All Things Reconsidered
December 15, 2003
by Alexander Washburn

Think Before You Act

Democrats, labor unions, billionaires and publications like The Nation are all foaming at the mouth over the prospect of stopping President Bush in the 2004 Presidential election. Of course these folks have a strong case against Bush. The President’s unilateral war has made America feel as about as welcome on the international stage as Michael Jackson at a Chuck E. Cheese.

Forget what you’ve read about the success of Bush’s trip to the United Kingdom. This White House has somehow led the American press corps to believe that if a Presidential protest doesn’t attract over 10,000 protesters, it doesn’t really count as a protest and therefore shouldn’t be covered by the media. The only reason the White House labeled the London trip a success was, as Newsweek reported, Bush unlike his other foreign trips to Australia and Thailand avoided “contact with foreigners.” Bush cited security reasons as the reason he wouldn’t speak to Parliament – side stepping the fact that Parliament can be a very raucous bunch as evidenced by anyone who has ever seen the airing of the Prime Minister Questions on C-Span. According to this White House – flying into Baghdad on Thanksgiving is safer than talking to the only legislative body outside of the U.S. Congress to side with America on the war in Iraq.

The President’s unilateral war is also coupled with Bush’s made-for-TV-commercial ‘mission accomplished’ aircraft carrier press conference which was the most presumptuous Bush has been since he declared himself President before all the votes were counted. Like his talk that tax cuts for the rich will spur the economy, Bush’s ‘mission accomplished’ rhetoric was just that – rhetoric. It hasn’t prevented hundreds of American servicemen and women from dying brutal and unnecessary deaths. In November, more troops died in Iraq than in any month since the war began in March. In total, 104 American men and women died in Iraq. This is exactly what the President should’ve expected when he answered the question of what would the country do in the face of increased attacks by saying “bring ‘em on.” The Iraqis are certainly bringing it and it’s not only the Sunni’s that are bringing it. According to the Boston Globe: “The guerilla war in Iraq has moved steadily beyond the so-called Sunni Triangle and into areas of the country once considered peaceful... Since the end of major combat operations on May 1, nearly 40 percent of attacks on US and coalition targets have been outside the Sunni Triangle.”

Anthony Zinni, who was Bush’s special envoy to the Israel/Palestinian negotiations, was asked whether Iraq is likely to become a democracy. Zinni told the Bush administration and anyone else who cared to listen the following: “If we think there is a fast solution to changing the governance of Iraq, then we don’t understand history, the nature of the country, the divisions or the underneath suppressed passions that could rise up. If you think it’s going to be easy to improve a government or to install one from the outside, I think that you’ll be sadly mistaken.” As usual for this White House, Zinni was promptly taken off the White House Christmas card list and discredited, less than a year after being praised by this same very group.

Those worrying about Afghanistan need not to, for as Senator John Kerry would say, we’re fucking that up as well. Not only do we have fewer troops in Afghanistan, which is 50 percent larger than Iraq but also the Taliban is slowly inching its way back into power. US forces are already stretched razor thin and the result in Afghanistan, the only country outside of Saudi Arabia, that we know had a role in 9/11, violence and unrest have taken the country over. Even the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy reveals that poppy production is on the rise in Afghanistan, increasing 36 fold over 2001. For those scoring at home, sales of poppy were the chief source of income for the Taliban.

Just like the War on Terrorism is now an after-thought so is Bush’s domestic policy. Unemployment, nationwide still standing at 6 percent, has taken its toll on state budgets across the country. Take a look at some of the budget deficits facing the states. California, who already made two big mistakes this year: recalling Davis and electing Arnold, faces a budget shortfall of $17.6 billion. New York faces a $5.5 billion dollar hole. New Jersey and Illinois are respectively $4 and $3.2 billion in the red. Add to that list: Arizona, Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Missouri that are all facing billion-dollar deficits. Blame this on the states you say? No! The United Auto Workers union recently released a report that lays most of the blame on the federal government for not paying their fair share of funding for the costly Bush mandated programs such as the ‘No Child Left Behind’ education act, new election reform law, Medicaid, welfare and homeland security.

Budget cuts are forcing states to cut back in the wrong places. In Alabama, Governor Bob Riley tried to shift the tax burden by raising taxes on wealthy corporations and the voters promptly defeated it. While some people I know believe this is a sign that Alabama is “backward” I find as a sign of Alabama protecting what little they have. Exactly what are corporations going to do with increased taxes? Accept it? Or eliminate the very few jobs the corporations are maintaining and producing? In other cost saving measures, Alabama has suspended jury trials and is set to release 5,000-6,000 prisoners early. Oregon, which has the highest unemployment in the nation and facing an $800 million budget hole. The voters also rejected the tax shift (guess that makes the folks in Eugene backward too) and they’ve resorted to closing the courthouses one day a week and had to postpone criminal proceedings. This rollback in the criminal justice system is going on nationwide. The COPS program the Clinton-era policy that placed thousands of new police officers on the street and led to the drastic drop in crime in the 1990’s, is on the chopping block because local governments cannot afford to keep the officers on the street. Just in case people forgot, crime normally goes up, not down in times of economic turmoil. It’s no wonder that homicides, rapes, and burglaries are on the rise nationally over the last two years. That whole thing about the GOP being fiscally responsible and tough on crime has gone out the window.

Onward Dasher

Al Gore can’t stand to be out of the news cycle. Every couple of months there’s Al Gore – teaching at Harvard, growing a beard, starting a liberal radio station. Since 2000, Gore has been basically acting like a disaffected Gen X’er drifting from job to job. The only thing missing is Gore sleeping on his parent’s couch in Carthage. Thinking that we’d at least see the end of the year without Gore again like clockwork he turns up on the news. And in Harlem no less.

ATR already had to deal with Clinton coming uptown and like the pain-in-the-ass little brother who has to do everything his cooler older brother does, here comes Gore slepping his way up 125th Street. This, the man who wanted to eliminate affirmative action, who voted for tax breaks for Bob Jones University, who gave overwhelming support to the sham Washington called welfare reform. This man is coming to Harlem. Hey Al, you already fucked us there’s no need for a kiss.

Like it matters, Al Gore gave his endorsement to Howard Dean. Dean who is running the best campaign on the primary season (with Gephardt closely behind) doesn’t need whatever Al Gore is selling. Perhaps Gore can quell some of the wrongheaded fears the African-American community has had about Dean. However, with a rising heavyweight star like Jesse Jackson Jr. in his corner, Dean already has the voice of the future, and thus no need to reach into the past. Howard Dean represents everything that Al Gore is not. Dean is an intellectual that actually cares. Al Gore is a career politician, who long forgotten what he once cared and stood for. Howard Dean represents the courage to stand for what you believe in regardless of whether it’s smart or safe politically. Somehow that type of moxie doesn’t jive very well with a man who repeatedly uttered “no controlling legal authority.” The Dean campaign is bringing back people who were left out in the cold by the Al Gore-led Democratic Party. The same Democrats Al Gore didn’t speak for when he ran for President. The same Democrats he demagogued Bill Bradley for wanting to help.

The image of Howard Dean kissing the ring of an irrelevant Vice President won’t hurt his campaign. Nor will the recent chatter about his sealed records that the Republicans want open so badly you’d think he had weapons of mass destruction hidden in them. But the image of Howard Dean calling together a new day for the Democratic Party has been killed in the head of this progressive. Al Gore is truly the dasher of dreams.

A Good Time Was Had By All

This will be the last ‘All Things Reconsidered’ column written by me for 2 Walls Webzine. It has been a great year and I have to thank the editor who judging by some of the things I wrote in this space over the last 12 months, either doesn’t read the column before its posted or has a great lawyer. Whatever the case a special shout-out has to go to Mr. Walls for not only producing a fabulous website but for giving a budding writer like myself the opportunity to write, learn and grow. For those worried about my wise-ass voice disappearing forever on this URL, no worries, you can still read my music column 'Radar Screen' as well as assorted rumblings about the New York Mets and music reviews here on 2 Walls Webzine for hopefully years to come.

(Alexander Washburn is a volunteer staff writer for 2 Walls Webzine.)