A Felon for Peace

She’s just off the plane from Tulsa, Oklahoma, the cheapest route back from a reunion in the little Arkansas town where she grew up in the 1950s. For thirty years, she and her childhood friends have climbed to the top of Penitentiary Mountain, where the local persimmon trees grow, for a persimmon-spitting contest. (“All in … Continue reading “A Felon for Peace”

Who Had the Real Intel on the War

This is the second of two pieces dedicated to shame and honor in the Bush era. The first was “The Wall of Shame.” On Nov. 2, 2005, I found myself in a familiar situation – at a protest. This time, it was the New York version of the World Can’t Wait nationwide protest on the … Continue reading “Who Had the Real Intel on the War”

The Wall of Shame

[Three weeks ago, Nick Turse wrote a dispatch, “Casualties of the Bush Administration," about government officials who resigned or retired in protest, or were forced over a cliff by this administration. It was, in essence, a proposal for a Wall of Honor. At the time, we realized that it should be accompanied by a Wall … Continue reading “The Wall of Shame”

Bush’s Bad Business Empire

The Bush administration, with its crony corporations in tow, essentially sallied forth into the world with the collective mentality of a plunderer, ready to strip mine the planet. While its plans for global – and energy – domination (as well as the military conquest of space) have been aimed at forever, its business plans seemed … Continue reading “Bush’s Bad Business Empire”

The Forgotten War in Maysan Province

Since Guardian correspondent Rory Carroll was briefly kidnapped in Baghdad and the paper recalled its reporters while it reviewed the situation, there has a lively debate in the English press about the nature and limits of Western reporting in Iraq. Carroll himself, since being freed, has insisted that Iraq remains a story more capable of … Continue reading “The Forgotten War in Maysan Province”

So Much for Strict Construction

Here is the key passage in Senator John McCain’s anti-torture amendment to the 2006 Defense Appropriations Bill (which the Bush administration has threatened to veto if it arrives so amended): “No individual in the custody or under the physical control of the United States government, regardless of nationality or physical location, shall be subject to … Continue reading “So Much for Strict Construction”

The Tip of the Criminal Conspiracy

I. Lewis (“Scooter”) Libby, immediately praised by the president (“Scooter has worked tirelessly on behalf of the American people and sacrificed much in the service to this country”), his resignation accepted with “deep regret” by the vice president (“He has given many years of his life to public service and has served our nation tirelessly … Continue reading “The Tip of the Criminal Conspiracy”

Smoking Guns and Red Herrings

Implosion update: And so they fall: Tom DeLay just weeks back. Harriet Miers yesterday. I. Lewis (“Scooter”) Libby today. Prepare yourself. It’s going to be a long, hard dive into deep waters that should, sooner or later, lead us back to the beginning. Think of Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald’s indictment of the Vice President’s Chief … Continue reading “Smoking Guns and Red Herrings”

Bush’s October Surprise

Those in the anti-fascist struggle of the 1930s who went off to fight in the Spanish Civil War were later termed “premature antifascists.” Perhaps, in the same spirit, I might be considered a premature Bush-administration implodist. On Feb. 1, 2004, reviewing the week just passed, I imagined us trapped in “some new reality show in … Continue reading “Bush’s October Surprise”

Putting the Plame Case in Perspective

As many now know, Patrick Fitzgerald, the special counsel in the Plame case, set up an official Web site last week. Something tells me he isn’t planning on going anywhere soon. While we await the indictments to come, consider the strange history of the 1982 CIA shield law that triggered the process (as Steve Weissman … Continue reading “Putting the Plame Case in Perspective”