1/24/07: With approval ratings that would make Nixon blush, George
Bush set out to give his State of the Union address to a country that stands on
the verge. With disapproval ratings
nearing 70 percent, even Bush had to admit that the country is divided. But this hasn’t stopped him from pushing
ahead with the dangerous direction he is taking the world.
Bush has just escalated his unjust war on Iraq. He
wants to add 92,000 people to the military, and this is probably not so they
can experience fun, travel, and adventure.
He took time in his speech to put Iran on notice that they can“t get nuclear
weapons. Keep in mind that he has a
habit of bombing countries that he calls out in this way.
Bush spent
most of his speech laying out his domestic agenda, attempting to play it safe
and get some support for “bread and butter” issues (a strategy not so different
than the Democratic Party’s “first 100 hours”, which didn’t address the war or
torture, and kept impeachment “off the table”).
But Bush’s domestic agenda over the last 6 years has been nothing but
havoc for the people in this country.
Thousands of
people were left to die when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, and the survivors have been
dispersed throughout the country and left to fend for themselves. Social programs that many people rely on for survival
have been cut, and Bush’s talk of balancing the budget will likely mean more of
this, with more disastrous consequences.
Bush has increasingly replaced the social safety net with
“faith-based initiatives”, in which people are forced indoctrination
with Christian fundamentalist “values” to get any much needed
aid. The No Child Left Behind Act, which
Bush asked be renewed, is a prime example, where public schools, especially in
the inner cities, are left to rot, and federal money goes instead to private,
and mostly Christian fundamentalist, schools.
Bush’s
proposed immigration plan, presented in the name of “protecting us”
from terrorism, will mean a further militarization of the US-Mexico border,
with double the amount of border patrol agents, which will only result in more
immigrant deaths. Moreover, the
“guest worker program” Bush proposes would institutionalize second-class
citizenship for immigrant workers, and keep them under tight government
scrutiny (by a government that has massively spied on the people, legalized
torture, and indefinitely detains people on the president’s say-so).
In short, and
even if there’s a slight increase in minimum wage or health care coverage, the
Bush regime is remaking society in a fascist way, and only intends to push this
further ahead in the next two years.
This cannot be conciliated with, but must be stopped by the actions of
the millions of us who cannot tolerate a society ruled this way.
Try as he
might, Bush couldn’t avoid the elephant in the room: the war in Iraq. Millions of people in this country detest
this war. In the halls of power, many in
the political and military leadership are expressing grave concern that
continuing on Bush’s path could unravel the US
military and weaken American domination of the Middle East.
In his
address, Bush argued that:
Many in this Chamber understand that America
must not fail in Iraq
– because you understand that the consequences of failure would be grievous and
far reaching”
And whatever you voted for, you did not vote for failure. Our country
is pursuing a new strategy in Iraq
– and I ask you to give it a chance to work. And I ask you to support our
troops in the field – and those on their way”
The war on terror we fight today is a generational struggle that will
continue long after you and I have turned our duties over to others. That is
why it is important to work together so our Nation can see this great effort
through.
Here, Bush is arguing from the interests of empire, telling the
Democrats “we”re in this together”, and asking the American people to go along.
Bush and the neo-cons in his
administration are seeking to put down by force any threats (whether they are terrorists
or not) to their control of the Middle East. And this “war on terror” has been waged by launching
preemptive unjust wars and murdering hundreds of thousands of people in the Middle East.
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Mismanagement?
Or War Crimes? Watch the Bush Crimes Commission DVD to get the evidence: |
(Click here to order)Senator Jim Webb, who gave the Democratic Party response to Bush’s address, argued
from the same terms and interests as Bush while making sharp criticisms of the
handling of the war on Iraq.
Just read what he said:
“this country has
patiently endured a mismanaged war for nearly four years
The war’s costs to
our nation have been staggering. Financially. The damage to our reputation
around the world. The lost opportunities to defeat the forces of international
terrorism. And especially the precious blood of our citizens who have stepped
forward to serve.
The majority of the
nation no longer supports the way this war is being fought; nor does the
majority of our military. We need a new direction. Not one step back from the
war against international terrorism. Not a precipitous withdrawal that ignores
the possibility of further chaos. But an immediate shift toward strong regionally-based
diplomacy, a policy that takes our soldiers off the streets of Iraq’s cities, and a formula that will in short
order allow our combat forces to leave Iraq.
Think long
and hard about what Webb is actually saying here. Our
problem with the Iraq was is not that it is “mismanaged” – this was and is an
unjust war, and war crimes – from torture, the use of chemical weapons, murder
of civilians, destruction of infrastructure, etc. – are being carried out on a
massive scale. To talk about the war’s “costs
to our nation” without so much as mentioning the incredible suffering the Iraqi
people are facing is downright criminal.
We don’t need a “new direction” in the way Webb is talking about it – we
need an end to this war.
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The only
appropriate response to Bush’s latest request for our support is to say NO. This regime does not represent us. And we will drive it from power. Especially in the face of an escalation of the
war and the threat of a war with Iran, it is unacceptable for anyone
who is opposed to what Bush is doing to carry on with life as normal. It’s not enough if you yelled at the TV
Tuesday night. It’s time to act, and to
challenge everyone else who hates what’s going on to act.
Start by
coming to Washington, DC this Saturday, Jan. 27th, to
protest against this unjust war. But don’t
stop there. We have to be on a mission
to stop this war and drive out this regime.
Anything less would be allowing everything Bush is doing to continue for
two more years and then get carried out by another president after that. Is that something you can live with?