I just don't get it. We rushed to impeach a president because of the chain of events initiated when an oversexed intern wanted to chew his cigar. But now we've got a guy who suckered Congress into granting him war powers in the guise of fighting/finding the 9-11 terrorists and their ilk. In the name of 'We the People' he is going to give the go-ahead to bomb a sovereign country that, to date, has no proven links to the 9-11 terrorists. 'We the People' will go to war and will have to pay an estimated $500 million a day for the 'privilege.'
This guy seems to have taken pages out of Barbara Coloroso's book Bullys, Bullied and the Bystander. Coloroso is trying to make sense of the Columbine-related tragedies and their possible origins, but her observations seem right on target for this Administration's actions. Bullies, she tells us, have a sense of entitlement, see an 'other' as a lesser being and views him with contempt. When bullies target the 'other' as in Littleton, Colo., the bullied strike out in rage and vengeance. The way to break the cycle of violence, she holds, is to reach the bystanders; get them to pay attention, get involved, never, ever look away. Be a good friend; have good friends. Geez, do we see an analogy here?
'We the people' have friends who aren't looking away, like Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Jimmy Carter, who did op-ed piece in the March 9 New York Times stating that 'a substantially unilateral attack on Iraq does not meet these ( the criteria for a just war ) standards.' Carter was a good friend to gays, another reason we should listen to him. While still Governor of Georgia he explored gay positions with local activists Sandra Szelag and Clark House. In 1977, his administration brought the first group of gays, including Chicagoan Bill Kelley, to a conference on gay rights with White House aide Midge Costanza.
'We the people' have friends like President Bill Clinton and Sen. Bob Dole, former Republican whip, who both recommended 'waiting' on their new 'Point-Counterpoint' segment of CBS-TVs 60 Minutes. Another Republican from the administration of Bush the First, General Brent Scowcroft, has come out against unilateralism in several venues. Scowcroft was a contributor to the PBS 'Ethics in America' series. Organizations and individuals have taken out full-page newspaper ads, called for reason on TV and radio shows like The Tom Joyner Show, Nightline, Charlie Rose, and NOW with Bill Moyers. But the bullies aren't listening. Through bribery, blackmail or threats they have lined up enough 'supporters' among UN countries so as not to appear alone. Countries with the courage to face economic retaliation by opposing the rush to war are accused of being jealous of America's power. 'We don't need them,' said National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice. When asked how the tab for our 'Imperial adventure in Iraq' would be paid, the pundits reply that a supplement will be added when the military costs are in. 'We the people' will pay for it. Our elected representatives in Congress, our proxies, relinquished their right to hold the purse strings when they relinquished the right to alone declare war. Once the Administration has sent troops overseas, how can Congress back out of paying the bill?
'We the People' have a friend in career diplomat John Brady Kiesling whose letter of resignation to Secretary of State Colin Powell has been making the internet rounds after a copy ran in the Feb. 27 New York Times. Kiesling resigned as Political Counselor in the U.S. Embassy, Athens, after 20 years in the Foreign Service because 'until this Administration it had been possible to believe that by upholding the policies of my president I was also upholding the interests of the American people and the world. I believe it no longer.'
As Tom Joyner asked on his show, 'What has Iraq got to do with finding the 9-11 terrorists?' Many have asked, 'where is the case for war with Iraq?' Powell didn't convince our allies at the UN? No one on the home front has made a case that convinces me it's time for bombs. We have supported dictators, even this dictator, before. Enemies of our enemies become our friends. We gave Saddam many of the weapons we now worry he may use on us, on his own people, or our friends. The U.S. has the same weapons, the same ability to use them on friend or foe. But, 'We the People' expect more from our country. We expect a rule of law. We expect the voice of reason will be heard.
The Supreme Court and a pile of hanging chads put this Administration in place. They have used 9-11 to usurp a carte blanche from a Congress afraid not to fall in lock-step. Perhaps dragging us into a war most of us don't want is not an impeachable offence in the political sense. Maybe taking the little money left in most of our pockets after recent economic debacles to fund such an ignominious venture is not an impeachable offence. A pre-emptive war with Iraq, at this time, is the act of a bully and will no doubt call down the wrath of the bullied, enemies and allies, in even more costly ways. As uninvolved bystanders 'We the People' will have let ourselves be impeached in the original meaning of the word; we will have allowed our honor and reputation to be discredited.
Copyright 2003 by Marie J. Kuda e-mail: kudoschgo@aol.com
