Chicago

I came back home from Chicago today after a great 4 days in the Windy City.  This was my second time to visit the shores of Lake Michigan and I was reminded again that Chicago is a great city.  For me, it ranks up there with New York, Washington D.C., and San Francisco as my favorite American cities.  After my trip this week I am more fascinated by Chicago than ever.  In honor of the great time I had, here are Carl Sandburg's immortal words:

Hog Butcher for the World

Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat

Player with Railroads and the Nation's Freight Handler;

Stormy, husky, brawling,

City of the Big Shoulders:

They tell me you are are wicked and I believe them, for I have seen your painted women under the gas lamps luring the farm boys.

And they tell my you are crooked and I answer: Yes it is true I have seen the gunmen kill and go free to kill again.

And they tell me you are brutal and my reply is: On the faces of the women and children I have seen the marks of wanton hunger.

And having answered so I turn once more to those who sneer at this my city, and I give them back the sneer and say to them:

Come and show me another city with lifted head singing so proud to be alive and course and strong and cunning.

Flinging magnetic curses amid the toil of piling job on job, here is a tall bold slugger set vivid against the soft little cities;

Fierce as a dog lapping for action, cunning as a savage pitted against the wilderness,

Bareheaded,

Shoveling,

Wrecking,

Planning,

Building, breaking, rebuilding,

Under the smoke, dust all over his mouth, laughing with withe teeth,

Under the terrible burden of destiny laughing as a young man laughs,

Laughing even as an ignorant fighter laughs who has never lost a fight,

Bragging and laughing that under his wrist is the pulse, and under his ribs is the heart of the people, Laughing!

Laughing the stormy, husky, brawling laughter of Youth, half-naked, sweating proud to be Hog Butcher, Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat, Player with Railroads and Freight Handler to the Nation.

Vacation

I am going to Chicago for a few days and will not be posting.  Be good this week and I will post again in a few days.

The End of this Affair

Back in late November Conservative MP Damian Green was arrested in an investigation into leaks of government secrets.  Recently prosecutors announced the Mr. Green will not face any charges in the matter.

The ending to this affair is a major embarrassment for a lot of people.  Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, continues to face questions about her job performance and about the relationship between the Home Office and police officials.  As polls continue to indicate that Labour is getting ready to drive off an electoral cliff it continually appears that the Home Secretary is helping to steer the party into oblivion.

Scotland Yard continues to reel.  The Green affair and accusations of misconduct and abuse towards protesters at the G20 summit continue to put the police under a harsh light.  Some serious reform might be in order for Scotland Yard.

Speaker Michael Martin and House of Commons staff also do not come of well because they did not do a good job protecting the rights of Parliament or MPs.  One of the main jobs of the Speaker is to protect the privileges of  the Commons and its members.  There is some question about whether the Speaker will stand at the next election.  This episode may sway his mind towards standing down.

Damien Green the Tory MP whose arrest started this whole affair perhaps summed it up best when he said "I cannot think of a better symbol of an out of touch, authoritarian, failing government that has been in power for for too long."  That is why it looks like there will be sweeping changes next spring.

 

Iraq Torture Question

Given the revelation that torture lies behind the attempts to justify the Iraq War, is it possible for anyone to continue to try to justify the war?

All wars, even "good wars" like World War 2, damage a nation's soul.  An unnecessary war with torture behind its justification just may lead to the shattering of our country's soul.  That is way we need to strictly and completely adhere to the terms of the Status of Force Agreement and have all of our soldiers out of Iraq by 2011.

What a Wonderful World

Spring has come to Red Oak and The Backbencher celebrates with the great Satchmo.

Double Standards

In the torture memo dated May 10, 2005 Steven Bradbury noted that the "United States condemns coercive interrogation techniques and other practices employed by other countries.  Certain of the techniques the United States has condemned bare some resemblance to some of the CIA interrogation techniques."  In other words its okay when we torture by not when countries we despise do it.  This attitude is on display when President Obama and other leading administration officials declare their intention to look forward, and say they are not seeking to prosecute those involved in torture.

This week U.S. officials began deportation proceedings against John Demanjanjuk.  Demanjanjuk is an 89 year old retired auto worker who immigrated to the U.S. in 1951.  U.S. officials are seeking to deport him to Germany so that German authorities can prosecute him for being a concentration camp guard responsible for the deaths of 29,000 people at the Sobibor extermination camp.  

The United States government correctly views the Holocaust as being such a monstrous evil that it still works to bring forth any small measure of justice it can; even if it is 64 years after World War II ended.  However, it refuses to consider looking back 4 years to its own torture program and  prosecuting the government officials who participated.  Instead, government officials turn a blind eye and speak about "looking forward."

The double standard is shocking, disturbing and a little scary.  

Backbencher of the Week

Over at Balloon-Juice I came across this post about Rep. Eric Massa(D-NY-29).  The short version is Time-Warner was going to start consumption billing in the Rochester, New York area.  DougJ, a blogger at Balloon Juice, asked his local congressmen to help.  Rep. Massa responded at a town hall that he was willing to put the "full force of his incumbency and all the risk associated with that behind stopping this very, very ill-thought decision by Time Warner."  Watch Congressman Massa's statement at the link.  The end result was that Time Warner decided to scrap the plan 

It is important to recognize anytime a congressman sides with his constituents over one of the business lobbies whose money fuels the political system.  We thank Balloon-Juice for the post, and thank you to Rep. Eric Massa for standing up for his constituents when the money play was to side with Time Warner.  Congratulation Rep. Massa for being Backbencher of the Week