Thank Goodness the Writers are Back

Have I ever missed some good satire. You know the thing about satire, right? We laugh not because it's untrue, but because it's too true not to laugh at lest we cry.

In Other Words

I don't know if Jon Stewart wrote it, or his staff did, but this is -
Complete - devastasting - brilliant satire.
I'd say it's PG-13

No End In Sight

Now, lest you think this is another Michael Moore film (oh, see "Sicko," it'll make you sick) - it's not. As we get closer and closer to the threshold that makes this war truly on a par with Vietnam, which is to say that we go from 4,000 Americans dead to 40,000 - to say nothing of Iraqis whose numbers of causalities are incalculable, before we decide we just need to stop and get out - you know like 10 years from now, there are voices of dissent speaking up to say, "for the love of God, please stop."

Amazingly enough, these are voices of those who've been a part of the beginnings of the story. I find it extraordinarily American, and while it enrages me, strangely, it gives me hope.

KO's Special Comment - July 3, 2007

I'm just linking, not posting the whole video - hey I'm on holiday, what you want from me?

If you didn't see Keith Olbermann Tuesday, here it is, eloquent, biting, strangely appropriate, fundamentally constitutionally American.

Hit the link and wait out the commerical - Special Comment

War in Perpetuity

Either we'll succeed, or we won't succeed. And the definition of success as I described is sectarian violence down. Success is not, no violence. There are parts of our own country that have got a certain level of violence to it. But success is a level of violence where the people feel comfortable about living their daily lives. And that's what we're trying to achieve. President George W. Bush

Say What?

I truly don't know where to start with this one.

There are many issues running here.

But the thought that continues in me is that just when I think we can't slide any further down the slippery slope that this war has brought us, I find that I'm wrong.

The cynical side of me (which I freely admit too often dominates my thinking) can easily lead me to the darker places of the soul. Could it be that, in part, a perpetual war keeps the war industrial machine fed and maintains an oil supply issue that will always keep the price per barrel high enough, for long enough, that we no longer think that what we're paying at the pump is too high?

To be sure, on a global scale, what we pay isn't too high - but when $3.00/gallon feels o.k., guess who benefits? And guess who is harmed?

And, if my cynicism carries a bit further down the road, that this administration is, without dispute, in bed with those who benefit from such a scenario, is, I'm sure, only coincidence.

But there's another side to this quote that I can't get past.

"..success is a level of violence in which people feel comfortable living their daily lives."

Nothing reveals the heart more than this.

The day we accept any level of violence is the day we are no longer working for the coming of the Realm of God in it's fullness.

And as long as there is a level of violence we're o.k. with, wars with continue, violence in this country will persist, and the makers of such tools will get richer.

So, rhetoric once again masks larger agendas, only now, it's so absurd, it's as if they're not even trying any more because they know that we know it's a bunch of crap, and we can't do anything about it.

Through my eyes, it's just that simple.

War Games

The following is an email exchange between Sarah and me.

I'm a big fan of hers.

She's a PK, like me, and when she was in Memphis she occupied a seat in the very back of the sanctuary. I could always count on a word from her, via email, to encourage and challenge me. I've always had a sense that she and I are resonant spirits.

Now that she's moved, our contact is only through email, and she still challenges me. We have a continuing e-dialogue on matters of physical health and spiritual health.

It is with her permission that I share our most recent exchange.

Hi Johnny!

This is totally off-topic, but I’m in a county in South Carolina that prepares the few, the proud, the Marines and my neighbor is a Marine fighter pilot and I’m a life-long Doonesbury fan and I’ve gotten sucked into the blogs in the Sandbox, which are somehow attached to Doonesbury.

Some things stand out from these blogs – we have absolutely no idea what they are doing every day.

This war is unlike any other. It is more like inner city gang warfare than an occupying country rebuilding another country. And the news does not paint the story. The president (of course) does not paint the story.

These blogs – written by some very eloquent and talented writers – make the war close and real in a way CNN and even the split second news of the internet does not. I am shaken to my core by the things they say.

Another thing that seems to recur in their blogs is complaints about the inadequacy of their uniforms – never would have thought about it. But they must wear uniforms at all times – but that leaves them freezing sometimes. One guy purchases his own Under Armour underwear because it protects him from the fires he has to work in – but they constantly get stolen in the laundry. Things I never would have thought of –

The biggest thing that has changed for me is that these writers could be me – they seem liberal, they are educated, they are thoughtful, they are whimsical. They aren’t the redneck or thug, uneducated, super right-wing, NRA we love George W crew I thought they were.

And the President is going to enjoy Christmas before he makes any new plans for Iraq? How is that possible? These are real people he’s leaving over there – without access to a good beer for Christmas, a tacky holiday sweatshirt, or even a Silent Night for reflection – and he’s going to get through the holidays before he does anything? How is that possible?
Peace.
Sarah
_________

Hey Sarah,

Per usual, you prick the stuff of my soul.

This one is easy. It's either one of three things.

One, W. believes he is the equivalent to the Old Testmament kings - that is, to be hand picked by God (which might actually be so since I'm fairly sure the voters didn't elect him, especially in 2000, and from what I've seen on the HBO documentary, "Hacking Democracy," he lost in '04, too), and that he need not have the mandate of the populus. Rather, he lives under the delusion that he has a Divine Mandate.

Two, this is the equivalent of a little boy playing with his army men (something I quite enjoyed as a boy, myself). But he's not playing with plastic army men, it's real, and he doesn't know how to end the game - except that he's too darned stubborn to quit.

Or Three, he's playing Stratego in real life, and stinks at it.

In an interview with ABC news, he's been quoted as stating that he "sleeps better than most people assume." Nothing could communicate the disconnect of a Commander in Chief out of touch with the real life issues on the ground more than that.

God help us all.
JJ

_____

On his ranch-throne, where he sleeps well, and will prepare to celebrate Christmas, I wonder if his well-protected motorcade will pass any day laborers and think of the day laborers lured to the car bomb or how close that bomb was to one of our stations where American men and women were getting ready to start their day? This war is so real and he is so disconnected from the reality of the majority of the world. He has never known anything but privilege. He never fought war, he never worked hard to get advancement, get into school, make the grade, etc. He never had to work himself out of his own messes. And I think that is why he is able to continue to play with plastic army men – we are all disposable for him, just like everything else in his life has been. So he can restrict what the soldiers wear, what they eat and drink, and let chance and zealots determine how many more of them will die, and tuck himself into bed at night able to believe that they’re all proud to be serving their president. We’ve let our military fall into a position that will be virtually impossible to come out of cleanly. I think it’s a combination of all three – he’s pre-ordained to be the president, proudly leading the country through this troubling time and this fight against terror, but he doesn’t know a thing about strategy, the American soldier, or the American people. His disconnect is so severe he doesn’t even recognize the hand melting the little plastic army men is his own.

Do you also get the feeling that some of the problems we’re having in Iraq stem from W. trying to prove to Senior that he can do what his daddy couldn’t? And now that Senior’s understanding of the fine line he walked in 1991 has been proven true, do you think W is being a stubborn teenager who refuses to admit that he was wrong? I read something recently about the Bush clan’s need for loyalty – but how W. broke from daddy in bringing Rumsfeld along for the ride and in going back to Iraq. Could his inability to change course be a grossly over-blown example of my dad and brother stubbornly arguing over the proper way to (fill in the blank)?

He makes my stomach hurt.

Sarah

____________

Mine too, girl - Mine too.

KO Special Comment - "The Lessons of Vietnam"

For folks without cable.

Civics class is back in session.

KO's Special Comment - "Who Owes the Apology?"

In the wake of diversionary tactics that often cloud what is, in the end, essential in matters of determining the future of the republic,

the monopoly of power and it's perpetuation at any cost,

and finally, the debasement of all that is noble in democracy,

I offer this embed video of Keith Olbermann's Special Comment last night. It comes via YouTube.com and is offered in two parts.

I Beg Your Pardon? You Stepped in What?

Just when you think it can't be any worse than it is, watch this.



Well - they did. And W. signed it. Done deal.

We have now officially codified as the norm the very thing this country fought to gain independence from in the late 1700's. Back when I originally wrote "King W.," in November of 2004, I guess I never really thought we'd let things go this far.

What's that old saying, "we become what we most depise?" Well for all of you faithful subjects of

W. the President,

be reminded, as John Dominic Crossan explains, "you can't have an Empire and a Democracy at the same time, at least not for long." So, you folks have a new song to sing - no longer "God Bless America," but - - -

God save the king.

It Takes a Real Man to Say "I'm Lost."

October, 2006

More U.S. troops have died in Iraq this month than in any one month period over the previous two years.

Over 600,000 Iraqis have died in the war.

American Civil Liberties are now no longer at risk, they have been "legally" absconded through the "Military Commissions Act."

In a recent interview, the President said that Iraq could become like Vietnam - which means for him, I guess, that 55,000 more troops need to die, and God knows how many Iraqis, before we decide our mission is truly accomplished.

Of course, Vietnam comparisons really ought to be tough for George and Dick - They wouldn't know very much about that, would they?

Deferral in the face of personal involvement - they got that one cold.



As I lay awake in the wee hours this morning, it occurred to me that "stay the course" is just a geo-political way of never being able to say "I'm lost."

Having been in situations, more than once, when I was lost, and too damned proud to ask directions, whom did I get mad at?

My wife, of course -

who told me that I should just pull over and ask directions.

The problem with her "logic" is that it means I have to admit not only that I'm lost, but that I need the counsel of someone else to help get me out of the mess I've made for myself. A mess complicated even more by the fact that had I been honest about being lost many miles earlier, it wouldn't be so hard to get back where I need to be.

That makes sense, doesn't it?

But what do I do? Blame the person who points out the obvious with hope that we could get back on track.

Of course, I guess I'm taking my life into my own hands by confronting the guy who can declare me an "enemy combatant" and throw me into jail without charging me or giving me a chance to defend myself.

This is what we've come to?

For shame, America. For shame.

Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16.18

KO's Special Comment on 9/11 - "This Hole in the Ground"

KO again.

Not to be missed.

You don't have to like him - I find his courage remarkable, and his skill to communicate something to admire and worthy of emulation.

My previous posts on KO reveal my appreciation for his skill. But on this day, it is his keen, clear insight that is so poignant.

As a linguist, I think he's masterful. I'm left wondering whether to shout "Amen, brother," or "O my God, I can't believe he said that," or, to hearken back to my Western Kentucky roots, "Holy Shit!"

You Say "To-may-to," I Say "To-mah-to," You Say "Alternative Questioning Methods", I Say "Torture," Let's Call the Whole Thing Off!

When I was a kid, my friend, Mark, would drive me crazy.

See, he never lost at any game we'd play. Ever.

You might say, "he didn't like to lose." Who does?

You might say, "he's just that good at whatever we played."

In which case, I'm a sore loser, and should just get over it.

I say, "he changed the rules as he played so that he was always right."

Oh yes he did.

So, after a while, I just didn't want to play anymore.

Why bother?

The game no longer mattered if Mark's victory was insured based not upon our common understanding of the game being played, but the contrived rules created "on the fly" to serve his advantage.

Yesterday, the President gave a "declassification" speech, in which he admitted to that which has been reported for months but never acknowledged. That being, the CIA has been holding terror suspects in secret prisons. He never uttered the word "torture," but he did give that "wanted: dead or alive" attitude when he used the words "alternative questioning methods."

And then, he had the audacity to push Congress into the passing laws making what this Administration has been doing legal, which makes the point, doesn't it? It hasn't been!

Shock.

The inevitable counter is that people like me are stuck in "pre-9/11" thinking.

And they're right. Yeah, I'm stuck in that 1791 Bill of Rights thinking.

And this is whole point.

The courageous thing is to live up to the ideas that define us, rather than let those who would do us harm redefine our realities.

Why, in God's name, do we become what we most despise?

From the standpoint of the Christian faith, the same holds. How is it that we can so easily relegate our faith to what happens on Sunday and not understand it's mettle is tested by what we live with throughout the rest of the week?

As an American, as a Christian, when is torture o.k.? How does that make sense. Ever.

What, in my Christian faith, makes that o.k.?

Is it expedient? Sure.

Is it beneath us? Absolutely.

He is credited as being a "man of principle," I'm wondering which principle he's keeping.

“It is often easier to fight for principles than to live up to them.” Adlia Stevenson