Democratic Underground Articles

Articles

JUNE 2003

June 2003 Cover Art Archive

Doomed To Repeat
June 28, 2003 · I wake up every morning hoping that it's all a bad dream. But by now it's evident that it's not. I try to tell myself that we are not living through the single most reactionary and outright dangerous period in America's brief, yet fascinating history. I try to tell myself that, as a left-leaning concerned citizen, that I would be this critical of any government right of center, but again, that's not true. I've never been so angry. By Ed Hanratty

Privatized Hell
June 28, 2003 · George Bush and his supporters wish to drown our government in a bathtub! They desire this, firm in the conviction that a disconnected aggregate of self-serving private individuals, in absolute control of their private property, will serve us better. Are you willing to allow these radical anarchists to try out this bold experiment on the rest of us? If not, what do you propose to do about it? By Ernest Partridge

Democracy: Quietly Passing Away
June 27, 2003 · Because George Bush is obviously the media's "charge to keep," John Ashcroft is allowed to rise from morning prayer fests and move freely beneath the national radar - unapologetic, hard-eyed, a man on a mission to dismantle the civil liberties of Americans, and bestow astonishing unchecked powers on himself. By Sheila Samples

Chirac, Not Blair, is the Choice to Lead Europe
June 27, 2003 · You might not have heard about it, but there's been a leap in popularity for the French. Don't do a double-take. I'm talking about outside of America, and especially within the borders of the European continent. By Joseph D. Johnson

The Captured Media
June 27, 2003 · Bush may have $200 million in cash for the campaign and a captured press, but the Truth can only be hidden by a people that allows it to be so. Fight back in the blog comment threads, talk to all the people you know, donate time and money, write to the media. By Joseph Arrieta

David Brinkley's Real Legacy
June 26, 2003 · Brinkley's softball questions and a "wide-ranging" panel that stretched from the right all the way to center served as the model for Fox News Sunday and other talking-airhead shows. By Dennis Hans

Incredible Shrinking WMDs
June 26, 2003 · We have sacrificed the lives of almost two hundred of our best and bravest. We have caused the deaths of thousands of Iraqi civilians. We have found no weapons of mass destruction. By Bridget Gibson

The Masque of the Green Death
June 25, 2003 · To what destination are the conservative movement's policies supposed to lead? And why are they letting the mask slip at this time? Are they so confident that they will succeed that they no longer care? By Richard Girard

T-Shirt Justice
June 25, 2003 · When you hear the words "Benton Harbor" what might come to mind is an elegant town with scenic marinas, manicured lawns and beautiful homes. But not many were familiar with the real town of Benton Harbor until last week, when national television beamed "breaking news" footage of homes engulfed in flames while angry African-American residents threw rocks and bottles at the Benton Harbor police. By Wilhelmina Sims

When Reality Bites, Bite Back Harder
June 24, 2003 · Reality television keeps us diverted. It manipulatively focuses our attention on inconsequential rather than serious absurdities, such as aggressive wars or outlandish tax inequities, both carried out to benefit the very class that produces...reality shows. By Dennis Rahkonen

Oh Canada!
June 24, 2003 · So what's up with Canada? First it refuses to support the Bush Administration's little rape-and-pillage adventure in Iraq – which is more than we can say for Democrats in Washington – and now it has legalized civil unions among gays and lesbians. All this while offering its citizens universal health care. By Jeff Ritchie

Shame on You Mr. Secretary
June 24, 2003 · Even for a man to whom the words "glib," "self absorbed," "arrogant" and "duplicitous" appear to be perceived as complimentary, Friday, June 20's performance at a nationally broadcast Pentagon news conference marked a new low for Donald Rumsfeld. By Mike Shannon

The Most Dangerous Lie
June 21, 2003 · The most dangerous lies are told in what the liars imagine to be the service of a Greater Truth. These "Greater Truths" must be striven for covertly because they go so far beyond what is publicly acceptable that they can't be defended openly. By Pamela Troy

A Question of Intent
June 21, 2003 · The federal government, run by the Bush regime, is basing its tax model on New Jersey. It is cutting taxes, but not spending, and shifting the tax burden away from the wealthy, to the middle classes. By David Michael Rothschild

Carpe Diem
June 20, 2003 · The only way to defeat Bush is to go at his foreign policy agenda head-on. Democratic politicians need to discover a kind of politics they have never, historically, been very good at - the politics of opposition. We should be under no illusions as to what this politics means. By Thomas Lesh

Pillory Clinton
June 20, 2003 · It's always difficult to break beloved old habits. But do you think the time will ever come when people are no longer knee-jerk-infuriated by anything a member of the Clinton family does? Oh, those Clintons! Can't they ever give up the spotlight? That's right: Bill insisted that $40 million of taxpayer money go toward investigating his sex life. By Kevin Dawson

America Duped
June 20, 2003 · A lot of people have been throwing around the "Blame America, first" mantra. As if it was the anti-war crowd that forced George Bush to stand in front of Congress and the world with gross distortions to justify going to war. Let me say this first, loud and clear, I am not blaming America. I am blaming George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld and Colin Powell. By Eric Munoz

Why Don't Republicans Understand?
June 19, 2003 · If you look at the polls President Bush is still very popular with around a 60% approval rating. While well down from his wartime high, that's still impressive. But I just don't understand why. What has this President done for those of us who must work for a living? By Joe Hardaway

Revisionist Victory
June 18, 2003 · If this isn't a case of the snowman calling the polar bear white, I don't know what is. For George Bush to accuse people of "revisionist history" while sitting at the apex of an organization that has lifted the remaking of reality to an art form is the very height of hubristic hypocrisy. By Mike Shannon

Homeland Security Self-Examination
June 18, 2003 · Homeland Security is the job of all patriotic Americans. Although the FBI, CIA and hundreds of other government agencies are spending millions of man-hours and billions of tax dollars trying their best to root out terrorism, Americans are still in danger. That's why we've created the following Homeland Security Self-Examination. Satire by Ray Lesser

A Peek Inside Bush's Post-War Diary: "F*** Impeachment!"
June 18, 2003 · So Rummy and Wolfowitz and Cheney and the rest of the Project for the New American Century boys were right: We can do what we want in the world, there ain't nobody big enough or strong enough to stop us. Satire by Bernard Weiner

Where Are The Grownups?
June 17, 2003 · In two short years, the social contract enunciated in the Preamble of our Constitution has been violated, much of our Bill of Rights rescinded, and our economy looted. Only we the people can undo this damage. In addition, America's honor has been besmirched before the world and before history. Only Americans can restore it. By Ernest Partridge

A Letter To A Non-Voter
June 17, 2003 · I vote and you don't, and that either makes me too gullible or you too cynical. It's probably some of each. In a lot of general elections, you're probably right to stay home. Any way you look at it you lose. And if some candidate offering you something you can really use is running in a third party, why bother voting for them, right? By David Swanson

An Alarm Bell is Going Off in America
June 17, 2003 · The Bushites envision a country (and, maybe, a world) in which one percent of the population owns 99 percent of everything. The other 99 percent of the population would own the remaining one percent of anything. This is not new. This form of social structure is as old as the hills, and it has always, eventually, led to mayhem, revolution, chaos and anarchy. By Madison

Get Out Of Iraq - An Issue For 2004
June 14, 2003 · If the Democrats have any political sense at all they will make getting out of the Iraq quagmire one of their major issues next year. They should propose a timetable (in weeks) for UN forces to assume the duties of US soldiers and supervise a free and fair election in conjunction with a US offer to abide by the results and withdraw its troops. By Mike McArdle

A Fake Reporter for a Fake Magazine
June 14, 2003 · Stephen Glass was no more fraudulent than the journal he wrote for: the so-called "liberal New Republic." By Dennis Hans

FCC Policy is a Disaster for American Democracy
June 14, 2003 · Americans should be grateful to Michael Powell for showing us the moral bankruptcy of Libertarianism. By taking its economic atheism to the extreme, Powell has demonstrated how its adherents believe that this radical philosophy is more important than the U.S. Constitution. We should reward Powell with demands for his resignation. By Gerald Plessner

Am I Still An Unpatriotic Traitor?
June 13, 2003 · That's what you called me when I said let the inspections play out, let them continue. But no, you said "enough was enough". You told me Saddam was building this apocalyptic arsenal. He had VX and Sarin and Anthrax and Mustard Gas and Salmonella and The Cooties. You told me was capable of launching a biological attack at the drop of a hat. You told me he presented a clear and imminent threat to my security. You told me to gift-wrap my house in Saran-wrap and Duct Tape. By Ed Hanratty

It's Hitting the Fan
June 13, 2003 · The next several weeks will be critical in the history of this Bush presidency. The chorus of voices calling for an explanation as to whether, from the President on down, the administration lied to the United Nations Security Council, Congress, and most importantly the American people in regards to the war in Iraq, is on the cusp of reaching critical mass. By Michael Shannon

Shifting Reasons
June 13, 2003 · To go over why I opposed the war now would be unnecessary and frivolous, but I must say that I never felt that it was a war for strictly profit, and that I never felt we were being outright lied to by the hawks. I expected half-truths, of course, and careful manipulations of reality, but I never believed that any of it was a complete and utter fabrication. I'm beginning to change my mind. By Thomas Walker

Are There More José Padillas To Come?
June 12, 2003 · Mr. Ashcroft is rightly concerned that Muslim fundamentalist terrorist groups, such as Al-Qaeda, may be operating in America. Yet, not all Muslims are of the Al-Qaeda variety. American Muslims of goodwill need to be part of our efforts to combat terrorism. By A. Mario Castillo

The Easy Slide Into Fascism
June 11, 2003 · The veneer of civilization is thin. We know this from our own observations, and various writers - from Shakespeare to Sinclair Lewis (It Can't Happen Here) - have shown us how easily populations can be manipulated by leaders skillfully playing on patriotic emotion or racial or nationalist feelings. By Bernard Weiner

George W. Bush: The Sammy Sosa of Presidents
June 11, 2003 · Considering George W. Bush's love of baseball, it seems oddly appropriate to use recent developments in what was once non-ironically known as America's National Pastime as a metaphor for recent developments down in Foggy Bottom. By Pab Sungenis

WMD: Before and After
June 10, 2003 · If you followed the news reports before and after the conquest of Iraq, you may have noticed a distinct difference in tone. The administration began to play down weapons of mass destruction and began emphasizing the "liberation" of Iraq. However, after talking about WMD until the whole country was sick of hearing about them, questions were bound to be asked. The contrast between the administration's stance before and after Baghdad's fall is striking. By Jim Caddell

A Twelve Lane Freeway To Mediocrity?
June 10, 2003 · Have you ever noticed that the interstate does not turn into a gravel road when you drive through poor communities? Have you ever wondered why the military keeps all of its active bases in good condition, whether or not they are found in poor or wealthy parts of the nation? Of course not, because these programs and public servants provide services that benefit the nation as a whole, not just their local community. Now, why the hell don't we feel the same way about public education? By topdog04

Increasing Collateral Damage; or, Genocide for Fun and Profit
June 7, 2003 · The heart of the problem, I believe, is that we have a muddled policy regarding collateral damage, a policy which we need to make far more succinct. I propose that instead of making collateral damage a hidden side benefit of our policy, it must become the cornerstone of it; and it must be taken to the next logical level. Satire by Colin Cohen

Dead for a Lie
June 7, 2003 · Kirk Straseskie will never have his own children or find his life’s work or be able to comfort his parents as they grow older. His life was ended sixty years prematurely because of a lie told by his government, the government that he volunteered to fight for. He almost certainly went to his death believing that he was in Iraq to defend Americans when it is now obvious that he was not. By Mike McArdle

Loving the filibuster until it’s used against you
June 7, 2003 · Slackers who never even heard of filibusters before this year, now consider themselves experts on the subject. They cry because desperate Democrats are using delay tactics to deprive their President of his God-given right to name whomever he chooses to the federal bench. By Alex Sator

Pax Americana
June 6, 2003 · Two millennia ago, through the force of her silver and her legions, a rising young Rome expanded the reach of her influence to the corners of the known world during a two century period that became known as the Pax Romana, or Roman Peace. Two millennia later, we as Americans face a choice that could determine the course of world events over the coming decades and beyond. By Daniel Melleby

Another Scandalous No-Bid Contract Makes Us Look Like Fools
June 6, 2003 · Critics have been howling since the announcement that the Department of Defense gave a no-bid contract for cell phone service in Iraq to a disgraced company called WorldCom. And with good reason. By Pat Gerber

The Lunatics Are In Charge
June 5, 2003 · Maybe this is a parallel universe. Maybe someone set the Wayback Machine to 1887. Or, maybe, we collectively just took a wrong turn at the corner of Liberty Avenue and We The People Way. Perhaps, the White House is dragging us down the rabbit hole. But, no matter the mechanism, everything in the US is upside down right now. By punpirate

Reality Bites
June 4, 2003 · When you think about it, the real hallmark of this administration is not its apparently limitless ability to manipulate perception but their utter impotence as regards reality. They may be able to sell their perception to the people, especially since they control the media; but outside of that echo chamber the world does not respond so well to Karl Rove's magical powers of spin. By The Plaid Adder

A Heartbeat Away
June 4, 2003 · It appears that Vice President Dick Cheney has what some call an unprecedented influence on Mr. Bush. If you like the sound of this, then we're living under the greatest executive management team Washington has ever known. If not, then consider that maybe Dubya is just the advance man for the the Cheney-Halliburton Administration. By B. Rehak

Gulf War II: Costs, Benefits and Ethics
June 4, 2003 · We've still not seen the end of the consequences of this war with Iraq. The invasion by the US and Britain is still potentially a recruitment boon to al-Qaeda. During May, over 30 American service personnel have been killed by Iraqi resistance or by accidents. But I have other concerns about the human and political costs and the value of any claims of "benefits" that may arise from the war. By Bucky Rea

Support the Troops
June 3, 2003 · A soldier died last Thursday - the ninth that week, 31st that month. He was gunned down by somebody we liberated. Do you know that soldier's name? Of course not. He's an afterthought in a phony war that no longer needs any of the bloody-shirt-waving PR his death would have provided in the cause of shutting up the peaceniks and nervous nellies. By John Walker

Finding My Place
June 3, 2003 · The Democratic Party is, whether or not the ruling faction wants it to be, the only national party that provides a voice to those who have none. It may be frustrating, and it certainly seems to be disorganized, but nowhere else will you find people who are among the haves, and want to help the have-nots. By Mark W. Brown

How Far Will They Go?
June 3, 2003 · Over the years, Congress has held a number of hearings on the conduct of the FBI, as well as other law enforcement and intelligence agencies. The latest hearing, held last year on the intelligence failures of 9/11, is now being subjected to "Presidential authority" in an effort to keep our nation secure from the truth. By David Fitts