Too many sides to too many issues

Before President W. Bush I considered my self "post-partisan," a moderate, a "pro-life Democrat." I was disappointed in and felt betrayed by President Clinton's infidelity and dishonest. I always tried to see past party lines. I believe in hashing out issues and getting to hard compromises. I made every effort to try to help Republican friends see that Democrats and "Liberals" weren't all a bunch of pro-gay, pro-communist, evil, hedonistic atheists out to destroy our way of life. Now, I will freely admit that I am angry about the war, just as angry as many of my dearest friends and neighbors have been about abortion for years.

The thing is none of us (my self included) ought to be single-issue voters. The other thing is that there are scores of issues that are every bit as ugly, wrong, immoral and "un-Christian" that our society and both our parties need to wrestle with.

I hope that this column provokes readers to think and talk about some of them. One of the purposes of a newspaper (and of the internet, I guess) is to be a forum for the free expression and discussion of ideas. A couple people have emailed or signed my guestbook anonymously instead of writing letters to the editor for the NEWSpaper & LEADER to publish. Please write the paper, don't be afraid, your ideas are just as legitimate and certainly as passionately held as any of mine. I'm not always right and I hope I never intentionally put anyone else down.

Here is a note that some one left on my website's guestbook. I could write them back because they left a bogus email address.

"tina - Many Democratic officials warned of Saddam's weapon capabilities and stock piles of biological weaponery since 1998: Clinton, Albright, Pulousi, Gore, Kennedy, and more .... before Bush was even in the White House. If you are going to spout off as some sort of expert you should know your facts and not just talk out of frustration and anger. The last time I checked ... Congress basically handed the President a blank check in 2002 and backed him with full support. He did not do this alone. Your column is unclear as to intent other then another flaming liberal trying to burn everything around him. Beings as though you are a Lutheran I find this even more appalling. Do you really wish to support the killing of innocent unborn babies in the ballot box, because we have soldiers willing to fight to protect you and what you have to say? I would certainly hope the cost of fuel would not cause you to jump that direction. There are many issues to consider, and your angry column was irresponsible to your neighbors."

I know that the administration didn't go in without support. Heck, I was won over for a while. That only makes it worse. Because many of us (Republicans included) feel duped and used and yes, guilty. Tina is absolutely right, I shouldn't just write out of anger- that part did make me "flaming," although (except for the blank check that Congress gave Bush) I try really hard to include as many facts as I can any time I write about politics. I do not support the killing of innocent unborn babies, but I also don't support killing innocent live babies, youth, adults or elderly. I don't support cutting programs for the poor while maintaining and even increasing tax cuts for the super rich and for corporations. I wish I'd never supported a unilateral, pre-emptive, unprovoked invasion of a tiny, weak nation that had nothing to do with the terroist attack on us. I don't attack rape, torture, and denying basic human rights to anyone, even to terrorists.

Please forgive me whenever any of you feel that any of my columns are irresponsible. I want to be a good neighbor. But please, can I just tell you that I feel like your questioning my faith or impugning how "Chirstian" I am if you assume that I am totally pro-choice or somehow must want to see babies die because I vote for Democrats or criticize Republicans. Sin is sin and wrong is wrong, unfortunately there is no escaping it in this world, especially in politics.

In Boy Scouts I was taught, "God, Country, and Family- in that order." I believe that God created us with a nature that asks questions. I believe that our founding fathers designed our system of government so that we are not only allowed to scrutinize it and express our displeasure with it, but that it is our duty to do so. And I believe in supporting families, even the unborn members of those families, but I have not seen the current administration neglect support for middle class and poor families while flaunting faith and values for political expedience. If I were a Republican or a Fundamentalist Evangelical I would feel abused.

I'd like to leave you with some quotes from Republican leaders. Three of the four are some of my favorite politicians, no sarcasm intended, they really are (sorry to disappoint any of my fellow Democrats). My point in sharing them is that the bush administration may have won your votes by being "pro-life," but I contend that they've pursued policies that are cruel and abusive of life.

All of us, Democrat and Republican, Green Party and Libertarian, Lutheran, Fundamentalist Evangelical, Catholic, Methodist, whoever All of us need to stop accusing each other of being less-Christian, less-moral, less-right. We need to see past our differences so that we can be alert to how un-Christian, immoral, and wrong we can sometimes be.

"If we are viewed as a country that engages in torture ... any possible information we might be able to gain is far counterbalanced by (the negative) effect of public opinion... This battle we're in is about the things we stand for and believe in and practice. And that is an observance of human rights, no matter how terrible our adversaries may be." -- Senator John McCain (R-AZ)

"I think the administration is making a terrible mistake in opposing John McCain's amendment on detainees and torture." --Senator Chuck Hagel (R-NE)

"I'm a strong supporter of Senator McCain's amendment. I don't think the White House should veto it." -- Former Secretary of State Colin Powell

"The United States can win the war on terrorism without sacrificing our values." --Senator Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)

PS- Torture is NOT "Pro-Life"

Turkey & Football

The family clamored around the table. The aroma of a home cooked meal filled the air, as did the feeling of anticipation- after all, the meal had been in preparation all morning and some items even the night before.

But first, the lady of the house had to welcome their guests who were waiting at the door.

“Greetings Massasoit, we’re so clad you decided to come, may I take your head-dress?”

“Thank you Barbara, here, we weren’t sure what to bring, I hope you like it,” he said while handing her a steaming the corn casserole. His wife came in behind him with bowl of cracked-wheat and brown sugar pudding. “Where’s Myles?” He then asked.

“Oh, he’s in the back with the boys getting ready for the big game. He said something about the teams wearing their old uniforms or something, it’s right through here,” she directed the Chief past the great room and back to the den.

“Good grief,” sighed his wife, Standing-Water. “Every year it’s the same thing, it seems like from September to January I’m a widow every Sunday.”

“I know what you mean,” she empathized. “Come on back to the kitchen,” she invited, “Priscilla’s here.”

“Oh my,” Mrs. Massasoit whispered, “I thought she was the one who was after your Myles.”

“Oh Lordy,” Barbara Standish assured her, “that was over eons ago. Besides, it was Myles who was after her- water under the bridge now. Besides, her new beau, John Alden is with her. He’s back there rough housing with the kids. My land, I swear I’ll never understand a man’s fascination with throwing a pig’s bladder around.”

Finally, meal time arrived. The children petered each other and teased. The youngest kids turned up their noses at the squash and peas. The Herring and eel were very popular, but not as much as the venison with gooseberry relish. Myles Standish had to stop the boys from throwing hickory nuts at the girls. For the most part, a good time was had by all.

Until Bill Bradford stood up to make a speech. He had hitting the ale pretty hard all afternoon.

“The Council has thought meet to appoint and set apart...a day of Solemn Thanksgiving and praise to God for such his Goodness and Favour, many Particulars of which mercy might be Instanced...” he rambled.

“Oh no,” pined Alden under his breath to his friend Myles, “Here he goes talking about religion again.

“...The Council doth commend it to the Respective Ministers, Elders and people of this Jurisdiction;” Bradford continued.

“Aw man,” Standish complained to Alden, now he’s on to politics...”

And thus the first Thanksgiving dinner was ruined by people talking about sex, politics, and religion. If only they would have stuck to food and football.

Coffeeholics Anonymous

Hi, I’m my name is Ted (no last name) and I’m a coffeeholic.

1. We admitted we were powerless over coffee--that our lives had become unmanageable.

It’s unmanageable because I can’t seem to function in the morning with out a cup of coffee. I start to get run down in the afternoon if I don’t have a couple more cups later on, but I can’t get to sleep at night because there’s too much caffeine left in my system.

I have to drink enough coffee just to feel normal. To actually get really alert and pleasantly aware, I have to drink the hard stuff, espresso. Regular Joe was just my gateway drug, it led to more serious things, Mocha Java, Cappuccino, occasionally a Voltaire… I even tried a Caramello once. And yes, it loathes me admit this to anyone…I even drink prepackaged, refrigerated, Starbuck’s bottled “Frappuccinos.” One day at an all-day teacher’s workshop- I had three. I almost overdosed. It’s truly a miracle that I’m even here today.

I try not to drink any coffee or pop when I know I have to go to the Doctor, because I’m sure they’ll tell me I have high blood pressure, but when you’re sick you’re even more tired or worse you have “medicine- head” from cold pills, so if you’re going to manage to drive yourself to the doctor’s office, you have to have some coffee.

2. I had ALMOST come to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity…

But you see, I’m Lutheran. Coffee is one of Sacraments. It’s a means of Grace. Phillip Melangthon, Martin Luther’s colleague in the Theology department at Wittenburg University was thought to have said, “Coffee is proof that God loves us,” or something along those lines. We have dark roast for matins and half-caf for vespers. Old Lutheran stores sell “Most Certainly Brew” brand coffee for Gospel brunches.

Missouri Synod Lutherans, old, conservative, German Lutherans believe in modest, classic coffee. Maybe a little creamer and sweetener, but just powder, nothing so self-indulgent as these expensive liquid creamers. Those Evangelical Lutherans, the wild liberal Scandinavians prefer those prissy, decadent flavored coffees like hazelnut and Irish cream and Kaluha and cinnamon almond and like that. Since the fellowship agreement with the Episcopalians, there’s even rumors that they’re experimenting with English tea and even Eastern, New Age beverages like “chai tea.” What is chai tea anyway? I always get it confused with “tai chee”, which is some kind of Chinese slow ballet stretching exercise or something.

3. So, I made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.

And as I understand Him, He made coffee and so how can anything He made be bad for us? Or isn’t that what people who smoke pot say? Anyway- it’s a bean and God made beans, so how can a bean be so bad?

4. I made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

And found myself to be about a quart low.

5. Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

I admit that I’m a bear if I don’t get my coffee. Year after year I try to give it up for Lent and year after year my students are BEGGING me to drink coffee by late February because I’m so crabby without it. Who knows how many people I have wronged while suffering from withdrawal.

6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

How soon do I have to be ready? Can’t you wait just five minutes? Let a guy just sit her for a few minutes with the newspaper and a cup of coffee. You know it takes me a while to get going . We won’t be late, I promise. Can’t a guy get just five minutes of peace and quiet all to himself? Is that so much to ask?

Letter from a reader

Ted, what are you doing to our nice little hometown newspaper? Do we have to constantly read about how unhappy you are with our Country, our President, and our Beloved God? Please stop insulting the intelligence of your readers by ranting and raving about our great country and our great leaders and our great military! And for you to use passages from the Bible in one paragraph, only to follow through with your hatred towards our Country! I will pray for you. It sounds like you are a very unhappy American! Also, you need to get your facts straight. The history lessons and political rhetoric you constantly bestow upon your readers is such an insult to us! Remember how you believed every word Dan Rather reported? Didn't you learn your lesson then? Enough is enough of these political columns of yours? Can't you find something nice to right about?

Thanks for hearing me out, I just hate to see our sweet little newspaper being dragged down the political road by untruths. From a "Tired Housewife in Ute who is married to a Vietnam Veteran and very very proud of it!"

~Jean Nepper

- Not sure if I want to either reply to her or forward this to the NEWSpaper so that they can run it? Obviously we dissagree about the war and the Bush administration. I am an unhappy American I love my country and fear for it. That's why I write what I write. It's as simple as that.

"I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just." ~Thomas Jefferson

I learned my lesson when I wrote about what Dan Rather was reporting about Bush's service record. I wrote a retraction in a later column. But has anybody learned their lessons about Bush/Cheny/Rove/Libby? Come on- which is more un-American? Complaining about the current administration, or not wanting people to be able to complain about it?

We should do right by our vets

On June 28th, 1914 Austrian Archduke Francis Ferdinand and wife were assassinated in Sarajevo by Serbian nationalist. Germans wanted to defend Austrians, Russians wanted to defend Serbians, the French had promised to help the Russians. Germany marched through Belgium to attack France. The English wanted to defend the Belgians and by summer everyone in Europe had “August Fever.” They assumed that thanks to modern technology and good planning, they’d win a quick war and be home by Fall.

Instead, World War One, or “the Great War” left 10 million dead and 20 million wounded, many of those permanently maimed. The world faced amputees, the long-term health effects of new chemical and biological weapons and to the paralyzing psychological traumas that were then known as “shell-shock.” So many young men and boys were lost that theirs became called “the lost generation.”

At 11 a.m. on November 11, 1918, in a railroad car, leaders of the Allied and Central Powers signed an armistice, a temporary suspension of hostilities. Americans observed that day as a day to honor peace and the sacrifice of it’s veterans already in 1919. In 1938, Congress made it an official, National holiday. In 1954 Congress renamed the holiday “Veteran’s Day.”

Before WWI was even finished, in January 1918, President Woodrow Wilson gave his famous “14 points” speech to Congress. Outlining his plan for making the world safe for democracy, and making sure that WW I would be the war to END all wars. We could learn a lot from his plan:

1. “Open covenants of peace, openly arrived at”…”diplomacy shall proceed always frankly and in the public view.” No secret alliances, no secret negotiations, all deals needed to be above-board. Would that also mean no secret bombings and no secret prison camps?

2. “Absolute freedom of navigation upon the seas, outside territorial waters, alike in peace and in war”

3. Free trade

4. Arms reduction

5. Sovereignty and self determination for small countries, rather than occupation and control by more powerful nations.

Points 6-13. Dealt with the reorganization of many of the European nations that were fought over and agreeing on where their borders should be.

14. “A general association of nations must be formed under specific covenants for the purpose of affording mutual guarantees of political independence and territorial integrity to great and small states alike.”

After WWII, the U.S led the way in creating such an association, the United Nations, in hopes of helping all nations operate by rule of law and international agreements, rather than by the personality and whims of their leaders or parties in power.

Republican Senator from Wisconsin Gerald Nye led a committee to investigate what drew the U.S. into WWI. Between 1934 and 1936 his seven member committee held Ninety-three hearings and questioned more than two hundred witnesses. The committee reported that between 1915 and April 1917, the US loaned Germany $27 million while at the same time loaning Great Britain and its allies $2.3 billion (about 85 times as much). They concluded that the US entered the war because it was in its commercial interest for England to win.

116,516 American service men died in WWI. The war cost the U.S. $18.7 billion. Americans came to understand that America’s involvement may have been profit driven. Congress authorized veterans' benefits in 1917. In 1924, WWI vets were promised a bonus payment of $1,000. As the Great Depression worsened in 1932, nearly 15,000 veterans and their families marched on Washington to demand their bonuses. The “Bonus Army” camped out for months. By July, the Bonus Army was 25,000 strong.

No matter how we feel about the war or the President, we should honor our soldiers. We should pressure our officials to make sure that veterans and military families, including National Guard members receive the benefits that they need.

Ben Tripp of Veterans For Common Sense puts it this way. “Thousands of Vietnam veterans are lost in America's streets and public shelters, thirty years after their war petered out, unable to repatriate in a nation that has forgotten what real sacrifice costs… Will we let this happen again to the warriors that are spilling their guts in the sands of Iraq?... Do not judge them for what they have done, no matter how bloody, no matter how banal their role in the war. Do not judge them. They are the sword that cuts. They are not the hand that wields it. Some will be accused of crimes, and will answer for them; others will be lauded as heroes and held up as models for future generations…if we are willing to do the work, we might be able to stop the war inside our troops when they come home.”

Blood for oil?

Joseph C. Wilson, had been in the State Department since 1976. He’s served as ambassador to Gabon from 1992 to 1995. He’s helped direct Africa policy for the National Security Council. In 1990, he was in charge of U.S. affairs in Baghdad

In February 2002, Vice President Dick Cheney's office had questions about an intelligence report that referred to a memo that documented the sale of uranium yellowcake by Niger to Iraq in the late 1990's. Joseph Wilson agreed to visit Niger where he had been a diplomat in the mid-70's and visited as a National Security Council official in the late 90's.

He met with Ambassador Owens-Kirkpatrick. She the ambassador told him that she knew about the allegations of uranium sales to Iraq , but had already investigated them and told Washington that it didn’t happen.

After further investigation, Wilson concluded that it was unlikely that any such transaction had taken place and that the memos were probably forged. The government of Niger also denied the charges.

In September 2002, however, the British government published a "white paper" claiming that Saddam Hussein and his unconventional arms posed a “clear and present” danger. The cited Iraq's attempts to purchase uranium from an African country.

Then, in January 2003, President Bush, citing the British dossier, repeated the charges about Iraqi efforts to buy uranium from Africa.

That March on "Meet the Press" Vice President. Cheney said that Saddam Hussein was "trying once again to produce nuclear weapons." Cheney was voracious and tenacious about making sure that people linked Iraq with Osama bin Ladden, Alquaeda, and September 11, even though Iraq and Saddam Hussein had absolutely nothing whatsoever with 9/11. Hussein and bin Laden HATED each other. There are far more Alqueda terrorists in Iraq now then there were in February 2003. Hussein’s Bathist government didn’t let them in.

In March 2003 U.S. forces invaded Iraq.

“The act of war is the last option of a democracy, taken when there is a grave threat to our national security. More than 200 American soldiers have lost their lives in Iraq already. We have a duty to ensure that their sacrifice came for the right reasons,” wrote Wilson in the New York Times in July 2003.

As of this month, 2,000 American service men and women have died in Iraq.

Wilson’s wife, Valerie Plame, a CIA operative had her cover blown in retaliation for her husband’s whistle blowing, and no doubt to get him to shut up. That was petty, it was also illeagal. The last time I checked, outing one of our own spies is also treason.

Vice President Dick Cheny’s Chief of Staff, Lewis "Scooter" Libby Jr. resigned last Friday after being charged with obstruction of justice, making a false statement and perjury in the C.I.A. leak investigation.

According to an October 28 story in the New York Times, Exxon Mobil’s third-quarter net income jumped 75 percent, to $9.92 billion.

“Its profit in the first nine months of this year - $25.42 billion - already equals its full-year earnings for 2004. This year's sales, which topped $100 billion in the last quarter, are expected to exceed those of Wal-Mart,” the Times also reported that Shell Oil’s profits rose 68 percent to just over $9 Billion.

Call me crazy, and I’m no economics expert, but if there’s such a problem with supply, due to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, so that we everyday people were paying nearly $3 per gallon, wouldn’t they have taken a hit to their profits? Iraq constitutes 11 percent of the world’s oil reserves, second only to Saudi Arabia’s 25 percent. Even with all the trouble with insurgencies and the threat of looming civil war, why aren’t average Americans benefiting from the fact that we now control so much oil?

President Bush, Vice President Cheney and Secretary of State Rice all came from the oil industry. I wonder how much Enron, Halliburton, The Carlyle Group, CentGas, The RAND Corporation, Chevron, and UNOCAL and their stockholders benefited from the $1.6 billion in tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% that Republicans now refuse to roll back, even after hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma?

One year from this week, when it’s time to vote, I hope that people who can’t afford to invest in the stock market and have to pay so much for oil to fuel their homes and to fill their tanks so they can drive to work will remember who lied to us and how many Americans have had to die because of those lies.

Democracy For America

Democracy For America: "There was a perceptible shift in attitude. Military action was now seen as inevitable. Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. But the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy." ~Downing Street Memo

VAIW :: Veterans Against The Iraq War

VAIW :: Veterans Against The Iraq War: "Veterans Against Iraq War is a coalition of American veterans who support our troops but oppose war with Iraq or any other nation that does not pose a clear and present danger to our people and nation.

Until and unless the current U.S. Administration provides evidence which clearly demonstrates that Iraq or any other nation poses a clear, direct and immediate danger to our country, we oppose all of this Administration's pre-emptive and unilateral military activities in Iraq. Furthermore, we cannot support any war that is initiated without a formal Declaration of War by Congress, as our Constitution requires.

Although we detested the dictatorial policies of Saddam Hussein and sympathized with the tragic plight of the Iraqi people, we opposed unilateral and pre-emptive U.S. military intervention on the grounds that it established a dangerous precedent in the conduct of international affairs, that it could easily lead to an increase of violent regional instability and the spread of much wider conflicts, that it places needless and unacceptable financial burdens on the American people, that it diverts us from addressing critical domestic priorities, and that it distracts us from our goals of tracking down and destroying international terrorists and their lairs.

Furthermore, we do not believe that the American military can or should be used as the police force of the world by any administration, Republican or Democrat. Consequently, we believe that the lives and well being of our nation's soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines should not be squandered or sacrificed for causes other than in the direct defense of our people and nation."

"You use a glass mirror to see your face; you use works of art to see your soul"

~George Bernard Shaw

"Those who would give up essential liberty, to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." -Benjamin Franklin"