BartBlog

from breadwithcircus.com

I read a news story this morning entitled…

Pelosi Urges World to Condemn China

To this I have only one response…

DO YOUR DAMN JOB AND STOP THE IRAQ WAR!!!

Nancy Pelosi is the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, a position comparable to Prime Minister in other countries. She is the leader of the Democratic Party’s majority of seats in the US Congress, a majority which could, if it wished to, end the Iraq war, impeach the criminals in the White House and perhaps conduct a real, non-whitewash investigation into 9-11. She could stop the Bush agenda, if only she dared to.Instead of doing her job and standing up for the American people who gave her the power she holds, (but never uses) Nancy Pelosi is going to grandstand and go after China, underwriter of the massive US Debt that has kept the US economy (barely) alive since Bush decided that every billionaire needs a tax cut.

The Tibetans are an inherently likable people who have been oppressed for half a century. I have nothing but respect for the Dalai Lama. However, Madame Speaker, it is not your place to go after Chinese thugs (biting the hand that feeds) while ignoring the criminals across the aisle from you, the ones that you actually do have the power to stop.

Here are some quotes from the article. I’ll respond.

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Gore Vidal, TruthDig, March 21, 2008

I can recall that day in the 1930s when a “news” (sic) magazine appeared in Washington, D.C.; it was called Newsweek: meant to be a counterbalance to Time Magazine’s uncontrollable malice. In due course the two became sadly alike as Vincent Astor morphed into Henry Luce: Was it something in the water? I once asked Henry Luce why he called Time a news magazine when it was simply Uncle Harry’s means of venting his rage (this was 1960 or so) at liberals, and “degenerate art” like the plays of Tennessee Williams-he had no answer. At Newsweek Vincent Astor was far too stupid to answer any such complaint. Now here we are in the Newsweek of 2008, and it’s still lousy. There have been a few decent writers in between that were less nutty than today’s Newsweek hacks.

But why is Newsweek currently lousy? Here’s an example provided by an editor who keeps a sharp eye on their crimes. He sent me their recent obituary of William F. Buckley, a hero to those who feared democracies.

Buckley bridled at bullies [we are assured]. But one of the rare times he lost his temper was debating Gore Vidal, who “got under his skin,” says son Chris. When Vidal called Buckley a “crypto-Nazi,” Buckley responded, “Now listen, you queer, you stop calling me a crypto-Nazi or I’ll sock you in your goddamn face and you’ll stay plastered.” But usually his public manners were genteel [I think they mean gentile]. With “Firing Line” guests who seemed nervous or over their heads, Buckley was gentle. Behind the scenes, he could show remarkable kindness. In 1980, a rising conservative star, Congressman Bob Bauman, was soliciting a 16-year-old [male] for oral sex. Bauman had been a gay-basher, and he instantly became a pariah. The next day, knowing what lay ahead for the disgraced congressman, Buckley quietly gave him an envelope containing $10,000. “He was a knightly man,” says Chris.

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Paul Krugman, The New York Times, March 21, 2008

If Ben Bernanke manages to save the financial system from collapse, he will — rightly — be praised for his heroic efforts.

But what we should be asking is: How did we get here?

Why does the financial system need salvation?

Why do mild-mannered economists have to become superheroes?

The answer, at a fundamental level, is that we’re paying the price for willful amnesia. We chose to forget what happened in the 1930s — and having refused to learn from history, we’re repeating it.

Read More Here