Zack's Link Roundup - 3.31.05

Here's a question: Why do protesters demanding Terry Schiavo be kept alive in a vegetive state, usually only numbering in the couple of dozens get 24/7 coverage, interview after interview, yet two weeks ago, when 10's of thousands protested against our illegal occupation of Iraq and the murder of 100's of thousands of people based on lies got NO COVERAGE AT ALL, and NOT ONE INTERVIEW with a protester was seen?

Let that sink in for a minute when considering the state of our media and democracy.

I'll let Will Durst give a slightly more comic take on the "right to live fanatics"...whether that right means living as a vegetable or a fruit salad. This is funny...and a sign of the times that this is the news of the day as issues of real life and death are all around us and get no coverage at all. Here's Durst:
 
"Test poisonous toad cosmetics on my tongue. Lend me out as a large prone pincushion at a tattoo arts convention. Fit me with scuba gear, bury me naked with my butt sticking up and use it as a bicycle rack. I don’t care. Let me live. That’s Will’s living will. And if I do sink into a coma or become completely brain dead, someone try and remember to hook me up to an IV drip of pure caffeine, because I don’t want to miss a thing."
 
Bang! This guy just did it! The way to beat the Repubs! Ask them all a simple question, "Are you with Tom Delay or against him?" Answer the question!!  Everyone on this list for very long knows i've been advocating this for two years...make Delay the face of the Republican party, force them all to defend him, and talk about him every god damn chance you get...why, because he runs their party! Here's a clip:
 
"Tom DeLay never speaks during Republican conventions, even though he is the House Majority Leader and the most powerful Republican in Congress. Do you think that's a coincidence? Of course not. They know the American people wouldn't be comfortable with DeLay's extreme views. So they hide him in the dark corners of their party. It's time to bring him out into the light. If you're with Tom DeLay, great. Stand next to him and be proud. If you don't agree with him, prove it. If you're against his policies, then vote against them. Why are Blue States tolerating so-called moderate Republicans who keep voting with their hard right wing compatriots? Make them accountable. Unless they renounce the extremists who have taken over their party, there should be no Republican left standing in the Blue States."
 
Krugman nails it on the Schiavo case...Delay was right, this is an example of what's happening in this country, he just had the problem wrong. Indeed, we are headed in the direction of Israel, where extremists will target, intimidate, and kill those that oppose them. Think of the fear already rampant among judges, doctors, and activists...America as we knew it, or thought we did, is dead. Here's Paul:
 
"America isn't yet a place where liberal politicians, and even conservatives who aren't sufficiently hard-line, fear assassination. But unless moderates take a stand against the growing power of domestic extremists, it can happen here....Yesterday The Washington Post reported on the growing number of pharmacists who, on religious grounds, refuse to fill prescriptions for birth control or morning-after pills. These pharmacists talk of personal belief; but the effect is to undermine laws that make these drugs available. And let me make a prediction: soon, wherever the religious right is strong, many pharmacists will be pressured into denying women legal drugs. And it won't stop there. There is a nationwide trend toward "conscience" or "refusal" legislation. Laws in Illinois and Mississippi already allow doctors and other health providers to deny virtually any procedure to any patient. Again, think of how such laws expose doctors to pressure and intimidation.We can't count on restraint from people like Mr. DeLay, who believes that he's on a mission to bring a "biblical worldview" to American politics, and that God brought him a brain-damaged patient to help him with that mission."
 
Huffington on the HUGE lost opportunity that the Schiavo case gave Democrats to clearly delineate the "values" debate, and the lines that divide extremists on the right (and sadly, a few on the left on this issue) and those on the moderate and left...who care about helping the living, not those who want to be left alone and die in dignity. here's arrianna:
 
"Instead of allowing themselves to be cowed by the fear of looking like they're coming down on the immoral side of the moral values debate, Democrats should snap out of it and demand that the president interrupt his next vacation and that Bill Frist hold another midnight session of Congress to address the moral disgrace of 45 million people with no health insurance and 36 million people living in poverty. This is the only way to reclaim the moral high ground."
 
Ivins on energy...what can I say, this is the issue of this century, and we're headed backwards at warp speed. The answers are right in front of us, the technologies exist to change directions right now, and the scientific world is unified on the solutions. Now take a look at Bush's energy bill! First, here's Ivins.
 
"It is possible with existing technology to build a car that gets 500 miles per gallon, but the Bushies won't even raise the CAFÉ (fuel efficiency) standards for cars coming out now. The trouble with the Bush plan to develop hydrogen cars is that while you can get hydrogen out of water, you have put energy in to get it out, so there's a net energy loss. Conservation is simply the cheapest and most effective way of addressing this problem. If you put a tax on carbon, it would move industry to wind or solar power. Wind power here in Texas is at the tipping point now ­ comparably priced. Our health, our environment, our economy and the globe itself would all benefit from a transition to renewable energy sources."
 
And, another devastating, and final refutation of the 2004 election results by a national coalition of statisticians and professors. Here's the summary of their findings...it wasn't the exit polls...the final tallies were altered. If you think this topic is getting old, then enjoy another devastating defeat in 2006, 2008, and for the rest of your lives.
 
And finally, David Corn, investigative reporter extraordinaire, gives us the scoop on the Weapons of Mass Destruction Report that was finally released. Here's Corn:
 
"When the intelligence committee released its report last summer, I asked Roberts if the public and relatives of US troops killed in Iraq deserved to know "whether this Administration handled intelligence matters adequately and made statements that were justified." He replied, "I have made my commitment, and it will be done." His promise was--oh-so shocking!--nothing but a maneuver to protect Bush's backside. Rockefeller and other Democrats are insisting Phase II be carried out. But Bush may benefit from the attempted cover-up. A President doesn't have to worry about troubling answers if no one asks the questions."
 
Here's a clip from a Schwarzenegger interview...I just thought you'd like to see inside the mind of this fraud. He's living in a dream world of image and ego. Its like Reagan revisited:
 
Schwarzenegger revels in the theatrics of the competition. "The whole thing is a big stage play," he said with amusement as he talked about his opponents. "They are all very important characters in this play, in order to carry out this play. It's wonderful. . . . Since they are all part of the play, you have to appreciate all those pieces and all those characters."
"And your role?" he was asked.
"Leading role," he said with a bright smile. "Above-the-title billing."
 
And a little more on our muscle headed groper...now trying to eliminate holiday's for workers...
 
"Don't go on Thursday. The doors to state offices will be locked for the holiday honoring Cesar Chavez. It's one of 13 official holidays that 200,000 state employees enjoy, along with a floating paid personal day that can be taken at their pleasure. But Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed eliminating two state holidays, eventually saving the state $17.6 million annually. In addition to eliminating two holidays, the administration also wants to be able to furlough state workers for up to five days during the year. That is on top of the radical changes in public employee pensions proposed by Schwarzenegger. He is advocating moving from a defined benefit system to a 401(k)-style plan. Employee unions believe they are being unfairly attacked with proposals that don't really solve the state's fiscal problems.
 
Delay and Jesus...two peas in a pod?This is funny.
 
CORRUPTION ­ DELAY ALLY PART OF ANOTHER INQUIRY: Already under investigation for extorting millions of dollars from Indian tribes in return for access to prominent conservative politicians, AP reports Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff "was at the center of an earlier inquiry that said his firm hadn't justified roughly $1.2 million it charged the Northern Mariana Islands." Abramoff, who has traded on his ties to President Bush and House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX), was the lead lobbyist for Seattle-based Preston Gates & Ellis when it worked on behalf of the islands to keep them free from certain federal labor and immigration laws during the last half of the 1990s. One audit concluded that about $1.2 million in government payments to Preston Gates was "not adequately supported." The charges included travel, telephone, photocopy, computer research, outside-professional fees and "$2,000 for a June 1996 golf tournament."
 
 
MEDICARE ­ THE NEEDIEST WON'T GET HELP: The new Medicare prescription drug bill is a boon to the pharmaceutical industry ­ but those who need help the most are unlikely to benefit. On Monday, the Bush administration sent "20 million applications to low-income people who might qualify for financial assistance." One problem: the form is so complex it's expected "fewer than 5 percent of the people [will] respond." James P. Firman, president of the National Council on the Aging, was even more pessimistic. Firman said, "[h]istorically, the response rate to mailings like this among low-income people has been 1 percent or 2 percent."


UNITED NATIONS...Don't Believe the Hype! The Right Wing and Media Spin is Bull
Yesterday, after weathering months of high-profile attacks, the United Nations finally had its proverbial day in court. The independent panel investigating the U.N.'s oil-for-food program, led by widely respected former U.S. Federal Reserve chief Paul Volcker, released its second report. Was Kofi Annan found to be complicit in the corruption that marred the oil-for-food program? Did his office try to cover up the abuses? Does anything in the report suggest that Kofi Annan should resign as secretary-general? To quote Annan himself: "Hell no." Now that these questions have been answered, Annan will be able to pursue his agenda of fundamental reforms.

KOFI ANNAN CLEARED OF ANY WRONGDOING: The bottom line: yesterday's report cleared Kofi Annan of all corruption charges and of "exercising any influence in the awarding of a program contract to the company that employed his son." Moreover, the panel concluded, there was no evidence that the U.N.'s internal procurement processes has been compromised nor was there evidence of improper influence. Indeed, the report's findings occasioned calls of support from the U.S. State Department and heads of state from around the world, including President Bush himself.

PRESSING FORWARD WITH REFORMS: The Volcker Committee did find that the U.N.'s initial inquiry into the matter was inadequate, and was highly critical of Kofi Annan's son, Kojo. At a press conference yesterday, Kofi Annan acknowledged and accepted those criticisms, announced disciplinary proceedings against the individuals found to have violated policy, and repeated his pledge to adopt the Volcker Committee's final recommendations. The U.N. also recently issued tough new guidelines for its international peacekeepers and launched a major staff overhaul, letting go of Annan's chief of staff, deputy chief of staff, and the scandal-plagued High Commissioner for Refugees. More importantly, Annan has pressed forward with his fundamental reform agenda, including changing the Human Rights commission so gross violators can no longer serve and issuing concrete recommendations on conflict resolution and peace-building.

INDEPENDENT INQUIRY FOR THEE, NOT FOR ME: Unlike the United Nations, which spearheaded an independent investigation of oil-for-food, the Bush administration has: 1) failed to properly investigate $8.8 billion in Iraqi oil revenues (twice the amount Saddam Hussein was thought to have gained from oil-for-food kickbacks) that the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority can no longer account for; 2) failed to organize an overarching, independent investigation into detainee abuse scandals at U.S. prisons, nearly a year after the Abu Ghraib photos were released; 3) declined to take part in the whistle-blower case against Custer Battles, the firm accused of defrauding U.S. taxpayers of $50 million in Iraq reconstruction funds; and 4) granted Halliburton early access to damning audits of its business practices in Iraq so it could scrub out the parts it didn't like.

RIGHT WING STILL TILTING AT WINDMILLS: Despite the fact that the panel exonerated both Kofi Annan and the U.N.'s internal procurement practices, the usual gang of right-wing attack dogs yesterday used the report to launch another round of feckless U.N.-bashing. Their persistent cheerleader, Sen. Norm Coleman (R-MN), issued a statement claiming that the report's findings "point to one, and only one, outcome: [Kofi Annan's] resignation." Even Sen. Coleman's hometown newspaper saw through the ruse. Today's Star Tribune editorial finds that the "weapon Coleman has chosen [to attack the United Nations], the Oil-for-Food Program, is a wimpy little toy. And no matter how much Coleman tries to make it look larger, that's what it will remain."