(no subject)

[wildflowersoul]

Your duty: listen to last week's This American Life. Seriously. Download it, subscribe to the podcast, listen to it online, but listen.

I don't have words to express the outrage and disappoint I feel. I mean, I've known and been upset about plenty of things this administration has done, but these stories really drive home some unsettling facts. Bush's abuse of signing statements, the administration's bullying of everyone, the complete loss of checks and balances.... how can we have let this happen? It's criminal. Grah.

Comments

unconscionable

[bushidokelt.livejournal.com]

I listened to it at work last night. The executive department has engaged in an all-out war to increase and consolidate power. The international boundary commission thing really rankled me.
Of course, you've seen the Frontline programs regarding Alberto Gonzalez' attempts to get Ashcroft to re-authorize the warrantless wiretap law, WHILE HE WAS IN THE HOSPITAL!

The great irony is that Bush himself doesn't like confrontations...
In another Frontline program about Iraq and Ambassador Bremer's screw up in de-Ba'athifying iraq, it was made clear that once Bremer was out, bush simply told him in an offhanded manner that he would no longer had his job.
So, Bush "Doesn't like confrontation" yet he uses his bag men to intimidate, threaten and ultimately badger the president's neo-conservative agenda.

Re: unconscionable

[wildflowersoul.livejournal.com]

I have not seen that Frontline, but I'll seek out a transcript. Ugh, it's so enraging. If a democrat actually wins the next election I half expect Bush to issue a signing statement before he leaves office that abolishes future signing statements.

It is just disgusting how low they've gone, and no one is doing anything to stop it. Isn't it Congress' job to check executive powers before they get to this point?

Re: unconscionable

[bushidokelt.livejournal.com]

you might want to check out
http://desertbeacon.blogspot.com/2008/02/candidates-signing-statements.html

which has the current candidates take on signing statements

[incandes-flower.livejournal.com]

I don't think I could listen because that is one of my biggest issues with this presidency and none of the new candidates even address this. There needs to be more serious checks on presidental power. Gah.

[wildflowersoul.livejournal.com]

I hear you so loud and clear. I see your Gah and raise you a Rawr!

[genylibrarian.livejournal.com]

I saw Ralph Nader speak Monday at FSU and he had a really good point about how just knowing these injustices doesn't mean a thing unless we act on them. He said that there is an old Chinese proverb that goes, "To know and not act is not to know." It really got to me, because when you look at what people that were my age in the 60s did and then you look at what we do now...it's really disturbing. We are so apathetic, in the sense that, despite maybe complaining, we don't do much beyond that.

[wildflowersoul.livejournal.com]

That's so true. I wonder if part of the apathy comes from feeling like no matter what you do it won't change anything. Which is kind of depressing. But I'm not sure what I personally can do- I don't have money or political connections, I don't think protests have any effect, and I vote but even that hasn't done much good in the past 8 years... But I suppose I should check up on MoveOn.org, maybe they have some practical things that people can do that I'm not aware of.

[bushidokelt.livejournal.com]

There are things you can do if you want to participate in the upcoming election.
At least for the Obama campaign, you can phone bank from home into states that have not held their primaries yet. I have done phone banking in Mass. and door-to-door campaigning for Barack in R.I. If you're not for Obama, I'm sure that the other campaigns have similar ways for you to get involved.

[wildflowersoul.livejournal.com]

That's a great idea! I didn't know you could call from home, I thought you had to be at a calling place. I was so disappointed by my short stint volunteering for the Mass Democratic party a couple of years ago, but I can totally get behind some Obama action. I'm intrigued by the Obama "events," too, I may check one out.

[dr-alycat.livejournal.com]

Wow, I second all of this. cook_ting and I just had this big "things are so messed up in this country" talk last night, but like you, I haven't figured out how to actually DO something about it. We just keep half-joking about moving to Canada...

[wildflowersoul.livejournal.com]

It's kind of too bad immigration laws are so strict these days (well, to move to countries where I'd be able to speak the language and could have some of the creature comforts I don't want to give up), if we could emigrate to England I'd do it in a heartbeat. Where would the US be if all the people who feel this disenfranchised left?

Sorry, that's a tangent, but I've been thinking so much lately about the state of our politics and the corporate machine that I feel shackled to. If I were a hippie I'd think about going off-grid and farming a little farm in Maine and making our clothes and raising sheep. But I am no hippie, and my only marketable skill is my brain. And I like living near things like bars and Indian take-out food. And having cable.

[doplar.livejournal.com]

when dukey builds his sheep farm and bomb shelter, I'll let you know. the bomb shelter will also be a wine cellar, so it is sure to be good times even without cable. By that time you may be ready to give up librarian-dom and weave woolen undergarments. If not, we can have a library in the bomb shelter too and you can be in charge of cataloguing and researching our legal rights if, say, Iran takes over the U.S. ...

[wildflowersoul.livejournal.com]

It's a plan! Woolen undergarments, here we come.

[genylibrarian.livejournal.com]

I was a Government and World Affairs major for a couple of years in college. It was so depressing, that I just couldn't do it. I actually failed a Peace Studies course, because I couldn't write a 30-page paper on a viable peace strategy. (I came to the conclusion that peace wasn't possible.) I've been out of politics for a while now (though I do vote), because I used to get so upset.

After I heard Nader speak, I was just like, "Dude, I am scum." I have so much emotion behind my political beliefs - I should be putting it to use, even if it can be frustrating. There are so many people out there that don't care at all. One of the concepts I really like is conscious consumerism. Oftentimes it is spoken about when discussing environmentalism or child labor (which are important), but also you can choose to support/not support corporations that fund political parties. BuyBlue.org is a great site to check out. They are working on a new website, but they have links to check out in the meantime.

[meggitymeg.livejournal.com]

You're the third person on my flist today to tell me to listing to that episode of TAL. :))

Also, your icon is magnificent. :D

[wildflowersoul.livejournal.com]

Wow, I'm so glad this TAL is making the rounds of the internets, it's hands-down one of the best episodes I've ever heard. And so disturbing.

Hee, thanks! I need to start re-watching some WW soon.