supported them in return for huge infusions of cash. Now, like the Christians, big business is moving away from Bush because of the economic disaster that he has created and can no longer control. The idea of setting Bush up as Our Protector Against Terrorists played well for a while but grew thin what with all the noise about pink days and green days but the utter disaster and collapse of authority in the wake of the two hurricanes in the Gulf have put paid to his momentum and what goes up, must come down. Private polls taken by staffers here indicate that Bush is below 20% (!) on the national approval list and staff members, eager to enhance their careers, are deserting and passing this information to Congressmen who are, predictably, reacting strongly to the possible loss of their very lucrative jobs. The President's staff is doing its best to keep this sort of rapid slippage from him because when Bush gets depressed, Bush gets drunk and staffers, and Cheney and Rove, are terrified lest Bush show up at a mandatory occasion, plastered enough to slur his already slurred speech or stagger into the garden or the hall and vomit. Bush is a binge drinker and no one knows if he has a bottle hidden in his desk or office safe and binge drinkers can certainly surprise their friends upon occasion. Coalitions, self-serving and survival oriented, are forming and this will be a reprise of the end of the Nixon administration, mark my words.
-------------
20% sounds about right.

Saladin... as much as I would like to believe it... I googled "Voice of the White House" and found this nugget... http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/5/4/15748/99064 I would not be surprised one whit if the VotWH report is in actuality true, it's just the messenger I'm wary of.

Greetings All,

Contact your congressperson or senator. Write, email or call lets get these people to start working for us. If enough people pressure them, they will get off their behinds and do something.
By the way, Saturday in Los Angeles was fantistic. Hope is on the rise.

David Corn is right that there is so much in the news. Several good articles to read on lewrockwell.com! A must read article is written by Karen Kwiatkowski, "It's Happening." You need to read this article by one of my favorite writers and another one of Jesus' disciples. The articles are for September 27, 2005.

A Torturous Silence

Several good articles on antiwar.com!

Bigger domestic role for the military

The American fascist state is completed.

The Perils of Patriotism

Gerald,

If the fascist state were completed, we wouldn't be here on this blog...

Since we are - we are aggresively trying to hold them off. Now, I'm certainly not arguing that we aren't dealing with fascists, we are and I've called tham such. But, don't dispair completely and say the fight is over. You might as well lay down and die.

The Republican rap sheet for the past week alone is staggering. Senate Majority Leader and 2008 GOP presidential hopeful Bill Frist is now in deep trouble for likely insider trading. Only days earlier, the senior Bush administration procurement official at the Office of Management and Budget David Safavian was arrested for lying and obstructing the criminal investigation of Republican mega-lobbyist Jack Abramoff. Later in the week, the Bush administration continued revving up its patronage machine even in the post-Michael Brown era, nominating unqualified political hacks and industry stooges for a senior post at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and leading investigations at the FTC.

For more on the epidemic of GOP corruption, cronyism and patronage, see:

"Banana Republicans."

#26 RS, you make a good point but we must remember that we are operating well inside enemy lines from our computer command posts. Each one of us is taking a chance with our posts. The fascists have recorded our posts and when the time comes, the gestapos will be upon us like stink on shit.

In about 45 minutes I will be off to have a late lunch or an early dinner with my cousin. He is the one whose immortal words I will always remember, "We came at the right time and we are leaving at the right time."

War is SUCH a waste of resources, unless you can plunder the nation you are invading. And THAT is hard to justify while pretending to bring democracy.

So we are spending billions we don't have to accomplish what? The history of pointing a gun at someone and saying "Be Democratic, or else" is abysmal.

Would have been a lot cheaper to buy Saddam's loyalty. We did that before, and it provided a stable Iraq as a good counter balance to Fundamentalist Iran. He had no WMD's. What he had was a "Beware of Dog" sign, and no dog. He wasn't trying to scare US, he was trying to scare Iran. His fatal error was depending on the sensability of the USA to do what was in our best interest.

This war was so wrong, on so many levels. He wasn't a threat. We killed a lot of people, including our own. We destroyed a lot of lives and property. We got stuck with the bill. And we used torture.

And the mess is getting worse. Worst President Ever.

#27 AvengingAngel, thank you for sharing the article with us. I have never seen as much overt corruption in the USA. These scoundrels do not even hide their corruptions.

#29 Tuba Les, thank you for your comments!

Each one of us is taking a chance with our posts. The fascists have recorded our posts and when the time comes, the gestapos will be upon us like stink on shit. Gerald

Uh, maybe. Life is a gamble, after all. Henry Kissinger cannot now travel in many European areas for fear of receiving the Pinochet reception. Let's hope the day dawns when we will watch these criminals in the dock at the Hague.

Or die trying.

AvengingAngel,
Good article.
Flan,
Thank your for the Frank Rich column. I am a begger. Don't want to pay NY Times.
Robb,
I put nothing past these Republican children. What we don't want to see, we don't look at. What we don't want to hear we don't listen to. We know what is best for us...er...the country.
I will do some phone calling, Robb.
Robert,
You should be watching the Bob Dylan special on PBS. It has all the old folk singers. It's directed by Scorsese. He also did the Last Waltz about the Band's last gig.

Tuba Les: There is good summary here of our lengthy disgrace and disaster in meddling with Iran and Iraq:

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/092605A.shtml

Brownie is blaming everybody and I mean everybody. George, he told you this was going to be a big one.
Ex-FEMA chief slams 'dysfunctional' Louisiana.
I love these timid titles. FEMA slams Louisiana. And then in the article it says.
"Former FEMA director Michael Brown aggressively defended his role in responding to Hurricane Katrina on Tuesday and blamed most coordination failures on Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco and New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin.

He also said that in the days before the storm, he expressed his concerns that 'This is going to be a bad one' in phone conversations and e-mails with President Bush, White House chief of staff Andy Card and deputy chief of staff Joe Hagin.

And he blamed the Department of Homeland Security, the parent agency for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, for not acquiring better equipment ahead of the storm."

I have a simple question: Why would the USA give 3 billion in aid to a country that spends more than any other country on the planet (per capita) on reported military spending? Numbers are HERE .

I am not an anti-Semite nor am I anti-military (not completely) but it seems our billions are buying their tanks and guns. That is not aid and if they really needed "aid" they could spend a bit less on their massive military.

capt

Capt,
I agree with you. They have spent their entire existance defending themselves militarily and now are paying the price. They too have right wing religious followers who are making demands on their government. The real issues are not being addressed. They have to learn to live with their neighbors.

Dahr Jamail has a new report out. In it he describes the pressure contractors are under, and the military are under in Iraq. He also writes about pressure from US on other counties to control bad press concerning United States.
More Dissent, More Censorship.

This is just another example of the Bush Co. showing a total lack of respect for the needs of the nation. It emphasises a lack of leadership at the top. Qualified people at the FDA are necessary for the health in the nation. It is, as is FEMA, an agency that puts the lives of people in the balence.
Think Progress.

Retiring FDA commissioner Lester Crawford had a reputation for pushing bunk right-wing science on behalf of anti-choice activists. Unfortunately, President Bush plans to replace Crawford with Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, who also has a reputation for pushing bunk right-wing science on behalf of anti-choice activists.

Von Eschenbach is currently the director of the National Cancer Institute. Within months of his appointment in 2002, the institute abruptly altered a fact sheet on its website that for years stated the absence of a link between abortion and breast cancer. Under von Eschenbach, the language was changed to suggest that tests disproving the abortion/breast cancer link were inconclusive.
This sent the scientific community into an uproar. Numerous studies, including a massive New England Journal of Medicine study of 1.5 million Danish women, have discounted any connection between abortion and breast cancer. Yet right-wingers continue to push the link as a way to frighten women considering having an abortion.

After enormous pressure, and a statement by 100 institute scientists, von Eschenbach backed down. Yet von Eschenbach’≥ promotion shows that the days of ideology trumping science at the FDA aren’¥ over. (Now it’≥ time for the media to pay attention —†not a single mainstream story on the FDA personnel changes has mentioned this controversy.)

Filed under: Culture, Privacy, Science
Posted by Nico at 10:22 am

I was horrified by the carnage with Katrina
and I feel so strongly that the head of FEMA
and Bush are so responsible for this. The
military finally showed up on Friday, 5 days
after Katrina was long gone. And now to find
out that Brown is not even gone, fired,
prosecuted, is so blatent. They have more
nerve than a gut wagon. Bush and Brown are
full of, ah brown, if you catch my drift.

Riff, thank you. Your link in 34 is very informative. Makes me think of Oliver and Hardy "Here's ANOTHER fine mess you have got us in".

Fuck David Corn. He's IRRELEVANT.

Well, Suzanne, I assume you have the equipment. *You* do it.

David, there is no reason to take any of this kabuki seriously when Libby's lawyer is saying he had no idea Judy was staying in jail because of their failure to supply an uncoerced permission.

They were lying to us. They are lying to us. They will be lying to us.

And, one thing that Washingtonians should know: There is life outside of Washington.

George Tenet is not dead and will doubtless make millions working for some socialistic, teat-sucking Republican security firm.

http://www.motherjones.com/commentary/columns/2005/09/katrina_and_cindy.html

I know my link's dont light. Id just as soon they didnt. But typed into an address bar they will get you where you should be.

Its always better to type the addy than to ride a link.