Like Lemmings to the Sea--Deadly Complacency

Led by Pied Piper Obama, encouraged almost universally by Congress, and endlessly cheered on by the MSM, we as a nation are becoming more and more intrinsically complicit in the atrocities of the Bush Administration. This excellent cartoon by Tom Tomorrow reminded me of several warnings which have been voiced over the past months and years.

In July of 2008, I wrote this article, The Precipice of Congressional Complicity.

For me, one of the truly disheartening things about witnessing the FISA debacle in both the House and Senate was seeing the sheer enormity of apparent complicity among members of Congress on both sides of the aisle.

I also revisited this May 2008 article by the ever-prescient Glenn Greenwald, Growing Responsibility for the Bush Torture Regime.

The more time that goes by and the more we learn — particularly if we do nothing meaningful to stop it — the more the responsibility for these policies shifts from the administration to all of us collectively.

If that observation were true months ago (it was), then several torture memos, leaked photographs, interviews with numerous CIA, government, and legal sources, and quite a few nationally televised confessions by war criminal (and utterly creepy guy) Dick Cheney later, its truth is even more compelling.

We Are All Torturers Now By Mark Danner was published in the New York Times way back in January of 2005. In that article, Danner said:

Shortly after the 9/11 attacks, Americans began torturing prisoners, and they have never really stopped. However much these words have about them the ring of accusation, they must by now be accepted as fact. From Red Cross reports, Maj. Gen. Antonio M. Taguba's inquiry, James R. Schlesinger's Pentagon-sanctioned commission and other government and independent investigations, we have in our possession hundreds of accounts of "cruel, inhuman and degrading" treatment - to use a phrase of the Red Cross - "tantamount to torture."

Danner goes on to say, “By using torture, we Americans transform ourselves into the very caricature our enemies have sought to make of us.”

Over four years later, with a Democratic president, Democratic majorities in both houses of Congress, and an undeniable mandate from the American electorate, we—as a nation—have still done essentially nothing (except to further entrench the extra-legal circumstances which led to these abuses). We don’t need any more debates. We don’t need any truth commissions. What we need is the immediate commencement of trials and prosecutions of those who committed these heinous war crimes in our names. Until we correct the egregious wrong turn in our national direction, “looking forward” will only serve to keep leading us down that same path—right over the cliff.

The Precipice of Congressional Complicity

Updated below (7/21/2008)
Update II (7/25/2008)

For me, one of the truly disheartening things about witnessing the FISA debacle in both the House and Senate was seeing the sheer enormity of apparent complicity among members of Congress on both sides of the aisle. It was especially disheartening to see the Democrats—the “opposition party”—so eagerly and nearly universally enabling the criminality of the Bush administration. The only possible explanation for that I can conceive is that Congress is fundamentally complicit in those crimes and is brazenly and transparently attempting to cover their own asses.

Since we know Speaker Pelosi was briefed on, and probably signed off on, many of the twisted justifications for lawlessness, isn’t there a way to force her to recuse herself from the impeachment debate or face impeachment herself?

We find ourselves—our Constitutional Democracy—at the edge of a precipice; plunging over it seems ever more inevitable.

This post by David Swanson at AfterDowningStreet.org presents a stronger case for Congressional Complicity.

This interview by Jane Hamsher and Bruce Fein spells it out again.

More on Obama's "Move to the Center"

Updated below

I thought this article offered a revealing glimpse into the "appease the right" crap that keeps being shoveled on us.

I also thought it was telling that Hillary Clinton (whom I did not support because I perceived her to be too Washington-Insider-Corporate-Interest-Entrenched to be able to pull us out of the mess we're in) voted against the FISA capitulation fiasco (though she benefited quite handsomely from Telecom industry donations), while Obama (whom I have supported, believing his B.S. about being a "different kind of politician" and an agent of change) voted for it (also benefiting from Telecom industry money). It is rather ironic that Ms. Clinton based her campaign strategy on a Karl Rovian, "be-afraid-of-the-terrorists, I-can-protect-you-when-that-3 a.m.-call-comes" sort of paradigm, while Mr. Obama had the courage—for a time—to challenge that thinking. They traded positions completely when it came down to the actual vote. I commend Senator Clinton for her opposition to this terrible legislation; and I would warn Senator Obama (though I know he doesn't give a rat's ass what I think) that he's getting some VERY POOR campaign advice and ought to fire his whole staff and start over (after all, the "change" thing was working for him well enough to secure the nomination for him. Why is it suddenly an ineffective stance?).

I'm just saying. . . .

This article by David Sirota adds further insight into this phenomenon.

An Open Letter to the U.S. Congress

Accountability Now!
An Open Letter to the U.S. Congress

In November of 2006, I—like a majority of voting Americans—went to the poll to demand change. We were effective in changing a virtual flood of Congressional seats from Republican to Democratic—indicating that we wanted the Democrats to have the majority and the mandate to hold the Executive Branch accountable. We have been sorely disappointed.

Over the course of the past seven years, we have witnessed an administration completely out of control and outside the bounds of law. From a war of aggression launched on totally fabricated pretenses to rendition and illegal detention, unilateral suspension of Habeas Corpus, a clearly illegal Pentagon Propaganda campaign, nullifying legislation with the stroke of a pen and proceeding to violate that legislation, illegally spying on American citizens, suppressing or altering scientific reports, hiring and firing government employees for political reasons, and stonewalling investigations—including refusing Congressional subpoenas, Bush, Cheney et. al. have repeatedly thumbed their noses at the very core of our constitutional democracy. Under your watch, our nation has moved into the ranks of the fascist regimes we have rightly vilified throughout our history.

And yet, Congress, with few exceptions you do nothing.

It is time for that to change. Failing to exercise your Constitutional obligation to be a check against the illicit powers claimed by the Executive Branch and defending the Constitution from all enemies, foreign and domestic is an egregious breech of your oath of office. Unless you act, you are culpable for all the transgressions of this lawless regime.

We, The People want and deserve accountability from our government. We want accountability from the President and Vice President. We want accountability from the Attorney General. We want accountability from the Speaker of the House. We want accountability from the Chair of the House Judiciary Committee who is sitting on Articles of Impeachment detailing the numerous “high crimes and misdemeanors” committed by this Executive Branch. We want accountability from the elected “public servants” in both chambers of Congress and on both sides of the aisle.

And we want it now!