#1. Let's start with the Constitution, and the power to declare war. That power rests with the Congress. I know we've all been conditioned to think that it's the executive power, but that's wrong. We need to correct this:
From John Nichols at The Nation:
"“The executive should be able to repel and not to commence war,” explained Roger Sherman, a delegate to the Constitutional Convention from Connecticut, who moved to make clear the intent of the founders that nothing in their exposition of the powers of the executive branch should be conceived as authorizing the president to “make war.” An executive could assume the mantle of commander-in-chief only when it was necessary to defend the country; never to wage kingly wars of whim.
Sherman’s resolution was approved overwhelmingly by the Philadelphia convention that finished its work September 17, 1787"....
..."The voters dealt with last fall (2006) with the Republican Congress that had collaborated with Bush to thwart the rule of law. The unfortunate reality of the moment is that a Democratic Congress that was elected to restore a measure of balance to the federal stage has responded to necessity with caution. But that does not change the eternal reality of the Republic, which is that this “opposition” Congress has a simple, basic, yet essential Constitutional duty. Members of the House and Senate must impeach and try a president who is assaulting the most basic precepts of the American experiment. Anything less is a mockery of the document they swear an oath to defend - and an invitation to this and future presidents to further unchain the dogs of war that the founders struggled so mightily to contain."
#2. Freedom of Speech. Sure, the dude was a jerk, a real punk, but shouldn't we tolerate him asking questions? Where's the harm in asking a politician difficult questions? Naomi Wolf may read too much into it, but certainly that incident shouldn't just be laughed off. Dissent is essential to Democracy.From Naomi Wolf at the Huffington Post:
"Today’s news shows a recognizable shock moment in the annals of a closing society. A very ordinary-looking American student — Andrew Meyer, 21, at the University of Florida - was tasered by police when he asked a question of Senator John Kerry about the impeachment of President George Bush. His arms were pinned and as he tried to keep speaking he was shocked — in spite of begging not to be hurt. A stunning piece of footage but unfortunately, historically, a very familiar and even tactical moment.
It is an iconic turning point and it will be remembered as the moment at which America either fought back or yielded. This violence against a student is different from violence against protesters in the anti-war movement of 30 years ago because of the power the president has now to imprison innocent U.S. citizens for months in isolation. And because, as I have explained elsewhere, we are not now in a situation in which ‘the pendulum’ can easily swing back. That taser was directed at the body of a young man, but it is we ourselves, and our Constitution, who received the full force of the shock."
3. Mercenaries- We've privatized our military, folks. We hire companies to protect our soldiers and politicians who visit Iraq. Isn't that what the military is for? If they can't protect their own, who can? Ah yes, mercenaries that answer to no court. This practice must end at once.
From Peter Grier and Gordon Lubold at the Christian Science Monitor:"In the case of the latest incident, Blackwater spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell said in a statement Monday that the company’s contractors “acted lawfully and appropriately…. Blackwater regrets any loss of life but this convoy was violently attacked by armed insurgents, not civilians, and our people did their job to defend human life.”
Iraqis have long bristled at the presence of the private guards, who they claim are little more than mercenaries with little respect for Iraqi lives and less discipline than uniformed US troops.
An Iraqi police officer who works in Karada, a mixed sectarian neighborhood in eastern Baghdad, says the foreign private security firms act out of their own interests as they jet through the city and seem to pay little heed to the dangers they pose to average citizens on the street.
The officer says employees of the firms use overly aggressive tactics, crashing into cars and disobeying traffic laws and often rolling over gardens and hitting trees - and never stopping.....
...“It is possible that some contractors may remain outside the jurisdiction of US courts, civil or military, for improper conduct in Iraq,” concludes CRS.This legal gray area stems in part from the fact that the Iraq conflict represents the first time the US has depended on private contractors to provide widespread security services in a hostile environment."
So, those are my big three bad things from the headlines this week...enjoy! Now back to watching OJ get off again.....