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Hunger Strike at GITMO

There's been a hunger strike a GITMO for the past 49 days. Have you heard about it? Of Course not.

Why are they in a hunger strike? What difference does it make how they die? They have no rights; They have no one to defend their rights; They're not POWs; They're not criminals. Even when found innocent by a US military tribunal they remain held.

It's a coincidence I'm sure that while the US claims to support the Geneva Accords for prisoner treatment Bush has adamantly vowed to veto any bill that would guarantee humane treatment or at least treatment under Geneva Accord for POWS. (Weird too is he's never used his veto power for any spending bill put before him. But that might be why our federal deficit is $500 Billion annually. But by god no one's going to make him treat someone humanely. ...)

Suicides at GITMO reportedly dropped; But then it was discovered that the term "suicide" was removed from AARs (After Action Reports) for the victims and replaced with Manipulative Self-Injurious Behavior (SIB)--and there were still plenty of SIBs. The military was lying by semantics.

While Rumsfled claims the prisoners are being treated humanely and within the terms of the Geneva Convention....the prisoners are on the 49th day of a hunger strike.

After prisoners tore the feed tubes out of their arms the military used nose tubes. And they assure everyone that no one's going to die from hunger. Sounds a bit coercive? Think arm restraints and sedatives....

What's happened to our country in the past 5 years? Using a presidential veto to block any attempt to insure prisoners are treated humanely and under Geneva Accords...while at the same time never using that to block billions of no-bid contracts.

Bush's Major Speech on Terrorism

Nothing but a cynical ploy to redirect the country's attention away from the problems this adminsitrations shows no interest in providing solutions. I guess it's too busy finding jobs for cronies.

Here's 2 points highlighted in today's editorial at the NY TIMES (blog friendly link):

* Bush's Veto Power. Bush has never used his veto on any spending bill put before him; Never used it, never threatened it. He never used his veto power on the latest Transportation bill that included $200 million for a bridge to nowhere in Alaska. He never used it during his first term when he 'lead' us from an annual federal budget surplus of over $400 million to an annual budget deficit of over $400 million...in 4 short years.

But now he's threatening to veto the Senate bill that bans inhumane treatment of prisoners in our custody regardless of their designation. 

Strange priorities.

* Bush's greatest moment. His greatest moment, his shining hour, was at this country's darkest and most painful: 9/11. Since then as the country has recovered...his popularity has declined.  His success is on the basis of our suffering.

When ratings drop...talk about the foreign enemy

When approval ratings drop, and the power to rule with it also, the one constant tactic for despots and demagogues, tyrants and fascists, is to talk about the threat from foreign enemies. Their threat to our way of life. Hitler and his minions did it with amazing and stunning skill.

Now Bush does it today in his speech about the threat of terrorists. And how can you quibble with or criticize a brave leader fighting the good fight against those people  who would threaten our way of life. Why just to argue with him puts you as against him. And you're either for Him or against Him. (Caps are both mine and in his mind).

While more cronies are appointed o key positions, while more federal money is given away to donors through no-bid contracts in Iraq and the Gulf Coast, while funds for social programs are slashed, while poverty rates keep climbing, while his friends in the oil companies make record profits while low-wage earners hope they can afford fuel this winter to heat their homes, while a growing amount of income and assets of this country are in fewer and fewer hands....Bush talks about Syria and the threat of a radical muslim empire?

It's worked in the past, anyway.