The latest bit of fundamentalist idiocy comes from the enlightened state of Afghanistan, where a fellow is in jeopardy of his life for converting from Islam to Christianity. A number of clerics have called for his beheading or "tearing apart" because the conversion "humiliates God." How could a person of God possibly come to this conclusion?
Is God so powerless that man must come to God's aid? Does the creator of the universe, the One God (Allah) require the help of finite, imperfect humans? Can a person take any action that in any way makes God feel "humiliated". Not.
Any person with even a faint glimmer of intelligence understands that God is more than capable of taking care of God, and sees that God permits and tolerates all sorts of slights by us mere mortals. The Christian scriptures say "God lets the sun shine on both the good and the bad." God seems to be pretty much a "hands-off" creator in this world, reserving judgment for a time when our work is done and we move on to another realm. But God demonstrates power in any number of natural ways, showing us clearly who is in charge.
Has God delegated to us the duty to take revenge on any person who apparently has slighted the omnipotent? Who then are we, to take God's judgment upon ourselves? Do we honor God by assuming God's prerogative? Are we worthy to do this? Or do we take a great risk if we elevate ourselves to exercise God's justice?
Fundamentalists of all religions often seem to get turned around on this point. They get so deep into their version of "religion" that they start believing that they have God's power of attorney. Some would say that this is the greatest of the devil's temptations - to convince a person that he or she can make decisions and take actions on God's part. I think, however, that man's inherent need to be powerful often can be easily satisfied by convincing the ignorant that the power is taken in God's name. "I'm just the instrument!", they cry as the axe falls or the bomb explodes.
The world needs to come down hard on these Afghani religious terrorists. God cannot be humiliated, God does not need their help to manage the universe, and they profane God by professing to kill in God's name.
Monday, March 27, 2006
Sunday, March 26, 2006
Uneducated Muslims Pose Major Threat to West
They belong to a religion - Islam. There are over one billion adherents of Islam, and these Muslims outnumber Christians. They dominate from North Africa through the Middle East to south central Asia and east Asia - a vast and heavily populated geography. They live largely under authoritarian political regimes and under the supervision of clerics who have had little extra-theological education or life experience. Their allegiances have been shaped by a long history of tribal and religious sectarian conflict, and they are relate more to sectarian boundaries than to national boundaries.
Many of us know and respect Muslims who live in the West or have exposure to western culture. They are educated and peace-loving, generally speaking. They live side by side with those of other faiths, and they have dialogue where they find many areas of agreement even in areas of faith. Yet these people seem to be a small minority of the one billion Muslims. The remainder, who are influenced primarily by fundamentalist, controlling clerics, represent a major problem for the western world.
The West is responsible exacerbating the hard line beliefs of uneducated Muslims. For hundreds of years western colonial governments and western nations' foreign policies supported authoritarian governments in countries that were largely Muslim. The resulting repression enabled the clerics to become the primary hope, and voice, for the people. When life was hard, a hard religion became the only refuge for the suffering population. The clerics taught a "black and white" version of Islam that mirrored the "black and white" version of Christianity found in western fundamentalist churches. We are now facing a huge population of people who have been fully indoctrinated in hate for western customs, and for western governments who they feel continue to keep them in a state of poverty. Our support for the Shah of Iran is an excellent example of how western-supported repression resulted in the creation of an Islamic theocracy that hates us.
The violence we see in suicide bombings, beheadings, and torture emanates from the harsh history of these poor Muslim regions. Because they lack political, economic, or military power, the most angry of these people resort to terror power that is often approved by the clerics as a legitimate means to obtain their desired political and religous ends. This willingness to use terror, and the trend toward harsh Islamic law in areas where democratic elections are held, is tending to enlarge the gulf that currently separates the western countries from the Islamic nations. Reconciliation will not be easily achieved, but it is the only long term answer to developing a more peaceful world.
A two-part strategy may point the way to reconciliation. First, the West must support democracy in countries dominated by Muslims, and provide visible support to these governments in areas where their programs are positive. At the same time, the West must insist on freedom of the press, religious freedom, and non-religious laws and judges in these countries. Pressure must be put on the fundamentalists when their teachings cross the line, and religiously-dominated governments must be held to account when their actions infringe on basic human rights.
In the meantime, western countries must remain extremely vigilant to ward off the terrorist threat posed by the most anti-western of the Islamists. Their hatred has built up over many years, and it will take many years to overcome. Keeping these people away from us is the only way to minimize the damage they are intent upon doing inside our borders. Whether the Republicans or the Democrats are in power in the U.S., both need to be fully aware of the risks posed by these implacable Muslim enemies, and act accordingly.
Many of us know and respect Muslims who live in the West or have exposure to western culture. They are educated and peace-loving, generally speaking. They live side by side with those of other faiths, and they have dialogue where they find many areas of agreement even in areas of faith. Yet these people seem to be a small minority of the one billion Muslims. The remainder, who are influenced primarily by fundamentalist, controlling clerics, represent a major problem for the western world.
The West is responsible exacerbating the hard line beliefs of uneducated Muslims. For hundreds of years western colonial governments and western nations' foreign policies supported authoritarian governments in countries that were largely Muslim. The resulting repression enabled the clerics to become the primary hope, and voice, for the people. When life was hard, a hard religion became the only refuge for the suffering population. The clerics taught a "black and white" version of Islam that mirrored the "black and white" version of Christianity found in western fundamentalist churches. We are now facing a huge population of people who have been fully indoctrinated in hate for western customs, and for western governments who they feel continue to keep them in a state of poverty. Our support for the Shah of Iran is an excellent example of how western-supported repression resulted in the creation of an Islamic theocracy that hates us.
The violence we see in suicide bombings, beheadings, and torture emanates from the harsh history of these poor Muslim regions. Because they lack political, economic, or military power, the most angry of these people resort to terror power that is often approved by the clerics as a legitimate means to obtain their desired political and religous ends. This willingness to use terror, and the trend toward harsh Islamic law in areas where democratic elections are held, is tending to enlarge the gulf that currently separates the western countries from the Islamic nations. Reconciliation will not be easily achieved, but it is the only long term answer to developing a more peaceful world.
A two-part strategy may point the way to reconciliation. First, the West must support democracy in countries dominated by Muslims, and provide visible support to these governments in areas where their programs are positive. At the same time, the West must insist on freedom of the press, religious freedom, and non-religious laws and judges in these countries. Pressure must be put on the fundamentalists when their teachings cross the line, and religiously-dominated governments must be held to account when their actions infringe on basic human rights.
In the meantime, western countries must remain extremely vigilant to ward off the terrorist threat posed by the most anti-western of the Islamists. Their hatred has built up over many years, and it will take many years to overcome. Keeping these people away from us is the only way to minimize the damage they are intent upon doing inside our borders. Whether the Republicans or the Democrats are in power in the U.S., both need to be fully aware of the risks posed by these implacable Muslim enemies, and act accordingly.
Bush: Right on Immigrants, Wrong Everywhere Else
I've got to give our hapless president a pat on the back for his consistent support of a guest worker plan coupled with increased border security. The Mexican cats, over 11 million of them, are completely out of the bag and indispensible to our economy. Criminalizing them, and those who support them, is a silliness that makes sense only to Bill Frist and the other right wing wackos in congress. Thank you, President Bush, for being right. I just wish you had enough clout and credibility to lead your lawmaking Republican friends down the right path...but I'm not optimistic about that.
Now the bad news. G.W. Bush has made an historic miscalculation in Iraq, blown the budget, not fixed Medicare, Social Security, or the Tax Code, has stonewalled on global warming, has failed to address our fatal addiction to oil, and has favored blind religion over science. No telling what he's capable of during the next three years, but he sure could use some help.
Time for a wholesale turnover of GWB's cabinet and time to get on the right side of all the big issues! Screw the political hacks of the ultra-right! They're as much to blame as GWB for much of the mess we're in. There are plenty of bright Republicans out there who would join up if asked, and a Democrat congress will probably work with him and some smart people to fix the big problems. You got to have hope during a dark and stormy night!
Now the bad news. G.W. Bush has made an historic miscalculation in Iraq, blown the budget, not fixed Medicare, Social Security, or the Tax Code, has stonewalled on global warming, has failed to address our fatal addiction to oil, and has favored blind religion over science. No telling what he's capable of during the next three years, but he sure could use some help.
Time for a wholesale turnover of GWB's cabinet and time to get on the right side of all the big issues! Screw the political hacks of the ultra-right! They're as much to blame as GWB for much of the mess we're in. There are plenty of bright Republicans out there who would join up if asked, and a Democrat congress will probably work with him and some smart people to fix the big problems. You got to have hope during a dark and stormy night!
Saturday, March 25, 2006
This Is Why We Hunt
Welcome to Pittsford, a suburb just south of Rochester, New York. I live on a little less than an acre, in an area with many pockets of woods interspersed between the single family homes and subdivisions. Deer are everywhere, and after an easy winter they are very healthy. This doe is an old friend who had two fawns last spring in the small patch of woods behind our back yard. We've seen them often during the past ten months, and when they visited us this morning I took this picture after walking to about 35 feet of her. Her two fawns were close by.Unfortunately, many deer are killed by cars each year in Pittsford, causing human injuries and major financial losses. Also, it's impossible to have a nice flower garden because the deer eat most annuals as soon as they grow just a few inches tall. In other words, these cute deer are a real nuisance...a few are nice, but a lot are a big problem.
About four years ago I decided to hunt again after a break of at least ten years. The deer population was out of control, and many deer were starving when we had hard winters. The hungry deer ate every bush they could find - even hollies and evergreens are regarded as "dinner" by starving deer. It was sad to see them trying to traverse through deep, crusty snow. I decided that hunting them was the only way to thin the herd to a reasonable level.
Since that time I've killed about seven deer in a pretty quick and humane manner. Several of the carcasses went to a local food cupboard and provided venision burgers for the homeless. Others went to land owners where I hunted, and the remainer went into my freezer where they became spagetti sauce and venison stew. Despite my predations the deer population is more than robust here. We need more hunters! Sadly, the hunter population is decreasing rapidly because new hunters are not replacing those who are now too old to hunt.
It's hard to believe that a human activity like "hunting for food" can decline so quickly after hundreds of thousands of years when it was a normal part of many people's lives. The modern era, with its mass-produced food, has removed the average person from contact with nature and the ways man has interacted with it throughout our history. I, for one, hope that it once again becomes appropriate for people to harvest plentiful animals for food and for the experience of stalking them in their native environment. Quite a statement for an anti-Bush liberal to make, but - everyone's got the right to create their own blend of what is right and wrong!
Friday, March 24, 2006
Dems Lost in a Fog
It's amazing, but true. Bush's polls are at 35% but the Democrats got no message. They're hopping on him for his multitude of mistakes, but they've got no platform of their own. It seems to me that they've got no sense and no guts...they just make a lot of noise. They need to do better in order to be credible.
Suggestions for the "dense" Democrats:
- Say you can't live with radical Islam and will do everything necessary to stamp it out.
- Say you will stop illegal immigration by whatever it takes, but you will have a guest worker program that allows legal guest workers to go through a naturalization process with teeth.
- Say that underachieving Americans (read "inner city blacks" and "poor rural whites") need to start taking advantage of their educational opportunities or face Federal requirements which force compliance.
- Say that we will leave Iraq by a date certain if they gain control of congress.
- Fuggetabout trying to save $67/hour unskilled union jobs...they're history!
Or, say other stuff! Whatever! Just put it out there and stick by it. Bush may be stupid, but he's consistent. You may be smart, but so was Kerry. Get it together, you wacky libs! Until you do, you're lost in the fog.
Suggestions for the "dense" Democrats:
- Say you can't live with radical Islam and will do everything necessary to stamp it out.
- Say you will stop illegal immigration by whatever it takes, but you will have a guest worker program that allows legal guest workers to go through a naturalization process with teeth.
- Say that underachieving Americans (read "inner city blacks" and "poor rural whites") need to start taking advantage of their educational opportunities or face Federal requirements which force compliance.
- Say that we will leave Iraq by a date certain if they gain control of congress.
- Fuggetabout trying to save $67/hour unskilled union jobs...they're history!
Or, say other stuff! Whatever! Just put it out there and stick by it. Bush may be stupid, but he's consistent. You may be smart, but so was Kerry. Get it together, you wacky libs! Until you do, you're lost in the fog.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
Domestic Policy Adviser Models Theft Paradyme
Well, the latest in the Bush administration's unbelievable series of mishaps - the one immediately following the Dubai Ports debacle - has the recently resigned domestic policy adviser running a fraudulent returns scheme at Target while employed at the White House. It appears the man had a rather unusual vision of "free enterprise"...returning items that you did not purchase makes them "free"! This story appeared and disappeared in a day or two, which seems to indicate that affirmative action was somehow involved in its rapid demise.
This story had a wonderful twist to it, one that you would think would give it legs. Apparently the not-too-bright thief had been previously nominated by President Bush to be a federal judge. To be fair then, we might consider that he, facing the end of the administration in 2009, was again dreaming of a judgeship reward for his service - and getting "inside the criminal mind" as preparation for this appointment. Makes sense, doesn't it? About as much sense as Bush's explanations for everything else he's goofed up.
This has got to be one of the saddest funny stories of the year. You have to laugh at the bungling, but you have to cry about the White House employing such a pathetic figure. Maybe the high cost of living in Washington tapped out his paltry government salary and forced him to a life of crime. If so, it's not his fault. Certainly there are mitigating circumstances that will soon surface! On the other hand, maybe what will surface are new facts more complementary with the character flaws we already know about. It's a mystery sure to unfold if the media does its job.
As my favorite old boss once said, "The most important decisions you make are about the people you hire." Wish he had spent some time counseling the President...
This story had a wonderful twist to it, one that you would think would give it legs. Apparently the not-too-bright thief had been previously nominated by President Bush to be a federal judge. To be fair then, we might consider that he, facing the end of the administration in 2009, was again dreaming of a judgeship reward for his service - and getting "inside the criminal mind" as preparation for this appointment. Makes sense, doesn't it? About as much sense as Bush's explanations for everything else he's goofed up.
This has got to be one of the saddest funny stories of the year. You have to laugh at the bungling, but you have to cry about the White House employing such a pathetic figure. Maybe the high cost of living in Washington tapped out his paltry government salary and forced him to a life of crime. If so, it's not his fault. Certainly there are mitigating circumstances that will soon surface! On the other hand, maybe what will surface are new facts more complementary with the character flaws we already know about. It's a mystery sure to unfold if the media does its job.
As my favorite old boss once said, "The most important decisions you make are about the people you hire." Wish he had spent some time counseling the President...
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Bush Aimless, Out of Control - As Usual
It's been another busy week for the president, who's been trying valiantly to gain back some of the ground his bumbling administration has lost since the last election. No longer the "bubble president", he's come out punching, taking questions - can you believe it? - and making his case on Iraq to the American people. But it seems like for every step forward there's two steps back.
The Iraq elections drew millions to the polls - good! The millions voted in line with the religious and geographic identities they've had for a thousand years - bad! Some sort of unity government is the only answer, but the odds are slim that a unity will be achieved. If it's not achieved the terrorists and insurgents will have safe havens to continue attacks on our troops and the new Iraqi army and police. Look out, GWB, this issue is going to keep on simmering throughout 2006, and it could boil over with the U.S. electorate! Yet I continue to hope that it does not, much as I like to see this president's chickens come home to roost. Maybe a miracle will happen and the Iraqis will get their act together.
President Bush in his news conference this week was asked about his goals for the coming year. Talk about stumbling around! World peace and Katrina recovery, that was it, and in a rambling aimless presentation. Wouldn't have made it to the finals in Miss America, that's for sure! GWB sort of forgot about social security, medicare, the tax code, the bird flu, and the rest of the big national issues he can actually do something about...guess these matters just aren't between his pointy ears right now. As they say, you can't coach brains. Or, perhaps he's decided not to mention any goals because he knows he hasn't got enough clout left to influence either the congress or the people.
GWB must have been distracted by all the questions about his approval of spying on Americans whom his spycatchers feel are communicating with the bad guys abroad. Perhaps he didn't know that spying on citizens is illegal unless a warrant is issued by a secret court set up by the congress. GWB explained that the Iraq war resolution gave him power to do just about anything that he could rationalize as security-related, and he stated his belief that the American people would want him to spy like he did. Wrong. As he and his pals love to say, America is a land where freedom is guaranteed by law. I guess some laws are just more lawful than others, and maybe some guys will start reading my email now that I've written this blog. Bad move, Mr. Imperial President. Americans worry about losing their freedoms more than they worry about the bad guys...just ask John Wayne.
So, the big question still remains: how will we get through this presidential term? Elections are almost three years away, and there seems to be no limit to the stupidity and ineptness of this president and his merry band of incompetents. If there ever was a reason to believe in the power of prayer, this is it. Let us pray.
The Iraq elections drew millions to the polls - good! The millions voted in line with the religious and geographic identities they've had for a thousand years - bad! Some sort of unity government is the only answer, but the odds are slim that a unity will be achieved. If it's not achieved the terrorists and insurgents will have safe havens to continue attacks on our troops and the new Iraqi army and police. Look out, GWB, this issue is going to keep on simmering throughout 2006, and it could boil over with the U.S. electorate! Yet I continue to hope that it does not, much as I like to see this president's chickens come home to roost. Maybe a miracle will happen and the Iraqis will get their act together.
President Bush in his news conference this week was asked about his goals for the coming year. Talk about stumbling around! World peace and Katrina recovery, that was it, and in a rambling aimless presentation. Wouldn't have made it to the finals in Miss America, that's for sure! GWB sort of forgot about social security, medicare, the tax code, the bird flu, and the rest of the big national issues he can actually do something about...guess these matters just aren't between his pointy ears right now. As they say, you can't coach brains. Or, perhaps he's decided not to mention any goals because he knows he hasn't got enough clout left to influence either the congress or the people.
GWB must have been distracted by all the questions about his approval of spying on Americans whom his spycatchers feel are communicating with the bad guys abroad. Perhaps he didn't know that spying on citizens is illegal unless a warrant is issued by a secret court set up by the congress. GWB explained that the Iraq war resolution gave him power to do just about anything that he could rationalize as security-related, and he stated his belief that the American people would want him to spy like he did. Wrong. As he and his pals love to say, America is a land where freedom is guaranteed by law. I guess some laws are just more lawful than others, and maybe some guys will start reading my email now that I've written this blog. Bad move, Mr. Imperial President. Americans worry about losing their freedoms more than they worry about the bad guys...just ask John Wayne.
So, the big question still remains: how will we get through this presidential term? Elections are almost three years away, and there seems to be no limit to the stupidity and ineptness of this president and his merry band of incompetents. If there ever was a reason to believe in the power of prayer, this is it. Let us pray.
Monday, November 28, 2005
Worst President Ever, Maybe
Today I saw a bumper sticker proclaiming "Worst President Ever", which was fresh enough that it couldn't have been referring to anyone else but our current president, George Bush. While he perhaps has a way to go before he earns that distinction, he's making headway on this dubious honor.
Years from now his biography might include:
- Started a war based on "facts" that were soon proven false.
- Failed to take responsibility for the error of going to war based on false information.
- Failed to put in enough troops to win the war, but declared "Mission Accomplished" anyway.
- Forced to remove troops due to public opinion turning sour over failed Iraq policy.
- Cut taxes in the face of largest deficit budgets ever. Also cut college tuition assistance.
- Enacted costly Medicare drug entitlement although the budget forecasted deficits for years.
- Didn't reform Social Security, Medicare, or the Tax Code - all major risks to the U.S. future.
- Headed a government where at least three major players were enveloped in scandal.
- Took his party from total control of government to ignominious losses during his tenure.
George W. Bush needs a few big wins in the next three years, or he'll certainly be close to winning the kudo predicted by the bumper sticker! I suppose someone will have to teach him how to think, talk, and fire the boneheads...
Years from now his biography might include:
- Started a war based on "facts" that were soon proven false.
- Failed to take responsibility for the error of going to war based on false information.
- Failed to put in enough troops to win the war, but declared "Mission Accomplished" anyway.
- Forced to remove troops due to public opinion turning sour over failed Iraq policy.
- Cut taxes in the face of largest deficit budgets ever. Also cut college tuition assistance.
- Enacted costly Medicare drug entitlement although the budget forecasted deficits for years.
- Didn't reform Social Security, Medicare, or the Tax Code - all major risks to the U.S. future.
- Headed a government where at least three major players were enveloped in scandal.
- Took his party from total control of government to ignominious losses during his tenure.
George W. Bush needs a few big wins in the next three years, or he'll certainly be close to winning the kudo predicted by the bumper sticker! I suppose someone will have to teach him how to think, talk, and fire the boneheads...
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
$8,000 Per Iraqi
Well, the cost of the Iraq war now exceeds $200 billion, a number that even an accountant can hardly comprehend. The war cost is so big that it's almost one-third of the deficit that our conservative Republican president and congress will ring up this year - an equally alarming number!
To help put the Iraq war cost in perspective, just think of it as $8,000 for every man, woman, and child in that unfortunate country. Don't you think we would have been better off by just offering every Iraqi $5,000 upon the overthrow of Saddam and the installation of a constitutional democracy? That would be the free market in action!
And we now have almost 2,100 American deaths in Iraq. That's one GI for every 12,000 Iraqis. Or, to put it differently, 84 GI's have died to save every Iraqi area with about the population of greater Rochester, New York. That's quite a sacrifice, but fortunately the U.S. losses do not include any children of the politicians who started this war.
Time to put a timetable on the board and let the Iraqis stand up for themselves. The price of leaving is right!
To help put the Iraq war cost in perspective, just think of it as $8,000 for every man, woman, and child in that unfortunate country. Don't you think we would have been better off by just offering every Iraqi $5,000 upon the overthrow of Saddam and the installation of a constitutional democracy? That would be the free market in action!
And we now have almost 2,100 American deaths in Iraq. That's one GI for every 12,000 Iraqis. Or, to put it differently, 84 GI's have died to save every Iraqi area with about the population of greater Rochester, New York. That's quite a sacrifice, but fortunately the U.S. losses do not include any children of the politicians who started this war.
Time to put a timetable on the board and let the Iraqis stand up for themselves. The price of leaving is right!
Saturday, November 05, 2005
Control the Bird Flu Bureaucrats
President Bush last week asked congress for $7.1 billion to start the war against bird flu. It's clear that we need to combat this new flu before it spreads to humans and becomes transmissible. Already the major battle plans are being drawn up, and they are discussed below as jobs 1-3. But job 4, which concerns controlling the special interest bureaucrats who are now circling this topic like vultures, is equally important if our country is going to win the bird flu war at a reasonable cost.
Everyone agrees that job #1 is the vaccine. We need faster, more efficient means to manufacture flu vaccine - no more egg-based production. But it will take time to learn how to genetically engineer the vaccine and then manufacture it in huge quantities. Hopefully the $7.1B will go a long way toward producing large quantities of vaccine in the next year or two.
Job #2 is to determine how to allocate and administer the vaccine. This is not a simple task. The decisions could be left to the states and the free market, which would result in competition for the vaccine and many differing decisions about who gets it. Or, the federal government could centralize the vaccine purchasing and the allocation decisions. The free market option may be tempting to the Bush administration because it would, at least until the flu arrives, focus the arguments and criticisms toward non-federal entities. However, the inequities perceived in widely varying state-by-state approaches could come back to haunt the central government. This debate will be interesting to follow.
Job #3 involves strategies for slowing the spread of a bird flu pandemic into the United States. The federal government will have to make decisions about travel restrictions, quarantines, and other pandemic management issues.
Job #4 may be the most difficult of all - controlling the bureaucrats. These are the governmental and health care professionals who see the potential pandemic as a perfect opportunity to enhance their funding and power. Already we are hearing voices crying out for "planning", "training", "equipment", and "facilities" - each of which is shorthand for "money for me". Watch out!
Recently I heard a so-called expert call for the purchase of thousands and thousands of respirators to keep flu victims alive. He didn't even mention paying all the people who would operate the respirators or the facilities that would have to be built to house them. We are only beginning to hear the many half-cooked schemes that will soon be competing for bird flu funds from our federal and state governments.
Our elected officials need to put the bird flu bureacrats on hold until the strategy for dealing with bird flu is completed. There will be trade-offs in the strategy, since protection can never be perfect. Each trade-off will provoke serious opposition from the bureaucrats who expected funding for their traded-off projects. But if we don't do the overall war plan first, waste of scandalous proportions will occur. We can't afford for the country to get sick, but we can't afford for it to be broke, either.
Everyone agrees that job #1 is the vaccine. We need faster, more efficient means to manufacture flu vaccine - no more egg-based production. But it will take time to learn how to genetically engineer the vaccine and then manufacture it in huge quantities. Hopefully the $7.1B will go a long way toward producing large quantities of vaccine in the next year or two.
Job #2 is to determine how to allocate and administer the vaccine. This is not a simple task. The decisions could be left to the states and the free market, which would result in competition for the vaccine and many differing decisions about who gets it. Or, the federal government could centralize the vaccine purchasing and the allocation decisions. The free market option may be tempting to the Bush administration because it would, at least until the flu arrives, focus the arguments and criticisms toward non-federal entities. However, the inequities perceived in widely varying state-by-state approaches could come back to haunt the central government. This debate will be interesting to follow.
Job #3 involves strategies for slowing the spread of a bird flu pandemic into the United States. The federal government will have to make decisions about travel restrictions, quarantines, and other pandemic management issues.
Job #4 may be the most difficult of all - controlling the bureaucrats. These are the governmental and health care professionals who see the potential pandemic as a perfect opportunity to enhance their funding and power. Already we are hearing voices crying out for "planning", "training", "equipment", and "facilities" - each of which is shorthand for "money for me". Watch out!
Recently I heard a so-called expert call for the purchase of thousands and thousands of respirators to keep flu victims alive. He didn't even mention paying all the people who would operate the respirators or the facilities that would have to be built to house them. We are only beginning to hear the many half-cooked schemes that will soon be competing for bird flu funds from our federal and state governments.
Our elected officials need to put the bird flu bureacrats on hold until the strategy for dealing with bird flu is completed. There will be trade-offs in the strategy, since protection can never be perfect. Each trade-off will provoke serious opposition from the bureaucrats who expected funding for their traded-off projects. But if we don't do the overall war plan first, waste of scandalous proportions will occur. We can't afford for the country to get sick, but we can't afford for it to be broke, either.
Friday, September 30, 2005
More "Katrina's" To Come
"Katrina" and "Rita" showed us once again that nature is a lot stronger than we are. There is no way to control a hurricane, and all we can do is try to prepare for the worst. Recent events have shown that our government did a poor job of preparing, and we will pay a huge price for their neglect. Government failed to get ahead of the risk by allowing construction in high risk zones, by accepting sub-standard construction of levees, and by failing to have a workable disaster response plan. This was not a "republican" or "democrat" problem - this was a government problem. And there are more "Katrina's" to come, most of which relate to government programs that the representatives of us citizens are failing to control.
While the news media and government are focused on the physical and political cleanup of the hurricanes, disasters loom in Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and Education. These programs are doomed to fail in their current forms, leaving our society monetarily and sociallybankrupt. But where are our elected officials? They don't want to talk about or deal with these "gorillas in the room".
The current administration has wasted its political capital on a useless war and in pandering to ideological issues like Terry Schaivo's fate and the role of the Ten Commandments. What rubbish! A democrat administration is likely to waste its capital on give-away programs that its radical constituencies demand - programs that fail to reflect economic realities like global competition. Where can we turn for salvation?
It's time for a true third party or independent force to take over, a force that represents the middle of America, a force that puts the hard choices on the table and leads America to choose the medicine it needs. John McCain is the obvious choice to lead this third party, and there are many competent public-spirited citizens who would take positions currently occupied by politial hacks like the late FEMA head. For Vice President, how about Richardson of New Mexico? Let's make a coalition of the capable and replace the corrupt politicians who are sitting on their asses while the future "Katrina's" bear down on us!
While the news media and government are focused on the physical and political cleanup of the hurricanes, disasters loom in Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and Education. These programs are doomed to fail in their current forms, leaving our society monetarily and sociallybankrupt. But where are our elected officials? They don't want to talk about or deal with these "gorillas in the room".
The current administration has wasted its political capital on a useless war and in pandering to ideological issues like Terry Schaivo's fate and the role of the Ten Commandments. What rubbish! A democrat administration is likely to waste its capital on give-away programs that its radical constituencies demand - programs that fail to reflect economic realities like global competition. Where can we turn for salvation?
It's time for a true third party or independent force to take over, a force that represents the middle of America, a force that puts the hard choices on the table and leads America to choose the medicine it needs. John McCain is the obvious choice to lead this third party, and there are many competent public-spirited citizens who would take positions currently occupied by politial hacks like the late FEMA head. For Vice President, how about Richardson of New Mexico? Let's make a coalition of the capable and replace the corrupt politicians who are sitting on their asses while the future "Katrina's" bear down on us!
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
Ruminations on Robertson and Rumsfeld
Republicans Robertson and Rumsfeld are in the news this week, the former for recommending the assassination of Venezuela's president, the latter for flatly downplaying the prospect of civil war in Iraq. For both, it's merely more of the same.
Robertson, the founder of the Christian Coalition and host of the "700 Club" broadcast, proved once again that he's simply a right wing radical posing as a Christian. His previous inane comments include accusations that the women's rights movement advocated killing children and practicing witchcraft, and that homosexuals have Nazi tendencies. So it's 100% in character for the 75 year old Robertson to propose an assassination as a good solution to dealing with a left wing Venezuelan politician who is irritating the United States government. Robertson makes no mention of the ten commandments or "turning the other cheek", since these are Christian admonitions that don't jive with the radical right wing agenda. Where is the Bush administration on this one? Well, since Robertson is a private citizen "he can say whatever he wants to". Now that's a strong repudiation, typical of the tepid official responses to gaffes by Republican supporters! This "moral" president has a pretty flexible backbone...
Rumsfeld, meanwhile, doesn' t think the current problems with devising an Iraqi constitution increase the chances of a civil war. This conclusion arises from his process of assessments by the "wishful thinking" approach. So far his wishes for the U.S. to be loved by Iraqi's, his wishes for a quiclly-quelled insurgency of incompent rabble, and his wishes that the far-from-finished war could be prosecuted successfully with 130,000 troops have not been fulfilled. Based on where Iraq seems to be going, the likely outcomes are either a civil war or a repressive Iran-like state far from Bush's desires for a true democracy. That ugly old Saddam looks better every day!
So, with gas prices now $2.65 per gallon (including the $1.00 uncertainty tax that Bush has kindly provided the sheiks and his Venezuelan friends), we look forward to the U.S. economy going into an inflation and deficit-driven recession in 2006. Perfect timing! The 2006 elections will be a great opportunity to hand over the mess to the darn Democrats! Time for a third party again...
The Nationwide Tour was in Pittsford, NY, last weekend. Those guys really are good! And they are accountable, too. Watching them keep score makes you wish there was an honest political scorecard... unfortunately, politics has no rules and flexible scoring. Blogs are a good surrogate for an official honest broker, don't you think?
Robertson, the founder of the Christian Coalition and host of the "700 Club" broadcast, proved once again that he's simply a right wing radical posing as a Christian. His previous inane comments include accusations that the women's rights movement advocated killing children and practicing witchcraft, and that homosexuals have Nazi tendencies. So it's 100% in character for the 75 year old Robertson to propose an assassination as a good solution to dealing with a left wing Venezuelan politician who is irritating the United States government. Robertson makes no mention of the ten commandments or "turning the other cheek", since these are Christian admonitions that don't jive with the radical right wing agenda. Where is the Bush administration on this one? Well, since Robertson is a private citizen "he can say whatever he wants to". Now that's a strong repudiation, typical of the tepid official responses to gaffes by Republican supporters! This "moral" president has a pretty flexible backbone...
Rumsfeld, meanwhile, doesn' t think the current problems with devising an Iraqi constitution increase the chances of a civil war. This conclusion arises from his process of assessments by the "wishful thinking" approach. So far his wishes for the U.S. to be loved by Iraqi's, his wishes for a quiclly-quelled insurgency of incompent rabble, and his wishes that the far-from-finished war could be prosecuted successfully with 130,000 troops have not been fulfilled. Based on where Iraq seems to be going, the likely outcomes are either a civil war or a repressive Iran-like state far from Bush's desires for a true democracy. That ugly old Saddam looks better every day!
So, with gas prices now $2.65 per gallon (including the $1.00 uncertainty tax that Bush has kindly provided the sheiks and his Venezuelan friends), we look forward to the U.S. economy going into an inflation and deficit-driven recession in 2006. Perfect timing! The 2006 elections will be a great opportunity to hand over the mess to the darn Democrats! Time for a third party again...
The Nationwide Tour was in Pittsford, NY, last weekend. Those guys really are good! And they are accountable, too. Watching them keep score makes you wish there was an honest political scorecard... unfortunately, politics has no rules and flexible scoring. Blogs are a good surrogate for an official honest broker, don't you think?
Thursday, August 04, 2005
Bush Enemies Avoid Capture - Embarassment!
The recent heavy casualties in Iraq pushed the U.S. death toll to well over 1,800 soldiers, and another 10,000+ have been wounded. Had President Bush explained to us when he started the Iraq war that we would suffer this much, and more, to secure victory, I doubt that congress would have gone along with his costly plan. As a former army officer, I now feel that the main problems in Iraq are the fragmented political scene and the endemic corruption. Bush's premise that "everyone everywhere wants freedom" has turned out to be wrong...the fact is that everyone in Iraq wants to have their own way, whether it be a religious way or a tribal way or a criminal way. Without a semblance of unity in Iraq we are doomed to failure over there, and the situation may well be worse five years from now than when Saddam was in power. Some rather smart people in the State Department and other world-wise organizations made this prediction before we fired a shot, and they are looking pretty smart right now.
Perhaps the most telling component of our apparent failure in the "war against terrorism" is the survival of Abu Musab al-Zarkawi and Osama bin Laden. They command large organizations, they make video tapes of threats, and they are murderous fanatics. They are also at large, which Bush does not mention too often. Despite all the U.S.'s technical prowess and the financial inducements aimed at capturing or killing these guys, they have become the Energizer bunnies of terrorism - they go on and on and on. So far, George Bush has been as successful in dealing with them as he has in making Iraq work. I suspect that the reason we've not caught them is closely related to the reason our casualties are much higher than expected - the administration just didn't understand the level of support and loyalty that the terrorists would maintain, nor did they figure the terrorists could sell their message better than Bush could sell his. These kinds of errors in judgment are not what we elect presidents to commit, but I pray that the experiences outlined above will encourage men and women of influence to exercise much more control over GWB during the remainder of his unfortunate term in office.
Yes, it's been a hot summer in a lot of ways!
Perhaps the most telling component of our apparent failure in the "war against terrorism" is the survival of Abu Musab al-Zarkawi and Osama bin Laden. They command large organizations, they make video tapes of threats, and they are murderous fanatics. They are also at large, which Bush does not mention too often. Despite all the U.S.'s technical prowess and the financial inducements aimed at capturing or killing these guys, they have become the Energizer bunnies of terrorism - they go on and on and on. So far, George Bush has been as successful in dealing with them as he has in making Iraq work. I suspect that the reason we've not caught them is closely related to the reason our casualties are much higher than expected - the administration just didn't understand the level of support and loyalty that the terrorists would maintain, nor did they figure the terrorists could sell their message better than Bush could sell his. These kinds of errors in judgment are not what we elect presidents to commit, but I pray that the experiences outlined above will encourage men and women of influence to exercise much more control over GWB during the remainder of his unfortunate term in office.
Yes, it's been a hot summer in a lot of ways!
Wednesday, August 03, 2005
Bush Not Intelligently Designed
GWB has done it again...how does the saying go, "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread"? Well, young George has proven the point when it comes to mixing religion and politics. Seems like his physicians gave him a clean bill of health but forgot the mental exam. Certainly his recent comment that schools should teach "intelligent design" alongside evolutionary theory shows that, as a thinker, he was not intelligently designed.
As a Christian, I believe that God did create the universe with some purpose in mind. And I choose to believe that some day I will get a much better sense of what that purpose was and how I fit into it. But prove that, I can't. It's just a belief. And if it's a belief it belongs in church and in what I say to others - but not in school. School is for theories that science can work on.
But what about those critters that some "scientists" say they can't explain through evolution? Those critters that have parts that needed to develop all at the same time? OK, I'll admit these assertions have aroused some curiosity on my part, but science has always dealt with mysteries and has generally solved them. I'd rather leave these critters in the pending file than jump to a giant conclusion with no better reasoning than "we don't understand how...". And, I must add, I don't believe God leaves physical clues designed to give us certainty about God. I think God wants to remain a mystery who must be believed rather than proven.
But, just for fun, let's say George W. Bush is right in believing that the universe was intelligently designed and that we should teach the concept in schools. The next obvious question is "what was the purpose of the design?" Did God do it just to do something difficult, or as a throwaway, or as one of many parallel universes, or for God's entertainment? Surely George has a pat answer for that one, as well. Probably something about God designing us with free will to choose Him or not, with the "not's" going to a really hot place. And the proof for that one? The Bible, of course. Next thing we'll be studying the Bible in school, just like our Pakistani foes study the Koran. Where would it stop? At some point we'd all be killing each other over religion.
My president may well be a fool with noble motives. History is full of such people who went down the wrong roads for the right reasons. If he wants to have the faith of a child, that's his prerogative, but it's hard to believe he would cross the line and start talking about putting religious beliefs in the schools. But he did. And if he's not a fool, but stirred this pot for political reasons, then he is responsible for whatever is done by the idiots who are willing to follow this line of reasoning to the end. Think Timothy McVeigh. Thanks, George, for another great job as a "unifier". Right.
As a Christian, I believe that God did create the universe with some purpose in mind. And I choose to believe that some day I will get a much better sense of what that purpose was and how I fit into it. But prove that, I can't. It's just a belief. And if it's a belief it belongs in church and in what I say to others - but not in school. School is for theories that science can work on.
But what about those critters that some "scientists" say they can't explain through evolution? Those critters that have parts that needed to develop all at the same time? OK, I'll admit these assertions have aroused some curiosity on my part, but science has always dealt with mysteries and has generally solved them. I'd rather leave these critters in the pending file than jump to a giant conclusion with no better reasoning than "we don't understand how...". And, I must add, I don't believe God leaves physical clues designed to give us certainty about God. I think God wants to remain a mystery who must be believed rather than proven.
But, just for fun, let's say George W. Bush is right in believing that the universe was intelligently designed and that we should teach the concept in schools. The next obvious question is "what was the purpose of the design?" Did God do it just to do something difficult, or as a throwaway, or as one of many parallel universes, or for God's entertainment? Surely George has a pat answer for that one, as well. Probably something about God designing us with free will to choose Him or not, with the "not's" going to a really hot place. And the proof for that one? The Bible, of course. Next thing we'll be studying the Bible in school, just like our Pakistani foes study the Koran. Where would it stop? At some point we'd all be killing each other over religion.
My president may well be a fool with noble motives. History is full of such people who went down the wrong roads for the right reasons. If he wants to have the faith of a child, that's his prerogative, but it's hard to believe he would cross the line and start talking about putting religious beliefs in the schools. But he did. And if he's not a fool, but stirred this pot for political reasons, then he is responsible for whatever is done by the idiots who are willing to follow this line of reasoning to the end. Think Timothy McVeigh. Thanks, George, for another great job as a "unifier". Right.
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